Exoscale vs TransIP

Compare Exoscale and TransIP on capabilities, jurisdiction, assurance, and fit for European buyers.

Both listed as alternatives to: Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform, Microsoft Azure

Logo: Exoscale

Exoscale

Switzerland· Cloud Computing

Needs review

Shortlist Exoscale when you need multi-country European IaaS (CH/DE/AT/BG/HR zones), managed Kubernetes and open-source DBaaS under a Swiss operator in the A1 Telekom Austria group. Skip when you need hyperscaler global PaaS depth or bare-metal-first catalogs—consider OVHcloud or Scaleway instead, or AWS/Azure/GCP for worldwide regions.

EU/CH zones onlySwiss operator (Akenes SA)Managed Kubernetes (SKS)Managed DBaaSISO 27001/27017/27018 (claimed)Per-second pay-as-you-go
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Logo: TransIP

TransIP

Netherlands· Cloud Computing

Needs review

Shortlist TransIP when you want a Dutch BV contract for domains plus NL-hosted VPS, managed Kubernetes, OpenStack, or S3/SWIFT object storage. Skip when you need hyperscaler global regions or first-party managed databases; consider Hetzner, OVHcloud, or Scaleway instead.

EU-operated (NL BV)Netherlands residency (claimed)KVM VPS + APIManaged KubernetesOpenStack public cloudISO 27001 (claimed)
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Highlighted rows differ between the two products.

Exoscale vs TransIP: Snapshot
FeatureLogo: ExoscaleExoscaleLogo: TransIPTransIP
Country of originSwitzerlandNetherlands
CategoryCloud ComputingCloud Computing
Open sourceNoNo
Self-hostedNoNo
HeadquartersSwitzerlandNetherlands
Legal entityAkenes SA, Boulevard de Grancy 19A, 1006 Lausanne, Switzerland (CHE-423.524.322); member of A1 Digital International GmbH & Co KG / A1 Telekom Austria GroupTransIP B.V., Vondellaan 47, 2332 AA Leiden (KvK 24345899, VAT NL812334966B01). ISO certificates published as team.blue NL B.V. Part of European team.blue group (Belgian group HQ).
Governing lawSwiss law (DPA: canton of Vaud jurisdiction language)Not listed
US parent / controlNo known US parentNo known US parent
CLOUD Act exposure (indicative)MediumMedium
EU-hosted statusNot listedPartial
Hosting / residencyCustomer compute/storage/SKS on Exoscale European zones (CH-GVA-2, CH-DK-2, DE-FRA-1, DE-MUC-1, AT-VIE-1/2, BG-SOF-1, HR-ZAG-1); DBaaS orchestrated by Aiven Oy (Finland) on Exoscale compute. Client ops third parties include AWS (US) data archival, Twilio (US) auth, PayPal (US) payments—privacy policy states customer-uploaded service data is not sent to those ops providers.Primary VPS/Kubernetes/object workloads marketed on TransIP-operated Netherlands infrastructure (AMS0/RTM0; object store 3x NL replication). OpenStack across multiple NL datacentres; KB also names Equinix AMS3 and EUNetworks as OpenStack facility providers. Ancillary: Google Analytics and reCAPTCHA (website, consent), PayPal/iDEAL/card payments. No AWS/GCP/Azure listed as primary IaaS fabric.
Summary

European public cloud (IaaS) from Swiss operator Akenes SA (A1 Digital): multi-zone compute, managed Kubernetes (SKS), DBaaS, object and block storage, and GPUs across CH, DE, AT, BG, and HR.

Dutch domain registrar and cloud host: KVM VPS, managed Kubernetes, OpenStack public cloud, and S3/SWIFT object storage on Netherlands infrastructure.

