Dokku
5.3/10Dokku is a free, open-source, Docker-based platform as a service. Developers install it on their own Linux server and deploy apps with a Heroku-style git push.
Data last updated November 2026 · Our methodology
Overview
Dokku is an MIT-licensed, self-hosted platform as a service that Jeff Lindsay started in 2013. It installs on an Ubuntu or Debian server that you supply. You push application code over Git, and Dokku builds it with Heroku-compatible buildpacks or a Dockerfile, then runs it in isolated Docker containers behind nginx or Caddy. Almost everything is a plugin, including the core. Official plugins add PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis and MongoDB services, which can make scheduled, encrypted backups to S3-compatible storage, and the official Let's Encrypt plugin issues and auto-renews certificates. The default Docker scheduler runs on a single host with about 1 GB of RAM. An optional k3s scheduler can spread apps across several nodes, with Keda-based autoscaling. Dokku suits developers, startups and small teams that know the Linux command line and want Heroku-style deploys on a cheap VPS without vendor lock-in. The open-source edition costs nothing beyond the server you run it on. Dokku Pro is a paid self-hosted add-on that adds a web UI, a REST API, team management and email support from the maintainers. Its listed price is a one-time $849 lifetime license covering one production server and two pre-production servers. The main limitation is that you run all operations yourself. The open-source version has no web dashboard or built-in monitoring, and there is no vendor uptime SLA. In the default setup a single server is a single point of failure, and patching, backups and incident response are your job.
Our Rating
Who Dokku is best for
Best software for DevelopersGood fit
Dokku is driven by the CLI and git push and mirrors Heroku's workflow, so developers who are comfortable in a terminal get the most from it.
A solo developer can host several low-traffic client or side projects cheaply on a 1 GB server.
Startups can run many apps on one inexpensive VPS for free, but they take on all operations and scaling themselves.
Less suited
Teams that script their infrastructure can use it as an internal Heroku, as some users describe doing.
Hosting costs are low, but without in-house Linux skills the setup and debugging burden can be significant.
There is no SLA, no compliance tooling and no 24/7 vendor support, and the default design is single-host.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- The open-source core is MIT-licensed with no proprietary components, and it runs on any Ubuntu or Debian server with about 1 GB of RAM.
- The git push and buildpack workflow closely mirrors Heroku, which makes moving Heroku-style apps straightforward.
- Official plugins cover PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis and MongoDB, with scheduled, encrypted backups to S3-compatible storage.
- The official Let's Encrypt plugin issues and auto-renews certificates, including wildcards over DNS-01.
- The project is mature and active, with more than 32k GitHub stars and over a decade of releases (v0.38.34 at time of research).
- Dokku Pro is a one-time license rather than a subscription, which keeps long-term costs predictable.
Cons
- The open-source edition has no web dashboard; a UI requires the paid Dokku Pro add-on.
- The default scheduler is single-host, and reviewers flag that server as a single point of failure; multi-node use needs the more complex k3s setup.
- There is no built-in monitoring, so reviewers point to external tools such as Uptime Kuma.
- There is no vendor uptime SLA, and operations such as patching, backups and incident response fall entirely on the user.
- Dokku does not deploy Docker Compose stacks and has no one-click service catalogue like Coolify or CapRover.
- G2 reviewers cite a learning curve and resource limitations, and some say it suits apps that do not need to scale.
Key Features
Not included
- Managed WordPress
- Uptime SLA
- Dedicated Servers
- Shared Hosting
Dokku Pricing
Dokku (open source)
- CLI management
- MIT license, free to self-host
- Community support through GitHub issues
- Git push deploys with buildpacks or Dockerfile
- Docker scheduler, plus optional k3s multi-node scheduler
- Plugin system with official datastore and Let's Encrypt plugins
Dokku Pro
- Web UI with team management
- Live log tailing in the browser
- JSON REST API for remote control
- Email support from the maintainers
- HTTP(S) app push as an alternative to git push
- Covers 1 production server and 2 pre-production servers
- Datastore, environment variable and process scaling management
- Requires an existing Dokku install; volume or team pricing by email
- One-time $849 lifetime license with free upgrades, no subscription or per-seat fees (vendor says this early pricing will rise)
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. The core is open source under the MIT license and costs nothing to use. You pay only for the server it runs on. Dokku Pro is an optional paid add-on.
Dokku Pro is listed at a one-time $849 lifetime license with free upgrades, covering one production server and two pre-production servers. It adds a web UI, team management, a JSON REST API, HTTP(S) app push, browser log tailing and email support from the maintainers. The vendor says the price will rise after the current development period.
Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04 or 26.04, or Debian 11 or newer, on x86_64 or arm64. The Docker scheduler needs about 1 GB of RAM, and the k3s scheduler needs 2 GB per node. A domain name is recommended but optional.
Yes, through the official dokku-letsencrypt plugin. It issues Let's Encrypt certificates and can renew them automatically with a daily cron job. Wildcard certificates are supported through DNS-01 challenges.
By default, no: the Docker scheduler runs on one host. The optional k3s scheduler can join extra worker and control-plane nodes over SSH, supports high-availability control planes, and offers Keda-based autoscaling. It also requires a Docker registry.
Databases run as official plugins, such as dokku-postgres, on your own server. These plugins support one-off and scheduled backups to AWS S3 or S3-compatible storage, optional encryption, and restore via import. Backing up app volumes is not documented.
Open-source users rely on GitHub issues and the community. Dokku Pro buyers get email support directly from the maintainers. No uptime SLA or 24/7 support is offered.
Similar Tools
See all alternativesCloudflare Pages hosts static and JAMstack frontend sites on Cloudflare's global network. It builds from GitHub or GitLab, offers preview URLs, and runs server-side code through Pages Functions.
Netlify is a web platform for building, deploying and hosting frontend sites and web apps from Git, with serverless functions, a global CDN and preview deploys.
Northflank is a Kubernetes-based developer platform for deploying services, jobs, databases and GPU workloads on its managed cloud or on customers' own cloud accounts.
Ranked near Dokku in Hosting & Infrastructure
See Dokku in the listDokku is #139 in Hosting & Infrastructure by our score.
