Serverless Postgres, ready in seconds.
The same platform you will run on your own infrastructure.
Dedicated compute
NVMe storage
Instant branching
Forever free
No credit card. No setup. Deploy to your own Kubernetes, OpenShift, or private cloud when you are ready.
Sandbox system status The full Vela platform — not a watered-down free tier
Vela Sandbox gives platform and infrastructure teams the complete experience before committing to a self-hosted deployment. Everything in the sandbox runs identically on your own Kubernetes cluster or private cloud.
Instant cloning
Copy databases in seconds with copy-on-write efficiency. No waiting, no storage bloat until data diverges.
Database branching
Create isolated Postgres environments per feature, migration test, or team member — no manual provisioning.
Vela Studio
Manage databases, queries, logs, and operations from the web UI.
NVMe-backed storage
The same high-performance storage layer that runs in your Kubernetes or private cloud deployment.
Built-in resilience
Backups, PITR, and disaster recovery available from day one — no extra setup.
Pure PostgreSQL
Standard drivers, tools, extensions, and connection strings. No proprietary layer, no migration lock-in.
Vela Sandbox resources
Enough compute and storage for serious evaluation, migration testing, and multi-team workflows.
2 vCPU compute
Dedicated CPU resources for your sandbox Postgres instance.
100 GiB NVMe storage
High-performance NVMe-backed storage — the same architecture as self-hosted deployments.
10,000 IOPS
Realistic throughput for evaluation, load testing, and migration validation.
Unlimited clones
Create as many clones as your allocated resources allow.
Automated backups
Point-in-time recovery and disaster recovery included from the start.
Full feature access
All core Vela platform features are available — no functionality is paywalled in the free tier.
Want to see all the features?
Take a product tour of the dashboard, monitoring, RBAC, logs, and more.
Explore all featuresDeploy on your own infrastructure
Sandbox is the starting point. When you are ready, deploy Vela on OpenShift, Rancher, Kubernetes, or any private cloud — with the same workflows, same Postgres, and same platform you validated in the sandbox. No re-learning, no proprietary dependencies.
Deploy on any infrastructure
OpenShift and Kubernetes
Deploy on Red Hat OpenShift, SUSE Rancher, or any Kubernetes distribution. Standard CSI integration, no proprietary storage interface.
Private cloud and on-premises
Run inside your own data center or private cloud environment with full sovereignty and compliance boundary control.
Public cloud (BYOC)
Use your own AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure account and keep your existing cloud discounts, networking, and compliance controls.
No vendor lock-in. Standard Postgres, standard interfaces, your infrastructure.
Self-hosted Vela runs on simplyblock — NVMe storage built for Kubernetes and private cloud.
Learn more →Built for platform and engineering teams
From infrastructure evaluations to active migration testing, Sandbox gives you a real environment to work with.
Platform and infrastructure teams
Evaluate Vela for your Kubernetes or private cloud environment before committing to a self-hosted deployment.
- • No infrastructure setup required
- • Identical to your self-hosted deployment
- • Validate branching, cloning, and RBAC at real scale
Development teams
Give every engineer their own isolated Postgres environment instead of a shared dev database — no manual provisioning.
- • Isolated environment per engineer
- • Fast branch creation and teardown
- • Works with CI and review workflows
QA and migration testing
Create safe, parallel test environments with production-like behavior for migration validation, load testing, and bug reproduction.
- • Parallel test environments
- • Real data, isolated safely
- • Easy cleanup and reset
Fair usage limits
The free tier is sized for real evaluation work. Limits exist to prevent abuse, not to force an early upgrade.
30-day inactivity pause
Databases pause after inactivity and resume automatically when you reconnect.
Resource-bound clones
Clone counts are limited only by the compute and storage allocated to the sandbox.
No public egress
Public internet transfer is blocked, but direct database connections work normally.
Questions about Vela Sandbox?
Do I need a credit card?
No. Sandbox is completely free to create and use for evaluation and testing.
Is Sandbox the same platform as the self-hosted version?
Yes. Sandbox runs the same Vela platform you would deploy on Kubernetes, OpenShift, or private cloud. The workflows, features, and Postgres compatibility are identical.
Can I deploy Vela on OpenShift or Kubernetes after trying the sandbox?
Yes. Sandbox is specifically designed to let you validate the platform before a self-hosted deployment on OpenShift, Rancher, Kubernetes, or any private cloud.
Is my data safe on the free tier?
Yes. Sandbox includes backups, PITR, and the same core data protection model as self-hosted deployments.
Can I run production workloads on Sandbox?
Sandbox is best for evaluation and testing. Production workloads should use a self-hosted deployment with the enterprise controls, SLAs, and compliance boundaries your team requires.
Ready to self-host?
Deploy Vela on your Kubernetes cluster, OpenShift environment, or private cloud — with enterprise RBAC, SSO, compliance controls, and dedicated rollout support.
Try it free. Run it yourself.
Start with a free sandbox to validate the platform. When you are ready, deploy Vela on your own infrastructure — same experience, your environment, your control.