Railway

Deploy any app, database, or worker from GitHub with usage-based pricing.

What is Railway?

Railway is a deployment platform that hosts your entire stack — web services, background workers, cron jobs, and databases like Postgres, MySQL, and Redis — from a single canvas. Point it at a GitHub repository or a Docker image and it builds and deploys with sensible defaults, while the visual project canvas shows how services connect. Unlike frontend-focused platforms, Railway runs long-lived servers and containers, making it a natural home for APIs, bots, and full-stack apps. Pricing is usage-based: you pay for the CPU, memory, and network you actually consume on top of a small subscription, which keeps hobby projects cheap.

Key Features

Deploy from GitHub repos or Docker images with auto-detection

One-click Postgres, MySQL, Redis, and MongoDB databases

Long-running services, workers, and cron jobs — not just functions

Visual canvas showing services, variables, and connections

Usage-based billing for CPU, memory, and network

Use Cases

Host a full-stack app with its database in one project
Run Discord/Telegram bots and background workers 24/7
Spin up production-like preview environments per PR
Migrate off Heroku without re-architecting

How to Use Railway

1Sign up and create a project from a GitHub repo or template
2Add databases from the service catalog as needed
3Configure environment variables on the canvas
4Push to your branch — Railway rebuilds and redeploys automatically

Best For

Full-stack developersHeroku refugeesTeams that want servers without DevOps

FAQ

Does Railway have a free tier?

New accounts get a one-time trial credit to evaluate the platform. After that, the Hobby plan is $5/month (including $5 of usage), with resource usage billed on top as you scale.

Can Railway host databases?

Yes — Postgres, MySQL, Redis, and MongoDB deploy with one click, with backups and metrics built in. Your app and database live in the same project and network.

How is Railway different from Vercel?

Vercel specializes in frontend hosting with serverless functions, while Railway runs long-lived containers — APIs, workers, bots, and databases. Many teams use both: Vercel for the frontend, Railway for the backend.

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