Cloud hosting is the perfect hosting solution for most website owners. That’s because it’s easily scalable, offering the precise amount of resources needed to power your website. But that doesn’t mean every cloud hosting provider will be a perfect fit for your goals, needs, or budget.
One particular cloud hosting provider sets itself apart by delivering quality and customizable cloud hosting services to support almost any type of website. Its name is Cloudways cloud hosting.
Every Cloudways hosting plan is feature-rich and user-friendly. The company also keeps things cost-effective by delivering platform-as-a-service (PaaS) cloud hosting. That means you only pay for the resources your website consumes.
Also, since Cloudways’ hosting service is fully managed, many of the technical aspects of running your site are automated, allowing you to focus on making your website more attractive and profitable.
Simply put, Cloudways is a hassle-free and affordable hosting service that guarantees your website’s security, speed, and overall performance.
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Is Cloudways Suitable for WordPress Hosting?
With over 35% of the market share and over 75million websites, there are more WordPress sites than any other site type. That means you probably own a WordPress site and are wondering if Cloudways is optimized for WordPress.
The answer is a resounding yes.
Cloudways cloud hosting delivers managed WordPress cloud hosting that’s fast, secure, reliable, and versatile. For instance, the hosting service ensures your WordPress site never experiences downtime. It accomplishes this by saving multiple copies of your content at various data centers.
If the primary server hosting your website goes down, one of the other servers carrying a copy of your content will automatically serve your site.
For speed and rapid deployment of computing resources, data centers closest to you and your target audience will serve your website. Even better, without compromising on quality, the service is more affordable than most other managed WordPress cloud hosting services.
Aside from WordPress, Cloudways also offers hosting options for Joomla, Drupal, Magento, PrestaShop sites, and many others.
Key Features of Cloudways Hosting
Cloudways has its headquarters in Malta but serves customers in over 40 countries, including the US. Its 60+ data centers provide easily scalable server resources to serve large and small websites. Even if you receive millions of unique visitors, there’s a Cloudways hosting plan that’s perfect for your needs.
The most basic hosting plan offers 25 GB of storage, 10 GB RAM, 1 core processor, and 1 TB bandwidth. That’s more than enough for the smooth operation of a website that receives at least a thousand visitors daily.
Other unique features of Cloudways hosting that set it apart in terms of user-friendliness, speed, and security are:
- Site migration to Cloudways is free, and the host takes care of the entire process.
- One-click installation for apps and website set-up
- It uses a content delivery network (CDN) to boost website loading speeds by reducing latency and time-to-first-byte.
- It has an auto-healing feature that fixes most site issues automatically and significantly reduces the frequency of site crashes.
- Cloudways offers all the major cloud providers – Amazon Web Services, Digital Ocean, Google Compute Engine, Vultr, and Linode.
- There’s a dedicated firewall, two-factor authentication, and built-in Let’s Encrypt SSL for solid website security.
- 24/7 expert customer support
If you are dissatisfied with your current hosting company, you can use the Cloudways migration tool to move to Cloudways cloud hosting with just a few clicks. Cloudways offers a free trial period for testing its plans and finding one that’s perfect for your needs.
How User-friendly is Cloudway Hosting?
Cloudways provides a worry-free experience by helping you take care of the more technical aspects of running a website. The migration and set-up processes are easy.
Aside from being easy to set-up, Cloudways cloud hosting keeps things user-friendly with the following features:
- Frequent backups: You can set Cloudways to automatically backup your website as frequently as you want—once a day, every two days, or more. If you prefer, there’s the option to perform manual backups with a single click.
- Monitoring: You can keep an eye on the performance of your website and cloud server at all times. This feature isn’t common among cloud hosting providers, which makes Cloudways unique. The monitoring tool provides information regarding traffic, reads per second, idle CPU, and more in the form of an easy to understand graph.
- Smooth scalability: Since Cloudways cloud hosting offers platform-as-a-service, you only have to pay for the resources you use. If you experience a surge or drop in traffic, you can easily adjust your server resources at any time to suit your immediate needs.
