Short answer
As of October 23, 2026, Vultr wins more of the head-to-head checks (7 vs 1) and ranks higher overall (#10 of 160). Vultr is cheaper to start ($2.50 vs $4.00 a month) and Vultr has more locations (32 vs 13).
Verdict
Vultr is cheaper to start: Regular Performance 1 vCPU / 0.5 GB (vc2-1c-0.5gb) costs $2.50 per month against $4.00 at DigitalOcean, and it stays cheaper per gigabyte of RAM ($5.50 vs $7.00 median).
Vultr has the wider footprint with 32 locations in 19 countries, against 13 in 8 at DigitalOcean; both offer Amsterdam, Atlanta, Bangalore, Frankfurt, London, New York and 3 more.
On features, only Vultr offers Windows Server.
Customers rate DigitalOcean higher on Trustpilot: 4.5 from 2,581 reviews versus 1.6 from 585.
Overall Vultr ranks #10 and DigitalOcean #15 of 160 providers we track. Choose Vultr if price matters most or you need a wider choice of locations; choose DigitalOcean if customer ratings weigh heavily for you.
Vultr and DigitalOcean side by side
| Vultr | DigitalOcean | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan | Regular Performance 1 vCPU / 0.5 GB (vc2-1c-0.5gb): $2.50/mo | Basic 512 MB (s-1vcpu-512mb-10gb): $4.00/mo |
| Entry plan specs | 1 vCPU, 512 MB RAM, 10 GB SSD, 500 GB traffic | 1 vCPU, 512 MB RAM, 10 GB SSD, 500 GB traffic |
| Cheapest Windows plan | Regular Performance 1 vCPU / 1 GB (vc2-1c-1gb): $5.00/mo | No Windows |
| Median price per GB RAM | $5.50 | $7.00 |
| Data-center locations | 32 in 19 countries | 13 in 8 countries |
| Regions | Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, North America, Oceania, South America | Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania |
| Virtualisation | KVM | KVM |
| Hourly billing | Yes | Yes |
| NVMe storage | Yes | Yes |
| DDoS protection | Yes | Yes |
| Backups | Paid | Paid |
| Managed option | No | No |
| Payment methods | card, paypal, crypto, alipay, wire, other | card, paypal, crypto, alipay, other |
| Money-back | Not published | Not published |
| Uptime SLA | 100% | 99.99% |
| Trustpilot | 1.6 (585 reviews) | 4.5 (2,581 reviews) |
| Founded / HQ | 2014, West Palm Beach US | 2012, Broomfield US |
Highlighted cells mark the better value where the comparison is objective (lower price, more locations, higher rating).
Plans at the same size
The closest matching plans by RAM from each provider.
| RAM | Vultr | $/month | DigitalOcean | $/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 GB | Regular Performance 1 vCPU / 1 GB (vc2-1c-1gb) (1 vCPU, 25 GB) | $5.00 | Basic 1 GB (s-1vcpu-1gb) (1 vCPU, 25 GB) | $6.00 |
| 2 GB | Regular Performance 1 vCPU / 2 GB (vc2-1c-2gb) (1 vCPU, 55 GB) | $10.00 | Basic 2 GB (s-1vcpu-2gb) (1 vCPU, 50 GB) | $12.00 |
| 4 GB | Regular Performance 2 vCPU / 4 GB (vc2-2c-4gb) (2 vCPU, 80 GB) | $20.00 | Basic 4 GB (s-2vcpu-4gb) (2 vCPU, 80 GB) | $24.00 |
| 8 GB | Regular Performance 4 vCPU / 8 GB (vc2-4c-8gb) (4 vCPU, 160 GB) | $40.00 | Basic 8 GB (s-4vcpu-8gb) (4 vCPU, 160 GB) | $48.00 |
| 16 GB | no plan | — | Basic 16 GB (s-8vcpu-16gb) (8 vCPU, 320 GB) | $96.00 |
Locations
Vultr operates 32 locations (Africa, Asia, Europe, Middle East, North America, Oceania, South America); DigitalOcean operates 13 (Asia, Europe, North America, Oceania).
Cities both offer: Amsterdam, Atlanta, Bangalore, Frankfurt, London, New York, Singapore, Sydney and Toronto.
Only Vultr: Chicago, Dallas, Delhi, Honolulu, Johannesburg, Los Angeles, Madrid, Manchester, Melbourne, Mexico City and 13 more.
Only DigitalOcean: Kansas City, Memphis, Richmond and San Francisco.
Frequently asked questions
Is Vultr or DigitalOcean better?
As of October 23, 2026, Vultr wins more of the head-to-head checks (7 vs 1) and ranks higher overall (#10 of 160). Vultr is cheaper to start ($2.50 vs $4.00 a month) and Vultr has more locations (32 vs 13).
Is Vultr cheaper than DigitalOcean?
Vultr has the lower entry price: $2.50 against $4.00 per month. The plans-at-equal-RAM table compares them size by size.
Which has more data centers, Vultr or DigitalOcean?
Vultr, with 32 locations in 19 countries versus 13 at DigitalOcean. Both operate in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Bangalore, Frankfurt, London and 4 more.
Do Vultr and DigitalOcean offer Windows VPS?
Only Vultr offers Windows Server.
Sources
Prices, plans and locations were read from these pages; last checked October 23, 2026. Prices change, so confirm on the provider's site before you buy.