Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Netlify VS Google Cloud Run

Compare Netlify VS Google Cloud Run and see what are their differences

Netlify logo Netlify

Build, deploy and host your static site or app with a drag and drop interface and automatic delpoys from GitHub or Bitbucket

Google Cloud Run logo Google Cloud Run

Bringing serverless to containers
  • Netlify Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-23
  • Google Cloud Run Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-16

Netlify features and specs

  • Deployment Speed
    Netlify offers very fast and easy deployment processes, often requiring just a push to a Git repository.
  • Built-in CDN
    Netlify includes a global Content Delivery Network (CDN) to speed up the delivery of websites and applications.
  • Serverless Functions
    Netlify provides serverless functions allowing developers to run backend code without managing servers.
  • Automated Builds
    Automated build processes are integrated, supporting continuous integration and deployment (CI/CD).
  • Custom Domains and SSL
    Easily manage custom domains and automatically provision and renew SSL certificates.
  • Integrated Form Handling
    Netlify offers form handling capabilities out-of-the-box, simplifying the process of collecting form data.
  • Plugins and Integrations
    Extensible with a wide range of plugins and integrations including analytics, CMS, and other third-party services.
  • Developer-Friendly
    Offers a wide range of developer-friendly features, such as split testing, instant rollbacks, and APIs for customization.
  • Free Tier
    Generous free tier that allows for hosting of personal projects and small websites at no cost.

Possible disadvantages of Netlify

  • Pricing
    While there's a free tier, more advanced features and higher usage can become expensive on a paid plan.
  • Function Limits
    Serverless functions have execution and duration limits, which may not be suitable for all applications.
  • Platform-Specific
    Deployment and feature configurations can be platform-specific, which may require learning new processes that differ from other providers.
  • Build Minutes
    The free tier includes limited build minutes, which can be a constraint for projects that require frequent deployments.
  • Vendor Lock-In
    Using Netlify-specific features (like certain build plugins) can make it harder to migrate to another hosting provider.
  • Limited Backend Services
    Primarily designed for frontend applications, so it may not be as robust for extensive backend services compared to traditional servers.
  • Steep Learning Curve
    Some advanced features may have a steep learning curve for beginners.
  • Build Times
    Build times can be slow for very large sites or monorepos, impacting continuous deployment speed.
  • Support
    Customer support responses can be slow on the lower-tier plans.

Google Cloud Run features and specs

  • Scalability
    Google Cloud Run automatically scales the number of container instances based on incoming requests, ensuring optimal resource usage and performance.
  • Ease of Use
    Cloud Run makes it simple to deploy and manage containers, with minimal configuration required. The platform supports popular languages and frameworks.
  • Serverless
    Cloud Run abstracts away server management, letting you focus on writing code without worrying about infrastructure provisioning or maintenance.
  • Cost-Effective
    Customers only pay for the exact resources they use, thanks to per-request billing, making it a cost-effective option for variable workloads.
  • Integration
    Seamless integration with other Google Cloud services like BigQuery, Cloud Pub/Sub, and Google Kubernetes Engine enhances functionality and data handling capabilities.
  • Custom Domains and SSL
    Cloud Run offers support for custom domains and automatically manages SSL/TLS certificates, ensuring secure communication for your services.

Possible disadvantages of Google Cloud Run

  • Cold Starts
    Due to its serverless nature, Cloud Run can experience latency during cold starts, which may impact performance for time-sensitive applications.
  • Limited Execution Time
    There is a maximum request timeout of 15 minutes, which may not be suitable for long-running processes or tasks that require extended execution time.
  • Complex Pricing Model
    Although cost-effective for many use cases, the pricing model can be complex and may require careful cost management and monitoring to avoid unexpected expenses.
  • Limited Regional Availability
    Cloud Run may not be available in all regions, which can limit its use for applications requiring specific geographic distribution or compliance with regional regulations.
  • Dependency on Containerization
    Cloud Run requires applications to be containerized, which might necessitate additional effort for those not already familiar with Docker or other container technologies.
  • No Stateful Processing
    Being a stateless platform, Cloud Run is not ideal for applications requiring persistent state between requests, potentially necessitating additional services (e.g., databases) to manage state.

