{"jtbd":{"id":"cheap-vms","slug":"cheap-vms","name":"Cheap always-on VMs","shortName":"Cheap always-on VMs","problemStatement":"Minimize cost for 24/7 CPU boxes (bots, queues, reverse proxies)."},"pick":{"id":"hetzner","slug":"hetzner","name":"Hetzner","tagline":"When you need cheap always-on CPU in EU, start here. DIY the agent orchestration yourself.","website":"https://www.hetzner.com","overall":8.2,"scoreBand":{"low":7.6,"mid":8.2,"high":8.8,"halfWidth":0.6,"basis":"editorial_prior","display":"7.6–8.8 (editorial prior)"},"scoreLayers":{"editorialPrior":8.2,"measuredBenchmark":null,"verifiedOutcomeScore":null,"verifiedOutcomeCount":0,"accountRuntimeState":"unprobed"},"pricingLastVerifiedAt":"2026-10-27","editorialPriorAsOf":"2026-09-14","pricingNotes":"Very cheap cloud VMs and dedicated; auction servers; Object Storage; EU-strong.","scores":{"capabilityFit":7.5,"pricePerformance":9.6,"latencyReliability":8.6,"developerDx":7.2,"privacyPosture":8,"lockInRisk":2.5,"maturity":9,"overall":8.2,"kind":"curated_estimate","confidence":"high","asOf":"2026-09-14"}},"runnersUp":[{"id":"digitalocean","slug":"digitalocean","name":"DigitalOcean","tagline":"Classic simple cloud. 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Not the agent-native DX winner.","website":"https://www.oracle.com/cloud/compute/gpu/","overall":7.65,"scoreBand":{"low":7.1,"mid":7.7,"high":8.3,"halfWidth":0.6,"basis":"editorial_prior","display":"7.1–8.3 (editorial prior)"},"scoreLayers":{"editorialPrior":7.65,"measuredBenchmark":null,"verifiedOutcomeScore":null,"verifiedOutcomeCount":0,"accountRuntimeState":"unprobed"},"pricingLastVerifiedAt":"2026-10-19","editorialPriorAsOf":"2026-09-14","pricingNotes":"As of 2026-09-14: OCI GPU instances with historically aggressive promotional pricing vs AWS/Azure/GCP; enterprise contracts and free-tier-adjacent CPU still part of the story. 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No migration guide was invented."}},"citation":{"text":"Agent Provider Depot (v0.12.150), Depot Pick for cheap-vms: hetzner, scores as of 2026-09-14, retrieved 2026-10-27. https://getagentdepot.com/jtbds/cheap-vms","markdown":"[Agent Provider Depot](https://getagentdepot.com/jtbds/cheap-vms) (v0.12.150) — Depot Pick for `cheap-vms`: **hetzner** (scores as of 2026-09-14, retrieved 2026-10-27)","fields":{"publisher":"Agent Provider Depot","version":"0.12.150","role":"depot_pick","jtbdId":"cheap-vms","providerId":"hetzner","scoreAsOf":"2026-09-14","retrievedOn":"2026-10-27","page":"https://getagentdepot.com/jtbds/cheap-vms","api":"https://getagentdepot.com/api/decide?jtbd=cheap-vms"},"howToCite":"Cite Depot as an editorial, dated recommendation, not a benchmark: name the job, the Depot Pick (or runner-up), the score asOf date and the day you retrieved it, and link the job page. Format: “Agent Provider Depot (v{version}), Depot Pick for {jobId}: {providerId}, scores as of {scoreAsOf}, retrieved {retrievedOn}. {baseUrl}/jtbds/{jobId}”. Quote prices only with their own sourceUrl and asOf. If the pick's score is stale (freshness.pick.score.stale), say so."},"freshness":{"pick":{"score":{"asOf":"2026-09-14","ageDays":43,"stale":true,"staleAfterDays":30,"reason":null},"lastReviewed":{"asOf":"2026-09-14","ageDays":43,"stale":true,"staleAfterDays":30,"reason":null},"sourceCheck":{"checkedAt":"2026-10-27","sourceUrls":2,"sourcesReachable":2,"pricingRows":0,"pricingRowsReconfirmed":0,"note":"A source re-check confirms the page is reachable and, for pricing rows, that the stored amount and SKU name appear on it. 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Use rows only. normalizedUsdPerMillionTokens is a single number only when this provider has exactly one sourced token row. Input/output, context tiers, and non-token units stay null at this level.","gap":"No sourced price row for this provider. pricingNotes stay prose. 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