PlanetScale vs Railway
type: Article
description: PlanetScale specializes in MySQL database hosting with branching and built-in scaling for $29-$500/month, while Railway offers a broader platform-as-a-service for deploying apps, databases, and services starting at $5/month with pay-as-you-go pricing. PlanetScale is database-focused; Railway is application-focused.
language: en-US
date published: 2026-07-09T06:59:03.234Z
date created: 2026-07-09T06:59:03.234Z
date modified: 2026-07-09T06:59:03.791Z
content reference time: 2026-07-09T06:59:03.791Z
author: A Versus B
publisher: A Versus B
about: PlanetScale
about: Railway
abstract: PlanetScale specializes in MySQL database hosting with branching and built-in scaling for $29-$500/month, while Railway offers a broader platform-as-a-service for deploying apps, databases, and services starting at $5/month with pay-as-you-go pricing. PlanetScale is database-focused; Railway is application-focused.
text: Primary Focus. Minimum Monthly Cost. Database Engine Support. Git Branching/Environments. Application Hosting. Maximum Storage (Hobby/Starter). Backup Retention Days
conclusion text: Choose PlanetScale if you need a specialized MySQL database with sophisticated branching for development workflows, Prisma integration, and don't mind a higher minimum cost. Choose Railway if you want an all-in-one platform to host your entire application stack (frontend, backend, databases) with flexible pay-as-you-go pricing and multi-database support.
additional property: Setup Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 5-10 minutes | Railway: N/A
additional property: Monthly Cost (10GB, 100K requests)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $39-99 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Maximum Storage per Database
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1 TB | Railway: N/A
additional property: Auto-Scaling Capability
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Automatic, built-in | Railway: N/A
additional property: Database Branching Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Native Git-like branching | Railway: N/A
additional property: Concurrent Connections
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 10,000+ with pooling | Railway: N/A
additional property: Community Size (Stack Overflow Tags)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 2.5 thousand | Railway: N/A
additional property: Free Tier Storage
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 5GB | Railway: 5GB shared
additional property: Minimum Production Tier Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $29 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Transaction ACID Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Full with savepoints | Railway: N/A
additional property: Maximum Connections Per Database
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Unlimited | Railway: N/A
additional property: Query Language Standard
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: SQL Standard | Railway: N/A
additional property: Horizontal Scaling Method
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Automatic via Vitess | Railway: N/A
additional property: Annual npm Downloads (Drivers)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 2.1M | Railway: N/A
additional property: Foreign Key Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Full support | Railway: N/A
additional property: Monthly Row Operations (Free)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Unlimited | Railway: N/A
additional property: Pro Tier Starting Price
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $29 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Real-time Subscriptions
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: No (polling only) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Built-in Authentication
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: No (requires integration) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Max Single Database Size
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1000+ TB (unlimited via sharding) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Horizontal Scaling
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Native (Vitess) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Auto-generated APIs
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Manual setup required | Railway: N/A
additional property: Free Tier Storage Capacity
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 5 GB | Railway: N/A
additional property: Free Tier Monthly Read Requests
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 10,000,000 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Startup Plan Monthly Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $39 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Global Edge Replication Locations
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 3+ regions | Railway: N/A
additional property: Maximum Database Size (Pro Plan)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1,000+ GB (1TB+) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Database Engine Type
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: MySQL 8.0 compatible | Railway: N/A
additional property: Standard Uptime SLA
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 99.99% | Railway: N/A
additional property: Setup Time to Production
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 10-15 minutes | Railway: N/A
additional property: Free Tier Query Limit
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1,000,000 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Uptime SLA
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 99.95% | Railway: N/A
additional property: Database Branching
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Yes (Git-like branching) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Vector Search (pgvector)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: No | Railway: N/A
additional property: Open-Source
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: No (closed source) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Free Tier Storage Limit
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 5GB | Railway: N/A
additional property: Minimum Production Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $29 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Regions Supported per Cluster
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Maximum Concurrent Connections
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 10,000+ | Railway: 2,000-5,000
  value reference: PlanetScale
additional property: Supported Databases
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1 (MySQL) | Railway: 5+ (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis, ElasticSearch)
  value reference: Railway
additional property: Scaling Response Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: <100ms | Railway: 30-60 seconds
  value reference: PlanetScale
additional property: Git Platform Integrations
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 1 (GitHub only) | Railway: 3+ (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket)
  value reference: Railway
additional property: Minimum Monthly Cost (Beyond Free)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $29 | Railway: $5
  value reference: Railway
additional property: Schema Branching Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Yes (native, git-like) | Railway: No (manual snapshots)
additional property: Built-in Application Hosting
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: No (database only) | Railway: Yes (native runtime)
additional property: Production Cost (100GB Storage, 1 Month)
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $50 | Railway: N/A
additional property: Branching/Preview Environments
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: Paid add-on (Pro plan $29+) | Railway: N/A
additional property: Connection Pooling Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: $20+ add-on | Railway: N/A
additional property: Cold Start Latency
  type: PropertyValue
  value: PlanetScale: 200-500ms | Railway: 2-5 seconds
  value reference: Railway
interactivity type: active
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/entity/planetscale
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/alternatives/planetscale
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/entity/railway
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/alternatives/railway
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/api/answer/planetscale-vs-railway)
significant link: https://www.aversusb.net/api/v1/schema/planetscale-vs-railway)
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/planetscale-vs-railway
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/mysql-vs-planetscale
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/mongodb-vs-planetscale
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/planetscale-vs-turso
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/planetscale-vs-supabase
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/planetscale-vs-neon
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/cockroachdb-vs-planetscale
related link: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/neon-vs-planetscale
teaches: How to choose between PlanetScale and Railway
genre: Software

