TL;DR: What We Think of Digital Ocean
Cloud hosting can be a little daunting for many people in the first place, but Digital Ocean has made that doubly so with the liberal use of self-developed technical jargon. For layman unfamiliar with the company, start by exploring “Droplets” – their unique term for “cloud hosting solution”. That said, Digital Ocean is a highly modular and scalable environment with many advanced, developer-friendly features. Everything here is priced independently, so you’re really paying for only what you need.
Suitable for:
eCommerce, Enterprise, Developers-friendly, or Adult Website Hosting
Digital Ocean Pros & Cons
Digital Ocean Pros
- Outstanding server uptime and speed performance
- Competitive and flexible pricing model
- Choice of 15 distributed data centers
- Highly configurable virtual machines
- Built-in alert system for resource thresholds or critical issues
Digital Ocean Cons
- Charges apply for automated backups
- Unencrypted backups
- Only suitable for advanced users
- Less user-friendly for team operations
Digital Ocean Who? Quick Intro
Established in 2011, DigitalOcean was founded by Ben Uretsky, Moisey Uretsky, Mitch Wainer, Jeff Carr, and Alec Hartman. Originating from their prior venture, ServerStack, DigitalOcean was crafted to simplify cloud computing for software developers. With a mission to empower developers in building, deploying, and scaling cloud applications effortlessly, DigitalOcean has grown substantially, offering accessible, high-performance, and cost-effective cloud solutions tailored to the needs of software developers and small-scale startups.
Our Digital Ocean Experience & Detail Findings
| Performance |
What server speed features does Digital Ocean offer?Digital Ocean is more of an infrastructure provider. There isn’t much built-in speed features for the users; however price is relatively cheaper and users has total freedom to configure their own server. The company publishes their server and network service status publicly, click here to visit. |
| Security |
Are websites hosted at Digital Ocean safe?Digital Ocean offers powerful security with advanced network protection, data encryption, and continuous monitoring – making it a secure choice for cloud infrastructure needs. |
| Supports |
Is Digital Ocean customer support good?As infrastructure provider, Digital Ocean offers a different level of support compared to managed hosting services. Their support is more focused on infrastructure-related issues and is less about spoonfeeding detailed guidance on website or application development. While essential support for technical issues with their platforms is there, users generally need a higher level of technical expertise to manage and troubleshoot their applications. In case you need help, you can reach out to Digital Ocean’s support via email. |
| Value for Money |
Does Digital Ocean offer good value for its pricing?Known for its straightforward pricing, Digital Ocean primarily targets developers with its range of scalable ‘Droplets’ (cloud servers). It offers predictable, flat-rate pricing with various tiers based on CPU, memory, and storage resources. This makes it appealing for businesses and individuals looking for clear, no-surprise billing. |
| Overall Users Satisfaction |
What other users think of Digital Ocean?Based on our market research, Digital Ocean customers are singing praises for its affordable hosting plans, flexible server setup, and outstanding speed performance. Overall, they are one of the top cloud hosting choices for many users. For additional insights, please refer to the user reviews section below. |
| Beginners Friendliness |
Is Digital Ocean suitable for beginners?No, we do not think Digital Ocean is suitable for beginners with modest web hosting needs. Its complex setup and configuration, combined with the technical skills required, can be challenging for those without substantial web development experience. While Digital Ocean offers a highly scalable and powerful environment, it’s less suited for those seeking a more straightforward and cost-effective hosting solution. |
| Small Business Friendliness |
Is Digital Ocean suitable for small businesses?Similarly, Digital Ocean may not be an ideal choice for small businesses – especially if you don’t require high levels of website scalability or have complex hosting needs. The platform’s focus on modular cloud pricing and a technically demanding environment can pose challenges for small business owners lacking extensive technical expertise. While it offers powerful, scalable solutions, these features are more aligned with the needs of high-volume online shops or web developers with advanced skills. Small businesses seeking simpler, more straightforward hosting solutions might find Digital Ocean’s offerings to be an overkill. |
| Web Developers Friendliness |
Is Digital Ocean suitable for developers?Digital Ocean is an excellent choice for experienced web developers, offering an environment that’s ideal for high-performance sites and a range of deployable features. Its scalable, high-powered infrastructure and advanced tools align well with the technical skills and demands of seasoned developers. |
| Host Own Email |
Can you host your own email accounts ([email protected]) with Digital Ocean?No, you cannot host your own email accounts with Digital Ocean. To do this, you will need to utilize a third-party email provider like Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 at additional cost. |
| Onboarding |
Is it easy to get started with Digital Ocean as a new customer?The onboarding process with Digital Ocean is surprisingly quick and easy. All you need is to fill out a few details and provide your billing information, then you will be let loose into their control area. This works out well since you won’t be charged yet and you can explore to your heart’s content. |
| Free Trial |
Can you try out Digital Ocean for free?Yes, Digital Ocean offers a 30-day free trial period. If you are not satisfied with their services for any reason, you can cancel within this period and receive a full refund. Try now: Click here to signup at Digital Ocean official website |
Digital Ocean Plans & Pricing
Digital Ocean offers more customizable cloud services, allowing users to tailor their server’s resources such as CPU, RAM, and storage to their specific needs.
