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For freelancers

Laravel Hosting for freelancers

A freelancer running Laravel needs three things: a real free database tier, container hosting under €5/month, and a custom domain that does not cost extra. Hostim has all three. PostgreSQL, MySQL and Redis on a free tier; Laravel container at €2.5/month; custom domain with HTTPS included on every plan.

Try Laravel on HostimAll Laravel docs
# docker-compose.yml
services:
  web:
    image: my-laravel-app
    environment:
      - APP_ENV=production
      - DB_CONNECTION=mysql
  db:
    image: mysql:8
  • 🇪🇺 Hosted in Germany, GDPR by default
  • 🐳 Run Docker apps (Compose supported)
  • 🗄️ Built-in MySQL, Postgres, Redis & volumes
  • 🔐 HTTPS, metrics, and isolation per project
  • 💳 Per-project cost tracking · from €2.5/month

Why Laravel on Hostim for freelancers

Most platforms gate solo developers out of useful features: free tiers expire, custom domains require an upgrade, the cheapest plan does not include backups. Hostim is structured the opposite way: managed databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis) and persistent volumes have a real free tier — not a 30-day trial. Apps start at €2.5/month with a custom domain on every plan. A trial project lets you test the full stack before paying. Laravel runs as a normal Dockerfile (PHP-FPM + Nginx, or FrankenPHP) — no platform-specific buildpack to learn.

What freelancers need from a host

Solo developers running a portfolio site, a side project or a small client app, paying out of their own pocket.

  • A real free tier for the database side (not a 30-day trial)
  • Cheap container hosting starting under €5/month
  • No credit card required to test
  • Docker or Git deploy — no special platform format to learn
  • Custom domain on every plan, including the cheapest

Hostim has a free tier for managed PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis and volumes. App containers start at €2.5/month. Custom domains are included on every plan. A trial project lets you test the full stack before paying.

How Hostim runs Laravel

Laravel hosting was traditionally shared LAMP with FTP uploads. Modern Laravel deploys are container-based: PHP-FPM plus Nginx in one image, MySQL or PostgreSQL on a separate service, and a queue worker as a second container. Hostim runs this layout natively.

Deploy model

Push your Dockerfile. We run php artisan migrate on deploy, attach managed MySQL, and start a separate queue worker container that shares the same image. Storage is on a persistent volume — uploads survive deploys.

Common pitfalls

Two things often break: queue workers running as the same container as the web server (they should be separate), and the storage symlink not surviving a rebuild. Hostim solves both with explicit worker apps and persistent volumes.

Typical env vars

APP_KEY, APP_ENV, DB_CONNECTION, DB_HOST, QUEUE_CONNECTION

FAQ

Is the free tier really free, or 30-day trial?

Real free tier for managed databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis) and persistent volumes — within published quotas. Apps start at €2.5/month; a trial project lets you exercise app + DB + volume before you pay anything.

Do I need a credit card to test?

No. Sign up and start a trial project without a card. Add a payment method only when you are ready to keep things running past the trial.

Can I bring my own domain on the cheapest plan?

Yes. Custom domains with HTTPS are included on every plan, including the trial.

What if I outgrow the free database tier?

Database resources scale per GB and per CPU/RAM. The pricing page shows exact figures. Most freelancer apps stay on the free tier for the database side for a long time.

Related pages

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