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Cloudways Reviews: 4.7/5 — Highly Rated
Cloudways is a managed hosting provider that focuses on performance and simplicity. Whether you need simple server and application launches, or ongoing server maintenance, Couldways is built to simplify the whole process of server management to support business growth thanks to its powerful suite of tools and services that can help manage your eCommerce stores and business sites. It also underscores user options–from cloud providers and hosting.
| Capabilities |
API
CLI
|
|---|---|
| Segment |
Small Business
Mid Market
Enterprise
|
| Deployment | Cloud / SaaS / Web-Based |
| Support | 24/7 (Live rep), Chat, Email/Help Desk, FAQs/Forum, Knowledge Base, Phone Support |
| Training | Documentation |
| Languages | English |
Cloudways Pros and Cons
- Option to add as many website installations as you want
- Server speed is faster than competition
- Pay as you go pricing plan
- Managed app option with database backups
- No root access or server modifications
- Add ons require additional cost
- Inability to use Plesk or cPanel
Cloudways includes unlimited websites and unlimited visits on every plan, starting at $14 a month. That is the whole proposition, and it is a genuine outlier. Kinsta’s entry plan is $35 a month for one WordPress install with 20 GB of bandwidth; Cloudways’ $14 Micro server carries no install cap at all and 1 TB of transfer. You are renting a server rather than buying licensed slots, and the difference in what that gets you is substantial.
- What it is: Managed cloud hosting for WordPress, Magento, Laravel and PHP, on your choice of cloud provider.
- Best for: Agencies and developers hosting many sites who want managed infrastructure without per-site licensing.
- Pricing: From $14 a month for 1 GB RAM, rising to $99 for 8 GB. Verified July 2026.
- The honest catch: Server resources are the real limit — unlimited sites still share one server’s RAM.
What Is Cloudways?
Cloudways is a managed hosting layer that sits on top of cloud providers rather than running its own metal. You choose the provider and the server type — Basic, General Purpose or CPU Optimized; Standard or Premium — and Cloudways manages the stack, now branded Lightning Stack.
Two product lines sit side by side: Cloudways Flexible, the customisable managed hosting reviewed here, and Cloudways Autonomous, a fully managed autoscaling WordPress product for high-traffic ecommerce and LMS sites.
There is a free trial with no credit card required.
How Cloudways Works
- Server size is the meter — RAM, vCPU, storage and bandwidth.
- Websites and visits are unlimited on every plan.
- Billing is hourly, with a monthly figure shown alongside.
- Offsite backup storage costs $0.033 per GB per server.
- You choose the cloud provider and server class.
- All listed prices exclude tax.
Cloudways Pricing
Captured from Cloudways’ pricing page in July 2026 in US dollars, on DigitalOcean Standard servers.
| Plan | Monthly | Hourly | RAM | vCPU | Storage | Bandwidth | Per GB RAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Micro | $14 | $0.0208 | 1 GB | 1 | 25 GB NVMe | 1 TB | $14.00 |
| Small | $28 | $0.0417 | 2 GB | 1 | 50 GB NVMe | 2 TB | $14.00 |
| Medium | $54 | $0.0804 | 4 GB | 2 | 80 GB NVMe | 4 TB | $13.50 |
| Large | $99 | $0.1473 | 8 GB | 4 | 160 GB NVMe | 5 TB | $12.38 |
Every plan: Lightning Stack, unlimited visits, unlimited websites.
What actually decides your cost:
- Unlimited websites is the reason to be here. Managed WordPress hosts almost universally meter installs — Kinsta allows one at $35 a month and forty at $450. Cloudways allows as many as your server can run, at $14. For an agency with twenty small client sites, that difference is the entire business case.
- The real constraint moves from licences to resources. Unlimited sites on 1 GB of RAM is unlimited in the licensing sense only. What you are actually buying is a server, and twenty WordPress sites on a Micro will perform accordingly. Size by expected load, not by site count.
- The volume discount is real but modest. Cost per GB of RAM runs $14.00, $14.00, $13.50 and $12.38 across the four sizes — about 12% better at the top than the bottom, and no improvement at all from Micro to Small. Compare that with the flat-rate hosts reviewed here, where the per-unit price never moves at any size.
- Check how the hourly rate resolves against a full month. The published hourly figures correspond to the monthly price divided by 672 hours, a 28-day month — $0.0208 × 672 is $13.98, and the same holds for all four sizes. A 30-day month is 720 hours and a 31-day month 744, so confirm with Cloudways whether the monthly figure is a cap or whether a full month bills above it.
- Backups are an add-on. Offsite backup storage is charged at $0.033 per GB per server. On a 160 GB Large server that is a small but non-zero line, and it is separate from the storage included in the plan.
- Prices exclude tax, which the page states plainly. For EU buyers that is a meaningful addition to compare against gross-quoting competitors.
Who Should Use Cloudways
- Agencies hosting client sites. The clearest case — one server, many sites, no per-install licence.
