Which should I choose?

Whichever your software requires — this is one of the few hosting decisions that is usually made for you. If you need MetaTrader, a .NET Framework application or a Windows-only business tool, you need Windows. For websites, containers, databases and most self-hosted software, Linux is the documented default and the lighter machine.

Does Windows cost more here?

No. Windows Server costs exactly the same as Linux on the same plan — there is no licence surcharge and no separate Windows price list. The one difference is a memory floor rather than a price: Windows needs a plan with at least 2 GB, so the 1 GB entry plan is Linux-only and Windows starts one step up.

Do I need Windows for MetaTrader?

It is the sensible route. MetaTrader 4 and 5 are native Windows applications, and running them on a Windows VPS over RDP is the path with fewest surprises. They can be run on Linux under Wine, which works for some people and creates a support problem for others.

Can I host a website on Windows?

Yes, with IIS, and it is the right answer for an ASP.NET application. For a PHP, Node or Python site there is little reason to: the tutorials, the packages and the community all assume Linux, and you would be paying resource overhead for a desktop you never open.

Different rather than harder, though the first hour is steeper if you have never used a terminal. There is no desktop: you connect with SSH and type. In exchange it uses less memory, has more documentation for server work, and every guide you find will match what is in front of you.

Yes, in either direction, by reinstalling with a different template. A reinstall wipes the disk, so move anything you want to keep off the server first. It takes about 60 seconds once you say go.

Does Windows use more of my plan's resources?

Yes, meaningfully. A graphical desktop and the services behind it consume memory and CPU continuously, whether or not you are connected. On a small plan that overhead is a larger proportion of what you bought, so size a Windows server slightly more generously than you would a Linux one for the same job.

Is one more secure than the other?

Neither, in any way that survives contact with reality. Both are secure when patched and configured properly and neither is when they are not. On unmanaged plans that work is yours in both cases, and it is the deciding factor far more than the operating system name.

Comparison · Linux vs Windows VPS

Your software has probably already decided this.

This is one of the few hosting choices that is not really a preference. If you need MetaTrader, .NET or a Windows-only business tool, you need Windows. If you are running a website, containers or a database, Linux is the documented default and the lighter machine. The interesting question is the licence, and this page is specific about what we can and cannot tell you there.

Four free distributions
Full Administrator over RDP
SSH vs desktop
Switch by reinstalling

Which One Are You? The Full Table

Either one, from

$4.95/mo

Root or Administrator access stated on every plan

Ubuntu, Debian, AlmaLinux, Rocky — no licence fee
Windows Server with full Administrator rights
Reinstall to switch, about 60 seconds
Windows needs 2 GB — not the 1 GB entry plan

The Short Answer

Choose Linux unless a specific piece of software requires Windows — and if one does, that decision is already made. Linux is the documented default for web servers, databases, containers and virtually all self-hosted software; the four distributions we offer carry no licence fee, and without a graphical desktop the machine spends its memory on your work rather than on a screen nobody is looking at. Windows is required, not merely preferable, for MetaTrader, .NET Framework applications, IIS-hosted sites and Windows-only line-of-business tools, and it gives you a real desktop over RDP. The cost question answers itself here, which is unusual: Windows carries no licence surcharge — the same plan costs the same either way. The one real constraint is memory rather than money: Windows needs at least 2 GB, so the 1 GB entry plan is Linux-only and Windows starts one step up the catalogue.

Linux: websites, containers, databases, self-hosted software.
Windows: MetaTrader, .NET, IIS, Windows-only business tools.
Access: full root on Linux, full Administrator on Windows.
Overhead: the Windows desktop costs memory continuously.
Cost: identical — no Windows licence surcharge on any plan.
Switching: a reinstall, either direction, wipes the disk.

Which One Are You?

If anything in the right-hand column describes you, the decision is made — the rest of this page is detail.

Linux

A website or web application — PHP, Node, Python, Go, Ruby.
Docker, containers or anything Kubernetes-shaped.
A database server, a mail server, a VPN endpoint.
You are following a tutorial that does not say which OS — it means Linux.
You want the memory you paid for spent on your work rather than a desktop.

Four distributions, none with a licence fee. Ubuntu is the safe default if you have no reason to prefer another.

Linux VPS hosting →

Windows

MetaTrader 4 or 5 — a native Windows application.
A .NET Framework application, or a site you want on IIS.
Windows-only line-of-business or accounting software.
You need a remote desktop workspace rather than a server.
A tool your team already uses that has no Linux equivalent.

Full Administrator rights over RDP, at the same price as Linux. Needs a plan with at least 2 GB of memory.

Windows VPS hosting →

Side by Side

Two rows deserve attention: the cost row, because it is not what you expect from a hosting comparison, and the memory row, because it decides which plans you can actually buy.

Side by Side
Factor	Linux VPS	Windows VPS
How you connect The difference you notice within the first minute.	SSH — a terminal, no desktop	RDP — a full graphical desktop
Administrative access	Full root	Full Administrator
Cost of the operating system Most hosts charge a monthly premium for the Windows licence. This one does not.	No licence fee	No surcharge — same plan price
Minimum memory The real constraint, and it is memory rather than money.	Runs on the 1 GB entry plan	Needs 2 GB — starts one step up
Resource overhead A graphical desktop and its services are not free.	Low — no GUI unless you install one	Higher — the desktop is always running
Web hosting	Nginx, Apache, Caddy — the documented default	IIS, and .NET applications
Docker and containers	Native, on every plan	Possible but awkward — Linux is the natural home
MetaTrader and Windows-only software	Not natively	Native
Documentation and tutorials	Enormous — most self-hosted software targets Linux first	Narrower, but strong inside the Microsoft ecosystem
Switching later A reinstall wipes the disk in both directions.	Reinstall with a Windows template	Reinstall with a Linux template

The row worth pausing on: Windows costs no more than Linux here. No licence surcharge, no separate Windows price list, no fee for RDP or administrator access. A monthly Windows premium is normal in this market, so this is worth checking against whoever else you are considering. What Windows does need is 2 GB of memory minimum — so the 1 GB entry plan is Linux-only. Which plans can run Windows →

Three Practical Things

Size a Windows server slightly larger

The graphical desktop and its background services use memory and CPU continuously, whether or not anyone is connected. On a small plan that is a meaningful share of what you bought — so for the same job, give a Windows server a little more room than you would give Linux.

Documentation follows Linux

Most self-hosted software is written, tested and documented on Linux first. If you pick Windows for a workload that has a Linux-shaped ecosystem, you will spend time translating instructions rather than following them — which is a real cost even though it never appears on an invoice.

You are not locked in

Switching means reinstalling with a different template, in either direction, and it takes about a minute. A reinstall wipes the disk, so this is a decision you can change but not one you can undo — keep your data somewhere other than the server.

Linux vs Windows VPS Questions

Either one, from $4.95.

Full root or Administrator access stated on every plan, deployed in about 60 seconds, in any of 56 countries — with a 7-day money-back guarantee on a first order.

See All 16 Plans See the Windows Plans