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Convex convex.dev

Can AI replace Convex?

Do not mistake the interface for the product. Convex's durable value is infrastructure, uptime, operations, which a solo one-shot build cannot reproduce responsibly. The prompt therefore builds only the closest honest personal consolation tool.

Verdict: Nah · Keep paying, or use a free alternativeBuild time: not a true replacement; consolation build in one to two days
Nah

01What it costs

Price variesProfessional, usage

Checked Aug 14, 2026 · source: convex.dev.

PlanMonthlyBilled yearlyWhat you get
FreeFreeFree1-6 developers; 40 deployments; 0.5 GB database; 1 GB database I/O/month; 1M function calls/month; 20 action GB-hours; 1 GB files and 1 GB egress.
StarterFree—Same free included quotas and 1-6 developers/40 deployments, then pay as you go above them.
Professional$25—1-20 developers; 300 deployments; 25M function calls; 250 action GB-hours; 50 GB database storage and I/O; 100 GB files; 50 GB egress.
Business / Enterprise$2,500—$2,500 monthly minimum with custom included allocations and dedicated terms.

Hidden costs: Overages meter each resource separately. Starter rates include $2.20/M calls, $0.33/action-GB-hour, $0.22/GB database storage, $0.033/GB files and $0.132/GB egress; Professional rates are lower. EU-region usage is priced at 1.3x US.

02Could AI build it for you?

The core job: Build a single-server deployment panel for one user that accepts a repository, builds a container, deploys it, shows logs, and supports rollback.

What a working version needs:

  • Linux VPS
  • Docker
  • DNS control
  • Explicit README warning that this is a consolation build, not a production replacement

Credibility row: Convex survives for a structural reason, not because its interface is difficult to copy.

03What you'd give up

  • 24-hour operations and support
  • managed global infrastructure
  • multi-region failover
  • DDoS protection and compliance

Convex: Managed hosting sells a failure domain, on-call team, network, backups, and capacity planning, not merely a deploy button.

04Free and cheaper alternatives

Appwriteopen-source

Auth, database, storage, realtime, and functions behind one polished console; the Compose file is doing a lot.

Versus paying: Appwrite supplies the backend pieces but not Convex's end-to-end reactive TypeScript query model, automatic dependency tracking, transactional functions, or client cache semantics.

appwrite.io →
Convex Self-Hostedfree

The actual Convex backend and reactive function runtime on your own server; auth still comes from an external provider.

Versus paying: This is Convex's actual runtime, but the subscription savings remove managed scaling, backups, monitoring, upgrades, incident response, and integrated authentication from the package.

convex.dev →
Nhostopen-source

Postgres plus GraphQL, auth, storage, functions, and realtime; closer to Firebase than most Firebase alternatives.

Versus paying: Nhost's PostgreSQL-and-GraphQL model is conventional and powerful, but it does not reproduce Convex's reactive functions, automatic cache invalidation, or unified TypeScript data model.

nhost.io →
Supabaseopen-source

Database, functions, realtime, files, and auth in one self-hosted stack; SQL replaces Convex's document model.

Versus paying: Supabase replaces Convex's document/function runtime with PostgreSQL, SQL migrations, row-level security, and separate services, so the application architecture must be rewritten rather than simply moved.

supabase.com →
Sponsor slot · openFeatured alternative to Convex. A labeled card for one relevant tool.
Book this spot →

05The build prompt

Read the verdict first: this one is hard to get right.

Get the Build Kit for Convex

The complete build prompt, plus 11 step-by-step prompts from research to launch, a design system file, a page-by-page spec, the data model and a launch checklist.

Get the Build Kit · $9 →

One-time payment. Delivered on screen and by email.

06Free open-source starting points

  • Coolify: Self-hosted application deployment and infrastructure control plane.
  • Dokku: Open-source platform-as-a-service toolkit for a single server.

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