Should You Use Cloudways for Your e-Commerce Site?
E-Commerce websites tend to be heavier and busier than regular sites, such as blogs. That’s because they contain more pictures and pages. For such a website to run smoothly, especially if it gets lots of traffic, it needs hosting that offers enough bandwidth and storage space.
Cloudways Hosting satisfies these needs with various plans to match the requirements of all types and sizes of e-commerce sites. You can spend as little as $10 a month for 25GB storage and 1TB bandwidth.
Aside from resources and infrastructure, the company also provides e-commerce-friendly features to make running your online store a breeze.
Currently, Cloudways hosts more than 10,000 e-commerce stores, and customer reviews are mostly stellar, especially regarding uptime, managed security, automated backups, and fast loading speeds.
Online store owners can also access a user-friendly console for uploading their products and updating pages.
If you are using e-commerce platforms like Magento, WooCommerce, or Prestashop, you’ll enjoy one-click installation, multi-SSL deployment, and fast speeds to drive your online store to success.
How Good is Cloudways’ Performance and Uptime?
Uptime and page speed are both extremely important if you are running a business or e-commerce website. Without both, your conversion rate and Google search rankings will suffer, meaning your site won’t generate revenue.
When it comes to site performance and uptime, Cloudways cloud hosting takes the lead. Expect nothing less than 99% uptime. The company delivers this high-quality by partnering with top cloud providers like Google and AWS.
Regarding page loading speeds, Cloudways delivers 40 to 50% better load times than many of its competitors, especially if you own a WordPress site. The company can deliver such page speeds consistently thanks to its unique virtualization management (VMAN) technology. The technology uses a combination of Apache, Nginx, Varnish, and Memcached deploys to deliver optimal site speeds.
Aside from its VMAN technology, other ways Cloudways ensures constant speed are:
- Dedicated server resources for each website means you never have to worry about another site using your resources and reducing your site’s performance.
- Cloudways’ free and exclusive caching WordPress plugin (Breeze) reduces your bandwidth use and speeds up your site’s data transfer speeds.
- Using Redis, alongside Apache, Nginx, and Varnish, to boost your site’s database performance
- PHP 7 ready servers, which is currently the fastest PHP version
- The CDN service uses the servers closest to your visitors to deliver site content quickly.
What About Security?
Cloudways takes server security very seriously. As mentioned earlier, the hosting company offers a range of security features, including:- Dedicated and sophisticated firewalls
- Two-factor authentication
- Built-in Let’s Encrypt SSL for solid website security
- Automatic site backups
Customer Support
Customer support is something else Cloudways does well. Getting help is easy and accessible 24/7/365. Whether you choose to use the phone, live chat, or email option to reach the support team, you’ll get a prompt response. Even better, a real person who’s a hosting expert will provide prompt solutions to your queries.
According to customer reviews, support agents are generally polite and efficient. Plus, many customers are big fans of the “request a call” option. If you use this feature, a Cloudways customer support representative will call you during business hours to assist you.
Which is Better for Cloud Hosting: Cloudways or SiteGround?
SiteGround is the preferred hosting choice for many, especially those who want shared hosting services. But if you are looking for quality cloud hosting, Cloudways offers a better deal.
SiteGround also offers cloud hosting, but compared to Cloudways, its services aren’t as cost-effective or robust. For instance, SiteGround’s cheapest cloud hosting offer is 2 CPU and 4GB RAM at $80 per month. At the same price, Cloudways offers 4 CPU and 8GB RAM—that’s double the value.
Even better, Cloudways offers less expensive cloud hosting plans to suit your needs and budget. Services and resources are also easily scalable. With SiteGround, the renewal price is high, and they meter usage, meaning they’ll limit your website service if you exceed your allotted server resources.
