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Head-to-head · Portainer Hosting

Hostinger Portainer VPS vs TryDirect Portainer CE

  • Updated Sep 2026
  • Both researched from official sources
  • 5 checks side by side
Higher score Hostinger Portainer VPS #1 in Portainer Hosting 9.2/10 From $11.99/mo (annual) ✓ 2 of 4 features Visit Hostinger
TryDirect Portainer CE #2 in Portainer Hosting 8.4/10 Free plan · paid from $9/mo Free plan✓ 1 of 4 features Visit TryDirect

Hostinger Portainer VPS leads on 1 check, TryDirect Portainer CE on 2, and 2 are even. Who comes out ahead on the 5 yes/no, price and count checks where we have data for both products. The editor score weighs everything else too.

Our verdict

  • Highest scoreHostinger Portainer VPS · 9.2/10
  • Lowest starting priceTryDirect Portainer CE · $9/mo
  • Free planonly TryDirect Portainer CE
  • Most featuresHostinger Portainer VPS · 2 of 4

Hostinger Portainer VPS scores higher on our rubric for portainer hosting: 9.2 against 8.4 out of 10; our editors rank them #1 and #2.

TryDirect Portainer CE offers free plan; Hostinger Portainer VPS doesn't. TryDirect Portainer CE is cheaper to start at $9/mo against $11.99/mo. Hostinger Portainer VPS offers backups; TryDirect Portainer CE doesn't publish it.

Hostinger Portainer VPS is the better fit for established VPS hosting with Portainer and backups. TryDirect Portainer CE is the better fit for free-start Portainer deployments across major clouds.

  • Hostinger Portainer VPS fits best

    Established VPS hosting with Portainer and backups

  • TryDirect Portainer CE fits best

    Free-start Portainer deployments across major clouds

Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. We may earn a commission when you click some links. It never changes our verdict. How we rank.

Side by side

Feature Hostinger Portainer VPS 9.2/10 Visit ↗ TryDirect Portainer CE 8.4/10 Visit ↗
At a glance
Editor score 9.2 8.4
Ranking #1 in Portainer Hosting #2 in Portainer Hosting
Best for Established VPS hosting with Portainer and backups Free-start Portainer deployments across major clouds
Pricing model Paid Free plan + paid
Starting price $11.99/mo $9/mo (best)
Free plan — ✓ (best)
Free trial Not published Not published
Deployment Cloud, Self-hosted Cloud, Self-hosted
Platforms Web, Linux Web, Linux
Support Live chat, Docs · 24/7 Email, Community
Compliance ISO 27001, GDPR, PCI DSS, 2FA GDPR, PCI DSS, 2FA
Built for Solo, Small business, Mid-market Small business, Mid-market
Features Hostinger Portainer VPS 2/4 · TryDirect Portainer CE 1/4
One-click deploy ✓ ✓
Managed updates — Not published
Backups ✓ (best) Not published
Custom domain + SSL Not published Not published
Specs
Server locations Not published Not published
Our review
Pros
  • Portainer CE template with container, image, network and volume management
  • Weekly backups, manual snapshots and container performance monitoring
  • KVM plans scale from 1 to 8 vCPU cores with a public VPS API
  • Automatic VPS creation and Portainer CE installation
  • Docker, Kubernetes and Docker Compose support
  • Deployments across AWS, Hetzner, DigitalOcean, Vultr and Linode
Cons
  • Self-managed service does not include managed updates
  • Displayed rates require annual billing and upfront two-year terms
  • Portainer is a template installation rather than a managed application service
  • Portainer CE deployment costs $50 one-time
  • Cloud-provider server charges are billed separately
  • Free plan includes community support rather than email support
Our verdict

Hostinger Portainer VPS is a self-managed virtual private server offering for developers and teams that want Docker administration through Portainer CE. The control panel provides a Portainer template, while Portainer’s web dashboard…

Read the review →

TryDirect Portainer CE is a deployment template that creates a preconfigured VPS and installs Portainer Community Edition. It is aimed at DevOps engineers, system administrators and software developers who want a web interface for managing…

Read the review →
  1. Hostinger Portainer VPSPortainer Hosting 9.2From $11.99/mo (annual)
  2. TryDirect Portainer CEPortainer Hosting 8.4Free plan · paid from $9/mo

Strengths and trade-offs

  • Hostinger Portainer VPS — where it wins

    • Portainer CE template with container, image, network and volume management
    • Weekly backups, manual snapshots and container performance monitoring
    • KVM plans scale from 1 to 8 vCPU cores with a public VPS API

    Where it doesn't

    • Self-managed service does not include managed updates
    • Displayed rates require annual billing and upfront two-year terms
    • Portainer is a template installation rather than a managed application service

  • TryDirect Portainer CE — where it wins

    • Automatic VPS creation and Portainer CE installation
    • Docker, Kubernetes and Docker Compose support
    • Deployments across AWS, Hetzner, DigitalOcean, Vultr and Linode

    Where it doesn't

    • Portainer CE deployment costs $50 one-time
    • Cloud-provider server charges are billed separately
    • Free plan includes community support rather than email support
  • Hostinger Portainer VPS9.2/10 · From $11.99/mo (annual)

    A self-managed VPS with Portainer, backups, monitoring and scalable KVM plans.

    Visit HostingerFull verdict →
  • TryDirect Portainer CE8.4/10 · Free plan · paid from $9/mo

    A free-start route to Portainer across major clouds, with paid deployment and support tiers.

    Visit TryDirectFull verdict →

More comparisons

All portainer hosting comparisons → · Full ranking →

Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Sep 2026

Last updated · How we research and update