# Cohesivity vs Fly.io

Fly.io: “Run app servers and databases on fast-booting VMs, in many regions.”

Fly.io gives you machines. Fast-booting VMs you can place in regions close to your users, with volumes and a managed Postgres to go with them, and enough low-level control that you feel like you are running real infrastructure. For new accounts it asks for a card up front, and there is no free tier to poke at first.

Cohesivity works a level up, and with no card. Rather than VMs you size and place, its coding agent provisions ready-made services, a database, storage, auth, hosting, and AI, over one HTTP API. The project runs for 72 hours, then you claim it. So this is a control-and-onboarding tradeoff. Fly.io gives you the machines and asks for a card. Cohesivity gives you provisioned services and asks for nothing to start.

side by side

## Cohesivity and Fly.io, on the points that differ

__Comparison of Cohesivity and Fly.io__
|                   | Cohesivity                                                                | Fly.io                                                                |
| ----------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| level             | Ready-made services (database, storage, auth, hosting, AI) over HTTP.     | Lower-level VMs (Fly Machines) you size, place, and run yourself.     |
| cost to start     | Free $0, no card, no signup. A project runs 72 hours, then you claim it.  | New accounts require a card, and there is no free tier for new users. |
| who provisions it | Your coding agent, over one HTTP API.                                     | You, via the Fly CLI and dashboard.                                   |
| the backend       | Postgres, Redis, a vector store, storage, auth, an AI gateway, a browser. | Machines, volumes, managed Postgres, and region placement.            |
| billing           | Plus $20, Pro $100, one shared balance. Failed calls cost nothing.        | Pay-as-you-go for machines, storage, and bandwidth.                   |

where Cohesivity fits

- No card to start. Fly.io asks new accounts for a card before anything runs. Cohesivity's agent provisions with none, and you claim the project only if it works.
- Provisioned services, not raw VMs. If you would rather have a database and storage handed to you than size machines and manage volumes, the agent provisions the higher-level pieces.
- One API for the whole backend. Storage, a vector store, auth, an AI gateway and a browser come from the same call, with the keys managed for you.

when Fly.io is the better call

Pick Fly.io if you want low-level control. Placing VMs in specific regions, tuning machines, and running your own containers close to users is exactly what it is built for, and that control is the point.

Pick Fly.io if your workload wants raw compute rather than provisioned services: custom runtimes, persistent processes, or region-specific latency work.

The difference is the layer. Fly.io hands you machines to run. Cohesivity hands you services the agent provisions. If you want to operate the infrastructure yourself, Fly.io gives you more of the knobs.

questions

### Is Cohesivity a Fly.io alternative?

For the case where you want provisioned backend services with no card, yes. Cohesivity's agent provisions a database, storage, auth, hosting and AI over one API with no signup. Fly.io is a lower-level platform of VMs and volumes that asks new accounts for a card. They solve related problems at different layers.

### Do I need a credit card to try Cohesivity?

No. A project runs 72 hours with no card and no signup, then you claim it. Fly.io requires a card for new accounts, and there is no free tier for new users.

### Does Cohesivity give me VMs like Fly.io?

No. Cohesivity provisions higher-level services (a managed database, storage, hosting) rather than raw VMs you size and place. Fly.io is the option when you want machine-level control.

### Can my agent provision the backend automatically?

Yes. The agent provisions the database, storage, hosting and the rest with HTTP calls, with no CLI to install or dashboard to click through.

related comparisons

Fly.io details verified 2026-07-22 from fly.io documentation and pricing, including that new accounts require a card with no free tier. The one-line description above paraphrases Fly's product rather than quoting a homepage tagline, which was not independently confirmed. Check fly.io for current terms.

Try it against Fly.io.

Copy the onboarding prompt and your agent stands up the backend in seconds.