Software · head to head
Google Cloud Platform vs Linode
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Google Cloud Platform the $300 Free Trial credit expires 90 days from signup, whichever comes first with spending it; 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: Google Cloud Platform covers Compute Engine, Linode covers Compute instances.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Google Cloud Platform and Linode actually diverge.
| Attribute | Google Cloud Platform | Linode |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2008 | 2003 |
Identical on both: starting price (Free), pricing model (usage-based), free tier (Yes), platforms (Web, Api, Cli), 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 Google Cloud Platform
- Compute Engine
- App Engine
- Cloud Run
- Cloud Storage
- Cloud SQL
- BigQuery
- Dataflow
- Cloud Pub/Sub
Only in Linode
- Compute instances
- Object storage
- Block storage
- Managed database
- Load balancers
- Firewalls
- Private networks
- Ansible
Both cover
- Terraform
- Kubernetes
- Docker
- Cloud deployment
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Google Cloud Platform
- Running compute, storage and managed data services on Google's cloudnot Linode
- Hosting Kubernetes workloads on GKE alongside BigQuery analyticsnot Linode
Linode
- Running Linux virtual machines on hourly billed shared or dedicated CPU plansnot Google Cloud Platform
- Managed Kubernetes, block storage and object storage on a single cloud accountnot Google Cloud Platform
- Hosting workloads in a specific one of the listed global regionsnot Google Cloud Platform
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Google Cloud Platform
- The $300 Free Trial credit expires 90 days from signup, whichever comes first with spending it
- Free Tier Compute Engine is limited to one non-preemptible e2-micro instance per month and only in the us-west1, us-central1 or us-east1 regions
- Free Tier Compute Engine includes only 30 GB-months of standard persistent disk and 1 GB of outbound North America data transfer per month
- Free Tier Cloud Storage covers 5 GB-months of regional storage in US regions only, 5,000 Class A and 50,000 Class B operations per month
- Free Tier outbound data transfer allowances exclude destinations in China and Australia
- Compute Engine resources are governed by allocation quotas that require a quota increase request to exceed
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
Google Cloud Platform
Free- Free TierFree
- Compute Engine 744 hours/month
- Cloud Storage 5GB
- Cloud SQL 250MB storage
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 Google Cloud Platform if
- You need compute engine.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api, Cli.
- You also want app engine.
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 Google Cloud Platform or Linode better?
- Neither clearly leads. Google Cloud Platform 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, Google Cloud Platform or Linode?
- Google Cloud Platform starts at Free and Linode at Free.
- Does Google Cloud Platform or Linode run on more platforms?
- Both run on Web, Api, Cli, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
- Can I use Google Cloud Platform for free?
- Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
- What is Google Cloud Platform best used for?
- Google Cloud Platform is most often used for running compute, storage and managed data services on google's cloud, hosting kubernetes workloads on gke alongside bigquery analytics. Of those, running compute, storage and managed data services on google's cloud and hosting kubernetes workloads on gke alongside bigquery analytics are not what Linode is typically brought in for.
- What can Google Cloud Platform do that Linode cannot?
- Google Cloud Platform covers Compute Engine, App Engine, Cloud Run, Cloud Storage. Linode covers Compute instances, Object storage, Block storage, Managed database. Both handle Terraform, Kubernetes, Docker, Cloud deployment.