Cloudways also beats SiteGround when it comes to site loading speeds. That’s because Cloudways is better optimized for cloud hosting. For instance, SiteGround uses cPanel, whereas Cloudways uses a custom build control panel. Using cPanel slows down site loading speeds, while Cloudways’ custom panel sheds the excess fat, boosting site performance and speeds.
On the downside, Cloudways’ trimmed down custom panel doesn’t offer email accounts, a file manager, or DNS management.
Another reason for Cloudways’ better loading speed is its dedicated resources per customer. The feature ensures you don’t have to worry about other websites eating into the resources allotted to your site for performance and speed.
Also, on Cloudways, you can pick your preferred cloud provider. The hosting platform will connect your site directly to that cloud provider for easy and quicker management. Cloud provider options include Digital Ocean, Linode, Vultr, Amazon Web Services, and Google Computing Engine.
Simply put, Cloudways offers better cloud hosting at a lower price. Just as important, its cloud hosting services are more robust and flexible, ensuring you get the exact services and features you need without paying more than necessary. Siteground, on the other hand, is a great choice if you’re looking for top-notch shared hosting.
Cloudways Pros
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- Versatile cloud hosting solution – Cloudways supports WordPress, Joomla, Magento, and Drupal. You can set up or migrate a website built on any of these platforms with just a few clicks.
- Easy scalability – Cloudways allots dedicated resources to each website that won’t be affected by the activities of other websites. You can easily scale these resources to meet the immediate needs of your website.
- Pay-as-you-go – When using Cloudways cloud hosting, you never have to pay for resources you don’t use. That’s because the company offers platform-as-a-service hosting, and you only have to pay for resources your site has consumed.
- High page loading speeds – In many cases, webpages hosted on Cloudways can load in less than a second. Such speeds are achievable because Cloudways offers dedicated resources, Redix support, free caching, and uses CDN. By taking advantage of such high page loading speeds, your website will be better equipped to perform well in search engine rankings and convert visitors.
- Managed security – Cloudways’ hosting can handle many of the more technical aspects of running a website on your behalf, including security. Regardless of the cloud hosting plan you choose, you’ll get built-in security features that prevent breaches and secure your data. Some of these features include:
- Two-factor authentication
- OS-level firewalls
- Frequent firmware upgrades and patch updates
- 1-click free SSL certificate install
- IP whitelisting capability
- There’s also an auto-healing feature that resolves issues on your behalf, protecting your website against dangers you never noticed.
- Automatic backups – You can set Cloudways to automatically backup your website every day, once every two or three days, or once a week. You can also manually back it up as often as you like with just a few clicks. If there is an issue with your site, you can easily restore it from any of your recent backups.
- Affordable cloud hosting plans – The affordability of Cloudways hosting is one of its most attractive attributes. Even better, there’s a hosting plan to fit every possible need and budget. Regardless of which price plan you choose, you’ll get all the important features as standard.
- Excellent customer support – Without quality customer support, you’ll have trouble getting help when you run into problems with your website. Cloudways ensures this is something you never have to worry about. The company’s customer support is available 24/7/365 via phone, email, and live chat. There’s also a “request a call” option, which you can use to get customer support to call you back.
The company site offers a highly informative FAQ page where you can get answers to common questions. There’s also an active online Cloudways’ community where you can interact and share knowledge with other Cloudways customers. - Website monitoring – To determine if your website is delivering the results you want, you need to be able to monitor its performance. The Cloudways console helps achieve this by providing real-time data regarding various aspects of your website’s performance. There are over 16 metrics to choose from, and reports appear as easy to understand graphs. You can use the information from the report to optimize your website, the server, and more.
Cloudways Cons
While there’s a lot to love about Cloudways, the hosting company does have a few shortcomings.
- No email hosting – Unlike other major cloud hosting companies, Cloudways doesn’t offer integrated email accounts with any of its hosting plans. You can get email services as a separate add-on, but this can be pricey, especially if you are running a business that requires lots of active email accounts.