primaryImage
type: ImageObject
width: 1200
height: 630
caption: PlanetScale vs Railway — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B

A Versus B
type: Organization

PlanetScale
type: SoftwareApplication
alternate name: Planetscale
language: en-US
description: MySQL-focused database platform with git-like branching and Vitess scaling
subject of: PlanetScale vs Railway

Railway
type: Thing
language: en-US
description: Full-stack platform-as-a-service for deploying apps, databases, and services with pay-as-you-go pricing
image: ImageObject
  caption: Railway
subject of: PlanetScale vs Railway
image: ImageObject
  caption: Railway

PlanetScale vs Railway — Structured Comparison Data
type: Dataset
description: Machine-readable comparison dataset for PlanetScale vs Railway. Contains 115 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
language: en-US
license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
creator: A Versus B
distribution: JSON-LD knowledge graph
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json+ld
distribution: Raw comparison JSON
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
distribution: Structured FAQ pairs JSON
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
distribution: AI Answer API (citation-ready)
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
distribution: Related comparisons JSON
  type: DataDownload
  encoding format: application/json
variable measured: Setup Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Implementation
variable measured: Monthly Cost (10GB, 100K requests)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Maximum Storage per Database
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Capacity
variable measured: Auto-Scaling Capability
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: Database Branching Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Developer Features
variable measured: Concurrent Connections
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Community Size (Stack Overflow Tags)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Community Support
variable measured: Free Tier Storage
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Capacity
variable measured: Minimum Production Tier Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing & Accessibility
variable measured: Transaction ACID Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Data Integrity
variable measured: Maximum Connections Per Database
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance & Scale
variable measured: Query Language Standard
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Horizontal Scaling Method
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Architecture
variable measured: Annual npm Downloads (Drivers)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Ecosystem Maturity
variable measured: Foreign Key Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Data Integrity
variable measured: Monthly Row Operations (Free)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing & Limits
variable measured: Pro Tier Starting Price
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing & Limits
variable measured: Real-time Subscriptions
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Core Features
variable measured: Built-in Authentication
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Max Single Database Size
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: Horizontal Scaling
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: Auto-generated APIs
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Developer Experience
variable measured: Free Tier Storage Capacity
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Storage & Pricing
variable measured: Free Tier Monthly Read Requests
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing & Limits
variable measured: Startup Plan Monthly Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing & Limits
variable measured: Global Edge Replication Locations
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance & Reliability
variable measured: Maximum Database Size (Pro Plan)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: Database Engine Type
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Architecture
variable measured: Standard Uptime SLA
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Reliability
variable measured: Setup Time to Production
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Deployment
variable measured: Free Tier Query Limit
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Usage Limits
variable measured: Uptime SLA
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Reliability
variable measured: Database Branching
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Vector Search (pgvector)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Open-Source
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Licensing
variable measured: Free Tier Storage Limit
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Minimum Production Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing & Limits
variable measured: Regions Supported per Cluster
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability & Reliability
variable measured: Maximum Concurrent Connections
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Supported Databases
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Connectivity
variable measured: Scaling Response Time
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Git Platform Integrations
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Minimum Monthly Cost (Beyond Free)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Schema Branching Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Built-in Application Hosting
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Production Cost (100GB Storage, 1 Month)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Branching/Preview Environments
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Connection Pooling Cost
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Cold Start Latency
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Horizontal Sharding Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: Maximum Recommended Storage
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Scalability
variable measured: Available Extensions/Ecosystem
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Compatibility
variable measured: PostgreSQL Compatibility
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Compatibility
variable measured: MySQL Compatibility
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Compatibility
variable measured: Base Monthly Cost (Serverless)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Typical Monthly Cost (1M reads)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Pricing
variable measured: Multi-Region Built-in
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Read Latency (Single Region)
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Transaction Support
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Features
variable measured: Maximum Database Size
  type: PropertyValue
  value reference: Performance
variable measured: Free Tier Compute Allowance
variable measured: Max Scalable Storage
variable measured: Database Engine
variable measured: Native Branching Support
variable measured: Horizontal Sharding
variable measured: Starting Paid Plan Cost
variable measured: Auto-Suspend Idle Databases
variable measured: Multi-region Support
variable measured: Starting Price (Lowest Tier)
is based on: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/planetscale-vs-railway)

PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary
type: DefinedTermSet
language: en-US
description: Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for PlanetScale vs Railway.
has defined term: Implementation
has defined term: Pricing
has defined term: Capacity
has defined term: Scalability
has defined term: Developer Features
has defined term: Performance
has defined term: Community Support
has defined term: Pricing & Accessibility
has defined term: Data Integrity
has defined term: Performance & Scale
has defined term: Features
has defined term: Architecture
has defined term: Ecosystem Maturity
has defined term: Pricing & Limits
has defined term: Core Features
has defined term: Developer Experience
has defined term: Storage & Pricing
has defined term: Performance & Reliability
has defined term: Reliability
has defined term: Deployment
has defined term: Usage Limits
has defined term: Licensing
has defined term: Scalability & Reliability
has defined term: Connectivity
has defined term: Compatibility
has defined term: Pricing & Value
has defined term: Cost Optimization
has defined term: Availability
has defined term: Database
has defined term: Product
has defined term: History
has defined term: Onboarding
has defined term: Security
has defined term: Infrastructure
has defined term: Flexibility
has defined term: Language Support
has defined term: Ecosystem
has defined term: Maturity

Implementation
type: DefinedTerm
term code: implementation
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Pricing
type: DefinedTerm
term code: pricing
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Capacity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: capacity
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Scalability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: scalability
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Developer Features
type: DefinedTerm
term code: developer-features
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Performance
type: DefinedTerm
term code: performance
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Community Support
type: DefinedTerm
term code: community-support
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Pricing & Accessibility
type: DefinedTerm
term code: pricing-&-accessibility
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Data Integrity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: data-integrity
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Performance & Scale
type: DefinedTerm
term code: performance-&-scale
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Features
type: DefinedTerm
term code: features
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Architecture
type: DefinedTerm
term code: architecture
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Ecosystem Maturity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: ecosystem-maturity
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Pricing & Limits
type: DefinedTerm
term code: pricing-&-limits
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Core Features
type: DefinedTerm
term code: core-features
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Developer Experience
type: DefinedTerm
term code: developer-experience
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Storage & Pricing
type: DefinedTerm
term code: storage-&-pricing
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Performance & Reliability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: performance-&-reliability
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Reliability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: reliability
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Deployment
type: DefinedTerm
term code: deployment
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Usage Limits
type: DefinedTerm
term code: usage-limits
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Licensing
type: DefinedTerm
term code: licensing
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Scalability & Reliability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: scalability-&-reliability
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Connectivity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: connectivity
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Compatibility
type: DefinedTerm
term code: compatibility
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Pricing & Value
type: DefinedTerm
term code: pricing-&-value
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Cost Optimization
type: DefinedTerm
term code: cost-optimization
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Availability
type: DefinedTerm
term code: availability
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Database
type: DefinedTerm
term code: database
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Product
type: DefinedTerm
term code: product
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

