Raff is a practical Google Cloud alternative when a workload fits us-east and the priorities are lower VM list pricing, included NVMe capacity, unmetered bandwidth, and a smaller operating surface. Google Cloud is stronger when the architecture needs global regions, advanced IAM and governance, accelerators, global networking, or specialized services such as BigQuery and Vertex AI. For a current spec-level comparison, Raff General Purpose provides 4 vCPU / 8 GB / 160 GB NVMe for $30.99/month, while Google Cloud lists c4-highcpu-4 at $0.170104/hour, or about $124.18 for 730 hours of compute before disk, external IPv4, egress, snapshots, support, or other services. The May 16, 2026 benchmark on this page is preserved only as historical evidence from the configurations tested then; it is not a benchmark of Raff's current $30.99 General Purpose tier.
Among Google Cloud alternatives and competitors, Raff is best evaluated as a Compute Engine and Google Cloud VPS alternative rather than as a replacement for every Google Cloud service. It fits buyers comparing cloud VM pricing, included storage, bandwidth, and operational simplicity; Google Cloud remains stronger when the architecture depends on its global or specialized products.
For the wider location decision, review how to choose a U.S. cloud server for latency and compliance.
Google Cloud vs Raff: which is right for you?
The decision is less about provider size and more about operating model. Raff packages conventional cloud-server resources into a simpler monthly price, while Google Cloud provides a much broader global infrastructure and managed-service catalog.
For teams comparing Google Cloud alternatives, the most useful filter is whether the workload needs a simpler VM-centric platform or the full Google Cloud service catalog.
| Decision factor | Choose Raff | Choose Google Cloud |
|---|
| Geography | Your users and systems fit us-east | You require deployment across multiple Google Cloud regions or zones |
| VM economics | You want RAM, listed NVMe capacity and unmetered bandwidth in one published plan price | You prefer granular resource pricing and can model separate compute, disk, IP and transfer charges |
| CPU model | Shared-vCPU General Purpose plans fit the workload, or you select a Raff CPU-Optimized tier separately | You need specific Google machine families, commitments, Spot capacity, GPUs, TPUs or custom shapes |
| Application platform | You need VMs, managed databases, Kubernetes, Apps, Functions and storage in a compact platform | You need GKE, Cloud SQL, AlloyDB, Spanner, BigQuery, Cloud Run, Vertex AI or other Google-native services |
| Operations | A smaller product surface and direct support are valuable | Enterprise identity, policy, observability, procurement and multi-project governance are central |
Raff is not a replacement for every Google Cloud service. It is most relevant as a Compute Engine alternative for conventional Linux and Windows application infrastructure where predictable monthly economics matter more than hyperscaler breadth.
Google Cloud overview
Google Cloud is a global hyperscale platform whose infrastructure products include Compute Engine, Google Kubernetes Engine, Cloud Storage, Cloud SQL, Virtual Private Cloud, load balancing, Cloud CDN and security services. Its broader catalog extends into analytics, AI, serverless computing, data engineering, databases, identity, observability and hybrid cloud.
If your team uses Google Cloud VPS as shorthand for a Google-hosted virtual server, Compute Engine is the relevant product family for the VM-level comparison on this page.
Google Cloud continues to operate across dozens of regions and more than one hundred zones. That geographic breadth remains one of its clearest advantages over Raff: teams can place workloads closer to users, spread systems across failure domains and build multi-region architectures.
For a 4 vCPU / 8 GiB C4 high-CPU configuration, Google Cloud currently lists c4-highcpu-4 at $0.170104/hour. At 730 hours, that is approximately $124.18/month for compute alone. Persistent storage, external IPv4 where used, internet egress, snapshots and support are separate billing dimensions.
Google Cloud also offers committed-use discounts and Spot VMs. These can reduce compute cost, but they change the commercial assumptions through commitment length or interruption risk.