- No domain name registration – Compared to many of its competitors, you can’t register a domain name with Cloudways. Many hosting companies offer this feature for free, while others charge for the service. If you want to open a new website on Cloudways, first, you’ll have to use a third-party seller to secure a domain name.
There’s also the hassle of having to point the domain name to your hosting provider. It’s an inconvenience that many customers may be unwilling to put up with, especially when there are cloud hosting alternatives offering the feature for free. - No cPanel – In place of the traditional control panel, Cloudways offers a dedicated console for managing your website and applications. While the console is user-friendly and gets the job done, it’s not as comprehensive as cPanel. That’s because there’s a limit to what you can do with it, especially regarding managing your hosting.
If you are willing to take the time to learn how to use the Cloudways console, this shortcoming won’t be a deal-breaker.
Cloudways Cloud Hosting Plans and Pricing
There’s a Cloudways hosting plan for every website budget, size, and type. The first step to choosing a plan is to pick a cloud infrastructure provider.
There are five to choose from, and each comes with a different pricing plan.
Digital Ocean
Digital Ocean has the most affordable plans, ranging from $10 to $80 per month. Depending on the plan you choose, you could get 1GB to 8GB RAM, 25GB to 160GB storage space, 1 to 4 core processors, and bandwidth from 1TB to 5TB.
The most popular Digital Ocean plan is $42 per month, which offers 4GB RAM, 2 core processors, 80BG storage, and 4TB bandwidth.
Linode
Plans under this provider range from $12 to $90 per month and offer 1GB to 8GB RAM, 1 to 4 core processors, 20GB to 96GB storage, and 1TB to 4TB bandwidth.
The most popular Linode plan is $50 per month with 4GB RAM, 2 core processors, 80GB storage, and 4TB bandwidth.
Vultr
Vultr plans range from $11 to $84 per month. You can get 1GB to 8GB RAM, 1 to 4 core processors, 25GB to 100GB storage, and 1TB to 4TB bandwidth.
Their most popular plan is $44 per month and offers 4GB RAM, 2 core processors, 80GB storage, and 3TB bandwidth.
Amazon Web Services (AWS)
AWS plans range from $85.17 to $272.73 per month and offer 3.75GB to 15GB RAM and 1 to 4 vCPU. In all plans, you’ll get 4GB storage and 2GB bandwidth. The most popular AWS plan is $86.77 per month, and it comes with 3.75GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20GB storage, and 2GB bandwidth.
Google Computing Engine (GCE)
GCE plans range from $73.62 to $226.05 per month and offer 3.75GB to 16GB RAM and 1 to 4 vCPU. In all plans, you’ll get 20GB storage and 2GB bandwidth. The most popular plan is $73.62 per month, and it comes with 3.75GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 20GB storage, and 2GB bandwidth.
All of the above plans come with the following standard features:
- 24/7 real-time monitoring
- 24/7/365 support
- HTTP/2-enabled servers
- SSH and SFTP access
- Free migration
- Free SSL
- CDN add-on
- Dedicated firewalls
- Automated backups
- Staging environment
- Auto-healing
- Regular security patching
To decide which plan is best for your needs, you can take any of the above plans for a spin with Cloudways free trial. After the free trial, you can pay for a plan with PayPal or major credit cards like MasterCard, Visa, and American Express. Hourly billing plans and customized plans are also available.
Conclusion: Is Cloudways Worth it?
Cloudways cloud hosting is one of the most affordable yet reliable options you’ll find. Finding a plan from the company that suits your specific budget and website goals won’t be difficult. We are especially big fans of its top-notch security, excellent customer support, fast page loading speeds, and easily scalable set-up.
That said, Cloudways isn’t perfect. It lacks a traditional cPanel, and it offers no domain name registration or email hosting. These shortcomings aren’t necessarily deal-breakers, and Cloudways may eventually add these features.
If your priority is affordable cloud hosting that’s secure, reliable, flexible, and fast, you should consider giving Cloudways a try. Best of all, you can do this for free by taking advantage of the company’s 3-day free trial on any plan.
