Can you run a paid app on Vercel's free plan? Read the fine print
Ship ItChecked against the official source
Source checked 3 Oct 2026 · Published 4 Oct 2026 · Last reviewed 4 Oct 2026 · By Ctrl+Z Therapy (how we test)
The short answer
Not under Vercel's rules. Vercel's fair use guidelines say Hobby teams are restricted to non-commercial personal use only, and commercial use needs Pro or Enterprise. Commercial includes requesting or taking payment from visitors, advertising the sale of a product or service, showing ads such as Google AdSense, or being paid to build, update or host the site. Asking for donations doesn't count as commercial. Pro is $20 per developer seat a month.
What to do
- Taking payments, selling something or showing ads? Move the project to Pro before launch day, not after.
- A personal project with no payments or ads? Hobby is fine.
Source
Checked on 3 Oct 2026. Prices, limits and settings change, so check the source before you rely on them.