# Temps vs Dokku

> Dokku is a mature open-source PaaS driven from the command line that runs on one server and scales out through its K3s (Kubernetes) scheduler. Temps adds a web dashboard, per-pull-request preview environments, multi-node worker clusters without Kubernetes, and built-in error tracking, analytics, session replay and uptime monitoring.

Last updated 2026-10-10

Canonical: https://temps.sh/compare/vs-dokku

A minimal CLI PaaS, or a platform with a dashboard.

## Short answer

Dokku is driven entirely from the command line, fits in 1GB of RAM on a single server, and has a decade of production use and a large plugin ecosystem behind it. To scale out, its K3s scheduler (since 0.33.0) turns servers into a Kubernetes cluster. Temps joins worker nodes to one control plane without Kubernetes, has a web dashboard alongside its CLI, and includes analytics, error tracking, session replay and uptime monitoring, which is also why its footprint is larger. What Dokku has that Temps doesn't: A decade of production use, a large plugin ecosystem, and a much smaller resource footprint. Both are free to self-host; the axis is a minimal CLI tool against a platform that also stores and shows your telemetry.

## TL;DR

| Dimension | Temps | Dokku | Better fit |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Multiple servers | Worker nodes join one control plane, no Kubernetes | K3s (Kubernetes) cluster via its scheduler | Tie |
| Web dashboard | Full UI plus a CLI | CLI only | Temps |
| Built-in observability | Analytics, errors, replay, uptime | None — plugins or separate tools | Temps |
| Resource footprint | Heavier — bundles telemetry storage | Runs in 1GB RAM | Dokku |
| Maturity and plugin ecosystem | Pre-1.0 (v0.1.0 prereleases) | A decade of use, large plugin catalogue | Dokku |

## Key differences

- **More than one server, without Kubernetes:** Dokku starts on one server, and its K3s scheduler (new in 0.33.0) adds nodes by installing K3s on them, so a multi-server Dokku is a Kubernetes cluster with 2GB of memory per node. Temps joins servers to one control plane with 'temps join' over a private network you provide, with no Kubernetes to run.
- **Built-in observability:** Dokku's core does not include analytics, error tracking, session replay or uptime monitoring. Temps includes all four, so a deployed app is instrumented without adding services.
- **A web dashboard:** Dokku is driven from the command line over SSH. Temps has a web interface for deployments, logs, metrics and databases, which matters when more than one person operates the platform.
- **Preview environments per pull request:** Temps creates a preview environment for every pull request automatically. On Dokku this is an app-per-branch convention you build and tear down yourself.

## Features

| Feature | Temps | Dokku |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Git push deployments | Yes | Yes (The original strength) |
| Dockerfile and buildpack builds | Yes | Yes |
| Zero-downtime deploys | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic SSL | Yes | Yes (Via the Let's Encrypt plugin) |
| Custom domains | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-server support | Yes (Worker nodes, one control plane) | Yes (K3s scheduler (since 0.33.0)) |
| Web dashboard | Yes (Full management UI) | No (CLI over SSH) |
| Preview environments | Yes (Per pull request) | No (Manual app-per-branch) |
| Managed PostgreSQL | Yes (HA clusters) | Yes (Via plugin, no HA) |
| Managed Redis | Yes | Yes (Via plugin) |
| S3-compatible storage | Yes (Built in) | No |
| Error tracking | Yes (Sentry-compatible) | No (Not in core) |
| Analytics | Yes (Privacy-first, built in) | No (Not in core) |
| Session replay | Yes (rrweb-based) | No |
| Uptime monitoring | Yes (60s checks + alerting) | No (Not in core) |
| Transactional email | Yes (Through SES, Scaleway or an SMTP relay) | No |
| Plugin ecosystem | No | Yes (Large and long-established) |
| Open source | Yes (MIT / Apache 2.0) | Yes (MIT, with a commercial Dokku Pro) |

## Pricing

| Item | Temps | Dokku |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Self-hosted | $0 | $0 |
| Commercial edition | N/A | Dokku Pro is a paid product |
| With full observability | $0 (included) | $0 plus separate tools to run yourself, or paid SaaS (e.g. Sentry Team $26/mo) |
| Infrastructure | Free on your own VPS | Your own VPS, 1GB minimum (2GB per node with K3s) |

Both are free and open source, and on a single small server the honest answer is that Dokku costs less to learn and does the job. The gap opens when you want a dashboard other people can use, observability that is not several more services to run (or about $211/month of Sentry Team, Plausible and LogRocket), or more servers without operating Kubernetes.

