IONOS vs STACKIT

Compare IONOS and STACKIT on capabilities, jurisdiction, assurance, and fit for European buyers.

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

Logo: IONOS

IONOS

Germany· Cloud Computing

Needs review

Shortlist IONOS when you want a German-operated hosting + public cloud stack with EU location choice, managed Kubernetes, S3 storage, and public BSI-oriented cloud certifications for DACH buyers. Skip when you need hyperscaler service breadth, EU-only infrastructure with no US regions or US facility partners in the path, or lowest-cost bare metal—consider OVHcloud, Scaleway, Hetzner, or STACKIT instead depending on that gap.

German SE (Montabaur)EU + US cloud regionsManaged KubernetesS3 Object StorageBSI C5 Type 1 (claimed)Domains + SMB hosting
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Logo: STACKIT

STACKIT

Germany· Cloud Computing

Needs review

Shortlist STACKIT when you want German-entity IaaS/PaaS on Schwarz Group–owned DE/AT infrastructure with managed Kubernetes, scoped BSI C5 Type 2 claims, and optional same-campus colocation. Skip when you need global multi-region hyperscaler breadth or a fully self-hosted control plane—consider OVHcloud or Scaleway for multi-country EU clouds, or AWS/Azure when worldwide services dominate the architecture.

EU-operatedGerman legal entityGroup-owned DE/AT DCsBSI C5 Type 2 (claimed)Managed Kubernetes (SKE)EU colocation + hybrid
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Highlighted rows differ between the two products.

IONOS vs STACKIT: Snapshot
FeatureLogo: IONOSIONOSLogo: STACKITSTACKIT
Country of originGermanyGermany
CategoryCloud ComputingCloud Computing
Open sourceNoNo
Self-hostedNoNo
HeadquartersGermanyGermany
Legal entityIONOS SE (HRB 24498, Amtsgericht Montabaur); group listed as IONOS Group SESchwarz Digits Cloud GmbH & Co. KG (Am Campus 1, 74177 Bad Friedrichshall; imprint lists STACKIT Beteiligungs-GmbH as general partner vehicle in Neckarsulm)
Governing lawGerman / EU (confirm per contract and national affiliate)Germany (imprint also notes ICT infrastructure jurisdiction Germany and Austria)
US parent / controlNo known US parentNo known US parent
CLOUD Act exposure (indicative)MediumLow
Hosting / residencyIONOS-operated and partner facilities in Europe (e.g. Berlin, Frankfurt—including Equinix-operated sites—Paris, Logroño, London, Worcester, Karlsruhe) and the US (Las Vegas, Newark, Lenexa). Object Storage and compute location chosen per resource. Backup Service uses Acronis technology; managed backup path described as DE ISO 27001 centers. Optional Microsoft 365 / Google Workspace resale.Vendor claims STACKIT Cloud runs in group-owned ISO 27001 data centers in Germany and Austria (sites publicly named include Neckarsulm DC01, Ellhofen DC08, Ostermiething DC10; additional EU sites claimed). Cloud regions include EU01 (Germany) and EU02 (Austria). No public evidence found that customer data-plane hosting is on AWS/GCP/Azure. A detailed third-party subprocessor list for all support/analytics tooling was not found on marketing pages—confirm in the AVV.
Summary

German hosting and cloud provider (IONOS SE): domains and SMB web hosting plus IONOS Cloud IaaS/PaaS with EU and US locations, managed Kubernetes, object storage, and DBaaS.

German sovereign cloud from Schwarz Digits (Schwarz Group): IaaS, managed Kubernetes, databases, and colocation on group-owned data centers in Germany and Austria.

