So here's the deal - I've been running these two VPS instances for about 3 weeks now, and honestly? The results kinda surprised me. Been testing both Vultr and HawkHost on their mid-tier configs because, let's be real, that's what most of us actually use.

Test Environment:

• Vultr: Regular Performance instance, 2 vCPU, 4GB RAM, 80GB SSD - Dallas, TX
• HawkHost: Cloud VPS, 2 Core, 4GB RAM, 60GB NVMe - Los Angeles, CA
• Duration: 21 days continuous monitoring
• Tools: Geekbench 6, iperf3, sysbench

Both providers are offering some sweet deals right now btw 👇

Benchmark Results 📈

Vultr Dallas Performance Report

# Geekbench 6 Results - Vultr Dallas
System Information:
  Processor: Intel Xeon E5-2697 v4 @ 2.30GHz (2 cores)
  Memory: 3.84 GB
  Operating System: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

Single-Core Score: 1,247
Multi-Core Score: 2,389

CPU Performance:
  AES-XTS: 1.68 GB/sec
  Text Compression: 18.2 MB/sec  
  Image Compression: 58.7 MPix/sec
  Navigation: 4.89 MTE/sec
  HTML5 Browser: 96.3 Pages/sec
  PDF Renderer: 186 MPix/sec
  Photo Library: 12.8 images/sec
  Clang: 14.2 Klines/sec
  Text Processing: 9.34 pages/sec

Memory Performance:
  Memory Copy: 11.2 GB/sec
  Memory Latency: 89.4 ns
  Memory Bandwidth: 23.8 GB/sec

# Network Performance - iperf3
Testing against multiple endpoints:
New York:     847 Mbps ↓ / 789 Mbps ↑
Los Angeles:  623 Mbps ↓ / 591 Mbps ↑  
London:       234 Mbps ↓ / 198 Mbps ↑
Singapore:    187 Mbps ↓ / 156 Mbps ↑
Frankfurt:    298 Mbps ↓ / 267 Mbps ↑

# Disk I/O - sysbench
Random read:     2,847 IOPS (44.4 MB/s)
Random write:    1,923 IOPS (30.0 MB/s)  
Sequential read: 89.2 MB/s
Sequential write: 67.8 MB/s
Latency (avg):   5.23ms

Server Details:
IP: 108.61.194.105
ASN: AS20473 (The Constant Company, LLC)
Location: Dallas, TX, US
Ping: 28ms (from LA test point)

HawkHost Los Angeles Results

# Geekbench 6 Results - HawkHost LA
System Information:
  Processor: AMD EPYC 7763 @ 2.45GHz (2 cores)
  Memory: 3.91 GB  
  Operating System: Ubuntu 22.04 LTS

Single-Core Score: 1,456
Multi-Core Score: 2,677

CPU Performance:
  AES-XTS: 2.14 GB/sec
  Text Compression: 21.7 MB/sec
  Image Compression: 67.3 MPix/sec  
  Navigation: 5.67 MTE/sec
  HTML5 Browser: 112 Pages/sec
  PDF Renderer: 218 MPix/sec
  Photo Library: 15.2 images/sec
  Clang: 16.8 Klines/sec
  Text Processing: 11.1 pages/sec

Memory Performance:
  Memory Copy: 13.8 GB/sec
  Memory Latency: 76.2 ns
  Memory Bandwidth: 28.4 GB/sec

# Network Performance - iperf3  
Testing against multiple endpoints:
Los Angeles:  934 Mbps ↓ / 912 Mbps ↑
San Francisco: 789 Mbps ↓ / 743 Mbps ↑
Dallas:       445 Mbps ↓ / 398 Mbps ↑
New York:     367 Mbps ↓ / 334 Mbps ↑
London:       156 Mbps ↓ / 142 Mbps ↑

# Disk I/O - sysbench
Random read:     4,156 IOPS (64.9 MB/s)
Random write:    2,734 IOPS (42.7 MB/s)
Sequential read: 127 MB/s  
Sequential write: 94.3 MB/s
Latency (avg):   3.67ms

Server Details:
IP: 192.227.139.67
ASN: AS36352 (ColoCrossing)  
Location: Los Angeles, CA, US
Ping: 12ms (from LA test point)

About These Providers 🏢

Quick Rundown on Vultr

Vultr's been around since 2014 and they're pretty solid tbh. Started as a simple cloud VPS provider but now they've got bare metal, Kubernetes, and all that jazz. Their dashboard is clean, deployment is stupid fast (like 55 seconds), and they've got 25+ locations worldwide.

What I like: hourly billing, decent API, good global presence
What's meh: support can be hit-or-miss, pricing isn't the cheapest

HawkHost Overview

HawkHost has been doing shared hosting since 2004, but their VPS game is relatively newer. They're more of a traditional web hosting company that expanded into cloud services. Smaller operation but that sometimes means better support.

Pros: Actually helpful support, competitive pricing, NVMe storage
Cons: Limited locations, less enterprise features

Performance Analysis 🔍

CPU Performance Breakdown

The HawkHost AMD EPYC setup absolutely crushed Vultr's Intel Xeon in single-core (1,456 vs 1,247) and multi-core (2,677 vs 2,389). That's roughly 17% better single-core and 12% better multi-core performance.

