Railway vs Windsurf (formerly Codeium) — Pricing, Plans, and Verified Costs (2026)
Railway starts at $5/mo. Windsurf (formerly Codeium) starts at $20/mo. Railway is $15/mo cheaper on the entry tier than Windsurf (formerly Codeium).
See price history: Railway · Windsurf (formerly Codeium)
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.
- 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.
- Windsurf (formerly Codeium) (Per Seat) — Windsurf (formerly Codeium) bills on a fixed plan from $20/mo, so the listed price is what you pay regardless of volume.
Per-minute, per-credit and per-token rates exclude any downstream model, speech or telephony costs unless the vendor states otherwise.
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.
AI code completion and chat assistant from the Windsurf company. Free tier is unusually generous — unlimited autocomplete for individuals with no card required. Pricing: Free (unlimited individual), Teams $12/user/mo (adds team admin + more advanced models), Enterprise $35/user/mo (SSO, dedicated support, on-prem option). Positioned as the free-tier alternative to GitHub Copilot; the paid tiers are for teams that need governance.
All plans compared
| Tier role | Plan | Railway monthly | Railway annual | Windsurf (formerly Codeium) monthly | Windsurf (formerly Codeium) annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free / starter | Free Trial / Free | Free | — | Free | Free |
| Entry paid | Hobby / Pro | $5 | — | $20 | $20 |
| Pro / power | Pro / Max | $20 | — | $200 | $200 |
| Teams | — / Teams | — | — | $40 | $40 |
| Enterprise | Enterprise | Custom | Custom | 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
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.
Windsurf (formerly Codeium) is worth it if… Codeium is worth it for individual developers who want a fully free AI autocomplete without hitting message caps. Teams ($12/user/mo) is the cheapest true multi-user AI coding tool in market.
Bottom line: Choose based on how you want to pay — Railway is hybrid, Windsurf (formerly Codeium) is per seat.
Choose Railway over Windsurf (formerly Codeium) if…
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.
Choose Windsurf (formerly Codeium) if…
- You want fixed-price predictability (per seat, from $20/mo).
- You match the profile Windsurf (formerly Codeium) is built for: Codeium is worth it for individual developers who want a fully free AI autocomplete without hitting message caps.
- You need a general-purpose developer & infrastructure option rather than a vertical-specific one.
At a glance
| Railway | Windsurf (formerly Codeium) | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Entry price | $5/mo | $20/mo |
| Enterprise available | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | Hybrid | Per Seat |
| Last verified | September 14, 2026 | September 20, 2026 |
| Full pricing | View full pricing | View full pricing |
Pricing last verified September 20, 2026. Tracked daily.
Frequently asked questions
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Common questions about Railway and Windsurf (formerly Codeium)
- How much does Railway cost in 2026?
- Does Railway have a free plan?
- How often does Railway change prices?
- What are the best Railway alternatives in 2026?
- How much does Windsurf (formerly Codeium) cost in 2026?
- Does Windsurf (formerly Codeium) have a free plan?
- What are the best Windsurf (formerly Codeium) alternatives in 2026?