Hetzner — A German cloud and dedicated server host known for aggressive per-resource pricing, with data centers in Germany, Finland, and the US.
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Best for: developers and small teams who want cheap EU-based cloud or dedicated compute without hyperscaler pricing
Pricing: Cloud servers start around $4.59/month for a shared-vCPU instance; dedicated servers and object storage are priced separately with no permanent free tier.
- Hetzner is a German hosting company with data centers in Germany, Finland, and Ashburn, Virginia.
- Cloud servers are billed hourly or monthly starting from about $4.59/month for a shared-vCPU CX22 instance.
- Dedicated servers span the EX, AX, RX, SX, GPU, and DX lines plus a discounted Server Auction.
- Support is 24/7 email only, with a 99.9% uptime SLA and no phone or live chat.
Limitations: Email-only support with no phone or live chat.; Limited to three data center regions versus dozens at AWS or Azure.; New account approval can be slow for signups from some countries.
Top alternatives: DigitalOcean, Vultr, OVHcloud, Linode — full list
What is Hetzner?
Hetzner is a German hosting company providing cloud servers, dedicated (bare-metal) servers, managed hosting, and storage, run from its own data centers in Germany and Finland plus a US facility in Ashburn, Virginia. Its cloud servers (the CX and CPX lines for shared vCPU, CCX for dedicated vCPU) are billed hourly or monthly and include a stateful firewall and private networking at no extra cost. Dedicated servers span the EX (entry), AX (AMD), RX (storage-heavy), SX (high-storage), GPU, and DX (Dell) lines, with older or refurbished configurations sold at a discount through the Server Auction. Beyond compute, Hetzner offers Storage Box (self-managed backup storage), Storage Share (Nextcloud-based file sharing), S3-compatible Object Storage, load balancers, managed Kubernetes, and free DNS. Hetzner is closed-source and privately held, with pricing built around thin margins rather than a freemium model — there is no permanently free compute tier. It is best known in the developer community for undercutting AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure on raw compute cost for workloads that don't need a global points-of-presence network.
Hetzner is a German infrastructure provider offering cloud servers, dedicated servers, and S3-compatible object storage from data centers in Germany, Finland, and Ashburn, Virginia, US. It targets developers, agencies, and cost-conscious teams who want raw compute at hyperscaler-beating prices, competing directly with DigitalOcean, Vultr, and OVHcloud. Cloud servers are billed hourly or monthly starting from about $4.59/month for a shared-vCPU CX22 instance with 2 vCPUs, 4GB RAM, and 40GB SSD, and dedicated servers are sold both at fixed list prices and through a discounted Server Auction for used hardware. Hetzner has no permanent free tier, support is email-only with a 99.9% uptime SLA, and its EU-based infrastructure appeals to teams with GDPR data-residency requirements.
Standout feature: Per-resource pricing that consistently undercuts AWS, DigitalOcean, and Google Cloud on raw compute, with a stateful firewall, private networking, and 20TB of traffic included at no extra cost on cloud plans.
Biggest weakness: Support is email-only with no phone or live chat, data centers are concentrated in Germany, Finland, and one US location rather than a global points-of-presence network, and Hetzner has periodically restricted or delayed account approvals for new customers in some countries.
Pros
- Cloud and dedicated server prices consistently undercut AWS, DigitalOcean, and Vultr for comparable specs.
- Private networking, a stateful firewall, and free DNS are included at no extra cost.
- Server Auction offers discounted, previously-used dedicated hardware for budget-sensitive projects.
- EU-based data centers simplify GDPR data-residency requirements for European customers.
Cons
- Support is limited to 24/7 email; there is no phone or live chat option.
- Data center footprint is limited to Germany, Finland, and a single US location, versus dozens of regions at AWS or Azure.
- No permanent free compute tier; every server incurs hourly or monthly charges from the first minute.
- Account verification and approval can be slow or restrictive for signups from certain countries.
Hetzner pricing
From $4.59/mo
| Plan | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud – Shared vCPU (CX/CPX) | $4.59/mo | Entry shared-vCPU instance (2 vCPUs, 4GB RAM, 40GB SSD); billed hourly or monthly, price set in EUR. |
| Cloud – Dedicated vCPU (CCX) | Custom | Dedicated-vCPU instances for production workloads with consistent CPU performance. |
| Dedicated servers (EX/AX/RX/SX/GPU/DX) | Custom | Physical bare-metal servers at fixed list prices, plus discounted used hardware via the Server Auction. |
What reviewers say
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