Best server for… pricing
Best and cheapest server for a Node.js API on AWS
Updated 2026-10-19
Cheapest sensible starting point for a Node.js API: t4g.small at $0.0168/h ($12.26/month) on demand in us-east-1. Move up to c7g.medium when you outgrow it.
Recommendations (us-east-1, on demand, Linux)
| Instance | When | Size | $/h | $/month | 3-yr RI $/h | Cheapest region | $25k credits last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| t4g.small | Low-traffic API | 2 vCPU / 2 GiB | $0.0168 | $12.26 | $0.0073 | ap-south-1 $0.0112 | 2,038 mo |
| c7g.medium | Sustained single-process load | 1 vCPU / 2 GiB | $0.0363 | $26.50 | $0.0159 | ap-south-1 $0.0245 | 943 mo |
| c7g.large | Cluster mode on 2 vCPU | 2 vCPU / 4 GiB | $0.0725 | $52.92 | $0.0319 | ap-south-1 $0.0491 | 472 mo |
How we chose
Sizing assumption (ours, not a vendor requirement): Each Node process is single-threaded; compute-optimized cores help sustained throughput.
Prices come from the AWS Price List. Treat sizes as starting points: watch memory and CPU for a week, then resize.
Other costs to add
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Questions
What is the cheapest AWS server for a Node.js API?
Cheapest sensible starting point for a Node.js API: t4g.small at $0.0168/h ($12.26/month) on demand in us-east-1. Move up to c7g.medium when you outgrow it.
Can I run a Node.js API on AWS credits?
Yes, EC2 and RDS usage is covered by AWS promotional credits; the last column shows how long $25k lasts.
Prices and credit amounts are estimates and may change. Check AWS for current terms.