The Best Offshore Alternative to Scaleway
AnonPort is built for users who want more jurisdictions, true no-KYC signup, token-based authentication, and a contractual SLA — features Scaleway doesn't offer.
What Scaleway doesn't offer
Most users move away from Scaleway for one of these reasons. Each gap below is something AnonPort fills out of the box.
For context: Scaleway — founded in 1999, based in France (Iliad group), 3 jurisdiction(s), entry tier "Stardust1-S — 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, 10 GB SSD, 100 Mbps unmetered, from €1.80/mo (IPv4) or €0.36/mo (IPv6-only). Elastic Metal entry at €27.99/mo (EM-A116X-SSD: 4C/4T Intel Xeon E3-1220, 32 GB DDR3 ECC, 2×1 TB SSD, 500 Mbps).". AnonPort — 7 jurisdictions, token-only accounts, VPS from $7.50/mo and dedicated servers from $48.50/mo.
- Scaleway does not offer email-free signup.
- You will not find token-based authentication at Scaleway — every AnonPort plan includes it.
- Switching gets you a DMCA-ignored policy, which Scaleway lacks.
- Scaleway's lineup does not include custom ISO upload.
Complete Comparison
Every attribute is verified from public documentation at the time of writing. We will update this page if either side changes its policy.
| Feature | AnonPort | Scaleway |
|---|---|---|
| No email required | ||
| Token-based authentication | ||
| Jurisdictions | 7 | 3 |
| DMCA-ignored policy | ||
| Full KVM virtualization | ||
| Bare-metal servers | ||
| Custom ISO upload | ||
| DDoS protection included | ||
| Unmetered bandwidth | ||
| IPv6 /64 included | ||
| 99.9% SLA with credits | ||
| Monero (XMR) payment | ||
| Years in operation | 1 | 27 |
| Entry VPS specs | 2 vCPU · 4 GB DDR4 · 60 GB NVMe | Stardust1-S — 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, 10 GB SSD, 100 Mbps unmetered, from €1.80/mo (IPv4) or €0.36/mo (IPv6-only). Elastic Metal entry at €27.99/mo (EM-A116X-SSD: 4C/4T Intel Xeon E3-1220, 32 GB DDR3 ECC, 2×1 TB SSD, 500 Mbps). |
| Dedicated starting at | $48.50/mo | Dedibox from €13.99/mo; Elastic Metal bare-metal from €27.99/mo |
Strengths on both sides
Where AnonPort wins
- No-KYC signup vs. Scaleway's mandatory government photo-ID verification to unlock resource quotas
- Monero/crypto billing vs. Scaleway's card and SEPA-only payments with zero crypto option
- Offshore DMCA-ignored jurisdiction vs. Scaleway's French LCEN + EU DSA automatic takedown obligations
Where Scaleway is strong
- Mature EU-sovereign infrastructure since 1999 — three regions (Paris, Amsterdam, Warsaw), unmetered egress on all instances, genuine bare-metal Dedibox and Elastic Metal catalogue
- Exceptionally cheap entry tier: Stardust1-S at €1.80/mo (or €0.36/mo IPv6-only) gives a real public-cloud VM at near-VPS-panel prices, ideal for dev and low-traffic workloads
- Full Terraform/Pulumi/Ansible/scw-CLI ecosystem, first-class GDPR/DSA compliance posture, and Arbor-backed anti-DDoS at no extra cost on Dedibox
Our honest verdict
Scaleway impresses on infrastructure breadth and EU pricing — the Stardust1-S is genuinely the cheapest proper cloud VM in Europe, Dedibox bare-metal starts under €14/mo, and the Paris/Amsterdam/Warsaw footprint covers most EU latency needs. For a legitimate developer or startup, the package is hard to beat. For a privacy-oriented buyer, however, Scaleway ticks almost every wrong box: government-ID KYC to access real quotas, credit-card-only billing, SMTP port 25 blocked by default (requires ID + bank docs to unblock), and French/EU jurisdiction that obliges swift action on copyright, DSA trusted-flagger, and law-enforcement takedown requests. Accounts are known to be auto-suspended on abuse heuristics with minimal explanation. The 2021 stolen-SSD customer-data scandal and multiple billing-lock horror stories on Trustpilot underline that operational security practices lag behind the polished console. AnonPort's clientele should treat Scaleway as a benchmark for EU price/performance, not as a viable supplier.
Pick AnonPort if
AnonPort wins on every axis that matters to privacy buyers: no-KYC signup, crypto payments including Monero, DMCA-ignored offshore jurisdiction, and no automatic DSA takedown compliance — none of which Scaleway can offer under French law.
Pick Scaleway if
Choose Scaleway if you run a GDPR-compliant EU startup, need the cheapest possible ARM cloud VM, or want a proven bare-metal catalogue with a full API ecosystem — and you are comfortable providing government ID and paying by card.
Migrating from Scaleway in 4 steps
Most AnonPort customers complete the switch from Scaleway in under 30 minutes. Snapshot, transfer, restore, cancel — you keep the IP-free move clean and reversible.
