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Alibaba Cloud vs pCloud

Alibaba Cloud logo

Alibaba Cloud

Software

Asia's leading cloud computing provider

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
pCloud logo

pCloud

Software

Prices are final. No setup fees or other hidden charges

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Alibaba Cloud has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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; pCloud headline lifetime prices are discounted promotional prices; the Premium 500GB lifetime plan is listed at $299 struck through down to $199, and Ultra 10TB at $1,890 down to $1,190, so the full non-promotional price is materially higher

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Alibaba Cloud and pCloud actually diverge.

Attributes where Alibaba Cloud and pCloud differ
AttributeAlibaba CloudpCloud
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelusage-basedone-time
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsLinux, Windows, Api, CliWeb
Founded2009Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 pCloud

Nothing recorded that Alibaba Cloud does not also cover.

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 pCloud
  • Pay-as-you-go infrastructure without upfront commitmentnot pCloud
  • Committed-use discounts through savings plans for steady workloadsnot pCloud
  • CDN and data transfer packages for content deliverynot pCloud

pCloud

No use cases recorded yet. See the pCloud review.

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

pCloud

  • Headline lifetime prices are discounted promotional prices; the Premium 500GB lifetime plan is listed at $299 struck through down to $199, and Ultra 10TB at $1,890 down to $1,190, so the full non-promotional price is materially higher
  • Ultra 10TB plan's download link traffic is capped at 2TB, the same limit as the much smaller Premium Plus 2TB plan, despite the 5x storage difference

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

pCloud

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the pCloud review.

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.
Alibaba Cloud review

Choose pCloud if

Nothing in the data separates pCloud from Alibaba Cloud on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

pCloud review

Questions people ask

Is Alibaba Cloud or pCloud better?
Neither clearly leads. Alibaba Cloud starts at Free and pCloud at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Alibaba Cloud or pCloud?
Alibaba Cloud has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Alibaba Cloud and On request for pCloud.
Does Alibaba Cloud or pCloud run on more platforms?
Alibaba Cloud runs on Linux, Windows, Api, Cli. pCloud runs on Web.
Can I use Alibaba Cloud for free?
Yes. Alibaba Cloud has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. pCloud starts at On request.
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 pCloud is typically brought in for.
What can Alibaba Cloud do that pCloud cannot?
Alibaba Cloud covers Elastic Compute Service, Object Storage Service, RDS Database, MaxCompute.
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