Hetzner Cloud

Hetzner Cloud delivers high-performance cloud instances with exceptional price-performance ratio, featuring AMD and Intel processors, NVMe SSD storage, and flexible scaling across European and US data centers. As Germany's leading hosting provider since 1997, Hetzner Cloud offers virtual servers from shared vCPU to dedicated CPU configurations with instant deployment, hourly billing, API automation, and Terraform integration. With data centers in Germany, Finland, and the United States, Hetzner Cloud provides reliable infrastructure trusted by over 85,000 customers worldwide.

What distinguishes Hetzner Cloud is the combination of German engineering quality and competitive pricing. All cloud instances include guaranteed resources, NVMe SSD storage, free incoming traffic, unlimited outgoing traffic, and comprehensive API access. With server types optimized for different workloads—from cost-effective shared CPU to powerful dedicated CPU instances—Hetzner Cloud provides transparent pricing typically 30-50% lower than major cloud providers.

Cloud Server Types and Pricing

Hetzner offers four cloud server lines for different requirements:

CX Line - Shared vCPU (Starting €4.15/month):

• CX11: 1 vCPU, 2GB RAM, 20GB NVMe - €4.15/month
• CX22: 2 vCPU, 4GB RAM, 40GB NVMe - €6.35/month
• CX32: 2 vCPU, 8GB RAM, 80GB NVMe - €11.00/month
• CX42: 4 vCPU, 16GB RAM, 160GB NVMe - €17.90/month
• CX52: 8 vCPU, 32GB RAM, 320GB NVMe - €30.00/month

CPX Line - Dedicated vCPU (Starting €5.90/month):

• CPX11: 2 dedicated vCPU, 2GB RAM, 40GB NVMe - €5.90/month
• CPX21: 3 dedicated vCPU, 4GB RAM, 80GB NVMe - €10.00/month
• CPX31: 4 dedicated vCPU, 8GB RAM, 160GB NVMe - €17.50/month
• CPX41: 8 dedicated vCPU, 16GB RAM, 240GB NVMe - €30.50/month
• CPX51: 16 dedicated vCPU, 32GB RAM, 360GB NVMe - €56.00/month

CCX Line - Dedicated CPU (Starting €51.00/month):

• CCX13: 2 dedicated cores, 8GB RAM, 80GB NVMe - €51.00/month
• CCX23: 4 dedicated cores, 16GB RAM, 160GB NVMe - €95.00/month
• CCX33: 8 dedicated cores, 32GB RAM, 240GB NVMe - €179.00/month
• CCX43: 16 dedicated cores, 64GB RAM, 360GB NVMe - €332.00/month
• CCX63: 32 dedicated cores, 128GB RAM, 600GB NVMe - €630.00/month

CAX Line - ARM-based (Starting €4.09/month):

• CAX11: 2 Ampere Altra vCPU, 4GB RAM, 40GB NVMe - €4.09/month
• CAX21: 4 Ampere vCPU, 8GB RAM, 80GB NVMe - €7.84/month
• CAX31: 8 Ampere vCPU, 16GB RAM, 160GB NVMe - €14.98/month
• CAX41: 16 Ampere vCPU, 32GB RAM, 320GB NVMe - €28.79/month

All prices include 20TB outgoing traffic/month. Additional traffic €1.19/TB. Hourly billing available—pay only for hours used. No setup fees or hidden costs.

Infrastructure and Performance

Hetzner Cloud runs on enterprise infrastructure optimized for reliability:

Processing power: CX and CPX lines feature AMD EPYC and Intel Xeon processors with shared or dedicated vCPU allocation. CCX dedicated CPU line provides full CPU cores with no sharing—perfect for CPU-intensive workloads. CAX ARM line uses Ampere Altra processors offering excellent performance-per-watt for cloud-native applications.