Raff overview
Raff serves customers worldwide from one public region named us-east. Current General Purpose cloud-server plans include:
- 2 vCPU / 4 GB / 80 GB NVMe — $13.99/month
- 4 vCPU / 4 GB / 80 GB NVMe — $16.99/month
- 4 vCPU / 8 GB / 160 GB NVMe — $30.99/month
- 8 vCPU / 8 GB / 160 GB NVMe — $37.99/month
- 8 vCPU / 16 GB / 320 GB NVMe — $59.99/month
General Purpose uses shared vCPU. Raff also offers CPU-Optimized plans for workloads that need dedicated vCPU allocation; those tiers should be compared separately rather than treating the $30.99 General Purpose plan as a dedicated-CPU equivalent.
Every current cloud-server plan includes unmetered bandwidth on a standard 3 Gbps public port, IPv4/IPv6 options, private networking, firewall controls, DDoS protection, root access, resize workflows, API/Terraform tooling and NVMe storage according to the selected plan. Raff also offers Managed Kubernetes, Managed Databases, Apps, Functions, Object Storage and additional block storage.
Raff reports 3,000+ customers and 15,000+ VMs, publishes a 99.9% uptime SLA, and currently shows 4.5/5 on Trustpilot. Google Cloud has far greater geographic scale and service breadth; Raff's advantage is a smaller operating surface and simpler pricing for conventional application infrastructure.
Google Cloud pricing vs Raff pricing
The current pricing comparison below uses General Purpose Raff plans against Google Cloud C4 high-CPU configurations with the same published vCPU and memory counts where available. This is a spec-level buying comparison, not a claim of equal CPU allocation or equal performance: Raff General Purpose uses shared vCPU, while Google Cloud C4 is a different compute architecture.
| Published vCPU / memory | Raff General Purpose | Google Cloud C4 high-CPU compute only | What is excluded from Google price |
|---|
| 2 vCPU / 4 GB | $13.99 with 80 GB NVMe | c4-highcpu-2 ≈ $62.09/mo | Disk, external IPv4 where used, egress, snapshots, support |
| 4 vCPU / 8 GB | $30.99 with 160 GB NVMe | c4-highcpu-4 ≈ $124.18/mo | Disk, external IPv4 where used, egress, snapshots, support |
| 8 vCPU / 16 GB | $59.99 with 320 GB NVMe | c4-highcpu-8 ≈ $248.35/mo | Disk, external IPv4 where used, egress, snapshots, support |
The 4 vCPU / 8 GB row is the clearest current buying anchor. Raff includes 160 GB NVMe and unmetered VM bandwidth for $30.99/month. Google Cloud's approximately $124.18/month figure is compute only, so the final bill depends on the disk, IP, transfer and other services selected. For teams looking for a cheaper Google Cloud alternative for conventional VM hosting, this is the most useful current pricing comparison on the page.
Raff also has a 4 vCPU / 4 GB / 80 GB plan at $16.99/month. Google C4 high-CPU does not provide a directly matching 4 vCPU / 4 GiB shape, so this page does not force an artificial one-to-one comparison for that tier.
Google Cloud discounts can materially reduce eligible compute pricing through one-year or three-year commitments, while Spot VMs can reduce cost for interruption-tolerant workloads. Those options can be attractive when their operating constraints fit the workload.
Bandwidth and transfer policy
Raff cloud-server bandwidth is unmetered on a standard 3 Gbps public port, so ordinary VM internet traffic does not create a per-GB egress line item.
Google Cloud uses a more granular network-pricing model. Internet data transfer, inter-region traffic, Cloud NAT, load balancing, CDN and other paths can each have separate pricing rules. This gives architects more control but also creates more billing dimensions.
For public APIs, SaaS responses, downloads, media delivery, backup replication and traffic spikes, Raff's unmetered model can be easier to forecast. Google Cloud can be stronger when workloads benefit from its global network, regional placement, CDN, private service access or broader networking products.
