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Cloud · head to head

Vultr vs Zipkin

Vultr logo

Vultr

Cloud

High performance cloud compute

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zipkin logo

Zipkin

Cloud

Distributed tracing system for microservice latency

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Vultr vultr Cloud Compute pricing as captured 31 December 2022 started at $5/month (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB storage, 1TB transfer), scaling to $10/month and $20/month with more vCPU/RAM/storage; bandwidth overage billed at $0.01 to $0.05 per GB depending on plan; Zipkin less active development and smaller community momentum than Jaeger
  • They diverge on capability: Vultr covers Cloud servers, Zipkin covers Trace collection and search.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Vultr and Zipkin actually diverge.

Attributes where Vultr and Zipkin differ
AttributeVultrZipkin
Pricing modelusage-basedOpen source, no licence fee
PlatformsWeb, Api, CliLinux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted
Founded2014Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Cloud).

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 Vultr

  • Cloud servers
  • Bare metal servers
  • Block storage
  • Object storage
  • Load balancers
  • Kubernetes
  • Firewalls
  • Private networks

Only in Zipkin

  • Trace collection and search
  • Dependency diagram
  • Simple deployment
  • Pluggable storage

What people use each for

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

Vultr

  • High performance computingnot Zipkin
  • Game serversnot Zipkin
  • Streamingnot Zipkin
  • Database hostingnot Zipkin
  • Application serversnot Zipkin

Zipkin

  • Adding distributed tracing quickly without standing up heavy infrastructurenot Vultr
  • Java and Spring Boot estates, where instrumentation support is long-establishednot Vultr
  • Small deployments where Jaeger is more than the problem requiresnot Vultr

Where each one falls short

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

Vultr

  • Vultr Cloud Compute pricing as captured 31 December 2022 started at $5/month (1 vCPU, 1GB RAM, 25GB storage, 1TB transfer), scaling to $10/month and $20/month with more vCPU/RAM/storage; bandwidth overage billed at $0.01 to $0.05 per GB depending on plan

Zipkin

  • Less active development and smaller community momentum than Jaeger
  • Fewer features: sampling, storage options and UI are all more limited
  • The interface is dated and slower to work with on large trace volumes
  • Tracing alone still leaves metrics and logs in separate tools during an incident

Pricing, plan by plan

Vultr

Free
  • Cloud Compute$2.5/month
    • 512MB RAM
    • 10GB SSD
    • 500GB bandwidth
  • Bare Metal$32/month
    • Dedicated hardware
    • High performance
    • Full root access

Zipkin

Free
  • ZipkinFree
    • Full functionality
    • No usage limits
    • Community support

Which should you pick?

Choose Vultr if

  • You need cloud servers.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Api, Cli.
  • You also want bare metal servers.
Vultr review

Choose Zipkin if

  • You need trace collection and search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
  • You also want dependency diagram.
Zipkin review

Questions people ask

Is Vultr or Zipkin better?
Neither clearly leads. Vultr starts at Free and Zipkin at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Vultr or Zipkin?
Vultr starts at Free and Zipkin at Free.
Does Vultr or Zipkin run on more platforms?
Vultr runs on Web, Api, Cli. Zipkin runs on Linux, Docker, Kubernetes, Self-hosted.
Can I use Vultr for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Vultr best used for?
Vultr is most often used for high performance computing, game servers, streaming, database hosting. Of those, high performance computing and game servers are not what Zipkin is typically brought in for.
What can Vultr do that Zipkin cannot?
Vultr covers Cloud servers, Bare metal servers, Block storage, Object storage. Zipkin covers Trace collection and search, Dependency diagram, Simple deployment, Pluggable storage.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Zipkin: Is Zipkin free?

Yes, open source with no licence fee.

Zipkin: Zipkin or Jaeger?

Jaeger has more momentum, more features and CNCF backing. Zipkin is lighter and quicker to stand up, and remains well supported in the Java and Spring ecosystem.

Zipkin: Does Zipkin work with OpenTelemetry?

Yes. OpenTelemetry can export to Zipkin, which is now the usual way to instrument for it.

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