Tags
cloudinfrastructureiaaskuberneteshostinggermanygdprsmb
cloudinfrastructureiaaskubernetesprivacysovereign-cloudpaas
At a glance: IONOS vs STACKIT
At a glanceLogo: IONOSIONOSLogo: STACKITSTACKIT
HQMontabaur, Germany (IONOS SE)Not listed
GroupUnited Internet / IONOS Group SE (listed)Not listed
Product linesDomains & hosting + IONOS Cloud IaaS/PaaSNot listed
Cloud regionsDE, FR, ES, UK + US (e.g. LAS, EWR, MCI)Not listed
Open sourceNo (proprietary platform)Uses open-source components; platform itself is managed, not self-hosted
Self-hostNoNot listed
Commercial modelHosting packages + cloud usage (per-minute style)Not listed
HQ / legal entityNot listedBad Friedrichshall / Neckarsulm area, Germany — Schwarz Digits Cloud GmbH & Co. KG
ParentNot listedSchwarz Digits (Schwarz Group — Lidl/Kaufland)
HostingNot listedGroup-owned data centers in Germany & Austria (e.g. EU01/EU02); not marketed as AWS/Azure reseller
ModelNot listedConsumption-based public cloud + quote-based colocation
External marketNot listedPublic offering from 2022 (internal roots from 2018)
Key capabilities: IONOS vs STACKIT
Key capabilitiesLogo: IONOSIONOSLogo: STACKITSTACKIT
German SE (Montabaur)YesNot listed
EU + US cloud regionsYesNot listed
Managed KubernetesYesNot listed
S3 Object StorageYesNot listed
BSI C5 Type 1 (claimed)YesNot listed
Domains + SMB hostingYesNot listed
EU-operatedNot listedYes
German legal entityNot listedYes
Group-owned DE/AT DCsNot listedYes
BSI C5 Type 2 (claimed)Not listedYes
Managed Kubernetes (SKE)Not listedYes
EU colocation + hybridNot listedYes

IONOS

  • Virtual Data Center Designer and IaaS compute

    Build isolated virtual data centers in the browser or via Cloud API: dedicated-core servers, vCPU servers, and Cubes with attached NVMe. Live vertical scaling is supported on many Linux images for cores, RAM, NICs, and volumes without a full rebuild. Locations span DE (Berlin, Frankfurt, Karlsruhe), FR, ES, UK, and US.

  • Managed Kubernetes without a separate control-plane fee

    Automated cluster and node-pool setup with geo-redundant control plane, admin API access, and optional node auto-scaling. IONOS documents the managed control plane as free of charge; you pay for the underlying compute, storage, and network only—useful for staging and production clusters on the same contract.

  • S3-compatible Object Storage across EU and US endpoints

    Contract-included Object Storage with S3 API compatibility, versioning, object lock, SSE-S3/SSE-C, and lifecycle rules. Documented endpoints include Frankfurt, Berlin, Logroño, and Lenexa (US). German object-storage locations are listed with BSI IT-Grundschutz compliance notes in the service catalog.

  • Managed databases, GPU VMs, and Berlin-hosted AI Model Hub

    DBaaS for PostgreSQL, MongoDB, MariaDB, and in-memory DB; Cloud GPU VMs (NVIDIA H200 templates) in Frankfurt; AI Model Hub with OpenAI-compatible APIs, RAG/vector support, and vendor-stated processing exclusively in Germany (Berlin). Fits teams that want European inference without standing up their own GPU estate.

  • Domains, web hosting, and personal consultant for SMBs

    Classic IONOS portfolio: domain registration, shared/VPS/dedicated hosting, site builders, and optional Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. Differentiator for non-cloud buyers is a dedicated personal consultant plus 24/7 support channels—not pure ticket-only self-serve hosting.

STACKIT

  • Compute Engine VMs and GPUs in group-owned EU regions

    Provision Linux and Windows virtual machines, GPU-backed instances, automated server backup and OS update management from the STACKIT portal, CLI, API, or Terraform. Workloads land in European cloud regions such as EU01 (Germany) and EU02 (Austria) on Schwarz Group–operated infrastructure rather than rented hyperscaler bare metal. Best for teams that need predictable EU residency for general compute and AI/ML training or inference on GPU shapes—confirm available instance families per region before migration.

  • STACKIT Kubernetes Engine (SKE)

    Managed, CNCF-compliant Kubernetes with a highly available control plane, automated Kubernetes/OS upgrades, repair functions, pod and node autoscaling, optional temporary cluster shutdown, and automation via Terraform, SKE API, and CLI. Suited to cloud-native apps, stateful workloads on block storage, and ML pipelines that must stay in European regions. Not a self-hosted kubeadm replacement—you consume a managed service with STACKIT-controlled plane components.

