Compare / Fly.io Machines vs Contabo Cloud VPS
Fly.io Machines vs Contabo Cloud VPS
Pre-calculated from hand-checked data — Fly.io checked 2026-08-06, Contabo checked 2026-08-06.
The short version
Fly.io Machines wins more of our comparison points, but Contabo Cloud VPS still fits if budget bulk compute — game servers, dev boxes, and side projects where raw specs per euro beat consistency describes you.
Price Fly.io Machines
Fly.io Machines is cheaper at every stage we model — about $12/mo even for a growing project.
Ease Fly.io Machines
Fly.io Machines is easier to get running: fly launch builds the image and deploys it; configuration lives in fly.toml and the flyctl CLI.
Control Contabo Cloud VPS
Contabo Cloud VPS gives you more control over the stack — the flip side of the convenience trade.
Features Fly.io Machines
Fly.io Machines comes out ahead on 7 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
| Fly.io Machines | Contabo Cloud VPS | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Dockerized apps that want low cost, fine control, or multi-region placement. | Budget bulk compute — game servers, dev boxes, and side projects where raw specs per euro beat consistency. |
| How deploys work | fly launch builds the image and deploys it; configuration lives in fly.toml and the flyctl CLI. | You get root on a bare server after order verification clears; bring your own setup or use the one-click app installs. |
| The tradeoff | You operate more of the stack yourself — especially the database. | The lowest sticker price here, paid for with oversubscription, slow support, and slow provisioning. |
| Free tier | None | None |
What you'd realistically pay
| Project stage | Fly.io Machines | Contabo Cloud VPS | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Just starting | ≈$3/mo shared-cpu-1x, 256 MB — About $2.02/month in Amsterdam if always on; less with scale-to-zero. | ≈€5.50/mo Cloud VPS 4 — 4 shared vCPU, 8 GB RAM, 100 GB SSD, 200 Mbit/s unlimited traffic. €4.40/month on a 24-month term. | Fly.io Machines |
| Steady traffic | ≈$6/mo shared-cpu-1x, 1 GB — About $5.92/month in Amsterdam, plus egress at $0.02/GB. | ≈€14/mo Cloud VPS 8 — 8 shared vCPU, 24 GB RAM, 300 GB SSD, 600 Mbit/s. €11.20/month on a 24-month term. | Fly.io Machines |
| Growing | ≈$12/mo Two 1 GB Machines — Two machines for availability; databases and egress on top. | ≈€49/mo Cloud VPS 18 — 18 shared vCPU, 96 GB RAM, 600 GB SSD, 1 Gbit/s. €39.20/month on a 24-month term. | Fly.io Machines |
Fly.io Machines pricing notes
- Billed per second only while Machines are started; scale-to-zero is natively supported.
- Egress: $0.02/GB in North America and Europe; more elsewhere.
Contabo Cloud VPS pricing notes
- Promo prices (about 20% off) require a 24-month term; list prices apply month to month.
- A one-time setup fee applies to entry plans on short terms since April 2026 — the exact amount shows at checkout.
- "Unlimited" traffic is fair-use: Contabo reserves the right to throttle disruptive usage.
Our ratings
Ease of use Fly.io Machines
Pricing clarity Fly.io Machines
Free tier
Scaling Fly.io Machines
Control Contabo Cloud VPS
Feature by feature
Fly.io Machines wins 7, Contabo Cloud VPS wins 1, with 7 even.
Deploy workflow
| Fly.io Machines | Contabo Cloud VPS | |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy from Git push | Partial No native git integration; the documented path is flyctl in GitHub Actions. | No No deploy pipeline — bring your own CI or scripts. |
| Preview deploys | Partial PR apps work via the official GitHub Action, not out of the box. | No Nothing built in. |
| Official CLI | Yes flyctl does everything: launch, deploy, scale, ssh, logs. | Yes The cntb CLI and REST API manage instances and snapshots. |
| Instant rollbacks | Partial Redeploy any previous image; no one-click dashboard rollback. | Partial Included snapshots restore machines; automatic backups cost extra. No deploy-level rollback. |
Platform
| Fly.io Machines | Contabo Cloud VPS | |
|---|---|---|
| Custom domains + HTTPS | Yes Custom domains with free managed certificates. | Yes Point DNS at the server; TLS is yours via certbot or a proxy. |
| Built-in CDN / edge network | Partial Anycast routing sends users to the nearest region, but there is no static-asset CDN. | No No CDN product — put Cloudflare in front if needed. |
| Serverless functions | No Machines are micro-VMs, not functions. | No Not a VPS feature. |
| Docker containers | Yes A Docker image is the deployment unit. | Yes Docker one-click install or set it up yourself. |
| SSH / shell access | Yes fly ssh console opens a shell in any running Machine. | Yes Full root SSH. |
| EU hosting region | Yes Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt, London, and more. | Yes German data centers at the base price; other EU sites available. |
Runtime & operations
| Fly.io Machines | Contabo Cloud VPS | |
|---|---|---|
| Automatic scaling | Yes Machines autostart and autostop with traffic; scale counts per region. | No Manual plan upgrades only. |
| Scale to zero | Yes Stopped Machines cost only their storage. | No The contract bills until cancelled, powered off or not. |
| Scheduled jobs | Partial Scheduled Machines run on fixed intervals; full cron needs a workaround. | Yes Classic cron on the box. |
| Managed database | Partial Fly Postgres is automated-but-unmanaged; managed options come from partners like Supabase and Upstash. | No No managed database product — self-host or go external. |
| Logs & metrics built in | Yes Built-in metrics (Grafana), live logs, and log shipping. | Partial Basic usage graphs in the customer panel; everything else is yours. |
Watch out for
Fly.io
- New pay-as-you-go organizations get no free allowance.
- Fly Postgres is explicitly unmanaged: automated but not a managed database service — backups and failover are your responsibility.
- Per-second compute plus $0.02/GB egress makes bills variable; prices differ by region.
Contabo
- Since 15 April 2026 entry plans on 1- or 6-month terms carry a one-time setup fee — it is waived only on 12-month-plus terms.
- New orders go through manual identity verification: provisioning can take hours to more than a day, not minutes.
- Shared hardware is heavily oversubscribed — CPU steal and variable disk I/O are common on busy nodes.
- Non-EU locations (US, UK, Asia, Australia) cost a monthly surcharge on top of list prices.
- Monthly billing only: the server bills as long as the contract runs, powered off or not.
Read the full reviews: Fly.io and Contabo. Or answer four questions to see what fits your project.