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Amazon Lightsail vs Diploi
Amazon Lightsail
Diploi
Side-by-side comparison of features, pricing, and performance to help you choose the right hosting provider.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Amazon Lightsail | Diploi |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | N/A | 5.0/5 (1) |
| Price | Not offered | Not offered |
| Storage | 20 GB SSD | 5 GB SSD |
| Bandwidth | 1 TB | Unlimited |
| Websites | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| CPU | 2 vCPUs | 2 vCPU |
| RAM | 0.5 GB | 2 GB |
| Free Domain | ||
| Free SSL | ||
| Server Locations | ||
| Regions | 12 ★ | 1 |
| Locations | US East, Virginia, Ohio US West, Oregon, California Western Europe, London, Paris, Ireland Central Europe, Frankfurt, Zurich Northern Europe, Stockholm Southeast Asia, Singapore, Jakarta East Asia, Tokyo, Seoul, Hong Kong India, Mumbai, Hyderabad Australia & Oceania, Sydney, Melbourne South America, Sao Paulo Middle East, Bahrain, UAE Africa, Cape Town | Central Europe, Frankfurt |
Features | ||
CMS & Platforms (7) | ||
Languages & Frameworks (9) | ||
Databases (4) | ||
Developer Tools (8) | ||
Performance & CDN (4) | ||
| Caching | ||
| CDN | ||
| LiteSpeed | ||
| SSD Storage | ||
Security (6) | ||
| 2FA | ||
| Backups | ||
| DDoS Protection | ||
| Malware Scan | ||
| SSL | ||
| WAF | ||
Support (4) | ||
Extras & Guarantees (5) | ||
| Slight discrepancies are possible. We recommend verifying details on the provider's website. | ||
| Visit Amazon Lightsail | Visit Diploi | |
Pricing & Plans
Amazon Lightsail Plans
Diploi Plans
Pros & Cons
Amazon Lightsail
Pros
- Backed by AWS infrastructure — world's largest cloud platform
- Predictable flat monthly pricing with no surprises
- 3 months free on select Linux bundles ($5-$12/mo plans)
- Pre-configured stacks: WordPress, LAMP, Node.js, MEAN, Django
- Easy scaling to full AWS services (EC2, RDS, etc.)
- Automatic snapshots with 7-day retention
- Static IPs, DNS management, and load balancers included
- SSD storage on all instances
- Global availability across 22+ AWS regions
- Managed databases and container services available
Cons
- No managed shared hosting — VPS only, requires server knowledge
- No cPanel or traditional control panel
- Backups (snapshots) cost extra beyond automatic 7-day retention
- No free domain registration
- No phone support on basic plans — forums and documentation only
- Windows instances cost significantly more than Linux
- Memory Optimized plans are expensive compared to competitors
- No email hosting included
- Burstable CPU on General Purpose instances (not dedicated)
Diploi
Pros
- Usage-based pricing — pay only for running hours
- Built-in cloud IDE (VS Code, Cursor support)
- Zero-config Kubernetes deployments
- Automatic CI/CD, SSL, and Git integration
- Wide framework support (Next.js, SvelteKit, Django, Laravel, etc.)
- Free €50 trial credits without credit card
Cons
- Prices in EUR only — no USD option
- No traditional shared hosting or cPanel
- Relatively new platform with smaller community
- No phone or live chat support
- No free tier after 14-day trial
Frequently Asked Questions
Amazon Lightsail
What is Amazon Lightsail?
Amazon Lightsail is a virtual private server (VPS) provider and is the easiest way to get started with AWS for developers, small businesses, students, and other users who need a solution to build and host their applications on cloud. Lightsail provides developers compute, storage, and networking capacity and capabilities to deploy and manage websites and web applications in the cloud. Lightsail includes everything you need to launch your project quickly – virtual machines, containers, databases,
What is a Virtual Private Server?
A virtual private server, also known as an "instance", allows users to run websites and web applications in a highly secure and available environment, while being cost effective.
