If you want a private and Google Photos-style gallery that you fully control, Immich is one of the best tools you can self‑host. To choose the best VPS for Immich, you must consider how much RAM, CPU, and storage your photo library will need over the next few years, not just this month.

This guide focuses on resource planning, not just installation. You will see clear sizing examples for:

• A personal photo library
• A shared family Immich server
• A small team or creator workflow with lots of video

Also, you will learn how to plan storage growth, when SSD versus HDD matters, whether you need a GPU, and why a Storage VPS is ideal for long‑term photo backup.

You can easily start with a PerLod Storage VPS for your Immich library so you can grow disk space over time without moving servers.

What Makes the Best VPS for Immich?

The best VPS for Immich is not just the cheapest VPS that can run Docker. Immich is heavier than a simple blog because it has several containers, a PostgreSQL database, and an optional machine‑learning service for face recognition and smart search.

To choose the right plan, you must focus on these key points:

• RAM for Immich services and machine learning.
• CPU cores for imports, indexing, and video transcoding.
• Storage size today and growth for the next 3 to 5 years.
• Storage type, SSD vs HDD, for database and media.
• Backups and snapshots, so you do not lose years of photos.

Basic Immich Server Requirements

Basic Immich server requirements help you avoid slow performance and surprise limits later. Here are the minimum and recommended RAM, CPU, storage, and operating system, so Immich runs smoothly for everyday photo and video backups.

For full details, you can also check the official Immich hardware and software requirements in the project docs.

Plan	RAM	CPU	Storage	OS & Platform
Minimum	4 GB	2 vCPUs	100 GB (testing / small library)	64‑bit Linux with Docker + Compose
Recommended	6 to 8 GB	4 vCPUs	500 GB to multiple TBs	64‑bit Linux (e.g. Ubuntu 22.04/24.04) with Docker + Compose

A flexible Linux server from PerLod with at least 4 GB RAM and 2 vCPUs is a good option to start your Immich setup.

How to Estimate Storage for Your Photo Library

Storage planning is the most important part of finding the best VPS for Immich for your use case. Here are the quick steps you can use to estimate the storage.

Step 1. Estimate Current Library Size

You must look at your existing cloud backup, such as Google Photos, iCloud, OneDrive, or your phone and computer, and note the total size. Many users fall into these buckets:

• 10,000 photos, about 50 to 80 GB
• 25,000 photos, about 200 GB
• 50,000 photos, about 250 to 400 GB
• 100,000 photos, about 500 to 800 GB

These numbers assume average phone JPEGs of around 4 MB each.

Step 2. Add Immich Overhead

Immich creates thumbnails, previews, and sometimes transcoded copies for videos. This adds about 10 to 20% extra disk use beyond your original files.

• If your original library is 500 GB, plan for at least 550 to 600 GB total.
• If you shoot a lot of video, overhead can be even larger, since videos are much bigger than photos.

Step 3. Add Database and Safety Margin

Immich uses PostgreSQL for metadata and Redis or Valkey for caching.

PostgreSQL usually needs 1 to 3 GB for most personal and family libraries. System files, logs, and Docker images also need some space.

A good rule of thumb includes:

• Take your original library size.
• Add 20 to 30% for Immich overhead and safety.
• Add another 50 to 100 GB so you can grow for a while before resizing.

SSD vs HDD for Immich Self-hosting

When you pick the best VPS for Immich, the type of storage is just as important as how much space you buy. Here we want to explore when fast SSD really matters, when a slower but bigger HDD is enough, and how to mix both so Immich stays responsive while your photo and video library keeps growing.

Scenario	What to use	Note
When SSD is essential	SSD / NVMe	OS disk and PostgreSQL + Immich services.
When HDD is perfect	HDD	Bulk photo/video storage and large (1–4 TB+) libraries at lower cost.

A hybrid layout often gives the best VPS for Immich in practice:

• Small, fast SSD system disk for OS, Docker, and database.
• Large, cheaper HDD volume for the UPLOAD_LOCATION where Immich stores your media.

This is exactly the type of setup you can build with a PerLod Storage VPS.

