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DigitalOcean

DigitalOcean

Overview

What is DigitalOcean?

DigitalOcean is an infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) platform from the company of the same name headquartered in New York. It is known for its support of managed Kubernetes clusters and “droplets” feature.

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Recent Reviews

TrustRadius Insights

DigitalOcean is a versatile platform that has been widely adopted for various use cases by different types of users. For web developers …
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Popular Features

View all 9 features
  • Pre-defined machine images (29)
    8.7
    87%
  • Dynamic scaling (28)
    8.2
    82%
  • Monitoring tools (30)
    7.7
    77%
  • Operating system support (29)
    7.7
    77%
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Pricing

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1GB-16GB

$5.00

Cloud
Starting Price Per Month

8GB-160GB

$60.00

Cloud
Starting Price Per Month

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services
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Product Demos

Demo: Deploying Librarian to DigitalOcean's App Platform in 3 minutes

YouTube

Hands on with Redis Labs and DigitalOcean

YouTube

MICROWEBER TUTORIAL + DEMO + INSTALL + REVIEW

YouTube

DigitalOcean Swimmer Demo

YouTube
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Features

Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)

IaaS provides the basic building blocks for an IT infrastructure like servers, storage, and networking, in an on-demand model over the Internet

8.2
Avg 8.1
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Product Details

What is DigitalOcean?

DigitalOcean is an infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) platform from the company of the same name headquartered in New York. It is known for its support of managed Kubernetes clusters and “Droplets” feature.

Deployment

  • Create managed Kubernetes clusters just by specifying the size and location of worker nodes

  • Standard, general purpose, or CPU-optimized compute types

  • App marketplace

  • Global availability

Scalability

  • Scale up, scale down, or migrate between Droplets (virtual machines)

  • Distribute traffic across droplets

  • Redirect network traffic

  • Hourly billing

Storage

  • Managed MySQL, Redis, or PostgreSQL databases

  • Store and retrieve any amount of data (audio, video, etc.)

  • SSD-based storage support

  • Backups and snapshots

Security

  • Cloud firewalls

  • Private networking

  • Two-factor authorization and centralized billing

Monitoring

  • Native integration

  • Resource usage reports and graphs

  • Real-term alerts and notifications

DigitalOcean Video

Introducing Premium Droplets on DigitalOcean. Starting at just $6/month, you can choose some of the latest Intel and AMD processors around. Backed by NVMe drives, Premium Droplets are perfect for high-traffic applications that require peak performance at a minimal price. To l...
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DigitalOcean Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

DigitalOcean is an infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) platform from the company of the same name headquartered in New York. It is known for its support of managed Kubernetes clusters and “droplets” feature.

Reviewers rate Pre-configured templates highest, with a score of 9.3.

The most common users of DigitalOcean are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(132)

Community Insights

TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!

DigitalOcean is a versatile platform that has been widely adopted for various use cases by different types of users. For web developers and engineers, DigitalOcean offers a seamless hosting solution for websites and web applications, allowing them to easily set up and manage their own servers. This includes hosting personal and professional websites, managing documentation for migration and setup, as well as providing support throughout the process. Customers have praised DigitalOcean for its user-friendly interface and the ability to quickly spin up servers for testing new WordPress 'stacks' within minutes.

In addition to web hosting, DigitalOcean is also utilized by organizations for cloud computing needs. This includes hosting cloud instances, managing DNS records, utilizing floating IP addresses, deploying Kubernetes instances, and setting up load balancers. The flexibility and scalability of DigitalOcean's services allow organizations to easily adapt their infrastructure based on their specific requirements. Moreover, development teams appreciate the low-cost reliable servers and support provided by DigitalOcean when it comes to developing, testing, and deploying production infrastructure.

One notable use case is DustMoon, a media company that switched to DigitalOcean for hosting their website. They reported improved performance after moving to an entry-level VPS plan. Another use case involves customers using DigitalOcean to host custom scheduling software publicly, eliminating the need for VPN accounts or exposing servers to public access, thus enhancing security in the process.

DigitalOcean's simplicity, flexibility, and affordability make it an attractive option for both small client projects and larger organizations. Customers highly recommend DigitalOcean as a web hosting service due to its fantastic performance at a great price point. However, while users appreciate the features provided by DigitalOcean, some have suggested that the support could be more effective. Overall, DigitalOcean has proven to be a reliable solution for various cloud computing needs such as hosting websites and web apps, running microservices, and launching prototypes quickly and cost-effectively.

Developer-friendly tools and APIs: Users have expressed their appreciation for the developer-friendly tools and APIs provided by DigitalOcean, finding them useful and conducive to efficient development processes. Several reviewers have stated that these tools have made it easier for them to develop and manage their cloud resources effectively.

