Oracle Cloud is the default pick for most readers who want a large free tier, because Always Free includes 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of Arm compute, 200 GB of block storage, and 10 TB of outbound transfer a month, while Google Cloud is the best second pick for a single small virtual machine that stays free. Oracle cut its Always Free Arm allowance in June 2026 from 4 OCPUs and 24 GB to 2 OCPUs and 12 GB, so older guides that quote the larger allowance are out of date. The cheapest entry point on this list is Vultr at $2.50 per month, but that plan is IPv6 only and limited to two regions, so most buyers should budget $5 per month for a comparable 1 GB plan.
Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, known as OCI, suits buyers who want a generous free tier and low transfer costs. The large clouds offer more services and more regions, while the smaller developer clouds offer fixed monthly prices and a simpler control panel.
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Oracle cloud alternatives: comparison table
Swipe the table sideways on a phone to see every column.
| # | Name | Best for | Starting price | Free plan / trial | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oracle Cloud | Free tier and low egress | $0.01 per OCPU/hour | Yes | Visit |
| 2 | Amazon Web Services | Largest service catalog | $0.0104 per hour | Free trial (6 months) | Visit |
| 3 | Microsoft Azure | Microsoft and Windows workloads | $7.59 per month | Free trial (30 days) | Visit |
| 4 | Google Cloud | One free small virtual machine | $0.0084 per hour | Yes | Visit |
| 5 | DigitalOcean | Simple fixed-price virtual machines | $4 per month | No | Visit |
| 6 | Linode (Akamai Cloud) | Simple Linux virtual machines | $5 per month | No | Visit |
| 7 | Vultr | Lowest entry price | $2.50 per month | No | Visit |
| 8 | IBM Cloud | Regulated and hybrid workloads | quote only | Yes | Visit |
The 8 best oracle cloud alternatives, in detail
Oracle Cloud
Best for: Free tier and low egress
Oracle Cloud stays on the list because its free tier is larger than the free tier on AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud. Always Free includes up to two AMD VM.Standard.E2.1.Micro instances, the Arm A1 allowance equal to 2 OCPUs and 12 GB, 200 GB of block volume storage, and 10 TB of outbound transfer a month. New accounts also get $300 in credit for 30 days.
- Compute beyond the free allowance is billed per second, with a one-minute minimum.
- On x86 shapes, one OCPU equals two vCPUs, while on Arm shapes one OCPU equals one core.
- Outbound transfer past 10 TB starts at $0.0085 per GB in North America and Europe.
- Choose Oracle Cloud if a free Arm server and a large free transfer allowance matter more than the widest service catalog.
Pros
- Always Free includes 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of Arm compute
- 10 TB of outbound transfer free per month
Cons
- Always Free instances run only in the home region
- idle free instances can be reclaimed when capacity is short
Amazon Web Services
Best for: Largest service catalog
Amazon Web Services, known as AWS, is the closest match for teams that need many managed services in one account, from databases and queues to machine learning and analytics. The entry price used here is the t3.micro in US East (N. Virginia), at $0.0104 per hour on demand for Linux, about $7.59 for a 730-hour month.
- That figure covers compute only, while storage volumes, snapshots, and outbound transfer add separate charges.
- New accounts get up to $200 in credits, with $100 at signup and up to $100 more for completing onboarding activities, valid for 6 months or until spen
- The t3 family is burstable, so a t3.micro runs at a 10 percent baseline and earns CPU credits when idle.
- Sustained load above the baseline uses surplus credits at $0.05 per vCPU-hour for Linux.
Pros
- More than 200 services and the widest region coverage on this list
- t3.micro costs about $7.59 per month for 730 hours
Cons
- t3.micro has a 10 percent CPU baseline and surplus credits cost $0.05 per vCPU-hour
- storage and transfer are billed separately
Microsoft Azure
Best for: Microsoft and Windows workloads
Microsoft Azure is the best fit for teams that already run Windows Server, SQL Server, Microsoft 365, or Active Directory. The entry price used here is the B1s size, at $7.59 per month in East US for Linux, with 1 vCPU, 1 GB of memory, and 4 GB of temporary storage. A newer Arm size, B2pts v2, is listed at $6.13 per month with 2 vCPUs and 1 GB of memory, so check both sizes before you buy.
- New accounts get $200 in credit valid for 30 days, plus free monthly amounts for 12 months on selected services, including 750 hours each of B1s, B2pt
- Azure bills compute, managed disk, IP addresses, and outbound transfer as separate lines, so the virtual machine price is not the full bill.
- A stopped virtual machine still incurs managed disk and reserved IP charges.
