Raff Apps wins on fixed service resources, full Docker Compose import, long-running workers, private services, and $0 public application egress. Vercel wins on its global CDN, 20 compute-capable regions, Next.js-first workflow, preview deployments, and $0 Hobby plan for qualifying personal use. Choose Vercel when framework-native global frontend delivery is the requirement; choose Raff when the application is a portable container stack with always-on processes and explicit cost ceilings. Raff Apps starts at $3/month, while Vercel Pro is $20/month and currently includes one deploying seat, $20 of usage credit, and the baseline Flat Rate CDN tier (1 million CDN requests and 1 TB transfer capacity), with optional higher tiers.
Vercel and Raff Apps solve different deployment problems even though both can ship web applications from source. Vercel combines a global delivery network with framework-aware builds and request-driven compute across 20 compute-capable regions. Raff Technologies positions Raff Apps around explicit service resources in one public us-east region, with a $3 entry tier, $0 public app egress, workers, cron jobs, private services, persistent volumes, and Docker Compose portability. The practical choice is therefore less about a single feature checklist and more about whether the production workload behaves like a globally delivered frontend or a connected set of application services.
Vercel vs Raff: which is right for you?
Use Vercel when the frontend platform itself is part of the application architecture. Use Raff when the application is better represented as services that should remain portable across source, containers, databases, storage, and private networking.
| Decision factor | Choose Raff Apps | Choose Vercel |
|---|
| Primary workload | APIs, containers, workers, cron jobs, private services, and multi-service stacks | Next.js, framework frontends, static delivery, previews, and request-driven functions |
| Entry path | Micro from $3/month with explicit resources | Hobby at $0 for qualifying personal/non-commercial use |
| Commercial plan | Fixed service tier; no workspace or seat fee | Pro at $20/month with one deploying seat and usage allowances |
| Public transfer | $0 application egress | Flat Rate CDN included on Pro: 1M CDN requests and 1 TB nominal capacity; extra tiers available |
| Deployment portability | Dockerfile, image, buildpacks, and full Docker Compose import | Git/framework builds, CLI, hooks, API, and Vercel platform conventions |
| Global delivery | Add an external CDN when required | 126 PoPs across 94 cities and 51 countries, with 20 compute-capable regions |
| Data architecture | First-party managed databases, object storage, persistent volumes | Vercel Blob, Edge Config, and Marketplace data providers |
At Raff, we made a deliberate product decision to make cost boundaries visible before a service receives production traffic: each app tier has a published monthly ceiling, public app egress is $0, and the spend cap starts enabled. That model is useful for small teams running several persistent processes because cost protection does not depend on reverse-engineering request, seat, transfer, and function meters after launch.
For the broader platform decision, review Cloud VM vs App Platform: What Startups Should Know.
Vercel overview
Vercel is a managed developer and AI cloud platform with deep Next.js roots. It connects to Git providers, builds framework projects, creates preview and production deployments, serves content through a global CDN, and runs server-side code through Vercel Functions and Fluid Compute.
Its current public plans are:
- Hobby — $0/month: intended for personal and non-commercial use.
- Pro — $20/month: includes one deploying seat, $20 monthly infrastructure usage credit, and the baseline Flat Rate CDN tier with 1 million CDN requests and 1 TB of monthly capacity. Higher CDN tiers are optional; other infrastructure meters can still incur charges.
- Enterprise — custom: adds enterprise controls, multi-region compute and failover options, and a 99.99% SLA.
Vercel's global network currently documents 126 points of presence across 94 cities and 51 countries, with 20 compute-capable regions. That footprint is a genuine advantage for globally distributed frontends because caching, routing, preview deployments, and framework-specific delivery are part of the platform rather than a separately assembled CDN layer.
Vercel Functions use Fluid Compute rather than fixed application-server tiers. Current published usage rates start at $0.128 per active CPU-hour, $0.0106 per provisioned GB-hour, and $0.60 per million invocations after the applicable included usage. Functions automatically scale down when no requests are active.
