European Kubernetes Providers Compared
The definitive comparison of Kubernetes pricing across 29+ European cloud providers. All data is open source and updated regularly.
The Big Picture
Top 12 providers sorted by estimated 3-node cluster cost
| # | Provider | Country | Managed K8s | CP Cost | Cheapest Node | 3-Node Cluster | EU-Owned |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scaleway |  FR | Managed | Free | €0.11 | ~€0.33 | ✓ |
| 2 | netcup |  DE | DIY | Self | €1.35 | ~€8.10 | ✓ |
| 3 | Infomaniak |  CH | Managed | Free | €2.92 | ~€8.76 | ✓ |
| 4 | Aruba Cloud |  IT | DIY | Self | €1.99 | ~€11.94 | ✓ |
| 5 | Webdock |  DK | DIY | Self | €2.15 | ~€12.90 | ✓ |
| 6 | Civo |  GB | Managed | Free | €5.00 | ~€15.00 | ✕ |
| 7 | IONOS | DE | Managed | Free | €5.04 | ~€15.12 | ✓ |
| 8 | Hetzner | DE | DIY | Self | €3.49 | ~€20.94 | ✓ |
| 9 | UpCloud |  FI | Managed | Free | €7.00 | ~€21.00 | ✓ |
| 10 | OVHcloud | FR | Managed | Free | €7.20 | ~€21.60 | ✓ |
| 11 | Azure (AKS) |  US | Managed | Free | €7.45 | ~€22.35 | ✕ |
| 12 | C1V Hosting | IT | DIY | Self | €4.10 | ~€24.60 | ✓ |
Managed vs Self-Hosted Kubernetes in Europe
Managed Kubernetes
Providers like OVHcloud, Scaleway, and IONOS handle the control plane, upgrades, and etcd backups for you. Many offer free control planes, so you only pay for worker nodes.
- + No control plane management overhead
- + Automatic K8s version upgrades
- - Less flexibility in cluster configuration
- - Some charge €50-75+/mo for the control plane
Self-Hosted (K3s / Talos)
Run K3s or Talos on bare VMs from providers like Hetzner, netcup, or Contabo. The cheapest option by far, but you manage everything.
- + 50-80% cheaper than managed services
- + Full control over cluster configuration
- - You handle upgrades, backups, monitoring
- - Requires Kubernetes operational knowledge
Use the Kubernetes calculator to compare exact costs for both approaches with your cluster specs.
The 3 Best Options by Use Case
Hetzner + K3s
Self-hosted K3s on Hetzner Cloud. The absolute cheapest way to run production Kubernetes in Europe. Starting around €15/month for a minimal HA cluster.
Best for: Side projects, startups, dev/staging clusters, cost-sensitive teams with K8s experience.
OVHcloud or IONOS
Managed Kubernetes with free control planes. Good balance of convenience and cost. EU-owned, GDPR compliant by default. OVHcloud has unlimited egress.
Best for: Production workloads, teams that want managed K8s without AWS/GCP pricing.
STACKIT or Exoscale
BSI C5 (STACKIT) and FINMA (Exoscale) certified. Higher price point but meets regulatory requirements for public sector, healthcare, and finance.
Best for: Regulated industries, government contracts, financial services, healthcare.
Head-to-Head Comparisons
Want to compare any two providers side-by-side? Browse all 406 head-to-head comparisons with detailed pricing breakdowns.
Browse all comparisons →Build Your Exact Configuration
Specify your exact cluster requirements — nodes, CPU, RAM, storage, egress — and see real-time pricing across all providers.
Open Calculator