Tags
kubernetesgdprcloudiaasdbaasswitzerlandeuropean-cloudgpu
kubernetesgdprvpsopenstackobject-storagedomainsnetherlandsiso-27001
At a glance: Exoscale vs TransIP
At a glanceLogo: ExoscaleExoscaleLogo: TransIPTransIP
HQLausanne, SwitzerlandLeiden, Netherlands
Legal entityAkenes SA (CHE-423.524.322)TransIP B.V. (KvK 24345899); certs under team.blue NL B.V.
GroupA1 Digital / A1 Telekom Austria Groupteam.blue (European hosting group, Belgian group HQ)
HostingEuropean zones only (CH, DE, AT, BG, HR)Not listed
ModelPublic cloud IaaS + managed K8s/DBaaSNot listed
Self-hostNo (managed public cloud)Not listed
Primary regionsNot listedNetherlands (AMS0, RTM0; OpenStack multi-DC)
Commercial modelNot listedVPS packages + add-ons; pay-as-you-go Kubernetes/OpenStack/object storage
RegionsNot listedNetherlands: AMS0 (Amsterdam), RTM0 (Alblasserdam); OpenStack across multiple NL DCs (incl. Equinix AMS3 / EUNetworks named for some paths)
Compliance certs in regionNot listedISO 27001:2022, ISO 9001:2015, NEN 7510:2017 (vendor PDF certificates)
Key capabilities: Exoscale vs TransIP
Key capabilitiesLogo: ExoscaleExoscaleLogo: TransIPTransIP
EU/CH zones onlyYesNot listed
Swiss operator (Akenes SA)YesNot listed
Managed Kubernetes (SKS)YesNot listed
Managed DBaaSYesNot listed
ISO 27001/27017/27018 (claimed)YesNot listed
Per-second pay-as-you-goYesNot listed
EU-operated (NL BV)Not listedYes
Netherlands residency (claimed)Not listedYes
KVM VPS + APINot listedYes
Managed KubernetesNot listedYes
OpenStack public cloudNot listedYes
ISO 27001 (claimed)Not listedYes

Exoscale

  • Multi-zone European KVM compute

    Launch KVM instances in published zones across Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, and Croatia. Families cover standard, CPU-, memory-, and storage-optimized profiles plus NVIDIA GPU shapes; anti-affinity groups, instance pools, snapshots, custom templates, security groups, and live migration support production patterns. Billed per second with powered-off storage semantics as documented.

  • SKS managed Kubernetes (CNCF certified)

    Scalable Kubernetes Service deploys a managed control plane quickly (vendor claims under about a minute to two minutes). Starter is free without SLA; Pro adds HA control plane, etcd backups, and SLA language. Node pools use Exoscale instance types including GPUs; NLB, CSI storage, autoscaling/Karpenter (Pro), and vanilla CNCF-conformance positioning keep the stack portable.

  • Managed DBaaS on Exoscale compute (Aiven orchestration)

    Managed PostgreSQL, MySQL, Kafka, OpenSearch, Valkey, Grafana, and related engines run as DBaaS with automated backups, plan scaling, and high-availability options. Orchestration subprocessor is Aiven Oy (Finland); database instances run on Exoscale infrastructure in the zone you choose—confirm geo-replication and plan limits in docs before multi-region designs.

  • S3-compatible object storage and block volumes

    Simple Object Storage provides S3-compatible APIs for backups, media, and app assets integrated with Exoscale IAM and zones. Block storage attaches persistent NVMe-class volumes to instances and Kubernetes via CSI for stateful workloads without tying data solely to local disks.

  • IAM, private networks, and automation APIs

    Fine-grained IAM on API keys, private networks, and network load balancers support multi-tier designs. Portal, CLI, API, and Terraform-friendly workflows match common European DevOps practice without requiring a proprietary control language.

TransIP

  • KVM VPS on AMS0/RTM0 with NVMe triple copies

    Root VPS on TransIP's KVM platform with package tiers, optional dedicated vCPU and IOPS add-ons, private networking, HA-IP, and load balancers. Storage is described as distributed NVMe with three copies; free in-zone backups every four hours, with optional weekly and offsite backups.

  • Managed Kubernetes with free control plane

    Control-panel Kubernetes where TransIP runs the control plane; customers add shared or dedicated worker node pools, attach NVMe or Big Storage volumes, and use HA-IP load balancing. Data is marketed as stored in the Netherlands with minute-based pay-as-you-go nodes.

  • OpenStack Public Cloud (API + Horizon)

    Programmable OpenStack with Octavia load balancing, Barbican secret management, Cinder volume backups, and Terraform-friendly automation. First project is offered with a free trial window; infrastructure is described as multi-datacentre with triple rack-level copies.

  • S3 and SWIFT Object Store in the Netherlands

    Object storage with S3 and OpenStack SWIFT APIs, Keystone/S3 token management, and triple replication across Dutch availability zones. Usable standalone or beside VPS/OpenStack; billed on used storage and egress rather than reserved blocks.

  • Domains, DNS, and REST API in one panel

    Domain registration and DNS alongside infrastructure, with a documented REST API (api.transip.nl) for domains, VPS, Kubernetes, and OpenStack projects. Fits teams that want registrar plus compute under one Dutch operator.

Assurance & compliance: Exoscale vs TransIP
Assurance & complianceLogo: ExoscaleExoscaleLogo: TransIPTransIP
Independent security / control audit
Partial

Vendor states regular independent audits and publishes multi-framework certs via Compliance Center; not a VPN-style no-logs audit. Download current reports under account/NDA for verification.

