Why Oracle Cloud Always Free Is the Best Free VPS in 2025
Most cloud providers offer a free trial that expires after 12 months. is different — its tier is permanent, with no expiry date, and it includes a genuinely useful server: a 2-OCPU, 12 GB RAM ARM-based virtual machine on the shape. That is more computing power than AWS's free tier (1 vCPU / 1 GB) multiplied by 12.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
QIs the Oracle Cloud Always Free tier really free forever?
Yes. The Oracle Cloud Always Free resources do not expire — they are permanently free, unlike AWS or Google Cloud free tiers which expire after 12 months. The Always Free VM.Standard.A1.Flex with up to 4 OCPUs and 24 GB RAM across all instances in your home region, a 200 GB block storage pool, and 2 reserved public IPs are all free indefinitely, as long as your account remains active and usage stays within the defined limits.
QWhat is the VM.Standard.A1.Flex shape and why should I use it?
VM.Standard.A1.Flex is Oracle Cloud's Ampere A1 ARM-based compute shape. It is the most powerful option in OCI's Always Free tier — 2 OCPUs and 12 GB RAM per instance, compared to just 1 vCPU and 1 GB RAM on AWS's free t2.micro. The Ampere A1 processor delivers excellent performance-per-core for web servers, PHP applications, Node.js APIs, and containerized workloads.
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Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI)
Always Free
Ampere A1 Flex
t2.micro
For developers, students, and small businesses hosting websites, PHP/MySQL apps, Node.js APIs, and automation tools in India, the Oracle Cloud Mumbai region free VM is the closest thing to a truly free, production-capable VPS in 2025.
This guide covers every step — from account setup to SSH login, port opening, OS updates, and web stack installation.
1. What You Will Create
Resource
Configuration
Cloud Provider
Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI)
Region
India West (Mumbai) — ap-mumbai-1
Instance Type
Virtual Machine
Shape
VM.Standard.A1.Flex (Always Free-eligible)
CPU
2 OCPUs (ARM Ampere A1)
RAM
12 GB
Operating System
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (ARM64)
Boot Volume
~47–50 GB (default)
Public IP
Enabled
SSH Authentication
SSH key pair
Monthly Cost
₹0 — Always Free
Important: OCI's Always Free pool grants 4 OCPUs and 24 GB RAM total across all A1 instances in your home region. This guide uses 2 OCPUs and 12 GB RAM — half the allowance — leaving room for a second free instance later.
Confirm you are in your home region (e.g., ap-mumbai-1). Always Free resources are only available in your home region — switching regions will expose you to paid resources.
3. Name the Instance
In the Name field, enter a descriptive name for your server, for example:
webotapp-free-server
Confirm that the Compartment shown is your root compartment (or your chosen working compartment).
4. Choose the Operating System (Image)
Scroll to the Image and shape section.
Click Change image.
Select Ubuntu from the image list.
Choose Ubuntu 24.04 LTS — verify it shows the ARM64 / aarch64 architecture tag.
If Ubuntu 24.04 is not available, use Ubuntu 22.04 LTS (ARM64) or Oracle Linux 9.
Click Select image.
Why ARM64 matters: The Ampere A1 processor uses ARM64 architecture. Do not select an x86_64 (AMD64) image — it will not work on this shape.
5. Select the Always Free Compute Shape
In the Image and shape section, click Change shape.
Under Shape series, select Ampere.
Choose VM.Standard.A1.Flex.
Verify the label reads Always Free-eligible ✅.
Set Number of OCPUs to 2.
Set Amount of memory (GB) to 12.
Click Select shape.
Shape
OCPUs
RAM
Cost
VM.Standard.A1.Flex
2
12 GB
Always Free Yes
VM.Standard.E2.1.Micro
1
1 GB
Always Free ✅
VM.Standard3.Flex
Any
Any
❌ Paid
Do not increase allocations beyond 4 OCPUs / 24 GB total across your account — exceeding this will incur charges.
6. Configure Boot Storage
Scroll to the Boot volume section.
Keep the default boot volume size (~47–50 GB). This is within OCI's 200 GB Always Free block storage pool.
Leave Boot volume performance at its default.
Do not enable encryption with customer-managed keys unless required (it adds no cost but is unnecessary for most setups).
Recommendation: Start with the default boot disk. You can attach additional block volumes later — up to the 200 GB total free allowance across all volumes in your home region.
7. Configure SSH Key Access
SSH is the secure protocol for controlling your Linux server from your Mac or Windows machine.
Option A — Generate a New Key Pair (Easiest)
Find the Add SSH keys section.
Select Generate a key pair for me.
