Convex

★★★★★ 4.5
VS

Replicate

★★★★ 4.4
Feature Convex Replicate
Pricing Free / from $25/mo Free only
Free Plan ✓ Yes ✓ Yes
Rating 4.5 / 5 4.4 / 5
Best For full-stack-developers, real-time-apps, startups, rapid-prototyping developers, ai-startups, prototypers, product-teams
Founded 2021 2019
Real Time Database
Serverless Functions
File Storage
Authentication
Scheduling
Vector Search
Model Hosting
Api Access
Fine Tuning
Model Versioning
Webhooks
Streaming

✓ Convex Pros

  • Real-time by default
  • TypeScript-first
  • Built-in auth and file storage
  • Automatic caching

✗ Convex Cons

  • Vendor lock-in
  • Newer platform
  • Limited to Convex runtime

✓ Replicate Pros

  • Run any open-source model
  • Simple API interface
  • No infrastructure management
  • Pay per second of compute

✗ Replicate Cons

  • Cold starts on less popular models
  • Expensive at scale
  • Limited fine-tuning options

The Verdict

Convex is built for full stack developers and real time apps, with a focus on real-time-database and serverless-functions. Replicate targets developers and ai startups and leads with model-hosting and api-access.

Replicate uses custom enterprise pricing, while Convex starts at $25/mo — a tangible advantage for teams with a fixed budget.

Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.

This is a genuinely close comparison. If you can, sign up for both free trials (where available) and run a one-week test with your actual team tasks before deciding.

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