How to delete your Hetzner Cloud account

About deleting your Hetzner Cloud account

Hetzner Cloud is a high-performance, cost-effective infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) provider that allows developers to deploy virtualized Linux or Windows servers instantly. It handles sensitive data including SSH keys, API tokens, payment history, and snapshots of your custom server environments.

Users often choose to delete their accounts when they transition to different architecture, sunset a project, or want to audit their digital footprint. Because Hetzner manages the underlying hardware and software stack for your virtual instances, closing the account is a critical step in ensuring that all proprietary configurations and server disks are wiped from their German and Finnish data centers. Considerations for deletion include:

• Preventing unexpected monthly billing for orphaned floating IPs or unused storage volumes.
• Ensuring that automated snapshots, which may contain sensitive application data, are purged.
• Revoking access to the Hetzner Cloud API, which could otherwise be used to provision unauthorized infrastructure.

What happens to your data

When you initiate the deletion process for your Hetzner Cloud account, the company moves to terminate your active services. Unlike social media platforms, Hetzner's primary data retention is tied to billing records and German tax compliance laws.

• Server disks: Once an instance is destroyed, the block storage is formatted and returned to the pool, effectively erasing your OS environment.
• Snapshots and Backups: You must manually delete these before account closure to ensure complete removal, as they are not always purged automatically upon initial account cancellation.
• Account logs: Hetzner retains billing, invoice, and identity verification records to comply with EU financial regulations, meaning your personal contact details may remain in their accounting database even after your account is 'deleted'.
• SSH Keys: Public keys associated with your account are removed from their identity management systems.

Privacy considerations

Hetzner Cloud operates under strict GDPR guidelines due to their headquarters being in Germany. While they do not track users for advertising purposes like consumer-facing social networks, they do log API interactions and infrastructure usage metrics for security and fraud prevention.

• Limit metadata: Before deleting, ensure you revoke any third-party integrations that connect to your Hetzner account via API keys.
• Audit your snapshots: Many users forget that snapshots may contain plain-text environment variables or database fragments; delete these specifically.
• Regulatory compliance: If you are concerned about your data being used for administrative profiling, use the official support ticket to explicitly request the removal of optional profile data once the primary account is closed.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will deleting my account automatically stop my current server billing?

No, you must delete every individual cloud server, volume, and load balancer in the Hetzner Cloud Console before requesting account closure to ensure billing stops completely.

Can I recover my server data after account deletion?

Once the account is closed and the data centers have run their reclamation processes, your server data and snapshots are generally irrecoverable.

Do I need to contact support to delete my account?

Yes, Hetzner often requires a request via the support ticketing system within the console to verify you are the authorized owner, especially if you have a history of active billing.

Is my payment information deleted immediately?

Your credit card or payment method details are handled through their billing portal and are removed from active use upon closure, but records are kept for a specific period for tax reporting.

What happens to my API tokens when I delete the account?

All API tokens tied to your user ID are revoked and invalidated the moment the account is successfully terminated.

Does Hetzner Cloud share my server data with third parties?

Hetzner is known for maintaining strict privacy; they do not share your infrastructure data with ad-tech companies, though they may be legally required to provide data in response to valid local court orders.