Click Save private key — download and save the .key file immediately.
Store it in a safe location (e.g., ~/.ssh/oracle_free.key on your Mac).
Option B — Use Your Existing SSH Key
If you already have an SSH key pair (~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub or ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub):
cat ~/.ssh/id_ed25519.pub
Copy the output and paste it into the SSH keys box.
Security rule: Never share your private key file. Never upload it to GitHub, Google Drive, or any public service.
8. Configure Networking
Scroll to the Networking section.
Select Create new virtual cloud network (if this is your first instance) or choose an existing VCN.
Select a public subnet (not a private subnet).
Ensure Assign a public IPv4 address is set to Yes.
Note: A public IP alone does not guarantee connectivity. After the instance launches, you also need to configure:
OCI Security List or Network Security Group inbound rules
Operating-system firewall (UFW on Ubuntu)
9. Review and Create the Instance
Before clicking Create, verify the checklist:
☑ Shape is VM.Standard.A1.Flex
☑ Shape is marked Always Free-eligible
☑ OCPUs = 2, RAM = 12 GB
☑ Image is Ubuntu 24.04 LTS (ARM64)
☑ Boot volume is within 200 GB free allowance
☑ SSH public key is configured
☑ Public IPv4 address is enabled
☑ No additional paid resources selected
Click Create and wait 2–4 minutes for the instance status to change to Running (green).
Out of capacity error? This is common in free tiers. Wait 15–60 minutes and try again, or select a different Availability Domain (AD-2 or AD-3) in the same Mumbai region if the option is shown.
10. Connect via SSH from Your Mac
Open the instance details page and copy the Public IPv4 address.
Replace YOUR_PUBLIC_IP with the actual IP shown in Oracle Cloud Console.
Connection timeout? The most common causes are: (1) the OCI Security List has no inbound rule for port 22/TCP, (2) UFW is blocking SSH, or (3) the wrong username. Default users: ubuntu for Ubuntu images, opc for Oracle Linux.
In Oracle Cloud Console, go to Billing & Cost Management → Cost Analysis.
Verify your compute, storage, and networking usage shows ₹0.00.
Confirm the Ampere A1 CPU total across all instances stays within 4 OCPUs / 24 GB RAM.
Check that the total block storage across all volumes stays within 200 GB.
Confirm your public IP reservation is within the 2 free reserved IP allowance.
Always Free eligibility applies to specific resources within defined limits, not automatically to all resources in your account. Any resource created outside your home region, or exceeding the free limits, will incur charges.
Author & Verification Details
Paban Bhuyan
Founder, Webotapp Academy
Founded Webotapp Academy in 2009 with 17+ years of expertise in Linux server administration, cloud infrastructure, DevOps, and full-stack development. Has deployed and managed production servers across AWS, DigitalOcean, Oracle Cloud, and bare-metal environments for clients across 50+ countries.
Founded 2009Pioneering IT Training
50+ CountriesGlobal Client Footprint
17+ Years Exp.Linux & Cloud Infrastructure
Q
Which region should I select for the Oracle Cloud free server in India?
Select India West (Mumbai) — region identifier ap-mumbai-1. Always Free resources are only available in your home region, which is the region you select during account signup. If you sign up with Mumbai as your home region, your free VM quota is reserved there. You cannot move Always Free resources to a different region without creating a new account.
QWhy does Oracle Cloud show "Out of host capacity" when I try to create the free VM?
Free-tier Ampere A1 capacity in Mumbai is in high demand. When all physical Ampere hosts in your target availability domain are fully allocated to other users, Oracle returns a capacity error. The recommended fix is to wait 15–60 minutes and retry. You can also try a different Availability Domain (AD-2 or AD-3) within the same Mumbai region if the console allows it.
QDo I need to configure both the OCI Security List and UFW firewall?
Yes — both are required and independent of each other. The OCI Security List (or Network Security Group) controls traffic at the Oracle virtual network layer, before packets even reach your VM. The UFW firewall controls traffic at the Ubuntu operating system level, after packets enter the VM. Opening port 80 in the OCI Security List but not in UFW (or vice versa) will result in blocked connections.
QCan I host a production website on the Oracle Cloud Always Free VM?
Yes. Many developers and small businesses run production websites, Laravel or PHP applications, WordPress instances, Node.js APIs, and static site servers on Oracle's Always Free Ampere A1 VM. For production use, configure HTTPS with a Let's Encrypt SSL certificate via Certbot, use a process manager like PM2 for Node.js, set up automated backups, and monitor your OCI billing dashboard to ensure you remain within the free-tier limits.