Compared to shared hosting, virtual private server (VPS) hosting for your business’s website can offer a significant performance boost — but this often comes at a higher price. If you’re looking for a VPS hosting service that won’t cost you an arm and a leg, read on for what you should know before choosing a VPS host and to see our picks for cheap VPS hosting.
We receive compensation from our partners for Featured Offer placements, which impacts how and where their offer is displayed.
Featured Offers
Wix
Ease of use
Above Average
Free trial
Not offered
Squarespace
Free trial
14 days
Storage limit
Unlimited
Web.com
Free trial
N/A
AI powered tools
Easy to use drag-and-drop builder
Shopify
Free trial
3 days
Storage limit
Unlimited
Methodology
To help small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) choose the cheapest VPS host that meets their needs, we evaluated 13 top tools. We compared each VPS host’s pricing while assessing each tool’s core functionality to ensure these affordable tools are worthwhile, functional options for small businesses. Read our full methodology.
Show summary
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IONOS
: Starts at $2 per month
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Hostinger
: Starts at $4.99 per month
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Hostwinds
: Starts at $4.99 per month
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Ultahost
: Starting at $5.50 per month
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InterServer
: Starts at $6 per month
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GoDaddy
: Starts at $8.99 per month
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Mochahost
: Starts at $17.50 per month
IONOS
Starts at $2 per month
Money-back guarantee
Yes, 30 days
Support channels
Live chat, phone, email
Storage limit range (GB)
10-640
Why we picked it
IONOS is a global web hosting, cloud and website design company targeting small and medium-sized businesses. It offers both Linux and Windows VPS hosting.
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IONOS’ VPS hosting plans are tiered by cost and performance for both Linux and Windows. Its cheapest Linux plan, VPS Linux XS, comes with one vCore, 1GB RAM and 10GB NVMe SSD storage, and costs $2 per month. Its cheapest Windows plan, VPS Windows S, offers two vCores, 2GB RAM and 80GB NVMe SSD storage, and will set you back $12 per month for the first six months if you choose a one-year subscription.
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It’s worth mentioning that IONOS offers month-to-month contracts or annual contracts; at the time of reporting, the latter are discounted by up to 23% for the first six months of your contract. A bonus is that businesses can also try its Linux XS plan risk-free for 30 days, and it offers a 30-day money-back guarantee for its Windows plans.
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IONOS’ standout VPS hosting features include a 99.9% uptime guarantee, free Plesk Web Host Edition (a control panel) and 24/7 support. It also offers security features to make hosting management easier, such as DDoS protection, a Wildcard SSL certificate and firewall management.
Pros
- Free GUI (Plesk Web Edition) included
- NVME SSD storage
- Full root access
Cons
- Additional charges for website migrations and backups
- Virtualized CPUs (vCores; see other considerations below)
- The entry-level plan offers minimal server specs (such as storage space)
Who should use it
IONOS’ strong infrastructure, global presence and affordable entry-level plans make it an ideal choice for businesses that want cheap, unmanaged VPS hosting.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes |
Bandwidth | Unlimited |
Network speed | Up to 1Gbps |
Uptime guarantee | 99.9% |
Data center locations | United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Spain |
SSD NVMe | Yes |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
Hostinger
Starts at $4.99 per month
Money-back guarantee
Yes, 30 days
Support channels
Live chat, email
Storage limit range (GB)
50-400
Why we picked it
Formed in 2004, Hostinger is a global hosting and domain registrar with VPS hosting options that offer a balance between affordable and powerful. It offers four unmanaged VPS hosting plans with different levels of performance and prices.
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Its cheapest VPS hosting plan, KVM 1, comes with one vCPU core, 4GB of RAM, 50GB of NVMe SSD storage and 4TB of bandwidth and costs $4.99 per month for your first year. Its most expensive VPS plan, KVM 8, costs $19.99 per month and boosts your vCPU Cores to eight, RAM to 32GB, NVMe storage to 400GB and bandwidth to 32TB. Plans are discounted by up to 67% for users who sign up for a biennial plan.
