In this guide · 7 sections
Short answer
In the Singapore region, DigitalOcean Droplets start at US$4/month (512 MiB) and a practical 2 GiB server is US$12. AWS Lightsail starts at US$5 with IPv4, and a 2 GB bundle is US$12. Add about 20 to 30% for backups, plus management time; that is often the biggest cost.
Entry VPS prices in the Singapore region
Prices in US dollars per month before GST, from DigitalOcean Droplet pricing and AWS Lightsail pricing, approximate, as of October 2026. DigitalOcean's regional availability page lists Singapore as SGP1, and Lightsail lists an Asia Pacific (Singapore) region.
| Plan | Memory / vCPU | Disk | Transfer included | Price/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DigitalOcean Basic | 512 MiB / 1 | 10 GiB | 500 GiB | US$4 |
| DigitalOcean Basic | 1 GiB / 1 | 25 GiB | 1,000 GiB | US$6 |
| DigitalOcean Basic | 2 GiB / 1 | 50 GiB | 2,000 GiB | US$12 |
| DigitalOcean Basic | 4 GiB / 2 | 80 GiB | 4,000 GiB | US$24 |
| Lightsail Linux (IPv4) | 0.5 GB / 2 | 20 GB | 1 TB | US$5 |
| Lightsail Linux (IPv4) | 1 GB / 2 | 40 GB | 2 TB | US$7 |
| Lightsail Linux (IPv4) | 2 GB / 2 | 60 GB | 3 TB | US$12 |
| Lightsail Linux (IPv4) | 4 GB / 2 | 80 GB | 4 TB | US$24 |
We could not load Vultr's pricing page when checking on 20 October 2026, so it is not in the table; check Vultr's pricing directly if you are comparing. For a WordPress site or small web app, 2 GB of memory is a sensible starting point. The 512 MB plans are fine for testing but run out of memory quickly with a database.
What is included and what costs extra
The monthly price covers the server and a transfer allowance. Most other things are extra.
| Item | DigitalOcean | AWS Lightsail (Singapore) |
|---|---|---|
| Automated backups | 20% of Droplet price (weekly) or 30% (daily); usage-based from US$0.01/GiB | Snapshots US$0.05 per GB per month |
| Manual snapshots | US$0.06 per GB per month | US$0.05 per GB per month |
| Transfer over allowance | US$0.01 per GiB outbound | US$0.12 per GB outbound |
| Inbound transfer | Free | Counts towards the allowance; only outbound overage is charged |
| Managed database | Charged separately | From US$15/month |
Bandwidth details are in DigitalOcean's bandwidth billing docs. For a typical small business site, the included transfer is far more than you will use; backups are the extra that matters.
The real monthly cost of a small business VPS
The server bill is small. The cost that catches people out is the work of running it.
- 2 GB VPS in SingaporeDigitalOcean 2 GiB or Lightsail 2 GB bundleUS$12/month
- Daily backups (DigitalOcean)30% of US$12; Lightsail snapshots priced per GB insteadabout US$3.60/month
- Off-site backup copySeparate account or storage service, varies by sizea few dollars a month
- Domain, email and Cloudflare free planBilled separately by each providerNot included
- Security updates, monitoring, restore testsYour developer's time, or a care plan1 to 3 hours a month
Server and backupsAbout US$16 to US$20/month + time
Approximate, as of October 2026, before GST. Time is the variable that decides whether a VPS is cheap.
VPS vs managed hosting: which is cheaper overall
Managed WordPress hosting costs more per month but includes the work. Kinsta's entry plan was US$35 a month, or US$350 a year, in October 2026, according to our managed vs shared hosting guide.
A VPS makes sense if
- You run a custom app, API or Docker containers
- Someone on your team or a developer already maintains servers
- You host several small sites on one server
- You need full control of software versions
Managed hosting is cheaper overall if
- You only run one WordPress or WooCommerce site
- Nobody has time to patch and check the server monthly
- You want backups, caching and malware scans handled for you
- You would pay a developer by the hour for each update
For the wider picture of hosting types and prices, see our web hosting cost guide.
Before you buy: a short checklist
VPS buying checklist
Our VPS security hardening checklist covers the first-day security setup in detail.
Do it yourself or get help?
Creating a VPS takes five minutes. Making it safe and keeping it that way is the ongoing job, and it is where most small business servers fall behind.
IT Sorted is a Singapore-based team of developers with over 10 years of experience. Software & Server Protection Setup (S$590) sets up firewall, SSH key-only login, automatic security updates, daily malware scans and alerts on your own VPS. Server Protection Care (S$149 per server a month) applies updates, checks protections and tests a restore every month. You pay the cloud provider directly.
Frequently asked questions
As of October 2026, DigitalOcean lists Droplets from US$4 a month, with a 2 GiB, 1 vCPU plan at US$12 including 2,000 GiB of transfer. AWS Lightsail lists Linux bundles with a public IPv4 address from US$5, with 2 GB of memory at US$12 including 3 TB of transfer. Prices exclude GST and backups.
Yes. DigitalOcean's regional availability documentation lists Singapore as the SGP1 region, where you can create Droplets and other products. AWS Lightsail also has an Asia Pacific (Singapore) region. Hosting in Singapore usually gives the fastest response for visitors in Singapore and nearby countries.
DigitalOcean charges 20% of the Droplet price for weekly backups or 30% for daily backups, or usage-based plans from US$0.01 per GiB a month. Lightsail charges US$0.05 per GB per month for instance snapshots. Keep at least one copy outside the same cloud account as well.
On the monthly bill, usually yes: about US$16 to US$20 a month for a 2 GB server with backups, compared with US$35 for an entry managed WordPress plan. Once you add an hour or more a month of updates, monitoring and restore tests, managed hosting is often cheaper for a single business website.
For a WordPress or WooCommerce site with modest traffic, 2 GB of memory and 1 or 2 vCPUs is a sensible start. The smallest 512 MB plans are fine for testing but tend to run out of memory with a database. You can resize later on both DigitalOcean and Lightsail.