Interest in self-hosting seems to be picking up as more people become frustrated with the drawbacks of proprietary services and the impacts of data privacy. At the same time, there are also plenty of reasons why people don't self-host even when they have the skills to do so.

If you've been wondering whether you should try out self-hosting services for yourself, the good news is that there are a lot of options to get started with. But there's also plenty that I've learned about self-hosting as a beginner. If you're on the fence, here are some signs that you should rather skip self-hosting.

You don't mind subscription fees

Hosted solutions are usually easier to use, but require payment

One of the biggest benefits of self-hosting is reducing subscription fees by storing your own data. For example, many people switch from Google Photos to a self-hosted solution instead. You can also choose to self-host backups on your NAS rather than relying on a cloud provider.

If you don't mind paying subscription fees to multiple companies, there's a bit less to gain from self-hosting. You can still use many useful open-source apps, but choose the hosted versions instead. For example, Vikunja offers a managed service that makes the productivity software easier to use. Likewise, Donetick also offers a hosted solution if you don't want to host the app yourself.

Meanwhile, Automatisch is an open-source Zapier alternative that you can choose to self-host or pay for as a hosted service. These plans give you the benefits of using open-source or privacy-centric software, while also having the convenience of hosted options.

Convenience is more important to you than privacy

Self-hosting isn't all that convenient

Another benefit of self-hosting is having control over your data and privacy. One thing I've learned over the past few months is the fact that self-hosting isn't all that convenient. Don't get me wrong, you learn a lot of skills, and it can be invigorating to finally get a service working the way you want to.

But self-hosting is not nearly as convenient as having a plug-and-play solution. Firstly, setup takes time, even if you're relatively familiar with the process. Secondly, you will have to implement additional solutions if you want to make your self-hosted services securely accessible from outside your home network.

If you're looking for cross-platform support, that's another area where self-hosted solutions aren't always as convenient. Many developers don't offer smartphone apps for their platforms. You can save certain services as a progressive web app (PWA) so that you can access them on your phone, but they won't have all the features of a native app. For example, push notifications often don't work in PWAs, which can make services with reminder features much less convenient to use.

You don't have the skills and don't want to learn them

You will need to learn new things

Self-hosting is much easier for people already familiar with programming and command lines for different operating systems, but this doesn't mean you have to be a developer to try out self-hosting. That said, if you don't want to learn the skills needed to set up self-hosted services in different environments, then self-hosting isn't for you.

I was able to get started with self-hosting without any coding knowledge — but this involved reading tutorials on how to get Docker Desktop working on my Windows PC, as well as the various commands I needed for Docker. When I started moving my self-hosted services to my NAS, I needed to learn how to get containers running on a different system.

I've since also learned different commands for my terminal, as well as how to configure Docker Compose files and .env files. But even with everything I've learned, it is definitely a challenge to get services running without this knowledge. I often have to rely on detailed documentation — and if this isn't available, I'm greatly limited in what I can do.

You can definitely get started with self-hosting if you aren't a coder, but you will still need to spend time learning about different platforms and commands. If you're not willing to do this, it's better to skip self-hosting and choose hosted services instead.

You don't have the hardware and don't want to purchase it

Hosting has to happen somewhere

You can get started with self-hosting in a variety of ways and with different hardware — you don't need a full-blown lab or bare metal server in your home. I started with self-hosting services on my main PC, but this includes a variety of drawbacks. Other options include SBCs, NAS devices, mini PCs, or old computers and laptops.

If you don't have any of these, you can opt for a Virtual Private Server (VPS), or you can buy the hardware you need. If you aren't willing to purchase the equipment and don't have access to old hardware that can run your self-hosted services, you're mostly out of luck. My limited budget has been a constraint when it comes to self-hosting services, which is why I haven't purchased the upgrades (or a subscription to a VPS) that I need to host Home Assistant. In the meantime, I've fallen back on the hardware I do have.

Oracle Cloud does allow you to sign up for a free plan to host services on a remote server. However, this plan does come with various limitations. Depending on how much you want to self-host, you will eventually have to pay for hardware, either through a VPS subscription or by buying components and upgrades. The exception is if you have someone willing to give you the hardware you need without charging anything.

Frequent troubleshooting is a deal-breaker for you

There will always be troubleshooting

Many self-hosted apps are still undergoing active development, which means that you'll often encounter bugs and issues when using these platforms. Even if you manage to get a service running, it may run into issues later down the line — especially when the developer rolls out a new update.

Since these tools are often developed by small teams, and sometimes even solo developers, bug fixes take some time. There's also usually not a dedicated support team that can address any issues you encounter.

This means delving into your logs and trying to figure out what's going wrong. Sometimes it's a line of code, sometimes it's an incorrect configuration, and sometimes it's because of issues with the hosting environment. After all, many developers are able to optimize the software for one environment, but users deploy it in another.

As I learn more about self-hosting, setup has become easier. But I still spend a lot of time troubleshooting, especially if the project is more complex or the example files have an error. If you're a developer, it will be easier to spot these issues, but you'll still need to spend time fixing them.

Self-hosting is still worth a try

If some of these signs apply to you, but you're still interested in trying out self-hosting, it's worth giving it a try. But it's important to keep these factors in mind. Some people choose to self-host projects just to learn new things or to see what services are out there.

There's no one who can say you just shouldn't self-host at all. Though if these signs apply to you, you might not find the experience as rewarding as you might have hoped.