PocketBase Cloud vs PocketHost

Both PocketBase Cloud and PocketHost are managed hosting platforms for PocketBase. PocketHost is a good option for small hobby projects, but PocketBase Cloud is built for production: no rate limits, no hibernation, and a full application platform (PocketBase, backends, and static sites) rather than a single-purpose PocketBase host. This page outlines the key differences to help you choose the right platform for your project.

Summary

Why teams choose PocketBase Cloud:

• No artificial ceilings — throughput scales with your server, not with a shared rate-limit policy
• Always-on — no hibernation means no cold starts and no missed cron jobs
• One platform, not one service — PocketBase, backends, and static sites live together in a single project with shared infrastructure
• A free tier that’s actually usable — 1 PocketBase instance and 5 frontend deployments at no cost

Rate limits

PocketHost enforces several layers of rate limiting:

• 50 requests per 10 seconds per IP — enforced at the Cloudflare edge
• 1,000 requests per hour per IP address
• 10,000 requests per hour per instance
• 5 concurrent requests per IP address
• 50 concurrent requests per instance

These limits can be restrictive for production workloads, especially with SSR or proxy setups where all traffic originates from a single IP.

PocketBase Cloud does not enforce per-IP or per-instance request caps. Throughput depends entirely on your server resources. For example, a Pro plan instance with 2 CPU cores and 4 GB RAM can handle 1,000+ requests per second with no artificial ceiling.

Hibernation

PocketHost instances may enter hibernation during periods of inactivity. When an instance is hibernating:

• Cron jobs and scheduled tasks may fail to execute
• The first incoming request may be delayed or fail while the instance wakes up
• Missed cron intervals are not replayed after wake-up

PocketBase Cloud instances run 24/7 — no hibernation, no cold starts. They behave the same as PocketBase deployed on your own server. We handle infrastructure setup, monitoring, maintenance, and security hardening while your instances stay always-on.

Free plan

PocketBase Cloud offers a free plan that includes:

• 1 PocketBase instance (50 MB disk limit)
• 5 frontend deployments
• Runs on a dedicated free server cluster

A $0 Stripe subscription is required to collect payment information and prevent abuse. You will not be charged.

Multi-service hosting

PocketHost only hosts PocketBase instances. PocketBase Cloud is a full application platform: it supports deploying additional service types from a single dashboard and within the same project, so you’re not stitching together separate providers for your frontend, backend, and database.

• Static sites — deploy frontends built with any framework (React, Vue, Svelte, Astro, etc.) with custom domain support
• Backend services — run server-side code using Node.js, Deno, or Bun runtimes. Useful for applications with complex business logic, API endpoints beyond what PocketBase hooks can provide, or projects that need libraries from the JavaScript ecosystem

All services within a project share the same infrastructure and can communicate directly with each other — no cross-provider networking, CORS workarounds, or separate billing to manage.

Custom domains

Custom domains are available on the Starter plan and above. Each PocketBase instance, backend, and frontend can have its own custom domain with automatic HTTPS certificate provisioning via Cloudflare.

Monitoring and logs

PocketBase Cloud includes built-in monitoring and log streaming:

• Real-time logs — stream backend logs directly in the dashboard
• Server metrics — CPU, memory, and disk usage graphs for Pro plan servers

Next steps

• Create your first project
• Deploy a PocketBase instance