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Developer Tools · head to head

GitHub Desktop vs Heroku

GitHub Desktop logo

GitHub Desktop

Developer Tools

A free, open source Git client from GitHub for Windows and macOS that covers common workflows rather than all of Git.

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit GitHub DesktopFull review
Heroku logo

Heroku

Cloud

Cloud Application Platform

From
$5/month
Free plan
No
Visit HerokuFull review

The short version

  • Heroku is a cloud platform as a service.
  • GitHub Desktop is free; Heroku starts at $5/mo.
  • Only GitHub Desktop lists line-level staging; only Heroku lists git-based deployment.
  • Where Heroku falls short: there is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 13 November 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which GitHub Desktop and Heroku actually diverge.

Attributes where GitHub Desktop and Heroku differ
AttributeGitHub DesktopHeroku
Starting priceFree$5/month
Pricing modelFreeSubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, macOSWeb, API, Workers
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCloud
Founded20082007

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 GitHub Desktop

  • Line-level staging
  • Branch and merge UI
  • Pull request integration
  • Enterprise authentication
  • Squash and reorder
  • Drag cherry-pick
  • Co-author attribution
  • Editor and shell handoff

Only in Heroku

  • Git-based deployment
  • Buildpacks
  • Dynos (containers)
  • Add-ons marketplace
  • Postgres database
  • Environment variables
  • Logging
  • API

What people use each for

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

GitHub Desktop

  • Onboarding designers or technical writers who need to commit to a docs or assets repository without learning the command linenot Heroku
  • A new engineer's first weeks, where seeing the diff and the branch state visually prevents the common early mistakesnot Heroku
  • Reviewing a colleague's pull request branch locally with a readable diff before approving itnot Heroku
  • Small teams standardised entirely on GitHub who want SSO-backed authentication to work without managing personal access tokens by handnot Heroku

Heroku

  • Application hostingnot GitHub Desktop
  • Database as a servicenot GitHub Desktop
  • CI/CD pipelinesnot GitHub Desktop
  • API deploymentnot GitHub Desktop

Where each one falls short

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

GitHub Desktop

  • There is no official Linux build; the application ships for Windows and macOS only, and the community fork at shiftkey/desktop that packages it for Linux is maintained separately and lags official releases, so a mixed-OS team cannot standardise on one client
  • Submodules are effectively unsupported: the app shows a submodule change as an opaque single line and gives you no way to initialise, update or navigate into it, so any repository using them needs the terminal anyway
  • History rewriting is limited to squashing and reordering local commits by drag and drop; interactive rebase, fixup chains, editing an old commit's contents and bisect are all absent, which is exactly the set of operations a beginner needs help with most
  • Pull request features only exist for GitHub remotes, so a team on GitLab or Bitbucket gets a plain Git client with an empty pull request pane and no review or checks view at all
  • Commit signing with a key that requires a passphrase generally fails, because the app cannot surface the pinentry prompt, and the resulting error message does not say that is the cause
  • GitHub staffs it lightly compared with its web and CI products, so long-standing feature requests and bugs sit open for years; if you file an issue you should plan around it rather than expect a fix

Heroku

  • There is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month
  • Eco dynos sleep after 30 minutes of inactivity, are restricted to personal accounts and allow only 2 process types
  • Free SSL and 10 process types start at the Basic dyno at $7 per month
  • Private and Shield dyno types require a Private Space, which is billed on top of the dynos
  • Private Space dynos start at $250 per month for Private-M and $500 per month for Private-L
  • Dyno prices are per dyno per month, so an app with several process types multiplies the bill

Pricing, plan by plan

GitHub Desktop

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Git repository management
    • GitHub integration
    • Visual diff tools

Heroku

$5/month
  • Eco Dyno$5/mo
    • 0.5 GB RAM
    • Git/Docker deploy
    • Custom domains
  • Basic Dyno$7/mo
    • 0.5 GB RAM
    • Always-on
    • Free SSL
  • Standard-1X Dyno$25/mo
    • 0.5 GB RAM
    • Horizontal scaling
    • App metrics
  • Standard-2X Dyno$50/mo
    • 1 GB RAM
    • Horizontal scaling
    • App metrics

Which should you pick?

