Compare

Selfhost.dev vs

Aiven

Selfhost.dev and Aiven both run standard managed PostgreSQL, but Aiven makes you pick a tier, and its first production-ready plan jumps to $250/mo with nothing between the $5 developer box and that. Selfhost.dev runs the same 2 CPU / 4 GB / 80 GB box for about $40, pay-as-you-go, with connection pooling, PG version choice, BYOC on your own AWS, and 150+ MCP tools included from the start.

Start free See pricing

Sign up, get a $1 credit: about 4 days on a real instance. No card needed.

TL;DR

The short
version.

Pricing

Aiven jumps from a $5 developer box straight to $250/mo for its first production plan (2 CPU / 4 GB / 80 GB, single node). The same box on Selfhost.dev is about $40, roughly 6x less, prepaid and pay-as-you-go.

BYOC

Selfhost.dev offers BYOC on your own AWS account at a transparent management fee, while Aiven reserves BYOC for enterprise custom pricing.

AI management

150+ MCP tools you drive from Claude, Cursor, or VS Code in plain English, editor-side. Aiven has no equivalent.

Pricing comparison

$5 to $250,
nothing in between.

Aiven asks you to pick a service tier first: Free, Developer, then Professional. The two cheap tiers are feature-limited, and the first real production plan is a steep jump.

Config 1

Free to start

Aiven Free
$0/mo
  • 1 CPU, 1 GB RAM, 1 GB storage
  • Auto-powers-off when idle
  • No backups, no pooling, no version choice
Selfhost.dev
~4 days free
  • $1 welcome credit on a real t4g.nano
  • Granted at signup, no card needed
  • Full features: pick your version, pooling
Config 2

Small always-on

Aiven Developer
$5/mo
  • 1 CPU, 1 GB RAM, 8 GB storage
  • No pooling, no PG-version choice
  • No custom IOPS or throughput
Selfhost.dev
$5+/mo
  • t4g.nano 2 vCPU / 0.5 GB / 20 GB (1 GB ~$9)
  • Pick your PG version, full config
  • Pooling available, pick any AWS region
Config 3

Production (4 GB, single node)

Aiven Professional
$250/mo
  • 2 CPU, 4 GB RAM, 80 GB storage
  • First production plan, single node
Selfhost.dev
~$40/mo
  • t4g.medium $33.11 + 80 GB gp3 $6.40
  • Backups, pooling, autoscaling, BYOC, 150+ MCP tools
~6x less

Feature by feature

Full
comparison.

Feature Selfhost.dev Aiven
Production 4 GB plan ~$40/mo $250/mo (Professional)
Entry price $5/mo (pay-as-you-go) $5/mo (Developer)
Free to try $1 credit, ~4 days on t4g.nano Free tier: 1 GB, auto-off
Choose PG version Any (16, 17, 18) Professional only
Connection pooling Included (PgBouncer) Professional+ only
PG config tuning Full tuning Aiven-managed
Custom IOPS / throughput Yes (gp3 tuning) No
BYOC Your AWS account Enterprise (custom pricing)
AI management 150+ MCP tools, from Claude / Cursor / VS Code No equivalent
Autoscaling Included Manual scaling
Backup retention 7-30 days None on Free/Dev, tiered above
Clouds AWS only AWS, GCP, Azure + more
Encryption At rest (AWS KMS) + in transit At rest + in transit
Beyond Postgres Postgres, MySQL, Redis, ClickHouse Kafka, Valkey, ClickHouse, more

Deep dive

Where the
differences matter.

The $5 to $250 cliff

Cheap tiers are toys, production is a jump

Aiven's Free tier is a 1 GB box that powers off when idle, with no backups or pooling. Developer at $5 is always-on but still has no connection pooling, no PostgreSQL version choice, and only continent-level region control. The first plan that is genuinely production-ready is Professional at $250/mo for a single-node 2 CPU / 4 GB / 80 GB instance. Selfhost.dev runs that same box for about $40, pay-as-you-go, with pooling, version choice, config tuning, and 150+ MCP tools included from the start. Pooling, automated backups, PITR, and Multi-AZ are handled for you: production Postgres without a DBA hire or the 3am firefighting.

