Liquid Web When you’re looking to scale up from beginner web hosting and gain complete control of your server setup, unmanaged VPS could be a great option for you.
Whether or not you have an internal IT team to manage your VPS, don’t cut corners by going with the cheapest VPS host. You won’t end up with an efficient server structure, time-saving VPS-specific perks, and a support team that responds when it counts. We’ll get you there by walking you through a diligent decision-making process.
To help you find the best unmanaged VPS hosting services for your needs, we’ll go over the key considerations for choosing a VPS provider. Then, we’ll share our findings on the top nine VPS hosting providers in 2025.
Key points
- Even though unmanaged VPS hosting is a do-it-yourself offering that provides wide choice and control, you still need a support team you can count on.
- Some unmanaged VPS hosts provide very basic support, and others only open support lines during standard business hours. In contrast, the best unmanaged VPS hosts provide 365/24/7 support via multiple communication methods.
- Power, control, security, reliability, and support are key concerns for potential buyers. Liquid Web is the best unmanaged VPS hosting provider that addresses all those factors at a competitive price.
- Unmanaged VPS hosting and its benefits
- Managed vs unmanaged VPS hosting
- How to choose the best unmanaged VPS hosting
- Best unmanaged VPS hosting
- Final thoughts: 9 best unmanaged VPS hosting providers
Unmanaged VPS hosting and its benefits
Through virtualization, the computing resources of a physical server can be split between independent environments called virtual private servers (VPSs). When you buy access to a VPS, you get dedicated resources without paying for the full physical server or needing to maintain it.
VPS hosting is an upgrade from shared web hosting, where a single pool of server resources is used by several clients. With shared hosting, if one customer uses too many resources, other customers can experience a noticeable dip in web hosting performance. This problem doesn’t affect VPS hosting customers.
Unlike shared hosting, VPS hosting is often customizable. In many cases, VPS customers get full root access, allowing them to change anything about their own virtual server environment.
VPS hosting is more secure than shared hosting since there’s a virtualization layer separating the activities of other clients on the physical server.
With these VPS benefits in mind, let’s dig into the specific differences between managed and unmanaged VPS — and what these distinctions will mean for your business.
Managed vs unmanaged VPS hosting
Wondering if unmanaged VPS hosting is really the best choice for you? Here’s what separates it from managed hosting.
Cost
Depending on your preferred web host, unmanaged hosting can offer more affordable pricing than managed hosting. That’s because the web host doesn’t need to devote as much company resources to managing your hosting environment.
Security
With managed VPS hosting, your hosting company looks after everything related to your server, including security. If you choose unmanaged hosting, you’ll have greater responsibility for ensuring your VPS environment is safe for your business.
Expertise
If you don’t have a solid IT team with experience managing a VPS, then taking the leap to unmanaged hosting is something to consider cautiously. Your other option is choosing a web host that offers fully managed hosting as standard, like Liquid Web.
Control and customization
As long as your IT team knows their way around a VPS, you can maximize the benefits of full root access. Install software and optimize performance according to your specific server needs, whether that’s app development or database management.
How to choose the best unmanaged VPS host
When choosing the best unmanaged VPS hosting provider for you, it’s easy to tunnel vision on the monthly price or added perks. Don’t forget about the following key factors that make your unmanaged plan beneficial to your business.
Performance
Look out for performance metrics like the number of central processing unit (CPU) cores and the amount of random access memory (RAM). In VPS hosting plans, you’ll often see virtual CPU (vCPU) cores listed instead of physical CPUs.
Storage
Ideally, you’ll have a plan with ample server storage and plenty of room to grow. However, if you buy too much storage, you’ll waste money unnecessarily. If possible, choose SSD over HDD storage because it’s faster and more efficient.
Customer support
Even if you handle most responsibilities yourself, you’ll still appreciate an expert support team when you need server help urgently. For all plans, including self-managed VPS, Liquid Web provides 24/7/365 support via phone, live chat, tickets, and contact requests. Through phone and live chat, you’re guaranteed an initial response time of 59 seconds or sooner.
Reliability
When you run an online business, even a short period of downtime can affect your profit margins. According to Pingdom, downtime typically costs businesses a massive $9,000 per minute. While you can’t guarantee you’ll never experience downtime, you can minimize its risks and get compensated when it occurs.
Many of the best unmanaged VPS hosts, like Liquid Web, have a service-level agreement (SLA) that refunds you if you experience a certain amount of downtime. Aside from the financial protection, an SLA is a good indicator that your web host takes uptime seriously.
