vs
DigitalOcean vs Vultr: which free plan?
Both free plans are on a par by our score. The differences below decide it.
Both checked against their official pricing pages on 1 Nov 2026.
| Type | Cloud VPS | Cloud VPS |
|---|---|---|
| Free-tier score | No free plan | No free plan |
| Card to sign up | Required | Required |
| Free plan ends | Sign-up credit varies (check at sign-up) | No free tier |
| Sleeps when idle | No | No |
| Commercial use | Allowed | Allowed |
| Own domain on free | Yes | Not stated |
| Free subdomain | None | None |
| Free limits |
|
|
| The catch | There is no free VPS: Droplets are billed from the first hour. | Nothing is free: you pay from the first hour. |
| Paid from | $4/mo (Basic Droplet) | $2.5/mo (Regular Cloud Compute) |
| Source | Official pricing for DigitalOcean (opens in a new tab) | Official pricing for Vultr (opens in a new tab) |
Which one should you pick?
Pick DigitalOcean if…
- you need your own domain on the free plan
- your project is: root access without AWS complexity
Pick Vultr if…
- your project is: cheap servers close to your users
Questions
Which is better for free, DigitalOcean or Vultr?
Both free plans are on a par by our score. The differences below decide it.
Does DigitalOcean or Vultr need a credit card?
DigitalOcean: yes. Vultr: yes.
What is the catch with DigitalOcean and Vultr?
DigitalOcean: There is no free VPS: Droplets are billed from the first hour. Vultr: Nothing is free: you pay from the first hour.