Choosing a VPS for Penetration Testing: Provider Comparison December 2025

Building a proper penetration testing lab requires more than just finding the cheapest VPS. You need a provider that explicitly allows offensive security testing, offers sufficient resources for modern tools, and won't suspend your account mid-engagement.

After analyzing seven major providers, reviewing their Terms of Service, and testing resource requirements with security tool containers, the analysis revealed that several popular choices have policies that restrict or prohibit security testing.

More importantly, I learned why separation of concerns matters: running two VPS instances—one for production services, one for security testing—provides operational resilience. If the pentesting VPS gets flagged or suspended (which can happen even with authorization, based on community reports), production infrastructure stays online.

Here's what the analysis revealed, with verified December 2025 pricing and policies.

The Dual-VPS Architecture

Before diving into the provider comparison, here's the recommended production setup:

Production VPS (Hostinger KVM 2): $7.49/month

• n8n workflow automation
• Vaultwarden password manager
• Ollama LLM API
• Other production services

Security Testing VPS (OVHcloud VPS-1): $4.20/month

• Kali pentest tools
• Mobile security tools
• Web3 security tools
• Metasploit framework

Total Monthly Cost: $11.69

Why Two VPS Instances?

Separation of concerns. If the security testing VPS gets suspended (even with proper authorization, providers make mistakes), production services stay online. Blog keeps running, automation workflows continue, password manager remains accessible.

This isn't paranoia—it's operational maturity. When running offensive security tools, limiting the blast radius of any potential issues is a reasonable precaution.

The Problem: Policy Restrictions Are Common

Before diving into provider comparisons, understand this: several major VPS providers explicitly prohibit or restrict penetration testing in their Terms of Service. Note: The pricing and policies in this comparison were verified in December 2025. Providers may update these at any time—always check current ToS before deploying.

What "Prohibited" Looks Like

DigitalOcean's Acceptable Use Policy states:

"You may not attempt to probe, scan, penetrate, or test the vulnerability of a DigitalOcean system or network, or to breach the DigitalOcean security or authentication measures... without DigitalOcean's prior written consent."

This isn't about testing their infrastructure—this applies to testing from their infrastructure. Deploy nmap on a DigitalOcean Droplet and scan an authorized target? You're violating their ToS.

Hetzner's System Policies are even stricter:

"The scanning of foreign networks or foreign IP addresses [is prohibited]."

Community reports show Hetzner actively monitors for scanning activity and suspends accounts aggressively. Users report servers being suspended within 1-2 hours of starting port scans.

The Real-World Impact

Getting suspended mid-engagement isn't just embarrassing—it can have serious consequences:

• Active engagements interrupted - Shell catchers go offline, connections drop
• Client impact - Explaining why testing infrastructure disappeared
• Data loss - Scan results, notes, configurations gone
• Time waste - Hours rebuilding infrastructure on a new provider
• Production collateral damage - If production and testing share a VPS, BOTH go down

This makes provider selection critical, not optional.

Resource Requirements: What You Actually Need

Before comparing providers, let's establish baseline requirements for running security testing tools in Docker containers:

Resource Usage - Real Numbers

At Rest (Idle State):

• RAM: 2-3GB baseline (containers running, waiting for commands)
• CPU: <5% (monitoring and health checks only)
• Disk: ~15GB (Docker images + volumes)

Under Load (Active Scanning):

• RAM: 4-6GB (multiple tools running concurrently)
• CPU: Variable, can spike to 60-90% during intensive scans
• Disk I/O: Moderate (log writes, result storage)

Note: These are estimates based on typical security testing workflows. Your actual resource needs will vary depending on scan intensity, target count, and tool selection.

Minimum vs Comfortable Specs

Minimum (Budget Constrained):

• 4GB RAM, 2 vCPU, 40GB SSD
• Outcome: Works but you'll hit resource limits frequently

Comfortable (Recommended):

• 8GB RAM, 4 vCPU, 75GB SSD
• Outcome: Run multiple tools simultaneously without bottlenecks

For this comparison, I'm targeting the "comfortable" tier—8GB RAM minimum for security testing.

Provider Comparison Matrix (December 2025 Pricing)

Here's the complete comparison with verified December 2025 pricing, policies, and specifications:

The $4.20 vs $120 Paradox

The cheapest pentest-friendly VPS (OVHcloud at $4.20/month) offers comparable resources to more expensive options while having a clearer pentesting policy. For security testing use cases, policy clarity often matters more than raw specs—though performance requirements will vary by workload.

