DigitalOcean App Platform Starter (Free)
Free Tier Killed — February 2024
What was it?
Free tier for DigitalOcean App Platform — 3 static sites and 1 service free. Simplified Heroku-style PaaS with first-party DO integration.
What happened?
DigitalOcean eliminated the free app tier, requiring all apps to use paid plans. Static sites remain free; dynamic services require minimum $5/mo.
Migration Guide
Vercel (free for frontend), Railway, or Render for dynamic services. DigitalOcean static sites remain free.
Replacements compared
1 tracked replacement for DigitalOcean App Platform Starter (Free), 1 of them with a free plan, cheapest paid from $20/mo.
| Tool | Pricing | Free plan | GitHub stars |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vercel | freemium — from $20/mo | yes | 15,386 |
Timeline & context
DigitalOcean App Platform Starter (Free) free tier killed in February 2024, 2 years ago. It sat in the hosting category, where Soft.xyz tracks 7 discontinued products in total. If you are still running it in production, the migration path above is the shortest route off it.
FAQ
Why did DigitalOcean App Platform Starter (Free) shut down?
DigitalOcean eliminated the free app tier, requiring all apps to use paid plans. Static sites remain free; dynamic services require minimum $5/mo.
What should I migrate DigitalOcean App Platform Starter (Free) to?
Vercel cover the same use case. Vercel (free for frontend), Railway, or Render for dynamic services. DigitalOcean static sites remain free.
Is there a free alternative to DigitalOcean App Platform Starter (Free)?
Yes — 1 of 1 tracked alternatives still offer a free plan.