Storage and networking:

• NVMe SSD storage - Local NVMe drives for maximum IOPS
• 20TB traffic included - Generous monthly bandwidth
• 20 Gbps network - High-speed connectivity
• Additional volumes - Expand storage independently
• Floating IPs - Move IPs between servers instantly

Network performance: All cloud servers connect to Hetzner's high-speed network with 20 Gbps bandwidth. Incoming traffic completely free and unlimited. Outgoing traffic includes generous 20TB/month allowance. Additional traffic reasonably priced at €1.19/TB (significantly cheaper than AWS/Azure). Private networking enables secure server-to-server communication without consuming traffic allowance.

Data Center Locations

Deploy servers across five strategic locations:

Europe: Falkenstein (Germany), Nuremberg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland). German data centers comply with strict EU data protection regulations and GDPR requirements. Perfect for businesses requiring European data sovereignty. Helsinki location provides Nordic presence with renewable energy.

North America: Ashburn, Virginia (United States) and Hillsboro, Oregon (United States). US locations serve American audiences with low latency while maintaining Hetzner's competitive pricing. Both facilities feature enterprise infrastructure and connectivity.

All data centers include N+1 redundant power, enterprise cooling systems, carrier-grade network equipment, and physical security with restricted access. ISO 27001 certified for information security management.

Scalability and Flexibility

Cloud infrastructure adapts to changing requirements:

Vertical scaling: Upgrade or downgrade server types through Cloud Console or API. Resize operations require brief server restart but preserve all data. Scale from CX11 starter to CCX63 enterprise as needs grow. Downgrading equally simple if requirements decrease.

Horizontal scaling: Deploy multiple cloud servers behind load balancer for high-availability configurations. Private networks enable secure multi-server architectures. Snapshots enable rapid deployment of identical server configurations. Perfect for auto-scaling architectures and traffic spikes.

Storage scaling: Volumes provide flexible block storage separate from cloud servers. Attach multiple volumes to single server, or move volumes between servers. Expand volume size on-demand without server downtime. Snapshots protect volume data.

Cloud Console and API

Comprehensive management through web interface and automation:

Cloud Console: Intuitive web interface manages all cloud resources. Deploy new servers in under 60 seconds. Monitor resource usage, bandwidth consumption, and costs real-time. Configure firewalls, floating IPs, networks, and volumes. Access server console directly through browser. Two-factor authentication secures account access.

API and automation: RESTful API provides complete programmatic control over cloud infrastructure. Create, modify, and delete resources through API calls. Official client libraries available for Go, Python, JavaScript, and Ruby. Comprehensive API documentation with examples accelerates development.

Infrastructure as Code: Official Terraform provider enables declarative infrastructure definitions. Define entire cloud environments as version-controlled code. Automate complex multi-server deployments. Ansible dynamic inventory integration supported. Perfect for DevOps workflows and GitOps practices.

Operating Systems and Software

Flexible operating system selection for any workload:

Linux distributions: Ubuntu (20.04, 22.04, 24.04), Debian (11, 12), CentOS Stream, Fedora, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux. Pre-configured images enable instant deployment. Cloud-init support automates initial server configuration. Custom images supported through snapshots.

Application images: One-click installations available for Docker, Nextcloud, GitLab, Plesk, and more. Pre-configured stacks accelerate application deployment. Community-contributed images expand available options.

Windows Server: Not officially supported, but Windows deployment possible through custom images. Community guides available for Windows installations. Linux remains primary focus and receives best support.

Networking Features

Advanced networking capabilities for complex architectures:

Private networks: Create isolated layer-2 networks between cloud servers within same data center. Secure backend communication without internet exposure. Define custom IP ranges and subnets. Multiple networks per server supported. Perfect for database replication, application tiers, and microservices.

Floating IPs: Assign additional IPv4 or IPv6 addresses that move between servers instantly. Implement high-availability failover without DNS propagation delays. Reverse DNS configuration included. Floating IPs survive server deletions—perfect for maintaining consistent public IPs.

