Ubuntu VPS — the path of least resistance
If you're following almost any Linux tutorial online, it assumes Ubuntu. Widest package coverage, longest LTS support, the distro most Docker images and install scripts target first.
Who Ubuntu is for
Which Ubuntu release to pick
All three are official Canonical cloud images; what differs is the age of the software and how long security fixes keep coming. For a new server take 24.04 — kernel 6.8, Python 3.12, standard support until 2029. 22.04 still makes sense when a tool pins an older Python or PPA. 20.04 is here only for legacy apps: its standard support ended in 2025. Ubuntu 26.04 LTS isn't in our catalog yet, so 24.04 is the newest release you can deploy here.
| Release | Codename | Kernel | Python | Standard support · ESM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ubuntu 24.04 LTS | Noble Numbat | 6.8 | 3.12 | → 2029 · ESM → 2034 |
| Ubuntu 22.04 LTS | Jammy Jellyfish | 5.15 | 3.10 | → 2027 · ESM → 2032 |
| Ubuntu 20.04 LTS | Focal Fossa | 5.4 | 3.8 | → 2025 · ESM → 2030 |
ESM is Canonical's extended security maintenance, delivered through Ubuntu Pro. Canonical gives Pro away free for personal use on a few machines (currently up to five) — check their terms for your case.
Ubuntu VPS plans and prices
Every plan runs any of the Ubuntu releases above — you choose the version at checkout and can reinstall another one later from the dashboard. Prices are pulled live from billing.
| Plan | vCPU | RAM | NVMe | NAT (personal port) | Own IPv4 + IPv6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nano | 2 | 1 GB | 15 GB | $3/mo | $8/mo |
| Micro | 2 | 2 GB | 25 GB | $5/mo | $10/mo |
| Small | 4 | 4 GB | 35 GB | $8/mo | $16/mo |
| Medium | 6 | 6 GB | 45 GB | $12/mo | $20/mo |
A NAT plan has no public IPv4 of its own: SSH reaches it through a personal forwarded port, and outbound traffic is open except mail ports 25/465. That covers bots, agents and cron jobs. For a website on ports 80/443 or a VPN you need a plan with its own IPv4 — IPv6 comes with it at no extra cost.
What's on the image
- ▸The stock Ubuntu Server cloud image from Canonical plus qemu-guest-agent, with root password login over SSH switched on so the password from your dashboard works. Add your SSH key, then turn password login off. No control panel, nothing else preinstalled.
- ▸cloud-init sets the hostname, network and root password on first boot. Networking is plain netplan in /etc/netplan/50-cloud-init.yaml.
- ▸unattended-upgrades is on out of the box, so security patches install by themselves (on 20.04 only with Ubuntu Pro attached, since its standard updates have ended). Kernel updates still need a reboot — do it when it suits you.
- ▸snapd is present because Ubuntu ships it. If you don't want it, apt purge snapd removes it cleanly.
First commands after boot
Ubuntu uses apt. Everything you need is one command away, and unattended-upgrades keeps security patches flowing.
# update the system
apt update && apt full-upgrade -y
# install a package with apt
apt update && apt install -y nginxWhen Ubuntu isn't the answer
If you want the newest kernel and packages the day they ship, LTS will feel a release behind — look at Arch, CachyOS or Fedora. If you want the smallest possible footprint for a single container, Alpine boots in a fraction of the RAM.
Same on every EQVPS box
- ▸Full root from the first second — no locked-down panel image.
- ▸No KYC. Sign up with an email, that's it.
- ▸Pay in crypto (USDC, USDT, BTC, XMR on Base, Ethereum, Solana, Bitcoin, Tron, BNB Chain, Polygon, Monero) or by card.
- ▸Your root password is revealed to you once, in the dashboard — we don't email it.
Guides for your Ubuntu server
Ubuntu VPS — FAQ
Other OS images on the same plans
Spin one up
Choose this distro at checkout and get a clean box with full root in about a minute.