Where to Host an App Built with Codex (September 2026)
Codex writes your app and opens a pull request on GitHub, but it does not run it. If your app is only pages, a free static host like Netlify, Vercel, or Cloudflare Pages will put it online. If it saves data or has logins, you need a server host like Render or Railway plus a database.
The short version:
Codex hands you code or a pull request. It does not hand you a live link.
A repo on GitHub is stored, not running. Nobody can visit it.
Apps with logins and saved data need a server and a database, which usually means two more accounts.
On other paths, you connect the repo to a host, paste in your secrets, and add a database yourself.
On Floot, Codex builds the app straight onto Floot, and it is live on its own URL from the first build.
The rest of this guide covers the difference between a repo and a live app, what a host gives you, which host fits your app, what each option makes you do, and the one step people miss.
A repo and a live app, in one picture
Think of a book. Codex is the writer. The pull request is the manuscript it hands to you, the editor. Merging is you saying "approved."
An approved manuscript still sits in a drawer. Nobody can buy it until a printer prints it and a store puts it on a shelf. The host is the printer and the store.
The split exists because code is only text. Running it takes a computer that stays on and has a public address, and GitHub only keeps the text.
What a host actually gives you
It builds your code, turning the text in your repo into a working app.
It gives the app an address, the link you send people.
It keeps your secrets. API keys go in the host's settings page, never in the code Codex commits. (Anyone can copy a key from a public repo.)
It keeps the server on, answering requests all day. Free tiers often put it to sleep when nobody visits.
It stores data, if a database comes with it. Many hosts leave that to a separate service.
Notice the pattern. Codex covers none of these, and every one is a setting someone has to fill in.
Which host fits your app?
The quick test: ask what happens when someone closes the tab and comes back tomorrow.
If nothing needs to be remembered, you can skip the server. A landing page, a portfolio, or a calculator goes on Netlify, Vercel, or Cloudflare Pages for free.
If something needs to be remembered, you need a server and a database.
A booking app, a client portal, or anything with logins goes on Render or Railway with Postgres.
What each option makes you do
Every path starts from a repo Codex worked in. The difference is how much stands between it and a link. OpenAI Sites, launched June 2026, hosts Codex apps with a database and file storage. Reviews describe it as built for internal team tools, with ChatGPT sign-in, on Business and Enterprise workspaces only. A public app for customers most likely still needs a host.
A static host is the short path. Sign in with GitHub, import the repo, and the site is live.
A full-stack host is the long one. Ask Codex which command starts the app and which environment variables (settings like keys and the database address) it needs. Import the repo on Render or Railway, paste in those variables, create the database, and point a domain at it.
The pattern is the same everywhere it goes wrong: the pull request is merged, the code looks finished, and the app still is not anywhere a customer can open it.
Floot hosts the app for you as part of the build, so there is no repo to import and no environment page to fill in. You add Floot to Codex as an MCP server once, and when you describe the app, Codex builds it straight onto Floot: pages, small server programs called endpoints ("create an order," "email the receipt"), and a Postgres database, live on its own URL from the first build.
Because Floot also includes the database, logins with Google, Microsoft, and email, file storage, email sending, scheduled jobs, and live updates, the pieces the repo-to-host checklist makes you wire by hand are already there. You never sign up for anything else, and the thinking stays on the ChatGPT plan you already pay for.
FAQ
Does Codex host my app?
Not by default. OpenAI's Sites feature hosts some Codex apps, on Business and Enterprise workspaces in preview. [VERIFY]
I merged the pull request. Why isn't my site updated?
A merge only changes the repo. Check that the repo is connected to a host and that its last build succeeded.
Can I deploy a Codex app to Vercel for free?
A static site, yes, on the Hobby plan. An app with saved data also needs a database, and free database tiers sleep or expire.
Does Floot work with Codex?
Yes. Floot connects to Codex through MCP, and Codex builds the app straight onto Floot with hosting and a Postgres database included.
Is my GitHub repo already hosting the app?
No. A repo stores code. GitHub Pages can serve a static site from it, but an app with logins needs a real host.
Do I need a ChatGPT subscription to use Codex?
Codex is included in paid ChatGPT plans and in limited form on Free. Heavier use needs Plus, Pro, or a work plan.