ConfigCat Alternative: Why Developers Are Switching to Rollgate

This was originally published on rollgate.io/blog/configcat-alternative.

ConfigCat Is Good. But It's Missing Key Features.

If you're evaluating a ConfigCat alternative, you're probably hitting one of two walls. ConfigCat has earned a solid reputation as a developer-friendly feature flag service — it's affordable, simple to set up, and gets the basics right. If all you need is boolean toggles with some targeting rules, ConfigCat works fine.

But as your team grows and your release process matures, the gaps become clear. The two biggest reasons teams switch from ConfigCat:

1. No scheduled releases — you can't set a flag to automatically enable at a specific date and time
2. No instant rollback — when something breaks, you have to manually recreate the previous flag state

These aren't edge cases. They're core workflows for any team shipping software on a regular cadence.

ConfigCat vs Rollgate: Feature-by-Feature Comparison

Both tools cover the fundamentals well. The differences are in release management features and SDK resilience.

The Differentiator: Scheduled Changes + Instant Rollback

Scheduled Changes

Imagine you're launching a new pricing page on April 1st. With ConfigCat, someone has to be online to flip the flag at the right time. With Rollgate, you schedule it once and forget about it:

import { useFlag } from '@rollgate/sdk-react';

function PricingPage() {
  // This flag is scheduled to enable at 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z
  // No code change needed — the schedule is set in the dashboard
  const showNewPricing = useFlag('new-pricing-page', false);

  return showNewPricing ? <NewPricing /> : <CurrentPricing />;
}

From the Rollgate dashboard, you set enable_at: 2026-04-01T00:00:00Z on the flag. At midnight UTC on April 1st, the flag turns on automatically. Your SDK picks up the change via SSE in real-time, or on the next polling cycle (default: 30 seconds).

You can also schedule a disable time — perfect for time-limited promotions, maintenance windows, or beta periods that should expire automatically.

1-Click Rollback

ConfigCat tracks flag changes, but rolling back means manually editing the flag to match a previous state. Rollgate keeps the last 20 states of every flag. One click in the dashboard (or one API call) restores the exact previous configuration — targeting rules, percentage, value, everything.

# Rollback to previous state via API
curl -X POST https://api.rollgate.io/api/v1/projects/:id/flags/:flagId/rollback \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ROLLGATE_SERVER_KEY"

When your 3am release breaks the checkout flow, the on-call engineer doesn't need to understand the flag's targeting logic. They click "Rollback," and the flag reverts to its last known-good state. Downtime goes from minutes to seconds.

Practical Example: The Scheduled Release Workflow

Here's how a typical release looks with Rollgate:

Monday: Developer merges the new checkout flow behind a feature flag. Code deploys to production, but the flag is off.

import { RollgateClient } from '@rollgate/sdk-node';

const client = new RollgateClient({
  apiKey: process.env.ROLLGATE_SERVER_KEY,
  enableSSE: true,
});

await client.initialize();

// Flag is OFF — all users see old checkout
const useNewCheckout = client.isEnabled('new-checkout-v2', {
  id: user.id,
  attributes: { plan: user.plan }
});

Tuesday: QA tests internally by enabling the flag for the QA segment only (a list-based segment of QA team user IDs).

Wednesday: PM schedules the flag to enable for 10% of users on Thursday at 10am, and 100% on Friday at 10am.

Thursday 10am: Flag automatically enables for 10%. The team monitors error rates and conversion metrics.

Thursday 3pm: Error rate spikes. Engineer clicks "Rollback" — flag reverts to QA-only in under 2 seconds.

Friday: Bug fixed, schedule reset. Flag enables for 10% at 10am, 50% at 2pm, 100% Monday morning.

No deploys. No cron jobs. No one staying awake overnight.

ConfigCat Free Tier: What Are the Limits?

ConfigCat's free tier is widely used by indie developers and side projects because it genuinely works. But it's designed to push you toward paid plans sooner than Rollgate's free tier. Here's what you actually get:

The ConfigCat free tier wins on config fetches and team members. Rollgate wins on flags (unlimited vs 10), projects (3 vs 1), and real-time SSE updates. For a typical small team, the 10-flag limit is the first wall you hit with ConfigCat — and it happens fast.

Pricing: ConfigCat vs Rollgate

ConfigCat's paid plans have changed over time; check their current rates at configcat.com/pricing. Based on publicly available information, here's how the two compare:

Disclaimer: Competitor pricing changes frequently. Always check the vendor's website for current rates.

At every tier, Rollgate is roughly 2-4x cheaper than ConfigCat's equivalent plan, and includes features (scheduled changes, 1-click rollback, real-time SSE) that ConfigCat doesn't offer at any tier.

Migration from ConfigCat to Rollgate

Switching from ConfigCat takes most teams 1-2 days for a small codebase. The SDK APIs are similar enough that the change is mostly find-and-replace. Here's the step-by-step:

Step 1: Export your ConfigCat flags

Audit your current ConfigCat flags in the dashboard. Note for each flag:

• Flag key and type (boolean/string/number)
• Current value
• Targeting rules (user attributes, percentage rollouts)
• Which environments use it

ConfigCat's dashboard lets you export flags via their Management API or CSV. Most teams find 20-40% of their flags are stale and can be deleted during migration.

Step 2: Recreate flags in Rollgate

Create a new Rollgate project and add each active flag through the dashboard or API. Rollgate supports the same flag types as ConfigCat — boolean, string, number, and JSON — plus targeting rules that map directly from ConfigCat's comparators.

