What is Web Apps & APIs?
A VPS gives you complete control over your web application stack — from the operating system to the web server, application runtime, and database. Unlike shared hosting or PaaS platforms, you decide exactly how your server is configured.
Deploy any framework: Next.js, Django, Rails, FastAPI, Laravel, or Go services. Set up nginx as a reverse proxy with HTTP/2 and gzip compression. Configure Redis caching, SSL certificates via Let's Encrypt, and custom domain routing — all without platform restrictions.
This is the go-to setup for developers who want production-grade hosting at a fraction of managed platform costs. A $4-10/mo VPS can serve thousands of requests per second with proper optimization.
$ apt list --installable
Popular Web Apps & APIs Software
Top open-source tools you can self-host on your VPS.
Next.js
React framework for production web apps. Server-side rendering, API routes, and static generation. The most popular full-stack React framework.
Read our guideDjango
Python's batteries-included web framework. Built-in admin, ORM, authentication, and security. Powers Instagram, Pinterest, and Mozilla.
Read our guideWordPress
The world's most popular CMS, powering 40%+ of all websites. Self-hosting gives you full control over performance and security.
Read our guidenginx
High-performance web server and reverse proxy. Essential for serving static files, SSL termination, load balancing, and request routing.
Read our guideVPS Specifications
What you need to run web apps & apis workloads.
$ top --providers --for=web
Best Providers for Web Apps & APIs
Hand-picked based on specs, pricing, and suitability for web apps & apis workloads.
DigitalOcean
Best developer experience with excellent documentation and community tutorials
Get Started
$ man web
Frequently Asked Questions
Is a VPS faster than shared hosting?
Yes, significantly. A VPS provides dedicated CPU and RAM resources, while shared hosting splits resources among hundreds of sites. Response times are typically 2-5x faster on a VPS.
Can I host multiple websites on one VPS?
Absolutely. With nginx virtual hosts or a reverse proxy, a single VPS can serve dozens of websites. Docker makes it easy to isolate each site in its own container.
How do I get SSL certificates?
Use Certbot with Let's Encrypt for free, auto-renewing SSL certificates. Most reverse proxies (Traefik, Caddy) handle this automatically.
What's better for APIs: a VPS or serverless?
VPS is better for consistent workloads and predictable costs. Serverless suits sporadic, bursty traffic. A $5/mo VPS handles constant API traffic that would cost $50+ on serverless.
How many requests can a VPS handle?
A well-optimized 2 vCPU VPS with nginx can handle 5,000-10,000+ requests per second for static content. Dynamic apps typically handle 500-2,000 rps depending on the framework.
Ready to self-host Web Apps & APIs?
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