> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.gateways.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Gateways vs Heroku

> Your-cloud architecture console vs Heroku’s classic PaaS dynos and add-ons.

# Gateways vs Heroku

**Heroku** is the classic developer PaaS: push code, run dynos, attach add-ons, and avoid most raw infrastructure decisions. It remains useful when an opinionated application platform is exactly what the team wants.

**Gateways** is for organizations that operate directly in AWS, Azure, or GCP and still want a clean product experience. It provides a visual architecture canvas, workspace and environment model, resource connections, activity, and APIs over infrastructure your team owns.

## At A Glance

| Decision area               | Gateways                                                              | Heroku                                                    |
| --------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Infrastructure boundary** | Your cloud accounts                                                   | Heroku platform                                           |
| **Primary workflow**        | Manage cloud resources and relationships                              | Deploy apps to dynos and add-ons                          |
| **Best fit**                | Teams with cloud ownership, compliance, multi-cloud, or landing zones | Teams that want simple app hosting without cloud exposure |
| **Operational model**       | Architecture canvas, resources, environments, APIs                    | PaaS abstractions and add-on ecosystem                    |

## Choose Heroku When

* You want an opinionated PaaS and do not need direct cloud resource ownership.
* Your application fits a dyno and add-on model.
* Your priority is developer simplicity over infrastructure control.

## Choose Gateways When

* Your organization requires infrastructure to run in its own AWS, Azure, or GCP accounts.
* You need visibility into real resources: servers, databases, DNS, storage, functions, and connections.
* Your team wants a Heroku-like level of usability while preserving cloud governance.
* You want operators to keep direct cloud and SSH access instead of relying only on a PaaS abstraction.
* Projects, environments, roles, activity, and APIs need to reflect your actual cloud estate.

## Bottom Line

Heroku is ideal when you want the platform to hide infrastructure. Gateways is ideal when infrastructure ownership is non-negotiable and the team still needs a fast, understandable way to operate it with provider-level control intact.

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