Cloud servers (VPS) · Comparison
DigitalOcean Droplets vs Hetzner Cloud vs Vultr Cloud Compute
3 products compared side by side: what you pay for with each one first, then the five access facts, entry prices, recorded plan limits and the bottom line of each review. The evidence note under the table says how each product was checked.
Side by side
| Metric | DigitalOcean Droplets | Hetzner Cloud | Vultr Cloud Compute |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you're paying for | Worth the priceA 2 vCPU, 4 GiB server with 4,000 GiB of pooled transfer and a public IPv4 address for $24 a month, billed per second and capped at 672 hours. | Worth the priceEU servers with 20 TB of transfer, overage at $1.20 per TB and a DPA accepted in the account, from a German provider with ISO 27001 and BSI C5. | Worth the priceA 2 vCPU, 4 GB, 80 GB server for $20 a month with 3 TB of pooled transfer, backed by Vultr's own SOC 2 Type II report and ISO 27001. |
| Overall score | 6.6 | 4.7 | 6.6 |
| Free option | Free trial | Paid only | Free trial |
| Card to start | Card required | –Not measured | Card required |
| Getting access | Self-serve | Self-serve | Self-serve |
| Starter priceCheapest paid plan | $4/mo | $7.49/mo | $2.50/mo |
| Pricing model | Usage-based | Usage-based | Usage-based |
| Pricing page | Public prices | Public prices | Public prices |
| Reference server | Basic Regular: 2 vCPU (shared), 4 GiB, 80 GiB SSD, 4,000 GiB transfer, $24/mo | US CPX21: 3 vCPU (shared), 4 GB, 80 GB NVMe, 2 TB transfer, $37.49/mo plus $0.60 IPv4 | Regular Performance: 2 vCPU (shared), 4 GB, 80 GB SSD, 3 TB transfer, $20/mo |
| Reference scenario (US, monthly) | $28.80: $24 plan + $4.80 weekly backups, computed | $45.59: $37.49 plan + $0.60 IPv4 + $7.50 backups (20%), computed | $24: $20 plan + $4 backups (20%), computed |
| Billing | Per second, 60-second minimum, capped at 672 hours a month | Hourly, rounded up, capped at the monthly price | Hourly, 1-hour minimum, capped at 672 hours; VX1 and GPU at 730 hours |
| Transfer overage | $0.01/GiB in every region; pooled across the team; inbound free | $1.20/TB in the EU and US ($8.30 in Singapore); inbound free | $0.01/GB; pooled across the account with 2 TB free; inbound free |
| Public IPv4 | Included on bundled plans; reserved IPv4 $5/mo when unassigned | $0.60/mo per primary IPv4; IPv6 free | One included; reserved IP $3/mo; extra addresses for an unlisted fee |
| Backups | Weekly 20% or daily 30% of the Droplet price; usage-based from $0.01/GiB | 20% of the server price; 7 daily slots | 20% of the server price; daily to monthly schedules; two most recent kept |
| Snapshots | $0.06/GB-month | $0.0199/GB-month of compressed size | $0.05/GB-month of compressed size |
| Free credit | $5 for 90 days, payment method required | None | Coupon credit up to $300 (up to 30 days); free tier server by application |
| Dedicated vCPU from | $42/mo (CPU-Optimized, 2 vCPU, 4 GiB, 25 GiB) | $50.49/mo EU, $50.99 US (CCX13, 2 vCPU, 8 GB) | $28/mo (CPU Optimized, 1 vCPU, 2 GB); 2 vCPU, 4 GB at $40 |
| Image export | No snapshot download; custom image import (raw, qcow2, VHDX, VDI, VMDK) | Snapshot download not described; custom ISOs added by support from a link | No snapshot download; ISO and raw image import from a URL |
| SOC 2 / ISO 27001 | SOC 2 Type II; own ISO 27001 not stated | No SOC 2; ISO 27001:2022 (German and Finnish sites) and BSI C5 Type 2 | SOC 2 Type II (with HIPAA) in the console; ISO 27001:2022 |
| HIPAA BAA | Through sales or support | Not stated | By contract, after an architecture review |
| EU regions | Amsterdam, Frankfurt (London in the UK) | Falkenstein, Nuremberg, Helsinki | Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris, Madrid, Stockholm, Warsaw, Milan |
| Spend cap | Spend alerts only | Cost alerts only | None self-serve; bandwidth usage emails |
| Bottom line | From its public pages, DigitalOcean is a predictable choice for small servers: IPv4 included, a monthly cap, pooled transfer at $0.01 per GiB and backups at a flat share of the price. Images cannot be downloaded, and new accounts start with limits. | From its public pages, Hetzner Cloud is strongest in Europe: 20 TB of transfer, $1.20 per extra TB and a DPA in the account. In the US the reference server costs the most of the five we compare, and SOC 2, HIPAA and SSO are not described. | From its public pages, Vultr has the lowest list price for the reference server and a broad compliance file with free SSO. Some regional prices are missing from the pricing page, and several pages disagree on details such as DDoS protection. |
Evidence: DigitalOcean Droplets: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run; Hetzner Cloud: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run; Vultr Cloud Compute: facts checked 2026-10-16 from its public sign-up and pricing pages, no completed hands-on run. Prices in USD as listed, excluding tax. "–" means not recorded.
