> ## 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 Vercel

> Multi-cloud architecture canvas vs Vercel’s frontend cloud and edge platform.

# Gateways vs Vercel

**Vercel** is excellent when your main goal is to ship frontend and full-stack web apps quickly on Vercel’s infrastructure, especially when your workflow is Git-driven and your stack is close to the modern JavaScript ecosystem.

**Gateways** is for teams whose infrastructure must live in their own AWS, Azure, or GCP accounts. Instead of abstracting cloud ownership away, Gateways gives you a product-grade console for the resources you operate: servers, scalable servers, databases, DNS, functions, storage, connections, environments, activity, and APIs.

## At A Glance

| Decision area               | Gateways                                                                | Vercel                                                    |
| --------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Infrastructure boundary** | Your cloud accounts                                                     | Vercel-managed platform                                   |
| **Primary workflow**        | Design, connect, and operate cloud resources                            | Build and deploy web apps from Git                        |
| **Best fit**                | Multi-service systems, compliance, existing cloud spend, platform teams | Frontend apps, edge delivery, framework-native deployment |
| **Control model**           | Native cloud resources and connections                                  | Vercel abstractions and integrations                      |

## Choose Vercel When

* Your product is primarily a web application and Vercel’s runtime is the right deployment target.
* You want the fastest path from repository to globally served frontend.
* You prefer platform-managed infrastructure over direct ownership of cloud primitives.

## Choose Gateways When

* Your company needs workloads, data, networking, and billing inside its own AWS, Azure, or GCP accounts.
* Your system includes more than web deployments: databases, servers, DNS, storage, functions, and cross-resource relationships.
* Your team needs a shared architecture map that reflects what exists in the cloud, not just what was deployed from Git.
* You need direct provider access and an operational fallback: the resources remain in your cloud account even if the Gateways console is unavailable.
* Governance, environments, access, and operational visibility matter as much as deploy speed.

## Bottom Line

Vercel is a strong choice when the application belongs on Vercel’s platform. Gateways is the stronger fit when the web app is only one part of a broader cloud architecture that your team must own, inspect, SSH into, and operate directly when needed.

[Compare hub](/platform) · [API reference](/api/index)