Is IONOS's RHEL Small (1-8 vCPU) the best deal?

OS Licensing (Windows Server / RHEL) · $11.38/mo

Competitively priced

IONOS RHEL Small is competitively priced for per-vCPU licensing, but the real cost depends heavily on the underlying compute tier (which uses separate building-block pricing) and renewal rates. Cloudways and Linode offer more transparent, predictable pricing with included backups and lower bandwidth overages, though they're positioned as managed platforms rather than bare infrastructure.

Nanode 1GB (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB SSD) + Backups

$7/mo

Transparent per-instance pricing with included 25GB SSD storage, lower bandwidth overage ($0.005/GB vs IONOS $0.018-$0.036/GB), and 99.99% SLA; no per-vCPU license surcharge on top.

Caveat: Backups add $2/mo (20-25% of instance cost); positioned as managed compute rather than bare licensing; does not include OS licensing if you need RHEL Enterprise support.

DigitalOcean Basic (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB SSD) + Offsite Backup

$6/mo

Lowest entry price with included managed infrastructure, 99.99% SLA, and lowest bandwidth overage ($0.02/GB on DigitalOcean backend); offsite backup storage is metered at $0.03/GiB.

Before you switch

IONOS per-vCPU license cost ($11.38/mo) is on top of separate Compute Engine/Cube pricing; use their calculator to get the full monthly cost before comparing.
Verify whether you need RHEL Enterprise support or if standard RHEL/CentOS on Linode or Cloudways meets your compliance/support requirements.
IONOS outbound data transfer ($0.018-$0.036/GB) is significantly higher than Linode ($0.005/GB) or Cloudways/DigitalOcean ($0.02/GB); factor in your expected egress.
Hostinger's $2.99/mo renewal trap: confirm whether you can tolerate $10.99/mo after the promo period or need month-to-month flexibility.
Linode and Cloudways include backups or backup add-ons; IONOS does not; budget separately if you need automated backups.

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
Cloudways	Add-Ons · Offsite Backup Storage	$0.03/mo	Per GiB per server per month (billed as a rate, not a flat monthly tier)	Visit
Linode (Akamai)	Backups · Backups - Nanode 1GB tier	$2/mo	Backup add-on for smallest Shared CPU tier	Visit
Hostinger	Shared/Web Hosting · Premium	$2.99/mo	20 GB SSD

Visit IONOS

Comparing prices across every provider we track...