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Contabo vs Akamai

Contabo logo

Contabo

Software

Affordable high-performance VPS hosting

From
€4.5/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Akamai logo

Akamai

Software

Leading content delivery and security platform

From
$1000/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Contabo fully unmanaged infrastructure requires all setup and maintenance by customer; Akamai only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price
  • They diverge on capability: Contabo covers VPS Hosting, Akamai covers CDN.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Contabo and Akamai actually diverge.

Attributes where Contabo and Akamai differ
AttributeContaboAkamai
Starting price€4.5/month$1000/month
Pricing modelUnknownquote
PlatformsLinux, WindowsWeb, Api
Founded20031998

Identical on both: free tier (No), 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 Contabo

  • VPS Hosting
  • Dedicated Servers
  • Object Storage
  • Snapshots
  • Custom ISO
  • Multiple Locations
  • SSD Storage
  • Docker

Only in Akamai

  • CDN
  • Web Application Firewall
  • Bot Management
  • Image Optimization
  • Video Platform
  • API Gateway
  • Analytics
  • AWS

Both cover

  • DDoS Protection
  • DDoS Protection
  • Cloud deployment
  • Web support
  • Api support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Contabo

  • Web hostingnot Akamai
  • Game serversnot Akamai
  • Development environmentsnot Akamai
  • VPN serversnot Akamai

Akamai

  • Content delivery and web performance through Ion and adaptive media deliverynot Contabo
  • DDoS protection, bot management and API securitynot Contabo
  • Running compute, Kubernetes and managed databases on Akamai's cloudnot Contabo
  • Edge compute with EdgeWorkersnot Contabo
  • Zero trust access for enterprise applicationsnot Contabo

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Contabo

  • Fully unmanaged infrastructure requires all setup and maintenance by customer
  • No formal SLA with financial compensation for downtime violations

Akamai

  • Only the cloud computing services carry published rates; security and content delivery products require contacting sales for a price
  • Cloud pricing varies by region across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific rather than being a single rate

Pricing, plan by plan

Contabo

€4.5/month
  • Cloud VPS$4.5/month
    • 4 vCPU
    • 8 GB RAM
    • 100 GB SSD
  • Cloud VDS$39/month
    • Dedicated cores
    • 24 GB RAM
    • 180 GB NVMe
  • Dedicated Server$149/month
    • AMD CPU
    • 64 GB RAM
    • 1 TB NVMe

Akamai

$1000/month
  • CDN$1000/month
    • Content delivery
    • Global edge network
    • Real-time analytics
  • Security Suite$2000/month
    • DDoS protection
    • WAF
    • Bot management

Which should you pick?

Choose Contabo if

  • You need vps hosting.
  • You work on Linux, Windows.
  • You also want dedicated servers.
Contabo review

Choose Akamai if

  • You need cdn.
  • You work on Web, Api.
  • You also want web application firewall.
Akamai review

Questions people ask

Is Contabo or Akamai better?
Neither clearly leads. Contabo starts at €4.5/month and Akamai at $1000/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Contabo or Akamai?
Contabo starts at €4.5/month and Akamai at $1000/month.
Does Contabo or Akamai run on more platforms?
Contabo runs on Linux, Windows. Akamai runs on Web, Api.
What is Contabo best used for?
Contabo is most often used for web hosting, game servers, development environments, vpn servers. Of those, web hosting and game servers are not what Akamai is typically brought in for.
What can Contabo do that Akamai cannot?
Contabo covers VPS Hosting, Dedicated Servers, Object Storage, Snapshots. Akamai covers CDN, Web Application Firewall, Bot Management, Image Optimization. Both handle DDoS Protection, DDoS Protection, Cloud deployment, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Contabo: What is the base pricing for Contabo VPS?

Contabo Cloud VPS starts at EUR 4.50 per month (approximately $4.95 USD) with 4 vCPU cores and 8 GB RAM. Prices scale up to EUR 39+ per month for dedicated performance VPS with higher specs.

Source
Contabo: Does Contabo raise prices at renewal?

No. Unlike many hosting providers, Contabo does not increase renewal prices. The promotional price you get at sign-up is locked in for future renewals.

Source
Contabo: What data center locations does Contabo offer?

Contabo operates 9 global data center regions including multiple EU locations, US East/Central/West Coast, United Kingdom, India, Singapore, Japan, and Australia.

Source
Contabo: Does Contabo provide managed services?

No. Contabo VPS is fully unmanaged. You handle all setup, security patching, and system maintenance. Managed hosting adds 2 hours per month of dedicated support for a fee.

Source
Contabo: What is Contabo's uptime guarantee?

Contabo maintains a 99.996% uptime guarantee across all plans. The platform includes unlimited traffic and free DDoS protection.

Source
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