Feature comparison: Google Cloud vs Raff
| Area | Raff | Google Cloud |
|---|
| VM model | General Purpose shared vCPU plus CPU-Optimized dedicated vCPU tiers | Multiple machine families, custom shapes, Spot and specialized compute |
| Current 4 vCPU / 8 GB buying anchor | $30.99 with 160 GB NVMe, shared vCPU | c4-highcpu-4 ≈ $124.18 compute-only at 730 hours |
| VM internet transfer | Unmetered, standard 3 Gbps port | Metered according to route, destination and service |
| VM storage | Listed NVMe capacity included | Persistent Disk or Hyperdisk billed separately |
| Managed Kubernetes | Available | GKE Standard and Autopilot |
| Managed databases | PostgreSQL, MySQL, Valkey, ClickHouse, Kafka | Cloud SQL, AlloyDB, Spanner, Memorystore and more |
| Application platform | Raff Apps | Cloud Run, App Engine and GKE-based options |
| Functions | Raff Functions | Cloud Run functions and event services |
| AI and analytics | Focused application platform | Vertex AI, BigQuery, GPUs and TPUs |
| Geography | One public region, us-east | Global multi-region and multi-zone footprint |
| Governance | Focused platform controls | Organization, folders, projects, IAM, policy and audit ecosystem |
Google Cloud clearly wins on global reach, specialized infrastructure, enterprise governance, accelerators and managed-service breadth. Raff is more compelling when the workload is conventional, fits us-east, and benefits from a simpler server price with storage and unmetered bandwidth included.
The benchmark below is historical and is not used as proof of current $30.99 General Purpose performance. It was run on May 16, 2026 against different configurations and should be read only as a snapshot of that test window.
The Raff test used a 4 vCPU / 8 GB CPU-Optimized VM with 120 GB storage under the earlier catalog. The Google Cloud test used c4-standard-4 with 4 vCPU / 15 GiB RAM and Hyperdisk Balanced. The memory sizes, storage architecture and regions were not identical.
Historical methodology
| Parameter | Raff | Google Cloud |
|---|
| Test date | May 16, 2026 | May 16, 2026 |
| Instance | Earlier CPU-Optimized 4 vCPU / 8 GB | c4-standard-4, 4 vCPU / 15 GiB |
| Storage | 120 GB plan storage | Hyperdisk Balanced |
| Region | Raff us-east | us-central1 |
| Tools | fio 3.36, iperf3 3.16, Geekbench 6 | Same tools |
| Run count | One test window | One test window |
Historical results
| Benchmark | Raff | Google Cloud | Observed result in that test window |
|---|
| fio 4K total read/write | 108 MiB/s / 27.6k IOPS | 16 MB/s / 3.99k IOPS | Raff higher |
| fio 64K total read/write | 1,048 MiB/s / 16.8k IOPS | 244 MB/s / ≈3.9k IOPS | Raff higher |
| fio 512K total read/write | 2,135 MiB/s / 4.3k IOPS | 794 MB/s | Raff higher |
| fio 1M total read/write | 2,251 MiB/s / 2.25k IOPS | 794 MB/s | Raff higher |
| Geekbench 6 single-core | 2,266 | 2,001 | Raff higher |
| Geekbench 6 multi-core | 6,840 | 4,450 | Raff higher |
| Amsterdam iperf3 | 1.89 / 2.72 Gbps | 1.26 / 8.98 Gbps | Mixed |
| Los Angeles iperf3 | Partial Raff result | 2.12 / 3.00 Gbps | Incomplete direct comparison |
These results should not be generalized to current Raff General Purpose plans, all Google Cloud machine families, or future hardware. A future performance refresh should use matched memory, clearly recorded storage settings, at least three runs per test and an application-level benchmark.
When you should choose Google Cloud over Raff
Choose Google Cloud when:
- You need deployment across multiple regions or zones.
- Enterprise IAM, organization policy, audit and governance are mandatory.