When evaluating your options, it’s crucial to remember that many hosting companies offer substantial discounts during the initial signup period, but the pricing often increases significantly upon renewal. You should thoroughly research and compare the renewal prices, not just the introductory rates, to understand the true cost of hosting over an extended period.
To help you make a more informed decision, we have prepared two tables below which compare the initial signup and subsequent renewal costs of Digital Ocean services with several other providers that we actively monitor.
Digital Ocean Signup Price vs Others
| Web Host | Shared | VPS | Dedicated | Cloud | Managed WP | Windows |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Ocean | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $4.00 - 96.00/mo | $14.00 - 3569.98/mo | $ - /mo |
| Nexcess | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $52 - 894/mo | $17.5 - 912/mo | $ - /mo |
| AltusHost | $10.92 - 27.39/mo | $17.52 - 70.23/mo | $164.64 - 329.34/mo | $ - /mo | $8.65 - 21.70/mo | $ - /mo |
| NameCheap | $1.48 - 4.98/mo | $6.88 - 24.88/mo | $59.57 - 238.88/mo | $ - /mo | $2.91 - 5.74/mo | $ - /mo |
| Chemicloud | $4.95 - 22.95/mo | $29.95 - 262.12/mo | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $4.95 - 22.95/mo | $ - /mo |
| TMDHosting | $2.99 - 8.99/mo | $44.99 - 125.99/mo | $119.99 - 249.99/mo | $2.99 - 8.99/mo | $2.99 - 8.99/mo | $4.99 - 9.99/mo |
Digital Ocean Renewal Price vs Others
| Web Host | Shared | VPS | Dedicated | Cloud | Managed WP | Windows |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Digital Ocean | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $4.00 - 96.00/mo | $14.00 - 3569.98/mo | $ - /mo |
| Nexcess | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $52 - 894/mo | $17.5 - 912/mo | $ - /mo |
| AltusHost | $10.92 - 27.39/mo | $17.52 - 70.23/mo | $164.64 - 329.34/mo | $ - /mo | $8.65 - 21.70/mo | $ - /mo |
| NameCheap | $4.48 - 9.48/mo | $9.88 - 28.88/mo | $67.88 - 259.88/mo | $ - /mo | $6.88 - 19.88/mo | $ - /mo |
| Chemicloud | $13.95 - 22.95/mo | $54.95 - 285.95/mo | $ - /mo | $ - /mo | $13.95 - 22.95/mo | $ - /mo |
| TMDHosting | $9.99 - 19.99/mo | $49.99 - 139.99/mo | $139.99 - 279.99/mo | $9.99 - 19.99/mo | $9.99 - 19.99/mo | $9.99 - 17.99/mo |
Caution: Web hosting prices can change frequently. For the most accurate pricing information please visit the official Digital Ocean website.
Bottomline: Is Digital Ocean Right for You?
Diving into Digital Ocean, you’re greeted with a cloud hosting realm that caters specifically to the tech-savvy and developers. It’s a world of highly flexible virtual machines, backed by a competitive pricing strategy that’s hard to beat. Yet, this ocean has its depths—its complexity and the extra charges for automated backups might make newcomers or those in search of simplicity think twice.
A treasure for the experienced, but the uninitiated may need to navigate its waters carefully.
Recap: Digital Ocean Pros & Cons
Digital Ocean Pros
- Outstanding server uptime and speed performance
- Competitive and flexible pricing model
- Choice of 15 distributed data centers
- Highly configurable virtual machines
- Built-in alert system for resource thresholds or critical issues
Digital Ocean Cons
- Charges apply for automated backups
- Unencrypted backups
- Only suitable for advanced users
- Less user-friendly for team operations
Alternatives: Other Web Hosts to Consider
In case Digital Ocean is not right for you, below are some alternatives to consider. You can also find more options in our hosting reviews page (full list).
