K3s by Rancher vs Scaleway
A detailed comparison to help you choose between K3s by Rancher and Scaleway.
K3s by Rancher Lightweight Kubernetes — 40MB binary | Scaleway French cloud with GDPR-native design | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Rating | 3.9 (276 reviews) | 4.8 (475 reviews)✓ |
| Pricing model | free | freemium |
| Starting price | Free | Free tier available |
| Best for | Edge computing, IoT, and homelab users wanting Kubernetes on resource-constrained hardware | European companies who need GDPR-compliant infrastructure and want a French alternative to AWS |
| Specifications (entry plan) | ||
| CPU cores | — | 2 vCPU |
| RAM | — | 2 GB |
| Storage | — | 20 GB |
| Bandwidth | — | 1 TB/mo |
| SLA uptime | — | 99.9% |
| Data-center count | — | 5 |
| €/vCPU/mo | — | €0.00 |
| €/GB RAM/mo | — | €0.00 |
| Features | ||
| IPv6 | ✓ | |
| DDoS protection | ✓ | |
| Automated backups | ||
| Snapshots | ✓ | |
| Managed option | ||
| Bare metal | ||
| GPU available | ||
| S3-compatible | ||
| Hourly billing | ✓ | |
| Free tier | ✓ | |
| Data-center locations | ||
| Regions | — | FranceNetherlandsPoland |
| Tags | ||
| Tags | free tieropen sourceself hostable | free tierhourly billingipv6ddos protectionsnapshotsmanaged optionbare metalgpu availables3 compatibleeu datacentergdpr compliantterraform providerkubernetes supportapi access |
| Visit K3s by Rancher → | Visit Scaleway → | |
K3s by Rancher
Pros
- + 40MB binary — runs on Raspberry Pi
- + Full Kubernetes API compatible
- + Simple single-command install
Cons
- - Lightweight omits some K8s features
- - Self-managed on your infrastructure
Scaleway
Pros
- + French jurisdiction — strong GDPR and data sovereignty
- + Free tier includes starter VPS instances
- + Serverless functions and containers in one ecosystem
Cons
- - Primarily EU-only — limited global reach
- - Less documentation than AWS/DigitalOcean
Stay in the loop
Get weekly updates on the best new AI tools, deals, and comparisons.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.