Hetzner vs Hostkey (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Hetzner grades higher than Hostkey: 2.4 against 1.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Hetzner grades higher on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Hetzner
German hosting: web hosting, cloud servers and dedicated servers
Hostkey
Dedicated, GPU and VPS servers from European and US data centers
Which one is for you
Pick Hetzner if
- Fits if you're in Europe and want euro billing and German data centres
- Works for small PHP sites on cheap shared hosting
Look elsewhere if
- Not for you if you want a free plan or trial
- Watch out: prices are in euros excl. VAT and were read from a non-US page, so confirm a dollar figure
- Watch out: a one-time setup fee applies, such as €4.12 on Webhosting M
- Skip it if you want managed cloud servers, as they're unmanaged unless you add Managed Server
- Watch out: no domain is included
Pick Hostkey if
- Fits if you need a dedicated or GPU server in a chosen location
- Works for teams that administer their own servers
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you only need a website, as dedicated servers start at €50 a month
- Not for you if you want a managed server, as administration is a paid add-on
- Watch out: prices show in euros by default, and dollar prices were not read
- Skip it if you need VPS prices, as that page was not readable
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAHetznerFair | 1.2GPAHostkeyWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AWebhosting S is €1.60 a month excl. VAT, under the cheaper quarter's $5.28 and under 60% of it. Cloud servers start at €5.49. | DA ready dedicated server starts at €50 a month, above shared or VPS hosting, and EPYC servers start at €259. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial on record; every plan is paid from the first day. | FNothing free and no trial on the pages read, so you pay from day one. |
| Features | BWeb hosting, cloud, dedicated and auction servers, object storage, DNS and SSL, a REST API and Terraform. No gap in the core job is named, though domains are sold separately. | CDedicated and GPU servers, many locations, a control panel and API, colocation and S3 storage. All unmanaged. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. Web hosting uses a panel, but cloud and dedicated servers are unmanaged. | DUnmanaged servers you set up and administer yourself. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, with Terraform, Ansible, Kubernetes, Docker and an API and CLI. | CWeb panel and API, with one integration listed. |
| Best for | low-priced German hosting and servers | dedicated and GPU servers |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Hetzner and Hostkey. How we grade
Price against what you get
Hetzner starts at about $1.79 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Hostkey starts at about $55.86 a month and scores 1.7.
Hetzner scores higher and starts $54.07 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, none scores higher than Hetzner for less, and 96 score higher than Hostkey for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Hetzner also covers file sharing.
- Hostkey also covers system monitor.
At a glance
| Hetzner | Hostkey | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | €1.60 per month excl. VAT (Webhosting S) | €50 per month for a ready-to-order dedicated server |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Hetzner Online GmbH | HOSTKEY |
| Price read from | hetzner.com | hostkey.com |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Hetzner
- Prices are in euros and exclude VAT, read from a page that was served for a non-US visitor, so a US buyer should confirm the dollar figures.
- Web hosting packages do not include a domain; one must be ordered separately.
- A one-time setup fee is listed on the Webhosting page, for example €4.12 on Webhosting M.
- Cloud and dedicated servers are unmanaged unless you add the separate Managed Server product.
Hostkey
- Prices display in euros by default; a USD switch is offered but dollar prices were not read here.
- All servers are unmanaged, and administration is a paid add-on.
- The VPS page returned an access error, so VPS prices are not recorded.
- Hosting-provider and special offers on the site change often and carry their own terms.
Key features
Hetzner
- Shared web hosting
- Four Webhosting packages with mailboxes, databases, cronjobs and PHP processes, and no minimum contract period.
- Cloud servers
- Shared-resource and dedicated-vCPU cloud servers, with stateful firewalls included at no extra cost and one-click apps such as Docker, GitLab CE and Nextcloud.
- Dedicated servers
- AX, EX, GPU, SX and DX lines, plus a Server Auction of refurbished machines starting at €78.70 a month.
- REST API and CLI
- Cloud resources can be managed through a REST API and a command-line tool, with integrations for Terraform, Ansible and Kubernetes.
- Storage products
- S3-compatible Object Storage, Storage Box backup servers and Storage Share, which Hetzner describes as GDPR-compliant storage.
- Domains, DNS and SSL
- Domain registration from €4.90 a year, DNS management and SSL certificates are sold separately.
Hostkey
- Dedicated servers
- Ready-to-order and custom dedicated servers range from single-CPU machines to high-RAM and 10 Gbps models.
- GPU servers
- GPU servers with NVIDIA and AMD cards are sold for AI, HPC and deep learning.
- Many locations
- Data centers are listed in the Netherlands, the UK, Spain, France, the US, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Turkey, Italy, Poland and Switzerland.
- Network and add-on services
- L3-L4 DDoS protection, VLANs, BYOIP, monitoring and SLA support packages are listed as services.
- Control panel and API
- A server control panel and API are listed, along with Terraform support.
- Colocation and S3 storage
- Colocation in the Netherlands and S3-compatible object storage are also offered.
Plans
Hetzner
Webhosting S€1.60
per month, excl. VAT
10GB storage, unlimited mailboxes, 1 database, 1 cronjob, 2 PHP processes and a 192MB memory limit. No contract minimum.
Webhosting M€4.12
per month, excl. VAT
50GB storage, unlimited mailboxes, 5 databases, 5 cronjobs, 5 PHP processes and a 256MB memory limit.
Webhosting L€8.32
per month, excl. VAT
100GB storage, 20 databases, 10 cronjobs, 10 PHP processes, a 384MB memory limit, and Redis, SSH and Node.js.
Webhosting XL€16.72
per month, excl. VAT
300GB storage, unlimited mailboxes, 50 databases, 20 cronjobs, 20 PHP processes and a 512MB memory limit.
Cloud servers€5.49
per month and up, excl. VAT
Regular Performance shared-resource cloud servers from €5.49; Cost-Optimized from €5.99; General Purpose with dedicated vCPUs from €36.99.
Hostkey
Ready server bm.v1-max€50
per month
4 vCPU, 32 GB RAM, 960 GB SSD and a 1 Gbps port with 50 TB of traffic.
Ready server bm.ru-big€60
per month
6 vCPU, 32 GB RAM, 480 GB SSD and a 1 Gbps port with 30 TB of traffic.
4th Gen EPYC servers€259
per month and up
EPYC 9354 with 32 cores, up to 1 TB RAM, NVMe storage, a 10 Gbps port and 100 TB of traffic.
Object storage€2
per month and up
S3-compatible cold and standard object storage with no extra charges for PUT, POST, COPY or LIST operations.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Hetzner or Hostkey?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Hetzner is cheaper to start with: about $1.79 a month, against about $55.86 a month for Hostkey. Hetzner starts at €1.60 per month excl. VAT (Webhosting S), and Hostkey starts at €50 per month for a ready-to-order dedicated server.
Which has a free plan, Hetzner or Hostkey?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Hetzner nor Hostkey has a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.