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Ask HN: European Tech Alternatives?

109 points by BrunoBernardino ↗ HN
I've used https://european-alternatives.eu in the past but I've found it impossible to submit anything there (I've got one submission "Waiting for Review" since July 2025), and I haven't really seen updates in categories/apps for at least 6 months, which is, at a minimum, strange.

I've also reached out to the owner a couple of times (via chat and via email) over the last year and never got a reply.

Has anyone else had a similar experience? If so, is there any other kind of listing you look for EU alternatives to US software/hardware?

Thanks!

EDIT: My motivations are my own, this isn't supposed to be a political or social commentary of any kind. I happen to prefer to spend money in "local companies" whenever possible, and I'm in the EU.

28 comments

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dmitrygr
> haven't really seen updates in categories/apps for at least 6 months

It is going through GDPR review, then permitting, and then a few other country-specific reviews. Check back in 6-11 years.

jauco
I generally just search around.

Btw: if you are interested in this, note that it often isn’t clear cut where a company is from.

For example: https://european-alternatives.eu/product/zitadel bills itself as a swiss company, and it might technically be one, but it looks very much like a general SF startup to me (business address in sf, all investors are US based)

sam_lowry_
Amazon, Google and Microsoft all have now Digital Sovereignty positions and crooks of all kinds fill the niches.

Nothing unusual here.

Temporary_31337
Curious about the motivation. The current conflict in Iran once again reminds us of how it;s all intertwined. The blockade of Strait of Hormuz means helium shortages means no chip production, means your EU based alternative is not getting chips so you really don't have an alternative unless you can somehow magically wish a whole fairly alternative supply chain of EU based rare minerals, fabs, nvidias etc
jacekm
I'll use the opportunity to ask what's the cheapest cold storage in the EU? I am looking for an alternative to AWS Glacier Deep Archive.
rapnie
Switching software [0] which has a repository on Codeberg [1] and an account on the fediverse [2]. It is not focused directly on EU alternatives, but:

> switching.software is a grassroots website, that is trying to let people know about ethical and easy-to-use alternatives to well-known websites, apps and other software. It is specifically aimed at a non-technical audience.

[0] https://switching.software/

[1] https://codeberg.org/swiso/website

[2] https://fedifreu.de/@switchingsoftware

stronglikedan
Just use whatever works best for you. Why bother wasting brain cells on where it comes from? Seems like extra steps for the sake of it.
ex-aws-dude
Instead of Apache Server I migrated to EuroApache Server

Its similar but slightly less friendly and doesn't require a tip

nhatcher
I am working on IronCalc[1]. A spreadsheet engine. We are not an alternative yet. As it is not a finished product. But, if we are successful, we should be a good alternative to traditional spreadsheet software.

[1] https://www.ironcalc.com

momo_dev
for cloud/VPS hosting hetzner has been solid for me. their object storage is S3-compatible and way cheaper than AWS. the only downside is the region options are limited to EU which is actually a feature if you're targeting EU users. for the directory question, euro-stack.com linked above looks more maintained than european-alternatives.eu. i also just search "X alternative EU" whenever i need something specific
melon_tusk
The EU are the ones freezing people's bank accounts and cancelling everyone they don't like, sanctioning people countries for not being woke enough, etc. I'd much rather use US based services or self-hosting.
maxdo
here is how MEGA movement started in tech( make europe great again), with Orban in charge :)
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cpach
“Has anyone else had a similar experience?”

Yes. Same here. The owner has never replied to my emails. I have also had contact with vendors who received the same treatment.

To be honest I’m disappointed. I have seen multiple persons linking to that site, but if it’s not updated and the owner doesn’t answer e-mail then it’s not really a reasonable reference, IMO.

BrunoBernardino
Thank you for confirming! I don't understand it and I'm disappointed as well.