Analysis of Netlify

Overall verdict

  • Netlify is considered a good option for many developers and businesses looking for a platform to deploy and manage static websites or Jamstack applications.

Why this product is good

  • Netlify offers a seamless and easy-to-use platform for deploying static sites and modern web applications.
  • It provides developers with a variety of powerful features like continuous deployment, built-in HTTPS, DNS management, and serverless functions.
  • The platform supports server-side rendering and dynamic functions, which is advantageous for modern web development needs.
  • Netlify's workflow optimizes for Git, allowing developers to connect their repositories directly and automate deployment processes.
  • The platform's collaboration tools make it easy for teams to work together on website development.

Recommended for

  • Developers building static sites or Jamstack applications.
  • Teams looking for streamlined deployment workflows integrated with Git providers.
  • Businesses seeking a robust hosting solution with minimal server management overhead.
  • Projects requiring custom domains with automatic HTTPS.

Analysis of Google Cloud Run

Overall verdict

  • Google Cloud Run is considered a strong choice for deploying containerized applications and services that require scalability and low operational overhead. It is particularly well-regarded for its ease of use and seamless integration with the broader Google Cloud ecosystem.

Why this product is good

  • Google Cloud Run is a fully managed compute platform that automatically scales your applications for HTTP requests or events. It abstracts away infrastructure management, allowing developers to focus on writing code. Key benefits include automatic scaling, simple deployment, pay-for-use pricing, and integration with other Google Cloud services.

Recommended for

    It is well-suited for developers and businesses looking to deploy microservices, RESTful APIs, or containerized applications without managing servers. It is particularly beneficial for applications experiencing variable workloads or requiring high scalability.

Netlify videos

Netlify Platform Tutorial Review

More videos:

  • Review - Deploy Websites In Seconds With Netlify
  • Review - Deploy Your Website In Minutes With Netlify

Google Cloud Run videos

No Google Cloud Run videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Netlify and Google Cloud Run)
Cloud Computing
71 71%
29% 29
Developer Tools
73 73%
27% 27
Cloud Hosting
0 0%
100% 100
CDN
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Netlify and Google Cloud Run

Netlify Reviews

  1. Eleanor Bennett
    · Digital Marketing Specialist at Logit.io ·
    Useful previews

    As someone who is often creating new pages, Netlify's preview makes the review process easier. You can also use the generated URL from Netlify's preview to run an SEO audit prior to going live. This is very useful for spotting bugs or broken redirects.


Top 15 Cloudflare Alternatives: A Complete Guide
Netlify is a CDN service that also offers edge computing, web security, and VPN solutions. Netlify allows you to deploy and run your web content and applications on its edge network, which has over 70 edge locations in 35 countries. Netlify also provides security features, such as SSL, DDoS protection, WAF, and firewall, to protect your web content and applications.
Exploring alternatives to Vercel: A guide for web developers
Netlify is one of the most popular alternatives to Vercel, offering a comprehensive platform for deploying static sites and modern web applications. With a strong focus on developer experience, Netlify provides powerful features such as serverless functions, continuous deployment, and advanced analytics.
Source: fleek.xyz
Choosing the best Next.js hosting platform
Where Netlify is superior to Vercel is the list of add-ons they offer. Among them, Netlify Forms allow developers to manage forms and submission without extra code. It even integrates with third-party applications such as MailChimp, Zendesk, and more.
Top 10 Netlify Alternatives
Although Netlify is a credible static app hosting and deployment platform for all sizes of businesses. But if you still want alternatives, then you should consider our suggested Netlify alternatives. This guide displays all these alternatives to Netlify in detail with pricing structure and core properties. Hopefully, you will pick a suitable option for your project.
3 best alternatives to the big cloud providers
Very interesting topic! I’m not sure if things like Netlify or Vercel could replace something like Kubernetes on GCP but I believe in the power of Netlify for hosting websites!
Source: dev.to

