How to size a VPS: CPU, RAM, disk and bandwidth explained

Most people over-buy their first VPS out of fear, then under-buy RAM. Here is what each resource actually does and how to pick a sensible starting point.

RAM runs out first

For almost every web workload, memory is the first limit you hit. Database servers, app runtimes and caches all want RAM. Running out triggers swapping, which destroys performance.

• 1 GB — a static site, a small app, or a VPN server.

• 2 GB — a small app with a database, or a few low-traffic sites.

• 4 GB — a busier app, or several sites, with headroom.

CPU comes second

Shared vCPUs handle most sites fine. You need more CPU for heavy builds, video transcoding, or many concurrent app workers — not for a normal website.

Disk: type and size

• SSD/NVMe matters far more than size for database speed.

• Budget space for logs, backups and updates, not just the app.

• Keep an eye on usage — a full disk breaks almost everything at once.

Bandwidth

Estimate it from your content: a page of 1 MB served 50,000 times a month is ~50 GB. Video and downloads dominate bandwidth; text pages barely move the needle.

Start small, resize up

Buy the smallest plan that covers your RAM need plus headroom, monitor, and resize when you actually hit a limit. Over-buying ties up money on capacity you are not using; under-buying RAM causes the worst symptoms.

The sizing shortcut

Tell us what you plan to run and expected traffic and we will size it with you. Our VPS plans have full root and a console, and resize without a migration.