Are EnvKit and Flock both free?

Yes. Neither has a paid tier or needs an account. Flock is also open source.

Does Flock include a database UI?

No. Flock leaves that to the client you like, such as TablePlus, DBeaver or DataGrip, or phpMyAdmin running as a Flock site.

Can Flock share a local site?

Yes. flock share gives a site a temporary public URL through a Cloudflare tunnel, optionally only for certain email addresses.

Comparison

Flock vs EnvKit

EnvKit and Flock are close cousins: both free, both on Windows and macOS, both with trusted .test HTTPS, mail, dumps and an MCP server. Flock is open source, runs on Linux too, and adds FrankenPHP with Octane and share links.

Download Flock Switching from EnvKit

Side by side

Row by row, no fine print.

Flock

EnvKit

Price: Yes: Free, open source, no account; Yes: Free, no account
Platforms: Yes: macOS, Windows and Linux, native apps; Partly: Windows and Apple silicon Macs
Runs natively: Yes: Native processes, no VM or containers; Yes: Native processes
PHP versions: Yes: 8.1 to 8.5 side by side; Yes: 7.4 and newer
PHP per project: Yes: Pinned in .flockrc or isolated per site; Yes: Pinned per project
.test domains: Yes: Built-in DNS, subdomains included; Yes: Automatic
Trusted HTTPS: Yes: Root limited to .test, no warnings; Yes: Local certificate authority
Databases: Yes: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MongoDB; Yes: MySQL, MariaDB, PostgreSQL, MongoDB
Cache, search, storage: Yes: Valkey, Meilisearch, Typesense, RustFS; Yes: Redis, Memcached, Meilisearch, MinIO
Database UI: No: Use your own client; Yes: phpMyAdmin, pgweb, mongo-express
Mail catcher: Yes: An inbox per app, HTML preview; Yes: Mailpit
Dumps and logs: Yes: Per-request timeline and Laravel log; Yes: Dumps, queries and jobs
Xdebug: Yes: Turns on when you set a breakpoint; Yes: On when needed
Node.js: Yes: Per project from .nvmrc; Yes: nvm and .nvmrc
Other languages: No: PHP and Node.js only; No: PHP and Node.js only
FrankenPHP and Octane: Yes: Per site, with Octane worker mode; Partly: Optional service
Public preview link: Yes: Cloudflare tunnel, one command; No: Not listed
AI agentic development: Yes: Built-in MCP server; Yes: One-click MCP

The score

16 Flock

14 EnvKit

of 18 rows covered in full, for free.

Flock16/18: 16 of 18 rows
EnvKit14/18: 14 of 18 rows

Where Flock shines

Open source

Every line of Flock is on GitHub, to read, audit and improve.
Linux and share links

A native Linux app, and flock share for a public URL in one command.

Where EnvKit shines

Database UIs included

phpMyAdmin, pgweb and mongo-express come with the databases.
Imports from Laragon

Brings your Laragon projects over for you.

Built in Partly or by hand $ Paid tier Not available

Compared in October 2026 from each tool's own website. Something out of date? Tell us on GitHub.

Which one fits

Pick the tool, not the hype.

Choose Flock if…

You want an open source tool you can audit.
Part of your team works on Linux.
Your app runs on Laravel Octane with FrankenPHP.
You need to send a client a link to your local site.

Choose EnvKit if…

You want phpMyAdmin or pgweb bundled.
You are moving from Laragon and want your projects imported.

FAQ

Flock and EnvKit, answered.

: Yes. Neither has a paid tier or needs an account. Flock is also open source.
: No. Flock leaves that to the client you like, such as TablePlus, DBeaver or DataGrip, or phpMyAdmin running as a Flock site.
: Yes. flock share gives a site a temporary public URL through a Cloudflare tunnel, optionally only for certain email addresses.

More comparisons

Flock vs Laravel Herd Flock vs Laragon Flock vs XAMPP Flock vs AppServ Flock vs ServBay Flock vs FlyEnv Flock vs Local Flock vs Docker (Laravel Sail) Flock vs Lerd Flock vs Yerd

Join the flock.

Install Flock, park your code folder and open https://your-app.test.

Download Flock Star on GitHub