Quick answer
Koyeb - Koyeb wins for most builders because its free tier is recurring and broad enough to support real projects, while Clever Cloud’s free offer is only a one-time signup credit.
How the free tiers compare
These two free offers are not the same kind of bargain. Clever Cloud gives new signups free credits with no card required, which is good for a quick trial, but it is not a monthly allowance and the value disappears once the credit is used. Koyeb’s free tier is more operationally useful: it includes recurring compute credit, Postgres time and storage, bandwidth, custom domains, logs, metrics, and deployment tooling. That makes it easier to keep a small app or prototype running without immediately paying. The tradeoff is that Koyeb’s free tier sits inside a usage-based platform, so costs can rise as compute grows. Clever Cloud’s paid side is also usage-based, billed by the second, but there is no published dollar amount here to compare directly. For most builders, Koyeb offers more room to build before spending.
Clever Cloud vs Koyeb free tier, side by side
| Clever CloudFTV 34 | KoyebFTV 40 | |
|---|---|---|
| Free offer typeClever Cloud is a one-time credit, not a monthly allowance. | Free credits on signup | Recurring free tier embedded in Pro |
| Card required?Only assert this for Clever Cloud because the field is present. | No card required | Not stated |
| Included computeKoyeb also says free compute credit is $10 included compute for the Pro plan. | Not stated | $10 included compute |
| Database free allowanceKoyeb includes a small recurring Postgres allowance. | Not stated | Postgres: 5 hours/month at $0/hr; 1 GB storage; 0.25 vCPU and 1 GB RAM |
| BandwidthUseful for apps with noticeable traffic or asset delivery. | Not stated | 1 TB/month included |
| Custom domainsRelevant if you need more than one production or preview domain. | Not stated | 10 included |
| Build limitsLimits parallel deploys in the free tier and Pro plan. | Not stated | 5 concurrent builds |
| UsersKoyeb’s free tier already supports small teams. | Not stated | Up to 10 users |
| ServicesEnough for multiple apps or microservices at small scale. | Not stated | Up to 100 services |
| SupportPaid Pro adds e-mail support and chat. | Not stated | Community platform access |
After you outgrow the free tier
Clever Cloud is usage-based and billed by the second, with user-defined maximum caps, but the input does not provide any published dollar prices, so the first meaningful paid cost is effectively "contact sales / varies by usage" from the available data. Koyeb uses flat platform tiers plus separate compute charges: Pro is $29/mo + compute, Scale is $299/mo + compute, and Enterprise is custom. For small-team usage, Koyeb is easier to forecast because the platform fee is explicit, while Clever Cloud may be cheaper or more expensive depending on consumption, but we cannot quantify that here.
Cost at real usage
| Usage | Clever Cloud | Koyeb |
|---|---|---|
| light prototype with minimal ongoing trafficKoyeb’s platform fee applies even before compute growth. | contact sales / varies by usage | $29/mo +compute |
| small app that needs recurring free allowanceKoyeb’s included credit and platform quotas may cover small usage, but overages are not priced in the input. | contact sales / varies by usage | Free (within included Pro credit and free tier allowances) |
| team setup needing more than 10 usersKoyeb Scale raises user and service caps. | contact sales / varies by usage | $299/mo +compute |
| production workload with growing compute demandWithout unit rates for either product, exact monthly cost cannot be calculated from the input. | contact sales / varies by usage | $29/mo +compute or $299/mo +compute depending on scale |
Estimates, not quotes. Usage-based rates change - verify with the vendor's pricing page before committing.
When to pick each one
Pick Clever Cloud when…
- You want to test Clever Cloud briefly with no payment card required.
- You need to trial managed app hosting, databases, or storage and do not care about ongoing free usage.
- You prefer a platform where usage is metered by the second and you want to set a maximum cap.
- You are evaluating Clever Cloud specifically for its deployment and managed-service workflow before committing.
Pick Koyeb when…
- You want a free tier that can support a real app beyond a short trial.
- You need recurring free bandwidth, custom domains, logs, metrics, and Postgres in one place.
- You are building a small API, web service, or inference workload and want to stay on the free tier longer.
- You want a platform with clear paid jumps for a team, such as Pro at $29/mo or Scale at $299/mo.
- You need deployment tooling, autoscaling, and multi-region options included in the free tier.
Bottom line
For the most common builder use case, Koyeb is the better free-tier choice because it gives you recurring capacity, not just a trial credit. That matters if you want to keep a prototype, small API, or side project online long enough to learn from real use. Clever Cloud is still attractive when your goal is a card-free evaluation of managed hosting and you only need a short test window. But if you want the free tier to carry part of the workload, Koyeb is the safer pick.
Read the full listings: Clever Cloud and Koyeb. Scores use the FTV methodology at /ftv. Browse more head-to-heads on /compare, or see the top-ranked free tiers on /top.