Is Linode Worth It?

[Ravenfreak]

There are a few Youtubers I watch that talk about tech related stuff that have sponsorships with Linode. They usually offer a $100 credit to try Linode for 60 days and it got me thinking, is the service worth checking out? I've only used shared hosting for my projects, I've never used a VPS before and I've heard numerous times VPS is much better. I know they've been recently acquired by Akamai, has that affected their service?

 

[Arantor]

I used to be a staunch advocate of Linode. Quality product, quality service - until the Akamai acquisition whereupon service went downhill, prices went up, and I left after 16 ish years as a customer.

For VPS tier stuff I mostly use Digital Ocean now but no control panel (like Linode) other than a super high level one - if you want cPanel you’ll need to install it yourself, or something like it. I’ve heard good things about Centminmod.

 

[Tracy]

Honestly.. I'd avoid them like the worst STD. My current provider of VPS services (hate they don't offer dedicated in the US) is Hetzner. Great price, no issues so far with their infrastructure and decent hardware offerings.
I also avoid Digital Ocean like the plague.... they have some great prices.. but if you want to serve any reliable mail from their offerings.. you will be consuming the peanuts and corn from the offal.

As mentioned by @Arantor... if you are proficient with Linux servers and administration from the CLI, CentMinMod is great.. but if you need your hands held.. it's not for you.
My sites run on a Hetzner VPS utilizing AlmaLinux and a BETA version of CentMinMod.