Cheap VPS total-cost calculator (first vs renewal)
This is the canonical progeofde.tech tool for the cheap VPS renewal-aware TCO question. Pick a provider, toggle the add-ons, and the table on the right outputs first-month, first-year, and 36-month total cost of ownership. Below the calculator is the 5-column price matrix the rest of the site links to, plus the methodology behind the math.
1. The calculator
All prices observed 2026-10-15. Verify on the provider's pricing page before paying.
Longer commitments usually unlock a small discount on the intro price but lock the renewal rate for the full term.
Some providers (Hetzner, Evoxt, BuyVM) charge separately for IPv4. If your workload can run IPv6-only you can uncheck this.
Backups are typically 20% of plan price or a flat $1. We use the per-provider flat value above.
$—
—
Output table
| Line item | Value |
|---|---|
| First-month price | — |
| Renewal-month price | — |
| 12-month TCO (intro + 11 renewals) | — |
| 36-month TCO (intro + 35 renewals) | — |
| IPv4 add-on / month | — |
| Backup fee / month | — |
| Bandwidth overage / GB (after quota) | — |
| Setup fee (one-time) | — |
| Total all-in (36 mo, IPv4 + backup, no overage) | — |
All numbers are USD. TCO = (intro price for the promo period) + (renewal price × remaining months) + add-ons × 36. The "winner" highlight above picks the cheapest provider at the same toggles; refresh the page to reset the comparison.
2. The 5-column matrix (SEO table)
This is the static table that the rest of progeofde.tech links to. All prices observed 2026-10-15 and subject to change without notice — the calculator above is always more accurate than this table for any specific scenario.
| Provider | First / mo | Renewal / mo | IPv4 / mo | Backup / mo | Bandwidth (GB) | Overage / GB | Setup | 36-mo TCO (base) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CloudCone | $2.99 | $5.99 | incl. | $0 | 1,024 | $0.015 | $0 | $215.53 | Cheapest 1GB entry; renewal nearly 2× intro |
| Evoxt | $2.50 | $6.50 | $1.00 | $0 | 1,024 | $0.01 | $0 | $269.00 | Intro is the lowest; IPv4 add-on wipes the lead |
| RackNerd | $8.88 | $10.88 | incl. | $0 | 2,048 | $0.025 | $0 | $399.68 | 1-yr commitment on the intro price; +2TB egress |
| SSDNodes | $5.00 | $5.00 | incl. | $1.00 | 1,024 | $0.05 | $0 | $216.00 | Flat pricing — no renewal trap |
| Hetzner | $3.49 | $4.85 | $0.86 | $0 | 20,480 | $0 | $0 | $178.64 | CX22 post-April-2026 hike (+39%); EU only |
| Vultr | $5.00 | $5.00 | incl. | $1.00 | 1,024 | $0.01 | $0 | $216.00 | Flat pricing; 32 global regions |
| DigitalOcean | $4.00 | $6.00 | incl. | $0.20 | 1,024 | $0.01 | $0 | $220.00 | Basic droplet; $4 promo usually runs 60 days |
| BuyVM | $2.00 | $2.00 | $2.00 | $0 | 1,024 | $0 | $0 | $144.00 | Slice 512; cheapest 36-mo base if you need IPv4 |
| BandwagonHost | $9.99 | $9.99 | incl. | $0 | 1,024 | $0.04 | $0 | $359.64 | Annual cycle, flat price; CN2 GIA available in LA |
| Contabo | $4.50 | $5.50 | incl. | $0 | 32,768 | $0 | $0 | $202.50 | 32TB egress; 4 vCPU on the cheapest plan, not 1 |
36-month TCO in the table is the base plan only (intro price for month 1, renewal for months 2-36, no IPv4, no backup, no overage). To model your own scenario, use the calculator above.
3. The renewal trap, in one paragraph
Every cheap VPS headline price on the EN web is a promo. The first-month or first-year number is what gets you in the door. The renewal rate is what you actually pay at month 13 — and it is typically 40% to 200% higher than the intro. CloudCone charges $2.99 month 1, then $5.99 from month 13 onward (a 100% increase). Evoxt does the same in reverse: $2.50 → $6.50 (160%). DigitalOcean's $4 promo is a 60-day teaser; the steady-state is $6. The only providers in this list with flat pricing are SSDNodes, Vultr, BuyVM, and BandwagonHost. If you cannot stomach a renewal jump, restrict your shortlist to those four. If you want the cheapest possible month 1 and you will actually churn at month 12, the promo cluster wins. If you want the cheapest 36-month commitment, BuyVM is the answer by a wide margin — but you have to add $2/month for the IPv4 the others include free.
4. The Verisign angle (1 Nov 2026 .com +7%)
On 1 November 2026 Verisign's wholesale price for .com goes from $10.26 to $10.97 per registration-year — a 7% increase. This is the most date-anchored news in the registrar/CDN pillar this quarter, and it is the reason we wrote the upcoming C#1 article: Best Domain Registrar 2026 (post-Verisign hike). If you are computing a domain + VPS bundle TCO, that 7% compounds: a 1-year .com is now ~$0.71 more expensive, a 10-year lock-in is $7.10 more. The cheap VPS calculator above does not yet include the domain line because the hike is fresh; a domain line is planned in the next iteration. Until then, read the about page for the editorial position on bundling VPS and domain with the same provider (we do not recommend it for independence reasons), and watch for the C#1 article in early November 2026.
5. Frequently asked questions
Why is the cheap VPS renewal price so much higher than the first-month price?
The first-month or first-year price is a promotional intro rate. The renewal rate is what you actually pay from month 13 onwards, and it is typically 40% to 200% higher. Most "cheap VPS" articles only show the intro price. The renewal is the real TCO, and that is what this calculator outputs.
Is IPv4 always included with a cheap VPS?
No. IPv4 is increasingly a paid add-on as the address pool runs out. CloudCone, RackNerd, Vultr, DigitalOcean, SSDNodes, Bandwagon and Contabo still include at least one IPv4 on their cheapest plans. BuyVM, Hetzner and Evoxt charge between $0.86 and $2.00 per month extra for it. If your workload can run IPv6-only, uncheck the IPv4 toggle in the calculator above.
How do I avoid the cheap VPS renewal trap?
Three rules: (1) always compute 36-month TCO, not first-month, (2) assume you will not cancel at month 12, and (3) read the renewal section of the provider's TOS before paying. Our calculator above does step 1 for you.
Does bandwidth overage actually matter on a cheap VPS?
Only on workloads that exceed the egress quota. Most cheap VPS plans ship 1 TB of egress, which is enough for a personal site or small app. If you run a public mirror, a video pipeline, or a busy VPN endpoint, overage (typically $0.01 to $0.09 per GB) can blow out the bill. Our calculator models 36-month TCO without overage; check the per-GB column in the matrix if you expect to exceed quota.
6. Methodology and refresh cadence
Every price in this tool is tagged "observed 2026-10-15." We re-verify on a Tier 1 (3-month) refresh cadence: best-of pages, "vs" comparisons, pricing pages, and anything mentioning a current year. The cheap VPS pricing cluster is the most volatile table on the site, so this page is on the 3-month list. The /methodology page documents the rest of the math (CPU benchmarks, disk, network) and the discipline of never publishing a number that cannot be reproduced from a public script.
Affiliate disclosure: this page contains affiliate links to several of the providers above. We receive a small commission if you sign up through one of them. This does not change the calculator's math. The "winner" highlight is purely the cheapest at your selected settings. Full disclosure.