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In terms of features, Hostinger has some great features to make unmanaged VPS hosting simple and stress-free. This includes a malware scanner, full root access and an AI assistant to help with things like server maintenance and configuration.
Pros
- AI assistant
- Generous discounts on long-term plans
- Free weekly automatic backups
Cons
- Uses vCPU cores (see other considerations below)
- Only four plans to choose from
- No options to customize your VPS hosting at checkout
Who should use it
Hostinger’s VPS plans are a solid option for businesses with the necessary technical know-how to set up and maintain a server. Its solid customer service reputation on review sites like Trustpilot (4.6/5 stars at the time of reporting) means you’ll likely get reliable support when you need it.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes |
Bandwidth | 4-32TB |
Network speed | 300 Mbps |
Uptime guarantee | 99.9% |
Data center locations | US, Brazil, France, Lithuania and India |
SSD NVMe | Yes |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
Hostwinds
Starts at $4.99 per month
Money-back guarantee
No
Support channels
Live chat
Storage limit range (GB)
30-750
Why we picked it
Along with cloud, shared and dedicated hosting plans, Hostwinds offers both unmanaged and managed Linux and Microsoft VPS hosting options.
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If you’re comfortable with server setups and maintenance, Hostwinds’ unmanaged VPS plans are cheaper than its managed VPS options. Expect to pay between $4.99 and $328.99 per month for unmanaged Linux VPS hosting (prices increase as you add more CPU, RAM, storage and bandwidth). For unmanaged Windows VPS hosting, pricing starts at $10.99 and goes up to $376.99.
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Managed VPS hosting from Hostwinds starts at $8.24 per month for the most basic Linux plan and $12.74 for the first Windows tier. It’s worth noting that these prices increase upon renewal. Hostwinds support told us that the discounted rates last for however long your initial subscription agreement is. If you choose annual billing, the discount will apply to a year’s worth of that monthly rate. If you choose month-to-month billing, however, you’ll only get the discount for your first month.
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In terms of performance, Hostwinds offers the same specs for its unmanaged and managed VPS hosting plans across both Linux and Windows options. Its entry-level VPS plans come with one CPU, 1GB RAM, 30GB of SSD storage and 1TB of bandwidth, while the highest plans offer 16 CPUs, 96GB RAM, 750GB of storage and 9TB of bandwidth.
Pros
- Fully managed VPS comes with 24/7/365 support
- Generous storage amounts
- Free website transfers
Cons
- Backups need to be purchased separately
- No discounted rates on unmanaged hosting
- SSL certificate is an additional cost
Who should use it
Hostwinds stands out for the significant storage amounts offered across its 10 VPS hosting plans. If you have large storage hosting requirements, consider Hostwinds’ managed or unmanaged VPS plans.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes |
Bandwidth | 1-9TB |
Network speed | 1Gbps |
Uptime guarantee | 99.9999% |
Data center locations | Seattle, Dallas and Amsterdam |
SSD NVMe | No |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
Ultahost
Starting at $5.50 per month
Money-back guarantee
Yes, 30 days
Support channels
Live chat, phone, email
Storage limit range (GB)
30-100
Why we picked it
Started in 2018, Ultahost is a web hosting and domain registrar that is relatively new to the hosting scene. However, its competitive pricing, strong global infrastructure and discounted rates of up to 45% for annual plans make it a worthwhile choice for cheap VPS hosting.
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Ultahost offers four managed VPS pricing tiers: Basic, Business, Professional and Enterprise. Furthermore, it categorizes its VPS hosting based on the type of control panel you’d like to use: Hestia and CyberPanel (free panels), Plesk and cPanel.
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Its VPS Basic plan for Hestia and CyberPanel costs $5.50 per month and comes with one CPU core, 1GB RAM and 30GB of NVMe SSD storage. If you opt to include a Plesk or cPanel license, pricing starts at $15.50 and $24.50, respectively.