What are the benefits of a VPS?
There are many benefits to using a virtual private server, including affordability, scalability, security, and customizable resources.
What can I do with Lightsail?
You can choose among several preconfigured VPS plans that include everything you need to easily deploy and manage your application. Lightsail is best suited for projects that require a few virtual private servers and users who prefer a simple management interface. Common use cases for Lightsail include running websites, web applications, blogs, e-commerce sites, simple software, and more.
What is a Lightsail instance plan?
Also referred to as a bundle, a Lightsail plan includes a virtual private server with a fixed amount of memory (RAM) and compute (vCPUs), SSD-based storage (disks), and a data transfer allowance. Lightsail plans also offer static IP addresses (5 per account) and DNS management (6 domain zones per account). Lightsail plans are charged on an hourly, on-demand basis, so you only pay for a plan when you're using it.
Are Lightsail plans the same across AWS Regions?
As Lightsail expands its availability across more Regions, we’re evolving our infrastructure to provide a better overall customer experience. As a result, plans in certain Regions will have different specifications, such as an additional vCPU, compared to plans in other Regions.
What is a Lightsail instance?
A Lightsail instance is a virtual private server (VPS) that lives in the AWS Cloud. Use your Lightsail instances to store your data, run your code, and build web-based applications or websites. Your instances can connect to each other and to other AWS resources through both public (Internet) and private (VPC) networking. You can create, manage, and connect easily to instances right from the Lightsail console.
What software can I run on my instance?
Lightsail offers a range of operating system and application templates that are automatically installed when you create a new Lightsail instance. Application templates include WordPress, Drupal, Joomla!, Ghost, Magento, Redmine, LAMP, Nginx (LEMP), MEAN, Node.js, Django, and more. You can install additional software on your instances by using the in-browser SSH or your own SSH client.
How do I create a Lightsail instance?
After logging in to Lightsail, you can use the Lightsail console, command line interface (CLI), or API to create and manage instances. The first time you log in to the console, choose Create Instance. The create instance page is where you can choose the software, location, and name for your instance. Once you choose Create, your new instance will spin up automatically within minutes.
Does Lightsail offer an API?
Yes. Everything you do in the Lightsail console is backed by a publicly available API. Learn how to install and use the Lightsail CLI and API.
How do I sign up for Lightsail?
To start using Lightsail, choose Get Started and log in. You use your Amazon Web Services account to access Lightsail; if you don't already have one, you'll be prompted to create one.
How do Lightsail instances perform?
Lightsail instances are specifically engineered by AWS for web servers, developer environments, and small database use cases. Such workloads don't use the full CPU often or consistently, but occasionally need a performance burst. Lightsail uses burstable performance instances that provide a baseline level of CPU performance with the additional ability to burst above the baseline. This design enables you to get the performance you need, when you need it, while protecting you from the variable per
How do I connect to a Lightsail instance?
Lightsail offers a 1-click secure connection to your instance's terminal right from your browser, supporting SSH access for Linux/Unix-based instances and RDP access for Windows-based instances. To use 1-click connections, launch your instance management screens, click Connect using SSH or Connect using RDP, and a new browser window opens and automatically connects to your instance. If you prefer to connect to your Linux/Unix-based instance using your own client, Lightsai
How do I use IPs in Lightsail?
Each Lightsail instance automatically gets a private IP address and a public IP address. You can use the private IP to transmit data between Lightsail instances and AWS resources privately, for free. You can use the public IP to connect to your instance from the Internet, such as through a registered domain name or through an SSH or RDP connection from your local computer. You can also attach a static IP to the instance, which substitutes the public IP with an IP address that doesn't change even
What is a static IP?
A static IP is a fixed, public IP that is dedicated to your Lightsail account. You can assign a static IP to an instance, replacing its public IP. If you decide to replace your instance with another one, you can reassign the static IP to the new instance. In this way, you don't have to reconfigure any external systems (like DNS records) to point to a new IP every time you want to replace your instance.
