Six cloud platforms, three real choices — pick by the workload, not the brochure
Vercel, Netlify, Cloudflare, Render, Fly.io, the hyperscalers. The choice between them stops being about features once you size the workload — it becomes a question of pricing curve and operational model.
READ THE FULL COMPARISONThe platforms, ranked by the workload that picks each one
Vercel
When you are shipping Next.js seriously
The Next.js author's platform. Zero-config Next.js deploys, edge runtime, image optimisation, on-demand ISR, BAA available since Sep 2025. Most expensive at scale; the operational simplicity is the product. Default for Next.js teams that value time over cost.
Read the take →Netlify
Vercel's closer competitor
Same shape as Vercel, broader framework support, often cheaper at the bottom and middle of the pricing curve. Strong on Astro and static sites. Right call when you want Vercel-class DX without the Next.js-first opinions.
Read the take →Cloudflare Pages / Workers
When edge-first is the architecture
Pages for static, Workers for compute, R2 for storage, D1 for SQLite at the edge. Lowest cost at scale by a wide margin. Different mental model — edge-first, cold-start-free, but the Node API surface is a subset. Right call for cost-sensitive teams comfortable on the edge runtime.
Read the take →Render
When you want Heroku's shape, modern
Long-running services, background workers, Postgres, Redis, cron — the full PaaS shape. Right call for teams running an actual server, not a static site, who do not want to operate AWS directly.
Read the take →Fly.io
Run anywhere, fast cold start
Run a Docker container in 30+ regions globally. Per-region scaling, Postgres included. Right call for stateful workloads, regional latency, and apps that do not fit the serverless model.
Read the take →AWS / GCP / Azure direct
When you genuinely need the full menu
The hyperscalers. Real answer for enterprise compliance, big data, custom infra. Operational overhead is significant. Right call only when one of the PaaS layers above genuinely cannot do what you need.
Read the take →The decision in one sentence
Pick Vercel if you are shipping Next.js and operational simplicity beats cost. Pick Netlify if you want Vercel-class DX without the Next.js-first opinions. Pick Cloudflare if cost at scale is the constraint and you can think edge-first. Pick Render or Fly.io if you are running a real server, not a static site. Pick a hyperscaler only when no PaaS layer can do what you actually need.
The supporting comparisons
- Cloud hosting 2026: Vercel, Netlify, Cloudflare, RenderThe pillar comparison post — production numbers, pricing curves, when each one wins.
- Edge computing 2026: Cloudflare, Vercel, Deno, BunWhen the edge runtime matters and the choice between platforms is about runtime semantics.
- HIPAA-compliant Supabase + Vercel: the $700/month setupThe Vercel BAA story for healthcare workloads.
The full directory of 14 hosting providers
This hub is the editorial top-5. The full directory at /cloud-hosting/ covers 14 providers across 5 categories (Jamstack / PaaS / hyperscaler / VPS / self-hosted PaaS), filterable by pricing, edge-readiness, free-tier status, and egress billing — including the niche options the top-5 cuts: AWS / GCP / Azure / Hetzner / DigitalOcean / Coolify / Dokku.