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It's a split decision.
Pantheon is a WebOps platform for teams managing WordPress, Drupal and Next.js sites across Dev-Test-Live environments. Its plans center on sites, visits and portfolio tools. Upsun is a managed PaaS for applications defined in repository YAML, with isolated branch environments and resource-based billing. Choose Pantheon for a managed web portfolio with site-oriented workflows; choose Upsun when your team needs configurable runtimes, managed data services and deployment across cloud providers. Neither is a like-for-like replacement for the other.
01Side by side
| Pantheon | Upsun | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Monthly site tiers; higher tiers add capacity and portfolio tools. | Monthly project and user fees, plus metered resource usage. |
| Free tier | Free Silver plan includes two sandbox sites. | No free plan; 15-day trial. |
| API and SDKs | Next.js can connect to a headless CMS or API. | Lists an API integration; SDK details are not published. |
| Integrations | Supports WordPress, Drupal and Next.js. | Lists GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Fastly, Slack and others. |
| Deployment model | Preconfigured Dev-Test-Live environments and deployment workflows. | Git branches and pull requests provision isolated environments. |
| Platforms | Web hosting for WordPress, Drupal and Next.js. | 12+ runtimes; deploys across five cloud providers. |
| Limits and scaling | Plans specify visit, container, domain and memory limits. | Flex meters container resources; Fixed uses predefined tiers. |
| CLI and docs | CLI included with Silver; Git-based CI/CD. | Application stacks and services use repository YAML configuration. |
Pantheon Choose Pantheon if
- Choose Pantheon if you manage WordPress, Drupal or Next.js sites.
- Choose Pantheon if you want preconfigured Dev-Test-Live workflows.
- Choose Pantheon if a free tier for sandbox sites matters.
Upsun Choose Upsun if
- Choose Upsun if you deploy applications from Git repositories.
- Choose Upsun if you need isolated branch environments and managed data services.
- Choose Upsun if you want resource-based sizing across cloud providers.
02Pricing at real usage
Pantheon’s free Silver plan includes two sandbox sites, Git-based CI/CD, a CLI and basic chat support. Paid site plans start at $55 monthly for Basic, or $41.67 per month billed annually. Basic includes 25,000 monthly visits, one app container and 256MB application memory. Higher Performance tiers raise visit, container, domain and memory allowances; Gold costs $500 monthly and adds portfolio tools and 24/7 support. Elite pricing is not published.
Upsun has no free plan, but offers a 15-day trial. Its pay-as-you-go pricing starts with a €9 monthly project fee and €10 per user, plus usage. The project fee includes 10GB egress and 500,000 ingress requests monthly, with limited build resources. Additional egress, storage, build compute, managed services and support add charges. The pricing page lists EUR amounts and does not publish USD conversions.
03API, SDKs and integration
Pantheon targets WordPress, Drupal and Next.js projects. It can host a Next.js frontend alone or with a WordPress or Drupal backend; Next.js projects can also connect to a headless CMS or API. Pantheon lists a CLI and Git-based CI/CD with Silver. Its site plans focus on managed website workflows rather than a general application runtime. The vendor does not publish SDK details in these pages, so confirm client-library support before planning an integration.
Upsun builds around Git repositories and YAML configuration: application stacks, routing and services are declared in files such as .upsun/config.yaml. The homepage lists an API and integrations including GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, Fastly, Slack, PagerDuty, New Relic and webhooks. It supports runtimes including PHP, Python, Node.js/TypeScript, Java, Go and Ruby, and managed services such as PostgreSQL, Redis, Kafka and MongoDB. The listed integration set is broader for application infrastructure; check the vendor’s documentation for exact API and SDK behavior.
04Open source, self-hosting and lock-in
Neither vendor publishes an open-source licence or self-hosting option in the product details covered here. Treat both as managed services unless the vendor confirms otherwise. The vendor does not publish data-export terms here, so ask about database dumps, media and file export, backups, and how to retrieve configuration before committing.
The migration work differs by product. Pantheon’s scope is a web portfolio built around WordPress, Drupal and Next.js, with site plans and managed workflows. Upsun stores application configuration in Git and supports deployments across AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, OVHcloud and IBM Cloud. That multi-cloud reach does not by itself establish that an application can move without changes: test its runtime, service configuration, data and routing dependencies. For either platform, include an export and restore exercise in your exit plan.
Questions people ask
Is Pantheon or Upsun cheaper?
It depends on the workload. Pantheon publishes fixed monthly site plans, starting at $55 monthly for Basic, with a free Silver plan for sandbox sites. Upsun charges a €9 monthly project fee and €10 per user, then bills for usage. Compare Pantheon’s visit and resource limits with Upsun’s projected compute, storage, network and service usage.
Can Upsun host WordPress or Drupal?
Upsun lists WordPress and Drupal among its supported frameworks and runtimes, and its managed services include databases used by web applications. Its model is application deployment from Git with repository-based configuration, rather than Pantheon’s site-oriented WebOps plans. Check the required runtime, services and resource sizing against your application.
Does Pantheon offer branch environments like Upsun?
Pantheon provides Dev-Test-Live environments and lists on-demand Multidev environments with its Gold plan. Upsun says Git branches and pull or merge requests can provision isolated replica environments. Compare the workflow and plan requirements with how your team handles preview, staging and production.
Can either platform be self-hosted?
The vendors do not publish self-hosting options in the product details covered here. Both are presented as managed platforms. If running the control plane or application infrastructure in your own account is a requirement, ask each vendor to confirm deployment options, data access and exit procedures before choosing.