Not applicable

IaaS/hosting provider, not a no-logs VPN. Assurance is via ISMS certifications and responsible disclosure (Intigriti), not a public no-logs audit.

ISO 27001
Vendor claimed

Vendor asserts ISO/IEC 27001:2022 ISMS certification since 2018; certificates via Compliance Center.

Vendor claimed

Vendor publishes ISO 27001:2022 PDF (team-blue-nl-bv naming). Independent registry re-check not completed in this draft.

ISO 27017 (cloud security)
Vendor claimed

Listed on compliance site as certified cloud security controls.

Not listed
ISO 27018 (cloud PII)
Vendor claimed

Listed on compliance site for personal data protection in public cloud.

Not listed
SOC 2 / SOC 3
Vendor claimed

SOC 2 listed on compliance marketing; obtain report via Compliance Center / NDA.

Not found

No clear TransIP product-level SOC 2/3 claim found on primary legal/security pages reviewed.

BSI C5
Vendor claimed

BSI C5 listed among national/international standards on compliance page.

Not listed
HDS (French health data hosting)
Vendor claimed

HDS listed on compliance page; confirm scope and zones for health workloads.

Not listed
CSA STAR
Vendor claimed

CSA STAR listed on compliance page.

Not listed
GDPR / EU data protection
Vendor claimed

Swiss entity; GDPR + Swiss FADP claims; EU zones; public DPA. Not legal advice.

Vendor claimed

Dutch controller/processor entity; privacy policy and control-panel DPA. Residency depends on selected product/zone.

US CLOUD Act exposure (indicative)
Partial

Swiss operator, no known US parent, European workload zones, and no third-party processor for compute/storage/SKS customer data. Medium residual path via US ops providers (AWS archival, Twilio auth, PayPal) listed for client data. DBaaS uses Aiven (Finland). Not legal advice.

Partial

EuropeanStack assessment: Dutch entity / no known US parent / NL-first hosting, but privacy names Google Analytics, reCAPTCHA, and PayPal, and OpenStack KB names Equinix colo. Not a vendor safety claim. Not legal advice.

Data processing agreement (B2B)
Vendor claimed

Public DPA for Akenes SA as processor; Swiss law; Aiven listed for DBaaS.

Vendor claimed

Processor agreement available to view/accept in the control panel per knowledge base.

EU AI Act
Not applicable

Primary product is IaaS/managed infrastructure; customer AI workloads remain customer-controlled. Concrete AI offerings may need separate review if used as an AI system.

Not applicable

Infrastructure hosting/registrar; not marketed as an AI system provider. Optional third-party AI assistant images on VPS are customer-chosen workloads.

NEN 7510 (Dutch healthcare information security)Not listed
Vendor claimed

Vendor publishes NEN 7510:2017 certificate PDF; accounts processing medical data can be marked for extra handling per cert page.

Considerations & known limitations: Exoscale vs TransIP
Considerations & known limitationsLogo: ExoscaleExoscaleLogo: TransIPTransIP
US third parties on client/ops path
Medium

Privacy policy lists AWS (US) data archival, Twilio (US) authentication, and PayPal (US) among client operations providers. Vendor states customer-uploaded service data is not transferred to these providers, but account/ops data paths still matter for CLOUD Act and transfer diligence.

Not listed
DBaaS subprocessor (Aiven)
Low

Managed databases depend on Aiven Oy (Finland) for orchestration while instances run on Exoscale. Confirm contractual chain, access model, and zone placement for sensitive data.

Not listed
Cert evidence mostly in customer portal / NDA
Low

ISO/SOC/C5/HDS claims are strong marketing signals, but full certificates and SOC reports typically require Compliance Center access or NDA—not fully public PDFs for all frameworks.

Not listed
Narrower PaaS than hyperscalers
Medium

Expect solid IaaS, SKS, DBaaS, storage, and GPU—not the global proprietary service catalog of AWS/Azure/GCP. Validate feature gaps early for serverless, global edge, and specialized managed services.

Not listed
Zone catalog evolves
Low

Public materials discuss further European expansion (e.g. Spain via A1 Digital messaging). Treat the live datacenters page as source of truth for residency commitments.

Not listed
team.blue group entity complexityNot listed
Low

Brand is TransIP B.V.; certificates use team.blue NL B.V. Procurement should map the exact contracting entity, DPA signatory, and cert scope to the services purchased.

US SaaS on website/payments pathNot listed
Medium

Privacy policy discloses Google Analytics, reCAPTCHA, and PayPal. These are not described as the VPS storage backend, but they affect overall vendor diligence and CLOUD Act style questionnaires.

