Every major cloud has a free tier, but the details differ a lot. Free offers change over time — treat this as a guide to what to look for, and check each provider’s current free-tier page before signing up.
In this article
Two kinds of free
- Always free: stays free as long as you stay within limits.
- Trial / 12-month free: free for a limited time or credit, then billed.
At a glance
| Oracle Cloud | AWS | Google Cloud | Azure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Always-free VM | Yes — small AMD VMs, and larger Arm VMs when capacity allows | No; small VMs free for 12 months (limited hours) | Yes — one small VM in selected US regions | Small VMs free for 12 months |
| Best for | Hosting a real site 24×7 | Learning the most-used cloud | Small always-on tools; strong data/AI services | Microsoft/Office-heavy workplaces |
| Watch out for | Home region fixed at sign-up; Arm capacity can be scarce | Charges start after 12 months or beyond hours | Egress/network charges; region limits | Credit expiry; remember to delete resources |
Choosing
- A website or blog that must run all the time: Oracle’s always-free VMs — see the complete setup guide.
- Career learning: AWS or Azure, because job descriptions ask for them — use the free tier to practise, and set a budget alert.
- Tiny scheduled jobs: serverless free tiers (Cloudflare Workers, AWS Lambda, Google Cloud Functions) are often cheaper than any VM.
⚠️ Always set a billing alert (even ₹100) on day one. Most “surprise bills” come from a forgotten resource or a trial that quietly ended.
✨ Ask AI about this article
Stuck on a step? Ask a question and the AI answers using this article.
Free · AI can be wrong