Cloud & Infrastructure · head to head
Alibaba Cloud vs Linode
Alibaba Cloud
Cloud & Infrastructure
Asia's leading cloud computing provider
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
Linode
Cloud & Infrastructure
Affordable cloud hosting and infrastructure
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Alibaba Cloud technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included; Linode linode.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to akamai.com/cloud/pricing; the service is now sold as Akamai Cloud
- They diverge on capability: Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Linode covers Compute instances.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Alibaba Cloud and Linode actually diverge.
| Attribute | Alibaba Cloud | Linode |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Linux, Windows, Api, Cli | Web, Api, Cli |
| Founded | 2009 | 2003 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud & Infrastructure).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Alibaba Cloud
- Elastic Compute Service
- Object Storage Service
- RDS Database
- MaxCompute
- Function Compute
- CDN
- Load Balancer
- API Gateway
Only in Linode
- Compute instances
- Object storage
- Block storage
- Managed database
- Load balancers
- Firewalls
- Private networks
- Cloud Manager API
Both cover
- Terraform
- Ansible
- Docker
- Kubernetes
- Cloud deployment
- Api support
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Alibaba Cloud
- Cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in China and Asia Pacificnot Linode
- Pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitmentnot Linode
- Committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloadsnot Linode
- CDN and data transfer packages for content deliverynot Linode
Linode
- Running Linux virtual machines on hourly billed shared or dedicated CPU plansnot Alibaba Cloud
- Managed Kubernetes, block storage and object storage on a single cloud accountnot Alibaba Cloud
- Hosting workloads in a specific one of the listed global regionsnot Alibaba Cloud
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Alibaba Cloud
- Technical support is a separate subscription, from $19.99 a month for Developer up to $8,000 a month for Enterprise, with only Basic included
- Service prices are not shown as a rate card and route through a calculator or sales
- Committed discounts require savings plans, reserved instances or capacity packages rather than being automatic
Linode
- linode.com/pricing returns a 301 redirect to akamai.com/cloud/pricing; the service is now sold as Akamai Cloud
- Charges accrue for any service on the account even when it is powered off, because RAM and network capacity stay reserved; only deleting the service stops billing
- Network transfer beyond the monthly allotment is billed from $0.005 per GB and the rate varies by region
- The Akamai Cloud pricing landing page shows no rates and directs visitors to regional pricing pages or sales
Pricing, plan by plan
Alibaba Cloud
Free- Free TrialFree
- Free tier credits
- ECS instances
- Cloud storage
- Pay-as-You-GoFree
- Flexible billing
- No commitments
- Global reach
Linode
Free- Nanode 1GB$5/month
- 1GB RAM
- 1 vCPU
- 25GB SSD
- Linode 4GB$20/month
- 4GB RAM
- 2 vCPU
- 80GB SSD
Which should you pick?
Choose Alibaba Cloud if
- You need elastic compute service.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli.
- You also want object storage service.
Choose Linode if
- You need compute instances.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api, Cli.
- You also want object storage.
Questions people ask
- Is Alibaba Cloud or Linode better?
- Neither clearly leads. Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and Linode at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Alibaba Cloud or Linode?
- Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and Linode at Free.
- Does Alibaba Cloud or Linode run on more platforms?
- Alibaba Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. Linode runs on Web, Api, Cli.
- Can I use Alibaba Cloud for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Alibaba Cloud best used for?
- Alibaba Cloud is most often used for cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific, pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment, committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloads, cdn and data transfer packages for content delivery. Of those, cloud compute and storage with a strong footprint in china and asia pacific and pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitment are not what Linode is typically brought in for.
- What can Alibaba Cloud do that Linode cannot?
- Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Object Storage Service, RDS Database, MaxCompute. Linode covers Compute instances, Object storage, Block storage, Managed database. Both handle Terraform, Ansible, Docker, Kubernetes.