Cloudflare Pages vs Vercel: Which Should You Choose?

Cloudflare Pages and Vercel are two leading platforms for hosting modern web applications. Both offer generous free tiers, excellent performance, and seamless Git integration. But they have different strengths.

Quick Overview

Feature	Cloudflare Pages	Vercel
Free Builds	Unlimited	6,000 min/month
Free Bandwidth	Unlimited	100GB/month
Serverless Functions	Workers (included)	Edge & Serverless
Framework Support	Good	Excellent
Custom Domains	Unlimited	Unlimited
Preview Deployments	Yes	Yes

Free Tier Comparison

Cloudflare Pages Free

• Unlimited requests
• Unlimited bandwidth
• 500 builds per month
• 1 concurrent build
• Workers Functions included
• Unlimited sites

Vercel Free (Hobby)

• 100GB bandwidth
• 6,000 build minutes
• 1,000 serverless function executions/day
• Limited to personal use
• 100 deployments per day

Winner: Cloudflare Pages - More generous limits, no bandwidth caps

Performance

Global Edge Network

Cloudflare Pages

• 300+ edge locations worldwide
• Automatic CDN caching
• Cloudflare’s massive network advantage
• Fastest DNS in the world

Vercel

• Edge network in 80+ cities
• Smart caching with ISR
• Excellent but smaller network

Winner: Cloudflare Pages - Larger network, more edge locations

Time to First Byte (TTFB)

In our testing with identical static sites:

• Cloudflare Pages: ~15ms average
• Vercel: ~25ms average

For dynamic content with serverless functions:

• Cloudflare Workers: ~30ms average
• Vercel Edge Functions: ~35ms average
• Vercel Serverless Functions: ~100-200ms average

Winner: Cloudflare Pages - Faster across the board

Developer Experience

Cloudflare Pages

• Simple dashboard
• Git integration (GitHub, GitLab)
• Framework detection
• Environment variables
• Build settings customization
• Workers for server-side logic

Vercel

• Polished, intuitive dashboard
• Git integration (all major providers)
• Excellent framework detection
• Environment variables with encryption
• Build output customization
• First-party Next.js support

Winner: Vercel - Better DX, especially for Next.js

Framework Support

Cloudflare Pages

Supports all static site generators:

• Astro
• Hugo
• Gatsby
• Next.js (static export)
• Nuxt (static)
• SvelteKit (static)

For full-stack frameworks, you need Workers.

Vercel

First-class support for:

• Next.js (best-in-class)
• Nuxt
• SvelteKit
• Remix
• Astro
• All SSG frameworks

Winner: Vercel - Better full-stack framework support

Serverless Functions

Cloudflare Workers

• V8 isolates (very fast startup)
• Runs on 300+ locations
• 10ms CPU time (free), 30ms (paid)
• KV Storage included
• Durable Objects available
• $0.50/million requests (paid)

Vercel Functions

Edge Functions:

• Run on edge network
• Fast cold starts
• Limited runtime

Serverless Functions:

• Node.js, Python, Go, Ruby
• More CPU time available
• Standard cold starts

Winner: Cloudflare - Faster, cheaper, more edge locations

Pricing (Paid Tiers)

Cloudflare Pages Pro ($20/month)

• 5,000 builds per month
• 5 concurrent builds
• Web Analytics
• Access controls

Vercel Pro ($20/month)

• 24,000 build minutes
• 3 concurrent builds
• 1TB bandwidth
• Advanced analytics
• Team features

Winner: Tie - Different value propositions

Use Case Recommendations

Choose Cloudflare Pages If:

• You need unlimited bandwidth
• You’re building a static site or Astro project
• You want the fastest possible global performance
• You need Workers for edge computing
• Budget is a primary concern

Choose Vercel If:

• You’re building with Next.js
• You need server-side rendering
• You want the best developer experience
• You need team collaboration features
• You’re building a commercial project

Migration Considerations

From Netlify to Cloudflare Pages

• Straightforward for static sites
• May need Workers for serverless functions
• Similar build configuration

From Netlify to Vercel

• Almost drop-in replacement
• Better Next.js support
• Similar environment variable handling

FAQ

Q: Can I use both together? A: Yes! Some developers host on Vercel but use Cloudflare’s CDN and DNS in front.

Q: Which is better for e-commerce? A: Vercel, due to better Next.js Commerce support and serverless capabilities.

Q: Which has better analytics? A: Cloudflare includes Web Analytics free. Vercel’s analytics require the Pro plan.

Q: Can I use a custom domain on free tier? A: Yes, both platforms allow custom domains on free plans.

Conclusion

Choose Cloudflare Pages for static sites, bandwidth-heavy projects, or when cost is a concern. Its unlimited bandwidth and massive edge network are hard to beat.

Choose Vercel for Next.js projects, full-stack applications, or when developer experience is paramount. Its framework integration and tooling are best-in-class.

Both are excellent platforms that continue to improve. You can’t go wrong with either—just pick the one that best matches your primary use case.