Meridian vs Gadget
An honest analysis of both platforms, to help you make the right decision.
One growing app, a team of 15.
5 GB of data, 100 GB of bandwidth a month, 15 people with access (your team, freelancers and the client).
Meridian Pro$169/ month5 GB database and 100 GB bandwidth included, unlimited collaborators.
Gadget Premium$370/ month$350 plan (Pro stops at 10 seats) plus 50 GB of bandwidth over the included 50 GB at $0.40/GB. Assumes compute stays within the 150 included CPU hours.
Gadget prices from gadget.dev/pricing, checked on 10 October 2026. Prices in USD, excluding tax.
Side by side.
MeridianGadget
Pricing
Pricing model
Per app: Lite $69, Pro $169 a month, Enterprise on quote.
Per account: Pro $35, Premium $350 a month, plus $10 per extra production app.
Included resources
For each app. Lite: 1 GB database, 25 GB bandwidth. Pro: 5 GB, 100 GB.
One set per plan, used across your apps. Pro: 3 GB data, 30 CPU hours, 10 GB bandwidth a month.
Going over
No overage bill. At the bandwidth limit the app slows down until the month resets or you move it up a size.
Billed: $1.50/GB data, $0.30/CPU hour, $0.40/GB bandwidth.
Team
Unlimited collaborators, with roles per app.
10 seats on Pro, 25 on Premium.
Many small apps
$69 per app.
$10 per extra app, sharing the plan's resources.
Build and host
What you write
Your own app in your GitHub repository, such as Shopify's React Router template.
JavaScript or TypeScript on the Gadget framework (Fastify, React with Vite).
Where it can run
A standard container on Google Cloud Run. Your repo deploys anywhere.
On the Gadget framework, in Gadget's cloud or, on Enterprise, your own Google Cloud or AWS account. No open-source version.
Database engine
Managed MySQL. PostgreSQL is coming.
Managed PostgreSQL.
Direct SQL access and dumps
Download any backup as a SQL dump on every plan. Connect SQL tools directly on Pro and Enterprise.
No direct SQL access. Data goes through Gadget's generated API.
Environments
Development and Production on every plan, Staging on Enterprise.
Unlimited development environments, one production environment per app.
Preview per pull request
Every pull request gets its own preview deployment.
Development environments created by hand. No per-pull-request previews in its documentation.
Rollbacks
Instant rollback to any previous successful deployment, no rebuild.
No built-in rollback. Redeploy an earlier version from source control.
Backups
Daily, kept 7 days on Lite, 30 on Pro. Restores included.
7 days plus point-in-time recovery on paid plans, $150 per recovery.
Vulnerability scan
Every production deploy is scanned for known vulnerabilities.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
Custom domains
Self-serve on any environment, with the certificate handled for you.
Production only, set up by messaging Gadget support on Discord.
Hosting region
EU (Belgium) by default. EU or US on Enterprise.
United States, per its sub-processor list.
Scaling up one app
Hosting sizes per app, from $79 a month, without changing plan.
Pay for usage beyond the plan's included resources.
Shopify
Webhooks
Delivered over Google Cloud Pub/Sub, with a delivery log showing each delivery, its status and retries.
Registered automatically, failed actions retried up to 10 times, and a daily sync recovers missed webhooks.
Shopify API changes
Alerts when a change or a pinned API version affects your code, with the file, line and a suggested fix.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
Pricing plans and feature gates
Plan Builder: define plans and gate features with the SDK, no billing code to write.
Call the Shopify Billing API yourself and build plan selection and gating in your code.
Usage-based billing
Track usage events with the SDK. Meridian meters and bills them with the plan.
Build it yourself: track usage and create the charges in your code.
Growth tools for public apps
CRM and segments
Every store in one place, with segments, notes and custom fields.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
Revenue analytics
MRR, churn, retention and trials, out of the box.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
Email campaigns
An email builder, sent from your own domain.
Transactional email from code. The built-in transport only sends from the app's Gadget domain.
Automations
A visual builder: triggers, conditions and actions, without code.
Written as code actions run by triggers.
Affiliate programs
Run your own affiliate program: members, commissions and payouts.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
App Store keywords and reviews
Track your keyword rankings and every new review.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
AI
MCP for coding agents
Meridian MCP connects Cursor, Claude Code and Claude Desktop to your apps: catalog, deploys, logs, with your own permissions.
No MCP server for coding agents in its documentation. Agents use its CLI and agent skills.
AI assistant in the dashboard
Ask AI from the dashboard.
An assistant in the editor that proposes code changes, with credits.
Security and trust
Two-factor and passkeys
Authenticator apps and passkeys on every plan.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
SSO and audit logs
On Enterprise.
Not in Gadget's documentation.
Data processing agreement
Not available yet.
Published, pre-signed by Gadget.
Uptime SLA
On Enterprise custom hosting.
On Enterprise, 99.99% with service credits.
A highlighted cell marks the side that comes out ahead on that row. Rows without one depend on what you need.
Sources
Every Gadget value comes from Gadget’s own pages, checked on 10 October 2026. Prices and features change, so check them before you decide. Meridian’s values come from our pricing and documentation.
- gadget.dev/pricing
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/account-and-billing
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/gadget-framework
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/getting-started/what-is-gadget
- gadget.dev/llms.txt
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/environments
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/environments/ci-cd
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/environments/deployment
- docs.gadget.dev/reference/ggt
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/environments/custom-domains
- gadget.dev/privacy
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/plugins/shopify/shopify-webhooks
- docs.gadget.dev/guides
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/plugins/shopify/advanced-topics/billing
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/development-tools/operations-dashboard
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/plugins/authentication/email-pass
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/actions/triggers
- docs.gadget.dev/guides/development-tools/ai-assistant/features
- gadget.dev/data-processing-addendum
- gadget.dev/service-level-agreement
Questions.
Is Meridian an alternative to Gadget?
Yes, for teams that want to keep their app as standard code in their own repository. Gadget is a framework that runs your app in its cloud. Meridian hosts the app you already have, such as Shopify's React Router template, and adds plans and billing, CRM, email and App Store tools.
Which costs less, Meridian or Gadget?
It depends on your team and apps. Gadget's per-account pricing costs less for many small apps run by up to 10 people. For one growing app with a team of 15, Meridian Pro is $169 a month and Gadget Premium comes to $370, because Gadget Pro stops at 10 seats.
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