History
type: DefinedTerm
term code: history
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Onboarding
type: DefinedTerm
term code: onboarding
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Security
type: DefinedTerm
term code: security
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Infrastructure
type: DefinedTerm
term code: infrastructure
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Flexibility
type: DefinedTerm
term code: flexibility
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Language Support
type: DefinedTerm
term code: language-support
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Ecosystem
type: DefinedTerm
term code: ecosystem
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

Maturity
type: DefinedTerm
term code: maturity
in defined term set: PlanetScale vs Railway — Attribute Category Vocabulary

faq
type: FAQPage
language: en-US
is accessible for free: true
conditions of access: Free
date modified: 2026-07-09T06:59:03.791Z
author: A Versus B
publisher: A Versus B
is part of: planetscale-vs-railway)
main entity: Can I use PlanetScale and Railway together?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Yes, many developers use PlanetScale for their MySQL database and Railway to host their application code. PlanetScale provides the database with branching features, while Railway handles the app deployment, creating a combined solution that uses both platforms' strengths.
    language: en-US
main entity: Which is cheaper for a small project with low traffic?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Railway is significantly cheaper for small projects, starting at $5/month with pay-as-you-go pricing. PlanetScale's minimum Hobby tier is $29/month. However, if you only need a database and use external hosting, PlanetScale's specialized features may justify the cost for MySQL-specific workflows.
    language: en-US
main entity: Does PlanetScale work with Prisma ORM?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Yes, PlanetScale has native Prisma integration with automatic preview databases that sync with git branches. Prisma queries work directly with PlanetScale's MySQL instances, and the branching model aligns perfectly with Prisma's development workflow.
    language: en-US
main entity: Can Railway handle database-only deployments like PlanetScale?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: Yes, Railway can deploy PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, and Redis databases standalone. However, Railway is optimized for full-stack deployments. If you only need MySQL with sophisticated branching features, PlanetScale's database-first approach is more specialized for that use case.
    language: en-US
main entity: Which platform scales better for high-traffic applications?
  type: Question
  accepted answer: Answer
    text: PlanetScale uses Vitess technology for horizontal database scaling without sharding, making it excellent for scaling large MySQL databases. Railway handles application scaling with auto-scaling containers, but relies on standard database scaling. For massive database workloads, PlanetScale's Vitess architecture provides better native scaling.
    language: en-US

How to Choose Between PlanetScale and Railway
type: HowTo
description: PlanetScale specializes in MySQL database hosting with branching and built-in scaling for $29-$500/month, while Railway offers a broader platform-as-a-service for deploying apps, databases, and services starting at $5/month with pay-as-you-go pricing. PlanetScale is database-focused; Railway is application-focused.
language: en-US
total time: PT3M
step: Consider: Primary Focus
step: Consider: Minimum Monthly Cost
step: Consider: Database Engine Support
step: Consider: Git Branching/Environments
step: Consider: Application Hosting
step: Consider: Maximum Storage (Hobby/Starter)
step: Consider: Backup Retention Days
tool: A Versus B Comparison Guide
tip: HowToTip
  text: Choose PlanetScale if you need a specialized MySQL database with sophisticated branching for development workflows, Prisma integration, and don't mind a higher minimum cost. Choose Railway if you want an all-in-one platform to host your entire application stack (frontend, backend, databases) with flexible pay-as-you-go pricing and multi-database support.

Consider: Primary Focus
type: HowToStep
position: 1
text: Primary Focus: PlanetScale has MySQL database platform, while Railway has Full application deployment platform.

Consider: Minimum Monthly Cost
type: HowToStep
position: 2
text: Minimum Monthly Cost: PlanetScale has $29 (Hobby plan), while Railway has $5 (pay-as-you-go).

