Cloudways Review

The cheapest Cloudways plan costs $11/mo but this managed cloud platform has many advantages that pure cloud or traditional hosting providers can't give.

My Experience with Cloudways

I have been using Cloudways for years. At this time of writing, I host 3 projects on two servers at Cloudways, including this site (WebHostingSecretRevealed.net) you are reading. The best thing about Cloudways, for me, was its excellent server performance. Plus, Cloudways is easy to use and there are a ton of tools already in place.

Who Should Use Cloudways Hosting?

Cloudways is ideal for SaaS providers, fast-growing start-ups, developers, or businesses that need more than just an informational website. The flexibility of scale in terms of both server power and data transfer is invaluable for elastic sites that demand agility.

Who Should Not Use Cloudways?

Cloudways may not be the best choice if you are looking for a budget hosting solution, or if you are running a simple information website.

For further information, read our full Cloudways review below.

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Cloudways Service Overview

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Pros: What I like About Cloudways Hosting

1. Impressive Performance – Fast and Reliable

While it is true that I have so far encountered excellent performance from Cloudways servers this is more a result of the infrastructure providers themselves. Each of them is bound to have their own performance advantages (and maybe quirks too!) so again, it is very provider-dependent.

In my case – I am using Digital Ocean infrastructure and managing it via Cloudways platform.

Cloudways Hosting Uptime

2. Integrated Dashboard

The fees you pay to Cloudways are meant to cover their management services and pay for add on features such as control platforms, service migrations, user dashboards and the like.

Because of this unique position that they are in, what we will be looking at more closely than actual performance is how they are setup to help you manage the servers you are paying for. This includes things like dashboard UI design, add on features such as firewall and Content Distribution Network (CDN), and of course, customer support.

Fortunately I was not disappointed. Cloudways' integrated dashboard is powerful, extremely users-friendly, and it's ideal for developers and/or agencies, or even perhaps companies which are planning to manage several of their own sites separately. They can offer each of their customers a choice of hosting platform which they can then manage from a single point.

Because in each Cloudways account users can purchase and setup multiple servers for their websites and applications – we need a systematical way to group these users work. Cloudways group users' work in three categories: Projects, Servers, Applications. I will demonstrate how their platform works in the following screenshots.

3. Powerful Addons

Back again to the point that Cloudways is an integrator, this also means that each platform can come with its own firewall as well as Content Delivery Network (CDN). This is something that can be extremely helpful for sites hosted on Cloudways, which is again reflective of its usefulness for developers. It can literally be a one-stop-shop for them to push on to clients.

Below are some Cloudways' key add-ons and functionalities that we think you should know.

Cloudflare Enterprise Add-on

Cloudways' new Cloudflare Enterprise Add-on (announced June 2023) offers features like Edge Page Caching, automatic image & mobile optimization, Brotli compression, PCI DSS Compliance, Argo Smart Routing as well as WAF & DDoS mitigation. All these make Cloudways-hosted websites quicker, more efficient, and more secure.

And best of all – the add-on cost just $4.99 per domain. In comparison, should you subscribe to Cloudflare services separately, you will have to pay at least $20/mo for some of these features.

Easy Cloning / Staging / Server Transfers

GIT Ready

Server Monitoring

Auto and On-demand Backup

4. Easy Scalability

One of the main advantages of Cloud-based hosting is that their plans are extremely scalable. This gives site owners the potential for extreme agility, but normally requires going through support or sales channels.

How much you can scale your resources depends on which platform you opt for when you sign up with Cloudways. Each platform has its own little quirks for scaling. For example, Digital Ocean only allows upward scaling. If you want to scale down, it is a lot more involved.

5. Easy for Collaboration

Cloudways has something it calls a ‘Teams’ feature which lets you add members to a collaborative group. This lets you not just combine members on to a project but also separate their access into distinct groups. For example, you might assign members to support or some others to have Cloud Console access.

6. Managed Security

Again, going back to them being a system integrator, Cloudways takes good care of its accounts by overseeing security management. This takes a very big load off site owners who sign on with them. From 1-click free SSL installation to security patches and 2FA, there is pretty much everything most site would need here.

7. Free Trial

When it comes to a move as significant as that to Cloud Hosting, it always helps for you to see for yourself what to be prepared for. In some ways, Cloudways is even more distinct because of the unified dashboard which can link multiple Cloud Platforms.

This makes their free trial even more attractive and you don’t even need a credit card to sign up for it. The trial gives you complete access to all their features, so you’ll know exactly what you are buying in to if you decide to sign on with them.