Google Cloud Run Reviews

Top 12 Kubernetes Alternatives to Choose From in 2023
So if anyone is looking for a flexible and cost-efficient platform for running containers on Google Cloud, then Google Cloud Run is great.
Source: humalect.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Netlify might be a bit more popular than Google Cloud Run. We know about 109 links to it since March 2021 and only 89 links to Google Cloud Run. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Netlify mentions (109)

  • Build a Personal Portfolio Website (2-Minute Tutorial)
    Upload your folder to Netlify, GitHub Pages, or Vercel — and boom, your portfolio is online! - Source: dev.to / 24 days ago
  • Deploy Your Full-Stack App for Free: Host Backend on Render and Frontend on Netlify in Minutes
    Deploy on Netlify Go to https://netlify.com and log in. Click "Add new site" → "Import an existing project". Connect your GitHub and choose your frontend repo. Fill in the deploy settings: Build Command: npm run build (or flutter build web) Publish Directory: build (for React) or build/web (for Flutter) Add your environment variables (e.g., your backend URL). Click Deploy Site. You’ll get a public frontend URL like:. - Source: dev.to / about 2 months ago
  • How Bun can help to revive a Gridsome project
    Starting from this year, builds for this website's code through my Netlify account began failing. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • I'm Joining Sentry
    As much as this is exciting news, it does mean that sadly I'm moving on from Netlify. Netlify which has been my home for the last 2 years and who believed in us(and me) before anyone else did. Their support is what made SolidStart possible. I've learned so much about deployment and infrastructure working closely with the Frameworks and Primitives team. I've traveled the world giving talks alongside the Developer... - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
  • Join us for the Netlify Dynamic Site Challenge: $3,000 in Prizes!
    We are so excited to team up with Netlify to bring you our next DEV challenge. This Challenge is all about dynamic and high-performance digital experiences, across any framework! - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
View more

Google Cloud Run mentions (89)

  • Comparing Prices: AWS Fargate vs Azure Container Apps vs Google Cloud Run
    AWS Fargate, Google Cloud Run and Azure Container Apps offer services to deploy containers serverless in the cloud. The three providers are the biggest in the industry, but how do their prices compare? One thing all 3 providers have in common: Their pricing is pretty complicated and it can be hard to keep the overview. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Google Cloud Run vs Sliplane - Comparison of two container hosting services
    Google Cloud Run (GCR) and Sliplane both simplify deployment, management, and scaling of containerized applications. However, there are some key differences, and both platforms serve different users and use cases. Let's compare them side by side. - Source: dev.to / 3 months ago
  • Why aren't we all serverless yet?
    >Something I’m still having trouble believing is that complex workflows are going to move to e.g. AWS Lambda rather than stateless containers orchestrated by e.g. Amazon EKS. I think 0-1 it makes sense, but operating/scaling efficiently seems hard. […] This isn't really saying anything about serverless though. The issue here is not with serverless but that Lambda wants you to break up your server into multiple... - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • Top 8 Docker Alternatives to Consider in 2025
    Google Cloud Run offers a serverless platform for running containers, providing automatic scaling and management of containerized applications. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
  • Day 3: What is Docker and why should I care?
    Most cloud platforms support Docker containers. Sliplane, Fly.io, AWS, Google Cloud, etc. This means that you can easily switch between cloud providers if you want to, without having to change your software. If you ever migrated from one cloud provider to another, you probably know how much work this can be. With Docker, you can just take your container image and run it on the new platform. - Source: dev.to / 6 months ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Netlify and Google Cloud Run, you can also consider the following products

Vercel - Vercel is the platform for frontend developers, providing the speed and reliability innovators need to create at the moment of inspiration.

AWS Lambda - Automatic, event-driven compute service

CloudFlare - Cloudflare is a global network designed to make everything you connect to the Internet secure, private, fast, and reliable.

Fission.io - Fission.io is a serverless framework for Kubernetes that supports many concepts such as event triggers, parallel execution, and statelessness.

Heroku - Agile deployment platform for Ruby, Node.js, Clojure, Java, Python, and Scala. Setup takes only minutes and deploys are instant through git. Leave tedious server maintenance to Heroku and focus on your code.

Nuclio - Nuclio is an open source serverless platform.