When to pick each
In the words of each review, with the date its facts were checked.
From our DigitalOcean Droplets review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick DigitalOcean Droplets when
- You want the same price in every region, free DDoS protection and a DPA that is part of the terms.
- Pick Vultr Cloud Compute when
- You want the lowest scenario price here ($24 a month, computed) and ISO 27001 alongside SOC 2.
From our Hetzner Cloud review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Hetzner Cloud when
- Your servers are in the EU, where 20 TB of transfer is included, and you want overage at $1.20 per TB.
- Pick DigitalOcean Droplets when
- You need US servers at a lower price, a SOC 2 Type II report or team SSO.
From our Hetzner Cloud review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Hetzner Cloud when
- You want a DPA accepted in the account, free DDoS protection and published prices for every location.
- Pick Vultr Cloud Compute when
- You need a SOC 2 report, single sign-on or a lower price in the US.
From our Vultr Cloud Compute review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Vultr Cloud Compute when
- You want the lowest scenario price ($24, computed) and ISO 27001 alongside a SOC 2 Type II report.
- Pick DigitalOcean Droplets when
- You want the same price in every region, free DDoS protection and a DPA that is part of the terms.
From our Vultr Cloud Compute review
Checked Oct 16, 2026- Pick Vultr Cloud Compute when
- You need US servers at a lower price, a SOC 2 report or single sign-on.
- Pick Hetzner Cloud when
- You run servers in the EU with 20 TB of transfer included and a DPA accepted in the account.
Entry price
Baseline: each product's cheapest paid plan, per month. Included usage differs, so read the line under each price.
- DigitalOcean DropletsBasic Regular 512 MiB$4/mo$0.00595/hour, billed per second up to 672 hours
- 1 shared vCPU, 512 MiB, 10 GiB SSD
- 500 GiB of outbound transfer
- Public IPv4 included
- Hetzner CloudCPX02 (EU)$7.49/mo$0.0120/hour; plus $0.60/mo for a primary IPv4
- 1 shared AMD vCPU, 1 GB, 20 GB NVMe
- 20 TB of transfer
- Falkenstein, Nuremberg, Helsinki
- Vultr Cloud ComputeLowest priceRegular Performance 0.5 GB (IPv6 only)$2.50/mo$0.004/hour; 2 per account, not available through the API; $3.50 with IPv4
- 1 shared vCPU, 0.5 GB, 10 GB SSD
- 0.5 TB of transfer
- IPv6 only
Prices as listed on each pricing page, in USD per month, excluding tax. Observed: DigitalOcean Droplets 2026-10-16, Hetzner Cloud 2026-10-16, Vultr Cloud Compute 2026-10-16.
Which one fits
- If you need to start today without a sales call
- DigitalOcean Droplets and Vultr Cloud ComputeSelf-serve sign-up, card required; tied at 6.6/10 for the highest score of the 3 self-serve products here.
- Lowest starter price
- Vultr Cloud Compute$2.50/mo for the Regular Performance 0.5 GB (IPv6 only) plan.
- Highest overall score
- DigitalOcean Droplets and Vultr Cloud Compute6.6/10 (Good). The review shows the score breakdown and the run behind it.
Picked by fixed rules from the table above, not by hand. How we score
Full reviews
Add a product
Search by product name or by what it does, such as “email” or “feature flags”. 1 more fits in this comparison.