PlanetScale vs Aiven for MySQL: pricing
Managed MySQL · snapshot captured June 2026
On entry cost, PlanetScale has the lower entry cost (~$39/mo vs ~$75/mo). PlanetScale uses fixed monthly cluster tiers (vitess) and Aiven for MySQL uses all-inclusive monthly plans. Their representative entry tiers are ~$39/mo (PS-10 (smallest realistic production cluster)) and ~$75/mo (Startup-4 (2 CPU / 4 GB / 80 GB storage)). For scale, at the top tier we list, PlanetScale ($50/mo) is below Aiven for MySQL ($180/mo). Prices are a June-2026 snapshot; verify on the linked vendor pricing page before relying on them.
Data as of June 2026.
PlanetScale vs Aiven for MySQL side by side
| Factor | PlanetScale | Aiven for MySQL |
|---|---|---|
| Engine | MySQL | MySQL |
| Vendor | PlanetScale | Aiven |
| Pricing model | Fixed monthly cluster tiers (Vitess) | All-inclusive monthly plans |
| Representative tier | PS-10 (smallest realistic production cluster) | Startup-4 (2 CPU / 4 GB / 80 GB storage) |
| Est. entry / month | ~$39/mo | ~$75/mo |
| Free tier? | No | Yes |
| Free tier detail | None. PlanetScale removed its free Hobby tier in April 2024 and has not reinstated it. | Free plan (1 CPU / 1 GB RAM / 1 GB storage, $0/month) plus a ~$5/month developer tier. |
| Storage / extras | Storage included on Metal NVMe tiers; metered on EBS-backed tiers. | Compute, storage, HA and backups are bundled into each plan; no separate storage charge. |
| Region note | US regions; MySQL delivered via Vitess clusters (PS-* and Metal tiers). | Multi-cloud; AWS us-east region modestly higher than the headline 'from' prices. |
Sources: PlanetScale pricing · Aiven pricing.
Cheaper for small vs cheaper for scale
Small / starting out: Aiven for MySQL wins — it has a free tier. On a flat entry tier, PlanetScale has the lower entry cost (~$39/mo vs ~$75/mo).
At scale: at the top tier we list, PlanetScale ($50/mo) is below Aiven for MySQL ($180/mo). Remember that PlanetScale is provisioned while Aiven for MySQL is provisioned, which flips the answer depending on whether your traffic is steady or spiky.
Verdict
On entry cost alone, PlanetScale has the lower entry cost (~$39/mo vs ~$75/mo). But price is only part of the story: PlanetScale (vitess-based horizontal sharding and non-blocking schema changes) versus Aiven for MySQL (all-inclusive pricing bundles compute, storage, ha and backups). Read each full breakdown — PlanetScale and Aiven for MySQL — and model your real workload in the estimator.
Frequently asked questions
Is PlanetScale or Aiven for MySQL cheaper?
On entry cost, PlanetScale has the lower entry cost (~$39/mo vs ~$75/mo). And at the top tier we list, PlanetScale ($50/mo) is below Aiven for MySQL ($180/mo). The right answer depends on your workload size and traffic pattern — PlanetScale uses fixed monthly cluster tiers (vitess) and Aiven for MySQL uses all-inclusive monthly plans. snapshot captured June 2026.
PlanetScale vs Aiven for MySQL: which for a small project?
For a small project, lean to whichever has a usable free tier and the lower entry price. PlanetScale has no real free tier. Aiven for MySQL: Free plan (1 CPU / 1 GB RAM / 1 GB storage, $0/month) plus a ~$5/month developer tier.
PlanetScale vs Aiven for MySQL: which scales better on cost?
At scale, at the top tier we list, PlanetScale ($50/mo) is below Aiven for MySQL ($180/mo). Usage-based offerings (serverless) can be cheaper for spiky or low-duty workloads but more expensive for steady high throughput; provisioned/instance pricing is the opposite. Model your real traffic before deciding.
What is the pricing model for PlanetScale and Aiven for MySQL?
PlanetScale: Fixed monthly cluster tiers (Vitess). Aiven for MySQL: All-inclusive monthly plans. Prices are a June-2026 snapshot; verify on the linked vendor pricing page before relying on them.
More comparisons
Last updated: 2026-06-20