Migrating from Fly.io to Open Source Cloud
Fly.io effectively removed their free tier in January 2026, leaving developers searching for alternatives. Learn how to migrate your applications to Open Source Cloud and keep your projects running without compromise.
In January 2026, Fly.io announced changes to their pricing structure that effectively eliminated their free tier, requiring payment for previously free resources. This decision left many developers, students, and hobbyists searching for alternatives to keep their projects running. If you are among those affected, Open Source Cloud offers a viable path forward with a genuine free tier and transparent pricing.
What Happened with Fly.io
Fly.io was popular among developers for its generous free tier that allowed hosting small applications without cost. In January 2026, the platform restructured its pricing model, requiring payment for resources that were previously included in the free tier. This change caught many developers off guard, particularly students, open source maintainers, and hobby developers who relied on the free tier for personal projects and experimentation. The developer community expressed significant frustration, with many actively seeking alternatives that would honor the spirit of accessible cloud hosting.
Why Open Source Cloud Is Different
Open Source Cloud is built on a different philosophy. First, transparency: we use only open source software, meaning you can see exactly what you are running and migrate to self-hosted infrastructure at any time without vendor lock-in. Second, genuine free tier: our free tier is designed for real usage, not just evaluation. It includes access to over 200 open source services with reasonable resource limits for small projects and experimentation. Third, predictable pricing: when you do need to scale beyond the free tier, our paid plans start at just 15 EUR per month with clear, transparent pricing. Fourth, AI-native infrastructure: unlike legacy platforms, OSC is designed for the AI era with built-in MCP support that allows AI agents to discover, provision, and orchestrate services programmatically.
Migration Guide
Migrating from Fly.io to OSC is straightforward. If you are running a containerized application, you can use the OSC My Apps feature to connect your GitHub repository and deploy directly. For applications using managed PostgreSQL, Redis, or object storage on Fly.io, OSC offers equivalent open source services: PostgreSQL, Redis, MinIO (S3-compatible storage), RabbitMQ, and more. If you need custom service orchestration or have complex infrastructure requirements, use the OSC Architect AI assistant to help design your migration strategy. The assistant can suggest appropriate OSC services for your Fly.io resources and generate deployment plans. For developers comfortable with infrastructure-as-code, OSC provides APIs and SDKs that allow you to provision services programmatically, making automation straightforward.
A Real Free Alternative
The OSC free tier is designed for genuine use, not just trials. You get access to all 200+ open source services in the catalog with resource limits suitable for small projects, personal applications, and learning. There are no surprise billing changes, no sudden tier eliminations, and no bait-and-switch tactics. Our business model is simple: we provide a free tier for developers getting started, and we earn revenue when projects scale to production workloads requiring more resources. If you never scale beyond small personal projects, you can stay on the free tier indefinitely.
Get Started Today
Ready to migrate from Fly.io to Open Source Cloud? Sign up for a free account and start deploying. If you need help with migration planning, use the OSC Architect AI assistant or reach out to our community on Slack.