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Hosting & Infra

DigitalOcean vs KeyCDN: Pricing Comparison 2026

Side-by-side pricing comparison of DigitalOcean and KeyCDN. See all plans, features, and costs at a glance.

Bottom line: DigitalOcean starts at $0.15/mo, making it $4/mo cheaper than KeyCDN ($4/mo). DigitalOcean offers a free plan.

Last updated: March 16, 2026

Data compiled by Arthur Jacquemin
Updated March 16, 2026

DigitalOcean vs KeyCDN: Quick Pricing Facts

FeatureDigitalOceanKeyCDN
Starting Price$0.15/mo$4/mo
Number of Plans185
Free TierYesNo
Pricing Modelusage-basedusage-based
Annual DiscountN/AN/A

DigitalOcean is the more affordable option, starting at $0.15/mo compared to KeyCDN's $4/mo. Both are Hosting & Infra tools with 23 combined pricing plans and 69 features compared.

DigitalOcean stands out with a free plan for getting started.

Review the detailed tier-by-tier comparison above to see exactly which features are included at each price point and find the best fit for your Hosting & Infra needs.

Pricing Plans
DigitalOcean
DigitalOcean
Try it free
Tier 1
Gradient™ AI Platform
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Create custom AI Agents
  • Integrate leading LLMs into your workflows
  • No infrastructure management
Start with Gradient™ AI Platform
Minimum Usage
$4/month
$48 / year
Includes
  • Minimum charge based on total account traffic volume
  • No request charges
  • 24/7 support
Start with Minimum Usage
Tier 2
Gradient™ AI GPU Droplets
$2/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Run training and inference on AI/ML models
  • Process large data sets and complex neural networks
  • Serve additional use cases like high-performance computing (HPC)
Start with Gradient™ AI GPU Droplets
North America/Europe
$20/month
$240 / year
Includes
  • First 10 TB: $0.04/GB
  • Next 40 TB: $0.03/GB
  • Next 50 TB: $0.02/GB
  • Over 100 TB: $0.01/GB
Start with North America/Europe
Tier 3
Additional GPU Options
Custom pricing
Includes
  • Simple provisioning interface
  • Build, train, and deploy large models
  • Scale AI/ML workloads on demand
Start with Additional GPU Options
Asia/Oceania
Custom pricing
Includes
  • First 10 TB: $0.08/GB
  • Next 40 TB: $0.06/GB
  • Next 50 TB: $0.04/GB
  • Over 100 TB: $0.02/GB
Start with Asia/Oceania
Tier 4
App Platform
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Build, deploy and scale apps quickly
  • Fully managed solution, zero infrastructure management
  • Highly scalable
Start with App Platform
Africa/Latin America
Custom pricing
Includes
  • First 10 TB: $0.10/GB
  • Next 40 TB: $0.08/GB
  • Next 50 TB: $0.06/GB
  • Over 100 TB: $0.04/GB
Start with Africa/Latin America
Tier 5
Droplets
$4/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Per-sec billing with 60 sec minimum or $0.01, whichever is higher
  • Deploy in seconds
  • Scale up on demand
  • Run any workload - from mission critical apps to low traffic sites
Start with Droplets
Contact Us
Custom pricing
Includes
  • Discounted volume pricing for over 100 TB
Start with Contact Us
Tier 6
Kubernetes
$12/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Simple, managed Kubernetes built for scale
  • Free control plane, free bandwidth allowance, and more
  • Automate and optimize to peak performance
Start with Kubernetes
Tier 7
Functions
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Focus on building great apps
  • Pay for what you use
  • Scale automatically
Start with Functions
Tier 8
Cloudways Managed Hosting
$11/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Optimized for Wordpress & PHP based apps
  • SSD stack with PHP 8 & Redis
  • Unlimited apps, Git & staging
Start with Cloudways Managed Hosting
Tier 9
Backups
$20/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Choose flexible frequencies  from Weekly, Daily, or Every 12/6/4 hours.
  • Set custom retention periods from 3 days up to 6 months.
  • Fast and fully-automated.
Start with Backups
Tier 10
Databases
$15/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Managed MongoDB, Kafka, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Valkey, and OpenSearch
  • Worry-free setup, maintenance, and easy migration
  • Free daily backups, automated failover, and more!
Start with Databases
Tier 11
Spaces
$5/monthCheapest
Includes
  • S3-compatible object storage
  • Highly scalable
  • Built in CDN
Start with Spaces
Tier 12
Network File Storage
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Minimum: 50 GiB
  • Increments: 10 GiB
  • Flat pricing across all supported regions
Start with Network File Storage
Tier 13
Volumes
$10/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Block storage
  • Highly available
  • Easily scale block storage, resize when needed, and move them between droplets
Start with Volumes
Tier 14
Container Registry
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Easily store and manage private container images
  • Transfer container images over high-speed HTTPs connections to servers across four continents
Start with Container Registry
Tier 15
Load Balancers
$12/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Improve availability, performance, and scalability
  • Let's Encrypt and HTTP/3 support
  • Compatible with Droplets and DigitalOcean Kubernetes
Start with Load Balancers
Tier 16
Support Plans
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Find answers to common questions, development guidelines written by experts and get free email support
  • Ideal for those testing ideas and hosting small applications
Start with Support Plans
Tier 17
Virtual Private Cloud
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Ingress data transfer to VPCs is free. Egress data transfer from VPCs to the internet counts against bandwidth quotas.
  • Intra-datacenter VPC peering is free. Inter-datacenter VPC peering is $0.01/GiB.
  • VPC NAT Gateway: $40.00 per node, includes 100 GiB bandwidth (overage $0.01/GiB), supports up to 500,000 connections.
Start with Virtual Private Cloud
Tier 18
Uptime
$0/monthCheapest
Includes
  • Uptime and latency checks
  • Alerts by email and Slack
  • One Uptime Check/month included with every account
Start with Uptime

