Neon

What it is for

Neon is a serverless Postgres nest: compute scales to zero, storage is copy-on-write, and you branch the database like a repo. Use it when the job is Postgres metered in CU-hours and GB, not when you need a $20 chat seat.

What makes it unique: the cover is the official neondatabase/neon GitHub file list — the OSS storage/compute split — not a pricing card.

Key features

• Lakebase Postgres — managed Postgres with autoscaling and scale-to-zero (pricing; docs). One database. CU size and “always on” are SKU of this compute.
• Branching — copy-on-write database branches (schema + data) for previews and agents (pricing branches). A fork, not a replica. Extra branches are $1.50/branch-month.
• Instant restore — point-in-time history (Free 6 hours; Launch 7 days; Scale 30 days) billed $0.20/GB-month on paid plans. A rewind, not a branch.
• Neon Auth — managed Better Auth, MAU-capped (Free 60k / paid 1M per project). A login door, not SQL.
• Data API — query the same Postgres over HTTP (all plans). A REST door, not a psql session.

Object Storage, Functions, and the AI Gateway are sibling meters. Read replicas are SKU of compute. neon CLI / MCP is install. Console “SQL Editor” is ops. CU-hours and GB-months are the meter.

Who it's for

Best fit: builders who will stay on Free $0 (100 CU-hours/project, 1 GB, 10 branches), then move to Launch (pay-as-you-go, $0.106/CU-hour, $0.35/GB-month) when writes or idle-always-on matter.

Pricing

Verified 2026-10-22 (Asia/Shanghai) from neon.com/pricing. Paid plans have no monthly minimum. Usage is hourly; invoices under $0.50 are not collected. Free is permanent, no card.

• Free — $0. 100 projects. 10 branches/project. 100 CU-hours/project. Autoscaling up to 2 CU. Scale-to-zero after 5 min (cannot disable). 1 GB/project Postgres, 20 GB account. 5 GB egress/project. 6-hour history. 1 snapshot. Auth 60k MAU. 5 GB object storage. Functions: 10 active / 400 waiting Capacity-Hours, 1M invocations. Hitting CU or egress suspends compute until next cycle; storage cap blocks writes.
• Launch — PAYG. Compute $0.106/CU-hour. Storage $0.35/GB-month. Instant restore $0.20/GB-month. Extra branches $1.50/branch-month. Autoscaling to 16 CU. Scale-to-zero can be disabled. 7-day history. 100 snapshots. 500 GB egress then $0.10/GB. Auth 1M MAU. Object Storage $0.023/GB-month. Functions $0.10/$0.025/Capacity-Hour + $0.60/M invocations.
• Scale — PAYG. Compute $0.222/CU-hour. Same storage/restore/branch rates. Fixed sizes to 56 CU. Configurable suspend. 30-day history. IP allowlists, private networking ($0.01/GB), HIPAA, SOC 2, SLA.
• Claimable Neon — instant project, no signup; claim before expiry. Startup credits and an Agent Plan exist on the pricing page.

Confirm the console; taxes follow your location. 1 CU ≈ 4 GB RAM.

Limitations / costs

• Free suspends when CU-hours or 5 GB egress are gone. Data stays; compute waits.
• Launch compute is cheaper per CU-hour than Scale. You buy Scale for networking, HIPAA, and SLA — not a lower unit rate.
• Postgres, not a warehouse. For cloud DuckDB see MotherDuck. For vectors see Weaviate.

Alternatives

• MotherDuck — serverless DuckDB when the job is analytics, not OLTP Postgres.
• Weaviate — a vector DB when you do not need SQL.
• Hex — a notebook on a warehouse when the job is analysis, not an app database.

Official tutorial

Official Neon Postgres channel video: What is Neon? (oEmbed author: Neon Postgres).

Written path: Plans plus Pricing.

Website

https://neon.com

Repository

https://github.com/neondatabase/neon

Source

Catalog row curated for AI Tools Nav. Cover is the official neondatabase/neon GitHub file list. Dollars checked on neon.com/pricing (Free $0; Launch $0.106/CU-hour; Scale $0.222/CU-hour; storage $0.35/GB). Tutorial oEmbed author: Neon Postgres.

Last verified

2026-10-22 (Asia/Shanghai) editorial check.