Dokku vs CapRover
Both are alternatives to Heroku. Here's how they stack up — verified facts, no spin.
Also searched as CapRover vs Dokku — same comparison, one verdict.
Dokku and CapRover are closely matched on ownership (95 vs 93) — this one comes down to pricing and to which trade-offs below you can live with.
Dokku
The original self-hosted PaaS — small, stable, unglamorous.
Dokku has been doing this since 2013 and describes itself accurately as the smallest PaaS implementation you have seen: Git-push deployment via Docker, Heroku buildpack support so existing apps often deploy unchanged, and a plugin system for databases and TLS. MIT, around 32k stars. It has no web interface — everything is the command line — and that is deliberate. For someone comfortable in a terminal it is the most dependable option here, and it has outlived several better-funded competitors.
CapRover
Self-hosted PaaS with a proper web UI and one-click apps.
CapRover sits between Dokku's command line and Coolify's polish: a web dashboard, one-click installers for around a hundred common applications, automatic TLS and Docker Swarm underneath for multi-node scaling. Around 15k stars. Its distinguishing feature is that Swarm foundation — of the self-hosted options it has the most straightforward path from one server to several. Development is steady rather than fast, which shows next to Coolify's pace.
Side by side
10 points of comparison, every one read from a verified field. Green marks the side that wins a row outright. A dash means we do not hold that fact — never that it is zero.
| Dokku | CapRover | |
|---|---|---|
| Sovereignty ScoreOur transparent 0–100 composite for data ownership and exit cost. | 95 | 93 |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Local-first data | Yes | Yes |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Pricing | Free and open source. You supply the server. | Free and open source. You supply the server. |
| RAM to run it wellThe figure that actually matters, not the vendor's minimum. | 2 GB plus whatever your apps need | 2 GB control node plus app memory |
| Realistic running costWhat the box costs each month if you run it yourself. | $12–24/mo for a box running several apps, against Heroku dyno pricing charged per app | $12–24/mo, against per-app PaaS pricing |
| Setup timeHonest first-install estimate, not the marketing quickstart. | 30 minutes | 30 minutes including the web UI |
| Ongoing maintenanceThe part nobody budgets for. | Moderate. You own the host OS, Docker, TLS renewal and backups for everything on it. | Moderate. Swarm is stable but unfashionable, so community answers are thinner than for Kubernetes. |
Dokku edges it on the Sovereignty Score, but the right pick depends on the trade-offs below.
Weighing both against staying on Heroku? Is Heroku free? What it actually costs →
Dokku
Strengths
- +Over a decade of stability; genuinely mature
- +Heroku buildpack support means many apps deploy unchanged
- +MIT and very light — runs on a small VPS
- +Extremely well documented for command-line use
Trade-offs
- −No web interface at all
- −Single-server by design
- −Assumes comfort with the command line
- −Fewer batteries included than Coolify
CapRover
Strengths
- +Clean web UI with one-click installs for common applications
- +Docker Swarm underneath — the clearest multi-node path here
- +Apache-2.0 and mature
- +Automatic TLS and simple domain handling
Trade-offs
- −Development pace is slower than Coolify's
- −Swarm is a fading technology relative to Kubernetes
- −Fewer integrations than Coolify
- −Interface feels dated
Which one fits you
The trade-offs above, turned into a decision. Find the line that describes your team.
Choose Dokku
if a lower exit cost matters more to you than any single feature, and over a decade of stability; genuinely mature.
Choose CapRover
if clean web UI with one-click installs for common applications.
Neither, yet
if both carry a real cost you should weigh first — no web interface at all, and development pace is slower than Coolify's. If either of those is a dealbreaker for your team, the shortlist is wrong rather than the choice.
What it takes to run these yourself
Real requirements and honest running costs, not the vendor quickstart.
Dokku vs CapRover — common questions
Is Dokku a better fit than CapRover for platform as a service?
It depends on what you are optimising for, and the honest split is this: Dokku scores 95 to CapRover's 93 on data ownership and exit cost, so it is the safer choice if you care about being able to leave. CapRover earns its place on a different axis — clean web UI with one-click installs for common applications. Neither is a wrong answer for every team; the table above is the actual comparison.
What happens if we want to switch later?
Dokku keeps its data local or in open formats, so leaving is an export rather than a negotiation. CapRover is still self-hostable, so the files stay on your server either way — but it is not local-first by design, so check what its export produces before you rely on it.
Can I self-host Dokku or CapRover?
Both can be self-hosted. The difference is what it costs you in time rather than whether it is possible — see the setup and maintenance rows above.
Are Dokku and CapRover both alternatives to Heroku?
Yes — both appear in our Heroku comparison, which is why they are worth putting side by side. People usually arrive here already having decided to move off Heroku and now choosing between the two replacements, which is a narrower and much easier question.
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Facts verified 2026-08-05. Licenses and pricing change — spotted something out of date? That's a correction we want.