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Customization and control
In addition to cost considerations, many customers choose unmanaged VPS hosting because they want more customization and choice — such as options for control panels and operating systems (OSs), as well as the ability to install software that best meets their hosting needs.
Security
Online businesses live or die by the security they implement. With VPS, you’ve got a more secure setup than shared hosting, but you still need robust security measures, like firewalls, DDoS protection, and consistent monitoring.
Data center locations
Most internet users are accustomed to lightning-fast server response times, and your audience is no exception. If your customer base is mainly located in the U.S. or Canada, and your business is too, you’ll want a provider with North American server centers because the proximity speeds up data transfers.
Best unmanaged VPS hosting
We crowned Liquid Web as the best VPS hosting provider because of its wide range of customizability, impressive server specs, robust security measures, 365/24/7 support, and 100 percent uptime service-level agreement. For IT team leaders who want unmanaged VPS hosting from a trusted name, Liquid Web’s combination of key benefits leaves competitors in the dust.
Here’s a breakdown of the key perks that help Liquid Web stand out from the crowd:
- Performance: 2 to 16 vCPUs, 2 to 16 GB of RAM, 10 TB of bandwidth.
- Storage: 40 to 200 GB on SSD.
- Support: 24/7 support, with an initial support response time of under a minute.
- Reliability: 100% network uptime service-level agreement.
- Customization and control: InterWorx control panel at no cost. Plesk and cPanel are available for a monthly fee. Root access is provided.
- Security and backups: DDoS protection. Acronis Cyber Backups up to 50 GB.
- Data center locations: Michigan and Arizona in the United States. Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
It’s an impressive feat to stave off worthy competitors and be the best unmanaged VPS hosting.
If you want to compare options, here are the other unmanaged VPS hosts worth mentioning.
2. Hostinger
This Lithuania-headquartered company provides various types of hosting, including WordPress, cloud, and VPS. Hostinger’s self-managed VPS plans are provided using kernel-based virtual machine technology, which turns Linux into a bare metal hypervisor. With only four VPS plans available, your choice is fairly limited.
- Performance: 1 to 8 vCPU cores, 4 to 32 GB of RAM, and 4 to 32 TB of bandwidth.
- Storage: 50 to 400 GB on NVMe SSD.
- Support: Live chat and other Internet-based methods. No phone support.
- Reliability: 99.9 percent uptime guarantee.
- Customization and control: A variety of Linux OSs are available.
- Security: Firewalls and DDoS protection.
- Data center locations: France and Lithuania in Europe. India in Asia. United States in North America. Brazil in South America.
The verdict: Many customers are pleased with the varied selection of data center locations, but the lack of Windows OS will put some buyers off. Furthermore, the max number of vCPU cores (eight) is much lower than Liquid Web’s maximum of 16.
3. OVHcloud
This cloud hosting specialist has some decent VPS options for those who want to combine VPS and cloud computing. It’s a web hosting giant in Europe, but customers worldwide have attractive configurations to choose from.
- Performance: 1 to 16 vCores, 2 to 16 GB of RAM. Upgrades available.
- Storage: 20 to 160 GB (SATA SSD or NVMe SSD, depending on size).
- Support: Standard and premium customers only get support during working hours.
- Reliability: 99.9 percent uptime SLA. No automated backups on the most basic plan.
- Customization and control: Several OSs are available. Root access is provided. Windows isn’t available on the most basic plan.
- Security: Anti-DDoS protection. 24/7 monitoring and interventions.
- Data center locations: Worldwide options.
The verdict: The lack of support outside working hours could leave you high and dry if you encounter server issues. If you value always-on support, skip this provider.
4. A2 Hosting
This speed-obsessed host offers a tempting 30-day money-back guarantee. It also lets you choose between managed and unmanaged VPS, making it a good all-rounder.
- Performance: 1 to 10 cores, 1 to 32 GB of RAM.
- Storage: 25 to 450 GB (SSD or NVMe SSD).
- Support: 365/24/7 support.
- Reliability: 99.9% uptime commitment.
- Customization and control: Root access is available, as well as custom operating systems.
- Security: HackScan, KernelCare, and reinforced DDoS protection.
- Data center locations: Worldwide options.
The verdict: A2 hosting deserves a place on the list for its cost-effective promotional offers.
