Running your own server? You're paying more than you think.
A VPS gives you full control — but control means responsibility. SSL renewals, security patches, nginx configs, monitoring, backups. That's real overhead, and for static sites it's almost never worth it. RoastHive handles the ops so you can focus on building.
The hidden cost of self-hosting
The server bill is the easy part. Here's what doesn't show up in the invoice.
Your time
Nginx config, SSL renewal, OS updates, debugging random 502s at 11pm — all of it is on you. That time has real cost.
Security exposure
An unpatched server is a liability. Keeping up with CVEs and kernel updates is a part-time job on its own.
The "cheap VPS" illusion
A $6/month Hetzner box sounds cheap until you add your time, a monitoring service, backups, and a CDN on top.
One server, one region
Without a CDN in front, all traffic hits one location. That's fine for hobby projects, not for client sites that need to be fast globally.
Side by side
| Feature | RoastHive | Self-hosted |
|---|---|---|
| Global CDN | Manual setup (CloudFront, Cloudflare, etc.) | |
| Automatic SSL | Manual (certbot, renewal scripts) | |
| Custom domains | ||
| No Git required | Whatever you build | |
| Deploy via ZIP — no repo required | ||
| No repository ↔ deployment coupling | Whatever you build | |
| Multiple versions per site | Build it yourself | |
| Granular team permissions | Build it yourself | |
| Zero server maintenance | ||
| OS & security patches | Handled for you | Your responsibility |
| Time to first site | Minutes | Hours to days |
| Scales automatically | Manual resize / load balancer | |
| Predictable monthly cost | Varies with load + ops time |
When self-hosting still makes sense
- You need a custom server-side stack (PHP, Node, databases)
- Compliance requires data to stay in a specific region you control
- You're running many high-traffic apps that would be more expensive on managed platforms
- You have a dedicated DevOps team who enjoys the control
When RoastHive makes sense
- You're shipping static sites and don't need server-side logic
- You want SSL, CDN, and deploys without touching a terminal
- Your time is better spent on client work than server upkeep
- You manage many sites and need one place to control them all
Stop managing servers. Start shipping sites.
RoastHive handles the infrastructure so you don't have to. Start free, no credit card needed.