7 self-hosted options
Self-hosted alternatives to Heroku
The best open-source alternative to Heroku is Coolify (Apache-2.0, 64,712 GitHub stars, Docker image). Dokploy stands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license, and Dokku stands out for a permissive MIT license.
CapRover, Umbrel and Cosmos are also listed but are source-available, so they come after the open-source picks.
About Heroku: A platform-as-a-service for deploying and scaling apps from Git.
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Top picks
- Rank 1:
Coolify
coollabsio/coolify
Self-hostable Heroku, Netlify and Vercel alternative that deploys apps, databases and services to your servers.
Active · last commit Oct 26, 2026
Self-hosting PlatformsPHPDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars.
- Rank 2:
Dokploy
Dokploy/dokploy
Self-hostable PaaS to deploy apps and databases with Docker, Traefik and a clean dashboard.
Active · last commit Oct 26, 2026
Self-hosting PlatformsTypeScriptDockerStands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license.
- Rank 3:
Dokku
dokku/dokku
Docker-powered mini-Heroku that builds and deploys apps with a git push.
Active · last commit Oct 25, 2026
Self-hosting PlatformsGoDockerStands out for a permissive MIT license.
At a glance
Heroku alternatives compared
Open-source apps come first, then source-available ones and apps whose license appsgit could not verify; within each group, projects with at least 12 commits in the last 12 months come before less active or archived ones, then by GitHub stars.
| App | Stands out for | License | GitHub stars | Commits (12 mo) | Last commit | Docker image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coolify | the most GitHub stars | Apache-2.0 | 64,712 | 5,039 | Oct 26, 2026 | Yes |
| Dokploy | a permissive Apache-2.0 license | Apache-2.0 | 38,030 | 2,820 | Oct 26, 2026 | Yes |
| Dokku | a permissive MIT license | MIT | 32,201 | 2,136 | Oct 25, 2026 | Yes |
| Tipi | – | GPL-3.0 | 9,700 | 181 | Oct 23, 2026 | No |
| CapRover | a published Docker image | source-available, Apache 2.0 with CapRover appendix | 15,192 | 321 | Oct 26, 2026 | Yes |
| Umbrel | – | source-available, PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 | 12,456 | 526 | Sep 22, 2026 | Yes |
| Cosmos | – | source-available, Apache 2.0 with Commons Clause | 6,185 | 166 | Oct 21, 2026 | Yes |
Full list
All 7 Heroku alternatives
Open any app for live stats, license details and a deploy option.
- 1
Coolify
Self-hostable Heroku, Netlify and Vercel alternative that deploys apps, databases and services to your servers.
Self-hosting PlatformsDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. Coolify has 64,712 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 5,039 commits in the last year.
- 2
Dokploy
Self-hostable PaaS to deploy apps and databases with Docker, Traefik and a clean dashboard.
Self-hosting PlatformsDockerStands out for a permissive Apache-2.0 license. Dokploy has 38,030 GitHub stars, uses the Apache-2.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 2,820 commits in the last year.
- 3
Dokku
Docker-powered mini-Heroku that builds and deploys apps with a git push.
Self-hosting PlatformsDockerStands out for a permissive MIT license. Dokku has 32,201 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 2,136 commits in the last year.
- 4
Tipi
Homeserver manager. One command setup, one click installs for your favorites self-hosted apps.
Self-hosting PlatformsTipi has 9,700 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license and had 181 commits in the last year.
- 5
CapRover
Easy-to-use PaaS for Docker with one-click apps, HTTPS and clustering.
Source-availableSelf-hosting PlatformsDockerStands out for a published Docker image. CapRover has 15,192 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Apache 2.0 with CapRover appendix (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 321 commits in the last year.
- 6
Umbrel
A beautiful personal server OS for self-hosting. Install on a Raspberry Pi 4 or Ubuntu/Debian.
Source-availableSelf-hosting PlatformsDockerUmbrel has 12,456 GitHub stars, is source-available under the PolyForm Noncommercial 1.0.0 (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 526 commits in the last year.
- 7
Cosmos
Run server applications securely and with built-in privacy features. It acts as a secure gateway to your application, as well as a server manager.
Source-availableSelf-hosting PlatformsDockerCosmos has 6,185 GitHub stars, is source-available under the Apache 2.0 with Commons Clause (not an open-source license), ships a Docker image and had 166 commits in the last year.
Is there a free alternative to Heroku?
Yes. 4 of the 7 apps on this page are open source; 3 are source-available. The open-source ones are free to self-host without per-user fees; source-available licenses add conditions such as user caps or limits on hosted use, so read them before you commit.
Can I self-host an alternative to Heroku with Docker?
Yes. 6 of the 7 apps here publish a Docker image, including Coolify, Dokploy and Dokku, so you can run them on a home server or VPS with Docker Compose.
Which Heroku alternative is the most actively developed?
Coolify (Apache-2.0), with 5,039 commits in the last 12 months. Activity is a good sign that bugs and security issues get fixed.
How is this list ranked?
Open-source apps come first, then source-available ones and apps whose license appsgit could not verify; within each group, projects with at least 12 commits in the last 12 months come before less active or archived ones, then by GitHub stars.