How much does a VPS cost? At EliteStarHosting you pay €3.00 per month for the smallest VPS with 2GB RAM and €48.00 for the largest Premium VPS with 32GB RAM. Where you land in between depends on memory, processor and storage. On top of that, providers differ in what the price includes, and that is where the costs you don't see at first glance come from.
What determines VPS pricing?
Memory (RAM)
RAM is the biggest factor in the price, and with us it is also the name of the plan: from 2GB to 32GB. On Budget VPS every GB gets cheaper as the plan grows: €1.50 per GB at 2GB, about €0.59 per GB at 32GB. On Premium VPS you pay €1.50 per GB at every size.
Processor: type and number of cores
A vCore is a virtual processor core: a share of the computing power of the physical processor in the server. With more vCores your server can run more tasks at once. How much work one core gets done depends on the processor model. Budget VPS runs on Intel Xeon and is meant for websites, bots and light workloads. Premium VPS runs on an AMD Ryzen 9 5950X, for game servers and high-traffic apps.
Storage: SATA SSD or NVMe
You pay for size and for type. An NVMe drive connects directly over PCIe and is much faster than a SATA SSD, especially with lots of small reads and writes at once, as in databases and game servers. Budget VPS comes with 10GB to 200GB SATA SSD, Premium VPS with 60GB to 400GB NVMe.
Bandwidth
Bandwidth is the data traffic you can use per month. Our plans up to and including 16GB RAM come with 1TB per month, the larger ones with 2TB. 1TB works out to an average of about 3 Mbit/s, day and night. For a small website or a bot that is usually plenty. A download site or a server that streams video uses it up a lot faster.
Location and management
Location mainly decides your ping: pick a data centre close to your users, even if a server further away is slightly cheaper. Our VPS runs in Amsterdam, for low latency across the Netherlands and the rest of Europe.
With a managed VPS the provider handles updates, security and software problems, and that costs more than an unmanaged VPS where you do it yourself. Our VPS is for people who want to be in control: you get full root access (Administrator on Windows) and install whatever you need. Our support team is available every day from 09:00 to 24:00 CET; what it does and doesn't do for you is in our support policy.
Hidden VPS costs to watch for
A low monthly price doesn't tell the whole story. Compare these items at every provider too:
- Setup fee: some providers charge a one-time fee when you start. Our VPS plans have no setup fee; a dedicated server does come with a one-time €90.00.
- Renewal price: a low introductory price can go up sharply after the first period. With us, you pay the same on renewal as when you ordered, and we announce any price change 30 days in advance.
- IPv4 address: IPv4 addresses are scarce, so an (extra) address often costs money. With us, every VPS has its own IPv4 address at no extra charge.
- DDoS protection: a paid option at some providers. With us, network-level DDoS protection is included with every plan.
- Backups: not every VPS price includes backups or snapshots. Always keep your own copy outside the server as well: under our terms of service you are responsible for your own backups.
- Licences: Debian and Ubuntu are free. Windows Server and control panels such as cPanel and Plesk are paid software; you pay for the licence through the provider or directly to the vendor.
- Going over your bandwidth: ask what happens when you use more than your allowance: is your connection slowed down, or do you pay per extra TB?
How much RAM do you need?
Memory you don't use is money wasted. As a rule of thumb, assuming Linux:
- One or a few small websites: 2GB. Take 4GB or more for a busy online shop, or if you also run email and a control panel on it.
- Discord bots: a bot needs little memory. With 2GB you can run a few side by side.
- Game server: check our RAM guide per game and leave some memory free for the operating system. A Minecraft server for 10 to 30 players needs 4 to 6GB, so you would pick an 8GB VPS.
- Database: a database is fastest when the data you query often fits in memory. Start with 2GB and grow along with your data.
Going with Windows Server? Then plan for more. According to Microsoft, Windows Server 2022 with the desktop (Desktop Experience) needs at least 2GB of memory and 32GB of disk space, so with us that means the 8GB Intel Xeon (50GB storage) or a Premium VPS.
Only need a bot or a game server? Then Discord bot hosting from €0.50 or a game server from €1.50 per month is cheaper, with no server to maintain yourself. For a regular website, web hosting from €5.00 per month is often easier: DirectAdmin, free SSL and email accounts are already included.
Our VPS prices at a glance
Every plan includes its own IPv4 address, DDoS protection, KVM virtualisation and full root access. These are the prices when you pay monthly.