Detailed Provider Analysis

OVHcloud (RECOMMENDED for Security Testing)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• VPS-1: $4.20/month
  • 8GB RAM
  • 4 vCores
  • 75GB SSD
  • 400 Mbps bandwidth, unlimited traffic
  • Daily backup included
  • Anti-DDoS protection included

Penetration Testing Policy:

OVHcloud has the clearest, most permissive pentesting policy, codified in their General Terms of Service (Article 3.13):

✅ Explicitly allows client-initiated penetration testing
✅ No prior notification required from OVHcloud
✅ Must have authorization from target systems (standard legal requirement)
⚠️ Tests must be limited to your own services/instances only
⚠️ Cannot target OVHcloud's shared infrastructure
📋 Written audit report must be produced and provided on request

Why This Matters:

This policy means you can:

• Deploy nmap, nuclei, masscan without notification
• Run reconnaissance on authorized targets
• Test web applications with Burp Suite, sqlmap
• Conduct mobile app security testing

Verdict: BEST VALUE for security testing—explicit legal protection at $4.20/month.

Hetzner (CHEAP BUT PROHIBITED)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• CX33: €5.49-6.59/month (~$5-6 USD)
  • 8GB RAM
  • 4 vCPU
  • 80GB SSD
  • 20TB traffic (EU), 1TB (US)

Why This Looks Tempting:

€5.49/month for 8GB RAM is incredibly cheap—even cheaper than OVHcloud. If Hetzner allowed pentesting, this would be the clear winner.

Penetration Testing Policy:

Hetzner has one of the most restrictive policies:

❌ System Policies prohibit port/network scans
❌ Active abuse monitoring with automatic detection
❌ Users report filling out abuse forms repeatedly to avoid shutdown

Real Community Experiences:

Reddit and LowEndTalk threads show consistent patterns:

• Accounts suspended within 1-2 hours of starting nmap scans
• Abuse reports filed automatically by monitoring systems
• Support response: "Our ToS prohibits scanning, regardless of authorization"

Verdict: The price is incredible, but Hetzner's aggressive abuse monitoring makes it completely unsuitable for offensive security work. AVOID for pentesting.

Hostinger (Production Only)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• KVM 2: $7.49/month
  • 8GB RAM
  • 2 vCPU
  • 100GB NVMe
  • 8TB bandwidth

Penetration Testing Policy:

• ❓ No published policy regarding security testing
• General ToS prohibits "unauthorized access attempts" (vague)
• No community reports of pentest-related suspensions found

Why Hostinger for Production:

• ✅ Excellent value ($7.49 for 8GB RAM)
• ✅ Fast NVMe storage (100GB)
• ✅ Suitable for standard production workloads

Caveat: Without an explicit policy on security testing, verify with Hostinger support if your production services might generate traffic patterns that could be flagged.

Why NOT Hostinger for Security Testing:

• ❌ No explicit pentest-friendly ToS (legal uncertainty)
• ❌ Only 2 vCPU (vs OVHcloud's 4 vCPU)
• ❌ Not worth the risk when OVHcloud explicitly allows it

Verdict: RECOMMENDED for production, NOT RECOMMENDED for pentesting.

DigitalOcean (AVOID)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• Basic Droplet 8GB: $48/month
  • 8GB RAM
  • 4 vCPU
  • 160GB SSD

Penetration Testing Policy:

DigitalOcean's Acceptable Use Policy explicitly prohibits offensive security testing:

❌ "May not attempt to probe, scan, penetrate, or test the vulnerability"
❌ Requires explicit written permission from DigitalOcean
❌ No documented process for obtaining permission

Verdict: At $48/month with an explicit pentest ban, DigitalOcean is both expensive (11x OVHcloud) and legally risky. Hard pass.

AWS Lightsail (Acceptable but Expensive)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• 8GB Plan: $44/month
  • 8GB RAM
  • 2 vCPU
  • 160GB SSD
  • 5TB transfer

Penetration Testing Policy:

AWS has a mature, well-documented policy:

✅ No approval required for testing YOUR AWS resources
✅ Permitted: EC2, Lambda, RDS, S3, CloudFront, ELB
❌ Prohibited: DDoS testing, AWS infrastructure

When to Choose AWS:

• Your organization already uses AWS (billing consolidation)
• You need US-based IP addresses (some bug bounty programs require it)
• Compliance requirements mandate AWS

Verdict: Lightsail is acceptable but 10x the cost of OVHcloud for similar specs. Worth it only for specific use cases.

Linode/Akamai (Policy Uncertainty)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• Shared CPU 8GB: $48/month
  • 8GB RAM
  • 4 vCPU
  • 160GB storage
  • 5TB transfer

Penetration Testing Policy:

Linode/Akamai's policy is unclear. No published penetration testing policy exists in their ToS or documentation.

What This Means:

• ⚠️ Not explicitly prohibited (unlike DigitalOcean, Hetzner)
• ⚠️ No protection if abuse complaints trigger suspension
• ⚠️ Policy could change without notice

Verdict: At $48/month with policy uncertainty, Linode offers no advantage over AWS (which has clear permission) or OVHcloud (which is 11x cheaper).

