If you’re new to cloud server hosting, you probably would like to try a cloud server before actually buying it. There are many free cloud server providers in the market, but unfortunately not all of them are worth your time and effort.
I checked every free cloud server offer in this list again in October 2026, on the provider’s own website. A lot has changed. Google Cloud’s $300 credit now lasts 90 days, not 12 months. AWS stopped giving a free server for 12 months to new accounts. Linode is now Akamai Cloud and gives $100 instead of $20. So if you read an older article, including the old version of this one, some of the offers there are not available anymore.
For a full cloud server you can test for 30 days on Windows or Linux, take the Kamatera trial. For the longest free period, AWS gives credit for up to 6 months and Google Cloud gives $300 for 90 days plus one small server that stays free. If you only want to run an app or a bot without managing a server, Render and Railway let you start without a card.
What is a Free Cloud Server?
A free cloud server is basically a trial server that cloud providers offer to new customers, so they can try their services before they buy them.
To attract new customers, cloud hosting providers do offer such trials. You can get a free cloud server for somewhere between 3 days and 90 days, and a few providers keep one very small server free with no end date.
In 2026 these offers come in four different forms, and it is important to know which one you are signing up for, because each one ends in a different way:
Free Cloud Server Trials Available Now
Every offer was checked on the provider’s official page. Amounts with a dashed underline change often, so confirm them at signup.
Showing 17 offers
Kamatera
When it comes to scalable, reliable and affordable cloud servers, Kamatera is my first choice. Kamatera offers a 30 days absolutely free cloud server trial so that you can test their services before you become a paying customer.
You build one server of any size, as long as its configuration stays within $100 a month. You can choose Windows or Linux, which is not common in free trials.
The catchA card is required. Anything above the trial limits is charged to the card, so delete the server before day 30 if you don’t want to continue.
VPSServer
VPSServer works the same way as the Kamatera trial. You build one cloud server of any size for 30 days, as long as the configuration stays within $100, on Linux or Windows.
The catchA card is required, with a $1 to $2 check charge that is voided. Traffic is 1 TB in Asia and Australia. When the trial ends, the server becomes a paid one at normal rates.
Activate VPSServer trialClubVPS
What you get: a fully working cloud server for 30 days, with data centers in the US, Canada, Europe, Israel, Asia and Australia
The catchThe website does not say the trial server limit or whether a card is needed, so check both at signup. After the trial you pay by server size, hourly or monthly.
Activate ClubVPS trialGoogle Cloud
It is the same platform that Google uses for its own products. New users get credit for 90 days, and one small server stays free after that.
The catchNo Windows servers during the trial, and the free e2-micro works only in three US regions. When the trial ends, servers are stopped, and deleted after 30 days unless you upgrade.
Activate Google Cloud free trialOracle Cloud
What you get: an Arm server of about 2 cores and 12 GB RAM, 2 small AMD servers and 200 GB storage, free with no end date
The catchFree Arm capacity is often sold out in busy regions, idle servers can be taken back, and prepaid cards are not accepted.
Activate Oracle free tierMicrosoft Azure
What you get: small B-series servers for 12 months, and the B1s size can run Windows or Linux
The catchThe 750 hours are shared, so it is one server running all month, not two. Card and phone check with a $1 hold.
Activate Azure free accountAmazon AWS
What you get: $100 on signup and up to $100 more for finishing a few starter activities, usable on EC2 servers
The catchThe 12-month free t2.micro server ended for new accounts in July 2025. When the free plan ends, the account is closed unless you upgrade.
Activate AWS free planIBM Cloud
The catchYou have to upgrade to pay-as-you-go first, and there is no free virtual server in the Lite plans. VPC servers get a discount for 12 months, not a free server.
Activate IBM Cloud creditCivo
What you get: credit for cloud servers and Kubernetes clusters
The catchThe biggest credit in this list, but it does not last long. You have to add a payment card within 3 months of signing up to get the credit, and after it is added, it expires at the end of the following month. Civo is mostly built for Kubernetes users.