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Ultahost’s highest plan, VPS Enterprise, is priced at $21.50 for Hestia and CyberPanel; you’ll get four CPU Cores, 6GB RAM and 100GB NVMe SSD storage.
Pros
- 16-plus global data center locations
- Unmetered traffic
- 99.99% uptime guarantee
Cons
- Limited plan options compared to other cheap VPS hosting services on our list
- Plans offer lower storage amounts than competitors
- Opaque refund terms according to online customer reviews
Who should use it
Ultahost’s simplified pricing structure and discounted rates make it a great choice for VPS hosting that delivers on performance at a monthly cost that is affordable for most small businesses.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes |
Bandwidth | Unlimited |
Network speed | Not found |
Uptime guarantee | 99.99% |
Data center locations | US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, UK, Finland, Turkey, South Africa, India, South Korea, Singapore and Japan |
SSD NVMe | Yes |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
InterServer
Starts at $6 per month
Money-back guarantee
No
Support channels
Live chat, phone
Storage limit range (GB)
30-480
Why we picked it
InterServer is a web hosting provider that has been offering hosting and server-related services for 25 years. Along with dedicated hosting, cloud hosting and web hosting, it offers VPS solutions for Linux and Windows and storage optimization.
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InterServer stands out for the number of plans it offers, with 16 tiers of performance to choose from whether you want Linux, storage or Windows VPS hosting. The company is unique in that it doesn’t separate its pricing into unmanaged and managed plans. Instead, it offers managed VPS support for customers who purchase four-plus “slices” or cores. It also doesn’t offer discounted introductory rates or long-term contracts like other hosting providers; its month-to-month standard pricing is straightforward and competitive.
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Its cheapest VPS hosting plan (Linux, with one core) comes in at $6 per month. With it, you’ll get one CPU core, 2GB of RAM and 30GB of SSD storage. At the top end of its plans, InterServer sells a 16-core Linux plan with 32GB of RAM and 480GB of SSD storage for $96 per month.
Pros
- A wide selection of plans
- Open-source Linux templates to help with server configuration
- Full root access
Cons
- All billing is month-to-month
- No discounts are offered
- Doesn’t offer free backups
Who should use it
Businesses that want a straightforward, reliable partner for VPS hosting should consider InterServer. It has a high customer rating (4.2/5 stars) on TrustPilot, and the range of plans on offer means you’ll be able to customize your server to your exact specifications.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes (certain plans) |
Bandwidth | 2-32TB |
Network speed | Not found |
Uptime guarantee | 99.9% |
Data center locations | New Jersey and Los Angeles |
SSD NVMe | No |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
GoDaddy
Starts at $8.99 per month
Money-back guarantee
No
Support channels
Live chat, phone
Storage limit range (GB)
40-200
Why we picked it
GoDaddy is a well-known brand in the hosting and domain registry space with over 21 million customers around the world. Along with domain registration, web hosting, business email, website security and marketing tools, it offers both managed and unmanaged VPS hosting plans.
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Its cheapest VPS hosting plan comes with one vCPU core, 2GB of RAM and 40GB of NVMe SSD storage. GoDaddy offers discounted rates of up to 41% on long-term hosting agreements (24 months or 36 months), which means you can get its entry-level plan for as low as $8.99 per month (at the time of reporting).
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Its top standard performance plan is priced at $44.99 per month for a three-year plan and includes four vCPU cores, 16GB RAM, 200GB of NVMe storage, three additional IP addresses and a choice between Linux or Windows VPS hosting.