- The architecture depends on GKE, Cloud SQL, AlloyDB, Spanner, BigQuery, Cloud Run, Pub/Sub, Dataflow or Vertex AI.
- You need GPUs, TPUs, Spot VMs, custom machine types or other specialized compute.
- You need Google's global load balancing, CDN, Cloud Armor, Cloud NAT, Interconnect or hybrid-networking portfolio.
- Commitments or Spot pricing fit your workload economics.
- Multi-region residency, compliance or latency requirements cannot be met from
us-east.
When you should choose Raff over Google Cloud
Choose Raff when:
- You want a Google Cloud VPS or Compute Engine alternative for conventional Linux or Windows workloads rather than a replacement for every Google Cloud service.
- A 4 vCPU / 8 GB / 160 GB shared-vCPU VM at $30.99/month fits the workload.
- You want unmetered VM bandwidth rather than a route- and destination-based egress model.
- You prefer included plan storage rather than separately sizing and pricing VM disk capacity.
- Your stack uses conventional VMs, managed databases, Kubernetes, Functions, Apps and object storage rather than specialized hyperscaler services.
- Your users and compliance requirements fit
us-east.
- A smaller product surface and direct support reduce operational overhead for your team.
Compare nearby decisions with Raff versus AWS Lightsail, Raff versus DigitalOcean, and Raff versus Vultr.
Migrating from Google Cloud to Raff
- Inventory the Google Cloud estate. Record Compute Engine instances, machine families, disks, snapshots, images, static IPs, VPCs, firewall policies, load balancers, Cloud NAT, DNS, service accounts, secrets, monitoring and managed-service dependencies.
- Classify portable and non-portable components. Linux VMs, application files, containers and common databases are usually portable. BigQuery, Spanner, Vertex AI, Google-specific IAM integrations and private Google service paths need replacement or a hybrid design.
- Choose the Raff target tier. Use General Purpose for shared-vCPU workloads and CPU-Optimized where dedicated vCPU allocation is required. Do not select a target solely from the old May benchmark.
- Move application and data layers. Redeploy stateless applications from source control, transfer files with rsync or equivalent tools, and migrate databases with native dump/restore or replication workflows.
- Validate before cutover. Test TLS, application health, database consistency, storage mounts, outbound services, firewall rules, backups, monitoring and third-party allowlists.
- Cut over with rollback. Lower DNS TTL, perform the final sync, update records, monitor production and retain the Google Cloud environment until the rollback window closes.
- Remove residual Google Cloud charges. Review VMs, disks, reserved IP addresses, snapshots, images, load balancers, NAT and logging resources after verification.
About Google Cloud
Google Cloud Compute Engine is Google's infrastructure-as-a-service VM platform. It connects to a global portfolio that includes Google Kubernetes Engine, Cloud Storage, Cloud SQL, Cloud Run, BigQuery, Vertex AI and extensive networking and security services.
Conclusion: Google Cloud or Raff?
For buyers comparing Google Cloud alternatives and competitors at the VM layer, Raff is strongest when the workload fits us-east and simpler monthly economics matter more than hyperscaler breadth.
The current 4 vCPU / 8 GB / 160 GB Raff General Purpose plan is $30.99/month and includes its listed NVMe capacity plus unmetered VM bandwidth. Google Cloud's c4-highcpu-4 is approximately $124.18/month for 730 hours of compute alone, before storage and other separately billed resources. This is a current pricing/spec comparison, not a claim that the two CPU allocation models perform identically.
Google Cloud remains the stronger choice for global placement, enterprise governance, accelerators, analytics, AI and specialized managed services. Raff is better aligned with teams that want a Google Cloud VPS or Compute Engine alternative for conventional cloud infrastructure, fewer billing dimensions and a compact managed application stack.
The May 16, 2026 benchmark remains on this page only as historical test evidence. It should not be treated as a benchmark of the current $30.99 General Purpose tier.
Continue with the U.S. cloud server decision guide or review Raff VM plans.
