DigitalOcean Droplets vs Render
Pricing data as of 2026-10-12 · refreshed weekly
DigitalOcean Droplets (vps) and Render (paas) overlap on 15 stacks. The table below shows the cheapest fitting plan on each for a typical startup workload (~50,000 visits/month) — list prices, no promos.
DigitalOcean Dropletsvps
| Basic 512MB | $4/mo |
| Basic 1GB | $6/mo |
| Basic 2GB | $12/mo |
| Basic 4GB | $24/mo |
Renderpaas
| 512 MB / 0.5 CPU | $7/mo |
| 2 GB / 1 CPU | $25/mo |
Cheapest fitting plan per stack (startup traffic)
| Stack | DigitalOcean Droplets | Render | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Next.js | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Nuxt | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Astro | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| SvelteKit | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Remix / React Router | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Node.js API | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Django | $6 (Basic 1GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| FastAPI | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Laravel | $6 (Basic 1GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Ruby on Rails | $12 (Basic 2GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Spring Boot | $12 (Basic 2GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| WordPress | $6 (Basic 1GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Ghost | $6 (Basic 1GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Strapi | $6 (Basic 1GB) | $35.35 (2 GB / 1 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
| Static site | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) | DigitalOcean Droplets |
Next.js by traffic level
| Traffic | DigitalOcean Droplets | Render |
|---|---|---|
| Hobby / side project (~5,000/mo) | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $7.45 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) |
| Startup / small business (~50,000/mo) | $4 (Basic 512MB) | $17.35 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) |
| E-commerce (~200,000/mo) | $6 (Basic 1GB) | $123.55 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) |
| High traffic (~1,000,000/mo) | $12 (Basic 2GB) | $226 (512 MB / 0.5 CPU) |
"+" = even the largest plan may not cover that traffic. Full breakdowns: Next.js on DigitalOcean Droplets · Next.js on Render
FAQ
Is DigitalOcean Droplets or Render cheaper?
DigitalOcean Droplets is cheaper for all 15 stacks both can run, at startup traffic (~50,000 visits/month). Price alone ignores ops work: DigitalOcean Droplets is a VPS, Render is a PaaS.
What does a Next.js app cost on DigitalOcean Droplets vs Render?
Cheapest fitting plan by traffic level — hobby / side project: DigitalOcean Droplets $4/month (Basic 512MB) vs Render $7.45/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU); startup / small business: DigitalOcean Droplets $4/month (Basic 512MB) vs Render $17.35/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU); e-commerce: DigitalOcean Droplets $6/month (Basic 1GB) vs Render $123.55/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU); high traffic: DigitalOcean Droplets $12/month (Basic 2GB) vs Render $226/month (512 MB / 0.5 CPU).
What is included with DigitalOcean Droplets and Render?
DigitalOcean Droplets is a VPS with nothing bundled — CDN, TLS automation, previews and deploys are yours to set up. Render bundles CDN, SSL, Previews, Auto-deploy; not included: Image opt, Edge.
How current are these prices?
They are official list prices as of 2026-10-12, re-checked against each provider's pricing page on a weekly cycle. Intro promos and coupons are not used in totals; taxes are not included unless a plan note says so.