Pros
- Rated highly by customers on Trustpilot
- Root access and SSH keys are included
- Seven days of automated snapshot backups included
Cons
- SSL certificates, firewalls and malware scanning cost extra
- cPanel and Plesk are additional costs
- Very long contract terms required for discounted rates
Who should use it
Businesses looking for long-term VPS hosting from a trusted name in the web hosting industry should consider GoDaddy. Its highly rated customer service, global presence and reliable performance make it a solid choice for affordable VPS hosting over a longer period.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes |
Bandwidth | Unlimited |
Network speed | Not found |
Uptime guarantee | 99.9% |
Data center locations | North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific |
SSD NVMe | Yes |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
Mochahost
Starts at $17.50 per month
Money-back guarantee
Yes, 30 days
Support channels
Live chat, phone
Storage limit range (GB)
80-960GB
Why we picked it
Mochahost offers a range of website-related services and products, including domain registration, web hosting, a website builder and SSL certificates. In terms of VPS hosting, it offers unmanaged and managed hosting plans for both Linux and Windows servers.
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At the time of reporting, Mochahost offers a 50% discount on all of its plans and doesn’t list a minimum contract term to benefit from this deal.
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Its lowest-priced unmanaged plan, Frappe Linux I, costs $17.50 per month and comes with two CPU Cores, 4GB RAM and 80GB of NVMe storage. Its top unmanaged Linux VPS hosting plan (Frappe Linux IV) costs $92.50 and comes with 16 CPU Cores, 32GB RAM and 640GB of storage. The Windows hosting specs are the same across plan levels, albeit with slightly higher costs (starting at $22.50).
Pros
- Free SSL certificates and weekly backups with managed VPS plans
- Root and SSH access with unmanaged VPS plans
- Unlimited emails and websites
Cons
- cPanel is a required additional cost for managed VPS plans
- No security or troubleshooting support with unmanaged VPS hosting
- Some users have noted issues with their hosting and recent server migrations
Who should use it
If you’re looking for a powerful VPS hosting provider, Mochahost checks most of the boxes. Generous CPU, RAM and storage combinations make it a great option for businesses that need robust and reliable VPS hosting.
Full specs
24/7 support | Yes |
Bandwidth | Unlimited |
Network speed | 1Gbps |
Uptime guarantee | 99.9% |
Data center locations | Buffalo, Dallas, Toronto, London, Mumbai, Singapore |
SSD NVMe | Yes |
Dedicated IP address | Yes |
Compare cheap VPS hosting services
| Company | Pricing starts at | Storage limit range (GB) | Automatic backups? | Free domain name? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
IONOS | $2 | 10-640 | No | No |
Hostinger | $4.99 | 50-400 | Yes | No |
Hostwinds | $4.99 | 30-750 | Yes | No |
Ultahost | $5.50 | 30-100 | Yes | Yes |
InterServer | $6 | 30-480 | No | No |
GoDaddy | $8.99 | 40-200 | Yes | No |
Mochahost | $17.50 | 80-960 | Yes | Yes |
What is VPS hosting?
VPS hosting stands for virtual private server hosting. With this type of hosting, a physical server’s resources (RAM, CPUs and storage) are divided up using virtualization technology, such as a hypervisor. This means that you’ll get a guaranteed amount of processing power, storage and performance in an isolated virtual environment to host your websites and applications.
Benefits of VPS hosting
VPS hosting is becoming increasingly popular for businesses of all sizes that want better hosting performance without the higher price tag of dedicated web hosting. Here’s a breakdown of the benefits that VPS hosting can offer:
- Increased performance: With VPS hosting, you’re allocated processing power, RAM and storage that only you (and your business) can use.
- Lower costs: While VPS hosting is generally more expensive than shared hosting, it’s more affordable than a dedicated server.
- Enhanced security: VPS hosting isolates your hosting environment from other accounts on servers, which makes it more secure than shared hosting.
- Customization and scalability: With VPS hosting, RAM, processing power and storage can be configured to your exact requirements and are easily scaled to match demand if your needs change.
- Reliability: You’ll get better performance than shared hosting. That’s because VPS hosting guarantees a set amount of resources that aren’t shared with other users.
