Choosing between [DeployHQ Static Hosting](https://www.deployhq.com/hosting/static) and Vercel comes down to one question: are you only shipping a static frontend, or do you have a backend in the picture too? Both run on globally distributed edge networks. Both auto-detect popular frameworks. Both let you push to a Git branch and have a deployed site within a minute. The differences sit one layer up — in pricing predictability, in what you can deploy alongside the static site, and in how locked-in you are to the platform's runtime model.

This guide compares the two head to head: feature parity, where each one wins, current pricing, and the migration path between them.

## TL;DR

If you're building a Next.js application that uses server-side rendering, edge middleware, or ISR — choose Vercel. It's the platform built by the Next.js team and nothing else comes close for Next.js-specific features.

If you're shipping a static site or SPA and you already deploy backend code somewhere (a Laravel API on a VPS, a Rails app on a managed server, a WordPress install on shared hosting), [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting gives you one workflow and one bill for the whole stack. The static frontend rides on the same Cloudflare edge that Pages uses, while the same [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) project can ship your backend code to wherever it actually runs.

For a broader view of where each tool sits in the deployment landscape, our roundup of [the best software deployment tools in 2026](https://www.deployhq.com/blog/best-software-deployment-tools) covers Vercel, Netlify, Cloudflare Pages, and [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) alongside the rest of the category.

## At a glance: feature comparison

| Capability | DeployHQ Static Hosting | Vercel |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Edge network | Cloudflare's global edge | Vercel Edge Network |
| Framework auto-detection | Yes (rule + AI fallback) | Best-in-class for Next.js |
| Atomic deploys | Yes | Yes |
| Custom domains + SSL | Yes (automatic) | Yes (automatic) |
| SPA mode (client-side routing) | Yes (toggle) | Yes |
| Server-side rendering | No (static only) | Yes (full SSR + ISR) |
| Edge functions / middleware | No | Yes |
| Image optimization | No (use a CDN proxy) | Built-in |
| Deploy previews per branch | Per-environment in same project | Per pull request |
| Backend deploys in same pipeline | Yes (VPS, shared, cloud, S3) | No |
| Pricing model | Fixed monthly per site | Tiered + usage (bandwidth, functions, builds) |
| Hobby/free tier | Trial includes 1 site | Hobby (free, single seat, 100 GB transfer) |
| Vendor lock-in | Low (move the build elsewhere any time) | Higher (forms, image opt, edge fns tied to Vercel) |

Both products are mature on the basics. The real divergence is in (a) whether SSR matters to your project, and (b) whether you have non-static code that needs deploying too.

## When DeployHQ Static Hosting is the right choice

**You're deploying a static site or SPA, not a server-rendered Next.js app.** Static Hosting is built for compiled output — Hugo sites, Jekyll documentation, Astro marketing pages, statically-exported Next.js builds, SvelteKit pre-renders, plain React/Vue/Angular SPAs. If your build produces a folder of HTML/CSS/JS and assets, [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting will serve it from Cloudflare's edge with the same latency profile Cloudflare Pages offers. See [the Next.js deployment guide](https://www.deployhq.com/guides/next) for the static-export workflow specifically.

**You already deploy backend code with [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) — or are planning to.** This is the workflow-consolidation case. Most teams shipping a marketing site or web app have _something_ on the backend: a Laravel API on a VPS, a Node service on Hetzner, a WordPress install on shared hosting. If that backend lives in [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com), the static frontend can sit in the same project, share environments and pipelines, and bill on the same monthly invoice. If you're considering [DeployHQ Managed VPS Hosting](https://www.deployhq.com/hosting/managed-vps) for the backend, the static frontend can ride along on Static Hosting in the same project without any extra setup.

**You want predictable pricing that doesn't spike with traffic.** Vercel's pricing is tiered with usage-based bandwidth, function invocations, and build minutes — fine on Hobby, surprising on Pro when a post lands on Hacker News. [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting charges a fixed monthly rate per site. A traffic spike is a great problem; it shouldn't also be a billing problem. [See the full](https://www.deployhq.com/hosting)[DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) hosting catalog for an overview of where Static Hosting sits alongside the other managed options.

