DigitalOcean vs IONOS VPS
IONOS has the lower starting price: $5.00 a month for 2 GB RAM, against $6.00 for 1 GB at DigitalOcean.
Prices checked on October 27, 2026. Monthly prices in USD on the billing term shown with each plan, including discounts through our links. We earn a fee if you buy through a provider link, which never changes the ranking. How we rank
The short answer
- IONOS has the lower starting price: $5.00 a month for 2 GB RAM, against $6.00 for 1 GB at DigitalOcean.
- IONOS gives more memory for your money: a median of $2.50 per GB of RAM, about 3.1 times cheaper than DigitalOcean at $7.88.
- DigitalOcean scales further, up to 256 GB RAM and 48 vCPU, while IONOS tops out at 24 GB and 12 vCPU.
- For location, only DigitalOcean has servers in Netherlands, Canada, Singapore, Australia, India.
- IONOS offers NVMe storage, which is faster than the SATA SSDs the other uses.
Side by side
| Compared on | DigitalOcean | IONOS |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $6.00/mo | $5.00/mo (better) |
| Median price per GB RAM | $7.88 | $2.50 (better) |
| Lowest price per GB RAM | $5.25 | $2.33 (better) |
| Median price per vCPU | $31.50 | $5.00 (better) |
| VPS plans | 30 | 5 |
| Largest plan RAM | 256 GB (better) | 24 GB |
| Largest plan vCPU | 48 (better) | 12 |
| NVMe storage | No | Yes |
| Unlimited bandwidth plans | No | Yes |
| Server countries | United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands, Canada, Singapore, Australia, India | United States, United Kingdom, Germany |
| Discount through VPS Scouter | – | – |
| Founded | 2011 | 1988 |
| Headquarters | New York, USA | Montabaur, Germany |
Price at every RAM size
The cheapest plan from each provider with at least this much memory, per month.
| RAM | DigitalOcean | IONOS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 GB+ | $6.00 · Basic 1 GB (1 GB, 1 vCPU) | $5.00 · VPS S+ (2 GB, 1 vCPU) (better) |
| 2 GB+ | $12.00 · Basic 2 GB (2 GB, 1 vCPU) | $5.00 · VPS S+ (2 GB, 1 vCPU) (better) |
| 4 GB+ | $24.00 · Basic 4 GB (4 GB, 2 vCPU) | $11.75 · VPS M+ (4 GB, 2 vCPU) (better) |
| 8 GB+ | $48.00 · Basic 8 GB (8 GB, 4 vCPU) | $20.75 · VPS L+ (8 GB, 4 vCPU) (better) |
| 16 GB+ | $84.00 · Memory-Optimized 16 GB (16 GB, 2 vCPU) | $38.75 · VPS XL+ (16 GB, 8 vCPU) (better) |
| 32 GB+ | $168.00 · Memory-Optimized 32 GB (32 GB, 4 vCPU) | No plan this size |
Best value plans from DigitalOcean and IONOS
| # | Provider and plan | vCPU | RAM | Storage | Bandwidth | Price | Visit provider |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IONOSVPS S+ | 1 | 2 GB | 60 GB NVME | Unlimited | $5.00/mo1-year term · renews at $6.00/mo | Visit IONOS |
| 2 | IONOSVPS XXL+ | 12 | 24 GB | 720 GB NVME | Unlimited | $56.00/mo1-year term · renews at $68.00/mo | Visit IONOS |
| 3 | IONOSVPS XL+ | 8 | 16 GB | 480 GB NVME | Unlimited | $38.75/mo1-year term · renews at $47.00/mo | Visit IONOS |
| 4 | IONOSVPS L+ | 4 | 8 GB | 240 GB NVME | Unlimited | $20.75/mo1-year term · renews at $25.00/mo | Visit IONOS |
| 5 | IONOSVPS M+ | 2 | 4 GB | 120 GB NVME | Unlimited | $11.75/mo1-year term · renews at $14.00/mo | Visit IONOS |
| 6 | DigitalOceanBasic 1 GB | 1 | 1 GB | 25 GB SSD | 1 TB | $6.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
| 7 | DigitalOceanBasic 2 GB | 1 | 2 GB | 50 GB SSD | 2 TB | $12.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
| 8 | DigitalOceanBasic 4 GB | 2 | 4 GB | 80 GB SSD | 4 TB | $24.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
| 9 | DigitalOceanBasic 8 GB | 4 | 8 GB | 160 GB SSD | 5 TB | $48.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
| 10 | DigitalOceanBasic 16 GB | 8 | 16 GB | 320 GB SSD | 6 TB | $96.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
| 11 | DigitalOceanBasic 2 GB | 2 | 2 GB | 60 GB SSD | 3 TB | $18.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
| 12 | DigitalOceanStorage-Optimized 16 GB | 2 | 16 GB | 300 GB SSD | 4 TB | $131.00/mobilled monthly | Visit DigitalOcean |
Frequently Asked Questions
Is DigitalOcean cheaper than IONOS?
IONOS has the lower entry price at $5.00 a month. Per GB of RAM, IONOS is cheaper, with a median of $2.50 across its plans. Which one is cheaper for you depends on the plan size you need, so check the table by RAM size.
Which is better, DigitalOcean or IONOS?
It depends on what you need. IONOS gives more memory for your money: a median of $2.50 per GB of RAM, about 3.1 times cheaper than DigitalOcean at $7.88. DigitalOcean scales further, up to 256 GB RAM and 48 vCPU, while IONOS tops out at 24 GB and 12 vCPU. Neither price tells you about speed or support, so read the provider pages and reviews too.
How do you compare the prices?
We use each provider's monthly price in USD on the billing term it advertises, which we show next to every price, including any discount you get through our links. Prices come from the providers' own pricing pages and are checked every Sunday.