cnames.dev / compare / saaskevin alternative
SaaSKevin alternative
When you outgrow the widget: API depth, wildcards, and isolation — at a lower per-domain cost. Pricing dated July 2026.
SaaSKevin (and the closely-related SaaS Custom Domains) nailed a real insight: for many products, custom domains can be as simple as pointing a domain at a proxy and reading one header. That simplicity is a genuine strength for small, straightforward setups. cnames.dev targets the next step — when you need wildcards, strict per-tenant isolation, or per-domain routing — while staying cheaper per domain at volume.
When to choose which
- Choose the simple widget if you have a modest number of plain subdomains, no wildcards, and want the least possible setup.
- Choose cnames.dev when you need wildcard domains, per-tenant origins/quotas/isolation, per-domain header injection, real client IPs, and a support dashboard — with lower per-domain cost as you grow.
Feature comparison
| Capability | Simple widget (SaaSKevin-style) | cnames.dev |
|---|---|---|
| Custom domains + automatic SSL | Yes | Yes |
| Wildcard domains | Limited / no | Yes (DNS-01) |
| Per-tenant isolation (ACME accounts, quotas) | Shared | Per tenant |
| Per-domain header injection + redirects | Basic | Header profiles |
| Real client IP + geo to origin | Varies | Yes |
| Embeddable onboarding widget | Yes (its core) | Yes (Connect) + full API |
| Per-domain price at 1,000 domains | ~$0.15–0.20 | ~$0.05 |
As of July 2026; verify current pricing on each vendor's site.
What the simpler tools do well
Credit where due: a "drop in a widget, read a header" product is genuinely the fastest path for a non-technical founder with basic needs, and its simplicity is the point. If that describes you, you may not need what cnames.dev adds.
Where cnames.dev pulls ahead
Multi-tenant platforms eventually hit wildcards (one cert for *.zone.customer.com), noisy- neighbor risk (one tenant's bulk import shouldn't exhaust a shared certificate-authority rate limit), and per-domain routing (different headers or redirects per customer). cnames.dev treats all three as first-class, exposes them through a clean API, and still comes in cheaper per domain at scale.
Try cnames.dev. One API call per domain, SSL and edge routing included — free for 25 domains. Start free · Docs · All comparisons
Frequently asked questions
How is cnames.dev different from SaaSKevin / SaaS Custom Domains?
Both proxy customer domains to your origin with automatic SSL. cnames.dev adds infrastructure depth: wildcard domains, per-tenant isolation with dedicated ACME accounts, per-domain header profiles, and real client IP forwarding — and comes in cheaper per domain at volume.
Is cnames.dev more expensive?
No. As of July 2026, per-domain pricing on the simple tools sits around $0.15–0.20/domain/mo; cnames.dev Pro is ~$0.05/domain ($49/mo for 1,000) with a free tier for the first 25.
Do I have to change how my app works?
No more than with any custom-domains proxy: you point domains at cnames.dev and read the forwarded host/headers at your origin. If you already integrated a "read one header" tool, the model is familiar.
When should I stay on the simpler tool?
If you only need a handful of straightforward subdomains, no wildcards, and no per-tenant configuration, a minimal widget is perfectly fine and dead simple. Move to cnames.dev when you need wildcards, isolation, or header control.