Canner vs. Fly.io
Fly.io runs your Docker app as fast microVMs close to users — Toronto included. It's still a US corporation.
Fly is a superb low-level platform for globally-distributed apps. If you want managed simplicity — Postgres, cron, object storage and analytics included — under Canadian law and Canadian ownership, that's Canner.
- Fly deploys any Docker image as microVMs across 35+ regions, Toronto included. Canner runs a single Quebec region with a managed, batteries-included build.
- Fly.io is US-incorporated (Delaware). Even with a machine in Toronto, the parent company is subject to the CLOUD Act. Canner has no US affiliate of any kind.
- Fly is usage-priced in USD and leans DIY — you assemble cron and storage yourself, and its managed Postgres is a separate paid product. Canner is flat CAD with those included.
- Both ship a CLI and REST API; Canner adds an MCP server for AI agents, plus a built-in SQL data workspace and cookieless analytics Fly doesn't offer.
| Feature | Canner | Fly.io |
|---|---|---|
| Data location | Montreal, Quebec — sole region | 35+ regions incl. Toronto (YYZ) |
| Canadian region | Yes (sole, Montreal) | Yes (Toronto, optional) |
| Company jurisdiction | 100% Canadian-owned | Delaware (US) corporation |
| CLOUD Act exposure | Not subject | Subject — US incorporation |
| Setup model | Managed — detect, build, deploy, TLS automatic | Low-level — you configure machines & services |
| Currency and billing | CAD; flat per account | USD; usage-based |
| Cheapest paid path | $0 Starter, $9 / month (Live) | Usage-based, ~US$2+/mo per machine |
| Managed Postgres | Included on every plan: one database per project on Starter, several on paid plans; storage is one pooled limit per organization (5 / 25 / 100 GB) | Managed Postgres: Basic listed at $38/month (shared-2x, 1 GB RAM), storage $0.28/GB-month; plans include HA, automated backups and pooling † |
| Backups & point-in-time recovery | Scheduled encrypted backups with the retention you set, restore into a new database or in place, backup verification with email alerts, copies to your own buckets. Point-in-time recovery (1–35 days) with the Dedicated instance add-on ($9/mo per project) | Automated backups included in Managed Postgres plans; see Fly's documentation for retention † |
| Extensions & logical replication | Dedicated instance add-on: pgvector, PostGIS, pg_trgm, pg_cron and more; logical replication out to your own subscribers, or follow an external server for a no-downtime migration | pgvector and PostGIS supported † |
| Canadian region for the database | Montreal, Quebec — the only region, Canadian-owned | Toronto (yyz) is listed as supporting Managed Postgres; Fly.io, Inc. is a San Francisco, California company † |
| Scheduled jobs (cron) | Built-in — prioritized on Live | No first-class cron (DIY in-container) |
| SQL data workspace | Built-in Data Workshop (DuckDB SQL over your files) + scheduled SQL against your Postgres | No equivalent |
| Cookieless analytics | Built-in, cookieless — no consent banner | No built-in web analytics |
| Object storage | Included — S3-style, from Starter up | Tigris (partner, S3-compatible) |
| Languages & runtimes | Node, Python, Go, Ruby, PHP, Rust, Java, BoxLang, static & Vite | Any Docker / OCI image |
| CLI, REST API & MCP | CLI, REST API (OpenAPI 3.1) + MCP server for AI agents | flyctl + Machines API; no MCP server |
| Energy source | Hydro-Québec grid — over 99% renewable | Varies by region |
† Competitor details come from each vendor's own published pages on the dates shown; prices and plans change, so check the vendor before you decide. Managed Postgres (2026-09-26) · Backups & point-in-time recovery (2026-09-26) · Extensions & logical replication (2026-09-26) · Canadian region for the database (2026-09-26)
When Canner is the right call
Fly's Toronto region gives you data residency, but not sovereignty: a US court order under the CLOUD Act still reaches a Delaware corporation wherever the machine runs. And Fly is deliberately low-level — you wire up cron, storage and TLS yourself, and Postgres is a separate paid product. Canner is the managed, Canadian-owned counterpart: one Quebec region, no US legal hook, and Postgres, cron, object storage and analytics already included.
When Fly.io still makes sense
If you need to place compute in many regions to cut latency for a global audience, run arbitrary Docker or OCI images with low-level control, scale machines to zero, or reach for GPUs, Fly is a more direct fit than a single-region managed platform. Their microVM model and multi-region networking go further than we intend to — Canner is deliberately one region, one country.
Ready to give it a try?
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