Vercel also provides Blob storage, Edge Config, image optimization, Web Analytics, Speed Insights, Observability, WAF and DDoS controls, Cron Jobs, and Marketplace integrations for third-party databases and data services. In September 2025, Vercel announced a $300 million Series F at a $9.3 billion valuation, which is a meaningful public scale and funding signal.
Raff overview
Raff Apps deploys source code and containers without requiring a team to administer the operating system. It supports GitHub push-to-deploy, Dockerfiles, existing container images, automatic buildpacks, full Docker Compose imports, immutable revisions, one-click rollback, persistent volumes, pull-request previews, and scale-to-zero behavior.
Raff Apps supports public web services, private services, background workers, timezone-aware cron jobs, and one-off jobs. Applications can connect to managed PostgreSQL, MySQL, Valkey, ClickHouse, and Kafka, as well as object storage, VMs, private networking, Kubernetes, and Functions.
Current Raff Apps tiers are:
| Tier | vCPU | RAM | Ephemeral disk | Monthly ceiling |
|---|
| Micro | 0.25 | 512 MB | 2 GB | $3.00 |
| Starter | 0.5 | 1 GB | 5 GB | $6.99 |
| Standard | 1 | 2 GB | 10 GB | $16.99 |
| Pro | 2 | 4 GB | 20 GB | $27.99 |
| Pro Max | 4 | 8 GB | 40 GB | $61.99 |
| Scale | 8 | 16 GB | 80 GB | $119.99 |
Compute is billed per second against the published monthly ceiling. Public application egress and team seats are priced at $0, and the spend cap is enabled by default.
Raff publishes a 99.9% platform SLA. Raff Technologies was verified at 4.5/5 on August 16, 2026, and G2 is 4.6/5. Raff is geographically narrower than Vercel; its strength is the explicit service model and the ability to keep app, database, storage, VM, and Kubernetes workloads under one cloud account.
Vercel pricing vs Raff pricing
Vercel and Raff expose different units of cost. Raff prices long-running application services by fixed vCPU/RAM tiers with per-second proration. Vercel Pro combines a $20 platform fee with a $20 infrastructure usage credit, one included deploying seat, and the baseline Flat Rate CDN tier (1 million CDN requests and 1 TB data transfer capacity). Additional deploying seats, non-CDN infrastructure meters, or upgraded CDN tiers can increase the bill.
The closest useful buying positions are:
| Buying position | Raff Apps | Vercel | Decision signal |
|---|
| Personal / hobby | Micro $3 — 0.25 vCPU / 512 MB | Hobby $0 for qualifying personal/non-commercial use | Vercel wins when a qualifying $0 frontend plan is enough |
| Small commercial app | Starter $6.99 — 0.5 vCPU / 1 GB | Pro $20 platform fee with one deploying seat and usage allowances | Raff publishes fixed service resources; Vercel bundles frontend-platform allowances |
| Standard backend | Standard $16.99 — 1 vCPU / 2 GB | No direct fixed-instance equivalent; Functions use CPU, memory, invocation, and transfer meters | Compare workload behavior rather than CPU labels |
| Five deploying developers | $0 additional seat fee | $100/month in Pro platform/paid-seat fees before additional infrastructure usage | Vercel collaboration cost becomes material as deploying members increase |
| Sustained high CDN demand | $0 app-egress line; compute separate | Optional $20/mo Flat Rate CDN 10M tier supports 10M requests and 50 TB capacity; Pro fee and non-CDN usage separate | Compare workload and CDN tier, not old per-GB overage arithmetic |
Comparison class: these are buying positions, not performance-equivalent instances. Vercel Functions and Raff application services have different execution, scaling, caching, host, and networking models, so matching a price or CPU label does not establish equal throughput or latency.