  • Managed databases, messaging, and observability

    Fully managed PostgreSQL Flex, MongoDB Flex, SQL Server Flex, MariaDB, Redis, OpenSearch, and RabbitMQ plus LogMe, Logs, and Observability stacks reduce ops load for application teams. Flex models emphasize automated maintenance, backups, and scaling inside the STACKIT cloud. Ideal when you want PaaS data services under the same German operator as your VMs/K8s—validate HA topology, backup retention, and region pairing for each service.

  • Confidential computing and key/secrets control

    Confidential Server and Confidential Kubernetes options aim to protect data in use with hardware-backed isolation; Secrets Manager and Key Management Service handle secret storage/rotation and cryptographic operations. Useful for regulated or multi-tenant sensitive workloads beyond disk encryption alone. Confirm attestation models, supported node types, and which compliance reports cover these products.

  • EU colocation with hybrid path to public cloud

    Racks, cages, and private rooms in Neckarsulm, Ellhofen, and Ostermiething facilities—with remote hands, carrier connectivity, and hybrid designs that keep non-migratable hardware next to STACKIT public cloud. Positions STACKIT for gradual cloud adoption without a pure forklift. Colocation is quote-driven and site certifications can vary by facility; request site data sheets early.

  • Object, block, file, backup, and archiving storage

    S3-compatible object storage, high-performance block volumes, NFS file storage, backup storage, and audit-oriented archiving for retention workloads. Supports application data, VM disks, and compliance archives inside the same European footprint as compute. Check durability/replication claims and cross-region options against your RPO/RTO rather than assuming hyperscaler multi-region defaults.

Assurance & compliance: IONOS vs STACKIT
Assurance & complianceLogo: IONOSIONOSLogo: STACKITSTACKIT
Independent security / cloud audit (beyond marketing)
Partial

BSI C5 Type 1 (2023 announcement) and IT-Grundschutz ISMS claims after external audit; not a public no-logs VPN-style audit. Request current reports and scope.

Vendor claimed

Vendor claims BSI C5 Type 2 for a listed IaaS/storage product set; reports available on request (iso@digits.schwarz). Not a VPN-style no-logs audit.

ISO 27001
Vendor claimed

Vendor FAQ/about materials state ISO 27001 for data centers / security posture; facility partner cert PDFs also referenced on location pages. Independent cert registry entry not re-verified here.

Vendor claimed

Certificates page claims ISO/IEC 27001 ISMS (with downloadable cert links) plus ISO 27017 and ISO 27018; also ISO 27001 based on IT baseline protection for named IaaS components.

SOC 2 / SOC 3
Not found

SOC/SSAE-style attestations appear for some facility operators (e.g. Equinix listings). No clear IONOS product-level SOC 2 claim found on primary pages reviewed.

Vendor claimed

Vendor states ISAE 3000 (SOC 2) and ISAE 3402 in addition to C5 Type 2; obtain current reports under NDA/request.

BSI C5 (Cloud Computing Compliance Criteria Catalogue)
Vendor claimed

Company IR announcement 7 Nov 2023: C5 Type 1 for Compute Engine, Cloud Cubes, S3 Object Storage after external audit. Type 1 = design at a point in time; confirm current validity and product scope.

Not listed
GDPR / EU data protection
Vendor claimed

German controller/processor entities; EU location options; vendor GDPR statements. Residency still depends on selected regions and subprocessors.

Vendor claimed

EU legal entity; vendor claims GDPR-aligned operation with processing in own DE/AT data centers and ISO 27018 claims for PII in the cloud.

US CLOUD Act exposure (indicative)
Partial

German SE / no known US parent, but US subsidiaries, US host regions (LAS/EWR/MCI), Equinix facility partnership, optional Microsoft/Google products, Acronis-powered backup. Not legal advice.

Partial

German operator under Schwarz Digits / Schwarz Group; no known US parent; customer cloud claimed on group-owned EU DCs without named AWS/GCP/Azure data-plane hosts. Partial (not a clean bill): confirm AVV subprocessors and any non-EU support tools. Indicative only—not legal advice.

