Heroku vs Railway / Render
Estimate what moving from Heroku to Railway / Render costs over 12 to 36 months, including the one-time switch. Then remap your exported CSV headers.
Why teams look at this switch: Elimination of free dynos & expensive scaling per dyno/database
Cost calculator
CSV header mapper
Rename exported Heroku column headers to the names Railway / Render expects. It runs in your browser. Only headers change and values are kept.
Renamed headers do not make a file import-ready. Compare the result with Railway / Render's import template and create any custom fields there first.
| Heroku column | Railway / Render column | Field type |
|---|---|---|
| HEROKU_POSTGRESQL_URI | DATABASE_URL | Suggested |
| PORT | PORT | Suggested |
| DYNO_RAM_MB | RAILWAY_MEMORY_LIMIT | Custom field, create it first |
| REDIS_TLS_URL | REDIS_URL | Suggested |
When moving to Railway / Render makes sense
- Your main cost driver is Elimination of free dynos & expensive scaling per dyno/database, and your volume is past the break-even point above.
- Your team can finish the CSV import and onboarding within the switching budget you entered.
- You have checked that Railway / Render's plan covers the integrations and compliance rules you need.
When staying on Heroku is the better call
- The one-time migration, re-integration or retraining cost is larger than 12 to 24 months of savings.
- You are inside a multi-year Heroku contract with early-termination fees.
- Your workflow relies on add-ons or features Railway / Render does not support yet.
How the result changes with volume
Twelve-month totals at half, default and double volume, using the default pricing model and a $150 switching cost.
| Volume (Active Services / Dynos) | Heroku | Railway / Render | 12-month difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50% volume (3) | $90/mo | $28/mo | +$594 |
| Default volume (6) | $165/mo | $50/mo | +$1,230 |
| 200% volume (12) | $315/mo | $95/mo | +$2,490 |
Questions
How is the total cost of Heroku and Railway / Render compared?
Each side's monthly cost is multiplied by the months in the horizon, and the one-time switching cost is added to Railway / Render. At the default volume (Active Services / Dynos: 6), the model gives about $165 per month for Heroku and $50 per month for Railway / Render.
How do Heroku CSV headers map to Railway / Render?
The mapper renames Heroku columns (HEROKU_POSTGRESQL_URI, PORT, DYNO_RAM_MB, REDIS_TLS_URL) to Railway / Render columns (DATABASE_URL, PORT, RAILWAY_MEMORY_LIMIT, REDIS_URL) in your browser. Custom fields must exist in Railway / Render before you import.
When should a company stay on Heroku?
Stay if the one-time switching, integration or contract-exit cost is larger than the savings over the horizon you care about. The calculator shows that case as a negative result.