Softwr

Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head

Heroku vs Laravel

Heroku logo

Heroku

Cloud & Infrastructure

Cloud Application Platform

From
$7/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Laravel logo

Laravel

Web Development

The PHP framework for web artisans

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Laravel has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Heroku there is no free dyno tier; the cheapest Eco dyno is $5 per month; Laravel performance overhead from abstractions, middleware pipeline, and multiple layers can slow applications compared to minimal frameworks
  • They diverge on capability: Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Laravel covers Eloquent ORM.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Heroku and Laravel actually diverge.

Attributes where Heroku and Laravel differ
AttributeHerokuLaravel
Starting price$7/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Api, WorkersWeb, CLI
CategoryCloud & InfrastructureWeb Development
Founded20072011

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

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 Heroku

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

Only in Laravel

  • Eloquent ORM
  • Artisan CLI
  • Blade templating
  • Middleware
  • Authentication
  • Caching
  • Queue system
  • Event broadcasting

What people use each for

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

Heroku

  • Deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administrationnot Laravel
  • Running managed Postgres, Redis and Kafka as attached data servicesnot Laravel
  • Isolated production environments in a Private Space for regulated workloadsnot Laravel

Laravel

  • Web application developmentnot Heroku
  • API developmentnot Heroku
  • E-commerce platformsnot Heroku
  • Content managementnot Heroku
  • Enterprise applicationsnot Heroku

Where each one falls short

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

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

Laravel

  • Performance overhead from abstractions, middleware pipeline, and multiple layers can slow applications compared to minimal frameworks
  • Dependency management is complex with many interdependent packages requiring careful version coordination

Pricing, plan by plan

Heroku

$7/month
  • Hobby$7/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Shared CPU
    • 1 web dyno
  • Standard$50/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • Dedicated CPU
    • Automatic scaling

Laravel

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Full framework
    • Artisan CLI
    • Eloquent ORM
  • Laravel Forge$12/month
    • Server management
    • Deployment automation
    • SSL certificates
  • Laravel Vapor$39/month
    • Serverless deployment
    • Auto-scaling
    • AWS integration

Which should you pick?

Choose Heroku if

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

Choose Laravel if

  • You need eloquent orm.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, CLI.
  • You also want artisan cli.
Laravel review

Questions people ask

Is Heroku or Laravel better?
Neither clearly leads. Heroku starts at $7/month and Laravel at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Heroku or Laravel?
Laravel has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $7/month for Heroku and Free for Laravel.
Does Heroku or Laravel run on more platforms?
Heroku runs on Web, Api, Workers. Laravel runs on Web, CLI.
Can I use Laravel for free?
Yes. Laravel has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Heroku starts at $7/month.
What is Heroku best used for?
Heroku is most often used for deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration, running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services, isolated production environments in a private space for regulated workloads. Of those, deploying and scaling web applications with git push and no server administration and running managed postgres, redis and kafka as attached data services are not what Laravel is typically brought in for.
What can Heroku do that Laravel cannot?
Heroku covers Git-based deployment, Buildpacks, Dynos (containers), Add-ons marketplace. Laravel covers Eloquent ORM, Artisan CLI, Blade templating, Middleware.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Laravel: Is Laravel free and open source?

Yes, Laravel is completely free and open source under the MIT License. You can use, modify, and distribute it without restrictions.

Source
Laravel: What are the key features Laravel provides?

Laravel includes an ORM (Eloquent), database migrations, authentication, authorization, caching, queues, email, testing, and deployment tools. It supports multiple databases and provides starter kits for full-stack and API development.

Source
Laravel: Can I deploy Laravel on any server?

Yes, Laravel can be deployed on any PHP server. You can use shared hosting, VPS, or managed platforms like Laravel Cloud, which starts at $5/month with auto-scaling and git-like branching.

Source
Laravel: Does Laravel have testing and local development tools?

Yes, Laravel includes Dusk for browser testing, PHPUnit for unit tests, and Herd (free for basic use) for local development environments with built-in PHP, Composer, and Nginx support.

Source
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