Equinix-named OpenStack facilitiesNot listed
Low

OpenStack facility list includes Equinix AMS3 (US-parent colo operator). Workloads remain in Amsterdam physically; treat as partial EU-hosted diligence, not AWS-region hosting.

Narrower managed-platform depth than hyperscalersNot listed
Medium

No broad multi-continent region map or hyperscaler-class managed database suite on the pages reviewed. Teams needing those should plan self-managed stacks or another cloud.

No standalone public subprocessor register foundNot listed
Medium

Diligence relies on privacy policy, product pages, and DPA rather than a dedicated exhaustive subprocessor HTML table. Request an up-to-date schedule under NDA if required.

Fit

Exoscale

Best fit when

  • Teams that must pin VMs, Kubernetes, and object storage to named European zones (including Swiss options)
  • SaaS and product orgs wanting SKS plus managed PostgreSQL/MySQL/Kafka/OpenSearch without running the control planes
  • Buyers who need a published DPA, zone list, and multi-framework compliance pack from a non-US legal entity
  • Workloads that fit IaaS plus managed open-source data services rather than proprietary global PaaS catalogs
  • Organizations evaluating A1 Digital / A1 Telekom Austria group cloud as a European alternative to AWS/Azure/GCP

Poor fit when

  • Products that depend on dozens of proprietary hyperscaler services or multi-continent active-active regions
  • Buyers who require zero US-group SaaS anywhere on the account path (privacy lists AWS archival, Twilio, PayPal for ops)
  • Teams seeking a fully self-hosted OpenStack/Kubernetes distribution rather than a managed public cloud
  • Bare-metal-heavy designs better served by large European bare-metal catalogs (e.g. OVHcloud)

Consider instead when

  • When: You need extensive bare-metal or a different pan-EU hosting footprint

    Consider: OVHcloud

    Often stronger metal catalog and broader hosting packaging; different sovereignty and product mix.

  • When: You want a developer-centric alternative with a different regional product mix

    Consider: Scaleway

    Common EU shortlist peer; compare zones, K8s, and storage packaging side by side.

  • When: You need global regions and deep proprietary PaaS/AI catalogs

    Consider: Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform

    Trade European-operator simplicity for worldwide service breadth and US CLOUD Act parent risk.

TransIP

Best fit when

  • Teams that need domains, DNS, and root VPS under one Dutch operator
  • Workloads that must stay in the Netherlands with AMS0/RTM0 style zone choice
  • Builders who want managed Kubernetes without running their own control plane
  • OpenStack users who want Horizon/API automation and EU-stored projects
  • Backup/media pipelines that need S3 or SWIFT endpoints with Dutch triple replication

Poor fit when

  • Architectures that require many non-EU regions as first-class products
  • Buyers who need a broad first-party managed database catalogue
  • Procurement that requires a published exhaustive customer-workload subprocessor register before scoring
  • Teams seeking a fully open-source TransIP control plane (the company operates OpenStack/K8s but is not an OSS vendor)

Consider instead when

  • When: You need large bare-metal choice and owned DE/FI parks with optional extra-EU cloud

    Consider: Hetzner

    Deeper server auction and multi-park footprint; different registrar story.

  • When: You need multi-country EU cloud plus SecNumCloud-style private cloud paths

    Consider: OVHcloud

    Broader region map and product depth; French group contracting.

  • When: You want more EU region pins or managed data services with selectable residency

    Consider: Scaleway or UpCloud

    Compare region lists and managed DB/Kubernetes packaging directly.

  • When: You specifically want another Dutch IaaS peer for side-by-side diligence

    Consider: Leaseweb or Cyso Cloud

    Similar NL diligence questions; different panel and product mix.

Open questions for due diligence

Exoscale

  • Download current ISO/SOC/C5/HDS certificates from the Compliance Center and verify auditor, scope, and expiry for your zones.
  • Confirm whether your use case can accept AWS/Twilio/PayPal on the account/ops path even if workload data stays on European Exoscale zones.
  • For DBaaS, document Aiven access boundaries, encryption, backup locations, and multi-zone replication behavior in writing.
  • If Spanish or other new zones are required, get contractual residency language rather than relying on roadmap announcements.
  • Clarify support plan SLAs and enterprise contracting terms beyond self-serve pay-as-you-go.

TransIP

  • Which legal entity signs the order form and DPA for your SKU mix (TransIP B.V. vs team.blue NL B.V.)?
  • Can TransIP provide a current customer-workload subprocessor list covering backups, support tooling, and OpenStack facility operators?
  • What is the exact ISO/NEN certificate scope relative to VPS vs Kubernetes vs OpenStack vs Object Store?
  • Are offsite VPS backups always confined to Dutch availability zones under contract, including disaster scenarios?