Choose GitHub Desktop if

  • You need line-level staging.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS.
  • You also want branch and merge ui.
GitHub Desktop review

Choose Heroku if

  • You need git-based deployment.
  • You work on Web, API, Workers.
  • You also want buildpacks.
Heroku review

Questions people ask

Is GitHub Desktop or Heroku better?
Neither clearly leads. GitHub Desktop starts at Free and Heroku at $5/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, GitHub Desktop or Heroku?
GitHub Desktop has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for GitHub Desktop and $5/month for Heroku.
Does GitHub Desktop or Heroku run on more platforms?
GitHub Desktop runs on Windows, macOS. Heroku runs on Web, API, Workers.
Can I use GitHub Desktop for free?
Yes. GitHub Desktop has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heroku starts at $5/month.
What is GitHub Desktop best used for?
GitHub Desktop is most often used for onboarding designers or technical writers who need to commit to a docs or assets repository without learning the command line, a new engineer's first weeks, where seeing the diff and the branch state visually prevents the common early mistakes, reviewing a colleague's pull request branch locally with a readable diff before approving it, small teams standardised entirely on github who want sso-backed authentication to work without managing personal access tokens by hand. Of those, onboarding designers or technical writers who need to commit to a docs or assets repository without learning the command line and a new engineer's first weeks, where seeing the diff and the branch state visually prevents the common early mistakes are not what Heroku is typically brought in for.
What can GitHub Desktop do that Heroku cannot?
GitHub Desktop covers Line-level staging, Branch and merge UI, Pull request integration, Enterprise authentication. Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Buildpacks, Dynos (containers), Add-ons marketplace.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

GitHub Desktop: Is there a Linux version?

Not an official one. GitHub ships Windows and macOS builds only. A community fork, shiftkey/desktop, produces Linux packages, but it is maintained by volunteers and trails the official releases.

Heroku: How much does Heroku cost?

Heroku dyno pricing starts at $5 per month USD for the Eco tier (with 30-minute inactivity sleep), $7 per month for Basic (always-on), and scales up to $1,500 per month for Performance-2XL with 126 GB RAM.

Source
GitHub Desktop: Does it work with GitLab or Bitbucket?

For plain Git operations, yes: you can clone, commit, push and pull against any remote. The pull request, review and checks features only work against GitHub.com and GitHub Enterprise.

Heroku: What is the cheapest always-on Heroku plan?

The Basic Dyno at $7 per month USD is Heroku's cheapest always-on container option. It provides 0.5 GB RAM, free SSL, and support for 10 process types.

Source
GitHub Desktop: What does it cost?

Nothing. It is free and the source is published under the MIT licence, and it is separate from any GitHub plan you may or may not pay for.

Heroku: How is Heroku Postgres priced?

Heroku Postgres Essential tier (shared resources) starts at $5-$20 per month for 1-32 GB disk. Standard tier (dedicated) ranges $50-$12,000 per month. Premium, Private, Shield, and Advanced tiers offer higher performance at corresponding prices.

Source
GitHub Desktop: Will it handle submodules?

No. Submodule changes appear as an unreadable single-line diff and there are no controls for initialising or updating them. Repositories that use submodules need the command line.

GitHub Desktop: Do I still need to learn Git?

For everyday work, no. For recovery, yes. Anything beyond the curated set of operations, including interactive rebase and reflog recovery, happens in the terminal, so a team using it should have at least one person who knows Git properly.

GitHub Desktop: Does it work with GitHub Enterprise Server?

Yes. It signs in to GitHub Enterprise Server and GitHub Enterprise Cloud as well as GitHub.com, and it honours organisations that enforce SAML single sign-on.

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