Scaleway vs Hetzner Cloud: Which Is Better in 2026?

Scaleway vs Hetzner Cloud: At a Glance

Scaleway and Hetzner Cloud represent two European cloud providers that have gained significant traction among developers and businesses seeking alternatives to major hyperscale providers. Scaleway, part of the French Iliad Group, positions itself as a GDPR-native cloud platform offering everything from VPS instances to bare metal servers and managed Kubernetes. Hetzner Cloud, the German provider's modern cloud offering, has built a reputation for delivering exceptional price-to-performance ratios with straightforward pricing and fast NVMe storage.

Both providers serve the European market with data centers primarily located in Europe, making them attractive options for businesses requiring data sovereignty and compliance with European regulations. However, their approaches to cloud computing differ significantly in terms of service breadth, pricing models, and target audiences.

Specs Compared

Scaleway offers a diverse range of instance types across multiple product lines. Their Development instances start with DEV1-S (2 vCPU, 2GB RAM, 20GB NVMe) and scale up to production-grade instances. The provider also offers specialized instances including GPU-powered machines, ARM-based instances, and high-memory configurations. Scaleway's bare metal servers provide dedicated hardware with specifications ranging from entry-level setups to high-performance configurations with multiple CPUs and hundreds of gigabytes of RAM.

Hetzner Cloud focuses on a more streamlined approach with their CX, CPX, and CCX instance families. The popular CX22 instance provides 2 vCPU, 4GB RAM, and 40GB NVMe storage. Higher-tier instances scale up to the CCX63 with 48 vCPU, 192GB RAM, and 960GB NVMe storage. All Hetzner Cloud instances include generous bandwidth allocations and use fast NVMe SSDs across the entire range.

Storage options differ between the two providers. Scaleway offers various storage types including local NVMe, block storage, and object storage with different performance tiers. Hetzner Cloud includes NVMe storage with each instance and offers additional block storage volumes for expansion.

Network performance varies across both platforms. Scaleway provides different bandwidth allocations depending on instance size and type, with some instances offering unmetered bandwidth. Hetzner Cloud includes substantial bandwidth allowances with each instance, typically providing 20TB or more of monthly transfer.

Pricing Compared

Scaleway operates on a freemium model with some services available at no cost, while others start from minimal monthly fees. Their Development instances begin at approximately €0.01 per hour, making them accessible for testing and development workloads. Production instances carry higher costs but remain competitive within the European market. The provider offers both hourly and monthly billing options, with monthly commitments providing cost savings.

Hetzner Cloud employs transparent, straightforward pricing starting at €4.35 per month for their CX22 instance. This pricing structure has made Hetzner Cloud particularly popular among cost-conscious developers and businesses. The provider's larger instances maintain competitive pricing ratios, with the CCX63 costing around €233 per month. All pricing includes generous bandwidth allowances, which can result in additional savings compared to providers that charge separately for network usage.

Both providers offer additional services beyond basic compute instances. Scaleway's pricing for managed services, databases, and specialized instances varies significantly based on the specific service and configuration. Hetzner Cloud's additional services, including load balancers and firewalls, follow their transparent pricing philosophy with clearly defined monthly costs.

Performance and Locations

Scaleway operates data centers primarily in France and the Netherlands, with their main facilities located in Paris. The provider has expanded its presence to include additional European locations, focusing on serving the European market with low-latency connections. Their infrastructure includes both virtualized and bare metal options, allowing users to choose between shared resources and dedicated hardware based on performance requirements.

Hetzner Cloud operates data centers in Germany and Finland, with primary locations in Nuremberg, Falkenstein, and Helsinki. The provider's infrastructure emphasizes consistent performance across all instance types, with NVMe storage and modern hardware configurations standard across their platform. Network performance within Hetzner's European locations typically provides excellent connectivity to major European internet exchanges.

Both providers focus on the European market, which can be advantageous for businesses serving European customers or requiring data residency within the EU. However, this geographic focus may result in higher latencies for applications serving global audiences compared to providers with more distributed global infrastructure.

The performance characteristics of each provider align with their target markets. Scaleway's diverse instance types and bare metal options cater to workloads requiring specific performance profiles, while Hetzner Cloud's consistent, high-performance approach serves well for most general-purpose applications.

Who Should Use Scaleway?

Scaleway suits organizations that require comprehensive cloud services within a GDPR-compliant environment. The provider's French origin and European focus make it particularly attractive for businesses that must maintain strict data sovereignty requirements. Organizations that need bare metal servers alongside cloud instances will find Scaleway's hybrid approach valuable.

The freemium pricing model makes Scaleway accessible for developers and small businesses exploring cloud services without immediate financial commitment. This approach works well for educational institutions, startups in early stages, or development teams testing new applications before scaling to production.

Companies requiring specialized compute resources, such as GPU instances for machine learning workloads or ARM-based instances for specific applications, will benefit from Scaleway's diverse instance portfolio. The provider's managed services, including Kubernetes and database offerings, appeal to organizations seeking to reduce operational overhead while maintaining European data residency.

Businesses that value having a European cloud provider for compliance, support, or philosophical reasons will find Scaleway aligned with these priorities. The provider's position as part of a larger French technology group provides additional stability and local market understanding.

Who Should Use Hetzner Cloud?

Hetzner Cloud excels for developers and businesses prioritizing price-to-performance ratios above all other factors. The provider's transparent pricing and generous resource allocations make it particularly attractive for cost-conscious projects that don't require extensive managed services or global distribution.

European developers and businesses that primarily serve European markets will find Hetzner Cloud's geographic focus advantageous. The provider's German engineering approach emphasizes reliability and straightforward service delivery, appealing to users who prefer simple, predictable cloud experiences.

Small to medium-sized businesses that need reliable VPS hosting without complex requirements benefit from Hetzner Cloud's streamlined approach. The provider works well for web applications, development environments, and general-purpose computing workloads that don't require specialized hardware or extensive managed services.

Organizations that prefer to manage their own software stack and infrastructure will appreciate Hetzner Cloud's focus on providing excellent compute resources without forcing additional managed services. The provider's approach suits teams with strong technical capabilities who want infrastructure rather than platform services.

The Verdict

Scaleway and Hetzner Cloud serve different segments of the European cloud market effectively. Scaleway provides a more comprehensive cloud platform with diverse services, bare metal options, and specialized instances, making it suitable for organizations with complex or varied requirements. The freemium model and GDPR-native approach appeal to businesses prioritizing compliance and gradual scaling.

Hetzner Cloud delivers exceptional value for straightforward cloud computing needs, with transparent pricing and consistent performance across their streamlined instance portfolio. The provider's focus on core compute services and competitive pricing makes it ideal for cost-conscious users who don't require extensive managed services.

The choice between these providers ultimately depends on specific requirements: comprehensive services and compliance capabilities favor Scaleway, while pure price-to-performance and simplicity favor Hetzner Cloud. Both represent strong alternatives to major hyperscale providers for European-focused deployments.

See the full comparison on ServerSpotter.