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Head-to-head · Platform as a Service

Google App Engine vs Heroku

  • Updated Oct 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 6 checks side by side
Higher score Google App Engine #2 in Platform as a Service 9.2/10 Free plan Free plan✓ 5 of 5 features Visit Google Cloud
Heroku #3 in Platform as a Service 9.1/10 Paid ✓ 0 of 5 features Visit Heroku

Google App Engine leads on 1 check, Heroku on 0, and 5 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 6 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreGoogle App Engine · 9.2/10
  • Free planonly Google App Engine
  • Most featuresGoogle App Engine · 5 of 5

Google App Engine scores higher on our rubric for platform as a service: 9.2 against 9.1 out of 10; our editors rank them #2 and #3.

Google App Engine offers free plan; Heroku doesn't.

Google App Engine is the better fit for managed serverless applications on Google Cloud. Heroku is the better fit for mature teams using conventional PaaS workflows.

  • Google App Engine fits best

    Managed serverless applications on Google Cloud

  • Heroku fits best

    Mature teams using conventional PaaS workflows

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Side by side

Feature Google App Engine 9.2/10 Visit ↗ Heroku 9.1/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 9.2 9.1
Ranking #2 in Platform as a Service #3 in Platform as a Service
Best for Managed serverless applications on Google Cloud Mature teams using conventional PaaS workflows
Pricing model Free plan + paid Paid
Starting price — $5/unit/mo
Free plan ✓ (best) —
Free trial — —
Deployment Cloud Cloud
Platforms Web Web
Integrations 10 integrations 200+ integrations
Features Google App Engine 5/5 · Heroku 0/5
Managed databases ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Autoscaling ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Private networking ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Preview environments ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Container deployments ✓ (best) Not checked yet
Specs
Deployment regions 24 regions Not checked yet
Our review
Pros
  • Choose standard or flexible environments, including Docker custom runtimes.
  • Scale instances and migrate traffic between application versions.
  • Connect to Google Cloud databases, monitoring, logging, and private networking.
  • Deploy with Git, GitHub or Docker and organize releases with pipelines.
  • Review Apps, release history and rollback support application delivery.
  • Dyno tiers add always-on service, scaling and dedicated compute options.
Cons
  • Flexible environment has no free tier.
  • Billing is usage-based rather than a fixed subscription.
  • Its platform scope is centered on Google Cloud services.
  • There is no free plan; Eco starts at $5 per dyno per month.
  • Eco sleeps after 30 minutes of inactivity.
  • 24/7 support is not listed among its support options.
Our verdict

Google App Engine is a fully managed platform for deploying web applications and services without managing servers. It suits teams building on Google Cloud that want autoscaling, application versioning, and connectivity to managed cloud…

Read the review →

Heroku is a managed, container-based cloud Platform as a Service for developers and teams deploying applications on managed dynos. Git, GitHub and Docker deployments, pipelines, Review Apps and release management suit teams with…

Read the review →
  1. Google App EnginePlatform as a Service 9.2Free plan
  2. HerokuPlatform as a Service 9.1Paid

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Google App Engine — where it wins

    • Choose standard or flexible environments, including Docker custom runtimes.
    • Scale instances and migrate traffic between application versions.
    • Connect to Google Cloud databases, monitoring, logging, and private networking.

    Where it doesn't

    • Flexible environment has no free tier.
    • Billing is usage-based rather than a fixed subscription.
    • Its platform scope is centered on Google Cloud services.

  • Heroku — where it wins

    • Deploy with Git, GitHub or Docker and organize releases with pipelines.
    • Review Apps, release history and rollback support application delivery.
    • Dyno tiers add always-on service, scaling and dedicated compute options.

    Where it doesn't

    • There is no free plan; Eco starts at $5 per dyno per month.
    • Eco sleeps after 30 minutes of inactivity.
    • 24/7 support is not listed among its support options.

More comparisons

All platform as a service comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026

Last updated · How we research and update