How to Cancel Replit in 2026 (The Cloud IDE You're Overpaying For)

Updated February 2026 • 5 min read

Replit charges $25/month for Core (was Hacker plan) with AI features and more compute. The free tier has gotten increasingly restrictive — limited compute, no always-on repls, and aggressive upselling. Here's how to cancel and where to go.

How to Cancel Replit Core

Log into replit.com
Click your profile → Account
Go to Plans & billing
Click "Cancel plan"
Confirm — your repls stay accessible on the free tier
Download/export your projects — see below

⚠️ Always-on repls stop: If you have "always-on" repls (running 24/7), they'll stop when you downgrade. Export and deploy them to a proper hosting service before canceling.

Export Your Projects

Git integration: If your repl is connected to GitHub, your code is already backed up
Download as ZIP: In the repl, click the three dots → Download as ZIP
Push to GitHub: Use the Git panel to push all code to a repository
Database export: If using Replit DB, export your data — it's not accessible after cancellation

Free Alternatives

VS Code (free) — The industry standard. Runs locally, faster than any cloud IDE, unlimited everything
GitHub Codespaces (free tier) — 60 hours/month free. Cloud VS Code that's better than Replit
Gitpod (free tier) — 50 hours/month. Cloud dev environment with Docker support
StackBlitz (free) — Browser-based Node.js/React development. Instant boot
CodeSandbox (free tier) — Great for frontend prototyping and sharing
Cursor (free tier) — VS Code fork with built-in AI (better AI than Replit's Ghostwriter)

For Hosting (Replacing Always-On Repls)

Railway ($5/mo with free trial) — Deploy from GitHub, databases included
Render (free tier) — Static sites free, web services from $7/mo
Fly.io (free tier) — 3 shared VMs free, great for APIs
Vercel (free) — Perfect for Next.js/React apps
Cloudflare Pages (free) — Unlimited bandwidth for static sites + Workers

Replit's Identity Crisis

Replit started as "coding for everyone" — a free browser IDE perfect for learning. In 2024-2026, they pivoted hard to AI with "Replit Agent" and raised prices while cutting free tier features. The problem: serious developers use VS Code, beginners use free tools, and AI coding is available everywhere (Cursor, GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT). Replit's stuck in the middle — too expensive for learners, too limited for professionals.

Bottom line: Replit was great when cloud IDEs were novel. In 2026, VS Code is free, GitHub Codespaces gives 60 free hours/month, and Cursor has better AI. Export your projects, cancel Core, and save $300/year. Use a real IDE.

Find More Subscriptions to Cancel →

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Quick Cancel Guide: Replit

Direct cancel link + step-by-step instructions