**You don't want vendor lock-in.** Vercel's value-adds (image optimization, forms, edge middleware, analytics) are tied to Vercel. If you ever want to move to a different host, you rewrite those pieces. [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting is intentionally thin — it serves your build output and that's most of it. If you outgrow it, your build still produces the same artifact and works anywhere else that serves static files.

## When Vercel is the right choice

**You're building a Next.js application that uses SSR, ISR, or App Router server components.** Vercel is the platform built by the Next.js team. Server-rendered routes, incremental static regeneration, React Server Components, streaming, edge middleware — all first-class. If your Next.js app does anything beyond pure static export, Vercel is hard to beat. (If your Next.js app is _only_ using `export`, [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting works just as well and costs less; but that's a small subset of Next.js projects.)

**You depend on edge functions or middleware for per-request logic.** Need to A/B test, rewrite URLs, do geo-based routing, or run authentication at the edge? Vercel's edge runtime is built for that. [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting doesn't run code at request time — you'd put Cloudflare Workers in front of it to add that layer, or move to a runtime that supports middleware natively.

**Deploy previews with commenting is your team's workflow.** Vercel's per-PR preview links with inline comments are excellent for design and product review. [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) supports per-environment deployments and you can preview each branch, but the per-PR preview-comment UX is a Vercel-specific strength.

**You want analytics, image optimization, and forms in one bundled tool.** Vercel's product surface is broader. If you'd rather not pick a CDN, an image-optimization service, and a form backend separately, the bundle has real ergonomics value — at the cost of being more tied to Vercel.

## Pricing: side by side

Quick comparison at typical small-team scales. Numbers are accurate as of June 2026 — check vendor pricing pages for the current rates before you commit.

**Vercel Hobby** is free, single developer seat, includes 100 GB fast data transfer, 1M function invocations, 4 hours of active function CPU per month. Good for hobby projects and very small sites.

**Vercel Pro** is $20 per seat per month plus usage. Includes 1 TB fast data transfer and 1M function invocations included; beyond that, bandwidth, function CPU, and build minutes are usage-billed. Build minutes are priced per machine type ($0.014/min Standard, $0.028/min Enhanced, $0.105/min Turbo). A team site with moderate traffic typically lands in the $40-100/month range — sometimes much higher with bandwidth spikes.

**DeployHQ Static Hosting** is billed at a fixed monthly rate per site — the rate shown on the Hosted Resources page and on the site setup form in your account's currency, on the same monthly invoice as your [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) plan. Trial accounts can provision one Static Hosting site at no charge. No per-bandwidth, per-build-minute, or per-function-invocation overage to worry about.

If you also need a backend deployed (the consolidation case), the comparison shifts — Vercel Pro plus a separate VPS plus a separate deployment tool quickly exceeds the bundled [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) price. [See current](https://www.deployhq.com/pricing)[DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) pricing for the full plan table.

## Moving between them (it's not all-or-nothing)

Both platforms serve the same artifact — a folder of built static files — so migration in either direction is mostly a redirect. The build command and output directory stay the same; only the deployment target changes.

**From Vercel to [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting**: connect the repository in [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com), point Static Hosting at the same build directory Vercel used (`dist`, `.next/out`, `_site`, etc.), keep the build command identical, and switch DNS once the new site is verified. If you depend on Vercel-specific features (image optimization, edge middleware, forms), plan their replacements first — Vercel image opt → Cloudflare image transformations or a third-party image CDN; Vercel forms → a third-party form service; edge middleware → Cloudflare Workers in front of Static Hosting. For the broader move from various deployment platforms, our [migrating to](https://www.deployhq.com/blog/migrating-to-deployhq-a-smooth-transition-guide)[DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) smooth transition guide covers the general pattern.