Flat Rate CDN capacity and budgeting
Vercel's Flat Rate CDN became generally available for Pro teams in September 2026. For new Pro teams it is enabled by default; existing teams can opt in. The included capacity is measured per team, not per project. Temporary spikes beyond the chosen capacity do not automatically cause CDN overage charges under the documented spike-protection and fair-use rules; persistent high usage may require a higher tier.
| Flat Rate CDN tier | Monthly CDN requests | Monthly data-transfer capacity | Extra CDN fee |
|---|
| Included with Pro | 1 million | 1 TB | $0 beyond Pro subscription |
| Flat Rate CDN 10M | 10 million | 50 TB | $20/month |
| Flat Rate CDN 50M | 50 million | 50 TB | $100/month |
| Flat Rate CDN 150M | 150 million | 50 TB | $300/month |
The $20/month Pro platform subscription includes $20 in infrastructure usage credit, which is separate from the CDN capacity tier. Pro still has billable compute, storage, build, collaboration and other eligible meters according to the selected configuration. Teams using alternative on-demand CDN billing should check the corresponding current rates rather than assume the flat-rate model applies.
Official source: Vercel Flat Rate CDN availability and tiers.
Automated backups
Vercel's security documentation says Vercel platform customer data is backed up every 2 hours and each backup is retained for 30 days. That platform-resiliency statement should not be interpreted as a backup promise for every application datastore. Vercel Blob currently has no native backup system, and database backup, point-in-time recovery, and retention depend on the Marketplace database provider selected by the customer.
Raff Apps likewise separates disposable application compute from durable application data. Ephemeral app disk is not a backup. Production state should live in managed databases, object storage, or persistent volumes, and backup/restore behavior should be verified for the selected Raff data service before launch.
Other billable resources
Vercel Pro includes one deploying seat; additional paid Owner or Member seats are $20/month each, while Viewer seats are free. Blob storage currently includes 1 GB then starts at $0.023/GB-month, with separate operation and data-transfer meters. Vercel's default on-demand budget for new teams is $200 per billing cycle and can be customized, with alerts and an optional hard pause at 100%.
Raff does not add an Apps workspace or seat fee. Its main variable costs come from the selected app tiers and any separately attached managed database, storage, or infrastructure products.
Bandwidth and transfer policy
Raff Apps charges $0 for public application egress. Vercel's default Pro Flat Rate CDN includes 1 million CDN Requests (the metric previously called Edge Requests) and 1 TB of transfer capacity per team per month. This is a CDN capacity tier, not a promise of 10 million free requests. Additional CDN capacity tiers are available for a fixed monthly fee, and temporary traffic spikes are covered by spike protection subject to fair-use terms.
Vercel's global network combines CDN delivery and framework-aware routing, while origin compute, Blob storage, team roles, and certain other products have their own cost models. Moving a globally cached web frontend to a single-region app service is not a direct bandwidth-equivalent replacement.
For high-transfer web services or APIs, compare the complete monthly bill: Raff's app compute and $0 public egress versus Vercel's Pro subscription, CDN tier choice, non-CDN usage and regional requirements.
Feature comparison: Vercel vs Raff
| Feature | Raff Apps | Vercel |
|---|
| Primary deployment model | Long-running services and containers | Framework deployments and request-driven Functions |
| Git deployment | GitHub | GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Azure DevOps, CLI, hooks, API |
| Dockerfile / existing image | Yes | Not the primary general-service model |
| Full Docker Compose import | Yes | No native whole-stack Compose import |
| Preview environments | Pull-request previews | Automatic deployment previews with framework-aware workflow |
| Always-on worker | Yes | Not the primary Functions execution model |
| Private service | Yes | Private backend design depends on platform/networking architecture |
| Cron jobs | Timezone-aware app jobs | Cron Jobs invoke Vercel Functions |
| Global CDN | External CDN can be added | Built in across 126 PoPs |
| Compute regions | 1 public region: us-east | 20 compute-capable regions |
| Persistent mounted volume | Yes | No general mounted persistent filesystem for Functions |
| Managed PostgreSQL | First-party Raff managed database | Marketplace provider |
| Managed MySQL | First-party Raff managed database | Marketplace/external provider |
| Object storage | Raff Object Storage | Vercel Blob |
| Team seat fee | $0 | One deploying seat included on Pro; additional paid members $20/month |
| Public app transfer | $0 | Flat Rate CDN on Pro: 1M requests and 1 TB nominal capacity; optional higher tiers |
| Rollback | Immutable revisions and one-click rollback | Instant rollback to eligible prior production deployments |
Vercel wins on global frontend delivery, framework integration, Git-provider breadth, preview collaboration, distributed function regions, and frontend observability. Raff wins on portable containers, Docker Compose, long-running workers, private services, fixed app resources, first-party managed MySQL, persistent volumes, and $0 public app egress.
