Best PlanetScale Alternatives After Hobby Tier Removal

In March 2024, PlanetScale announced they were removing their Hobby tier. For many developers who'd built side projects, prototypes, and small applications on the free plan, this meant finding a new home for their MySQL databases.

PlanetScale was special because it combined MySQL compatibility with serverless branching. You could create database branches like git branches, making schema changes safer. Finding a true replacement means understanding what you actually need.

What Made PlanetScale Special

Before looking at alternatives, let's acknowledge what PlanetScale offered:

• MySQL-compatible: Used Vitess under the hood, familiar MySQL syntax
• Database branching: Deploy requests for schema changes
• Serverless scaling: Pay for what you use
• Zero-downtime migrations: Non-blocking schema changes
• Automatic connection pooling: Handled serverless connection limits

Not every alternative offers all of these. You'll likely need to prioritize.

The Best Alternatives

1. Neon (PostgreSQL)

Best for: Developers willing to switch from MySQL to PostgreSQL

Neon is probably the closest spiritual successor to PlanetScale. It has the serverless model, the branching feature, and a generous free tier.

What you get:

• Database branching (instant, copy-on-write)
• Scale to zero (stop paying when idle)
• 0.5 GB storage on free tier
• 191 compute hours/month free
• PostgreSQL (not MySQL)

Trade-offs:

• PostgreSQL, not , migration required
• Syntax differences (especially around auto-increment, JSON functions)

Pricing: Free tier available, Pro starts at $19/month

If you're not deeply invested in MySQL-specific features, Neon is excellent. The branching is as good as PlanetScale's, and PostgreSQL is arguably a better database anyway.

2. Supabase (PostgreSQL)

Best for: Developers who want a full backend platform

Supabase gives you more than just a database. You get auth, storage, edge functions, and auto-generated APIs. If you were using PlanetScale with a separate auth service and API layer, Supabase consolidates everything.

What you get:

• PostgreSQL database
• Built-in authentication
• File storage
• Auto-generated REST and GraphQL APIs
• Real-time subscriptions
• 500 MB database on free tier
• Pauses after 1 week of inactivity (free tier)

Trade-offs:

• PostgreSQL, not MySQL
• Not truly serverless (pauses on free tier, fixed compute on paid)
• More than you need if you just want a database

Pricing: Free tier available, Pro starts at $25/month

3. TiDB Serverless (MySQL-compatible)

Best for: Those who need MySQL compatibility

TiDB is a distributed SQL database compatible with MySQL. Their serverless offering has a free tier and maintains the MySQL syntax you know.

What you get:

• MySQL 5.7 compatible
• Serverless (pay per request)
• 5 GiB storage free
• 50 million Request Units free per month
• Distributed architecture

Trade-offs:

• No database branching
• Some MySQL features aren't supported (stored procedures have limitations)
• Less mature ecosystem than PlanetScale

Pricing: Free tier available, pay-as-you-go after

If MySQL compatibility is non-negotiable and you can live without branching, TiDB Serverless is worth evaluating.

4. Railway (PostgreSQL or MySQL)

Best for: Simple deployments with predictable pricing

Railway is a platform for deploying apps and databases. It's not specifically a database company, but their MySQL and PostgreSQL offerings are solid for small to medium projects.

What you get:

• Real MySQL or PostgreSQL (not MySQL-compatible)
• Simple deployment
• $5/month credit on Hobby plan
• Predictable resource-based pricing
• Easy deployment from GitHub

Trade-offs:

• No database branching
• No scale-to-zero
• You're paying for compute 24/7

Pricing: $5 free credit/month, then pay for resources used

5. Turso (SQLite)

Best for: Edge deployments and read-heavy workloads

Turso is based on libSQL (a SQLite fork) and provides replicated SQLite at the edge. It's not MySQL, but if your use case fits SQLite, the performance and pricing are compelling.

What you get:

• SQLite-based (embedded database simplicity)
• Edge replicas (low latency globally)
• 9 GB storage free
• 500 databases free
• 1 billion row reads free per month

Trade-offs:

• Not MySQL or , SQLite semantics
• Single writer limitation (SQLite constraint)
• Limited for write-heavy workloads

Pricing: Generous free tier, Scaler starts at $29/month

If your workload is read-heavy and you can adapt to SQLite, Turso's free tier is exceptionally generous.

6. CockroachDB Serverless (PostgreSQL-compatible)

Best for: Global distribution and high availability

CockroachDB is a distributed SQL database that's PostgreSQL-compatible. Their serverless tier offers a free option with automatic scaling.

What you get:

• PostgreSQL compatible
• Distributed and highly available
• 10 GiB storage free
• 50M Request Units free per month
• Global tables for multi-region

Trade-offs:

• PostgreSQL, not MySQL
• Can be expensive at scale
• More complex than a simple database

Pricing: Free tier available, pay-as-you-go after

7. Self-Hosted Options

If you're comfortable with ops, running your own MySQL is always an option:

DigitalOcean Managed Databases: Starting at $15/month for MySQL AWS RDS: Free tier available (12 months), then ~$15/month minimum Render: $7/month for PostgreSQL (no MySQL)

Self-managed means no branching, no serverless, and you handle backups. But you get full MySQL with no compromises.

Migration Considerations

MySQL to PostgreSQL

If you're considering Neon, Supabase, or CockroachDB, you'll need to migrate from MySQL to PostgreSQL.

Key differences:

• AUTO_INCREMENT → SERIAL or GENERATED ALWAYS AS IDENTITY
• Double quotes for identifiers, single quotes for strings
• No LIMIT offset, count. Use LIMIT count OFFSET offset
• Boolean is a real type, not TINYINT
• Different JSON function syntax

Tools like pgloader can help automate schema and data conversion.

Keeping MySQL

If MySQL compatibility is essential, your options are more limited:

• TiDB Serverless: Best MySQL-compatible serverless option
• Railway/DigitalOcean/AWS: Real MySQL, but not serverless
• Self-hosted: Full control, full responsibility

Recommendation Summary

| Need | Best Option | |------|-------------| | Closest to PlanetScale (branching + serverless) | Neon | | Must stay on MySQL | TiDB Serverless | | Want full backend (auth, storage, APIs) | Supabase | | Just need cheap, simple hosting | Railway | | Read-heavy, edge deployment | Turso | | Global distribution, high availability | CockroachDB Serverless |

My Take

The PlanetScale free tier removal was disappointing, but the alternatives are solid. If you're starting fresh, Neon is probably the best choice, the branching feature matches PlanetScale's, and PostgreSQL is a great database.

If you have an existing MySQL application and can't migrate, TiDB Serverless is your best bet for a free tier. It's not perfect, but it's MySQL-compatible and serverless.

For most side projects, the free tiers of Neon, Supabase, or TiDB are sufficient. You'll only need to pay when your project succeeds, which is exactly how it should be.