You've built an awesome Discord bot. Maybe a moderation bot with custom commands, a music bot serving thousands of users, or a utility bot that unlocks APIs for a community. You're looking for a place to host it — and you find dozens of free providers.
Free sounds good. But what does it really cost you? In this article, I break down the hidden risks of free Discord bot hosting, and why paid hosting with DDoS protection — like Retslav's web hosting — is a smarter choice for serious bot developers.
The appeal of free bot hosting
Platforms like bot-hosting.net, HidenCloud and Discloud offer free tiers: 256 MB RAM, 1 GB storage, a shared CPU — enough for a simple test bot. And with communities of hundreds of thousands of developers, they seem like a safe choice.
But there's a big difference between a bot that runs and a bot that runs reliably. And that difference becomes painfully clear when your bot grows, or — worse — becomes the target of an attack.
The hidden risks of free hosting
1. No real DDoS protection
Free hosting platforms often promise "99.9% uptime", but what happens when your bot comes under attack? Discord bots are a popular target for DDoS attacks — especially bots that run in large communities or have controversial features (like moderation bots that ban users).
The reality: free hosts rarely have enterprise-grade DDoS mitigation. During an attack, your bot is simply taken offline, or — worse — the entire shared hosting platform goes down, taking other people's bots with it.
2. Shared resources = shared risks
Free hosting almost always runs on shared infrastructure. That means another bot on the same server can use a lot of CPU or RAM — and your bot suffers the consequences. No guarantees, no isolation, no performance SLA.
3. Limited storage and database support
Most free hosts give you 256 MB to 1 GB of storage. For a simple "Hello World" bot that's enough. But as soon as you need a database, keep log files, or cache images — you'll quickly hit limits. Paid databases (MySQL, PostgreSQL, Redis) are often only available in more expensive plans.
4. Manual renewal (and data loss)
Many free platforms require you to manually renew every 3-4 days. A missed renewal = all data lost. No warning, no backup. For a hobby bot that's annoying. For a bot used by 10,000 users, it's a disaster.
5. No support when things go wrong
Community support sounds nice, but when your bot goes offline in the middle of the night, you want a team that responds within minutes — not a forum post where other developers reply whenever they feel like it.
When does DDoS protection become essential?
Not every Discord bot immediately needs DDoS protection. But there are clear signs it's time to upgrade:
- Your bot is growing. From ~500 users per server, your bot becomes visible. The more servers your bot is on, the larger the attack surface.
- Your bot has moderation features. Bots that warn, kick or ban users are #1 targets for revenge attacks.
- Your bot runs in competitive communities. Gaming servers, trading communities and crypto groups often have rivals who don't hesitate to use technical means.
- Your bot handles payments or sensitive data. Then DDoS protection isn't optional — it's mandatory.
- Your bot generates revenue. Once money is involved (donations, premium tiers, paid features), downtime directly means lost income.
What Retslav offers for Discord bot hosting
Retslav's web hosting plans (Starter €5/month, Business €15/month, Pro €30/month) are perfectly suited for hosting Discord bots. Here's why:
| Feature | Free bot hosting | Retslav Web Hosting |
|---|---|---|
| DDoS protection | ❌ None or minimal | ✅ Always-on L7/L4 (up to 10 Tbps+) |
| Uptime SLA | ❌ Best-effort | ✅ 99.99% SLA |
| Storage | 256 MB – 1 GB | 5 GB – 100 GB (SSD) |
| CPU/RAM | Shared, unknown | Dedicated resources |
| Datacenter | Often unknown / outside EU | 🇳🇱 Amsterdam / 🇧🇪 Brussels |
| Support | Community (hours-days) | 24/7 via email & live chat |
| Manual renewal | ⚠️ Every 3-4 days | ✅ Automatic, no hassle |
| Databases | Limited / paid | ✅ MySQL available |
| Price | "Free" (but with risks) | From €5/month |
Which plan fits your bot?
- Starter (€5/month) — Perfect for 1-2 small bots with a few hundred users. Node.js, Python or Java — all work. 5 GB SSD and DDoS protection included.
- Business (€15/month) — For bots with database backends and multiple servers. 25 GB storage, SSL + CDN, suitable for bots with thousands of users.
- Pro (€30/month) — For scale. 20 websites/bots, 100 GB storage, priority support. For when your bot gets really big.
How to deploy your Discord bot on Retslav
- Choose a plan — Start with Starter (€5/month) or Business (€15/month) via retslav.net/products.
- Connect your domain or use a subdomain — You get immediate access to the Retslav portal where you manage your files.
- Upload your bot code — Via SFTP, File Manager in the portal, or by cloning a GitHub repository.
- Install dependencies —
npm installfor Node.js bots,pip installfor Python bots. Everything works like on any Linux server. - Start your bot — Use
node index.js,python3 bot.pyor another start command. Usescreenorpm2to keep the bot running. - Set up monitoring — The Retslav dashboard shows CPU, RAM and traffic. If there are issues, you'll know immediately via 24/7 live chat.
npm install -g pm2) to automatically restart your bot on crashes. Add pm2 startup so your bot also starts automatically after a server restart.
Free vs paid: the real costs
Let's be honest: if you're running a simple test bot for a server with 50 friends, free hosting is fine. But as soon as your bot grows, you pay the price:
- Time lost — How many hours does it take to manually renew every 3 days? Or to set everything up again after a crash?
- User trust — A bot that's regularly offline loses users. In Discord communities, news like that spreads fast.
- Lost revenue — During a DDoS attack, your bot could be offline for days. For a bot with premium features, that could mean hundreds of euros in lost income.
- Reputation damage — In the Discord world, uptime is king. Bots known to be unreliable are quickly replaced.
€5 per month — that's €0.17 per day, less than a cup of coffee — eliminates all these risks.
Conclusion: invest in your bot, invest in peace of mind
You've invested time and effort into building your Discord bot. Why would you put it on an unreliable free platform with no DDoS protection, manual renewal, and no guarantees?
With Retslav's web hosting — from €5/month with always-on DDoS protection, 99.99% SLA, Dutch datacenters and 24/7 support — you give your bot the stability and security it deserves.
And if you're unsure whether you need hosting? Run a free security scan to discover what risks your bot faces.
🚀 Start with reliable bot hosting today
From €5/month — with DDoS protection, Dutch datacenter and 24/7 support.
View web hosting plans →Have questions about which plan fits your Discord bot? Contact us via [email protected] or use the live chat on retslav.net. We're happy to help!