Features and reliability: Raff vs Vercel
This comparison includes 0 controlled Raff-versus-Vercel application benchmarks, so it does not declare either platform faster. Vercel's request-driven Functions and global CDN are not performance-equivalent to a continuously available Raff container, and a credible test must hold application code, cache policy, data location, request mix, and concurrency constant.
Global delivery
Vercel's 126 PoPs across 94 cities and 51 countries and 20 compute-capable regions give it the stronger default architecture for globally distributed frontends. Every request passes through Vercel's global CDN, and teams can place Functions in selected regions according to application needs.
Raff Apps currently exposes one public us-east region. Teams can place a separate CDN in front of an application where necessary, but that is an additional architectural component. For a cache-heavy international frontend, Vercel therefore has a genuine out-of-the-box advantage.
Compute model
Raff exposes explicit vCPU and RAM tiers for processes that may remain available continuously. This maps naturally to APIs, WebSocket-oriented services, workers, private services, and multi-container applications.
Vercel Functions scale around requests and can scale down to zero. Fluid Compute bills active CPU, provisioned memory, and invocations, which can be efficient for bursty or I/O-heavy workloads. It is less directly comparable to an always-on process because cost and concurrency depend on request behavior rather than a fixed instance shape.
Rollback and data recovery
Both platforms provide deployment rollback. Vercel Pro and Enterprise can roll back to eligible prior production deployments retained by the platform, while Raff uses immutable revisions and one-click rollback for application releases.
Deployment rollback is not the same as data recovery. Vercel Blob has no native backup feature, and Marketplace database recovery depends on the chosen provider. Raff also separates application revision rollback from database, object-storage, and persistent-volume recovery. Production teams should test both code rollback and state restoration independently.
Operating trust
Vercel announced a $300 million Series F at a $9.3 billion valuation in September 2025 and publishes a 99.99% Enterprise SLA. Raff publishes a 99.9% platform SLA.
Those signals measure different things. Vercel has the larger global frontend-platform footprint and funding scale; Raff provides a smaller cloud with public customer, VM, SLA, and review signals that can be checked independently.
When you should choose Vercel over Raff
Choose Vercel when:
- Next.js and framework-native delivery are central. Vercel integrates builds, routing, caching, previews, image optimization, and deployment behavior around frontend frameworks.
- Global delivery is mandatory. Vercel documents 126 PoPs and 20 compute-capable regions; Raff Apps currently exposes one
us-east region.
- A qualifying $0 personal plan matters. Vercel Hobby costs $0 for personal/non-commercial use, while Raff Apps starts at $3/month.
- Preview collaboration is part of development. Vercel generates deployment URLs around branches and commits and integrates them deeply into frontend workflows.
- Request-driven compute fits the workload. Fluid Compute scales down to zero and bills CPU, memory, and invocations rather than a continuously running service tier.
- Enterprise multi-region failover is required. Vercel Enterprise adds multi-region compute/failover options and a 99.99% SLA.
Vercel is also the safer choice when replacing its framework-specific caching, Incremental Static Regeneration, image delivery, or preview behavior would create more engineering work than the migration saves.
When you should choose Raff over Vercel
Choose Raff Apps when:
- The application is container-first. Raff supports Dockerfiles, existing images, buildpacks, and full Docker Compose imports.
- Long-running processes are required. Web services, workers, private services, cron jobs, and one-off jobs map directly to persistent service types.
- Compute cost should be explicit. Raff Standard is $16.99 for 1 vCPU / 2 GB and Raff Pro is $27.99 for 2 vCPU / 4 GB, each with a published monthly ceiling.
