Gadget

What makes Gadget different

Gadget is not a traditional infrastructure provider like AWS or GCP; it is a full-stack development framework that abstracts away the underlying cloud infrastructure. Instead of configuring VPCs, EC2 instances, and RDS clusters, developers define their data schema in a declarative YAML file. Gadget automatically provisions a managed PostgreSQL database, generates a REST/GraphQL API, sets up authentication, and deploys a frontend—all from a single configuration.

This approach significantly reduces the “plumbing” code required to build modern applications. By treating the backend as a first-class citizen within the development environment, Gadget allows developers to focus on business logic rather than infrastructure management. The platform handles scaling, security patches, and database migrations automatically, offering a developer experience closer to Vercel or Netlify but with the power of a relational database and serverless functions.

Gadget apps are hosted on Google Cloud Platform, leveraging its infrastructure while providing a unified interface for development and deployment. This abstraction layer enables rapid prototyping and iteration, making it particularly attractive for solo developers, agencies, and startups who need to ship products quickly without managing complex cloud architectures.

Pricing model

Gadget uses a usage-based pricing model that scales with your application’s needs. While specific per-unit costs can vary based on current promotions and enterprise agreements, the general structure includes:

• Free Tier: Available for development and small projects, allowing users to experiment without cost.
• Pro Tier: A monthly subscription that includes increased usage limits for API calls, database storage, and compute time.
• Enterprise: Custom pricing for high-volume applications requiring dedicated support, SLAs, and advanced security features.

The pricing is transparent and predictable compared to traditional cloud providers, as it bundles compute, storage, and bandwidth into simple tiers. This stands out from typical cloud pricing, which often involves complex calculations across disparate services (compute, egress, IOPS, etc.).

When it fits

• Rapid Prototyping: Ideal for MVPs where speed of development is critical.
• Internal Tools: Perfect for building CRUD-heavy internal applications with minimal infrastructure overhead.
• E-commerce Apps: Specifically optimized for Shopify and BigCommerce app development, with pre-built integrations and UI components.
• Solo Developers: Enables individuals to build full-stack applications without needing DevOps expertise.
• Agencies: Helps agencies deliver client projects faster by reducing boilerplate code and infrastructure setup.

When it doesn’t

• Complex Custom Infrastructure: Workloads requiring specific low-level network configurations, custom kernels, or specialized hardware are not supported.
• Highly Distributed Systems: Applications that require fine-grained control over multiple cloud regions or hybrid cloud setups may find the abstraction limiting.

Inclusion criteria

Gadget meets all three inclusion criteria:

1. Transparent Pricing: Detailed pricing tiers are available on their website.
2. Self-Service Signup: Users can create an account and start building immediately at https://app.gadget.dev/auth/signup.
3. Public Status Page: A real-time status page is available at https://status.gadget.dev/.