## Choose Temps if

- You want several servers without running Kubernetes
- You want a web dashboard rather than SSH and a CLI
- You want analytics, error tracking and uptime monitoring without adding services
- You want preview environments created per pull request automatically
- You need managed Postgres with high availability

## Choose Dokku if

- One server is genuinely enough and you want the simplest thing that works
- You value a decade of production use and a large plugin ecosystem
- You are comfortable operating entirely from the command line
- You already have observability you are happy with
- You want the smallest possible resource footprint — Dokku runs in 1GB

## Migrating from Dokku (easy)

Dokku apps are container-based, so Dockerfile apps port directly and most buildpack apps rebuild from the same repository (a custom buildpack needs a Dockerfile). Config variables export with config:export and map to Temps environment variables one for one. Database plugins are the fiddly part: dump and restore rather than expecting a live migration. You gain a dashboard, multi-node worker clusters and built-in observability; you give up Dokku's plugin ecosystem, so check whether any plugin you rely on has an equivalent before committing.

[Step-by-step: migrate from Dokku to Temps](https://temps.sh/docs/from-dokku)

## FAQ

### Is Dokku free?

Yes, Dokku is open source and free to self-host. A separate commercial product, Dokku Pro, is also available.

### Can Dokku deploy across multiple servers?

Yes. Since 0.33.0 Dokku has a K3s scheduler: `dokku scheduler-k3s:cluster:add` installs K3s on another server over SSH and joins it to the cluster, and apps are scheduled across nodes by Kubernetes. Each node needs at least 2GB of memory. Temps takes a different route: worker nodes join one control plane with `temps join` over a private network you provide, without Kubernetes.

### What are Dokku's system requirements?

Ubuntu 22.04 or 24.04, or Debian 11 and later, on AMD64 or arm64, with a minimum of 1GB of memory for the Docker scheduler and 2GB per node for the K3s scheduler.

### Does Dokku include monitoring or analytics?

Not in core. Error tracking, analytics, session replay and uptime monitoring are separate services or plugins you add and operate yourself.

## Sources

- [Dokku installation docs](https://dokku.com/docs/getting-started/installation/)
- [Dokku K3s scheduler](https://dokku.com/docs/deployment/schedulers/k3s/)

## Further reading

- [Migrate from Dokku to Temps](https://temps.sh/docs/from-dokku): Builds, config:export, postgres:export dumps, storage mounts and domains, mapped to Temps step by step.
- [Multi-Node Deployment With Worker Nodes](https://temps.sh/docs/multi-node): How Temps joins worker nodes to the control plane and schedules apps across them.
- [5 Best Coolify Alternatives for Self-Hosted PaaS](https://temps.sh/blog/5-best-coolify-alternatives-self-hosted-paas-2026): Dokku, Dokploy, CapRover and Temps compared on features and multi-server support.
- [9 Best Heroku Alternatives in 2026](https://temps.sh/blog/9-best-heroku-alternatives-2026): Dokku as the Heroku-style option you host yourself, next to managed platforms.
- [Temps vs Kamal](https://temps.sh/compare/vs-kamal): Another minimal, CLI-first way to put containers on your own servers.
- [7 best self-hosted deployment platforms](https://temps.sh/blog/7-best-self-hosted-deployment-platforms-2026): Dokku reviewed next to Temps, Coolify, Dokploy, CapRover, Kamal and Portainer.

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Source: https://temps.sh/compare/vs-dokku · Index of all pages: https://temps.sh/llms.txt