Is Fly.io's shared-cpu-1x - 1GB the best deal?

Machines (Shared CPU) · $5.92/mo (1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU)

Better deals exist

Fly.io's $5.92/mo shared CPU plan is competitively priced but faces stiff competition from lower-cost alternatives with better specs and fewer hidden gotchas. IONOS Cloud VPS XS at $2/mo and Bluehost NVMe 2 at $2.09/mo offer 1GB RAM with significantly lower entry costs, though both carry steep renewal penalties. For sustained use without renewal shock, Linode Nanode 1GB at $5/mo matches Fly.io's price with more predictable billing and included 1TB transfer.

Cloud VPS XS

$2/mosave 66%

Identical 1GB RAM and 1 vCPU at 66% lower sticker price, with 10GB NVMe storage and unlimited traffic up to 1 Gbit/s included.

Caveat: Intro pricing is locked to a 1-year contract; renewal jumps 2-6x higher (likely $12-15/mo), making true long-term cost much closer to Fly.io.

VPS Hosting NVMe 2

$2.09/mosave 65%

Beats Fly.io on specs (2GB RAM vs 1GB, 50GB NVMe vs 1GB) and price, with unmetered bandwidth and root SSH access.

Caveat: Renewal price jumps to $9.99-$15.99/mo after intro term; lowest price requires 36-month upfront commitment.

Nanode 1 GB

$5/mosave 15%

Matches Fly.io's 1GB RAM and 1 vCPU at $0.92/mo less, with 25GB SSD, 1TB transfer included, and transparent per-GB overage pricing ($0.005/GB).

Caveat: Backups are a separate add-on (~$1-1.25/mo); bandwidth overages charged at $0.005/GB after 1TB allowance.

VPS Hosting Spark

$3.88/mosave 34%

1GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20GB SSD, and 1TB transfer at $3.88/mo; unmanaged by default but includes user-responsible access.

Caveat: Renewal pricing substantially higher; management add-ons cost $10-25/mo extra; SLA undefined.

Cloud VMs Type A (1vCPU/1GB)

$4/mosave 32%

1GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20GB NVMe, and 5TB transfer at $4/mo; non-dedicated CPU but generous transfer allowance.

Caveat: Non-dedicated CPU thread with no guaranteed resources; burstable CPU overages charged at $0.041/hr once average usage exceeds 10%.

Before you switch

IONOS and Bluehost intro prices require 1-3 year contracts; verify renewal cost before committing (likely 2-6x higher).
Fly.io's per-second billing and region-based pricing premiums can add up if you scale or use non-Amsterdam regions; cross-region egress is expensive ($0.12/GB Africa/India).
Linode and Kamatera include more transfer (1TB and 5TB respectively) than Fly.io; verify your actual egress needs before assuming Fly.io's hidden costs are lower.
Namecheap and Kamatera are unmanaged by default; factor in management add-ons ($10-25/mo) if you need support.
All alternatives except Linode carry renewal-price traps; lock in long-term cost estimates before switching.

This comparison is generated from publicly listed pricing and may contain errors or omissions. It is not financial or professional advice, and CloudHosting.io is not responsible for decisions made based on it. Pricing, promotions, and specs change frequently and may not reflect current terms, regional availability, taxes, or contract length. Always verify current pricing and terms directly on the provider's site before purchasing or switching.

Comparable plans across providers

Provider	Plan	Price	Specs
Scaleway	Virtual Instances · STARDUST1-S	$0.43/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU	Visit
IONOS	Cloud VPS (Linux) · Cloud VPS XS	$2/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 10 GB NVMe	Visit
Bluehost	VPS Hosting · NVMe 2	$2.09/mo	2 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 50 GB NVMe SSD	Visit
InMotion Hosting	Shared Hosting · Core	$2.99/mo	512 MB RAM, 100 GB SSD	Visit
Vultr	Cloud Compute · Regular 1vCPU/0.5GB	$3.5/mo	512 MB RAM, 1 vCPU, 10 GB NVMe SSD	Visit
AWS Lightsail	Virtual Servers · GP 0.5GB (Linux, IPv6)	$3.5/mo	512 MB RAM, 2 vCPU, 20 GB SSD	Visit
UpCloud	Cloud Servers - Starter · STARTER-1xCPU-1GB	$3.5/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 10 GB Standard SSD	Visit
Microsoft Azure	Virtual Machines · B1ls	$3.8/mo	512 MB RAM, 1 vCPU	Visit
Namecheap	VPS Hosting · Spark	$3.88/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20 GB SSD	Visit
DigitalOcean	Droplets · Basic 512MB	$4/mo	512 MB RAM, 1 vCPU, 10 GB SSD	Visit
Kamatera	Cloud VMs · Type A base (Availability, 1 vCPU/1GB)	$4/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20 GB NVMe SSD	Visit
Alibaba Cloud	Simple Application Server · economy-e-2c-0.5g	$4.55/mo	512 MB RAM, 2 vCPU, 40 GB SSD	Visit
IONOS	VPS Hosting (VPS+) · VPS S+	$5/mo	2 GB RAM, 2 vCPU, 90 GB NVMe	Visit
Liquid Web	VPS Hosting · Compute 1	$5/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 30 GB SSD	Visit
Linode (Akamai)	Shared CPU Compute · Nanode 1 GB	$5/mo	1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 25 GB SSD	Visit

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Comparing prices across every provider we track...