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Hetzner vs DigitalOcean for a $5 trading bot

The bot needs a tiny Linux box that stays on. Brand is secondary. Price, a nearby region, snapshots, and whether you already know the panel are the real differences.

Pick either. A $4–$7 instance with 1 vCPU and 1 GB RAM is enough for one Python scanner. Do not spend this decision longer than hardening SSH.

Hetzner Cloud

• Usually cheaper per GB of RAM in EU (Falkenstein, Helsinki, Nuremberg) and now US locations too.
• CX22 / CAX11-class boxes are the usual “bot on a budget” size.
• Snapshots are cheap. Console is enough for SSH keys and a rescue image.

DigitalOcean

• Basic droplet ~$4–$6: familiar panel, lots of tutorials.
• You already run myclawtrade.com on a droplet — same SSH habits.
• Regions: pick close to the exchange if you care about latency. For a 5-minute scan, region is not the main risk.

What actually matters

1. SSH keys only, no password.
2. Non-root user + ufw allow OpenSSH only.
3. A snapshot after the first healthy deploy.
4. The public IPv4 copied into the Binance allowlist.

If you already have a DigitalOcean account, use it. If you are starting from zero and you are in Europe, Hetzner is often the cheaper bill. Then follow the VPS guide and ignore the brand war.

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