Convex vs Upstash for Solo Developers

Convex and Upstash are both serverless-first platforms, but they solve fundamentally different problems. Convex wants to be your entire backend. Upstash provides serverless data services, primarily Redis and Kafka, that you plug into your existing stack. Comparing them requires understanding what role each plays in your architecture.

I have used both in production, and honestly, they complement each other more often than they compete. But if you are choosing one to anchor your project, here is what matters.

Convex Overview

Convex is a reactive backend platform that bundles a document database, serverless functions, real-time subscriptions, file storage, and scheduling into one service. Everything is TypeScript, everything is type-safe, and everything deploys as a unit.

For solo developers, Convex replaces multiple tools. No separate database, no API server, no WebSocket infrastructure. You write functions in a convex/ directory, and your frontend calls them directly with automatic real-time updates.

The free tier includes 1M function calls and 1GB of database storage. Paid plans start at $25/month.

Upstash Overview

Upstash provides serverless Redis, Kafka, and QStash (a message queue for serverless). The standout product is their serverless Redis, which gives you a Redis-compatible database with per-request pricing. You pay only for the commands you execute, with no idle costs.

Upstash Redis works over HTTP, making it compatible with edge runtimes like Cloudflare Workers and Vercel Edge Functions where traditional TCP-based Redis connections are not possible. They also offer Upstash Vector for AI embeddings and Upstash Workflow for durable function execution.

The free tier gives you 10,000 commands per day on Redis. Paid plans use pay-as-you-go pricing starting at $0.2 per 100K commands.

Comparison Table

When to Pick Convex

Choose Convex when you need a primary database and backend for your application. If you are building a SaaS product, a collaborative tool, or any app where the database is the core of your architecture, Convex gives you everything in one place. The real-time sync, type-safe queries, and zero-config deployment make it excellent for solo developers who want to minimize moving parts.

Convex is also the right choice when your app's main value comes from storing, querying, and displaying structured data. Think project management tools, social platforms, dashboards, or content management systems. The document model and reactive queries are built for these use cases.

When to Pick Upstash

Choose Upstash when you need fast data access for specific use cases like caching, session management, rate limiting, or message queuing. Upstash Redis is not typically your primary database. It is the glue that makes your primary database and application faster and more responsive.

Upstash excels in edge and serverless environments. If you are building with Vercel Edge Functions, Cloudflare Workers, or any edge runtime, Upstash's HTTP-based Redis is one of the few data stores that works natively in those contexts. Traditional databases require TCP connections that edge runtimes do not support.

The pay-per-request pricing is also appealing for solo developers with unpredictable traffic. You pay nothing when nobody is using your app, and costs scale linearly with usage. There are no minimum monthly fees to worry about.

If you are building an AI application, Upstash Vector provides a serverless vector database for embeddings and similarity search, which pairs well with their Redis offering.

Verdict

In many architectures, you would use both of these together rather than choosing one over the other. Convex as your primary backend and Upstash for edge caching or rate limiting is a perfectly valid setup.

But if you are picking one to start with: choose Convex when you need a primary data store and backend for a full-stack application. Choose Upstash when you need fast serverless data access for caching, sessions, queues, or edge computing. Convex is your foundation. Upstash is your accelerator. Most solo developers will eventually want both, but your starting point depends on what you are building first.