HOSTKEY or UpCloud?
Short answer
HOSTKEY wins 7 of 11 categories against UpCloud's 2. HOSTKEY starts at $3.60 and UpCloud at $3.50 a month; both have servers in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Helsinki, London and New York.
Checked October 14, 2026. How we rank
| Category | HOSTKEY | UpCloud |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $3.60 | $3.50 wins |
| Best price per GB RAM | $0.90 wins | $3.00 |
| Data-center footprint | 7 locations, 7 countries | 14 locations, 12 countries wins |
| Included features | 13 of 18 wins | 10 of 18 |
| Cheaper at equal RAM | 3 of 3 sizes wins | 0 of 3 sizes |
| Traffic on the entry plan | — | — |
| DDoS protection included | Yes wins | No |
| Windows Server | Yes | Yes |
| Billing flexibility | hourly, monthly, yearly wins | hourly, monthly |
| Ways to pay | card, paypal, crypto, alipay, wire wins | card, paypal, other |
| Customer reputation | 3.1 (214 reviews) wins | 3.0 (168 reviews) |
Same RAM, side by side
| RAM | HOSTKEY | UpCloud |
|---|---|---|
| 1 GB | no plan at this size | Starter 1xCPU-1GB: $3.50 1 vCPU / 1 GB RAM / 10 GB SSD / traffic n/a |
| 2 GB | no plan at this size | Starter 1xCPU-2GB: $7.00 1 vCPU / 2 GB RAM / 20 GB SSD / traffic n/a |
| 4 GB | Hourly VPS Basic: $3.60 2 vCPU / 4 GB RAM / 50 GB SSD / traffic n/a | Starter 2xCPU-4GB: $14.00 2 vCPU / 4 GB RAM / 30 GB SSD / traffic n/a |
| 8 GB | Hourly VPS Business: $7.20 4 vCPU / 8 GB RAM / 100 GB SSD / traffic n/a | Starter 4xCPU-8GB: $24.00 4 vCPU / 8 GB RAM / 40 GB SSD / traffic n/a |
| 16 GB | Hourly VPS Enterprise: $14.40 8 vCPU / 16 GB RAM / 200 GB SSD / traffic n/a | Premium 8xCPU-16GB: $164.00 8 vCPU / 16 GB RAM / 200 GB SSD / traffic n/a |
Cities both cover
Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Helsinki, London, New York.
Questions
Is HOSTKEY or UpCloud cheaper?
UpCloud has the lower entry price; the size table compares equal-RAM plans.
Which has more locations, HOSTKEY or UpCloud?
HOSTKEY: 7; UpCloud: 14.