Netlify vs Public Cloud: Complete Comparison (2026)
An in-depth comparison of Netlify and Public Cloud to help you choose the right tool for your business.
Last updated: November 2026
Netlify
6.9/10
Netlify is a web platform for building, deploying and hosting frontend sites and web apps from Git, with serverless functions, a global CDN and preview deploys.
Public Cloud
6.1/10
OpenStack-based pay-as-you-go IaaS from Swiss host Infomaniak. It offers instances, block and S3-compatible object storage, and Kubernetes, all hosted in Swiss data centers.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.9/10 | 6.1/10 |
| Integration | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 5/10 |
| Cost | 6/10 | 8/10 |
| Customization | 6/10 | 7/10 |
| Security | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Reliability | 8/10 | 6/10 |
| Ease of Use | 9/10 | 5/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 3/10 |
| Scalability | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | $9/mo Personal | Contact for pricing |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | Free Free | Contact for pricing |
| Features | ||
| Managed Kubernetes | ||
| VPS Hosting | ||
| API and CLI | ||
| DDoS Protection | ||
| Object Storage | ||
| Cloud Compute | Not listed | |
| Content Delivery Network | Not listed | |
| Dedicated Servers | Not listed | |
| Free SSL Certificates | Not listed | |
| Git Deployments | Not listed | |
| Managed Databases | Not listed | |
| Serverless Functions | Not listed | |
| Shared Hosting | Not listed | |
| Uptime SLA | Not listed | |
Netlify vs Public Cloud cost by team size
| Team size | Netlify | Public Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 5 users | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 10 users | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 25 users | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
| 50 users | FreeFree | Contact for pricing |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Netlify
- Has a free plan (Public Cloud does not)
- Higher Ease of Use score (9/10 vs 5/10)
- Higher Analytics score (6/10 vs 3/10)
- Better fit for enterprise (7/10 vs 5/10)
- Better fit for startups (8/10 vs 6/10)
Why choose Public Cloud
- Higher Cost score (8/10 vs 6/10)
- Higher Customization score (7/10 vs 6/10)
- Includes Managed Kubernetes, which Netlify lacks
- Includes VPS Hosting, which Netlify lacks
Pros & Cons
Netlify
Pros
- Every pull request gets a deploy preview URL at no credit cost, which makes reviewing changes easy.
- Git push-to-deploy with instant rollbacks keeps releases low-risk.
- The free plan allows commercial use and includes functions, a database and Blob storage.
- The Pro plan includes unlimited team members for $20 a month.
- Broad compliance audits (SOC 2 Type 2, ISO 27001, PCI DSS, HIPAA) plus built-in DDoS protection and a WAF.
Cons
- Credit-based pricing is hard to predict, and Free-plan sites are paused when credits run out.
- Bandwidth costs 20 credits per GB, so the Pro plan's 3,000 credits cover only about 150 GB if spent on bandwidth alone.
- 300 free credits cover only about 20 production deploys a month.
- SSO, the SLA and 24/7 support are limited to the custom-priced Enterprise plan.
- Reviewers say it lags Vercel for Next.js and complain about AI agent credit costs.
Public Cloud
Pros
- Owned data centers located only in Switzerland, which supports data-sovereignty requirements
- Built on standard OpenStack, so existing tooling works and moving to another provider is easier
- Hourly billing that excludes most charges for stopped instances
- CHF 300 of free credit for the first 3 months
- S3-compatible object storage, encrypted block storage and DDoS protection
Cons
- All regions are in Switzerland, so there is no wider geographic footprint
- Invoices can only be paid by credit card
- Third-party benchmarks note missing monitoring charts and reverse DNS
- Very few independent user reviews on G2 or Capterra
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Netlify scores higher on our Hosting & Infrastructure criteria: 6.9/10 against 6.1/10 for Public Cloud. The largest gap is in Ease of Use: 9/10 for Netlify and 5/10 for Public Cloud.
Netlify has a free plan; Public Cloud does not list one.
Netlify is the better fit for enterprise: we rate it 7/10 for them, against 5/10 for Public Cloud.
Public Cloud has Managed Kubernetes and VPS Hosting, which Netlify lacks.
