- Dedicated server providers side by side
- Ten dedicated and bare metal server hosts
- Raw hardware, a managed layer or colocation?
- What each kind of dedicated server asks of you
- When a dedicated server beats a VPS or cloud instance
- Seven questions for a dedicated server provider
- My plain advice before you rent a dedicated server
- Frequently asked questions
Dedicated server hosting means you rent a whole physical server that no other customer shares. Providers sell it three ways: raw bare metal you run yourself through a dashboard or API, managed dedicated servers where support handles updates and migrations, and data-centre companies that also offer colocation for your own hardware. Ten providers follow, in no particular order.
If you've outgrown shared hosting or a VPS, a dedicated server is the next step up, and it's where the search results start to blur. The same two words cover a box you configure from scratch, a server with a support team looking after it, and space in someone else's data centre.
The ten providers below are listed alphabetically and in no particular order. Every description comes from each provider's own website, read as of Oct 2026, and I've left plan details out because they change too often to be worth printing.
Dedicated server providers side by side
| Tool | Type | Good for |
|---|---|---|
| Cherry Servers | Bare metal cloud | Instant bare metal run by API or dashboard |
| Contabo | Dedicated and cloud VPS host | Self-managed bare metal with raw computing power |
| Database Mart | US VPS, GPU and dedicated host | Low-latency servers in US data centres |
| Hivelocity | Bare metal and colocation | Dedicated servers backed by human support |
| InMotion Hosting | Managed hosting company | Dedicated servers with support included |
| InterServer | Cloud, bare metal and colo host | Shared hosting through to colocation in one place |
| Liquid Web | Managed hosting provider | Managed dedicated servers with expert support |
| OVHcloud | European cloud and server provider | Dedicated servers inside a large cloud catalogue |
| phoenixNAP | Bare metal cloud provider | Dedicated servers you manage as code |
| ServerMania | Dedicated, cloud and colocation host | Bare metal built for predictable performance |
Ten dedicated and bare metal server hosts
Cherry Servers
Best for: Developers who want a dedicated server deployed in minutes and managed by API or dashboard, with VPS or VDS beside it to scale.
Contabo
Best for: Self-managed users wanting bare metal servers with raw computing power, with cloud VPS and GPU options from the same provider.
Database Mart
Best for: Traders running bots and MT4 or MT5 platforms who want low-latency servers in US data centres, plus NVIDIA GPU servers for AI work.
Hivelocity
Best for: Businesses that want bare metal dedicated servers with human support, plus colocation if they'd rather house their own hardware.
InMotion Hosting
Best for: Growing sites that want a dedicated server with NVMe SSD and RAID-1 storage, 24/7 product support included and optional management.
InterServer
Best for: Anyone who'd like shared hosting, VPS, dedicated servers and colocation under one provider with hosting experience since 1999.
Liquid Web
Best for: Teams who want dedicated servers, VPS or Cloud Dedicated backed by experts who look after the environment for them.
OVHcloud
Best for: Companies wanting dedicated servers from a provider that also runs public and private cloud, including SecNumCloud-qualified options.
phoenixNAP
Best for: Engineering teams that provision pre-configured dedicated servers by API, consume them as cloud and manage them as code.
ServerMania
Best for: Companies running critical workloads that want dedicated bare metal built for predictable performance, with quotes on request.
Raw hardware, a managed layer or colocation?
Here's the split I found reading the provider pages. Hivelocity's own title is 'Bare Metal Dedicated Servers with Human Support' and it lists '40+ data centers across 6 continents'. Cherry Servers sells 'Instant Servers' as well as dedicated and custom builds, phoenixNAP lists 'One-Click Kubernetes Deployment' on bare metal, and Contabo sells 'Bare Metal Servers with Raw Computing Power'.