Activate Civo creditAkamai Cloud (Linode)
Linode was founded in 2003 and is one of the oldest cloud server companies. It now runs as Akamai Cloud, and the old $20 credit is now $100.
The catchLinux only, GPU plans excluded, and unused credit lapses at the end of the trial. Akamai’s own page does not say how long the trial lasts. Other websites write 60 days, but I could not confirm it, so check the end date in your account after signup.
Activate Akamai creditUpCloud
What you get: a trial server to test their MaxIOPS storage before you pay
The catchTheir own pages show different trial lengths (3, 7 and 30 days) depending on the signup link. Trial servers are removed unless you make a €10 deposit.
Activate UpCloud trialOVHcloud
The catchCharges start automatically when the credit ends. Only for people who never made a Public Cloud project before.
Activate OVHcloud creditScaleway
The catchOnly for new business customers, and you must activate the voucher within 24 hours.
Activate Scaleway creditExoscale
The catchA €20 hold on your card, and usage above the credit is billed. Good for a short test in a European data center.
Activate Exoscale creditDigitalOcean
The catchThe old $200 offer page now redirects to the homepage. $5 is about one month of their smallest server.
Activate DigitalOcean creditRender
The catchThe app goes to sleep after 15 minutes without visitors and takes about a minute to wake up. Files saved on the server are lost on restart.
Try Render freeRailway
The catchAfter the trial each service gets 1 vCPU and 0.5 GB RAM. Fine for a bot, too small for a busy app.
Try RailwayNo offers match that filter right now.
How Long Does Free Cloud Credit Really Last?
A bigger credit does not always mean a longer free server. The expiry date decides it.
Most people look only at the credit amount, $300 or $250, and think it is the best offer. But every credit has an expiry date, and the unused credit is gone when that date comes.
Let me explain it with an example. Suppose you need a small server with 2 vCPU and 4 GB RAM, and on most clouds that costs somewhere around $24 a month. Here is how much of each credit you can actually use with that one server:
| Provider | Credit | Expires after | Months of a $24 server | Credit you can use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
AWSAmazon AWSLongest | $100 to $200 | 6 months | 4 to 6 | $100 to $144 |
GGoogle Cloud | $300 | 90 days | 3 | $72 |
CVCivo | $250 | End of the next month | 1 to 2 | $24 to $48 |
OCOracle Cloud | $300 | 30 days | 1 | $24 |
AZMicrosoft Azure | $200 | 30 days | 1 | $24 |
IBMIBM Cloud | $200 | 30 days | 1 | $24 |
DODigitalOcean | $5 | 90 days | 0.2 | $5 |
$24 a month is an example price for comparison, not a quote from any provider. Credit amounts checked October 2026.
So a $300 credit that expires in 30 days gives you the same one month as any other 30-day trial, if you run one normal server. The big credits are useful only when you want to test a large server or many servers for a short time.
If you want to keep a small project online for a few months without paying, AWS and Google Cloud give you the most time, and after that the Google e2-micro and the Oracle Always Free servers keep running at no cost.
Free Cloud Server With Windows
Windows needs a license, so most free offers are Linux only.
Cloud servers are available with both Windows and Linux platforms, but on free offers Windows is limited. These are the options I found:
| Provider | Windows on the free offer | Note |
|---|---|---|
KKamatera | Yes | Any Windows Server version they offer, within the trial limit |
VSVPSServer | Yes | Several Windows versions, within the $100 trial limit |
AZMicrosoft Azure | Yes | B1s size, 750 hours a month for 12 months |
AWAccuWebHosting | Yes | 30-day Windows VPS, no card but ID check. Details on my free VPS page |
GGoogle Cloud | No | Windows servers are not allowed during the free trial |
Free Cloud Hosting Without a Credit Card
We have noticed that many people look for a free cloud server that requires no credit card. But frankly speaking, it is very hard to find a reliable free cloud server without a credit card.
