The two best places to deploy your frontend. Which edge platform wins?
Bottom line: Vercel is the better choice for Next.js and React-heavy projects — it's made by the Next.js team and offers the best support for RSC, edge runtime, and incremental static regeneration. Netlify is more framework-agnostic, has better form handling and split testing built in, and is often preferred for Hugo, Gatsby, or Astro sites. Both are excellent — the choice often comes down to your framework.
| Feature | Vercel | Netlify |
|---|---|---|
| Next.js support | Native (same team) Win | Good (plugin) |
| Edge network speed | Fastest globally Win | Excellent |
| Framework support | React-first | Any framework Win |
| Forms handling | ✗ Not built-in | ✓ Netlify Forms Win |
| Split testing | ✗ Not built-in | ✓ Native A/B testing Win |
| Serverless functions | ✓ Edge Functions | ✓ Netlify Functions |
| Preview deployments | ✓ Excellent | ✓ Excellent |
| Build minutes (free) | Unlimited | 300/mo |
| Bandwidth (free) | 100 GB/mo | 100 GB/mo |
| Analytics | Vercel Analytics Win | Basic |
| CMS integrations | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Identity/Auth | ✗ Not built-in | ✓ Netlify Identity Win |
Vercel created Next.js. This means every new Next.js feature — React Server Components, partial prerendering, edge runtime — is designed, tested, and optimized for Vercel's infrastructure first. Running Next.js on Netlify works well for most use cases, but you may find some cutting-edge features require workarounds or have performance differences.
Netlify ships with forms handling, identity (auth), A/B split testing, and background functions out of the box. For JAMstack sites that need user authentication or contact forms without setting up a separate service, Netlify's integrated approach is genuinely convenient. Vercel's philosophy is more "bring your own" for these capabilities.
Native support, same team that built Next.js
Gatsby, Hugo, Astro, SvelteKit, etc.
Built-in Netlify Forms, no extra service
Fastest edge network globally
No commercial restriction on Starter plan
Native split testing built in