OpenTools vs Elestio
On the prices we found, Elestio costs more than OpenTools for each app we list. What each price buys is below.
Prices, app by app
| App | OpenTools | Elestio | Elestio’s price is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| BookStack | $5Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
| Ghost | $10Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
| listmonk | $5Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
| Memos | $5Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
| Umami | $5Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
| Uptime Kuma | $5Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
| Wiki.js | $5Dev plan, a month | $11More than OpenTools | Smallest VM: 1 vCPU, 1 GB memory |
US dollars a month before tax, as checked on 14 October 2026, for the smallest size Elestio allows or recommends for each app. Prices change: check Elestio before you decide.
How Elestio bills
Each app runs on its own virtual machine, billed by the hour for the machine’s size from prepaid credit (a month is 730 hours). The price depends on the cloud provider and region you pick. Extra disk is $0.15 per GB a month. A 3-day free trial needs a card. From $11 a month per app (one of its FAQ pages says $14).
OpenTools charges a flat price per app: Dev is $5 for a light app, $10 for a medium one and $35 for a heavy one, for up to 10 people. Add-ons cost extra, from $2 an app a month (more users, more storage, longer backups, a person who fixes outages), and Email support is $49 an account a month. Anything bigger is a request, quoted first.
What’s included
| OpenTools Dev | Elestio | |
|---|---|---|
| People who sign in | 10 people included; 25 with More users (+$5 an app a month). More than that is a request. | No limit from Elestio: whatever the app and the machine allow. |
| Backups | Daily, the database and the app’s files, encrypted and stored off the server, kept 7 days. Included. Longer backups ($2 an app a month) keeps them 30 days, with a weekly test restore. | Automated daily remote backups, kept 7 days on the included support level. |
| Updates | We test each new version first, then apply it for you each week, with a backup first and an automatic rollback if the app doesn’t answer. You can switch it off and update in one click instead. | App and system updates applied automatically in a maintenance window you choose; they can be turned off. No testing step is described. |
| Custom domain | Included, with a free Let’s Encrypt certificate. | Included, with automatic HTTPS. |
| Data export | “Download my data” in your account: a database dump and the app’s files, any time. | Root and SSH access to the machine; backups can be downloaded from the dashboard. |
| Support | Docs only. Add-ons: Email support ($49 an account a month), a reply within a business day, and We fix outages ($25 an app a month), a person who fixes the app when it’s down. | Level 1 included: email, 3-day response, no SLA. Level 2 is $50 a month, Level 3 $200 a month. |
The differences, plainly
- Price: Elestio starts at $11 a month per app (1 vCPU, 1 GB memory); Dev is $5 for a light app and $10 for a medium one.
- Machine: each Elestio app gets its own virtual machine with root access. Dev apps run in containers on a shared server, each with its own memory and CPU limits; you manage them from your account, not over SSH.
- People: Elestio doesn’t limit who signs in to an app. Dev includes 10 people per app, and 25 with More users ($5 an app a month).
- Backups: both keep 7 days of daily backups. On Dev, Longer backups ($2 an app a month) keeps 30 days, with a weekly test restore.
- Updates: both apply new versions for you. Elestio does it in your maintenance window; on Dev, we test each version first, then apply it each week with a backup first and an automatic rollback.
- Support: Elestio includes email support with a 3-day response and sells faster levels from $50 a month. Dev is docs only; Email support ($49 an account a month) is an add-on, with a reply within a business day.
When to choose Elestio
- You want root and SSH access to the machine the app runs on.
- You want to choose the cloud provider and region.
- You want paid support levels with faster answers.
- The app you need isn’t on OpenTools yet.
When to choose OpenTools
- You want backups included, encrypted and off the server, without setting up storage of your own.
- You want each update tested and applied for you, with a backup first and an automatic rollback.
- You want one flat price per app, with no sizing.
- You might move to your own server later: each app we sell has a self-hosting guide built from the same tested setup.
Sources
Checked on 14 October 2026: Elestio pricing · Elestio plans for Umami (an example app page) · Elestio backups. OpenTools: the plan, add-ons and prices.