Vultr (Expensive and Risky)

Current Pricing (December 2025):

• High Performance 8GB: $120/month
  • 8GB RAM
  • 4 vCPU
  • 120GB SSD
  • 10TB bandwidth

Penetration Testing Policy:

Vultr's Acceptable Use Policy states:

⚠️ Port scanning "only permitted if explicitly authorized by the destination host"
⚠️ Automated suspension if traffic "trips security parameters"
⚠️ Community reports show suspensions from legitimate testing

Verdict: At $120/month for the High Performance 8GB tier, Vultr is significantly more expensive than alternatives with clearer policies. The "High Performance" designation may offer better hardware, but the policy uncertainty reduces its appeal for security testing. Consider alternatives like OVHcloud or AWS Lightsail with explicit permission.

Decision Framework

Provider Selection by Use Case

For Security Testing:

For Production Services:

The Policy Clarity Spectrum

Rule: Only use ALLOWED providers for security testing. UNCLEAR is production-only.

Final Recommendation: Dual-VPS Strategy

After analyzing policies, testing resource requirements, and running infrastructure for months, here's the recommended setup:

Recommended Setup (Dual-VPS)

For Security Testing: OVHcloud VPS-1

• $4.20/month (8GB RAM, 4 vCPU, 75GB SSD)
• Explicit pentest-friendly ToS (legal protection)
• No pre-notification required
• Daily backups included
• Unlimited traffic with anti-DDoS

For Production Services: Hostinger KVM 2

• $7.49/month (8GB RAM, 2 vCPU, 100GB NVMe)
• Excellent value and uptime
• Fast NVMe storage
• NOT for security testing (policy unclear)

Total Cost: $11.69/month

Why This Works:

• ✅ Separation of concerns (security testing isolated from production)
• ✅ If pentesting VPS suspended → production unaffected
• ✅ Legal clarity (OVHcloud explicitly allows testing)
• ✅ Cost-effective (under $12/month for both use cases)

Single-VPS Alternative (Budget Constrained)

If $12/month is too expensive, use OVHcloud only ($4.20/month). You get pentest-friendly ToS plus can run production services. But dual-VPS is worth the extra $7/month for operational resilience.

Other Options Worth Considering

This comparison focused on mainstream VPS providers. Other options exist:

• Google Cloud / Azure: Both allow security testing with notification requirements
• Dedicated pentest platforms: BreachLock, Cobalt have purpose-built infrastructure
• Self-hosted labs: For purely internal testing, no provider restrictions apply

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Mistake 1: Choosing Based on Price Alone

Why it fails: Hetzner is ~$5/month but community reports indicate aggressive monitoring for scanning activity.

Lesson: Policy clarity is worth paying for.

Mistake 2: Assuming "Popular" Means "Pentest Friendly"

Why it fails: DigitalOcean is the default choice for many developers, but their ToS explicitly prohibits security testing—and at $48/month, they're not even cheap.

Lesson: Read the ToS before deploying security tools.

Mistake 3: Running Production and Testing on Same VPS

Why it fails: Security testing triggers suspension → production goes down with it.

Lesson: Separate production from testing. Worth the extra $7/month.

Mistake 4: Undersizing Resources

Why it fails: 2GB RAM sounds sufficient until you try running nuclei + nmap + sqlmap simultaneously.

Lesson: Budget for 8GB RAM minimum for testing.

Conclusion

Choosing a VPS for penetration testing isn't about finding the cheapest option—it's about finding the provider that explicitly allows your work, offers sufficient resources, and won't suspend your account mid-engagement.

The $4.20 vs $120 paradox tells the whole story: OVHcloud offers more resources AND explicit pentesting permission at 1/30th the cost of Vultr.

Recommended Setup:

• ✅ OVHcloud VPS-1 ($4.20/month) - Security testing with explicit legal protection
• ✅ Hostinger KVM 2 ($7.49/month) - Production services with excellent uptime
• ✅ Total: $11.69/month for professional dual-VPS architecture

Why OVHcloud Wins:

• Explicit pentest-friendly ToS (Article 3.13)
• Best value at $4.20/month for 8GB/4vCPU
• Unlimited traffic with anti-DDoS
• Daily backups included

The dual-VPS architecture provides operational resilience—if testing infrastructure gets suspended, production stays online. That's worth the extra $7/month.

Sources

Provider Pricing (Verified December 2025)

• OVHcloud VPS Pricing
• Hostinger VPS Hosting
• Hetzner Cloud Pricing
• DigitalOcean Droplet Pricing
• AWS Lightsail Pricing
• Linode/Akamai Pricing

Terms of Service / Penetration Testing Policies

• OVHcloud General Terms of Service - Article 3.13
• OVHcloud Penetration Testing Help
• DigitalOcean Acceptable Use Policy
• Hetzner System Policies
• Vultr Acceptable Use Policy
• AWS Penetration Testing Policy

Community Reports

• LowEndTalk: Hetzner Port Scanning Discussion
• NTP Pool Forum: Hetzner Portscan Blocks

Pricing Aggregators

• VPSBenchmarks OVHcloud
• HostAdvice Hostinger Review
• CostGoat Hetzner Calculator