Swipe to compare plans →

DigitalOcean

Developer-friendly cloud infrastructure with simple pricing

View all DigitalOcean plans

KeyCDN

Pay-as-you-go content delivery network

View all KeyCDN plans
Our Pick

DigitalOcean

DigitalOcean offers a free plan, starts at $3.85/mo lower ($0.15/mo vs $4/mo), offers 18 tiers vs 5.

Based on pricing data only. Review the full comparison below for your specific needs.

Best value: DigitalOcean

Try DigitalOcean free

Which Should You Choose?

Choose DigitalOcean if:

  • You want lower per-user costs—DigitalOcean starts at $0.15/mo, saving $3.85/mo compared to KeyCDN at $4/mo
  • You need a free plan with Build, deploy and scale apps quickly, Fully managed solution, zero infrastructure management—DigitalOcean offers no-cost access with no credit card required
  • You need 18 pricing tiers for flexible team sizing—more options mean less overpaying for features you don't need
  • You want more features built-in—DigitalOcean offers 37 additional features across its plans

Choose KeyCDN if:

  • You prioritize KeyCDN's user experience and interface over price (both tools are similarly priced)
  • You want KeyCDN's approach to incremental feature unlocking across its 5 pricing tiers
  • You value KeyCDN's specific feature progression from free to advanced tier levels

DigitalOcean is the more affordable choice [1], starting at $0.15/mo compared to KeyCDN's $4/mo. For a 50-person team on paid plans, this translates to DigitalOcean saving approximately $193/month. DigitalOcean offers 18 pricing tiers compared to KeyCDN's 5, giving you more granular control over scaling costs as your team grows. Across all tiers, DigitalOcean provides 53 total features versus 16 for KeyCDN, offering a richer feature set depending on your specific needs. The pricing math favors DigitalOcean for most team sizes. KeyCDN becomes worth the premium only when its differentiating features are central to your workflow.

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Frequently Asked Questions: DigitalOcean vs KeyCDN

Which is cheaper, DigitalOcean or KeyCDN?
As of March 2026, DigitalOcean starts at a lower price point. DigitalOcean starts at $0.15/mo while KeyCDN starts at $4/mo. However, the best value depends on the features you need at each tier.
How many pricing plans does DigitalOcean have vs KeyCDN?
DigitalOcean offers 18 pricing plans, while KeyCDN offers 5 plans. More plans typically means more flexibility to match your exact needs and budget.
Does DigitalOcean or KeyCDN offer a free plan?
DigitalOcean offers a free plan, while KeyCDN does not. If budget is a concern, DigitalOcean lets you get started at no cost.
Can I save money by paying annually for DigitalOcean or KeyCDN?
Both DigitalOcean and KeyCDN offer annual billing options. Check each plan's yearly pricing for potential savings compared to monthly billing.
Does DigitalOcean or KeyCDN offer custom enterprise pricing?
Yes, both DigitalOcean and KeyCDN offer custom enterprise pricing tiers with quote-based pricing. Contact each vendor for a tailored quote.
How do DigitalOcean and KeyCDN compare for Hosting & Infra?
Both DigitalOcean and KeyCDN are Hosting & Infra tools. DigitalOcean offers 18 plans starting at $0.15/mo, while KeyCDN offers 5 plans starting at $4/mo. Review the feature breakdowns above to see which better fits your Hosting & Infra needs.

Sources

  1. DigitalOcean Official PricingVendor pricing page
  2. KeyCDN Official PricingVendor pricing page

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