BYOC gap

BYOC without enterprise pricing

Aiven restricts BYOC to enterprise contracts with custom pricing. Selfhost.dev offers BYOC on your own AWS account at a transparent management fee, accessible to startups and small teams, not just enterprise.

Where Aiven wins

Multi-cloud breadth, if you need it

Aiven is a genuine multi-cloud platform: AWS, GCP, Azure and more, plus a wide catalog of services (Kafka, Valkey, ClickHouse, OpenSearch) beyond Postgres. If you need that spread on one vendor, Aiven is purpose-built for it. Selfhost.dev runs managed PostgreSQL on AWS with Graviton price/performance and stays focused on Postgres, so if Postgres is your stack you get deeper features, AI/MCP control, and BYOC for a fraction of the cost. Comparing other managed Postgres options? See Selfhost.dev vs DigitalOcean or explore managed PostgreSQL.

Migration

Switching from Aiven?
We migrate you, free.

There is no migration tool to fight with, because you get people instead. A Selfhost.dev engineer plans and runs the move with you, end to end, at no extra cost.

01
Tell us what you run

Your Aiven plan, data size, and Postgres version: the free cost audit form is enough. You get the exact monthly number and a migration plan before anything moves.

02
We move the data with you

Aiven runs standard PostgreSQL, so your data moves with standard tooling: logical replication for a near-zero-downtime cutover, or pg_dump and restore for smaller databases. Nothing proprietary in, nothing proprietary out.

03
Tested restore, then cutover

We verify a restore on the new instance first, and you flip the connection string only when you are satisfied. Your version and extensions come with you.

Get migrated free

Free on every plan size. If the numbers do not work for you, you keep the breakdown.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I migrate from Aiven to Selfhost.dev?
You do not do it alone: a Selfhost.dev engineer migrates you free, at no extra cost. Aiven runs standard PostgreSQL, so data moves with logical replication for a near-zero-downtime cutover (pg_dump and restore for small databases), and we verify a tested restore before you flip the connection string. Tell us what you run and we handle the move. Get migrated free.
Is there anything between Aiven's $5 Developer and $250 Professional plans?
On Aiven, no: the first production-ready plan is Professional at $250/mo. Selfhost.dev fills exactly that gap. The same 2 CPU / 4 GB / 80 GB box is about $40/mo, pay-as-you-go, and every size in between exists because you pick the instance, not the plan.
Do I get connection pooling and PostgreSQL version choice at the low end?
Yes. Every Selfhost.dev instance, including the $5 t4g.nano, comes with PgBouncer pooling available, your choice of PostgreSQL 16, 17, or 18, full config tuning, and automated backups. Aiven's Developer plan has no pooling and no version choice.
Is there a free way to try Selfhost.dev?
Sign up and a $1 welcome credit is granted immediately, no card needed: about 4 days on a real t4g.nano instance with full features. After that it is pay-as-you-go from about $5/mo, with no subscription to cancel.
Can I run in my own AWS account without an enterprise contract?
Yes. BYOC is available to every Selfhost.dev account at a transparent management fee: connect your AWS account via access keys or an IAM role and the database is provisioned and managed there. No enterprise contract, and you keep the exit path, because the database lives in your account. Aiven reserves BYOC for enterprise custom pricing.
Can I manage the database from Claude or Cursor?
Yes. Selfhost.dev ships 150+ MCP tools you drive from Claude, Cursor, or VS Code in plain English: create instances, run backups, tune parameters, configure alerts, and scale, editor-side rather than an in-console chatbot. Aiven has no equivalent. Explore the MCP server.

Switch from Aiven.
Deploy in 2 minutes.

Pay-as-you-go, no subscription
BYOC on your own AWS - no enterprise contract
Deploy for free See the migration steps: we do it for you, free ->