The verdict in three sentences
For a B2B Next.js website with 50,000 visits per month, raw hosting costs stay modest everywhere: EUR 15 to 60 per month at OVH or Scaleway, EUR 40 to 120 per month on Vercel Pro for a small team. The line that really moves the annual budget is managed operations (EUR 150 to 400 per month on a VPS) versus the comfort of a managed platform. On GDPR, OVH and Scaleway keep data in the EU under European law, while Vercel requires you to document a transfer outside the EU covered by the Data Privacy Framework and standard contractual clauses.
What each option really costs in 2026
A B2B website with 50,000 monthly visits typically generates 60 to 120 GB of bandwidth, a few hundred thousand requests and low compute needs if pages are pre-rendered. The gaps therefore come mostly from the billing model.
| Criterion | OVH (VPS) | Scaleway (Instances) | Vercel Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 entry price | EUR 15 to 40/month | EUR 20 to 60/month | USD 20 per seat/month |
| Included traffic | Unlimited (fair use) | Unlimited on most ranges | 1 TB included, then billed |
| Data location | France (Gravelines, Roubaix, Strasbourg) | France (Paris), Netherlands (Amsterdam), Poland | United States by default, global edge |
| Next.js deployment | To configure (Docker, PM2, Nginx) | To configure or Serverless Containers | Native, one click |
| Backups | Option EUR 2 to 10/month | Snapshots EUR 0.04/GB/month | Handled by the platform |
| Managed ops needed | Yes, EUR 150 to 400/month | Yes, EUR 150 to 400/month | Low, EUR 0 to 100/month |
| Estimated total/year | EUR 2,000 to 5,300 | EUR 2,100 to 5,500 | EUR 700 to 2,600 |
These are 2026 ballpark figures for an SME with 2 to 3 people deploying. On Vercel, a traffic spike from a campaign or a poorly filtered bot can add EUR 50 to 300 in a month if server functions are hit.
The GDPR question the IT lead must settle
A B2B website collects contact forms, sometimes files (specifications, CVs) and analytics cookies. The hosting choice engages the company's liability as data controller.
| Compliance point | OVH / Scaleway | Vercel |
|---|---|---|
| Data stored in the EU | Yes, by default | Possible for functions (Paris or Frankfurt region), not for all logs |
| Law applicable to provider | French law | US law (Cloud Act) |
| Basis for non-EU transfer | No transfer | Data Privacy Framework + standard clauses |
| Entry in the processing register | Simple | Transfer assessment to document |
| SecNumCloud qualification | Dedicated OVH offers (more expensive) | No |
| Legal time to plan | 1 to 2 h | 4 to 8 h (DPA, transfer impact assessment) |
For a site that only collects contact forms, Vercel remains defensible if the functions region is pinned to Europe and the DPA is signed. For enterprise clients, public bodies or healthcare, a clause requiring "EU hosting, European provider" often appears in tenders and settles the debate in favour of OVH or Scaleway, whose Amsterdam region suits Dutch buyers well.
Which architecture fits your profile
- No in-house developer, need to ship fast: Vercel with a European region, forms sent to an EU-hosted CRM. Lowest total cost, minimal maintenance.
- Contractual sovereignty requirement: OVH VPS or Scaleway instance, Next.js in standalone mode in Docker, a European CDN (Bunny or Scaleway Edge Services) in front. Budget for managed ops.
- Middle ground: a statically exported site on Scaleway Object Storage (about EUR 5/month) with a small VPS backend for forms. Often the cheapest and most compliant option.
Mini case study
Sarah, IT lead at an industrial distribution SME in Amsterdam (120 staff), must migrate a Next.js site with 50,000 monthly visits. Her main client, a rail group, requires EU hosting with a European provider.
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- Vercel Pro option, 3 seats: USD 60 per month, about EUR 660 per year, plus 4 h of legal work at EUR 150, i.e. EUR 600. First-year total: EUR 1,260, but the client clause is not met.
- OVH VPS option at EUR 28 per month plus managed ops at EUR 200 per month: EUR 2,736 per year.
- Scaleway hybrid option (static storage EUR 5 + small instance EUR 15 + light managed ops EUR 120): EUR 1,680 per year.
Sarah picks the hybrid option: she saves EUR 1,056 per year compared with the full VPS and keeps a EUR 380,000 annual contract with her rail client.
FAQ
Is Vercel forbidden for a GDPR-bound website?
No. Vercel is certified under the Data Privacy Framework and offers a DPA; you must pin the functions region to Europe and document the transfer. Plan 4 to 8 h of legal work in year one.
Is a EUR 15 OVH VPS enough for 50,000 visits a month?
Yes if pages are pre-rendered and served through a CDN: a 2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM VPS easily handles 50,000 visits. For server rendering on every request, aim for EUR 30 to 40 per month.
What does EUR 150 to 400 per month of managed ops include?
System updates, 24/7 monitoring, tested backups, SSL certificates and incident response. At EUR 150, response is often within 4 business hours; at EUR 400, within 1 h with on-call cover.
How much does a hosting migration cost?
For a standard Next.js site, a clean migration costs EUR 800 to 2,500 depending on complexity (forms, redirects, database). It takes 2 to 5 days with a zero-downtime DNS switch.
Scaleway or OVH: which one?
Both are French and compliant. OVH is cheaper on entry-level VPS, Scaleway offers more modern managed services (serverless containers, object storage) that suit a Next.js site.
Let's scope your project. We price your migration or your GDPR-compliant hosting architecture, with an indicative budget of EUR 800 to 5,000 and go-live in 1 to 2 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