Pros
- 750 hours each of B1s, B2pts v2, and B2ats v2 burstable virtual machines in the free account offer
- close fit for Windows Server and SQL Server
Cons
- B1s is a burstable size with a low CPU baseline
- managed disk and reserved IP charges continue when a virtual machine is stopped
Google Cloud
Best for: One free small virtual machine
Google Cloud is the best fit for a small site or test server that should stay free for a long time. The Free Tier gives one non-preemptible e2-micro virtual machine per month in Oregon, Iowa, or South Carolina, plus 30 GB-months of standard persistent disk and 1 GB of outbound transfer from North America. New customers also get $300 in credit for 90 days.
- The e2-micro costs $0.008376428 per hour on demand in Iowa, about $6.11 for a 730-hour month.
- An external IPv4 address in use costs $0.005 per hour, about $3.65 a month.
- Persistent disk beyond the free 30 GB, snapshots, and transfer beyond 1 GB are billed separately.
- Compute Engine bills per second with a one-minute minimum.
Pros
- One e2-micro virtual machine free per month in three US regions
- e2-micro costs about $6.11 per month for 730 hours when it is not free
Cons
- Free e2-micro is limited to us-west1, us-central1, and us-east1
- a public IPv4 address costs $0.005 per hour, about $3.65 per month
DigitalOcean
Best for: Simple fixed-price virtual machines
DigitalOcean is the best fit for developers who want a fixed monthly price and a short setup path. A Basic Droplet starts at $4 per month for 1 vCPU, 512 MiB of memory, 10 GiB of SSD storage, and 500 GiB of outbound transfer. The 1 GiB plan costs $6 per month with 25 GiB of storage and 1,000 GiB of transfer.
- Bundled plans are capped at 672 billable hours a month, so a Droplet that runs all month never costs more than its listed monthly price.
- DigitalOcean has no free tier, so the $4 plan is the lowest way in.
- A powered-off Droplet still bills, and only destroying the Droplet stops the charge.
- Backups are an add-on: weekly backups cost 20 percent of the Droplet price, and daily backups cost 30 percent.
Pros
- Basic Droplet price includes disk and transfer in one monthly cap
- billing is per second with a 60-second minimum from 1 January 2026
Cons
- Entry $4 plan has only 512 MiB of memory and 10 GiB of SSD
- weekly backups cost 20 percent of the Droplet price and daily backups cost 30 percent
Linode (Akamai Cloud)
Best for: Simple Linux virtual machines
Linode, now sold as Akamai Cloud, is the best fit for Linux users who want a fixed monthly price. The entry Nanode 1 GB plan costs $5 per month, or $0.0075 per hour, with 1 vCPU, 1 GB of memory, 25 GB of SSD storage, and 1 TB of outbound transfer. The next shared CPU sizes are $12 per month for 2 GB, $24 per month for 4 GB, and $48 per month for 8 GB.
- Transfer over the allowance costs $0.005 per GB.
- Linode has no free tier.
- A powered-off instance still bills, because the disk, memory reservation, and transfer allowance stay reserved until the instance is deleted.
- Dedicated CPU plans start at $36 per month for 2 vCPUs, and managed databases start at $16 per month.
Pros
- Nanode 1 GB includes 25 GB of SSD and 1 TB of transfer for $5 per month
- egress overage costs $0.005 per GB
Cons
- No free tier
- a powered-off instance still bills until it is deleted
Vultr
Best for: Lowest entry price
Vultr is the best fit for buyers who want the lowest possible monthly figure and can work within its limits. Cloud Compute starts at $2.50 per month for 1 vCPU, 512 MB of memory, 10 GB of SSD storage, and 0.5 TB of transfer, but that plan has no public IPv4 address and is available only in New Jersey and Atlanta. The same specification with IPv4 costs $3.50 per month in New Jersey.
- The more usable 1 GB plan costs $5 per month with 25 GB of SSD storage and 1 TB of transfer in eight US regions.
- Billing is hourly and capped at 672 hours a month, so a server that runs all month never costs more than its listed price.
- Bandwidth over the allowance costs $0.01 per GB, and automatic backups add 20 percent to the server price.
- A stopped server still bills, and only destroying it ends the charges.
Pros
- Lowest entry price on this list at $2.50 per month
- 1 GB plan costs $5 per month with 25 GB of SSD and 1 TB of transfer
Cons
- $2.50 plan is IPv6 only and available only in New Jersey and Atlanta
- automatic backups add 20 percent to the server price
IBM Cloud
Best for: Regulated and hybrid workloads
IBM Cloud is the best fit for teams in regulated industries and for hybrid setups that mix on-premises systems with cloud services. The free tier is a Pay-As-You-Go account with access to more than 40 always-free Lite products, including Cloudant, Db2, Event Streams, API Connect, Cloud SQL Query, Continuous Delivery, and Schematics. Each Lite service is limited to one instance, and Lite instances are deleted after 30 days without development activity.