Exclusive deal: Get free $10 before you pay anything

8. Free white glove site migration

I tried Cloudways site migration support in January 2019. My WordPress site got fully transferred in less than 2 days – all I did was providing my original account info (domain name, SSH login, cPanel login, etc) and the tech support did all other work. It was a smooth process.

Cons: What I dislike about Cloudways

1. Limited Server Control

This is a topic of debate as to whether it is good or not, but personally I find that the lack of control over servers is inconvenient. Since to date everything I have noticed about the Cloudways environment is leaning towards developers, having those limitations is even more baffling.

Even for something as basic as setting up a cron job, I had to go through Cloudways support staff for assistance. There was a pre-set form to fill out which was useful, but still required me to wait for it to be done – a few days of a wait!

For newbies, this is helpful but for me or even many developers it would be a waste of time – which many of them would be accountable to their clients for.

Cloudways Plans & Pricing

Because Cloudways is not the infrastructure provider, your Cloudways bill prices (as well as everything else) vary depending on your choice. There is a choice of three main platforms – Digital Ocean, Amazon Web Services, and Google Cloud Platform.

Their cheapest stepping-off plan starts at $11 per month (Digital Ocean, Standard Plan) – which lets you host at either Digital Ocean with 1GB of RAM, single processor core, 25GB storage and 1TB of bandwidth. Higher Premium Plans, starting at $14/mo, come with Cloudflare Add-on and free Object Cache Pro – which are essentials for those who want a fast-loading website.

Cloudways Pricing Model Explained

Regardless of these hosting prices, it is important to note that whatever platform you sign up with through Cloudways you are paying double of what that provider would charge you if you signed up with them direct. This isn’t a scam, but is the price you pay for the many services Cloudways is providing for your convenience.

Examples – Digital Ocean

• Digital Ocean (DO) – $6/mo
• DO + Cloudways – $11/mo

Learn more about Cloudways plans & pricing.

Cloudways Alternatives

The biggest reason to opt for an alternative lies in Cloduways pricing. It’s understandable that expertise, research, development, or even hardware costs money. However, this extra cost does not always bring the most benefit for users.

If you need a powerful web hosting solution, Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) model such as Cloudways is not 100% always the ideal fit. Consider your needs carefully and see what alternatives exist in the market before leaping into something you might struggle to get out from.

Cheaper Alternatives to Cloudways

For those who were looking for cheaper alternatives, below are some popular shared hosting services.

Shared hosting is widely accepted as the entry-level hosting option as it requires minimum technical knowledge. Unlike Cloudways, which runs on cloud infrastructure, shared hosting has very limited ability to handle high traffic levels or spikes. Also, website performance can be easily affected by other sites on the same server.

VPS and Similar Cloud-based Solutions to Cloudways

• Kinsta ($35/mo) – Managed WordPress hosting; entry-level plan supports one WordPress site with up to 25,000 visits.
• ScalaHosting ($14.95/mo) – Now in a new partnership with Digital Ocean and Amazon AWS, ScalaHosting has turned its business model into PaaS play – just like Cloudways.
• Interserver VPS ($6.00/mo) – Using a combination of CentOS along with the Webuzo control panel, Interserver's VPS plans is a much cheaper option for those with server admin experience.

More Cloudways Comparisons

• A2 Hosting VPS vs Cloudways
• Siteground Hosting vs Cloudways
• WP Engine vs Cloudways
• Kinsta vs Cloudways
• Flywheel vs Cloudways

Verdict: Is Cloudways Right for You?

From personal experience I have found Cloudways to be a mixed experience. The best thing about it for me was in terms of performance on the Cloud infrastructure. It was easy to use and there were a ton of tools already in place.

Yet at the same time, I miss the control I get to have with traditional VPS hosting.

The experience will differ of course, based on your individual situation as well as which provider or plan you are currently on. I feel that the core is there – the Cloud platform and everything else is a hit or miss depending on need.

Who Should Host With Cloudways?

This platform seems ideal for certain businesses, such as SaaS providers, start-ups, developers, or businesses that need more than just a simple “flyer” website. The flexibility of scale in terms of both server power and data transfer is invaluable for elastic sites that demand agility.

At the same time, they have customer support who are ready to spoon-feed you with solutions to any problems you might have.

My two cents is that Cloudways uptake needs to be carefully considered based on need. I can’t see most simple business sites or blogs requiring this level of power to operate.

Cloudways Special Promo Code: WHSR10
Apply promo code “WHSR10” to get free $10 hosting credits with Cloudways. The lowest Cloudways plan costs $12 per month – so when you signup with our exclusive promo code, you can test them out at (almost) zero risk for 30 days > Grab this Cloudways deal