5. Bluehost
This WordPress stalwart, which powers millions of websites worldwide, has a variety of web hosting services, including unmanaged VPS. Bluehost has a user-friendly VPS dashboard where you can manage your websites and their performance.
- Performance: 2 to 8 vCPU cores, 4 to 16 GB of DDR5 RAM.
- Storage: 100 to 400 GB on NVMe SSD.
- Support: 24/7 chat. Alternatively, request a callback.
- Reliability: Uptime monitoring. Bluehost says “most issues” are resolved within 15 minutes.
- Customization and control: Root access, user access control, and multi-server management options.
- Security: Not specified.
- Data center locations: Not specified.
The verdict: With three VPS options, Bluehost won’t win any awards for choice. However, the free migration and dedicated IP address are decent perks.
6. IONOS
With data centers in three European countries, this German provider is one of the best unmanaged VPS hosts for companies in Europe — or businesses that have a significant amount of European customers.
- Performance: 1 to 12 vCores, 1 to 24 GB of RAM.
- Storage: 10 to 640 GB on SSD.
- Support: 24/7 support.
- Reliability: 99.9 percent availability promise.
- Customization and control: Choice of Windows or Linux OS.
- Security: Wildcard SSL certificate, firewall management, DDoS protection.
- Data center locations: U.S., Germany, U.K., and Spain.
The verdict: IONOS’ prices are decent if you sign up for a long-term deal. However, if you want backup and recovery, you’ll need to pay at least $7 extra per month.
7. Dreamhost
DreamHost’s unmanaged VPS offering is powered by DreamCompute, their own cloud platform. Pricing is flexible, and according to DreamHost, your server can go live in under 30 seconds.
- Performance: 1 to 4 vCPUs, 512 MB to 8 GB of RAM.
- Storage: 80 GB on SSD disk + 100 GB block storage.
- Support: Not specified.
- Reliability: Not specified.
- Customization and control: Root access. Several OS options.
- Security: Not specified.
- Data center locations: Virginia (U.S.).
The verdict: The lack of choice and the single data center location will be unappealing to certain customers. However, the free 100 GB of added storage is a nice perk.
8. InMotion
This technology company was founded in 2001. Since then, it has built up a solid reputation, including an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. If you choose a VPS plan for six months or more, you’ll get a 90-day money-back guarantee.
- Performance: 1 to 32 vCPUs, 1 to 32 GB of RAM, 2 to 12 TB of bandwidth for transfers.
- Storage: 30 to 540 GB on SSD or NVMe SSD.
- Support: All plans include free online support, 365/24/7.
- Reliability: Redundancy for improved uptime.
- Customization and control: Root access. Several Linux VPS options, including Alma, Ubuntu, Debian, and CentOS.
- Security: Corero DDoS protection. Dedicated IP address.
- Data center locations: U.S. or Europe.
The verdict: As a cloud VPS offering, InMotion focuses on quick deployment and scalability. The range of CPU cores is impressive, but the lack of Windows availability may be an issue for some.
9. Hostwinds
Hostwinds has unmanaged VPS for both Linux and Windows, and it provides scalability and customization. If you later decide that unmanaged VPS isn’t for you, they’ll let you easily upgrade from unmanaged to managed VPS.
- Performance: 1 to 16 vCPUs, 1 to 96 GB of RAM, 1 to 9 TB of bandwidth.
- Storage: 30 to 750 GB.
- Support: Hostwinds will ensure your VPS is functional in terms of power, connection, and networking.
- Reliability: 99.9999 percent uptime promise. Nightly backups.
- Customization and control: Full control via root access. Multiple OS choices.
- Security: Enterprise-level firewall.
- Data center locations: Multiple server centers (unspecified locations).
The verdict: Hostwinds has some attractive features, like load balancing and free website transfers. Since only infrastructure-level support is provided, you’ll need a strong internal IT team in place to ensure your websites run optimally.
Final thoughts: Best unmanaged VPS hosts
As you’ve seen, only a handful of unmanaged VPS hosting providers offer the sweet spot of performance, control, and reliability. Among those options, Liquid Web is hands-down the best unmanaged VPS host for web experts who appreciate full server control and peace of mind via top-tier support.
Enjoy virtual server environments featuring 24/7 support with sub-minute response times, a 100 percent network uptime service-level agreement, and your choice of control panel. Get in touch with our heroic support team, who will guide you through your options, answer any questions you have, and get you started with VPS hosting.
Check out our VPS plans to get started today.