- New accounts also get $200 in credit for 30 days.
- Virtual Servers for VPC are billed on a usage basis, but the pricing page used here does not publish one simple starting monthly price, so this item i
- Use the IBM Cloud cost estimator to price a specific size and region before you commit.
Pros
- More than 40 Lite plans are always free and never expire
- new accounts get $200 in credit for 30 days
Cons
- No published starting price for a virtual server on the pricing page used here
- Lite instances are deleted after 30 days without development activity
How we chose
We chose providers that offer general-purpose virtual machines, a published entry price or a clear quote-only position, and an official homepage and pricing page. We did not test any tool hands-on. Prices and plan limits in this article come from official vendor pricing pages and docs opened on 2026-11-12. Where a vendor did not publish a single starting price, we wrote quote only instead of guessing a figure. Oracle cut its Always Free Arm allowance in June 2026 from 4 OCPUs and 24 GB to 2 OCPUs and 12 GB, which changes the value of the free tier for new accounts.
Which option fits your budget and size
| Situation | Pick | Entry cost to budget |
|---|---|---|
| Free small server for a long time | Oracle Cloud | $0 per month within Always Free limits |
| One free small virtual machine in the US | Google Cloud | $0 per month for e2-micro, plus about $3.65 per month for a public IPv4 address |
| Lowest monthly price with IPv4 | Vultr | $3.50 per month for 512 MB, or $5 per month for 1 GB |
| Fixed $4 to $6 monthly price | DigitalOcean or Linode | $4 per month for DigitalOcean 512 MiB, $5 per month for Linode Nanode 1 GB, $6 per month for DigitalOcean 1 GiB |
| Largest service catalog | Amazon Web Services | About $7.59 per month for t3.micro compute, plus disk and transfer |
| Microsoft stack | Microsoft Azure | $7.59 per month for B1s compute, plus disk and transfer |
| Regulated or hybrid project | IBM Cloud | quote only for a virtual server, $0 for Lite plans within limits |
Frequently asked questions
How much does an Oracle Cloud alternative cost per month?
Entry prices on this list run from $2.50 per month for a Vultr IPv6-only 512 MB server to about $7.59 per month for an AWS t3.micro or an Azure B1s, before disk and transfer. Oracle Cloud and Google Cloud both offer a free virtual machine within stated limits, while DigitalOcean starts at $4 per month and Linode starts at $5 per month.
Which is best for a small website or test server?
Oracle Cloud is the best pick for a free small server, because Always Free includes 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of Arm compute, 200 GB of block storage, and 10 TB of outbound transfer a month. Google Cloud is the best second pick for one free e2-micro in three US regions. For a fixed monthly price, choose DigitalOcean at $4 per month or Linode at $5 per month.
Is Oracle Cloud really free?
Oracle Cloud Always Free resources have no time limit, and they include the Arm A1 allowance, two AMD micro instances, 200 GB of block storage, and 10 TB of outbound transfer a month. The free allowance was cut in June 2026 from 4 OCPUs and 24 GB to 2 OCPUs and 12 GB. Use beyond the free limits is billed at the published per-hour rates.
Which Oracle Cloud alternative is best for enterprise workloads?
Amazon Web Services is the best pick for the widest service catalog and the most regions, while Microsoft Azure is the best pick for Windows Server, SQL Server, and Microsoft identity. IBM Cloud is the best pick for regulated and hybrid workloads.
Can I move from Oracle Cloud to another provider without downtime?
A move needs a new virtual machine, a copy of the data, and a DNS change, so plan for a short maintenance window unless you run both providers in parallel. Check the CPU type first, because Oracle Cloud Arm shapes need Arm builds, while most entry plans on AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud use x86 by default.
Does the free tier include enough transfer for a public site?
Oracle Cloud includes 10 TB of outbound transfer a month in Always Free, which is far more than the 1 TB on a Linode Nanode or the 500 GiB on a $4 DigitalOcean Droplet. Google Cloud free tier includes 1 GB of outbound transfer from North America, so a public site on Google Cloud will incur transfer charges sooner.
Sources
- https://www.oracle.com/cloud/
- https://www.oracle.com/cloud/pricing/
- https://aws.amazon.com/
- https://aws.amazon.com/ec2/pricing/on-demand/
- https://azure.microsoft.com/
- https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing/details/virtual-machines/
- https://cloud.google.com/
- https://cloud.google.com/compute/vm-instance-pricing
- https://www.digitalocean.com/
- https://www.digitalocean.com/pricing/droplets
- https://www.linode.com/
- https://www.vultr.com/
- https://www.vultr.com/pricing/
- https://www.ibm.com/cloud/
- https://www.ibm.com/cloud/pricing
Prices and features were read on each company’s own website in November 2026. They change often, so confirm the current offer on the official site before you sign up or buy.