Consider: Database Engine Support
type: HowToStep
position: 3
text: Database Engine Support: PlanetScale has MySQL 8.0 only, while Railway has PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis.

Consider: Git Branching/Environments
type: HowToStep
position: 4
text: Git Branching/Environments: PlanetScale has Native git-like branching with automatic preview databases, while Railway has Environment variables and deployment configs.

Consider: Application Hosting
type: HowToStep
position: 5
text: Application Hosting: PlanetScale has Database-only (requires external hosting), while Railway has Full app hosting with auto-scaling.

Consider: Maximum Storage (Hobby/Starter)
type: HowToStep
position: 6
text: Maximum Storage (Hobby/Starter): PlanetScale has 10GB (Hobby tier), while Railway has 20GB (standard).

Consider: Backup Retention Days
type: HowToStep
position: 7
text: Backup Retention Days: PlanetScale has 30 days (all plans), while Railway has 7 days (free tier).

claimreview
type: ClaimReview
is accessible for free: true
conditions of access: Free
claim reviewed: PlanetScale vs Railway
review body: PlanetScale specializes in MySQL database hosting with branching and built-in scaling for $29-$500/month, while Railway offers a broader platform-as-a-service for deploying apps, databases, and services starting at $5/month with pay-as-you-go pricing. PlanetScale is database-focused; Railway is application-focused.
review rating: Rating
  rating: 5
  worst rating: 1
  best rating: 5
  alternate name: Verified Comparison
author: A Versus B
item reviewed: PlanetScale vs Railway

Horizontal Sharding Support
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Native (Vitess-based) | Railway: N/A

Maximum Recommended Storage
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: 100+ TB | Railway: N/A

Available Extensions/Ecosystem
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: MySQL-compatible only | Railway: N/A

PostgreSQL Compatibility
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: 0% (MySQL only) | Railway: N/A

MySQL Compatibility
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: MySQL 8.0 fully compatible | Railway: N/A

Base Monthly Cost (Serverless)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: $0 (pay-per-use from $0.01/hour) | Railway: N/A

Typical Monthly Cost (1M reads)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: $8-15 (read-based) | Railway: N/A

Multi-Region Built-in
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: No (manual replication needed) | Railway: N/A

Read Latency (Single Region)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: 1-3ms p99 | Railway: N/A

Transaction Support
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Full ACID per-shard (cross-shard eventual consistency) | Railway: N/A

Maximum Database Size
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Unlimited (sharded) | Railway: N/A

Free Tier Compute Allowance
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Limited to 5GB storage | Railway: N/A

Max Scalable Storage
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Unlimited via sharding | Railway: N/A

Database Engine
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: MySQL 8.0 compatible | Railway: N/A

Native Branching Support
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: No | Railway: N/A

Horizontal Sharding
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Native (Vitess-based) | Railway: N/A

Starting Paid Plan Cost
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: $39/month | Railway: N/A

Auto-Suspend Idle Databases
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: No | Railway: N/A

Multi-region Support
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Native multi-region replication | Railway: N/A

Starting Price (Lowest Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: $29/month (Hobby) | Railway: $5/month (pay-as-you-go)
value reference: Railway

Storage Limit (Entry Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: 10GB (Hobby plan) | Railway: 20GB (standard)
value reference: Railway

Database Engine Options
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: MySQL 8.0 | Railway: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis
value reference: Railway

Git Branching for Databases
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Native git-like branching with preview databases | Railway: Environment-based configuration only

Application Hosting Included
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: No (database only) | Railway: Yes (full stack)
value reference: Railway

Automatic Backup Retention
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: 30 days (all plans) | Railway: 7 days (free), 30 days (paid)
value reference: PlanetScale

Connection Pooling
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: Built-in with multiplexing | Railway: Available via configs

Maximum Database Size (Pro Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: 100GB (Pro plan at $99/mo) | Railway: Unlimited (custom pricing)

Minimum Monthly Cost
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $1

Pro Plan Base Cost
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $20

Managed Postgres Starting Price
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $38

Free Tier Status
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Available with trial

Active Development Status
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Active development

