Heroku
vs
Runpod
What's good about each
- Add-on marketplace for databases, logging, monitoring and email
- Postgres with forks, followers and rollback
- Network-isolated Private Spaces across the US, Europe and Asia-Pacific
- Salesforce integration through Heroku Connect and AppLink
- GPUs from RTX 3070 to B300 in one catalog
- Serverless GPU endpoints that scale to zero
- Built-in deployments, autoscaling & monitoring
- No ingress or egress fees
- SOC 2 Type II certified
Price comparison
Closest matching configuration on each side, monthly list price in USD.
| Service | Heroku | Runpod | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Small VM | $50.00 /mo 1 GB RAM (Standard-2X) | $43.20 /mo 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM (Compute-Optimized) | 14% cheaper on Runpod |
| Medium VM | $250.00 /mo 2.5 GB RAM (Performance-M) | $86.40 /mo 4 vCPU, 8 GB RAM (Compute-Optimized) | 65% cheaper on Runpod |
| Large VM | $500.00 /mo 14 GB RAM (Performance-L) | $172.80 /mo 8 vCPU, 16 GB RAM (Compute-Optimized) | 65% cheaper on Runpod |
| Block storage | -- Not listed | $10.00 /mo 100 GB | |
| PostgreSQL | $50.00 /mo 4 GB RAM, 64 GB storage (Standard-0) | -- Not listed | |
| Redis | $200.00 /mo 1 GB RAM (Premium-5) | -- Not listed | |
| Load balancer | Included in plan | -- Not listed | |
| Egress allowance | 2 TB / mo per app | Free and unlimited | |
| Egress | Not publicly listed Soft limit of 2 TB / mo per app | Free and unlimited |
Heads up: Figures take each provider's closest plan to a common setup, and vary by region and usage. Hover a service for the reference configuration. Verify before provisioning. More on how we price.
GPUs
Runpod offers 35 GPU models. We track no GPU listings from Heroku. Cheapest listed price per GPU per hour; GPUs both providers sell come first.
| GPU | Heroku | Runpod | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
H100
12 configs
|
-- | $2.89 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
B300
4 configs
|
-- | $7.89 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
B200
3 configs
|
-- | $6.79 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
RTX PRO 6000
5 configs
|
-- | $1.69 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
H200
7 configs
|
-- | $4.59 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
RTX 5090
3 configs
|
-- | $0.69 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
A100
9 configs
|
-- | $1.00 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
|
RTX 4090
3 configs
|
-- | $0.34 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
MI300X
2 configs
|
-- | $2.39 /GPU/hr On-demand · sold out | Runpod only |
|
L40S
6 configs
|
-- | $0.79 /GPU/hr On-demand | Runpod only |
Runpod bills on-demand. The line under each price names the billing type shown.
Services
Managed services each provider offers.
Compliance
Frameworks each provider states on its own site, each linked to its source.
| Framework | Heroku | Runpod |
|---|---|---|
| SOC 2 | Type II | Type II |
| ISO 27001 | Yes | Yes |
| HIPAA | Yes | Yes |
| GDPR | Yes | Yes |
| PCI DSS | Level 1, Heroku Shield only | -- |
Heads up: Each entry links to the provider's own statement. An attestation can cover one tier, one region or the platform alone rather than every service. Verify the scope before you rely on it. A dash means we found nothing to link to, not that the provider lacks it.
Company details
| Fact | Heroku | Runpod |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2007 | 2022 |
| Headquarters | USA | USA |
| Locations | 10 | 33 |
| Example customers | World Economic Forum, PixieBrix, TAO Drive, Fastcall | Civitai, Cognition, Cursor, Hugging Face, Perplexity, Replit |
| Website | heroku.com | www.runpod.io |
Alternatives to consider
Compare Heroku and Runpod against other cloud providers.
Our data for Heroku was last updated on Sept. 18, 2026, and for Runpod on Oct. 2, 2026.