**From [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting to Vercel**: even simpler — connect the repo to Vercel, set the same build command and output directory, switch DNS. No DeployHQ-specific features to unwind.

**Or: mix them.** [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) supports bring-your-own deployment targets alongside its managed hosting. You can keep a Vercel-hosted Next.js app and deploy your Laravel API or your Rails backend with [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) to a VPS in the same project. There's no requirement to consolidate the static side.

## What about the Cloudflare edge?

Both [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting and Cloudflare Pages run on Cloudflare's global edge network. Vercel runs on Vercel's own edge network, built on AWS regions plus their own POPs. In practice the latency profile is comparable for most users — within tens of milliseconds depending on geography — but the underlying networks are different. Cloudflare's network is broader (305+ POPs, last published count); Vercel's is narrower but tuned tightly for Next.js workloads.

For pure static content this rarely matters. For edge-function workloads with strict latency SLAs, run your own benchmark from the regions your users actually live in.

## FAQ

**Can I use a custom domain with [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting?**Yes. Add a CNAME record at your DNS provider pointing to your `<subdomain>.deployhq-sites.com` host. HTTPS certificates are provisioned automatically by Cloudflare. Custom domains are supported on all tiers including trial.

**Does [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting support Next.js?**Yes, for statically-exported Next.js builds (`next export`, or App Router pages with `output: 'export'`). If your app uses SSR, ISR, server components with dynamic rendering, or edge middleware, Static Hosting isn't the right surface — those need a runtime. Use [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Managed VPS Hosting and run a Node process there, or stay on Vercel.

**Can I get deploy previews per pull request?** [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) projects support multiple servers (and therefore multiple environments) inside one project, so you can have a staging Static Hosting site that deploys from a `staging` branch. Per-PR preview links with inline comments are a Vercel-specific feature — [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) doesn't replicate that exact UX.

**Is there a free tier on [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting?**Trial accounts can provision one Static Hosting site at no charge. Paid plans support additional sites. The trial is what you'd use to evaluate the product before committing.

**What if I outgrow Static Hosting?** You can move to BYO hosting (deploy to your own S3 bucket, Cloudflare R2, or any S3-compatible storage) in the same [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) project, or move to Managed VPS if your site picked up a backend. Same pipeline, just a different target. If you're outgrowing the static-only model entirely and need a runtime, our [shared hosting vs VPS comprehensive guide for junior developers](https://www.deployhq.com/blog/shared-hosting-vs-vps-a-comprehensive-guide-for-junior-developers) walks through the broader infrastructure trade-offs.

## Get started

If you're already on [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) and want to add a static site to an existing project, enable beta features under **Settings \> Beta Features** , then add a new Static Hosting server to your project. The [Static Hosting on](https://www.deployhq.com/blog/static-hosting-on-deployhq)[DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) pillar guide walks through the provisioning flow end-to-end.

If you're new, [start a free trial](https://www.deployhq.com/signup) and the trial includes one Static Hosting site so you can compare the workflow against your current Vercel setup before deciding. For the broader picture of where Static Hosting fits among the five hosting types [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) supports, see [your universal deployment and hosting platform](https://www.deployhq.com/blog/deployhq-your-universal-deployment-platform-for-all-hosting-types).

Both [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting and Vercel are good at what they're built for. Pick based on what's actually around your static site — if it's all static or you're consolidating workflows for a backend you also ship, [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting fits. If you're deep in Next.js SSR territory, stay on Vercel and don't fix what isn't broken.

For more detail on the [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) Static Hosting product itself, the [Static Hosting support library](https://www.deployhq.com/support/servers/static-hosting) has the full provisioning, framework-detection, and lifecycle documentation. And the [build pipeline feature page](https://www.deployhq.com/features/build-pipelines) covers what runs on the [DeployHQ](https://www.deployhq.com) side before the upload step fires.

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Questions or feedback on Static Hosting vs Vercel? Email [support@deployhq.com](mailto:support@deployhq.com) or follow [@deployhq](https://x.com/deployhq) on X for product updates.