Hetzner vs AWS Lightsail
Verdict up front: AWS Lightsail starts cheaper ($3.50/mo); AWS Lightsail covers more ground (14 regions). The right pick depends on workload — details below.
| Hetzner | AWS Lightsail | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $3.79/mo | $3.50/mo |
| Billing | monthly | monthly |
| Regions | 6 | 14 |
| Free tier / trial | None | 3 months free on select bundles |
| Category | iaas, baremetal | iaas, paas |
Hetzner
German engineering — best price-per-vCPU in the business
- + Cheapest compute per spec anywhere
- + Generous bandwidth (20TB+)
- + Dedicated servers excellent value
- + Auction servers even cheaper
- − EU-centric (US regions newer/smaller)
- − Strict account verification
- − No managed K8s on auction/dedicated
AWS Lightsail
Amazon's simplified VPS — fixed bundles, AWS escape hatch
- + Predictable bundle pricing
- + Easy upgrade path into full AWS
- + Managed DB option
- + Free-tier eligible
- − Bundle caps bite at scale
- − Bandwidth overage is expensive
- − Panel still AWS-flavored