-
1
Snapshot your existing server
Take a full disk snapshot from Scaleway's panel (or rsync your data partition). Note your current IP, DNS records, and any reverse-DNS or PTR entries you depend on.
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2
Order an equivalent AnonPort plan
Pick a jurisdiction (use our jurisdiction selector if unsure), pick the matching VPS or dedicated tier, and pay in crypto. Your token arrives in seconds; the server is provisioned within 5 minutes.
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3
Restore data and reconfigure DNS
Either upload your snapshot via custom ISO, or rsync over SSH from the old box. Update A/AAAA records to the new IP. If you run a Tor or VPN service, regenerate the keys to break correlation with the old host.
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4
Cancel Scaleway and rotate keys
Cancel your Scaleway billing once the new server has been live for 24 hours. Rotate any SSH keys, API tokens or service-bound credentials so the old box can't replay anything.
Switching from Scaleway: FAQ
01 Which is better, AnonPort or Scaleway?
It depends on your priority. AnonPort wins on raw operator privacy (token-only auth, no email, no phone, no name, no fiat), a 7-jurisdiction footprint and AI-agent purchasing (MCP, OpenAPI, x402). Where Scaleway is genuinely strong: Mature EU-sovereign infrastructure since 1999 — three regions (Paris, Amsterdam, Warsaw), unmetered egress on all instances, genuine bare-metal Dedibox and Elastic Metal catalogue; Exceptionally cheap entry tier: Stardust1-S at €1.80/mo (or €0.36/mo IPv6-only) gives a real public-cloud VM at near-VPS-panel prices, ideal for dev and low-traffic workloads. Pick whichever maps to your actual threat model.
02 Is AnonPort cheaper than Scaleway?
AnonPort VPS starts at $7.50/mo and dedicated at $48.50/mo. The Scaleway entry tier is "Stardust1-S — 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, 10 GB SSD, 100 Mbps unmetered, from €1.80/mo (IPv4) or €0.36/mo (IPv6-only). Elastic Metal entry at €27.99/mo (EM-A116X-SSD: 4C/4T Intel Xeon E3-1220, 32 GB DDR3 ECC, 2×1 TB SSD, 500 Mbps)." — the comparison table above shows the full pricing picture for both providers. Multi-month cycles unlock additional discounts on both sides.
03 Can I pay Scaleway with Monero, like AnonPort?
AnonPort accepts 8 native crypto coins including Monero (XMR), with per-order deposit addresses and any-coin checkout. Does Scaleway take Monero? No (see the feature comparison above for the exact payment rail). Crypto-only operators should always confirm before ordering.
04 How long does the switch from Scaleway take?
For a single VPS with under 50 GB of data, expect 20–30 minutes including DNS propagation. Larger workloads scale linearly with disk transfer speed; rsync over SSH typically saturates the destination link.
05 Will my IP address change?
Yes. Inbound IP-bound services (DNS A/AAAA, SPF, reverse DNS, mail relays) need updating. We document the exact records to change in your panel after order. Outbound services keep working with no client-side change.
06 Can I keep my Scaleway server running during the switch?
Yes — and we recommend it. Keep the old box on for 24–48 hours after the new one goes live so DNS caches drain naturally. Cancel only once you've verified the new server is serving production traffic correctly.
07 Do I need to re-verify identity?
No. AnonPort does not collect identity at any step. Your account is bound to a token, not a name or email. If Scaleway required ID, we discard that link the moment you sign up with us.
08 What about subdomain SSL certificates?
Issue fresh certificates via Let's Encrypt or your CA of choice once DNS points to the new server. Most automated stacks (Caddy, Traefik, certbot) handle this in one command. Old certificates remain valid until expiry; rotate at your pace.
Other Switching Guides
Alternative to UpCloud
Finland (Helsinki) · Founded 2011UpCloud is Finland's premium cloud — MaxIOPS NVMe, 99.999% SLA, 15 global regions. But card-only billing, EU jurisdiction with full copyright enforcement, and metered bandwidth make it unsuitable for privacy-focused or high-traffic DMCA-ignored hosting.
Alternative to Njalla
Sweden · Founded 2017Legacy privacy brand vs. infrastructure spread
- Accepts Monero
Alternative to FlokiNET
Iceland · Founded 2012Activist veteran vs. broader jurisdictional coverage
- DMCA-ignored policy
- Bare-metal dedicated
- Accepts Monero
Alternative to 1984 Hosting
Iceland · Founded 2006Iceland specialist vs. jurisdictional portfolio
- DMCA-ignored policy
- Accepts Monero
Alternative to OrangeWebsite
Iceland · Founded 2009Iceland Web3 brand vs. pure privacy
- DMCA-ignored policy
- Bare-metal dedicated
- Accepts Monero
Alternative to BuyVM
USA / Luxembourg / Miami · Founded 2010Established LowEndTalk favorite, but US/Luxembourg infrastructure means DMCA compliance.
- Accepts Monero
Ready to switch?
Deploy your first offshore server in under 5 minutes. No email. No ID. No account. Just crypto and a token.