DigitalOcean became a good choice for my businesses that need a high level of security and performance. This is a good choice for businesses that need a cost-effective and easy-to-use solution. I observed one thing, DigitalOcean, DedicatedCore, and Interserver these three vps companies offer a range of security features to protect our important data. The best option for those who have security concerns
I just created an account with them, and they blocked me right from the start, with the excuse to “Protect the internet”, with no means for me to appeal their decision and no further explanation of why this happened, I told them I would gladly provide proof of identity via video face recognition KYC verification etc. like most companies do when they need to check upon their customers. Went on some Reddit forums and internet blogs and several users have had this happen to them also, even paying customers that had their data lost. I would certainly not recommend this company as right from the start something as easy and simple as creating an account is not possible.
Digital Ocean has fantastic tools for web application development, and when things don’t go quite right they have prompt, knowledgable support staff on hand to help.
Great stuff!
I experienced poor customer service due to an error on the server that was acknowledged to be on their side. When I requested a refund, my concern was unfortunately ignored. Additionally, my initial review appears to have been removed, prompting me to share my experience again. I hope this feedback will be taken seriously and addressed appropriately.
1. Extreme reliability and cost/effectiveness.
2. Tech support is responsive and effective even in night or weekend hours.
(I use their services for more than 10 years now…)
I have been on the Web since 2008 but never got such a service. The team is ever ready to make your Web presence as fruitful and gives you the confidence of having a Web presence even though you may be going tough times making your marks. They give you the time to settle by being of a proverbial comprehension. Keep up the good work. We need support like that to progress. Proud to have opted to be among digital swimmers
Just noticed that the oldest server I have is more than 7 years old, and I’ve never left a review. Yes, people tend to write reviews when they want to complain, shame on me
I’ve used many different cloud providers and none of them even close to DO by the combination of quality/price/UX/support.
I always challenge the status quo and try to find something better that I currently use, and I always find that DigitalOcean is the best.
Please, keep up the great work!
Helping recover my account was the best thing that happened to me as I lost revenue due to the downtime.
I love digitalocean services.
I believe the integration of a life support system will go a long way to assist people like me when we encounter service challenges. Time is a great factor in any business. Also, improvement of your response time to email and tickets. I have complained before now about my account issue was raised some month back and no one responded to me.
Really a good company that supports students with a free $200 for one year of learning development. I am really thankful to Digital Ocean. I hosted the sajjadalibabar.live website at Digital Ocean for free at the start of my learning.
I am beginer in IT, i do support LAN PBX, but i know little about website, hosting, domain…etc it sound unfamilier for me. but Ocean digital support team do great job walk me through to solve a problem patiently
Fast response to my ticket, Knowledgeable staff. Was able to investigate and find the problem even though it was something I did on my end!
Thanks Digital Ocean, been a customer for years!
Quick replies, professional and non insulting. I’m a retired Sr Systems Engineer 2009, contracting at banks, Healthcare companies, IBM Complex deals hosting, with every enterprise OS and VCS, GPFS, VxVm, HACMP, and felt like I was at work on a new project I had no idea about and emails were coming in with answers from those who knew. THANK YOU ALL!
Ayman helped me with amazing customer service and so fast on reply! Thanks to Digital ocean for great service and products.
Thanks Ayman for helping and hope your managers see your great service to clients!
I’ve only been using Digitalocean about 2 days but iam very satisfied with it so far. The support has been prompt and responsive and the control panel interface is simple and intuitive.
I’ll update my review after using it for a month
I’ll give 5 stars for their fast response in solving our concern. We appreciate their quick action, just like a reliable teammate whom we can trust when we need a helping hand. Good job to your customer support team.
– Ayahtek Team
We had an issue of logging in to the account because we used different locations and the security system reacted accordingly. But after providing everything what has been requested we got this issue resolved very fast and easy.
Thanks to the team for very quick and productive help.
We didn’t even start to feel stress even thought the server is very important part of any project and to have access to it is essential.
DigitalOcean makes things so easy as a novice cloud dev. I’ve tried to use AWS for my needs in the past and found it to be too complicated and expensive. With DigitalOcean, it’s just a few clicks and then I’m configuring my services (successfully for the first time at that!).
Support was very fast. within 45 mins they responded to my ticket. resolved and closed. This really give me confidence and trust. I considering/testing a migration from AWS to digital ocean cause your are more competitively priced for smaller and medium apps. thank you.
If you’re an experienced web developer, I recommend DigitalOcean.
If you’re a normal person trying to establish an online presence, there are many more user-friendly options available for significantly less money.
There appears to be no faster or more well-performing solution for someone who understands their way around the tech world than DigitalOcean.
There are a few downsides, but if uptime and speed are your top priorities, DigitalOcean is one of the best options on the market.