OVHcloud Managed Kubernetes

What Is OVHcloud Managed Kubernetes?

You have been running a growing SaaS product on a handful of Docker containers. Deployments are manual, scaling is a Friday-night panic, and your CTO just asked whether the team has thought about GDPR implications of hosting on a US cloud. You need Kubernetes, but you also need it to be European, affordable, and not require a dedicated platform team to babysit. This is the exact scenario where OVHcloud Managed Kubernetes enters the picture.

OVHcloud, headquartered in Roubaix, France, is Europe's largest cloud provider. Their managed Kubernetes service strips away the control plane cost entirely — you pay zero for the Kubernetes management layer and only for the worker nodes that actually run your workloads. The service is fully CNCF-certified, meaning it runs standard upstream Kubernetes with no proprietary extensions or vendor lock-in traps.

With over 30 data centre locations across Europe and a publicly traded parent company that has built its identity on European data sovereignty, OVHcloud positions itself as the infrastructure layer for organisations that want to run Kubernetes at scale without sending a single byte outside the EU. The control plane is highly available across multiple masters, automatic upgrades keep you current, and the standard Kubernetes API means every Helm chart, operator, and CI/CD pipeline you already use works without modification.

Key Features

Free Control Plane

The headline feature is straightforward: OVHcloud does not charge for the Kubernetes control plane. On AWS EKS, the control plane costs approximately $73 per month per cluster. On GKE, the Autopilot control plane has an implicit cost, and Standard mode charges for management. At OVHcloud, you can spin up clusters freely and only pay for the compute nodes that run your workloads. For teams running multiple clusters — staging, production, feature branches — this adds up to meaningful savings.

CNCF-Certified Standard Kubernetes

OVHcloud runs vanilla upstream Kubernetes, certified by the CNCF. This is not a proprietary fork or a heavily modified distribution. Every Kubernetes conformance test passes. Every Helm chart works. Every kubectl command behaves exactly as documented. This matters because it means zero lock-in — migrating to or from OVHcloud is a matter of moving node workloads, not rewriting application manifests.

Node Pool Management

Worker nodes are organised into pools with configurable instance types, from small general-purpose instances to high-memory and GPU-equipped machines. Auto-scaling can be configured per pool, and nodes self-heal when they fail health checks. The range of instance types is broad, covering development workloads through to production-grade high-availability deployments.

Integrated Networking

OVHcloud Kubernetes integrates with vRack, OVHcloud's private networking layer. This lets you connect Kubernetes clusters to other OVHcloud services — dedicated servers, managed databases, private cloud — over a private network with no public internet exposure. For regulated workloads, this network isolation is essential. Load balancers are provisioned automatically via Kubernetes Service objects, and anti-DDoS protection is included on all nodes at no extra cost.

Storage Integration

Persistent volumes are backed by OVHcloud's Cinder-based block storage, which provisions automatically via Kubernetes PersistentVolumeClaims. Performance tiers range from standard HDD to high-IOPS SSD. For object storage needs, OVHcloud's S3-compatible storage integrates via standard CSI drivers.

Security and Access Control

RBAC is fully supported, and OVHcloud provides integration with their IAM system for managing cluster access across teams. Kubernetes secrets are encrypted at rest, and network policies can be enforced via Calico or other CNI plugins.

Pricing

OVHcloud Kubernetes pricing is refreshingly simple. The control plane is free. You pay only for worker nodes, which are billed as standard OVHcloud compute instances — either hourly or monthly. Monthly billing provides a discount over hourly rates.

A small cluster suitable for development might run three b2-7 nodes (2 vCPU, 7 GB RAM each) at roughly 19 EUR per node per month, totalling around 57 EUR per month for a functional Kubernetes environment. A production cluster with three b2-30 nodes (8 vCPU, 30 GB RAM) would cost approximately 210 EUR per month. Compare this to an equivalent EKS setup where the control plane alone costs $73 before adding a single node.

Additional costs include persistent storage (block storage per GB), load balancers, and bandwidth for egress beyond included allowances. There are no hidden platform fees, no per-pod charges, and no premium for Kubernetes-specific features.

For organisations running multiple environments — and most do — the free control plane means you can have separate dev, staging, and production clusters without tripling your management overhead costs.

EU Compliance & Data Privacy

OVHcloud is a French company (OVH Groupe SAS), publicly traded on Euronext Paris, and subject to EU jurisdiction. This is not a US company with an EU region — it is a European company through and through.

Data centre locations span France, Germany, Poland, the UK, and other European countries. You choose your region at cluster creation, and your data stays there. OVHcloud holds ISO 27001, SOC 1, and SOC 2 certifications across its data centre portfolio. For healthcare workloads in France, HDS (Health Data Hosting) certification is available.

The company has been vocal about European digital sovereignty, positioning itself explicitly as an alternative to US hyperscalers for organisations that need to satisfy GDPR, Schrems II, and sector-specific data residency requirements. When your compliance team asks where the Kubernetes control plane runs, the answer is unambiguously "in France" — not "in an EU region of a US company."

Who It's Best For

Cost-conscious teams running multiple Kubernetes clusters who want to eliminate control plane fees. The savings compound quickly across dev, staging, and production environments.

EU-regulated organisations in finance, healthcare, or government that need Kubernetes with guaranteed European data residency and a provider subject to EU law.

Open-standards advocates who want vanilla CNCF-certified Kubernetes with no proprietary lock-in. Everything you build on OVHcloud can be moved to any other Kubernetes provider.

Existing OVHcloud customers who already use dedicated servers, private cloud, or managed databases and want to add container orchestration to their stack with private network integration.

The Verdict

OVHcloud Managed Kubernetes is the pragmatic choice for teams that need Kubernetes in the EU without the hyperscaler price tag or data sovereignty concerns. The free control plane is genuinely differentiating, the CNCF certification ensures portability, and the European heritage provides compliance confidence. The trade-offs — a less polished console, fewer managed add-ons, and thinner documentation — are real but acceptable for teams with Kubernetes experience. If your primary requirement is "run standard Kubernetes on European infrastructure at a fair price," OVHcloud delivers exactly that.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the OVHcloud Kubernetes control plane really free?

Yes. OVHcloud does not charge for the Kubernetes control plane. You only pay for the worker nodes (compute instances) and any additional resources like persistent storage or load balancers. This applies regardless of how many clusters you create.

Is OVHcloud Kubernetes CNCF-certified?

Yes. OVHcloud Managed Kubernetes passes all CNCF conformance tests and runs standard upstream Kubernetes. This means all Helm charts, operators, and ecosystem tools work without modification.

Can I migrate from EKS or GKE to OVHcloud Kubernetes?

Yes. Because OVHcloud runs standard Kubernetes, migration involves moving your workload manifests and data. Tools like Velero can help with backup and restore across clusters. No application rewriting is needed since there are no proprietary API extensions.

What Kubernetes versions does OVHcloud support?

OVHcloud supports recent Kubernetes versions and provides automatic upgrade paths. New versions are typically available within a few weeks of upstream release. You can choose your version at cluster creation and schedule upgrades.

Does OVHcloud Kubernetes include monitoring?

Basic monitoring is available through the OVHcloud console. For production observability, most teams deploy Prometheus and Grafana via Helm charts, which work identically to any other Kubernetes environment.