- Developers running multiple projects. Laravel, Magento and PHP alongside WordPress on the same platform.
- Businesses wanting cloud choice. Pick the provider and server class rather than accepting one stack.
- Anyone testing before committing. A free trial with no credit card.
It fits poorly for people who want one high-performance site with dedicated support, where Kinsta or WP Engine invest more per site; for teams wanting a fully hands-off product, which is what Cloudways Autonomous exists for; and for buyers who need certainty on monthly cost before understanding hourly billing.
Honest Pros and Cons
Strengths
- Unlimited websites and unlimited visits on every plan, from $14.
- 1 TB of transfer bandwidth even on the entry server.
- Choice of cloud provider and server class.
- NVMe storage across the range.
- A free trial with no credit card.
- A real, if modest, volume discount — 12% better per GB at the top.
Limitations
- Unlimited sites still share one server’s RAM.
- No per-GB improvement from Micro to Small.
- Offsite backups cost $0.033 per GB on top.
- Hourly rates imply a 28-day month — confirm whether monthly is a cap.
- Prices exclude tax.
- Support and tuning are lighter than dedicated managed-WordPress hosts.
Cloudways Alternatives and How It Compares
- Kinsta and WP Engine are the premium managed-WordPress hosts, metering installs but investing more per site.
- Flywheel targets designers and agencies with a similar philosophy to Kinsta.
- SiteGround and A2 Hosting sit in the mid-market with simpler shared plans.
- Hostinger and DreamHost compete at the budget end.
- Liquid Web offers managed VPS and dedicated infrastructure.
- DigitalOcean directly, if you are willing to manage the stack yourself.
For a broader survey, browse our cloud hosting directory.
The Verdict
Cloudways answers a question the managed-WordPress market mostly refuses to: what if you just rented a server and put as many sites on it as it could handle? Unlimited websites and unlimited visits on every plan, starting at $14 a month with 1 TB of transfer, is a fundamentally different proposition from hosts that license installs. Against Kinsta’s $35 entry plan for a single WordPress site with 20 GB of bandwidth, the contrast is stark — and for an agency carrying twenty small client sites, it is the whole argument.
The honest counterweight is that “unlimited” describes licensing, not physics. Twenty sites on a 1 GB Micro server will perform like twenty sites on a 1 GB server, and the skill Cloudways asks of you is sizing by real load rather than by site count. That is a fair trade for the price, but it does move a responsibility onto you that premium managed hosts absorb — which is also why their per-site investment, support depth and tuning tend to be greater.
Two commercial details to settle before you commit. The published hourly rates work out to the monthly price divided by 672 hours — a 28-day month — so $0.0208 × 672 gives $13.98 against the $14 headline, and the same relationship holds at every size. Real months run 720 to 744 hours, so ask Cloudways directly whether the monthly figure is a cap or whether a full month bills above it. And offsite backup storage is $0.033 per GB per server, separate from the NVMe storage in the plan, with all prices excluding tax. The volume discount, meanwhile, is modest but genuine: $14.00 per GB of RAM at Micro and Small, falling to $12.38 at Large — roughly 12%, which is more than several flat-rate competitors offer at any size.
FAQ
How much does Cloudways cost?
Captured in July 2026 in US dollars on DigitalOcean Standard servers, excluding tax: Micro $14 a month for 1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 25 GB NVMe storage and 1 TB bandwidth; Small $28 for 2 GB; Medium $54 for 4 GB; and Large $99 for 8 GB. Every plan includes unlimited websites and unlimited visits. Offsite backup storage costs an additional $0.033 per GB per server.
Does Cloudways limit how many websites I can host?
No. Unlimited websites and unlimited visits appear on every plan, including the $14 Micro server. The practical limit is server resources rather than licensing — the sites you host share the RAM, CPU and storage of the plan you buy — so size the server by expected traffic and application load rather than by how many sites you intend to run.
Is Cloudways billed hourly or monthly?
Both figures appear. Each plan shows a monthly price and an hourly rate, and the hourly rate corresponds to the monthly price divided by 672 hours — a 28-day month. Since real months run 720 to 744 hours, it is worth confirming with Cloudways whether the monthly figure acts as a cap or whether a full month of hourly billing can exceed it.
Cloudways or Kinsta?
They solve different problems. Cloudways rents you a managed server with unlimited sites from $14 a month, putting resource-sizing in your hands. Kinsta licenses WordPress installs — one at $35, forty at $450 — with more per-site tuning, support and infrastructure investment. Choose Cloudways for many small sites at low cost, and Kinsta for fewer sites where performance and support matter more than price per site.
Does Cloudways include backups?
Not offsite ones at no charge. The pricing page notes that “$0.033/GB per server will be applied for offsite backup storage”, so backup retention is a separate usage-based line on top of the plan. The NVMe storage listed against each plan — 25 GB to 160 GB — is the server’s own disk rather than backup capacity.
