vioscale
Comparison

Dokku vs Render

No clear leader: Render (65.6) and Dokku (61.1) are within the 5-point margin; treat as a tie. The attribute-by-attribute breakdown below, with a source and date on every value, is the honest way to compare them.

Dokku full profile →Render full profile →
Machine formatsJSONMarkdownGraphQLor send Accept: application/json
Dokku61
Render66
Score
Vioscale score
Dokku61 / 100low · 42%updating
Render66 / 100medium · 70%updating
Pricing
Free tier
Dokku✓
Render✓
Model
Price level
Dokkufree
Renderhigh
Transparent
Dokku✓
Render✓
Integrations
Count
Dokku3
Render9
Security
Disclosure policy
Dokku–
Render✓
Gdpr
Dokku–
Render✓
Hipaa
Dokku–
Render✓
Iso27001
Dokku–
Render✓
Scorecard
Dokku5.3
Render–
Soc2
Dokku–
Render✓
Vulnerabilities
Reliability
Status page
Dokku–
Render✓
Adoption
Dependent repos
Dokku20
Render–
Github stars
Dokku32,110
Render–
Activity
Commits last 30d
Dokku100
Render–
Release
Cadence days
Dokku1
Render–
History
Dokku20 items
Render–
License
Spdx
DokkuMIT
Render–
Language
Primary
DokkuShell
Render–
Market
Availability

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for paas & hosting. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Deploy
Git-push auto-deploy
Dokku✓
Render✓
Deploy arbitrary container image
Dokku✓
Render✓
Per-PR preview environments
Dokku✗
Render✓
Build
Build system
DokkuBuildpacks
RenderDockerfile
Runtime / language breadth
DokkuMultiple languages via Heroku buildpack auto-detection
RenderNode.js, Python, Bun, Docker, and multiple frameworks
Scale
Autoscaling
DokkuNone
RenderHorizontal
Deployment
Geographic reach
DokkuSingle-region
RenderMulti-region
Hosting
DokkuSelf-hosted only
RenderCloud only
Data
Bundled managed data services
Dokku✗
Render✓
Delivery
Built-in global CDN / edge
Dokku✗
Render✓
Custom domains + automatic TLS
Dokku✓
Render✓
Ops
Env vars & secrets management
Dokku✓
Render✓
Instant rollbacks
Dokku✗
Render✓
Extensibility
CLI + deploy API
Dokku✓
Render✓

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

Dokku

Dokku allows developers to build and manage application lifecycles through Git-based deployments to a single server. Applications are automatically built using Dockerfiles or language detection with buildpacks, run in isolated containers, and are managed by Dokku's routing and process control systems.

Independently observed

Render

Cloud platform for deploying and scaling applications, agents, databases, and background jobs with zero-ops infrastructure.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

Dokku

Open sourceFree tier

Free open source. Dokku Pro available (pricing not disclosed).

  • Open SourceFree
    • Git push deployment
    • Buildpack/Dockerfile support
    • Docker container management
    • Environment variables
    • Domain/SSL configuration
    • +4 more
as of verify ↗

Render

from $499/moSubscriptionFree tier

Free tier available. HIPAA workspace plans start at $499/month.

  • HIPAA-enabled workspace$499/month with self-serve BAA and live chat support
    • Self-serve BAA
    • Audit controls with OpenTelemetry-compatible logging
    • AES-128 encryption at rest (databases, backups, secrets)
    • TLS 1.2+ encryption for all traffic
    • Private networking with role-based access control
    • +6 more
as of verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platforms
Web
Dokku✗
Render✓
Linux
Dokku✓
Render✗
CLI
Dokku✓
Render✓
Deployment
Cloud / SaaS
Dokku✗
Render✓
Self-hosted
Dokku✓
Render✗
On-premise
Dokku✓
Render✗

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

Dokku

3 total
  • Docker
  • Heroku Buildpacks
  • nginx
Independently observed

Render

9 total
  • GitHub
  • GitLab
  • Bitbucket
  • AWS
  • Anthropic
  • OpenAI
  • Datadog
  • Cloudflare
  • Namecheap
Independently observed

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.