Data processing agreement (B2B)
Vendor claimed

Hosting DPA via account privacy flows; IONOS Cloud AVV via account manager / contract docs. Confirm entity and service annex.

Not found

No self-serve public AVV/DPA URL confirmed during research; expect contract packaging—request AVV, TOMs, and subprocessor list in procurement.

EU AI Act
Partial

Relevant mainly to AI Model Hub (docs discuss governance/compliance). Core hosting/IaaS is not AI-product-centric; treat AI Act as service-specific diligence.

Not applicable

Primary offering is IaaS/PaaS infrastructure; optional AI Model Serving and related data/AI products may need separate AI Act analysis if you deploy high-risk AI systems.

BSI C5 Type 2Not listed
Vendor claimed

C5 Type 2 claimed for Compute Engine (incl. GPU), Windows/RHEL, server backup/update management, block/object/backup/file storage, archiving—not automatically every PaaS product.

TISAX Level 3Not listed
Vendor claimed

Vendor claims TISAX Level 3; verification via ENX portal (assessment ID ATA163-1 / scope ID SH938N per certificates page).

Considerations & known limitations: IONOS vs STACKIT
Considerations & known limitationsLogo: IONOSIONOSLogo: STACKITSTACKIT
US regions, US entities, and facility partners
Medium

Selecting US locations places data in the US. Even EU-only deployments sit in a group that has US subsidiaries and uses partners such as Equinix for some EU facilities—material for CLOUD Act / transfer reviews.

Not listed
No clear public subprocessor catalogue
Medium

Unlike many pure SaaS vendors, a single customer-facing subprocessor list was not found. Buyers must extract partners from location pages, DPA annexes, and product docs (Equinix, Acronis, Microsoft, Google, etc.).

Low

Marketing asserts own data centers and EU processing; a complete public subprocessor/support-tool list was not found on the pages reviewed. Practical impact: force AVV + subprocessor exhibits before production personal data.

C5 Type 1 scope and freshness
Low

Public C5 claim is Type 1 for specific products (Compute Engine, Cubes, Object Storage) as of the 2023 announcement. Not a blanket certificate for every IONOS product; request up-to-date reports.

Not listed
Narrower managed ecosystem than hyperscalers
Low

Strong IaaS and selected PaaS, but not a full AWS/Azure service catalogue. Multi-region global apps and niche managed services may force multi-cloud or a different primary vendor.

Not listed
Hosting brand vs cloud platform complexity
Low

SMB hosting contracts, reseller office suites, and enterprise cloud AVVs are different commercial and compliance surfaces—do not assume one DPA covers every SKU.

Not listed
Narrower service map than US hyperscalersNot listed
Medium

STACKIT covers core compute, K8s, databases, and storage, but global specialty services and third-party marketplace depth lag AWS/Azure/GCP. Practical impact: multi-cloud or lift-and-shift of complex hyperscaler architectures may need redesign.

C5 Type 2 is product-scopedNot listed
Medium

Attestation tables list specific IaaS/storage products. Teams assuming every managed database or PaaS SKU is C5 Type 2 covered without reading the scope can mis-state compliance. Practical impact: map each in-scope service before audits.

Retail-group operator concentrationNot listed
Low

Economic stability is a stated strength of Schwarz Group ownership, but roadmap and commercial leverage differ from pure-play clouds. Practical impact: negotiate exit, data export, and roadmap commitments explicitly.

Fit

IONOS

Best fit when

  • SMB and agencies needing domains, hosting, email/office resale, and a personal consultant under one German brand
  • Teams building IaaS workloads in selectable EU locations with a visual Data Center Designer and full Cloud API
  • Organizations that want managed Kubernetes, DBaaS, and S3-compatible storage without a hyperscaler contract
  • DACH public-sector or regulated buyers who need documented BSI C5 / IT-Grundschutz posture on scoped cloud products (confirm current report)
  • AI or inference pilots that prefer vendor-stated Germany (Berlin) hosting for AI Model Hub

Poor fit when

  • Buyers requiring a guarantee of no US legal entities, no US regions, and no US-group facility partners anywhere in the path
  • Workloads that depend on the full AWS/Azure/GCP marketplace, global region density, or niche managed services IONOS does not offer
  • Price-only bare-metal or Hetzner-style DIY shops that do not need managed PaaS or SMB hosting layers
  • Teams that refuse any US-group SaaS (Microsoft 365 / Google Workspace) if those bundles are part of the intended stack

Consider instead when

  • When: You want French-operated cloud with strong developer packaging and EU focus without a mass-market hosting brand

    Consider: Scaleway

    Different product mix; compare region map and managed services side by side.

