About $15 a month. I own a full region on Mobius grid where I test the ubODE physics engine! I also use it as a playground to help with understanding programming concepts during term break for studying Software Engineering.

OpenSim is likely to be the most expensive for the grid owners, but depending on how you sell land, you could claw back a lot (and maybe even break even/profit) on those costs. Most grid owners that are successful are level-headed and understand the financial burden.

As a creator, I pay fairly little. I personally believe that the lack of monetization on the platform is a double-edged sword: You have immediate access to content that is /mostly/ free. But because of this and other related issues, a lot of content creators feel their time may be wasted if they can't get anything back from it (maybe besides recognition).

its not that hard to create you own contend and host your own services..
i spend 0,00 euro's on open simulator.
i have be around sins 2014 / 2015 and never spent even 0,01 Cent on open simulator.

I spend nothing and pay for nothing in opensim. I get whatever I get for free and that's it.
Opensim is made mostly out of SL content and most grids are homebase ran. You either do it for fun or you go find costumers other than me.
To the creators here I always thank them, to the grid owners I visit them, that's my contribution.

I immediately believe that the hosting isn't free. My problem as a resident and user is that I don't have an anonymous PayPal account, and no one has been able to explain to me how to pay anonymously. I occasionally send Lindens in SL to some vendors at my favorite stores. I think this option is great. I'd love to learn how I can also consider everyone else with an anonymous PayPal account. And... I can very well imagine that I'm not the only one who encounters this hurdle...:)

I'd have to go into more detail here, but I'll leave it at this brief statement. If you've been running a grid for almost 16 years like I have, it's not something you can do with just a few pennies. You need powerful server machines, and more than one. The administrative work is largely voluntary. Unfortunately, I keep reading that many in the OpenSim community would prefer everything be free. Do people think the osgrid alone is free? Not at all. A ton of hardware power and administrative expertise are behind it.

In Germany you pay 0.4 euros per kwh for 3 kw per day this is 1.20 euros, you need a strong internet connection e.g. Fiber optic at least 60 euros a month and and, when I read here for $ 0 Sorry no! PC maintenance, extra SSD and more.

I spend $60 a month to have my grid hosted and Im happy doing that because 1) I don't want to be bothered with that aspect would rather spend my time creating 2) It helps to support someone else's dream here in OS. The time I spend creating items for use in OS is also a cost. If people like what I do and are happy to pay a few meagre Gloebits etc for any items then that helps support my grid and encourages me to keep creating. I also do buy from Kitely and from other creators on occasion to encourage and support them a bit to keep creating.

$0 other than that small electric bill Use Dreamgrid like me, I run 2 large grids have been for many many years.

God, this turned into SL spending which just made me remember I would spend +800/month there... *shudders*

I first started in SL in 2007 and three RL friends and I shared a full private region and split the costs. At the time, I think that was ~$50/month each + our annual subscription. Fast forward to 2009 and OS. I discovered that I could have my very own standalone region and didn’t need to pay for texture uploads! Yes, that was the entirety of my initial excitement… free uploads. Having my own “free” region allowed me to learn how to do things without the overhead cost of SL. I wasn’t concerned with IP since I never desired to be a seller. That said, I don’t mind spending money on OS because it’s my hobby and it makes me happy. I pay ~$30/mo for a VPS host to run DreamGrid, I subscribe to OSW to support the cause, I occasionally buy textures and mesh models, but prefer trying to make things myself if I can. I have a Photoshop subscription. I wish I could justify substance painter, but I cannot. I use Blender and have purchased some addons for that. I will occasionally purchase items on Kitely Market. All in, I spend about the same (maybe a little more) per month than I did for SL and have a much more fulfilling experience. If I had an OS business, hosted public events, or otherwise promoted my grid and desired/required a four nines SLA (any nines for that matter), I would pay for land services on a large reputable grid like WolfGrid.

I run 128 regions for about $3.53 a month. That's what the UPS says at 14 cents/kwh. The server cost $308.00.

https://www.reddit.com/r/DreamGrid/comments/1j9qcxs/own_yo...

I don't mind spending in whatever world i find myself in. I rent a very small parcel in Second Life. but my clothing bill there is large. In OS i have, and have had since early 2012 a free region on Speculoos World where I now make a monthly donation. All my creations are currently prims, with some mesh components. I use open source everything, as I have little choice being a complete Linux Chick. I don't worry about spending money on Kitely Market if it means I am able to use legitimate content from content creators who have taken the chance of selling in OS, especially if the prices are reasonable. i'm also in favour of crowd funding as a way of improving OS, something that has in the past got me into some considerable hot water with the EIOSSBF mob. Up to this point I haven't used hosting services, but I have self-hosted where electricity has been the biggest expense and recently I bought a new server machine to host my upcoming virtual world launch. I make a lot of my own textures, which cost only my time. I pay annually for my OSW memebership, which is a reasonable cost anyway.

