Netlify suits developers and small teams who want to ship a web app without managing servers, replacing a traditional web host with Git-based deploys and a built-in CDN. Usage is metered across 5 credit meters, so teams with unpredictable traffic should model their bandwidth and compute before committing to a plan.
Netlify is a serverless platform for deploying static sites, Jamstack apps, and full-stack web projects, audited under five independent security frameworks including SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO 27001. Every deploy reaches visitors through its edge network of serverless and edge functions, and Agent Runners lets AI coding agents ship changes to a live site from the dashboard.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does Netlify cost in 2026?
Netlify runs on credit-based plans: Free is $0/month forever with a 300-credit hard limit, Personal is $9/month for 1,000 credits, and Pro starts at $20/month for 3,000 credits with unlimited team seats, rising to $126/month for a 20,000-credit tier with rollover. Enterprise pricing is custom and adds a 99.99% uptime SLA plus SSO. Extra credits can be bought via auto recharge at $5 per 500 credits on Personal or $10 per 1,500 credits on Pro.
Does Netlify have a free plan?
Yes. The Free plan never expires and includes 300 credits a month, one team member, Git/API-based deploys, Agent Runners, custom domains with SSL, and basic Firewall Traffic Rules. The limit is hard: once a project hits it, that project pauses until the next billing cycle unless the team upgrades, and there's no auto recharge option on Free.
Which tools compete with Netlify in 2026?
Vercel is the closest rival for teams building on Next.js, since Vercel builds and maintains that framework itself and wins on deploy speed for it. Cloudflare Pages undercuts both on price and edge performance, running on a larger points-of-presence network with no egress fees. For teams that need raw VPS or dedicated hardware instead of serverless hosting, Hetzner is a common next stop.
What separates Netlify from Vercel?
Netlify covers more frameworks evenly (Astro, WordPress, React, Next.js) while Vercel is built and optimized specifically around Next.js and tends to win on deploy speed for that framework. Netlify dropped per-seat pricing in April 2026, so a Pro team pays one flat monthly fee no matter how many people join, while Vercel's pricing leans more on per-developer seats and usage. Pick Netlify for a multi-framework team or agency; pick Vercel if the whole stack is Next.js.
How do you get started with Netlify?
Sign up free at netlify.com, then either drag-and-drop a build folder or connect a Git repository (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, or Azure DevOps) for continuous deployment on every push. Netlify auto-detects most frameworks and builds a default configuration, and a first static site typically goes live within a couple of minutes of connecting the repo. Payment is only required once a project outgrows the Free plan's monthly credit limit.
Top Alternatives
- Hetzner: Choose Hetzner when the job needs a VPS or dedicated server you configure yourself; stay on Netlify when you want deploys handled for you.