Deno Deploy vs Napkin
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Deno Deploy and Napkin.
Quick Verdict
3.9/5
Deno Deploy
0 reviews
3.5/5
Napkin
0 reviews
Deno Deploy is rated higher (3.9 vs 3.5). Deno Deploy runs JavaScript and TypeScript serverless functions at the edge using the Deno runtime. Near-instant cold starts via V8 isolates, globally distributed across 30+ anycast regions, with Node/npm compatibility. Free for low-traffic apps. Napkin lets you write and run Node.js and Python serverless functions directly in the browser with zero setup, deploying them as authenticated HTTP endpoints.
Deno Deploy Deno JavaScript runtime at the edge globally | Napkin Write and deploy Node.js and Python functions as HTTP endpoints from a browser editor | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Rating | 3.9 (0 reviews)✓ | 3.5 (0 reviews) |
| Pricing model | freemium | freemium |
| Starting price | Free tier available | Free tier available |
| Best for | TypeScript-first teams shipping globally distributed APIs, SSR apps and webhooks who want zero infrastructure management — and platforms embedding user-run code via Subhosting. | Developers who need an HTTP endpoint today — webhooks, bots, scheduled automations, and prototypes — without opening a cloud console or running infrastructure. |
| Features | ||
| IPv6 | ✓ | |
| DDoS protection | ||
| Automated backups | ||
| Snapshots | ||
| Managed option | ||
| Bare metal | ||
| GPU available | ||
| S3-compatible | ||
| Hourly billing | ||
| Free tier | ||
| Tags | ||
| Tags | free tieropen sourceeu datacenterus datacenterapac datacenterapi access | free tier |
| Visit Deno Deploy → | Visit Napkin → | |
Deno Deploy
Pros
- + V8 isolate architecture gives near-instant cold starts, second-scale deploys and automatic global replication
- + Genuinely usable free tier (1M requests/mo) and an honest $20/mo Pro plan with clear overage rates
- + Active-CPU billing instead of wall-clock billing rewards efficient handlers and makes idle apps free
- + TypeScript-native workflow with Deno's permission-based security model and broad Node/npm compatibility
- + Battle-tested substrate — Netlify edge functions run on the same infrastructure at 255M+ requests/day
Cons
- - Node compatibility is broad but not total — native modules and Node-specific tooling can still break
- - 99.95% SLA and SOC 2 Type 1 are Enterprise-only; Free and Pro have no contractual guarantee
- - The company has announced it is joining Cloudflare, adding platform-roadmap uncertainty
- - Not suited to long-running, connection-heavy or GPU workloads
- - Small-plan limits (one concurrent build on Free, low build-per-hour caps) can pinch teams
Napkin
Pros
- + Genuinely free plan: $0/month with 25,000 API calls, unlimited functions, custom domains, and team invites
- + One-click deploy from a browser editor — Node.js and Python, no cloud console or CLI required
- + Clear published limits: 500 MB/0.5 vCPU free (2 GB/2 vCPU Pro), 15s/30s timeouts, explicit rate caps
- + Endpoint SSL, auth, production logs, and scheduled triggers included on both tiers
- + Pro tier is capacity-only at $10 per user per month — no feature gating, no sales call
Cons
- - No published SLA, regions, or data residency; small-vendor reliability story
- - Free tier caps at 5 requests/second and a 15-second timeout — real design constraints
- - Browser-only workflow with no local development story and no obvious export path
- - Node.js and Python only — no Go, Rust, PHP, or Ruby runtimes
- - Stale limit figures circulate on marketing and third-party pages, so verify before budgeting
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