Bolt vs Railway — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Railway starts at $5/mo. Bolt uses custom pricing — request a quote to compare.
How pricing works
These two tools don't price the same way, so the headline numbers below aren't directly comparable until you plug in your own volume.
- Bolt (Hybrid) — Bolt is hybrid: a fixed subscription plus metered usage on top. Your real bill moves with volume, not seat count.
- Railway (Hybrid) — Railway is hybrid: a fixed subscription from $5/mo plus metered usage on top (Usage credits). Your real bill moves with volume, not seat count.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
AI-native web development environment from StackBlitz. Prompt in natural language, generate full-stack apps that run in a browser-based WebContainer sandbox with instant preview. Token-metered pricing model — each AI generation consumes tokens from your monthly allocation. Pricing: Free (1M tokens/mo), Pro $25/mo (10M tokens, scales to $50 for 26M and $200 for 120M), Teams $30/user/mo. Annual billing saves up to 28%. Positioned as the fastest way to prototype full-stack apps entirely in the browser — no local setup, no separate hosting.
Modern PaaS positioned as the alternative to Heroku for developers who want git-push-to-deploy simplicity plus per-resource billing. Distinctive for its usage-based pricing (compute per GB-hour, RAM per GB-hour) versus flat dyno pricing at Heroku. Free trial credits give hobby projects room; production apps typically $20-$500/mo. YC-backed, popular with indie hackers and Series A/B startups.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Bolt monthly | Bolt annual | Railway monthly | Railway annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / starter | Free / Free Trial | Free | Free | Free | — |
| Entry paid | Pro / Hobby | $25 | $18 | $5 | — |
| Mid tier | Pro (50) / — | $50 | $36 | — | — |
| Pro / power | Pro (200) / Pro | $200 | $144 | $20 | — |
| Teams | Teams / — | $30 | $22 | — | — |
| Enterprise | — / Enterprise | — | — | Custom | Custom |
Tier names differ across vendors. Rows are aligned by tier role, not name. Full tier structures on each tool's page.
What each is best for
Bolt is worth it if… developers and prototypers who want browser-native, full-stack AI app generation without ever leaving the tab. The WebContainer runtime differentiates it from Lovable and v0 — apps actually execute in the browser, not just render as previews.
Railway is worth it if… developers building side projects or small production apps who want Heroku-style ease with modern pricing — deploy any GitHub repo in one click, scale to serverless functions. Hobby covers indie dev use; Pro adds team features and higher limits.
Bottom line: Similar positioning, closer to a preference call than a strategic one.
Choose Bolt over Railway if…
Choose Bolt if…
- You're fine with a base subscription plus metered usage on top (custom pricing).
- You match the profile Bolt is built for: developers and prototypers who want browser-native, full-stack AI app generation without ever leaving the tab.
- You need a general-purpose developer & infrastructure option rather than a vertical-specific one.
Choose Railway if…
- You're fine with a base subscription plus metered usage on top (from $5/mo).
- You match the profile Railway is built for: developers building side projects or small production apps who want Heroku-style ease with modern pricing — deploy any GitHub repo in one click, scale to serverless functions.
- You need a general-purpose developer & infrastructure option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Bolt | Railway | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Entry price | Custom | $5/mo |
| Enterprise available | No | Yes |
| Pricing model | Hybrid | Hybrid |
| Last verified | September 20, 2026 | September 14, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 20, 2026. Tracked daily.