Photo by author
# Introduction
I’m coding my stablecoin payment platform, running everything locally with my own server setup using Docker Compose.
But at some point, I realized something important: There really isn’t a simple self-hosted platform that can handle scaling, deployment, and multi-service Docker management without turning it into a full-time DevOps job.
This led me to start looking for alternatives to the Versal style that were easier to use while still giving me the freedom and control I wanted.
The self-hosting platform I’m going to share comes directly from my own experience and struggle trying to find tools that actually work for vibe coders.
If you want better pricing, more control, stronger security, and true scalability, these platforms can help you take your side project and turn it into something that feels closer to a real startup.
The best part is that nothing complicated is required to get started. All you really need is a cheap Hetzner server. Install one of these platforms, many of which are designed to simplify deployments so you can focus on building rather than managing infrastructure, and you’ll be ready to deploy production-ready applications with confidence.
# 1. dokplay
dokplay is a stable, easy-to-use deployment solution designed to simplify application management. It serves as a free, self-hostable alternative to platforms like Heroku, Versal, and Netleaf, while leveraging the power of Docker and traffic elasticity to make deployments smooth and efficient.
Key Features:
- Simplicity: Easy setup and intuitive management of deployments.
- Flexibility: Supports a wide range of applications and databases.
- Open Source: Completely free and open source for anyone to use.
# 2. Kolfi
Cool down is an open source, self-hostable PAA that lets you easily deploy applications, databases, and services, such as WordPress, Ghost, and Respectful Analytics, on your own infrastructure.
It serves as a DIY alternative to platforms like Heroku, Versal, and Netleaf, enabling you to run stable sites, full-stack apps, and one-click services using simple, automated tooling.
Key Features:
- Deploy anywhere: Supports deployment to any server, including VPS, Raspberry Pi, EC2, Hetzner, and more via SSH, giving complete flexibility over infrastructure.
- Extensive technology support: Works with virtually any language or framework, enabling deployment of static sites, APIs, backends, databases, and many popular app stacks such as Next.JS, NUXT.JS, and Sveltekit.
- Integrated Git and Automation: Offers push-to-delay with GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, and Gatia as well as automated SSL, server setup automation, and application deployments for streamlined CI/CD workflows.
# 3. Copyright
App write is an open-source backend-as-a-service platform that now offers full-stack capabilities thanks to its Sites feature, which lets you deploy websites directly with your backend services.
Because full-stack development means handling both front-end and back-end components, and AppWrite now supports APIs, Auth, database, storage, messaging, and functions in addition to website hosting, it provides everything needed to build, deploy, and scale complete applications within a single platform.
Key Features:
- End-to-end full-stack platform: With front-end hosting and robust back-end tools like sites for authentication, databases, functions, storage, messaging, and real-time, AppRite covers the entire web stack.
- Flexible integration methods: Allows seamless integration with any language or framework, supports SDK, REST, GraphQL, and real-time APIs.
- Data ownership and easy migration: Firebase, Soupbase, NHOST, and self-hosted setups offer migration tools so developers can easily migrate projects while maintaining full control over their data.
# 4. Doku
dokku is a scalable, open-source platform-as-a-service that runs on a single server of your choice, acting like a self-contained mini-Heroku. It automatically builds applications with a simple git push using either a docfile or language autodetection via a buildpack, then deploys them inside isolated containers.
Doku also integrates technologies like NGINX and CRON to route web traffic and manage background processes, giving developers a lightweight yet powerful way to deploy and run apps on their infrastructure.
Key Features:
- Git – Powerful Deployment: Similar to Heroku’s workflow, push code through Git to build apps on the fly using a docfile or buildpacks.
- Lightweight Single-Server Pass: Runs on any Ubuntu/Debian server and uses Docker to manage app lifecycles, making it easy to build a Heroku-like environment yourself on minimal hardware.
- Extensible and plugin-friendly: Supports a wide ecosystem of community and official plugins, allowing developers to add databases, storage, monitoring and more to their deployments.
# 5. Juno
Juno is an open-source serverless platform that allows you to build, deploy and run applications in secure WASM containers while maintaining full self-hosting control and zero DUPs. It provides a complete backend stack, including key-value data storage, authentication, file storage, analytics, and serverless functions, so developers can build advanced apps without managing infrastructure.
Juno also supports hosting static sites, building full web apps, and self-hosting functions with privacy and autonomy, while offering a familiar, cloud-like developer experience.
Key Features:
- A complete serverless stack with self-hosting control: Includes datastore, storage, attor, analytics, and serverless functions that give you full ownership of your apps and data.
- Zero-setup developer experience: Use local emulation for development and deploy in isolated containers (“satellites”) that don’t require DevOps and workflows similar to modern cloud platforms.
- Built for web developers: Use your favorite front-end framework and write serverless functions in Rust or TypeScript, with templates and tools that simplify building full-stack apps.
# Comparison table
This comparison table highlights how each platform is better, how you deploy to it, and the types of applications it can run so you can quickly choose the best self-hosted alternative for your workflow.
| The platform | Best for | Deploy the workflow | What does it do? |
|---|---|---|---|
| dokplay | Simple “Heroku-style” self-hosting with strong Docker Compose support | UI-Driven Deploy + Docker Compose | Compose container, apps |
| Cool down | A self-hosted Versal/Netflix, as well as the closest realization of pre-built services | Git Push (GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket/Gettia) + Automation to deploy | Static sites, full stack apps, services |
| AppWrite (with sites) | A platform for back-end (Auth/DB/Storage/Functions) plus front-end hosting | Integrate Git repos or use templates for sites | Frontends + Backend services |
| dokku | A lightweight “mini Heroku” on a single server | Git Push deploys via buildpacks or a Dockerfile | Containerized apps |
| Juno | Serverless style apps with self-hosted controls and minimal interaction | CLI or GitHub Actions are deployed in “satellites”. | Static sites, web apps, serverless functions based on WASM |
Abid Ali Owan For centuries.@1abidaliawan) is a certified data scientist professional who loves building machine learning models. Currently, he is focusing on content creation and writing technical blogs on machine learning and data science technologies. Abid holds a Master’s degree in Technology Management and a Bachelor’s degree in Telecommunication Engineering. His vision is to create an AI product using graph neural networks for students with mental illness.