What It Costs

Item	Approximate cost
Hetzner CCX23	~$55–65 / month
Hetzner backups (optional)	~20% of the server cost
Tailscale	Free at this scale
Claude Pro	$20 / month — works, but you will hit limits
Claude Max	$100 / month — recommended for daily use

Check current pricing with each provider; these move.

Everything is billed to you directly by the company providing it. You own the accounts, you hold the credentials, and you can cancel any of it without asking anyone.

Comparing against the computer install

The computer install costs nothing beyond your Claude subscription. The server adds roughly $55–65 a month, plus about two hours once.

What you get for it: reachable from any device, running while your laptop is closed, shareable with a team, and able to do scheduled work overnight.

If none of those three matter to you yet, start on your computer. Moving to a server later loses nothing — see Backing Up Your System.