Application platforms / Clever Cloud alternative

Clever.cloud alternative

Clever Cloud deploys applications on disposable VMs and retains application data through separate storage services such as FS Buckets, databases and Cellar. Those are genuine persistent storage options. An agent that changes system packages and configuration needs to account for the instance filesystem that is replaced on redeploy.

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Reviewed 2026-10-18 · Published by the Sandbox0 team

When Clever Cloud fits

Clever Cloud fits teams wanting managed application runtimes, autoscaling, databases and storage add-ons. Its language stacks and deployment/observability features can simplify production app operations.

When to consider Sandbox0

Consider Sandbox0 when installed system tools, configuration and growing files should remain together in one durable writable RootFS across tasks. You retain or implement application deployment, autoscaling and the database/object-store layer separately.

Capabilities

Clever Cloud and Sandbox0: what persists?

Feature comparison with documentation and verification status
Environment and runtime lifetimeClever CloudNot established in this reviewSandbox0ttl and hard_ttl default to 0 (disabled). Configure idle pause and deletion policies for the same persistent sandbox identity; an idle running sandbox still accrues compute charges.Read documentation →
Persistent filesClever CloudFS Buckets and Cellar preserve selected application data outside disposable instances.View evidence ↗Sandbox0The writable RootFS survives successful checkpoints, including software, system configuration, dependencies, and user data.Read documentation →
Whole RootFSClever CloudThe guide explicitly discards local instance files on redeploy; external buckets retain only their own scope.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Persistence extends beyond /workspace to paths such as /usr/local, /etc, and /home. Runtime tmpfs and virtual filesystems are excluded.Read documentation →
Release compute, keep stateClever CloudApplication stop/redeploy is not an established arbitrary-process checkpoint/resume contract.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Pause compute between tasks; resume on available capacity. Default resume starts fresh processes from the saved filesystem.Read documentation →
Memory and process stateClever CloudImmutable deployment images and external storage do not establish RAM capture.View evidence ↗Sandbox0Experimental memory checkpoints can preserve compatible process state. Use memory: true on both pause and resume on a compatible deployment. A filesystem checkpoint alone does not preserve running processes.Read documentation →

Online RootFS growth

On growth-enabled images, Sandbox0 automatically expands the writable RootFS as free space runs low, within a configured sparse logical ceiling up to 64 TiB. Agent processes keep running. Growth is enabled in the qualified Cloud region; confirm activation for other regions. Existing images and snapshots retain their captured storage geometry. The ceiling is logical capacity, not preallocated host disk.

Clever Cloud’s app autoscaling and persistent storage add-ons are acknowledged. Disposable VM local state is replaced on redeploy; an FS Bucket covers its mounted path. The reviewed docs do not establish automatic growth and retention of the whole writable instance RootFS.

Files while compute is paused

Sandbox0's Files API reads persistent files without resuming compute. Filesystem-only pauses also permit edits; retained-memory pauses are read-only and reject mutations with 409. SSH, SFTP, file watching, and runtime-only mounts require running compute.

FS Buckets offer independent file-transfer access and Cellar exposes an S3-compatible storage interface. Those can serve retained bucket/object data separately from app code, but their scope does not include every path in the disposable application VM. Compare that scope with Sandbox0’s paused RootFS interface.

See paused file operations →

Application instances and saved data have different lifecycles

The storage guide explicitly describes immutable disposable VMs: local files disappear when instances are replaced during redeploy. FS Buckets mount a persistent directory shared between applications/instances; Cellar stores objects separately. Preserve that real storage capability while identifying which system paths remain instance-local.

Source 1 ↗

FS Buckets have important workload restrictions

Current add-on docs say FS Buckets are unavailable to Docker applications, across regions and in the HDS zone. They list daily backups with 72-hour retention. A shared network filesystem also needs careful concurrent-write behavior; choosing it for an application folder does not retain every installed package in the VM image.

Source 1 ↗

Instance scaling changes resource consumption

Consumption is billed by the second of running, with the selected runtime, instance size, execution time and unit rate on the invoice. Autoscaling can change size/count during the month. That is application resource scaling; online expansion of a persistent complete RootFS needs a separate contract.

Source 1 ↗Source 2 ↗

Pricing

Compare billing models, then price your workload

CPU allocation, memory, billing minimums, disk, plan fees, and supported workload differ. These meters are not equal-performance machine quotes. Confirm region, resource units, and included allowances before estimating a total.

Clever Cloud

Pricing reviewed 2026-10-18

Application compute
Selected instance rate, billed per running second
Runtime, size, region and number of instances affect the quote.
Rate source ↗
FS Bucket storage
Separate selected add-on quote
Mounted persistent files are separate from app-compute usage; Docker/region restrictions apply.
Rate source ↗
Cellar object storage
Selected storage-service quote
A distinct service, rather than a whole writable application disk.
Rate source ↗

No universal numeric runtime-hour rate is asserted for all Clever Cloud shapes. Use the current selected region/runtime/storage quote and actual running/scaling time. Account prepayment is not an included compute allowance. Independent bucket/object access and managed databases remain distinct from retaining the whole installed Linux environment.

Check current Clever Cloud pricing ↗

Sandbox0

$0.015/GiB-hour compute (billed by the second at approximately $0.000004167/GiB-second), plus $0.02/GiB-month of retained incremental RootFS and memory checkpoint data. Shared base images and platform recovery retention are excluded; paused sandboxes accrue storage charges only.

Compute / GiB-hour
$0.015
Retained data / GiB-month
$0.02
Paused compute
$0.00

A 4 GiB agent, 100 running hours

$6.00 compute

4 GiB × 100 hours, billed by the second. Keeping 20 GiB of billable incremental data for a full billing month adds $0.40. CPU is derived from memory by the platform; choose a tier that fits your workload.

Understand storage billing →

Before migrating from Clever Cloud

  1. Inventory runtime/scaler configuration, instance-local changes, FS Bucket mounts and restrictions, databases, Cellar objects and actual regional rates.
  2. Export required data and rebuild compatible installed tools in a Sandbox0 template, retaining appropriate app/storage services where needed.
  3. Test repeat tasks, system-state retention, RootFS growth, paused files, concurrency and full compute/storage/transfer/model costs.

Common questions

Is Sandbox0 a drop-in Clever Cloud replacement?

Evaluate API compatibility and product scope. These products serve different core workflows, so a change may require a different architecture.

Does keeping files also keep a running agent?

Filesystem state and volatile process state are separate. Sandbox0 requires explicit compatible memory checkpoints to preserve running processes; its default filesystem resume starts fresh processes.

Sources and review scope

The Boat team's Battleships directory is the discovery source. References below describe the product and plan discussed on this page. Check current availability, regional terms and billing units before migrating. Where the cited material does not establish a capability or price, the comparison identifies that uncertainty.

Battleships research record ↗www.clever.cloud/developers/doc/deploy/storage ↗www.clever.cloud/developers/doc/addons/fs-bucket/ ↗www.clever.cloud/developers/doc/account-billing/consumption/ ↗www.clever.cloud/pricing/ ↗Sandbox0 RootFS capacity →

Related comparisons

Aptible vs Sandbox0 →Azure Container Apps vs Sandbox0 →Dockup vs Sandbox0 →Fly.io Machines vs Sandbox0 →Google Cloud Run vs Sandbox0 →Heroic Labs vs Sandbox0 →