Great documentation: The comprehensive and well-structured documentation offered by DigitalOcean has been highly praised by users. Many reviewers have found the documentation to be helpful, particularly when setting up various configurations and services. They have highlighted its wide coverage of topics as a valuable resource for guidance.

Active and helpful community: The active and supportive community of DigitalOcean has garnered positive feedback from users. They have commended the community's responsiveness in providing assistance whenever needed. Reviewers also appreciate the availability of official help articles and public forums, which contribute to their positive experience with the platform.

Limited product offerings: Some users have mentioned that DigitalOcean offers a limited range of products compared to other cloud providers, specifically noting the absence of enterprise-level options such as Windows Server, MS SQL Server, and Oracle products. This may be a drawback for users who require a wider variety of services.

Limited number of regions: Users have expressed concern about the limited availability of data center regions in DigitalOcean. While the platform is expanding rapidly and introducing new data centers, some reviewers feel that having fewer options could be disadvantageous for those who require specific geographical locations.

Complex email server setup: Setting up email servers on DigitalOcean can be complex according to some users, leading them to recommend external services like Zoho instead. The intricate process may pose challenges for users who prefer a simpler email setup within the DigitalOcean platform.

Users have made several recommendations based on their experiences with DigitalOcean. The three most common recommendations are:

  1. Users suggest DigitalOcean as a good choice for enterprise or small-medium businesses, but not for beginner individual developers. They appreciate the ease of setup compared to other cloud providers.

  2. Use DigitalOcean for hosting projects with great support and functionalities. Users find DigitalOcean to be an excellent platform for hosting web applications, virtual machines, and VPS servers. They recommend using DigitalOcean for quick and affordable hosting needs, especially for small projects or users with limited server management experience.

  3. Consider DigitalOcean as a reliable cloud provider for startups or new companies looking to quickly create a backend infrastructure or cloud-based computing. Users mention that DigitalOcean is easy to use, provides transparent monthly billing, and offers straightforward pricing. They also appreciate helpful documentation, interesting promotions, inbuilt monitoring, and consistent service without surprises at the end of the month.

Overall, users find DigitalOcean to be a competitive option in the market with flexible tariffs, easy setup, strong functionality, and affordability.

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-2 of 2)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
Hernán Silva | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
For a company I worked with as a consultant, I implemented DigitalOcean as a web server for hosting the main website of the company and a self-hosted JIRA instance where they tracked progress on an internal project. DigitalOcean performed really well during times of high traffic and high use of both the website and the project management tool.
  • SPEED! DigitalOcean provides a really good response speed compared to similar providers. Their servers and Drops perform really well when configured the right way.
  • Ease of Use. Even for a seasoned developer like me, DigitalOcean seemed a bit intimidating at first due to its need to configure almost anything using a console screen. Turns out however, it was very easy to use by using the web interface and following guides on the internet.
  • Documentation. DigitalOcean offers one of the best pieces of documentation one can find for a service anywhere. From creating an account to setting up complex configurations and services, they have it very well documented. If you still can't find how to do anything, you can either read guides on the internet or ask for support and someone will point you in the right direction.
  • The only area I see room for improvement, if anything, is features on low tiers. They offer several, very afforable plans to be honest. However, some of the features on low price tiers seem too low for modern needs. For example, space on the $10/m or the $20/m plans seem a bit low compared to other providers.
DigitalOcean is a very good option for dedicated hosting of applications and sites with high traffic or high use volume. It's not as good of an option for small websites or novice users looking for a cheap hosting.
Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) (8)
33.75%
3.4
Service-level Agreement (SLA) uptime
N/A
N/A
Dynamic scaling
70%
7.0
Elastic load balancing
N/A
N/A
Pre-configured templates
N/A
N/A
Monitoring tools
50%
5.0
Pre-defined machine images
N/A
N/A
Operating system support
80%
8.0
Security controls
70%
7.0
  • It came out as an affordable and reliable option for the company I worked with and the needs they had.
  • Comparing features and price, DigitalOcean offers a really good mix you cannot find with other providers.
  • Plans and features can scale with your company needs.
AWS: Too complex to set things up. Period.
Mediatemple: Great features, services and customer service. Prices are a bit high for what they offer.
Linode: Outstanding features and customer support. Difficult to start with for novice users.
inMotion Hosting: Used to be a really good provider but everything is on a down with them: poor scalability, frequent failures, poor customer support.
3
Web designers, web developers, project managers, IT managers
1
Linux Certified Systems Administrator and DevOps Engineer
  • Web hosting of company website
  • Web hosting for project management application
  • Found none so far, we used it for very straightforward, common uses.
  • File hosting
  • Testing environment
Very satisfied with the pricing model, service features and customer support.
Yes
InMotionHosting. They are offering a poor set of services and customer support service. Their prices and features do not scale well.
  • Price
  • Product Features
  • Product Usability
  • Third-party Reviews
I compared DigitalOcean with other services and providers and price vs. features played a major role here. Many other providers offered similar features at a much higher price.