At the managed end, InMotion offers 'Fully Managed Servers with Migration, Updates, and Support Included', and Liquid Web sells 'Managed Hosting Built for Reliability, Speed, and Scalability'. Then come the data-centre companies: InterServer describes itself as 'Cloud Compute, Bare Metal, Web Hosting and Colocation', and ServerMania as 'Dedicated Servers, Cloud Hosting & Colocation'.
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That's the part most buyers miss. A dedicated server can be raw hardware you run yourself, hardware with a managed layer on top, or hardware sitting inside a colocation provider's building. All three turn up under the same search, but you'd be signing up for three very different amounts of work.
What each kind of dedicated server asks of you
- Bare metal you run yourself. You get root access to the whole machine, usually deployed from a dashboard or API in minutes. You install the operating system and software, patch it and keep it secure.
- Managed dedicated servers. The provider handles updates, monitoring and often the move from your old host. You still get a machine nobody else shares, but someone else answers the alert at 3am.
- Bare metal cloud. Dedicated hardware sold the way cloud is sold, with pre-configured instances you spin up and tear down by API, so you can treat servers as code.
- Colocation. You own the hardware and the provider supplies the building, power, cooling and connectivity. It's the route for companies that already have servers and want them in a data centre.
When a dedicated server beats a VPS or cloud instance
A VPS is a slice of a physical machine shared with other customers. A dedicated server gives you all of it: every core, all the memory and the whole disk. That matters when a site or app is busy enough that noisy neighbours slow it down, when you need specific hardware, or when your compliance team wants to know that nothing else runs on the box.
It doesn't matter much for a brochure site or a small blog. If you're not sure you've outgrown shared hosting yet, my guide on choosing a hosting provider for your blog covers the earlier steps, and my comparison of AWS CloudFront and BunnyCDN covers the content delivery side of a busy site.
Seven questions for a dedicated server provider
- Is the server managed or unmanaged, and what exactly does managed cover: updates, security patches, backups, migrations?
- How fast is deployment? Some providers list instant servers, while custom builds take longer.
- Which data centre locations can you choose, and how close are they to your users?
- Is there an API, so you can provision and rebuild servers from your own scripts?
- What storage and RAID setup comes with it, and who replaces a failed drive?
- How do you reach support, and will you talk to a person or join a ticket queue?
- Can you add colocation, cloud or VPS later without moving to another company?
Do you make a dedicated or bare metal server service? Tool makers can ask to be considered for a featured place on this list.
My plain advice before you rent a dedicated server
Decide how much of the server you want to run yourself before you compare anyone. If you've got someone comfortable with Linux, root access and security patches, a bare metal provider with an API gives you the most control. If you haven't, a managed dedicated server is the safer route, because the hardware is only half the job. Either way, read each provider's own page for what's included and which locations it offers, and start with a short commitment before you move anything important.
Only running a landing page or a small site? You may not need any of this, and my piece on whether you need hosting for a landing page is a quicker read.
Want your tool on this list? Featured spots and reviews here are paid partnerships. Here's how to partner with me.
Frequently asked questions
What is dedicated server hosting?
It's renting a whole physical server that no other customer shares. You get all of its processor, memory and storage, and either run it yourself or have the provider manage it for you.
What's the difference between a dedicated server and bare metal?
The terms overlap, and both mean single-tenant hardware. Bare metal is often used for servers you provision on demand through a dashboard or API, the way you'd launch a cloud server.
Is a dedicated server better than a VPS?
It's more powerful and more isolated, because nothing else runs on it. A VPS is quicker to set up and scale for smaller sites, so the right choice depends on how busy and how sensitive your workload is.
What does a managed dedicated server include?
It varies by provider. Managed usually covers operating system updates, security patching, monitoring and help with migration, but read each provider's own list rather than assuming.
What is colocation?
Colocation means you own the server hardware and rent space, power, cooling and connectivity in a provider's data centre. Several dedicated server companies offer both.
Do I need technical skills to run a dedicated server?
For an unmanaged server, yes: you'll be installing software, applying patches and handling security yourself. If you don't have those skills in-house, a managed server is the safer choice.
