DigitalOcean vs Linode (Akamai Cloud) Comparison
Compare DigitalOcean vs Linode (Akamai Cloud) features, pricing, and more.
Last updated: November 2026
DigitalOcean
6.8/10
DigitalOcean is a developer-focused cloud platform offering Droplet VMs, managed Kubernetes, databases, object storage, App Platform and GPU compute for startups and small businesses.
Linode (Akamai Cloud)
7/10
Developer-focused cloud platform, now run by Akamai, offering VPS compute, managed Kubernetes, managed databases and object storage at flat, predictable prices.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.8/10 | 7/10 |
| Integration | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 6/10 |
| Cost | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Customization | 7/10 | 8/10 |
| Security | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Reliability | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Ease of Use | 9/10 | 8/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 5/10 |
| Scalability | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | $4/mo Basic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/mo Nanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | $4/mo Basic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/mo Nanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
| Features | ||
| API and CLI | ||
| Automatic Backups | ||
| Cloud Compute | ||
| DDoS Protection | ||
| Managed Databases | ||
| Managed Kubernetes | ||
| Multiple Regions | ||
| Object Storage | ||
| Uptime SLA | ||
| VPS Hosting | ||
| Content Delivery Network | Not listed | |
| Git Deployments | Not listed | |
| Serverless Functions | Not listed | |
DigitalOcean vs Linode (Akamai Cloud) cost by team size
DigitalOcean costs less at every team size we checked.
| Team size | DigitalOcean | Linode (Akamai Cloud) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | $4/moBasic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/moNanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
| 5 users | $4/moBasic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/moNanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
| 10 users | $4/moBasic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/moNanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
| 25 users | $4/moBasic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/moNanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
| 50 users | $4/moBasic Droplet 512 MiB | $5/moNanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose DigitalOcean
- Lower estimated cost for 10 users: $4/mo vs $5/mo
- Higher Ease of Use score (9/10 vs 8/10)
- Higher Analytics score (6/10 vs 5/10)
- Better fit for small business (7/10 vs 5/10)
Why choose Linode (Akamai Cloud)
- Higher Support score (6/10 vs 5/10)
- Higher Cost score (8/10 vs 7/10)
Pros & Cons
DigitalOcean
Pros
- Flat, published hourly and monthly rates with no promotional first-term pricing or renewal price jumps.
- A $4 per month entry Droplet and per-second billing make it cheap to test and run small workloads.
- One account covers a full set of managed services, including Kubernetes, databases, Spaces with CDN, load balancers, App Platform and Functions.
- Developers can automate everything through the API, the doctl CLI and a Terraform provider, and the tutorials are widely used.
Cons
- Free support is ticket-only with a target response under 24 hours, chat starts at $99 per month, and no plan includes phone support.
- Outbound SMTP ports 25, 465 and 587 are blocked on new Droplets, so you cannot self-host email.
- Raw compute costs noticeably more than budget providers such as Hetzner.
- No refunds, and Droplets on suspended accounts are deleted after a grace period.
Linode (Akamai Cloud)
Pros
- Flat published prices, starting at 5 dollars a month for a 1 GB Nanode, with hourly billing
- The standard Kubernetes control plane in LKE is free
- Egress overage costs only 0.005 dollars per GB, and most shared plans include 1 to 5 TB of transfer
- Its documentation, API, CLI and Terraform support are strong, which suits developers who automate their infrastructure
- DDoS protection is included, and inbound bandwidth is 40 Gbps on all plans
Cons
- Some 2025 reviews report new accounts flagged as fraud or suspended, with tickets taking 24 to 48 hours
- No live chat support is offered, and standard support has no published response-time SLA
- Reviewers say managed services and advanced enterprise features are fewer than on the hyperscalers
- Managed databases cost more than on budget providers, with HA starting around 246 dollars a month according to one third-party guide
- The Akamai rebrand has confused some customers and, by their account, hurt trust
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Linode (Akamai Cloud) scores higher on our Hosting & Infrastructure criteria: 7/10 against 6.8/10 for DigitalOcean. The largest gap is in Analytics: 6/10 for DigitalOcean and 5/10 for Linode (Akamai Cloud).
DigitalOcean costs less for 10 users: about $4/mo on its Basic Droplet 512 MiB plan, against about $5/mo on its Nanode 1 GB (Shared CPU) plan for Linode (Akamai Cloud), billed monthly.
No, neither DigitalOcean nor Linode (Akamai Cloud) lists a free plan.
DigitalOcean is the better fit for small business: we rate it 7/10 for them, against 5/10 for Linode (Akamai Cloud).
