DigitalOcean DOKS vs Hetzner (self-managed): pricing
On the control plane, both DigitalOcean DOKS and Hetzner (self-managed) have a free control plane. DigitalOcean DOKS charges Free (Free) and Hetzner (self-managed) charges Free (Free). Their cheapest worker nodes are about $12/mo and $4/mo. For an illustrative 3-node cluster with one load balancer, Hetzner (self-managed) is the cheaper of the two (~$24/mo vs ~$48/mo). Snapshot captured June 2026 — verify before buying.
Data as of June 2026.
DigitalOcean DOKS vs Hetzner (self-managed) side by side
| Cost factor | DigitalOcean DOKS | Hetzner (self-managed) |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor | DigitalOcean | Hetzner Cloud |
| Control plane | Free | Free |
| Est. control-plane / month | Free | Free |
| Free control plane? | Yes | Yes |
| Cheapest node / month | $12 | $4 |
| Load balancer | DigitalOcean Load Balancer from $12/month. | Hetzner Load Balancer (LB11) from ~€5.39/month. |
| Egress | Generous pooled free egress (e.g. 2,000 GiB/month with the basic node), then ~$0.01/GiB. | 20 TB/month included traffic per server, then ~€1/TB. |
| Free tier | Free standard control plane (no fee). Pay only for droplet nodes, block storage and load balancers. | No managed service. No control-plane fee because you self-host the control plane on your own servers. |
| Regions | 15+ DigitalOcean datacenter regions. | Germany, Finland and the US (Ashburn, Hillsboro). |
Sources: DigitalOcean pricing · Hetzner Cloud pricing.
Sample monthly cost
A rough monthly total for a small cluster (3 nodes at each provider's cheapest node price + one $12/mo load balancer + the control-plane fee). This ignores egress, storage, support and node-size differences, so treat it as a starting point only:
| Component | DigitalOcean DOKS | Hetzner (self-managed) |
|---|---|---|
| Control plane | Free | Free |
| 3 × cheapest node | $36 | $12 |
| 1 × load balancer | $12 | $12 |
| Estimated total / month | $48 | $24 |
Verdict
On cost alone, Hetzner (self-managed) is the cheaper pick for this small-cluster example. But the right choice depends on more than price: DigitalOcean DOKS (free standard control plane) versus Hetzner (self-managed) (cheapest raw compute (servers from ~€3.79/month)). Read each provider's full breakdown — DigitalOcean DOKS and Hetzner (self-managed) — and model your own node plan in the calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Is DigitalOcean DOKS or Hetzner (self-managed) cheaper?
On the control plane, both DigitalOcean DOKS and Hetzner (self-managed) have a free control plane. For a sample 3-node cluster with one load balancer (using each provider's cheapest node and a $12/mo load balancer), Hetzner (self-managed) comes out lower — about $24/mo vs $48/mo. This is illustrative; your real cost depends on node size, count, egress and region. snapshot captured June 2026.
What is the control-plane fee for DigitalOcean DOKS vs Hetzner (self-managed)?
DigitalOcean DOKS: Standard control plane is free. A high-availability (HA) control plane with a 99.95% SLA is $40/cluster/month. Hetzner (self-managed): Hetzner has no managed Kubernetes product — you run Kubernetes yourself (e.g. k3s/kubeadm) on cheap cloud servers, so there is no control-plane fee, but you operate the control plane. snapshot captured June 2026 — verify on each vendor's pricing page.
Which has the cheaper worker nodes, DigitalOcean DOKS or Hetzner (self-managed)?
Hetzner (self-managed) has the cheaper representative node: $4/mo vs $12/mo. DigitalOcean DOKS: Basic worker droplet from $12/month per node (1 vCPU / 2 GB). You pay only for the droplets, volumes and load balancers you use. Hetzner (self-managed): CX22 shared-vCPU server (2 vCPU / 4 GB) from ~€3.79/month. A self-managed cluster of a few CX22 nodes is among the cheapest ways to run Kubernetes.
DigitalOcean DOKS or Hetzner (self-managed) — which should a small team pick?
If a free control plane and predictable pricing matter most, lean to whichever of DigitalOcean DOKS/Hetzner (self-managed) is free and simpler. If you need deep cloud integration or the widest region coverage, the larger vendor usually wins despite higher fees. Run your real node plan through the calculator before deciding.
More comparisons
Last updated: 2026-06-20