Immich VPS Sizing for Personal, Family, and Teams

Choosing the right VPS size depends on how many people use Immich and how many photos and videos you store. Here are the example plans for personal, family, and small team libraries so you can match your own usage to a realistic RAM, CPU, and storage setup.

Immich VPS sizing examples:

Use case	Typical photos/videos	RAM	CPU	Storage now	Storage in 3–5 years	Notes
Personal user	10k–30k photos, light video	4–6 GB	2 vCPU	250–500 GB	500 GB–1 TB	Good for one phone; ML can run, but may be slower.
Family, 2 to 5 people	50k–150k photos, more video	8 GB	4 vCPU	1–2 TB	2–4 TB	Sweet spot for most people; smooth ML and imports.
Power user or creator	150k+ photos, 4K video	16–32 GB	8+ vCPU	4–8 TB	8 TB+	Handles large RAW libraries and heavy video.

For most readers, the best VPS for Immich is in the family row, which is around 8 GB RAM, 4 vCPUs, and multiple TBs of Storage VPS space to grow into.

How Much RAM Does Immich Need?

Immich runs multiple containers, and each one uses some memory. Typical RAM usage on a mid‑range VPS looks like this:

• Immich server and microservices: About 500 to 800 MB
• PostgreSQL: About 500 MB to 1 GB
• Redis or Valkey: About 50 to 100 MB
• Machine‑learning service: 1 to 2 GB, sometimes more during model load or heavy inference.
• OS and Docker overhead: About 1 GB

This means a 4 GB VPS can run Immich if you either disable ML or accept slow ML tasks and limited space. A 6 to 8 GB VPS is more comfortable and is recommended by many Immich tutorials when ML is enabled.

For very large libraries with millions of items, 16 GB or more is reasonable.

Note: If your budget allows, choose a VPS with at least 8 GB RAM when you are serious about Immich and want to keep all smart features active.

How Many CPU Cores Do You Need for Immich?

CPU matters during initial import of your photo and video library, generating thumbnails, running facial recognition and other ML tasks, and transcoding and processing large videos.

Here are the recommended CPUs:

• 2 vCPUs as a minimum for small and personal use.
• 4 vCPUs is a good option for families and power users.
• 8+ vCPUs when you have a huge library or several people uploading at once.

The best VPS for Immich balances CPU with RAM. There is no point buying 8 cores but only 4 GB RAM, because the ML service will be limited by memory long before it fully uses all cores.

Does Immich Need a GPU?

Immich can use an NVIDIA GPU to speed up the facial recognition, AI‑based search, and some video processing and transcoding.

A GPU is optional for most personal and family setups. A modern CPU with enough RAM is enough to keep things usable, but ML tasks will take longer. You only really need GPU support when:

• You have hundreds of thousands or millions of photos to scan.
• You want very fast ML processing.
• You run Immich for a team or as part of a paid service.

So, for the many users, the best VPS for Immich is a strong CPU‑only Storage VPS, not an expensive GPU instance.

Immich Backup Strategy: Snapshots and Disk Safety

Your Immich server holds years of photos and videos, so you cannot treat it like any random app. You must learn how to use backups, snapshots, and basic disk checks to protect your library, avoid data loss, and recover quickly if something goes wrong during an update or when the disk fills up.

For a reliable setup:

• Keep regular off‑site backups of the Immich PostgreSQL database and the media files.
• Use provider snapshots before major upgrades, so you can roll back if something breaks.
• Set up alerts when disk usage passes around 80%, because a full disk can break PostgreSQL.

Conclusion

Immich is one of the best ways to take your photo and video library back from large cloud platforms, but it needs more planning than a simple blog or static site. If you size RAM, CPU, and storage from the start, you avoid painful moves and running out of disk space later.

For most people, the best VPS for Immich is:

• 8 GB RAM and 4 vCPUs
• 1 to 2 TB of Storage VPS space to grow into
• SSD for the OS and PostgreSQL, HDD or large storage volumes for the media library

We hope you enjoy this guide. If you also plan to run other apps on your VPS, check out this guide to the best self‑hosted PaaS platforms so you can manage multiple services from a single stack.

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