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Heroku Review

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Should I use Heroku?

Experience fully managed app hosting that just works. Build, deploy, and scale on the battle-tested platform that defines the industry. - heroku.com

· 1 month ago

Buy Heroku if you want zero-ops deploys and will pay a premium for convenience, especially on Rails, Django, Node, or with Salesforce. Skip it if you're cost-sensitive, want a free tier, or just need simple hosting — Railway and Render do it cheaper.

Confidence

Medium. Based on ~70 public sources: reviews, Reddit threads, pricing pages, security reports, and case studies. Several snippets were truncated.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

Low-cost entry (~$5/mo)

Eco / Mini

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierNo
Standard / PerformanceUsage-based per dyno
Private Spaces / EnterprisePremium, recently raised

Best for

  • Rails/Django/Node teams wanting zero-ops deploys
  • Salesforce-centric shops (Heroku Connect)
  • Startups to mid-size SaaS prioritizing speed
  • Teams avoiding DevOps hiring

Not for

  • Hobbyists wanting a free tier — eliminated in 2022
  • Cost-sensitive teams; plain VMs, Railway, or Render cost far less
  • Solo devs hosting one simple app — overkill
  • Teams needing deep infrastructure control or Kubernetes-style config

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Consumption pricing stacks up: dynos plus add-ons plus managed data services; enterprise tier rising

high

Attackers used stolen OAuth tokens to steal customer credentials; support response criticized

medium

No free tier since 2022; entry now starts with paid Eco/Mini plans

medium

Dyno/buildpack lock-in makes migrating to other platforms a known pain point

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Deployments widely praised as fast and easy
  • Fully managed hosting avoids operational overhead
  • Battle-tested, widely recognized platform with mature ecosystem
  • ISO, SOC, HIPAA, and PCI compliance available
  • Add-ons plus Salesforce data sync via Heroku Connect

Cons

  • Free tier eliminated in 2022
  • Widely called expensive; enterprise prices going up
  • Users question whether it has fallen behind newer platforms
  • 2022 breach stole customer credentials via compromised OAuth tokens
  • Repeated support complaints, including a mishandled security breach report

Sources & method

- 12 sources - ISO/SOC/HIPAA/PCI compliant, but a 2022 attack using stolen OAuth tokens exposed customer credentials.

official x2review x6security x2news x2
  • 2022 credential theft via stolen OAuth tokens, Heroku admitted attackers used stolen OAuth tokens to access and steal customer account credentials; broader impact than first disclosed.
  • Support criticized on breach handling, A user publicly reported extreme disappointment after an account security breach went unaddressed by Heroku support.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 2/5

    Rating

  • Low-cost entry (~$5/mo)

    Starting price

  • 12

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 2/5. Repeatedly called expensive; enterprise prices rising
  • Ease of use: 5/5. Deploys famously simple; fully managed
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Mature add-ons, managed Postgres/Redis, Salesforce Connect
  • Support quality: 2/5. Multiple complaints, including breach-report handling
  • Security posture: 3/5. Strong compliance, but 2022 credential-theft breach
  • 7,154+ Companies using Tracked on TheirStack
  • ~$5/mo Starting price Eco/Mini low-cost plans added 2022
  • No Free tier Eliminated Aug 2022, citing fraud and abuse
  • $212M Acquired By Salesforce, 2010

Pricing

Eco / Mini

Low-cost entry (~$5/mo)

  • Small dynos for light apps
  • Added in 2022 after free tier cut

Standard / Performance

Usage-based per dyno

  • Production dynos
  • autoscaling and add-ons extra

Private Spaces / Enterprise

Premium, recently raised

  • Isolated network
  • Compliance features
  • Prices increased per user reports

Security

ISO/SOC/HIPAA/PCI compliant, but a 2022 attack using stolen OAuth tokens exposed customer credentials.

  • 2022 credential theft via stolen OAuth tokensHeroku admitted attackers used stolen OAuth tokens to access and steal customer account credentials; broader impact than first disclosed.⁷
  • Support criticized on breach handlingA user publicly reported extreme disappointment after an account security breach went unaddressed by Heroku support.12

What users say

Reviewers still praise the effortless deploys but increasingly complain about price, support, and whether Heroku has fallen behind newer platforms.

“Is Heroku still worth using in 2025, or has it fallen too far behind newer platforms?”
Reddit, r/salesforce
“Good Bye Heroku, We're Breaking Up.”
Reddit, r/Heroku
“It is easy to deploy new…”
Gartner Peer Insights

Alternatives

Compare Heroku with each alternative.

  • Railway

    Heroku-style deploys with usage pricing, positioned cheaper

    Heroku vs Railway

  • Render

    Heroku-like PaaS marketed strongly at frustrated Heroku migrants

    Heroku vs Render

  • DigitalOcean App Platform

    Simple app deploys on cheaper commodity infrastructure

Companies that use it

  • Hotel Engine
  • Yonomi
  • Sciometrix
Full analysis

Based on ~70 public sources: reviews, Reddit threads, pricing pages, security reports, and case studies. Several snippets were truncated.

Easiest deploys in the business, but no free tier and rising prices. Pay for convenience or go cheaper elsewhere.

Methodology

Based on ~70 public sources: reviews, Reddit threads, pricing pages, security reports, and case studies. Several snippets were truncated.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. Salesforce Heroku Reviews — G2g2.com
    review
  2. Heroku Reviews — Gartner Peer Insightsgartner.com
    review
  3. Heroku Reviews — Trustpilottrustpilot.com
    review
  4. Heroku announces plans to eliminate free plans — TechCrunchtechcrunch.com
    news
  5. Salesforce buys Heroku for $212M — TechCrunchtechcrunch.com
    news
  6. Heroku admits customer credentials stolen — BleepingComputerbleepingcomputer.com
    security
  7. Heroku OAuth token attack — Dark Readingdarkreading.com
    security
  8. Heroku Compliance & Certificationsheroku.com
    official
  9. Heroku Pricingheroku.com
    official
  10. Enterprise prices are going up — Reddit r/Herokureddit.com
    review
  11. Is Heroku really expensive? — Reddit r/railsreddit.com
    review
  12. Extremely Disappointed with Heroku Support — Reddit r/Herokureddit.com
    review

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