  • When: You prioritize large European hosting/cloud scale and multi-country DC ownership narratives

    Consider: OVHcloud

    Both are EU groups with non-trivial international footprints—read residency options carefully.

  • When: You mainly need cost-efficient dedicated servers or simple cloud in DE/FI with minimal PaaS

    Consider: Hetzner

    Thinner managed layer; different support and SMB hosting model.

  • When: You are already in Schwarz Group ecosystems or need STACKIT-specific public-cloud positioning

    Consider: STACKIT

    Narrower commercial brand than IONOS hosting+cloud combo.

STACKIT

Best fit when

  • Public-sector, healthcare, finance, or retail teams that require EU residency under a German operator with dual DE/AT regions
  • Platform teams standardizing on managed Kubernetes (SKE) plus VMs and managed databases in one European cloud
  • Organizations migrating gradually via colocation racks/cages in STACKIT facilities next to public cloud projects
  • Buyers that prioritize BSI C5 Type 2 and ISO 27001 family claims on core compute/storage over hyperscaler marketplace depth
  • Workloads that benefit from GPU compute, confidential computing options, or AI model serving inside the same sovereign stack

Poor fit when

  • Architectures that depend on many specialized AWS/Azure/GCP managed services or global multi-continent regions
  • Teams that must self-host the full cloud control plane rather than consume a managed public cloud
  • Simple single-VM or low-ops hobby hosting where a basic VPS provider is enough
  • Procurement that needs every PaaS product under the same C5 Type 2 table without reviewing scope gaps
  • Use cases requiring non-European data residency as a primary requirement

Consider instead when

  • When: You need a wider multi-country European region map and a large independent cloud portfolio

    Consider: OVHcloud or Scaleway

    Different ownership and product cultures; still not US hyperscaler breadth

  • When: Your workload is mainly simple German VMs/web hosting without managed K8s/PaaS depth

    Consider: IONOS (or similar DE hosts)

    Often simpler packaging for commodity compute

  • When: You require global regions, the largest third-party marketplace, or existing multi-cloud tooling locked to hyperscaler APIs

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

    Trade EU ownership of the operator for ecosystem scale; apply your own CLOUD Act / transfer analysis

  • When: Swiss or other non-DE sovereignty framing matters more than Schwarz Group scale

    Consider: Exoscale

    Smaller portfolio; different jurisdiction story

Open questions for due diligence

IONOS

  • What is the current BSI C5 report type (Type 1 vs Type 2), validity period, and exact product/location scope?
  • Can IONOS provide a consolidated subprocessor and sub-processor change-notification list under the DPA/AVV?
  • Which contract entity (IONOS SE vs IONOS Cloud GmbH vs national affiliates) will sign for our workload and which TOMs apply?
  • For EU-only deployments, are any support, monitoring, or backup control-plane components processed outside the EU?
  • Is ISO 27001 held by IONOS operating companies for the full service stack, or primarily facility/operator certifications?

STACKIT

  • Will STACKIT provide a signed AVV/DPA, current TOMs, and a full subprocessor list covering support, monitoring, and marketplace components?
  • Which of our target services (SKE, PostgreSQL Flex, Confidential Kubernetes, etc.) fall inside the latest C5 Type 2 and ISO reports?
  • What are the exact region availability, geo-redundancy options, and SLA credits for our workloads across EU01/EU02 (and any additional regions)?
  • What are exit, data export, and termination assistance terms for large object stores and managed databases?
  • For public-sector or KRITIS use cases: which additional attestations, clearance processes, or reference architectures are required?