Step 3: Swap the SDK

Replace ConfigCat SDK imports with the Rollgate equivalent:

Step 4: Update flag evaluation calls

The API surface is intentionally similar. Typical before/after:

ConfigCat (React):

import { useFeatureFlag } from 'configcat-react';

function MyComponent() {
  const { value: newCheckout } = useFeatureFlag('new-checkout', false);
  return newCheckout ? <NewCheckout /> : <OldCheckout />;
}

Rollgate (React):

import { useFlag } from '@rollgate/sdk-react';

function MyComponent() {
  const newCheckout = useFlag('new-checkout', false);
  return newCheckout ? <NewCheckout /> : <OldCheckout />;
}

The main difference: Rollgate returns the value directly, while ConfigCat wraps it in an object.

Step 5: Validate with parallel running (optional)

For critical flags, run both SDKs in parallel for a few days. Log any discrepancies between ConfigCat and Rollgate evaluations. Once you're confident the values match, remove the ConfigCat SDK and cancel the ConfigCat subscription.

Step 6: Clean up

Remove ConfigCat packages, delete environment variables, update CI/CD pipelines. Make sure to cancel your ConfigCat subscription before the next billing cycle.

When to Switch from ConfigCat to Rollgate

Switch if:

• You need scheduled flag changes (release planning, maintenance windows, timed launches)
• You want instant rollback without manually recreating flag states
• You need real-time updates via SSE instead of polling
• Your free tier needs exceed 10 flags
• You want SDKs with built-in circuit breakers and graceful degradation
• You want per-request pricing instead of per-config-fetch

Stay with ConfigCat if:

• You only use simple boolean toggles with no scheduling needs
• Polling-based updates (not real-time) are acceptable
• You have fewer than 10 flags and want to stay on the free tier
• You're already happy with your current plan

FAQ

Is there a free alternative to ConfigCat?

Yes. The most generous free tiers among feature flag tools are:

• Rollgate: 500K requests/month, unlimited flags, 3 projects, 3 environments, all 13 SDKs, no credit card required
• Flagsmith cloud: 50K requests/month on the free plan
• Unleash self-hosted: Free (requires your own infrastructure)
• GrowthBook self-hosted: Free (requires your own infrastructure)

For teams that want a managed service without hitting the flag count wall (ConfigCat's 10-flag limit), Rollgate's free tier is the most generous cloud-hosted option.

Does ConfigCat support scheduled releases?

No. ConfigCat does not offer scheduled flag changes at any tier. You cannot program a flag to automatically enable or disable at a specific date and time — someone has to manually toggle it. This is one of the most common reasons teams outgrow ConfigCat and look for alternatives.

Rollgate includes scheduled changes on all paid plans (Starter, Pro, Growth).

Does ConfigCat have real-time updates?

No. ConfigCat uses polling-based updates with configurable intervals (10 seconds to 240 seconds depending on plan). Changes made in the dashboard reach your application after the next polling cycle, which introduces delay.

Rollgate supports real-time updates via Server-Sent Events (SSE). Flag changes propagate to connected clients within seconds, without waiting for the next poll.

Can I use ConfigCat for A/B testing?

ConfigCat supports percentage-based rollouts and multivariate flags, which enable basic A/B testing. However, it doesn't include statistical analysis, conversion tracking, or experiment results dashboards. You'll need to pair it with a separate analytics tool (Mixpanel, Amplitude, GA4) to measure experiment outcomes.

Rollgate provides similar A/B testing functionality (variant flags with percentage distribution) and includes basic evaluation tracking. For teams that need advanced statistical analysis, both tools benefit from integration with a dedicated analytics platform.

What is the difference between ConfigCat and Rollgate?

The core differences:

Both tools cover the fundamentals (targeting, percentage rollouts, multi-environment, audit log). Rollgate differentiates on release management features and SDK resilience.

How do I migrate from ConfigCat without downtime?

The safest approach is parallel running: keep ConfigCat active while adding the Rollgate SDK to your application. Evaluate flags from both services and log any discrepancies. Once you've verified the values match, remove the ConfigCat SDK.

For non-critical flags, you can migrate directly — the SDK APIs are similar enough (boolean/string/number flags, targeting rules, percentage rollouts) that the code change is mostly find-and-replace plus adjusting the return value shape.

Is ConfigCat GDPR compliant?

Yes. ConfigCat offers EU data residency and is GDPR compliant. Rollgate is also GDPR compliant and hosted in Germany (Hetzner), which simplifies data processing agreements for European teams.

If EU data residency is a hard requirement, both tools work — but Rollgate's single-region EU hosting means there's no ambiguity about where your flag evaluations are processed.

What are ConfigCat's limitations?

The most common limitations developers hit with ConfigCat:

1. No scheduled flag changes — You can't program a flag to enable/disable at a future date
2. No 1-click rollback — Reverting a flag requires manually recreating the previous state
3. Polling only — No real-time flag updates via SSE; clients receive changes with 10s-240s delay depending on plan
4. 10-flag free tier limit — Most small teams outgrow this in the first week
5. Per-config-fetch pricing — Can be surprising if you have many clients or short polling intervals
6. No built-in circuit breaker — SDKs don't have the same resilience features (circuit breaker, retry with backoff) as Rollgate

None of these are dealbreakers for teams with simple needs. But for any team doing real release management (scheduled launches, staged rollouts, rapid rollbacks), they add up.

Try Rollgate Free

Rollgate's free tier includes everything you need to evaluate: 500K requests per month, all 13 SDKs, unlimited flags, and 3 projects.

Sign up at rollgate.io — no credit card required. Or try the live demo to see the dashboard, scheduled changes, and rollback in action.

For a broader comparison of feature flag tools, see our feature flags pricing comparison, LaunchDarkly alternative guide, and our honest product audit. If you're new to feature flags, start with What Are Feature Flags? or check our gradual rollouts guide.