The most common question from engineers self-hosting Kubernetes: "Should I use Hetzner or DigitalOcean?"
The short answer: Hetzner for self-managed, DigitalOcean for managed. Here's the detailed version.
Price Comparison
This is the most important factor for most teams. See the Hetzner vs DigitalOcean comparison for a detailed breakdown.
For a 3-worker Kubernetes cluster:
| Config | Hetzner | DigitalOcean |
|---|---|---|
| 3× 4vCPU / 8GB workers | 3× cx33 = €19.47/mo | 3× 4vCPU/8GB = $144/mo |
| 3× 8vCPU / 16GB workers | 3× cx43 = €35.97/mo | 3× 8vCPU/16GB = $288/mo |
| 20 TB outbound traffic | Included | $0.01/GB = $200/mo |
Hetzner is 3–5× cheaper for equivalent compute, and includes 20 TB of outbound traffic free.
Managed vs Self-Managed
DigitalOcean DOKS (Kubernetes Service):
- ›Fully managed control plane (free)
- ›One-click upgrades
- ›Integrated load balancers and volumes
- ›Automatic certificate rotation
- ›Starts at $12/mo for control plane + node costs
Hetzner:
- ›No managed Kubernetes offering
- ›You manage kubeadm/k3s, upgrades, certs, etcd backups
- ›You choose your own CNI, ingress, storage
- ›More flexibility, more operational burden
If your team doesn't want to manage Kubernetes internals, DOKS is compelling — the control plane management overhead is significant.
When to Choose Hetzner
- ›Budget is the primary constraint
- ›Team has Kubernetes operational experience
- ›European data residency required
- ›ARM servers needed (Hetzner cax series, no DO equivalent)
- ›Very high outbound traffic (DO charges per GB, Hetzner includes 20TB)
When to Choose DigitalOcean
- ›Want managed Kubernetes without the operational overhead
- ›Need US-West or Asia-Pacific presence (Hetzner only has EU + US-East)
- ›Using DO App Platform for other services (ecosystem lock-in can be a plus)
- ›Small team that can't afford the operational burden of self-managed K8s
The Hybrid Approach
Some teams use both:
- ›Hetzner for the main EU production cluster (self-managed, lowest cost)
- ›DigitalOcean for a managed staging environment or US-West presence
This gets you Hetzner's price advantage where your traffic is concentrated, while leveraging DO's managed offering for lower-priority environments.
Calculate Your Actual Cost
Use the Kubernetes Cluster Cost Calculator to price your specific cluster configuration on Hetzner (toggle the provider to compare with Vultr as well).
For DigitalOcean, add the per-node Droplet cost + DOKS control plane ($12/mo) + load balancer ($12/mo) + volume storage.
Bottom Line
For a production Kubernetes cluster running in Europe with a team that knows how to manage it: Hetzner saves €300–500/month compared to DigitalOcean at equivalent specs. That's a meaningful amount for startups and small engineering teams.
For teams that want to focus on their product rather than Kubernetes operations: the managed overhead of DOKS is worth the premium. Just don't be surprised by the egress costs.