Napkin vs Val Town
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Napkin and Val Town.
Quick Verdict
3.5/5
Napkin
0 reviews
3.6/5
Val Town
0 reviews
Val Town is rated higher (3.6 vs 3.5). 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. Val Town is a social site for writing and running serverless JavaScript snippets. Create functions (vals) that run on HTTP, on a schedule, or in response to emails. Collaborative and public by default.
Napkin Write and deploy Node.js and Python functions as HTTP endpoints from a browser editor | Val Town Serverless JavaScript snippets with HTTP endpoints | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Rating | 3.5 (0 reviews) | 3.6 (0 reviews)✓ |
| Pricing model | freemium | freemium |
| Starting price | Free tier available | Free tier available |
| Best for | Developers who need an HTTP endpoint today — webhooks, bots, scheduled automations, and prototypes — without opening a cloud console or running infrastructure. | Developers and small teams who want script-shaped automations, small APIs, and cron jobs running on real URLs without managing any infrastructure |
| Features | ||
| IPv6 | ||
| DDoS protection | ||
| Automated backups | ||
| Snapshots | ||
| Managed option | ||
| Bare metal | ||
| GPU available | ||
| S3-compatible | ||
| Hourly billing | ||
| Free tier | ||
| Tags | ||
| Tags | free tier | free tierus datacenter |
| Visit Napkin → | Visit Val Town → | |
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
Val Town
Pros
- + Fastest path from script to a live HTTPS URL we've seen — no infra setup at all
- + Genuinely usable free tier: 100,000 runs/day, unlimited public vals
- + Published per-plan limits in one place (runs, wall-clock time, memory, cron frequency)
- + SQLite, blob storage, email send/receive, and a documented HTTP API included
- + Version history, branching, and PR-style collaboration built into the code model
Cons
- - JavaScript/TypeScript only, on a web-standard runtime
- - No public datacenter locations, no SLA outside custom Enterprise deals
- - Private vals and custom domains are paid-only; public-by-default is the free posture
- - 1–10 minute execution caps and 3–10 day log retention limit production use
- - Seed-stage company — plan names and pricing have already shifted more than once
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