But here's the thing - real-world performance isn't just about raw CPU scores. The Intel setup had better consistency during my 3-week testing period. Less CPU steal, more predictable performance under load.

Network & Latency Wars

This is where location really matters:

HawkHost dominates West Coast connections (makes sense, it's in LA), but Vultr's Dallas location gives better overall global connectivity.

Storage Performance Deep Dive

HawkHost's NVMe storage is noticeably faster:

• ~46% better random read IOPS
• ~42% better random write IOPS
• ~30% faster sequential operations
• Better latency (3.67ms vs 5.23ms)

For database-heavy applications, this difference is huge.

Use Case Scenarios 🎯

Vultr Works Best For:

• Global applications needing multiple regions
• API services with worldwide users
• Development environments (cheap hourly billing)
• CDN origins (good global bandwidth)
• Gaming servers (low latency in most regions)

HawkHost Shines For:

• West Coast businesses (LA location advantage)
• Database-heavy applications (faster NVMe)
• WordPress hosting (good I/O + support)
• Small to medium businesses (personalized support)
• Cost-conscious projects (better price/performance)

Pricing Comparison 💰

Current pricing as of June 2025

Real Usage Experience 👨‍💻

Been running a WordPress multisite on HawkHost and a Node.js API on Vultr for the past month.

HawkHost experience: Page load times averaged 280ms faster compared to my previous provider. The NVMe storage really shows when WordPress is doing database queries. Had one issue with PHP limits and their support sorted it in like 20 minutes via live chat.

Vultr experience: API response times were consistent across regions. The hourly billing saved me ~$40 when I spun up temporary instances for load testing. Dashboard could use some UX improvements though - it's functional but not pretty.

FAQ Section ❓

Is Vultr actually faster than HawkHost?

It depends on your location and use case. Vultr has better global connectivity, but HawkHost's NVMe storage and AMD EPYC CPUs deliver better raw performance. For West Coast users, HawkHost is typically faster.

Which provider has better uptime?

Both maintain 99.9%+ uptime in my testing. Vultr had one 15-minute outage in Dallas during my testing period. HawkHost was solid throughout.

Can I upgrade resources easily?

Vultr: Yes, easy vertical scaling through dashboard
HawkHost: Contact support for upgrades (usually processed within hours)

What about customer support quality?

HawkHost wins here. Their support is more personalized and actually helpful. Vultr's support is okay but feels more... corporate? They'll solve your problem but don't expect hand-holding.

Which is better for WordPress?

HawkHost edges out for WordPress due to faster I/O and better support for typical WP issues. Vultr works fine but isn't optimized for web hosting specifically.

How's the control panel experience?

Vultr has a modern, clean interface but can be overwhelming for beginners. HawkHost uses a more traditional cPanel-style approach that's easier for shared hosting refugees.

Any hidden fees or gotchas?

Vultr: Watch out for bandwidth overages and snapshot costs
HawkHost: Pretty transparent pricing, but limited to monthly billing

Which handles traffic spikes better?

Vultr's infrastructure scales better under sudden load. HawkHost can struggle if you get unexpected traffic without proper caching.

Cancellation & Refunds Policies 💸

Vultr Refund Policy

• Hourly billing means you only pay for what you use
• Account credits don't expire
• Can delete instances anytime to stop charges
• ~~30-day money back guarantee~~ (not applicable for hourly services)

HawkHost Refund Terms

• 30-day money-back guarantee for VPS services
• Pro-rated refunds available after 30 days
• Must cancel before renewal date
• Setup fees are non-refundable

Final Verdict & Scores 🏆

Overall Performance Scores:

Final Recommendations:

Choose Vultr if:

• You need global presence (multiple regions)
• Flexibility with hourly billing matters
• Building APIs or services for worldwide users
• You're comfortable with self-management

Choose HawkHost if:

• Your audience is primarily US West Coast
• Running database-heavy applications
• You value personalized support
• Better price/performance ratio matters more than features

Both are solid choices, but your specific needs should drive the decision. Can't really go wrong with either tbh.

Review Source: This comprehensive testing was conducted by VPSJudge, which offers real-world VPS hosting reviews, benchmark tests, and expert comparisons to help you choose the right provider.

About the Author

Senior VPS Reviewer | Linux Architect | Network Infrastructure Consultant

Expertise:

• Global VPS Reviews: 10+ years experience, 500+ providers tested, specializing in performance/network/I/O/cost analysis
• Linux Optimization: High-concurrency architectures, kernel tuning, KVM & containers (Docker/K8s)
• Network Solutions: CDN acceleration, TCP/IP stack optimization, DDoS mitigation, edge node deployment

Certifications: LPIC-3 · CCNP · AWS SAP · CKA

Key Projects:

• Global VPS Performance Map: Automated monitoring across 30+ country nodes with quarterly industry reports
• Million-concurrency Hybrid CDN: Reduced latency by 47%, saved $220K+/year in bandwidth costs
• Tech Columnist: 60+ in-depth articles published on Phoronix/LowEndTalk