shouldiselfhost?they tell you if you can — we tell you if you should
THE DECISION LAYER FOR SELF-HOSTING100 APPS UNDER COVERAGEPROTOCOL v1NO VENDOR HAS EVER PAID FOR A RATING
RECENT ACTIONS 1PASSWORDNOT REALLY·ACTIVECAMPAIGNKINDA·ACUITY SCHEDULINGYES·ADOBE ACROBATYES·ADOBE LIGHTROOMNOT REALLY·AIRTABLEYES·AMPLITUDEYES·ANYLISTNOT REALLY·ASANAKINDA
§
AUTOMATION-DEV
Railway logo

Should I self-host Railway?

$5/mo · Hobby · alternative: Dokploy
RATING
NOT REALLY
OUTLOOK
NOT ASSIGNED
RATIONALE

Railway's $5 hobby plan is the VPS. Replacing it with a $5 VPS running Dokploy is a lateral move plus a weekend — you'd be self-hosting the convenience you were paying $0 extra for. Revisit at usage-based scale; at $5, keep paying.

WHAT YOU LOSE
01

Nothing at this tier — the subscription IS the infrastructure

WHAT YOU'RE PAYING FOR

app hosting from git · databases · environment management

Self-Hosting Facts
1 app per panel · Railway
Assumes 1 seat on 1 always-on box you already run
Amount per month% of sub *
Subscription$5.00
VPS share0.000%
Storage + backup0.000%
Your hours · 0 min @ $200.000%
Self-hosted all-in0.000%
Effective markup—
Setup · 15 min measured$5.00 once
Break-even1.0 months
VERDICT
NOT REALLY
OUTLOOK
NOT ASSIGNED

* Percent of the subscription price. Your time is priced at the slider's rate — $0/h ("my homelab time is free and I love it") is a legitimate position. Every number is derived from the record, never hand-written. Price source, checked 2026-08-06.

Runs comfortably on a real VPS (2 GB+).

01
ALTERNATIVES
Ranked alternatives
01Dokploy logo
DokployPush to a git repository and get a running container, on a server you rent flat instead of a meter you watch.
Dokploy/dokploy · ★ 36,515 · 0d
02Coolify logo
CoolifyA deploy button and a build pipeline for the server you already rent, with no seat price and no usage meter.
coollabsio/coolify · ★ 60,367 · 0d
Dokploy running from the boot-verified compose file
Dokploy, running from the compose file on this page — screenshot from our verified instance, not marketing material.
02
EVIDENCE
PROTOCOL
v1
VERIFIED BY
zernonia
REVIEWED
10 AUG 2026
SETUP MEASURED
15 MIN
AI ASSISTANT
CLAUDE-CODE · STATED
FULL TIMED LOG
# Railway — verdict log

- **Date:** 2026-08-10
- **Verdict:** NOT REALLY — keep paying
- **Protocol:** v1 (2GB reference env, Docker preinstalled, AI assistant: claude-code)

## Why no compose file

- This verdict is decided by economics/capability, not setup effort — the rubric doesn't require a timed install to conclude the subscription should stay (or that the replacement's cost lives elsewhere, e.g. GPUs, egress, or an installer script).

## The call

Railway's $5 hobby plan is the VPS. Replacing it with a $5 VPS running Dokploy is a lateral move plus a weekend — you'd be self-hosting the convenience you were paying $0 extra for. Revisit at usage-based scale; at $5, keep paying.
03
HISTORY
10 AUG 2026UNRATED → NOT_REALLYInitial verdict: Railway's $5 hobby plan is the VPS.