Cloud providers ask for your card to verify your identity, because free servers were misused a lot for spam and crypto mining. Don’t worry, you won’t be charged during the trial, but the card is how they bill you if you go above the free limits.
If you really don’t have a card, these are the genuine options:
- Render and Railway let you run an app without a card. They are app platforms, not full servers, so you can’t install cPanel or WordPress the normal way.
- Azure for Students gives $100 credit to full-time university students without a card.
- Cloudways gives a 3-day managed WordPress trial without a card.
Free Cloud Server Offers That Ended
You will still find these on many websites. I checked each one on the official page.
| Provider | What older articles say | What the official page says now |
|---|---|---|
| Google Cloud | $300 credit for 12 months | $300 for 90 days |
| Amazon AWS | Free t2.micro server for 12 months | Ended for new accounts in July 2025. Credit for up to 6 months instead. |
| Linode | $20 credit for 60 days | Now Akamai Cloud, $100 credit |
| DigitalOcean | $200 credit for 60 days | Offer page redirects to the homepage. $5 for 90 days. |
| Fly.io | Free allowance for small apps | Only a short trial of 2 machine hours or 7 days |
| Atlantic.Net | Free 4 GB cloud server for one year | Their own press release is marked “Offer has ended” |
| IONOS | Free cloud server for 30 days | Every plan is paid. You get a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you pay first and ask for a refund within 30 days. |
| Hetzner, Contabo | Free cloud trial | No free trial or credit on their official pages |
| Koyeb | One free instance, no card | Koyeb is joining Mistral AI (announced February 2026). New users can no longer sign up for the free Starter plan, and the pricing page shows no free instance. When I signed up in October 2026, the first message was “Koyeb is joining Mistral”. |
Still checking: Alibaba Cloud free trial, Tencent Cloud free tier, Huawei Cloud 12-month package and Vultr’s trial credit. Their offer pages don’t show the details clearly, so I will add them after I confirm.
Which Free Cloud Server Should You Pick?
Different applications need different hosting solutions. Pick by what you want to do.
Test a real project for a month
Kamatera, because you get a full server on Windows or Linux and can see how a paid server behaves.
KamateraKeep a small server free for long
Oracle Always Free for more RAM, or the Google e2-micro if you want something stable.
Oracle or GoogleLearn cloud for a few months
AWS or Google Cloud, because their credit lasts the longest and they are the skills companies ask for.
AWS or GoogleRun a bot or small app
Render, because you don’t manage a server at all. Just remember the app sleeps when idle.
RenderIf you have an application that is very resource hungry and needs a lot of vCPU and RAM, and you have a good budget, go with AWS, Google Cloud or Azure after the trial. If your website or app is not that big, any provider in this list will work, and for n8n or an AI agent you need at least 2 GB RAM.
Free Cloud Server FAQ
Is there a cloud server that is free forever?
Yes, but small. Oracle Cloud Always Free and the Google Cloud e2-micro have no end date as long as you stay inside their limits. Both need a card at signup.
Which free cloud server trial is the longest?
Microsoft Azure gives a small server free for 12 months. For credit, AWS gives up to 6 months and Google Cloud gives 90 days.
Can I get a free cloud server without a credit card?
A full server, very rarely. Azure for Students works without a card for university students. Render and Railway run apps without a card, but they are not full servers.
Which free cloud server supports Windows?
Kamatera and Microsoft Azure (B1s size) allow Windows on their free offers. Google Cloud does not allow Windows during the trial.
Is Google Cloud’s $300 credit valid for 12 months?
Not anymore. The $300 credit is valid for 90 days. The e2-micro server stays free after that.
Does AWS still give a free server for 12 months?
No, not for accounts created after July 2025. New accounts get credit that lasts up to 6 months.
Will I be charged after the free cloud trial ends?
It depends on the provider. OVHcloud and Exoscale bill the card automatically, Google Cloud stops your servers instead. Delete the servers you don’t need before the end date, because a stopped server is still billed on many clouds.