Pricing
Free Ownkube platform fee on the Starter shape (K3s on one AWS instance). $5 per vCPU + $1 per GB RAM on the Production shape (EKS). No compute markup.
Ownkube's pricing is simple. Starter is free. Production adds a small platform fee on top of whatever you pay AWS for compute. No markup, no bundles, no per-app tax.
Check your current spend at Billing.
Plans
Starter
Free forever, no credit card required. Runs on one AWS instance.
- Up to 10 vCPU and 20 GB RAM across the cluster
- Unlimited deployments
- Both cluster shapes available (Starter and Production)
- Automatic TLS on generated hostnames
- All core features
Production
Usage-based, metered per second.
- Free Ownkube platform fee on the Starter shape (K3s on one AWS instance)
- $5 per vCPU + $1 per GB RAM on the Production shape (EKS)
- Billed per second on requested resources, from the first second
- AWS Activate credits apply directly. You pay AWS, not us, for compute.
Starter (K3s on one AWS instance), free Ownkube platform fee
The cheapest path onto Ownkube. A single EC2 instance running lightweight Kubernetes with unlimited apps, workers, and databases on top, with no Ownkube platform fee on top.
| Your spend | Amount |
|---|---|
| Ownkube platform fee | $0 (free) |
| AWS EC2 (paid to AWS) | From ~$30 / month (t3.medium) |
Everything you run on that one instance is whatever AWS charges for the EC2 instance. Add a second app? $0 extra. A third? $0.
See the cluster creation guide for instance size options.
Production (managed EKS), $5 / vCPU + $1 / GB RAM
For production workloads on EKS (highly available across availability zones), the platform fee scales with your deployment's requested resources.
| Component | Rate |
|---|---|
| vCPU requested | $5 / vCPU / month, prorated per second |
| Memory requested | $1 / GB / month, prorated per second |
| AWS EKS + EC2 + storage | Paid to AWS directly |
The meter ticks on requested resources, not capacity your app happens to use. Set honest requests and you know your bill.
Worked example
A small production app on EKS: one web service (2 vCPU / 4 GiB) and a worker (1 vCPU / 2 GiB).
| Line | Monthly |
|---|---|
| Ownkube platform fee: 3 vCPU × $5 + 6 GB × $1 | ~$21 |
| EKS control plane (AWS) | ~$73 |
| Worker nodes (AWS, mixed spot + on-demand) | ~$100 |
| Total | ~$194 |
The same app on a Starter cluster (t3.large):
| Line | Monthly |
|---|---|
| Ownkube platform fee | $0 (free) |
EC2 t3.large (AWS) | ~$60 |
| Total | ~$60 |
Starter tier limits
- Up to 10 vCPU and 20 GB RAM across the cluster
- Unlimited deployments
- All core features: autoscaling, public hostnames, automatic TLS, managed PostgreSQL
- No credit card required to sign up
Starter is a permanent free tier, not a trial. If you stay under the limits, you stay free.
Enterprise
For teams that need more than self-serve offers (volume discounts, dedicated support SLAs, advanced access controls, SSO, and a dedicated account manager), contact us to talk through an Enterprise plan.
Enterprise is set up by our team; it's not self-serve.
How Ownkube compares
Representative small team: 3 apps + 1 small Postgres.
| Platform | Monthly cost |
|---|---|
Ownkube Starter (t3.medium) | ~$30 |
Ownkube Starter (t3.large) | ~$60 |
| Heroku (Standard + Postgres Standard-0) | ~$100 |
| Render (Starter tier) | ~$21-35 |
| Railway (Hobby + usage) | ~$20-40 |
| Fly.io (small machines + managed Postgres) | ~$20-30 |
| Raw AWS self-managed | ~$30 + your time |
Feature matrix
| Capability | Ownkube | Heroku | Render | Railway | Fly.io | Raw AWS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runs in your own AWS account (BYOC) | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| SOC 2 scope stays on your account | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| HIPAA / BAA with AWS directly | ✅ | ⚠️ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| AWS Activate & startup credits apply | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| No compute markup | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Flat, predictable platform fee | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | n/a |
| Unlimited apps on one cluster | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Disconnect, apps keep running | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | n/a |
| Standard Kubernetes (no lock-in) | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ | ✅ |
| Git-push deploys | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Managed PostgreSQL with backups | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Automatic TLS | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Built-in autoscaling | ✅ | ⚠️ | ✅ | ⚠️ | ⚠️ | ❌ |
| No platform team required | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
Burn your AWS credits efficiently
Because every resource Ownkube provisions lives in your AWS account, every dollar of your AWS Activate, startup-program, or committed-use credits applies directly to your compute bill at wholesale rates. Credits expire in 12 to 24 months, redeem them against real EC2, S3, and bandwidth instead of letting them lapse. Starter has no Ownkube platform fee at all, so credits cover 100% of your bill until you outgrow one AWS instance.
No compute markup
Other developer platforms bundle compute into a per-app price and you have no way to apply your AWS credits. With Ownkube you pay AWS what AWS charges, and you pay Ownkube a usage-based platform fee on Production (free on Starter). Nothing more.
FAQ
Cost optimization
How to minimize your AWS bill on top of the platform fee.
Clusters
The Starter vs Production shape split, with all feature differences.
Don't see a feature you need? Email support@ownkube.io. Ownkube is shaped by the teams using it and we ship what our users ask for.