Diploi
What is the pricing model of Diploi?
Diploi uses a prepaid, usage-based pricing model. You top up a balance, and that balance pays for everything: the hours your deployments are running, the storage they use, and your AI usage. This applies to development, testing, and production environments alike. There is no bill at the end of the month, you only ever spend the balance you have topped up.
How does topping up my balance work?
You can top up your balance manually at any time, or enable auto top-up so your balance is refilled automatically when it runs low. The Pro and Ultra plans additionally add a fixed amount to your balance every month, and come with increased limits and extra features.
What is the difference between Pay as you go, Pro, and Ultra?
All plans use the same balance and the same usage-based rates. Pay as you go has no monthly charge, you top up whenever you like. Pro and Ultra automatically credit their full monthly price to your balance.
How is AI usage billed?
AI usage is metered and drawn from the same balance as your deployments, there is no separate AI subscription. This covers all the ways you can use AI on Diploi: the Prompt view, the preinstalled Opencode CLI, and the custom AI model endpoint for your own tools.
Can I use Diploi for free?
Yes, you can use Diploi free for 14 days when you register for the first time, with 50 € of free credits and no credit card required.
Are there enterprise plans?
Yes, we offer an Enterprise tier with tailored pricing and custom services. Enterprise customers get priority support, migration services, integration assistance, and the ability to add custom components to the platform. If you are interested, message us at [email protected] or book a call with our team here https://calendly.com/hello-diploi/30min.
Are taxes or VAT included in these prices?
No, listed prices do not include taxes or VAT. Taxes will be added according to your location.
What is Diploi?
Diploi is a platform that combines cloud development environments and app hosting in a single place, and is meant to be an all-in-one solution where developers can scaffold applications from zero, start developing applications without a local setup using cloud development environments, which do not require any configuration work, and deploy staging and production environments instantly. All applications launched and hosted on Diploi come with a CI/CD pipeline setup by default, automatic SSL cert
Where is my code stored, and how does Git integration work?
Your code lives in your own GitHub repository. Diploi configures a GitHub Action that triggers a CI/CD workflow that updates your staging and production environments, and is triggered when new updates are pushed to the repository linked to a project hosted in Diploi.
Is there a limit to how many components or add-ons a project can have in Diploi?
There is no limit, so you can have all supported frameworks and databases supported by Diploi, the only limitation is the computing power required by a deployment to handle a large stack of components and add-ons.
Is Diploi a VPS provider?
No, Diploi is a fully managed development and deployment platform. You cannot choose the OS where your application is deployed, and you do not have configuration access to the server's settings.
Do I get SSH access to the servers where my project is hosted in Diploi?
Yes, Diploi uses Kubernetes to host your application's cloud development environment, components, and add-ons as individual pods, which you can access via SSH.
Can I share my application with others for testing?
Yes, each environment has a unique URL you can share, so others can access and test your app instantly.
How do I monitor logs or production status?
Diploi provides real-time logging for each component and add-on that is part of your application. Additionally, from the deployment's dashboard, you have access to graphs showing the resource usage of your app's cluster and its current health status. Additionally, all development deployments on Diploi come with a Diploi CLI, which gives you access to logs in real-time and can be used for programmatic log data tracking.
What if I want to move off Diploi later?
You can move your project out of Diploi at any point. All Diploi projects can be run on any VPS or managed hosting service, either by running each component and add-on as you usually would do via terminal commands (eg. npm run start), or by using the Dockerfiles that Diploi generates for your app's components.
Ready to Choose?
Both providers offer great features. Visit their websites to see the latest deals and pricing.
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US East, Virginia, Ohio
Western Europe, London, Paris, Ireland
Northern Europe, Stockholm
Southeast Asia, Singapore, Jakarta
India, Mumbai, Hyderabad
Australia & Oceania, Sydney, Melbourne
South America, Sao Paulo
Middle East, Bahrain, UAE
Africa, Cape Town
Central Europe, Frankfurt