VPS guide
Ryzen vs EPYC VPS: Which AMD Platform Should You Choose?
In short
An EPYC VPS gives you server-grade cores at a lower price and suits most websites, apps and databases. A Ryzen VPS has faster cores and suits work that waits on one thread: busy WooCommerce checkouts, game servers and heavy PHP pages. On our plans, EPYC is the standard VPS and Ryzen is the upgrade.
Both are AMD chips built on AMD's Zen designs. Ryzen is AMD's desktop line, tuned for high clock speeds. EPYC is the server line, built to fit many cores into one socket. A VPS gets a guaranteed share of those cores, so the chip underneath decides how fast each one is.
Clock speed vs core count
Ryzen chips run at higher clock speeds, so each core finishes a single task sooner. EPYC chips run at lower clocks with far more cores per socket, which is why hosts use them to run many VPSs on one machine. The Ryzen 7 5700X in our 2 to 8 GB Ryzen plans boosts to 4.6 GHz. Our EPYC nodes run at 3.1 GHz or more.
What that means for a website
PHP handles each page request on one core, so a faster core returns an uncached page sooner and lowers server response time (TTFB). You notice it most on pages that can't be cached: a WooCommerce basket and checkout, a logged-in dashboard, search results. On cached pages the difference is small, because the server isn't running PHP at all.
When EPYC is the better choice
For most business websites, WordPress with page caching, APIs, staging servers and small databases, EPYC cores are quick enough and the plans cost less: up to £4 a month less than Ryzen at the same size, with a 10 GB size Ryzen doesn't offer. If your work runs in parallel, such as several sites on one VPS, background workers or a database serving many connections, more memory and more cores help more than a higher clock.
When to pay for Ryzen
Pick Ryzen when one slow thread holds everything up: a busy WooCommerce shop at checkout, a game server (Minecraft runs its main game loop on one thread), or a PHP application with heavy uncached pages. Ryzen plans also have a 2 Gbps network port, against 1 Gbps on EPYC.
Our plans side by side
| RAM | AMD EPYC | AMD Ryzen |
|---|---|---|
| 2 GB | 2 cores, £5.99 | 2 cores, £5.99 |
| 4 GB | 2 cores, £8.99 | 2 cores, £9.99 |
| 6 GB | 4 cores, £10.99 | 4 cores, £12.99 |
| 8 GB | 6 cores, £14.99 | 6 cores, £15.99 |
| 10 GB | 6 cores, £17.99 | – |
| 12 GB | 6 cores, £19.99 | 6 cores, £22.99 |
| 16 GB | 6 cores, £25.99 | 6 cores, £29.99 |
| Network port | 1 Gbps | 2 Gbps |
Every plan has guaranteed cores, SSD RAID storage, full root access and DDoS protection. See the VPS plans page for current prices.
Which should you choose?
Start on EPYC unless you already know one thread is your bottleneck. If your graphs show one core pinned at 100% while the others sit idle, or checkout is slow while the server is otherwise quiet, that's the sign to move to Ryzen. If you're not sure, tell us what you run and we'll suggest one.
Compare EPYC and Ryzen plans
Guaranteed cores, SSD RAID storage and DDoS protection on every plan, from £5.99 a month with no VAT to add.
See VPS plansQuestions
Is a Ryzen VPS faster than an EPYC VPS?
Per core, usually yes. Ryzen runs at higher clock speeds, so single-threaded work such as an uncached PHP page or a game server's main loop finishes sooner. EPYC plans give you more cores and memory for the money.
Is EPYC better than Ryzen?
For running many things at once, often. EPYC is built for many cores and lots of memory. For one busy thread, Ryzen is quicker. Pick by workload.
Which AMD VPS is best for WordPress?
For a WordPress site with page caching, EPYC is enough and costs less. For a busy WooCommerce shop or a site with many logged-in users, the Ryzen upgrade makes uncached pages faster.
Do both include DDoS protection?
Yes. Every EPYC and Ryzen plan includes DDoS protection. Ryzen plans have a 2 Gbps network port and EPYC plans have 1 Gbps.