The verdict in three sentences
For a mid-size company that wants its website and forms hosted in the EU, OVHcloud or Scaleway cover 90% of needs for 12 to 60 EUR per month of infrastructure, with data that stays under European jurisdiction only. AWS Paris region (40 to 180 EUR with CDN) makes sense if the company already runs on AWS or needs heavy scaling, but the provider remains subject to the US Cloud Act. The real budget line is managed operations, 150 to 450 EUR per month, which weighs 3 to 10 times more than the servers.
2026 price comparison for a corporate website
The figures below cover a 30 to 80 page corporate site, with contact and job application forms, 20,000 to 80,000 visits per month. They are 2026 ballpark figures, excluding VAT.
| Option | Typical setup | Monthly price (net) | Data location | Strengths |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| OVHcloud VPS | 2 to 8 vCPU, 4 to 16 GB RAM | 12 to 40 EUR | Roubaix, Gravelines, Strasbourg | low price, French provider |
| Scaleway Instances | 2 to 8 vCPU, 4 to 16 GB | 15 to 60 EUR | Paris, Amsterdam, Warsaw | managed ecosystem, French provider |
| AWS Paris (EC2 + CloudFront) | t4g.medium to m7g.large + CDN | 40 to 180 EUR | eu-west-3 Paris | elasticity, managed services |
| Vercel Pro | serverless platform | 20 USD per user + overages | EU regions available, US provider | native Next.js deployment |
| OVHcloud SecNumCloud | qualified Hosted Private Cloud | 800 EUR and up | France | ANSSI qualification |
| Managed operations (extra) | monitoring, updates, on-call | 150 to 450 EUR | n/a | actual operations |
Watch the hidden costs. On AWS, outbound bandwidth is billed beyond the free tier and a traffic spike can add 30 to 80 EUR in a month. On Vercel, each team member who deploys counts as a 20 USD monthly seat, and serverless functions are billed by usage. OVH and Scaleway generally include outbound traffic or bill it at low rates.
Sovereignty, GDPR and SecNumCloud: what actually changes
Hosting in the EU is not always enough. An AWS server in Paris is still operated by a US company subject to the Cloud Act. Since 2023, the EU-US Data Privacy Framework allows transfers to certified US companies, but it remains contested and could be struck down, as Safe Harbor and Privacy Shield were before it.
| Criterion | OVHcloud standard | Scaleway | AWS Paris | OVHcloud SecNumCloud |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provider subject to EU law only | yes | yes | no (Cloud Act) | yes |
| ANSSI SecNumCloud qualification | no | no | no | yes |
| Health data hosting (HDS) available | yes | yes (dedicated offers) | yes | yes |
| ISO 27001 | yes | yes | yes | yes |
| Reversibility (export, open formats) | good | good | average (proprietary services) | good |
| Estimated exit migration time | 1 to 3 days | 1 to 3 days | 3 to 10 days | 3 to 5 days |
For a corporate site with contact and application forms, a standard European host covers GDPR compliance, provided you have a data processing agreement (Article 28) and an up-to-date record of processing. SecNumCloud is only required for sensitive data of public bodies or critical operators. CVs received through the application form should be purged after 2 years, following French regulator guidance.
Reversibility is the most often overlooked criterion. A containerised Next.js site (Docker) moves from OVH to Scaleway in a day. A site built on Lambda, DynamoDB and Cognito needs a partial rewrite to leave AWS.
Total cost over 3 years: infrastructure plus operations
| Scenario | Infra over 3 years (net) | Operations over 3 years (net) | 3-year total (net) |
|---|---|---|---|
| OVH VPS 25 EUR + light operations 150 EUR | 900 EUR | 5,400 EUR | 6,300 EUR |
| Scaleway 45 EUR + operations 250 EUR | 1,620 EUR | 9,000 EUR | 10,620 EUR |
| AWS Paris 120 EUR + operations 350 EUR | 4,320 EUR | 12,600 EUR | 16,920 EUR |
| Vercel Pro 3 seats (about 55 EUR per month) + monitoring 150 EUR | 1,980 EUR | 5,400 EUR | 7,380 EUR |
| SecNumCloud 900 EUR + operations 450 EUR | 32,400 EUR | 16,200 EUR | 48,600 EUR |
The table shows the key point: the gap between OVH and AWS on infrastructure alone is 3,400 EUR over 3 years, but operations weigh 5,400 to 16,200 EUR. Picking a simpler host also lowers running costs.
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Mini case study
Claire, CFO of a 400-employee industrial company in Lyon, receives two quotes to host the new corporate site and its application form (about 1,200 CVs per year). Quote A: AWS Paris with CloudFront, 140 EUR per month plus operations at 380 EUR, or 18,720 EUR over 3 years. Quote B: Scaleway with managed containers, 50 EUR per month plus operations at 240 EUR, or 10,440 EUR over 3 years. The site stays under 60,000 monthly visits, with no need for elasticity. Claire picks Scaleway: 8,280 EUR saved, a provider under EU law only, and a reversibility clause with a documented Docker export. The DPO signs off in one meeting, against three for the AWS file.
FAQ
OVH or Scaleway for a corporate website?
Both are reliable and French. OVH is often 20 to 30% cheaper on VPS, while Scaleway offers simpler managed services (containers, databases) that cut operations by 50 to 100 EUR per month.
Is hosting on AWS Paris GDPR compliant?
Yes legally, with a data processing agreement and the Data Privacy Framework. The residual Cloud Act risk should be documented in the impact assessment if the site processes sensitive data.
Does a corporate site need SecNumCloud hosting?
Rarely. The qualification, which pushes budgets to 800 EUR and more per month, mainly concerns public bodies, critical operators and sensitive data. A brochure site with forms does not need it.
Is Vercel suitable for an EU mid-size company?
Vercel is excellent for Next.js and costs 20 USD per user per month on Pro. As a US provider, it must appear in the record of processing, and functions should run in an EU region.
How much does a hosting migration cost?
For a containerised site, 1 to 3 days of work, or 900 to 2,700 EUR. For a site tied to proprietary AWS services, count 5 to 10 days.
Let's scope your project. We price hosting and operations for your website over 3 years, with OVH, Scaleway or AWS scenarios, GDPR and reversibility clauses, live in 2 to 4 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.