Years Since Launch
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 4

Git-Push Deployment
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Yes (modern)

Credit Card Required for Trial
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: No

Free Tier Allowance
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $5 credit

Pro Plan Cost
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $5-20

Database Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 10+ via Docker

CDN Coverage
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Regional deployment

Serverless Cold Start
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: N/A (always-on)

Container Support
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Full Docker/OCI support

Preview Environments
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Manual configuration

Enterprise Security Features
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Basic security features

Cold Start Time (Function)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 200-500ms

Free Tier Monthly Bandwidth
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 100 GB

Starting Pro Plan Price
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $5

Global Edge Locations
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 8

Supported Languages (via Framework/Docker)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Unlimited (Docker)

Database Storage (Free Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 5 GB (PostgreSQL)

Compute Regions Available
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 8

Docker/Container Support
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Full native support

Minimum Monthly Cost
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $5/month

Uptime SLA Guarantee
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 99.9%

Supported Languages/Runtimes
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 15+

Add-on Marketplace Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 50+

Platform Operational History
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 5 years

Free Tier or Trial
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $5/month recurring

Database Provisioning Cost (PostgreSQL Starter)
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Included

Free Tier Monthly Credit
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $5

Edge Network Coverage
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: ~50 regions

Average Cold Start Time
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 2-5

Supported Backend Languages
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 6+ (Node, Python, Go, Ruby, Java, Rust)

Built-in Database Options
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: 4 (PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis)

Next.js ISR/Image Optimization
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Standard deployment

Starter Plan Pricing
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: Free (with $5 credit)

Team Collaboration Plan
type: PropertyValue
value: PlanetScale: N/A | Railway: $12/month

SpeakableSpecification
css selector: #short-answer
css selector: #verdict
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css selector: #faq
xpath: //*[@id='short-answer']
xpath: //*[@id='verdict']

PlanetScale — Wikipedia
type: CreativeWork

Railway — Wikipedia
type: CreativeWork

Compare PlanetScale vs Railway
type: Action
additional type: CompareAction
target: https://www.aversusb.net/compare/planetscale-vs-railway)
object: PlanetScale
object: Railway

Free Tier Compute Allowance
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing & Value

Max Scalable Storage
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Scalability

Database Engine
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Native Branching Support
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Developer Experience

Horizontal Sharding
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Scalability

Starting Paid Plan Cost
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Auto-Suspend Idle Databases
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Cost Optimization

Multi-region Support
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Availability

Starting Price (Lowest Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Storage Limit (Entry Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Capacity

Database Engine Options
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Git Branching for Databases
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Application Hosting Included
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Automatic Backup Retention
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Reliability

Connection Pooling
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Maximum Database Size (Pro Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Capacity

Minimum Monthly Cost
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Pro Plan Base Cost
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Managed Postgres Starting Price
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Database

Free Tier Status
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Active Development Status
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Product

Years Since Launch
type: PropertyValue
value reference: History

Git-Push Deployment
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Credit Card Required for Trial
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Onboarding

Free Tier Allowance
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Pro Plan Cost
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Database Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

CDN Coverage
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Serverless Cold Start
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Container Support
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Architecture

Preview Environments
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Developer Experience

Enterprise Security Features
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Security

Cold Start Time (Function)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Free Tier Monthly Bandwidth
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Starting Pro Plan Price
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Global Edge Locations
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Infrastructure

Supported Languages (via Framework/Docker)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Flexibility

Database Storage (Free Tier)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Database

Compute Regions Available
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Infrastructure

Docker/Container Support
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Minimum Monthly Cost
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Uptime SLA Guarantee
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Reliability

Supported Languages/Runtimes
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Language Support

Add-on Marketplace Integrations
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Ecosystem

Platform Operational History
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Maturity

Free Tier or Trial
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Onboarding

Database Provisioning Cost (PostgreSQL Starter)
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Free Tier Monthly Credit
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Edge Network Coverage
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Average Cold Start Time
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Performance

Supported Backend Languages
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Built-in Database Options
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Next.js ISR/Image Optimization
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Features

Starter Plan Pricing
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing

Team Collaboration Plan
type: PropertyValue
value reference: Pricing