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The Showdown

Ablyvsliveblocks

Why pay monthly fees for Ably when you can self-host liveblocks for free? Let's look at the facts.

Ably

The Expensive Option

  • Closed Source (Black box)
  • Expensive monthly fees per user
  • Data stored on their servers
WINNER

liveblocks

The Freedom Choice

  • 100% Open Source Code
  • Free forever (Self-hosted)
  • You own your data completely
Get liveblocks Now
Interactive Calculator

Calculate Your "SaaS Tax"

SaaS pricing is designed to scale with your success. See how much wealth transfers from your bank account to Ably's shareholders.

10 people
150100200+
$

*Estimated standard pricing for Ably. Adjust if needed.

Estimated Annual Waste
$1,440
Monthly Burn Rate$120
5-Year Projection$7,200
Cost with Self-Hosted$0
Start Saving Today

Calculations based on 10 users at $12/mo.

Detailed Breakdown

0
Standard logging dashboards
Dedicated browser devtools extension
1
Manual conflict handling required
Built-in CRDTs and LWW registers
2
Generic WebSocket messaging
Native hooks for AI-agent collaboration