Firewalls: Software-defined firewalls protect cloud servers at network level. Define rules based on ports, protocols, and source IPs. Apply firewall templates across multiple servers. Managed at Hetzner's infrastructure level—protection even if server compromised. Default-deny policies supported.

Backups and Snapshots

Multiple data protection options ensure business continuity:

Backups: Automated backup service creates incremental backups every 24 hours. Retains seven backup versions on rolling basis. Backups stored on separate infrastructure from source servers. One-click restoration through Cloud Console or API. Cost: 20% of server monthly price. Backups continue even if server deleted.

Snapshots: Manual snapshots capture server state on-demand before major changes. Create unlimited snapshots per server. Snapshots billed by actual disk space used. Perfect for testing, development environments, and server templates. Restore snapshot to new server for rapid deployment.

Volume backups: Volumes support separate backup configurations. Automate volume protection independently from servers. Restore volumes to different servers when needed.

Load Balancers

Managed load balancing distributes traffic across cloud servers:

Load Balancer features: Layer 4 (TCP) and Layer 7 (HTTP/HTTPS) load balancing supported. Health checks monitor backend server availability. SSL/TLS termination offloads encryption from application servers. Proxy protocol preserves original client IP addresses. Sticky sessions maintain session persistence.

Pricing and capacity: Load balancers start at €5.39/month for 5 services and 25 targets. Scale to larger configurations as needed. Automatic failover between availability zones. Managed service eliminates need to maintain own load balancer infrastructure.

Security Features

Multiple security layers protect cloud infrastructure:

DDoS protection: Basic DDoS protection included on all cloud servers at no extra cost. Protects against common volumetric attacks. Advanced DDoS mitigation available for additional protection against sophisticated attacks.

Security features: Mandatory SSH key authentication on deployment (password login disabled by default). Firewall protection at infrastructure level. Private networks for backend isolation. Regular security updates through OS repositories. ISO 27001 certified operations. GDPR-compliant European operations.

Support and Documentation

Comprehensive resources assist infrastructure management:

Documentation: Extensive documentation covers all cloud features with step-by-step tutorials. API documentation includes code examples in multiple languages. Community tutorials address common use cases. Regular updates reflect new features and capabilities.

Support options: Community support through forums and Discord. Email ticket system for account and technical issues. Response times typically within 24 hours. Managed Services available for businesses requiring hands-on assistance. German and English language support.

Status transparency: Public status page displays real-time infrastructure health across all data centers. Historical uptime data available. Maintenance notifications sent in advance. Incident reports provide detailed post-mortems.

Billing and Pricing

Transparent pricing with flexible billing options:

Hourly billing: Pay only for hours servers run with automatic hourly billing. Deploy and destroy servers as needed without monthly commitments. Perfect for development environments, batch processing, or variable workloads. Billing caps at monthly price—never pay more than advertised monthly rate.

Monthly billing: Fixed monthly pricing provides predictable costs for production infrastructure. Slightly discounted versus hourly rates for continuous operation. Billed monthly in advance with automatic renewal.

No hidden costs: All prices include 20TB outgoing traffic. Incoming traffic completely free. Additional traffic reasonably priced. No charge for stopped servers using snapshots. Transparent pricing calculator available. VAT included for EU customers.

Ideal For

• Cost-conscious businesses - 30-50% cheaper than AWS/Azure
• European businesses - GDPR compliance and data sovereignty
• Developers - API-first design and infrastructure-as-code
• Growing startups - Scalable infrastructure with predictable costs
• Agencies - Multiple client projects with hourly billing
• CI/CD pipelines - Temporary servers for build and test
• ARM workloads - Cost-effective ARM-based cloud instances

Hetzner Cloud combines German engineering quality with exceptional value and modern cloud features. With transparent pricing, comprehensive API, and flexible scaling, it's ideal for businesses seeking reliable European cloud infrastructure without premium pricing from hyperscalers.