Budget VPS: Intel Xeon with SATA SSD
- 2GB Intel Xeon: €3.00 per month, 2 vCores, 2GB RAM, 10GB SATA SSD, 1TB bandwidth
- 4GB Intel Xeon: €5.00 per month, 2 vCores, 4GB RAM, 20GB SATA SSD, 1TB bandwidth
- 8GB Intel Xeon: €9.00 per month, 4 vCores, 8GB RAM, 50GB SATA SSD, 1TB bandwidth
- 16GB Intel Xeon: €13.00 per month, 6 vCores, 16GB RAM, 100GB SATA SSD, 1TB bandwidth
- 24GB Intel Xeon: €16.00 per month, 6 vCores, 24GB RAM, 150GB SATA SSD, 2TB bandwidth
- 32GB Intel Xeon: €19.00 per month, 8 vCores, 32GB RAM, 200GB SATA SSD, 2TB bandwidth
Premium VPS: AMD Ryzen 9 5950X with NVMe
- 4GB Premium VPS: €6.00 per month, 2 vCores, 4GB DDR4 RAM, 60GB NVMe, 1TB bandwidth
- 8GB Premium VPS: €12.00 per month, 4 vCores, 8GB DDR4 RAM, 100GB NVMe, 1TB bandwidth
- 16GB Premium VPS: €24.00 per month, 6 vCores, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 200GB NVMe, 1TB bandwidth
- 32GB Premium VPS: €48.00 per month, 8 vCores, 32GB DDR4 RAM, 400GB NVMe, 2TB bandwidth
At 4GB, Premium costs €1.00 per month more and gets you the Ryzen 9 5950X and three times the storage (60GB NVMe instead of 20GB SATA SSD). At 32GB the gap is €29.00 per month, while both come with 8 vCores. If you mainly want a lot of memory for little money, Budget is the better deal. Is Premium VPS sold out? Then the VPS page shows a Notify me button, and we'll let you know as soon as you can order again.
Pay less with a longer billing period
On the VPS page you choose how often you pay: Monthly, 3 months, 6 months or 1 year, with a 5%, 10% or 15% discount. The page opens on 6 months; you then see the price per month, the regular monthly price struck through and the total for the whole period.
With the 16GB Intel Xeon:
- Monthly: €13.00 per month
- 6 months: €70.20, or €11.70 per month
- 1 year: €132.60, or €11.05 per month
You pay for the period in advance. There is no contract: you can cancel at any time, and your VPS keeps running until the end of the period you paid for. Not sure yet how long you will need the VPS? Then start monthly.
What do you get for €5, €10 or €20 a month?
Our cheapest VPS is the 2GB Intel Xeon: €3.00 per month, or €2.55 per month if you pay yearly. That is enough for a small website, a few bots or a Linux test environment.
- Around €5: the 4GB Intel Xeon for €5.00 (€4.25 per month on a yearly period), with 2 vCores and 20GB storage.
- Around €10: the 8GB Intel Xeon for €9.00, with 4 vCores and 50GB storage. The VPS page marks it Best Value. Prefer NVMe and the Ryzen? The 8GB Premium VPS costs €12.00, or €10.20 per month on a yearly period.
- Around €20: the 32GB Intel Xeon for €19.00, with 8 vCores, 200GB storage and 2TB bandwidth. Going for NVMe storage? Then there is the 16GB Premium VPS for €24.00, with 6 vCores and 200GB NVMe.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a VPS with 16GB RAM cost?
With us, €13.00 per month for the 16GB Intel Xeon and €24.00 for the 16GB Premium VPS with a Ryzen 9 5950X and NVMe storage.
How much does a VPS with 32GB RAM cost?
€19.00 per month for the 32GB Intel Xeon and €48.00 for the 32GB Premium VPS. Both include 2TB of bandwidth per month.
Do the prices include VAT?
For consumers, our prices include VAT. You can read more about payment and VAT in our terms of service.
Can I try a VPS for free first?
No, the free 24-hour trial is only available for Minecraft and FiveM. You can take a VPS month by month, though, and cancel at any time.
Can I upgrade later?
Yes. You pick a bigger plan and the change takes effect at the next billing period. So feel free to start small.
Not sure which plan suits you? Ask us on Discord or get in touch.
Read also: Renting a VPS: what to look for before you buy and VPS or dedicated server rental: what do you need?.