I also looked for reviews online and found almost no complaints on DigitalOcean, satisfaction was the key concept amongst clients of DigitalOcean.
Would not change a thing to be honest, awesome experience so far.
  • Creating drops
  • Starting servers up
  • Installing services
  • Not a difficulty in DigitalOcean itself but in some services: if you don't know how to put things together in Linux, you have to read a lot.
Great web interface, very intuitive and easy to use.
Great scalability, you can start with small plans and move up to premium features at a very good price.
Have not found a single second of down time myself. Superior availability.
Very quick response and high performance, you have to fine tune configurations on your machines though.
Creede Lambard | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I use DigitalOcean as a platform for my personal website, to manage email for several domains I administer, and for some personal projects related to my hobbies and interests.
  • Uptime. Since I joined a couple of years ago I don't think I've had a single outage.
  • Native IPv6. IPv6 is the way of the future and DigitalOcean allows me to participate without jumping through hoops (e.g. negotiating through a tunnel broker).
  • Simplicity. I can spin up a droplet and have it up and running quickly, and I don't have to go through a lengthy process to do so.
  • Platform. I love Ubuntu and it's standard with DigitalOcean.
  • External storage. This is the big one. When you spin up a droplet you have a fixed virtual disk size. It would be really nice to be able to temporarily or permanently add storage without resorting to hacks involving solutions like S3 or Dropbox.
  • DNS management. There are numerous DNS solutions available on the net but it would be nice to have one native to DigitalOcean.
I would recommend DigitalOcean to the small-scale operator who just wants to put up a Wordpress site or something similar; to the hobbyist learning about cloud computing; and to someone looking for a platform more powerful than shared hosting, less expensive than a dedicated host and more cost-effective than AWS. For example, until I found DigitalOcean I was making do with a t1.micro AWS instance that was costing about $15 a month when things like bandwidth costs were factored in. My DigitalOcean droplet runs about $20 a month, has much more computing power than the old AWS instance, and is chugging along happily running several Docker containers that house the services I use. However, for those who need a full ecosystem of products like CDNs, in-house DNS, dedicated database solutions and the like, or who are running larger-scale operations, something like AWS would be more appropriate.
Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) (8)
50%
5.0
Service-level Agreement (SLA) uptime
100%
10.0
Dynamic scaling
N/A
N/A
Elastic load balancing
N/A
N/A
Pre-configured templates
N/A
N/A
Monitoring tools
N/A
N/A
Pre-defined machine images
100%
10.0
Operating system support
100%
10.0
Security controls
100%
10.0
  • Since I don't use DigitalOcean for business purposes at the moment, this doesn't apply. But as an IT professional using it for personal projects and as a testbed for learning, it works great.
  • AWS
As I said earlier, for the kinds of things I do I find a $20/mo DigitalOcean droplet to be much more cost-effective than a similar AWS platform. However, for enterprise-level work with things like CDNs and load balancing, I'd be more inclined to evaluate and use AWS.
1
Everything, since it's just me :)
1
In my use case (Ubuntu Linux) you need a good knowledge of Linux in order to install, create and maintain software. Fortunately DigitalOcean makes it easy to do, both with tools related to the OS (e.g. Ubuntu repositories) and tutorials and how-tos I've mentioned elsewhere.
  • Database, both SQL (MySQL) and NoSQL (Redis)
  • Email (Postfix)
  • Website (primarily Rails and Nginx)
  • I run a politically themed URL shortener. DigitalOcean allows me to do this fairly easily with Rails, Redis and MySQL.
  • When Docker burst upon the scene I used my DigitalOcean droplet to learn how it works. Now all of my services run in Docker containers and it makes updating and maintenance easier.
I've been very happy with it for my purposes and I plan to continue to use DigitalOcean for the foreseeable future!
No
Don't really need it. I'm used to doing my own support.
Nobody's perfect. :) But the one or two issues I've run into with DigitalOcean were resolved quickly, and I have to give a shout out to their awesome tutorials. When I've wanted to implement a new feature or find out how something works, I've often been able to find a DigitalOcean tutorial that walks me through it.
Yes
Yes it was. Support was able to pinpoint the issue and help me get it fixed quickly.
Just providing their awesome collection of tutorials and how-tos is exceptional in my book. :)
  • Spinning up a machine
  • Updating via apt
  • Support through tutorials and how-tos
  • Can't think of any!
Yes, but I don't use it
Because everything I've ever wanted to do with DigitalOcean, I've been able to do with no problem.
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