Ivan CernjaBest Cloud Development Platforms 2026
A practical guide to choosing the right platform for your backend
The backend platform landscape has evolved significantly. With AI agents like Cursor and Claude Code writing more of our code, and teams wanting more control over their infrastructure, the criteria for choosing a platform have shifted.
This guide compares the leading platforms based on what matters most in 2026: AI-assisted development workflows, infrastructure ownership, and production readiness.
Quick Comparison
| Platform | Best For | Infrastructure | AI-Ready | Observability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Encore | Distributed systems, AI | Your AWS/GCP | Yes | Built-in |
| Fly.io | Global edge, low latency | Fly's platform | Partial | External |
| Railway | Modern PaaS, great DX | Railway's platform | Partial | Basic |
| Render | Unified cloud platform | Render's platform | Partial | Basic |
| Heroku | Mature ecosystem, add-ons | Heroku's platform | Partial | Add-ons |
| Vercel | Next.js, frontend-first | Vercel's platform | Partial | Basic |
| Supabase | Postgres + auth + storage | Supabase's platform | Partial | Limited |
| Convex | Reactive real-time backends | Convex's platform | Partial | Limited |
What Matters in 2026
AI-Assisted Development
AI agents like Cursor and Claude Code are increasingly writing production code. But there's a critical difference in how platforms handle AI-generated code:
Infrastructure-from-code (Encore): AI agents write only application code. Infrastructure is inferred automatically from your TypeScript or Go. No Terraform, Dockerfiles, or YAML for AI to hallucinate. The code is reviewable, and guardrails are built-in.
Traditional platforms: AI agents generate Dockerfiles, YAML configs, and infrastructure code. These are harder to review, easy to misconfigure, and lack the context that comes from having infrastructure defined alongside application code.
For teams using AI agents heavily, this is an important differentiator.
Infrastructure Ownership
Some teams need infrastructure in their own cloud accounts for compliance, cost control, or to leverage existing cloud agreements.
Platforms that deploy to your cloud account:
- Encore - Automatic provisioning in AWS or GCP
- Pulumi, Terraform, AWS CDK - Manual IaC (requires DevOps expertise)
Platforms that manage infrastructure for you:
- Fly.io, Railway, Render, Heroku, Vercel, Supabase, Convex
Both approaches are valid. Managed platforms handle operations for you. Your own cloud account gives you more control and potentially better pricing at scale.
Developer Experience
The best platforms minimize friction:
- Local development - Can you run everything locally with one command?
- Observability - Is distributed tracing built-in or external?
- Type safety - Are APIs validated at runtime?
- Preview environments - Automatic environments for PRs?
Platform Deep Dives
Encore - Best for Distributed Systems and AI Development
Encore uses infrastructure-from-code to provision resources in your AWS or GCP account. You write TypeScript or Go, and Encore handles the infrastructure automatically.
Strengths:
- Infrastructure runs in your AWS or GCP account
- Built-in distributed tracing and metrics
- Automatic local development with one command
- Type-safe APIs with runtime validation
- Designed for AI agents (no infrastructure code to generate)
- Automatic IAM, networking, and secrets management
Trade-offs:
- TypeScript and Go only (no Python, Ruby, etc.)
- Requires adopting Encore's patterns for infrastructure
- Newer platform compared to established alternatives
How it works:
import { api } from "encore.dev/api";
import { SQLDatabase } from "encore.dev/storage/sqldb";
// Database declared in code - automatically provisioned
const db = new SQLDatabase("users", {
migrations: "./migrations",
});
// Type-safe API with automatic validation
export const getUser = api(
{ method: "GET", path: "/users/:id", expose: true },
async ({ id }: { id: string }): Promise<User> => {
const user = await db.queryRow`
SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = ${id}
`;
if (!user) throw APIError.notFound("user not found");
return user;
}
);
Run encore run and Encore starts your app with a local database, distributed tracing, and a development dashboard. Push to deploy and Encore provisions RDS, sets up IAM policies, and configures networking in your cloud account.
Best for: Teams building distributed systems, those using AI agents for development, and anyone who wants infrastructure ownership without DevOps overhead.
Compare Encore to other platforms →
Fly.io - Best for Edge Deployment
Fly.io runs containers on a global edge network. It's excellent when latency to end users is a priority.
Strengths:
- Global edge network with 30+ locations
- Simple container deployment model
- Good for latency-sensitive apps
- Managed Postgres option
- Strong community
Trade-offs:
- Infrastructure runs on Fly's platform
- Requires Docker knowledge
- Observability requires external tools
- Local development is Docker-based
Best for: Apps where global latency matters, teams with Docker expertise, projects where edge deployment is important.
