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Comparison

PortBayvsLaravel Herd

Herd is the polished Laravel-first answer to local PHP development on macOS, built by the team behind Expose and Tinkerwell. PortBay is the open-source, polyglot answer — one app that runs your PHP, Node, databases, mail and public tunnels without a Pro tier in front of every useful feature.

Download for macOSRead the comparison
PortBay vs Herd comparison page.
The short answer

Which one is right for you

Pick PortBay if

You want the full stack, open source.

You want databases, Mailpit, Cloudflare tunnels and Node version management without an upgrade prompt. You'd like to read the source, file an issue, or fork it. You run PHP and Node side by side and want both treated as first-class.

Stick with Herd if

It already fits your workflow.

You live inside the Laravel ecosystem, want the official Beyond Code endorsement, and you're happy paying $99/year for the Services dashboard and Pair team sync. You're on Windows today and need a mature, well-tested build.

The detail

Feature by feature

Every row sourced from the live product page. We mark partial support honestly — including where the other side wins.

Feature
PortBay
Herd
Pricing & licensing
Free tier
Up to 6 projects
PHP + nginx + DNS only
Paid tier
$10/mo Pro
$99/yr Pro
Open source
Yes — AGPL-3.0
Closed source
Lapsed-license behaviour
App stays free forever
Drops to free tier
What happens to your projects if you stop paying.
Languages & runtimes
PHP versions
Multiple, per-project
7.4–8.5, per-site
Node.js
Built-in, all versions
Multi-version is Pro
Static sites
First-class
Via custom driver
Mobile (Flutter, Expo)
Yes
—
Services in one app
Per-project databases
MySQL & Postgres, per-project
Pro only, shared instance
PortBay isolates a MySQL or Postgres instance per project; Herd shares one Pro instance across all sites.
Mail capture
Mailpit, built in
Pro only
Public tunnels
Cloudflare, built in
Via Expose (extra sub)
Log viewer & Xdebug
Built in
Pro only
HTTPS & domains
Real .test domains
Automatic
Automatic via dnsmasq
Trusted local HTTPS
mkcert, auto-renewed
Auto, migrates Valet certs
Custom domain suffix
Yes
.test only
Use yourapp.dev or any TLD you want, not just .test.
Migration & control
Import from competitors
Herd, ServBay, MAMP
Valet, Sail, MAMP
CLI
Yes — `portbay`
Yes — `herd`
Operating systems
macOS (Apple Silicon; Intel coming soon)
macOS + Windows
Docker required
Never
Never
Migration

Coming from Laravel Herd

PortBay reads Herd's site list, PHP versions and isolated-site mappings on first launch, then offers to bring them across with a single click. Your existing nginx blocks, .test domains and certificates keep working — PortBay re-issues fresh mkcert certificates so HTTPS stays trusted, and provisions per-project databases for any site that was using Herd's shared services.

  1. Install PortBay and open it once. It detects Herd and lists every site.
  2. Pick the projects to import. Site paths, PHP versions and tunnels carry over.
  3. Start any project — Herd can keep running or be uninstalled at your pace.
Common questions

PortBay vs Herd, in plain terms

Is PortBay free if I'm switching from Laravel Herd?

Yes. PortBay is free and open source for up to 6 local projects, with no time limit. The optional Pro plan is $10/month and removes the project limit; databases, Mailpit, Cloudflare tunnels, Node version management and the log viewer are all in the free tier.

Will my Herd sites and .test certificates keep working?

Yes. PortBay imports your Herd site list and PHP isolation settings, then re-issues trusted mkcert HTTPS certificates for each .test domain so browsers continue to treat your local sites as secure with no warnings.

Does PortBay support Windows like Herd does?

Not yet. PortBay is macOS-only today, built natively for Apple Silicon with an Intel build coming soon. If you need Windows support, Herd has a mature Windows build; PortBay is focused on doing macOS exceptionally well first.

How does PortBay compare to Herd Pro on databases?

Herd Pro provides a shared MySQL/Postgres/Redis dashboard, gated behind a $99/year subscription. PortBay provisions a dedicated MySQL or PostgreSQL database per project in the free tier, with connection strings wired into your .env automatically and clean teardown when you remove the project.

Are public tunnels included or do I need another subscription?

PortBay includes Cloudflare tunnels in the app — one click opens a public HTTPS URL for your local site. Herd's `herd share` uses Expose, where custom subdomains require a separate Expose Pro or Teams subscription on top of Herd Pro.

PortBay mascot — a friendly blue tugboat

Run your first local site in one click.

Download for macOS

Free & open source · macOS 11+ on Apple Silicon · Pro from $10/mo