Why teams look for a Canadian alternative#
If you build apps the Heroku way (push your code, get a running app, attach a database), the questions that send Canadian teams looking are usually two: where the app and its data are hosted, and what currency the bill is in.
On Nimbus Land, your apps and their data are hosted on servers we operate in Canada, customer content is stored in Canada by default, and every price is in Canadian dollars. The data residency page lists exactly what stays in Canada and what does not.
What you can deploy#
Most apps need no Dockerfile and no configuration file. Nimbus Land recognises your stack, shows a deploy plan before anything builds, and fills in what a first deploy usually needs, such as a start command or a database migration step.
- Node.js, including Next.js
- Python
- Ruby
- PHP, including Laravel
- Go
- Java
- Elixir and Phoenix
- anything else with a Dockerfile
- plain HTML and Vite projects as static sites
Heroku concepts, Nimbus Land names#
If you know Heroku's vocabulary, this is where each idea lives here.
| On Heroku | On Nimbus Land |
|---|---|
| App | App, with its own address on nimbusapps.ca or your own domain |
| Dynos | Instances of your app, sized and scaled on the app's Resources tab |
Procfile web: line | The same Procfile web: line starts your app; see What every app needs |
| Worker dynos | Background workers, each with its own start command and size |
| One-off dynos | One-off commands, from the console or the CLI |
| Config vars | Environment variables and secrets |
| Release phase | A release command that runs before each release goes live |
| Heroku Postgres | Managed Postgres, backed up nightly and continuously, restorable to any moment in the last 30 days |
| Add-ons | Dependencies: Postgres, SQLite, buckets, volumes, AI access and your other apps |
| Review apps | Pull request previews, each with its own empty database |
| GitHub deploys | Push to deploy from a connected GitHub repository |
| Custom domains and certificates | Custom domains with certificates from Let's Encrypt, issued and renewed automatically |
Moving an app#
- Read Your first app for the whole path from repository to live address.
- Deploy from GitHub in the console, or run
nimbus deployin your project's folder. - Read the deploy plan. It says what will run and anything worth checking first.
- Attach a database and other dependencies; their connection details arrive as environment variables, such as
DATABASE_URL. - Point your domain at the app with Custom domains, and turn on push to deploy.
Your language's guide covers what that stack needs, such as migrations and the port to listen on.
Pricing in Canadian dollars#
Each plan is a monthly minimum that includes usage. Starter is $20 CAD a month including $20 of usage; Business is $50 CAD a month including $50 of usage, and adds Microsoft Entra sign-in and your complete audit history. Beyond the included usage you pay for what your apps use. Applicable sales taxes are added at invoicing. See Pricing for the rates.
What isn't offered today#
Postgres is the only managed database. MySQL and Redis are not offered: when the deploy wizard sees that your app needs one, it adds a note so you can enter the address of one you run elsewhere.