I once had 5 regions in SL. Cost me a house payment a month. I used it as a 3D advertisement for my business, so it was more than justified. However, when SL changed their TOS to steal their clients' IP, they drove all the major businesses out, as well as hamstringing us to bring clients in or do any dev that might possible including anything potentially proprietary. I could never justify paying 200/mth for a 1x1 with some miniscule amount of prims. It's just greed. And you have to sign ANOTHER TOS to bring in mesh. I haven't seen that one; I suspect it is even more restrictive and possessive of the creator's IP. It's disgusting. I am THRILLED to pay what I pay in OS. And on WT, I get the SUPERIOR tech, exclusive tools (including a game dev app), ongoing dev, enterprise infrastructure, and stellar boutique service. Do I sound like an advertisement? GOOD. I will happily pay a VERY reasonable tier when there is so much available to us. Especially regarding content. And we have the freedom to create, mod, learn, etc. People come in here from being in SL for YEARS knowing how to do NOTHING, because it is so restricted. People who DO know how to do things don't want to PAY to upload their textures and mesh. More importantly, in the background, giving things away is HIGHLY discouraged, to the point that I personally know people who were banned from SL for giving things away. Not because it is a TOS violation, but because the creator/seller community pressured the Lindens to ban them. I know people RIGHT NOW in SL who buy their mesh forms from a creator on the marketplace, but STILL are required to pay to upload AND have to fill out an application to do so! We don't know what is in that application. The absurdity: You actually AGREE to give LL FULL RIGHTS to your IP. They can take it and do whatever they want with it. SL implemented copybotting shortly before they changed the TOS to take copies of EVERYTHING. Major corps, like IBM, Marriott, etc, left OVERNIGHT because their attorneys COMB TOSs daily to find those changes. In the meantime, every meeting that was transcribed, used proprietary drawings and images on prims, even any patent information that was shown in those meetings - was then shared IP with LL. Poof. All gone. And that is when LL became a veritable ghost town. They took that model from Zuckerberg. And that is why you don't hear major corps using FB as an information sharing app - because everything you put there is shared IP with the Zuck.

What does this mean? Schools that are doing projects for grants in SL or doing their own projects have given away their IP to share with LL. Period. The ones who know this do not have projects or courses in SL. Their presence is superficial. The ones who don't know - if it is a state or federal grant, the PI and the school are committing FRAUD. If an NIH grant is being performed in SL, that is federal criminal FRAUD. Data belongs to NIH. PERIOD.

In Wolf Territory's TOS, it states that YOUR DATA belongs to YOU. AND you indemnify the grid. Additionally, Lone is willing to consider and review additional contracts regarding ensuring that the grid has NO CLAIM to your data or the data that you are being granted. The TOS is blanket, but some grantors and financiers may want some additional specifications.

NONE OF THAT is available in SL. Right now, many businesses and schools are committing criminal fraud by having their information or doing dev in SL. Because of the hypergrid, you have CHOICES - AFFORDABLE CHOICES - that allow you to do these things. THAT is valuable.

Interesting question. Generally, I'm more than willing to pay for land tier to be on a large grid with a lot of active residents, or for quality items that I don't like making, mostly clothes. I've never been interested in hosting my store on my own equipment. As for my builds, they are primarily made with prims with some mesh components mixed in. Some of that mesh I create in Blender, but more complex mesh, like statues, I source from reputable sources with commercial licenses. Several of those I have paid significant sums for simply because the high quality was worth it. I love textures, and I make most of my own which I can easily convert to pbr, but I have also paid for large pbr bundles from CGAxis that I also use. I primarily use free opensource tools for creating, such as Blender, Gimp, Audacity, and Freesound, but I also use a paid program called Shadermap 4 from time to time. In the end, it's all about creating as realistic and detailed a build as I possibly can to match the vision in my head. Cost is secondary to that process as long as it enables me to get to the point I want to be. I love giving back to the grids I'm on and about 80% of my venues started out as a build I donated to the community. Wolf Territories has several of those. As for the gold coins here, it's just a cost of doing business.

i make donation to 2 grids and make objects for osrgid auctions too . server as expensive what ever who owne them .
i hoster by a riend since many years she desserve some help ... it s natural to paie a lil for owne home .

mm just 40 for my grid and sometimes when I am lazy I get to Kitely market. But yes it is nice hobby and I try to create my own as much I can =) which I do give to my friends when they want those. I really don't brag about what I do I just do lol

I try to keep it reasonable by making and finding as much as I can but I do occasionally spend on Kitely Market. And I have a few region rentals. This is how I see it though. I don't smoke, drink or take expensive...or hell really any vacations beyond drivable destinations. I don't buy a lot of clothes in RL and I drive a dinosaur of a car...lol. So it evens out.

ooh yes sure I spend money on OS and SL from time to time ...but hey .. you only live once and don't treat yourself to anything else hehehe

Wolf Grid costs a LOT to run

In my case specifically +200$/month for my tiny grid. I do spend A LOT in other virtual worlds to bring stuff here tho

You can really spend zero if you want. Most main world offer some sort of parcel rental, which tend to be quite generous! (I am sure @nbtafelberg can comment on that as the grid with most traffic)