Hetzner alternative for PHP hosting
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fortrabbit vs Hetzner.
fortrabbit is a Hetzner alternative for PHP teams who want managed hosting instead of a bare Linux VPS to maintain.
Should you swap Hetzner for fortrabbit for managed PHP?
fortrabbit is a managed PaaS built exclusively for PHP. Hetzner is excellent value for raw infrastructure — German-based, reasonably priced VPS, dedicated servers, and cloud compute. But Hetzner gives you a bare Linux server and root access; everything above the OS is your responsibility: web server, PHP-FPM, MySQL, SSL, patches, monitoring, backups.
If you want German / EU hosting without the sysadmin work, fortrabbit gives you a tuned PHP environment on top — git push deploys, integrated MySQL, atomic releases, persistent storage, SSL by default, and human support. You trade some control for far less operational overhead. Plans start at €2.50 per month; the trial doesn't require a credit card.
Start a free trial — no credit card# Frequently asked
Why use fortrabbit instead of a Hetzner VPS for PHP hosting?Less server admin
Less server admin - Hetzner gives you a Linux host with root access at competitive prices. Everything above the OS is your job: web server, PHP-FPM, MySQL, SSL certificates, security patches, monitoring, backups. fortrabbit gives up some of that control and runs the stack for you — git-push deploys, integrated MySQL, atomic releases, SSL by default. If you want managed PHP hosting in the EU without the sysadmin shift, that is the trade.
#Does fortrabbit host in Germany like Hetzner?No
No - That is a common assumption worth correcting. fortrabbit is a German company registered in Berlin, but the EU infrastructure runs in AWS Ireland (the AWS EU region). Hetzner does host inside Germany at its own data centers, which is a real difference if specifically German data residency matters to you over generic EU residency. For most GDPR-bound projects, EU jurisdiction (which Ireland satisfies) is what compliance actually asks for.
#Is fortrabbit more expensive than a Hetzner VPS?It depends
It depends - For the smallest workloads, a Hetzner VPS can be cheaper in raw monthly cost — €4 buys a usable machine. The fortrabbit price covers a managed PHP runtime, MySQL component, SSL, and persistent storage with no admin work. Once you factor in the time spent maintaining the VPS — patches, MySQL tuning, certificate renewal, backups — the cost picture is different. The right comparison is "VPS plus your time" against "managed plan".
#Can fortrabbit run the same PHP frameworks as a Hetzner server?Most of them
Most of them - Laravel, Symfony, Statamic, Craft CMS, Kirby, WordPress, and plain PHP all run on fortrabbit. The constraint is that PHP runs the app: no separate node processes, no system daemons next to it, no kernel-level tuning. For frameworks that need anything outside that envelope, a Hetzner VPS is still the right choice.
#Can a Hetzner-hosted app be tried on fortrabbit first?Yes
Yes - The free trial runs for 7 days with no credit card, one per new app — enough to provision an app, import a database, and validate a deploy before switching. Billing afterwards is component-based and in arrears, so the first invoice only reflects real usage.
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