Fly.io Fly.io Inc. Fly.io transforms containers into micro-VMs that run on their hardware in cities close to your users.
Container Hosting #containers#edge#docker
No free tier
Status: inferred · Last reviewed: 2026-07-09
Deploy PocketBase For Free
PocketBase is a single-binary backend with SQLite, auth, file storage and an admin UI. Free deployment is possible for experiments, but persistence is the hard part: the SQLite database and uploaded files must survive restarts.
Use Fly.io when you are comfortable with containers and persistent volumes.
Use Render for a simple web service demo, but free services have an ephemeral filesystem.
Use Railway when the developer workflow matters more than a permanent free tier.
Best free hosts
Fly.io Fly.io Inc. 
Render Render Services Inc. Render is a unified cloud to build and run all your apps and websites with free TLS certificates, a global CDN, private networks and auto deploys from Git.
PaaS #backend#database#docker
Free tier
750 hours/month for web services
Paid from $7/mo · 4 regions
Railway Railway Corp Railway is an infrastructure platform where you can provision infrastructure, develop with it locally, and then deploy to the cloud.
PaaS #backend#database#deployment
Free tier
30-day trial with $5 usage credit, then $1/month minimum
Paid from $1/mo · 4 regions
Fly.io is the primary recommendation for this deployment path.
Deployment path
- 1 Download or build the PocketBase binary for your target platform.
- 2 Create a Dockerfile or platform start command that runs PocketBase on the provided port.
- 3 Attach persistent storage before storing real data or uploaded files.
- 4 Set the public URL and verify the admin UI, API and file uploads.
- 5 Back up the SQLite database before treating the deployment as more than a demo.
Deployment notes
PocketBase is easier to deploy than most backends because it is one binary, but that simplicity hides the main free-tier risk. Hosts that restart, redeploy or sleep without persistent disk support can erase local data.
Fly.io is the most natural free-ish fit when you want a container and volume model. Render and Railway are easier for a quick test, but read their current free/trial terms before you put real data there.
FAQ
Can PocketBase be hosted free forever?
Only for very small demos and only if the platform preserves the SQLite file. Most serious projects should pay for persistent storage and backups.
Why is persistent storage required?
PocketBase stores application data in a local SQLite file and may store uploaded files on disk. Losing the disk means losing the app data.
Is Render free good for PocketBase?
It can work as a demo web service, but Render's free web services have an ephemeral filesystem and sleep after inactivity, so do not rely on local files there.