Essential VPS hosting features
If you’re considering switching to VPS hosting, here are the essential hosting features you’ll need to think about:
- Managed vs. unmanaged: If you have no experience with server provisioning and management, unmanaged VPS hosting might be difficult to fully utilize. Consider a managed VPS option if you’re unsure how to set up and maintain a server on your own.
- 24/7 support: Having the necessary support to help solve server issues is non-negotiable if you’re not proficient at server management. Look for a hosting provider that offers support via phone, chat and/or ticketed systems.
- Security: Protecting your digital assets is a priority. Your hosting provider should include or offer additional paid services to help mitigate and deal with cyber threats.
Other important considerations
Costs are just one aspect to think about when choosing a VPS hosting provider. If you want to get a good VPS deal that helps your business in the long run, keep these factors in mind:
- Research uptime rates: Hosting providers often advertise uptime rates of 99% or 99.99%. Explore what previous and current customers say about these claims online before you sign up.
- Consider hidden or omitted costs: Cheap VPS hosting plans may exclude certain features to bring the price down. Make sure you understand this before buying a plan. For example, if you need a graphical user interface like cPanel or Plesk you may need to buy a separate license.
- Read the fine print: Be sure to read and understand the details of your hosting contract before you sign up. For example, if a hosting provider claims a 30-day money-back guarantee, make sure there aren’t terms and conditions that could make you ineligible to claim a refund. Additionally, some discounted pricing is only available for a limited time.
- Look at value-added services: Beyond hosting specs, you should explore the additional services your hosting provider offers. For example, some hosting providers offer website migration services to help customers transfer existing websites from other web hosts or even supplemental tools such as website builders and a business email domain.
- vCores vs. cores: It’s worth mentioning that vCPUs and CPUs aren’t necessarily the same (and vCPUs can be slower). Do your research before signing up for a plan that advertises multiple vCPUs and make sure it works for your purpose.
Methodology: How we evaluated the cheapest VPS hosts
To help small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) choose the cheapest VPS host that meets their needs, we started with the top VPS hosting services evaluated for our best VPS hosting services guide. To build that guide, we evaluated ~1,600 data points and 30-plus metrics. While we used that same data set for this list, to identify the top cheap VPS hosts we adjusted our weighting to emphasize monthly and annual pricing. We also evaluated specific plan offerings from each VPS host to ensure that the provided pricing information represents worthwhile plans for small businesses.
While cost was our primary metric, we evaluated each VPS host on our list for the same core features assessed for our best VPS hosting guide (bandwidth and storage limits, uptime guarantees, automatic backups and the availability of a free domain name, business email and SSL certificate). Service and support options and third-party user reviews were also considered. Read our original, comprehensive methodology.
We receive compensation from our partners for Featured Offer placements, which impacts how and where their offer is displayed.
Featured Offers
Wix
Ease of use
Above Average
Free trial
Not offered
Squarespace
Free trial
14 days
Storage limit
Unlimited
Web.com
Free trial
N/A
AI powered tools
Easy to use drag-and-drop builder
Shopify
Free trial
3 days
Storage limit
Unlimited
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Some hosting providers advertise free VPS hosting, but these are typically trial periods of around 30 days. That said, if you’re looking for free VPS/cloud hosting with limited features, some providers — like Google, AWS, Oracle and Microsoft Azure — offer free tiers or free monthly credits.
VPS hosting offers better performance than shared hosting but costs less than dedicated hosting. If your business has outgrown your current shared hosting but you don’t want to pay for an entire server, VPS hosting is a good option to consider.
The disadvantages of VPS hosting come down to two things: cost and technical knowledge. VPS hosting is more expensive than shared hosting and requires technical know-how if you want to buy a cheaper unmanaged VPS hosting plan.
Both cloud hosting and VPS hosting have their benefits and downsides. However, one isn’t inherently better than the other. It’s best to compare hosting services at a plan level by looking at the specifications, provider, performance and price to see which option is better for your business needs.
