DigitalOcean
Developer-friendly cloud platform with the best documentation and tutorials in the industry.
My Experience
DigitalOcean is the "just works" cloud provider. Their Droplets (VPS) are dead simple to create — pick a size, pick a region, done. The documentation is genuinely the best in the industry — their tutorials have saved me countless hours.
The managed database offering is excellent for indie devs. PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis — all handled, with automated backups and point-in-time recovery. No need to be a DBA.
The downside is price. A $12/month Droplet gets you 1 vCPU and 1GB RAM. Hetzner gives you 2 vCPU and 4GB RAM for €3.29. You're paying for the DX, managed services, and ecosystem. For a solo dev watching costs, that premium adds up.
Pros
- +Exceptional documentation and community tutorials (over 4,000 articles)
- +Managed databases, Kubernetes, and App Platform included
- +Clean, intuitive dashboard that beginners love
Cons
- −More expensive than Hetzner or Vultr for equivalent specs
- −Fewer data center locations than Vultr (15 vs 32)
- −Bandwidth overages can be costly without monitoring
Best For
Developers who value great documentation, managed services, and a polished experience.
