Fly.io vs Render
Kofi Agyem, Founder and CEO, CloudzyroPublished · Updated
Fly.io and Render side by side on price, limits and how they charge, from each company's own pricing pages, with Cloudzyro as a third option.
| Feature | Fly.io | Render | Cloudzyro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | None for new organizations; a trial of 2 hours of runtime or 7 days | Free web services that spin down after 15 minutes | Launch: free, business use included, never sleeps |
| Cheapest always-on app | $2.19 per 30 days (256 MB, in Ashburn or Secaucus) | Starter instance: $7 a month | Free on Launch |
| Monthly platform fee | None; pay for what you use | None on Hobby; Pro $25 a month flat | None; Boost is $20 a month per site |
| Outbound traffic | $0.02 per GB in North America and Europe, more elsewhere | 5 GB on Hobby, 25 GB on Pro, then $0.15 per GB | Never charged; slowed past the allowance |
| Smallest Postgres | Managed Postgres from $38 a month | From $6 a month | Bring your own (Supabase, Neon), connected in a click |
Other companies' figures from Fly.io resource pricing, Fly.io: autostop and autostart Machines, Render: updated workspace plans, Render: free instances, checked November 1, 2026. Prices change, so check their pages before you decide.
The short answer
Fly.io runs your app as Machines in regions around the world, billed by the second with no platform fee, and its traffic is cheap. Render runs services in a simpler way, with a free tier, a flat $25 Pro fee for teams and managed databases from $6 a month. Choose Fly.io if you want your app close to users in several regions; choose Render for a simpler setup and cheaper databases. Cloudzyro is a third option at a flat price per site.
Free plans
Fly.io has no free tier for new organizations. New accounts get a trial of up to 2 hours of Machine runtime or 7 days, whichever comes first, then need a card.
Render's free web services spin down after 15 minutes without traffic and take about a minute to wake, with 750 free instance hours per workspace a month.
Cloudzyro's Launch plan is free with business use allowed, and sites never sleep.
What an app costs
On Fly.io, the smallest always-on Machine (256 MB) is $2.19 per 30 days in Ashburn or Secaucus, 512 MB is $3.69 and 1 GB is $6.70 in Ashburn. Prices vary by region, and a volume is $0.15 per GB a month.
On Render, a Starter instance is $7 a month and Standard $25, plus $25 a month for a Pro workspace if your team needs it.
On Cloudzyro, Launch is free with 1 CPU and 512 MB, and Boost is $20 a month per site with 2 CPUs, 2 GB of memory and 1 TB of traffic.
Sleeping apps and traffic
Apps created with fly launch stop their Machines when there's no traffic and start one when a request arrives; a cold start takes about 2 seconds or more, and you can keep Machines running instead. Render's free services spin down after 15 minutes; paid ones stay up.
Fly.io charges $0.02 per GB of outbound traffic in North America and Europe, $0.04 in Asia Pacific, Oceania and South America, and $0.12 in Africa and India. Render includes 5 GB (Hobby) or 25 GB (Pro), then charges $0.15 per GB. Cloudzyro never charges for traffic.
Which should you choose?
Choose Fly.io if you want to run your app in several regions and pay only for what runs. Choose Render if you want a free tier to try things, managed databases and a flat team fee. Choose Cloudzyro if you want your website or web app always on, free to start and then one flat price per site. Cloudzyro has no permanent disk, so data belongs in a database such as Supabase or Neon.