There is no single best place to run Dify. A small self-managed VPS, a larger beginner-friendly VPS, a standard cloud VM, and a managed Dify service solve different problems. We compared current public specifications, pricing conditions, operating responsibility, and the official Dify installation baseline. We did not run synthetic provider benchmarks, so this page does not present invented performance scores.
Some provider links are affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no additional cost to you. Prices and availability can change after publication.
Official baseline
Dify's current repository lists at least 2 CPU cores and 4 GiB of RAM before installation. It does not publish a universal storage minimum in the quickstart. Disk, memory, and CPU requirements grow with uploaded documents, vector indexes, enabled services, concurrent workflows, and any local models you operate. Treat 2 cores and 4 GiB as an installation floor, not a production sizing guarantee.
Read the official Dify repository requirementsFour operating models
These prices are a dated snapshot, not a guarantee. Taxes, contract length, renewal price, IP charges, region, support tier and selected resources can change the total. Verify the checkout before purchase.
| Best fit | Provider and plan | Current public price context | Included resources | Operating responsibility |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Small budget VM in Germany or Finland | Hetzner CX23 | 5.49 EUR per month excluding VAT and IPv4 for new orders in Germany and Finland since June 15, 2026 | 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, 40 GB NVMe | You operate Dify, Docker, TLS, updates, backups, monitoring and recovery. |
| More memory with guided VPS tooling | Hostinger KVM 2 | 8.99 USD per month during the checked promotion, renewing at 14.99 USD per month for two years | 2 vCPU, 8 GB RAM, 100 GB NVMe | You operate Dify, Docker, TLS, updates, backups, monitoring and recovery. |
| Standard cloud VM with a regular monthly cap | DigitalOcean Basic Droplet | 24 USD per month or 0.03571 USD per hour | 2 shared vCPU, 4 GiB RAM, 80 GiB SSD, 4,000 GiB transfer | You operate Dify, Docker, TLS, updates, backups, monitoring and recovery. |
| Managed Dify service | Elestio Dify | From 16 USD per month; estimate depends on cloud provider, region, resources and support level | Managed service on a dedicated VM selected during deployment | Elestio documents installation, SSL, backups, monitoring, software and OS updates as managed responsibilities. |
Small budget VM in Germany or Finland
CX23 matches Dify's published CPU and RAM floor exactly. It is the lowest current VM price in this four-option shortlist for Germany and Finland, but it leaves little memory headroom and does not include operating Dify for you. Choose it when you can manage the full stack and resize when real usage outgrows the installation floor.
More memory with guided VPS tooling
KVM 2 provides more memory than Dify's published floor. This remains a self-managed VPS. Compare the full contract, promotion length and renewal total instead of only the advertised monthly figure.
Standard cloud VM with a regular monthly cap
This Basic Droplet matches Dify's published RAM floor and provides a standard cloud API and ecosystem. Managed databases, backups and other services cost extra and belong in the total-cost comparison.
Managed Dify service
Elestio is the managed option in this shortlist. During deployment you select a cloud provider, region, resources and support plan. Choose it when reducing operational work matters more than buying the lowest-cost raw VM.
Decision table
| If your priority is | Start with | Check before purchase |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest current raw VM price in this shortlist | Hetzner CX23 | VAT, IPv4 cost, region availability and whether 4 GB leaves enough headroom |
| More memory plus VPS-oriented support tooling | Hostinger KVM 2 | Promotion length, two-year renewal price and your responsibility for Dify operations |
| Standard cloud VM pricing and API ecosystem | DigitalOcean Basic | Shared CPU, separate backup or managed-service costs and the 4 GiB memory floor |
| Managed installation and maintenance | Elestio Dify | Selected cloud, region, resources, support plan and final monthly estimate |
Method
We include an option only when a current first-party page documents the relevant plan, price context or managed service. We compare the official Dify installation floor, public plan resources, recurring price conditions and operating responsibility. We do not claim provider-specific Dify performance without a dated workload, configuration and reproducible result. Provider order represents four different use cases, not a universal benchmark ranking.
FAQ
Dify's current repository lists at least 2 CPU cores and 4 GiB of RAM before installation. The quickstart does not state one universal storage minimum. Real requirements depend on documents, vector indexes, enabled services, workflow concurrency and any local models.
Dify Community Edition has no subscription price and uses a modified Apache 2.0 license. Infrastructure, model usage, storage, backups and operations still cost money. Multi-tenant operation and changes to Dify frontend branding are subject to additional license conditions.
No. This comparison uses current public specifications, price conditions, operating responsibility and official Dify requirements. It does not publish synthetic speed or load-test scores.
Elestio is the managed option in this shortlist and documents installation, SSL, backups, monitoring and updates as managed service capabilities. With Hetzner, Hostinger and DigitalOcean VMs, you operate the Dify stack and its recovery process.
Not by itself. Region is one input. You also need to assess contracts, data processing terms, access controls, retention, backups, logs, plugins, model-provider data flows and your own legal obligations.
Primary sources
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