[kevinsimper]

I can really follow your question as it is a really tough one and it all depends on what is your interest, because:

- You can use AWS but you will no doubt spend a lot of time figuring out stuff, BUT if you think it is fun and if you can use it to further your career then it makes total sense!

- If your focus is on the development and not a side project you should really go with something hosted like Heroku because you will be able to spend much more time on development instead of configuration and be spending time worrying if you have done it correctly. Heroku is pretty cheap for what you get in terms of hours saved but you are giving up some flexibility, no doubt!