- Public egress is substantial. Raff app egress is $0; Vercel Pro includes 1 TB of Flat Rate CDN capacity and may require a higher fixed-rate CDN tier for sustained higher traffic.
- First-party managed MySQL is required. Raff provides managed MySQL alongside PostgreSQL, Valkey, ClickHouse, and Kafka.
- Seat growth should not change the bill. Raff Apps charges $0 per team seat; Vercel charges $20/month for each additional paid Pro Owner or Member.
- Docker Compose portability matters. A multi-service development stack can be imported without translating every component into frontend-platform-specific products.
For containerized web services and workers with explicit resource ceilings, review Raff Apps and compare the complete workload instead of equating a CDN plan with a VM.
Migrating from Vercel to Raff
- Inventory the Vercel project. Record frameworks, build commands, environment variables, domains, rewrites, redirects, Functions, Cron Jobs, Blob stores, Edge Config, Marketplace databases, preview behavior, image optimization, and cache rules.
- Choose the Raff package. Use buildpacks for a conventional source deployment, a Dockerfile for reproducible packaging, an existing container image for a prebuilt artifact, or Docker Compose for a multi-service stack. Gotcha: Vercel project configuration does not map one-to-one to a container or Compose definition.
- Map execution units. Convert HTTP Functions into application routes, asynchronous consumers into workers, schedules into Raff cron jobs, and internal APIs into private services where appropriate. Gotcha: Function code that assumes ephemeral request execution may need explicit connection pooling, graceful shutdown, and concurrency handling.
- Move persistent state. Copy Vercel Blob objects to Raff Object Storage, migrate Marketplace databases with provider-native export/import tools, and move Edge Config values into application configuration or a suitable datastore. Verify backup and restore before the final sync.
- Rebuild delivery behavior. Recreate redirects, headers, image delivery, cache rules, and an external CDN where global edge delivery remains necessary. Test a temporary hostname from the regions that matter to users.
- Cut over with rollback. Lower DNS TTL to 300 seconds, perform the final state sync, update DNS, OAuth callbacks, webhooks, and allowlists, monitor production, and keep the Vercel deployment available until the rollback window closes.
Stateless application code is usually the easiest part to move. Stateful data, framework-specific caching, preview environments, edge behavior, and public URLs create most migration risk, so each should have a tested rollback path before DNS changes.
Use the App Platform Migration Checklist to plan service configuration, data export, CDN changes, health checks, DNS, and rollback.
About Vercel
Vercel is operated by Vercel Inc., a developer and AI cloud company founded in 2015 and headquartered in San Francisco. It develops Next.js and provides Git-based deployments, preview environments, a global CDN, Vercel Functions, Fluid Compute, Blob storage, Edge Config, observability, image optimization, and Marketplace integrations for application data services.
Conclusion: Vercel or Raff?
The Vercel-versus-Raff decision resolves across four measured axes: cost model, application process model, global delivery, and data portability.
- Cost model: Vercel Hobby can be $0 and Pro is $20 with allowances; Raff Apps starts at $3 and publishes fixed monthly service ceilings with $0 team seats.
- Application model: Vercel centers framework deployments and request-driven Functions; Raff centers containers, workers, private services, cron jobs, and Docker Compose stacks.
- Global delivery: Vercel provides 126 PoPs and 20 compute-capable regions; Raff Apps currently exposes one public
us-east region and can use an external CDN when required.
- Data portability: Vercel combines Blob, Edge Config, and Marketplace data providers; Raff connects Apps to first-party managed databases, object storage, persistent volumes, VMs, and Kubernetes.
Choose Vercel when globally distributed frontend delivery and framework-native platform behavior are requirements. Choose Raff when the application is a portable service stack and explicit compute, seat, transfer, and data-service boundaries are more important than a built-in global frontend network.
Raff publishes a 99.9% platform SLA. For adjacent comparisons, review Render Alternative 2026, Netlify Alternative 2026, and Railway comparison.