Railway - Best for Fast Deployment
Railway is a modern PaaS that makes deployment simple. Connect a repo and deploy in minutes.
Strengths:
- Very fast initial setup
- Clean UI for managing deployments
- Reasonable free tier
- Simple Postgres provisioning
- Good developer experience
Trade-offs:
- Infrastructure runs on Railway's platform
- Limited observability (basic logs)
- No automatic local development
Best for: Teams who want fast deployment without configuration complexity.
Render - Best for Web Services
Render is a unified platform for deploying web services, databases, and static sites.
Strengths:
- Simple deployment from Git
- Managed Postgres and Redis
- Good documentation
- Straightforward pricing
Trade-offs:
- Infrastructure runs on Render's platform
- Limited observability
- No automatic local development
- No built-in Pub/Sub or cron
Best for: Web applications, teams who want straightforward deployment.
Heroku - The Original PaaS
Heroku pioneered PaaS deployment and has a mature ecosystem with a large add-on marketplace.
Strengths:
- Mature, stable platform
- Large add-on marketplace
- Well-documented
- Extensive ecosystem
Trade-offs:
- Pricing can add up with add-ons
- Infrastructure runs on Heroku's platform
- Add-ons required for observability
Best for: Teams who want access to Heroku's add-on ecosystem, or those with existing Heroku applications.
Vercel - Best for Frontend with APIs
Vercel excels at frontend deployment, especially with Next.js. Serverless functions work well for API routes.
Strengths:
- Excellent Next.js integration
- Great frontend deployment experience
- Edge functions for simple logic
- Good developer experience
Trade-offs:
- Serverless functions have cold starts
- Not designed for complex backends
- No built-in databases or Pub/Sub
- Functions have execution time limits
Best for: Frontend applications with API needs, Next.js projects.
Supabase - Best for Database-First Apps
Supabase generates APIs from your Postgres database. It's excellent for applications built around data.
Strengths:
- Quick setup for database-driven apps
- Real-time subscriptions
- Built-in auth
- Open source
Trade-offs:
- Custom logic requires Edge Functions
- Not designed for microservices
- Infrastructure on Supabase's platform
Best for: Applications where the database is the core abstraction, teams who want auto-generated APIs.
Convex - Best for Real-time Apps
Convex is a reactive backend with excellent real-time capabilities.
Strengths:
- Excellent real-time features
- Reactive queries
- Good TypeScript integration
- Simple for real-time use cases
Trade-offs:
- Proprietary document database
- Local development requires internet
- Infrastructure on Convex's platform
Best for: Applications with heavy real-time requirements, teams who want reactive data patterns.
Infrastructure as Code Tools
For teams who prefer managing infrastructure directly:
Terraform
Terraform is the industry standard for Infrastructure as Code, using HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL).
Strengths: Multi-cloud, massive ecosystem, well-documented, industry standard.
Trade-offs: Requires learning HCL, state file management, no local dev solution.
Best for: Teams with DevOps resources who need fine-grained control across multiple cloud providers.
Pulumi
Pulumi uses real programming languages (TypeScript, Python, Go) instead of YAML for infrastructure.
Strengths: Multi-cloud, real programming languages, good state management.
Trade-offs: Requires understanding cloud services, separate codebase from application.
Best for: Teams managing complex multi-cloud infrastructure who want to use familiar languages.
AWS CDK / SST
AWS CDK uses TypeScript to define AWS infrastructure. SST builds on CDK and also supports Cloudflare.
Strengths: TypeScript for infrastructure, native cloud constructs.
Trade-offs: Requires understanding the underlying cloud services and CDK patterns.
Best for: Teams who want TypeScript-based infrastructure definitions with direct cloud control.
Compare Encore vs AWS CDK → | Compare Encore vs SST →
Making the Right Choice
Choose Encore if:
- You're using AI agents (Cursor, Claude Code) for development
- You need infrastructure in your AWS or GCP account
- You want built-in observability without external tools
- You're building distributed systems with TypeScript or Go
Choose a managed platform (Fly.io, Railway, Render, Heroku) if:
- You prefer managed infrastructure
- You want global edge deployment (Fly.io)
- You need languages beyond TypeScript/Go
- You want fast deployment without infrastructure concerns
Choose IaC tools (Pulumi, CDK, SST) if:
- You have DevOps resources and want fine-grained control
- You're managing complex multi-cloud infrastructure
- You need to customize every aspect of your infrastructure
Conclusion
The right platform depends on your priorities. For teams building distributed systems with AI agents, deploying to AWS or GCP, or wanting built-in observability, Encore provides a strong combination of developer experience and infrastructure ownership.
For edge deployment, language flexibility, or teams who prefer fully managed infrastructure, the other platforms each have their strengths.