Compare / Azure App Service vs Linode Shared CPU
Azure App Service vs Linode Shared CPU
Pre-calculated from hand-checked data — Azure App Service checked 2026-08-06, Akamai Linode checked 2026-08-06.
The short version
Azure App Service wins more of our comparison points, but Linode Shared CPU still fits if developers who want a proven, boring VPS with cheap bandwidth describes you.
Price Linode Shared CPU
Linode Shared CPU is cheaper at every stage we model — about $24/mo even for a growing project.
Ease Azure App Service
Azure App Service is easier to get running: connect GitHub Actions from the portal, push to a local git remote, or run `az webapp up` — runtime stacks for Node, Python, .NET, PHP, and Java are built in.
Control Linode Shared CPU
Linode Shared CPU gives you more control over the stack — the flip side of the convenience trade.
Free tier Azure App Service
Azure App Service has a free tier; Linode Shared CPU doesn't.
Features Azure App Service
Azure App Service comes out ahead on 6 of the 15 features we track, versus 1.
What developers say about this matchup
We couldn't find a substantive first-person discussion comparing this exact pair. We leave the section empty instead of filling it with vendor marketing or generic SEO comparisons.
At a glance
| Azure App Service | Linode Shared CPU | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Teams in the Microsoft ecosystem — .NET shops, enterprise-adjacent projects, or anyone whose employer already pays for Azure. | Developers who want a proven, boring VPS with cheap bandwidth. |
| How deploys work | Connect GitHub Actions from the portal, push to a local git remote, or run `az webapp up` — runtime stacks for Node, Python, .NET, PHP, and Java are built in. | You get root on a Linux server; the Marketplace offers one-click apps for common stacks. |
| The tradeoff | Capable and git-friendly, but you pay PaaS prices per plan and navigate the most complicated tier system here. | Fully self-managed, with a smaller ecosystem than DigitalOcean's tutorials and tooling. |
| Free tier | F1 Free tier: 1 GB RAM, 60 CPU-minutes/day, no custom domain or SLA. Plus a $200/30-day new-account credit. | None |
What you'd realistically pay
| Project stage | Azure App Service | Linode Shared CPU | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Just starting | ≈$13.14/mo B1 Basic (Linux) — 1 core, 1.75 GB RAM, 10 GB storage, custom domains and SSL, 99.95% SLA. West Europe pricing. | ≈$5/mo Nanode 1GB — 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, 25 GB SSD, 1 TB pooled transfer. | Linode Shared CPU |
| Steady traffic | ≈$32/mo B1 + managed PostgreSQL — ~$13 B1 Linux plus ~$19 for the cheapest PostgreSQL Flexible Server (B1ms + 32 GiB storage). | ≈$12/mo Linode 2GB — 1 vCPU, 2 GB RAM, 50 GB SSD, 2 TB pooled transfer. | Linode Shared CPU |
| Growing | ≈$84/mo P0v3 + managed PostgreSQL — ~$65 Premium P0v3 (1 vCPU, 4 GB, autoscale and slots) plus ~$19 for managed PostgreSQL. | ≈$24/mo Two Linode 2GB — Scale horizontally or move up the shared-CPU line. | Linode Shared CPU |
Azure App Service pricing notes
- Prices are West Europe, per App Service Plan (~730 h/month); they vary by region.
- Windows plans cost roughly 4× Linux at the Basic tier because the license is baked in.
- Bandwidth: first 100 GB/month free, then about $0.087/GB.
- Savings plans and reservations cut Premium prices by up to ~55%.
Linode Shared CPU pricing notes
- US and EU core regions share identical pricing; transfer overage is $0.005/GB.
- IPv4 is included; private same-datacenter traffic doesn't count against the allowance.
Our ratings
Ease of use Azure App Service
Pricing clarity Linode Shared CPU
Free tier Azure App Service
Scaling Azure App Service
Control Linode Shared CPU
Feature by feature
Azure App Service wins 6, Linode Shared CPU wins 1, with 8 even.
Deploy workflow
| Azure App Service | Linode Shared CPU | |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy from Git push | Yes GitHub Actions wired from the portal, local git push, or ZIP deploy. | No No deploy pipeline — bring your own CI or scripts. |
| Preview deploys | Partial Deployment slots (Standard tier and up) give staging environments, but no automatic PR previews. | No Nothing built in. |
| Official CLI | Yes `az webapp up` deploys an app in one command. | Yes linode-cli covers instances, volumes, and DNS. |
| Instant rollbacks | Partial Slot swaps revert instantly on Standard+; Basic and Free redeploy the old build instead. | Partial Backups and images restore machines; no deploy-level rollback. |
Platform
| Azure App Service | Linode Shared CPU | |
|---|---|---|
| Custom domains + HTTPS | Yes Custom domains with managed certificates from the B1 tier up. | Yes Free DNS manager; TLS on the box is yours via certbot. |
| Built-in CDN / edge network | Partial Azure Front Door / CDN integrate but are separate billed services. | No Akamai CDN exists as a separate enterprise product; nothing bundled. |
| Serverless functions | Partial Azure Functions is a sibling product and can even run on the same plan, but it is not part of App Service itself. | No Not a VPS feature. |
| Docker containers | Yes Custom containers are first-class on Linux plans. | Yes Docker Marketplace app or install it yourself. |
| SSH / shell access | Partial Browser and CLI SSH into the app container — not a VM you own. | Yes Full root SSH, plus a web-based LISH console. |
| EU hosting region | Yes West Europe, North Europe, Germany, France, Sweden, Poland, Italy, Spain, and more. | Yes Frankfurt, London, Amsterdam, and more at US prices. |
Runtime & operations
| Azure App Service | Linode Shared CPU | |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic scaling | Partial Rule-based autoscale from the Standard tier; smarter automatic scaling needs Premium. | No Manual resizing only. |
| Scale to zero | No Paid plans bill continuously; only the free F1 tier unloads idle apps (with cold starts). | No Servers bill while they exist on the account. |
| Scheduled jobs | Yes WebJobs run scheduled and background tasks inside the plan. | Yes Classic cron on the box. |
| Managed database | Yes Azure Database for PostgreSQL/MySQL from ~$19/month, plus SQL Database and Cosmos DB. | Yes Akamai Managed Databases (Postgres, MySQL) sold separately. |
| Logs & metrics built in | Yes Application Insights is deeply integrated — but ingestion bills per GB. | Partial Longview basic metrics free for a few servers; app logs are yours. |
Watch out for
Azure App Service
- A Windows B1 plan costs ~$55/month versus ~$13 for the same tier on Linux — and default tooling sometimes nudges you toward Windows.
- You pay per App Service Plan, not per app: a second plan doubles the bill even if both are nearly idle.
- The free F1 tier has a hard 60 CPU-minutes/day quota that silently stops your app when exhausted.
- Ride-along services (Application Insights ingestion, Defender for Cloud) show up as surprise line items.
- The spending cap only exists on credit subscriptions (free trial, MSDN) — pay-as-you-go has alerts only.
Akamai Linode
- Charges accrue while a server exists on the account, powered on or off.
- Transfer allowances are prorated for partial months.
- Some regions (Jakarta, São Paulo) carry documented higher prices.
Read the full reviews: Azure App Service and Akamai Linode. Or answer four questions to see what fits your project.