TL;DR
Vercel for Platforms is a great multi-tenant custom domain solution—if your app is deployed on Vercel. SaaSKevin works with any hosting provider. Vercel includes domains in your plan pricing (no per-domain fee), but locks you into their ecosystem. SaaSKevin costs $0.15/domain/month but gives you a pre-built widget, works anywhere, and requires only 3 lines of backend code.
At a Glance
| Feature | SaaSKevin | Vercel for Platforms |
|---|---|---|
| Setup time | ~5 minutes | Hours (on Vercel) to very high (not on Vercel) |
| Code required | Read 1 HTTP header (3 lines) | Vercel SDK integration |
| Built-in user UI | Pre-built embeddable widget | Build your own |
| SSL certificates | Automatic | Automatic (under 5 seconds) |
| DNS setup help | One-click DNS with guided UI | Build your own |
| Free tier | 3 domains | 50 domains (Hobby plan) |
| Price per domain | $0.15/month | $0 (included in Vercel plan) |
| Hosting requirement | Any hosting provider | Vercel only |
| Wildcard domains | Supported | Supported (requires Vercel nameservers) |
| API rate limits | None published | 100 domain adds/hour |
The Hosting Question
This is the fundamental decision point. Vercel for Platforms only works if your application is deployed on Vercel. If your SaaS runs on AWS, DigitalOcean, Railway, Fly.io, Render, or anywhere else, Vercel for Platforms isn't an option unless you migrate your entire application.
SaaSKevin is hosting-agnostic. It acts as a reverse proxy that sits in front of your origin server, wherever that is. You point your app at SaaSKevin, and it handles custom domains, SSL, and routing. Your hosting choice stays your hosting choice.
If you're already on Vercel and committed to the ecosystem, Vercel for Platforms is a natural fit. If you're anywhere else (or want the flexibility to move later), SaaSKevin doesn't constrain your infrastructure decisions.
Integration Complexity
Vercel for Platforms requires integrating the Vercel SDK to programmatically add, verify, and remove domains. You write TypeScript code that calls projectsAddProjectDomain, handle TXT record verification, and build the customer-facing UI for domain setup. Vercel provides a Platforms Starter Kit template for Next.js to get started faster.
SaaSKevin requires pasting a widget script and reading one HTTP header. The widget is the customer-facing UI—it handles domain verification, DNS setup guidance, and SSL status. Your backend reads X-SaaSKevin-Customer-ID to identify which customer a request belongs to.
The difference is meaningful: with Vercel, you build the customer experience. With SaaSKevin, the customer experience is built for you.
Pricing Comparison
Vercel's pricing model is fundamentally different. Custom domains carry no per-domain surcharge—they're included in your Vercel plan. But you pay for compute, bandwidth, and function invocations based on usage.
- Vercel Hobby (Free): 50 custom domains
- Vercel Pro ($20/user/month): Unlimited domains, up to 100,000
- Vercel Enterprise: Custom pricing, up to 1,000,000 domains
SaaSKevin charges per domain:
- Free: 3 custom domains
- After free tier: $0.15/domain/month
Example: 500 domains, team of 3
- SaaSKevin: 3 free + 497 x $0.15 = $74.55/month (plus your existing hosting costs)
- Vercel Pro: 3 x $20 = $60/month (plus compute/bandwidth overage)
The pricing models are fundamentally different: SaaSKevin charges per domain, Vercel charges per seat. For solo founders or small teams with many domains, SaaSKevin can be cheaper. For larger teams already on Vercel, the included-domain model avoids per-domain costs entirely. You need to factor in the total Vercel bill—not just the domain-related costs.
Rate Limits
Vercel imposes API rate limits: 100 domain additions per hour and 50 verifications per hour. If you're onboarding customers in bulk or running migrations, this can be a bottleneck.
SaaSKevin has no published domain addition rate limits.
Who SaaSKevin Is Best For
- Teams hosting on any provider (not just Vercel)
- SaaS platforms that want a pre-built customer-facing domain management UI
- Companies that want to avoid vendor lock-in for their hosting
- Small teams where $0.15/domain is more predictable than per-seat platform pricing
Who Vercel for Platforms Is Best For
- Teams already deployed on Vercel and committed to the ecosystem
- Next.js-based platforms that benefit from tight framework integration
- Companies where the compute/hosting costs on Vercel make sense regardless of custom domains
- Platforms that need 100,000+ custom domains where per-domain pricing would be expensive
Get Started
If you want custom domains without tying your infrastructure to a specific hosting platform, SaaSKevin gives you that freedom with a 5-minute setup.
Claim 3 Free Domains — Setup in 5 minutes, first 3 domains free.
