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Cloud · head to head

Dokku vs Porter

Dokku logo

Dokku

Cloud

Single-server platform that accepts a git push and runs Heroku buildpacks on Docker

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Porter logo

Porter

Cloud

Effortless app infrastructure, your own cloud

From
$6/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Dokku has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Dokku one maintainer accounts for nearly all human commit activity and the project records roughly 10,500 US dollars of annual income on Open Collective, which is not enough to fund a maintainer, so continuity rests on one person continuing to volunteer.; Porter pricing based on vCPU and memory can be expensive for small projects
  • They diverge on capability: Dokku covers Git push deploy, Porter covers Rapid deployment.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Dokku and Porter actually diverge.

Attributes where Dokku and Porter differ
AttributeDokkuPorter
Starting priceFree$6/month
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Docker, CLI, Self-hostedAWS, GCP, Azure

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Dokku

  • Git push deploy
  • Heroku buildpacks
  • Datastore plugins
  • Automatic certificates
  • Zero downtime deploys
  • Pluggable schedulers

Only in Porter

  • Rapid deployment
  • Multi-cloud support
  • Framework agnostic
  • DevOps automation
  • Enterprise compliance
  • Cost optimization

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Dokku

  • Running a dozen side projects and client applications on one virtual private server with Heroku style deploymentnot Porter
  • Moving off a managed platform when the monthly bill has grown faster than the traffic hasnot Porter
  • A consultancy that wants buildpack deployments without teaching every client team Kubernetesnot Porter
  • Keeping a legacy Procfile application alive on hardware you control after a managed platform deprecates its stacknot Porter

Porter

  • Deploying Next.js applications with serverless backendsnot Dokku
  • Scaling microservices across multiple cloud providersnot Dokku
  • Running applications without dedicated DevOps staffnot Dokku

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Dokku

  • One maintainer accounts for nearly all human commit activity and the project records roughly 10,500 US dollars of annual income on Open Collective, which is not enough to fund a maintainer, so continuity rests on one person continuing to volunteer.
  • Dokku Pro asks 849 US dollars for a lifetime licence from a project with no disclosed legal entity behind the promise and no published refund terms, while the product is still described as in development at early bird pricing.
  • Dokku is single-server by design, and the k3s scheduler that provides multi-node support is missing log retrieval, process inspection and content-based health checks, with a post-run hook the documentation says does not consistently fire.
  • Supported operating systems are limited to Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04 and Debian 11 or later, so organisations standardised on Red Hat, Rocky or Alma Linux cannot run it on their approved base image.
  • Backups are separate commands per datastore plugin that you schedule yourself, with no unified snapshot, no point-in-time recovery and no tested restore path, so verifying that a restore works is entirely your responsibility.

Porter

  • Pricing based on vCPU and memory can be expensive for small projects
  • Vendor lock-in to Porter platform despite multi-cloud support
  • Limited customization for complex infrastructure requirements

Pricing, plan by plan

Dokku

Free
  • DokkuFree
    • MIT licensed, no usage limits
    • Command line and SSH only
    • All datastore and certificate plugins
  • Dokku Pro$849/one-time
    • Lifetime licence with free upgrades and no subscription
    • Covers 1 production and 2 pre-production servers
    • Web dashboard and JSON REST API

Porter

$6/month
  • Standard$undefined/usage
    • RAM: $6 per month per GB
    • vCPU: $13 per month per vCPU
    • Unlimited applications
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • Volume discounts available
    • All Standard features
    • Premium support

Which should you pick?

Choose Dokku if

  • You need git push deploy.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hosted.
  • You also want heroku buildpacks.
Dokku review

Choose Porter if

  • You need rapid deployment.
  • You work on AWS, GCP, Azure.
  • You also want multi-cloud support.
Porter review

Questions people ask

Is Dokku or Porter better?
Neither clearly leads. Dokku starts at Free and Porter at $6/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Dokku or Porter?
Dokku has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Dokku and $6/month for Porter.
Does Dokku or Porter run on more platforms?
Dokku runs on Linux, Docker, CLI, Self-hosted. Porter runs on AWS, GCP, Azure.
Can I use Dokku for free?
Yes. Dokku has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Porter starts at $6/month.
What is Dokku best used for?
Dokku is most often used for running a dozen side projects and client applications on one virtual private server with heroku style deployment, moving off a managed platform when the monthly bill has grown faster than the traffic has, a consultancy that wants buildpack deployments without teaching every client team kubernetes, keeping a legacy procfile application alive on hardware you control after a managed platform deprecates its stack. Of those, running a dozen side projects and client applications on one virtual private server with heroku style deployment and moving off a managed platform when the monthly bill has grown faster than the traffic has are not what Porter is typically brought in for.
What can Dokku do that Porter cannot?
Dokku covers Git push deploy, Heroku buildpacks, Datastore plugins, Automatic certificates. Porter covers Rapid deployment, Multi-cloud support, Framework agnostic, DevOps automation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Dokku: Is Dokku still maintained?

Yes. Version 0.38.27 shipped in August 2026 with roughly six releases in the preceding two months. The caveat is that one maintainer writes nearly all of it.

Porter: How is Porter priced?

Porter uses pay-as-you-go pricing: $6 per month per GB of RAM and $13 per month per vCPU. You only pay for the resources your applications use, not cloud instance capacity.

Source
Dokku: What does Dokku Pro give me over the free edition?

A web dashboard, a JSON REST API, git push over HTTPS, browser log tailing, team management and email support from the maintainers. It costs 849 US dollars once for one production and two pre-production servers.

Porter: Does Porter include cloud provider costs?

Porter pricing excludes underlying cloud provider costs (AWS, Azure, GCP), though cloud credits can offset those expenses.

Source
Dokku: Can Dokku run across multiple servers?

Only through the k3s or Nomad schedulers. The k3s path is missing several commands and health check types, and the older Kubernetes scheduler is deprecated and no longer developed.

Porter: Do startups get special pricing?

Yes, nonprofits receive 50% off standard rates, and startups may qualify for special pricing programs.

Source
Dokku: Will my Heroku application run on it unchanged?

Usually. Dokku runs the same buildpacks and reads a Procfile, so the application layer normally moves across. Add-ons, scaling behaviour and backups are the parts you have to rebuild.

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