The verdict in three sentences
Hosting choice comes down to three axes: cost, performance and sovereignty (data in the EU, beyond the reach of the US Cloud Act). For most SME brochure and e-commerce sites, an EU player like OVHcloud, Scaleway or Clever Cloud covers the need for 5 to 80 EUR/month. Reserve hyperscalers for complex architectures, and require SecNumCloud for sensitive data or the public sector.
EU offers compared, 2026
The prices below are 2026 orders of magnitude for a professional site. Shared hosting suits a brochure site; a VPS or managed cloud is warranted once you need scalability or redundancy.
| Offer type | Indicative price /mo | Suits | Redundancy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shared | 5-15 EUR | Brochure, blog | Low |
| VPS / private server | 15-60 EUR | Mid e-commerce | Medium |
| Managed cloud (PaaS) | 40-200 EUR | Business app, variable traffic | High |
| Dedicated cloud / cluster | 200 EUR+ | Corporate, heavy load | Very high |
| CDN + WAF | 10-100 EUR | All, if international traffic | — |
Sovereignty and compliance: what really sets vendors apart
Sovereignty is not just where a datacenter sits: it depends on the operator's legal nationality and its certifications.
| Criterion | OVHcloud | Scaleway | Clever Cloud | AWS/GCP (EU region) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Legal HQ | France | France | France | USA |
| Data in EU | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (region) |
| Outside Cloud Act | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| SecNumCloud | Qualified offers | Qualified offers | In progress | No |
| Shared price | From ~5 EUR | From ~7 EUR | PaaS from ~5 EUR | Usage-based |
| French support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Varies |
| Best for | Brochure to cloud | Dev cloud | Git deployment | Global multi-region |
Mini case study
Elise, IT director at a mid-cap healthcare firm in Lille, must host a patient portal subject to GDPR and health-data rules. A US host in an EU region remains exposed to the Cloud Act; she chooses a SecNumCloud offer from a French operator at 180 EUR/month rather than a hyperscaler solution estimated at 240 EUR/month on usage. She gains regulatory compliance, French-speaking support and predictable billing. Premium over a standard VPS: ~120 EUR/month, justified by data sensitivity.
FAQ
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
Shared or managed cloud for an SME?
A brochure site runs perfectly on shared hosting (5-15 EUR/month). Move to a VPS or managed cloud once you have e-commerce, traffic spikes or a business app needing fine-grained backups.
Is a datacenter in Europe enough for sovereignty?
No. A US operator remains subject to the Cloud Act even with EU servers. Sovereignty requires an EU-law operator, ideally SecNumCloud-certified for sensitive data.
What is SecNumCloud?
It's the French ANSSI security visa qualifying trusted cloud offers. It's increasingly required for sensitive data, the public sector and healthcare.
What budget for e-commerce hosting?
Expect 15-80 EUR/month depending on traffic, plus a CDN/WAF (10-100 EUR/month) if you sell internationally. Add maintenance for security updates.
Do I need a CDN for a local site?
Not essential for a purely local audience, but recommended once you target several countries or heavy mobile traffic, as it cuts latency and absorbs spikes.
Let's scope your project. Tell us your expected traffic, compliance constraints and monthly budget and we'll recommend the right EU hosting. 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.