Compare Cloudways with other popular tools in the same category.
I am not a website admin; I'm a business owner. This means I want to spend my time running my business, not worrying about managing my hosting. Cloudways makes it super easy for businesses like mine to keep their websites running without any hassle. I was able to quickly and easily launch a staging server for a redesign and then move the site live when I was done. Anytime I've had questions about something, the live chat team has been able to fix my issues or get answers to my questions. Integration of features like Cloudflare is super easy and has saved me money. It's simple to implement and launch extra features, which Cloudways is adding regularly. Server management has always been intimidating for me. Cloudways has taken the intimidation out of the process, allowing me to focus on running my business.
Cloudways gives you access to just about everything on your server. If you're not careful or don't know what you're doing, you can wreak havoc on your website, which will require you to roll things back.
Cloudways makes hosting my WordPress site easy. The site is stable, fast, and doesn't suffer from outages. Since they manage the hosting, I can trust things are up to date and working as needed. This means I have more time to dedicate to my business as opposed to hosting admin.
The interface is very user friendly, allowing me to navigate easily to what I need. I had to reach out to the Customer Support team a couple of times whilst setting up my new website and they were extremely quick to reply and assist. Plus, having a hosting platform for the WordPress site, has done wonders for my SEO already (moved over from Wix).
I can't fault it - maybe the fact that payment is in USD only; it would be great to have options for other currencies too.
SEO is much better now that I have a Wordpress website
Fast customer support assistance Easy scaling Intuitive platform design Good pricing Lots of features to play around with for your website hosting Swift migration/integrations
Nothing so far, i've not had any issue of concern with the platform for about 4 years now.
Other hosts I used earlier often goes offline, but I've never experienced downtime with Cloudways servers.
Hands down the best part of Cloudways is the Cupertino level of thought in the user interface. It is intuitive and friendly. The amount of features that are packed into an affordable, scalable hosting platform is staggering.
I wish I could use ONE single email sign on to controll all the accounts I need to access. I have my own server and I cannot use this email to sign on as a collaborator to client owned servers.
Allowing me to host development websites in a managable way. Integrating caching, GIT, staging/production managment, and hosting environement variables/settings/limits.
Price is excellent, platform is very easy to use, support staff are fantastic when you need them (and respond quick). The one-button launch of new applications, additional servers, scaling etc is fantastic.
You need to know a little bit what you're doing with WP - complete beginners might find the dashboard etc a bit intimidating
It simplifies hosting down so much - one click staging, one click push/pull staging to live. It is fantastic.
I love how easy it is to use, deploy apps, all necesary information is at my fingertips and there is great documentation to support the use if needed. I have moved from already automated and sleek solution of serverpilot but Cloudways really got my attention after deployed first wordpress through their migration assistant. 20 minutes later I have migrated 5 other websites and I never looked back. It helped there was promotion for 6 months to cut the cost down, but even now, paying the full price - it saves me hassle and it simply works that well, that I even forget the name of the company as I don't need to login to the portal unless I deploy new apps. Also, the ability to use multiple cloud solutions is a great advantage. I would recommend this product to someone who runs multiple websites or app projects. It is really easy to manage them this way.
I don't really have much negative to say. I am happy to pay the price for the ease of use.
It solves the complexity of managing multiple wordpress sites on various cloud platforms. It is dead simple to use the platform and takes about 5-10 minutes to migrate WordPress site over. Easy.
it is a great optimize cloud hosting for new non technical Users. it's impress me with my website gtmatrix Speed. cloudways increase my website speed without any extra effort. cloudways offer free caching plugin Breeze.
Big problem with cloudways is Cpanel, cloudways don't offer cpanel like other hosting Provider. Secound Problem with cloudways Payment System, cloudways Payment system support only USD Currency. 3rd Sometime cloudways staff don't response during complete working Day.
Cloudways Increase my website Speed. Cloudways Caching Plugin Fix My Website LCP, Structure, TBT. Cloudways Offer well optimize server for non Technical User. Safe update Feature automatic update Plugin and wordpress Version. Cloudways Vertical Scaling Feature help me to Increase Resources without Zero Downtime.
The level and speed with which support responds and resolves concerns is top-notch. Migrating my sites from my previous host server went incredibly smooth.
Was a tad confusing (for me) to get set up initially, but after a brief tech support chat, all was good.
I was having uptime and security issues with my last host provider and everything was becoming an a-la-carte issue with billing. Cloudways made it simple to migrate my sites over, all 17 of them, and their dashboard is actually easier to use than cPanel.
Fast Loading Times: Cloudways ensures blazingly fast loading times for websites. the load time halved post migration Migrating my website was very straight forward via wordpress plugin coupled with excellent live support. Uptime is now 99.99999% improving from 97% under our old Pricing we reduced our annual hosting bill from 1600usd to 800usd which is a significant saving given we have improved our site. Cloudways Support: Cloudways offers expert support throughout the entire migration process and on any other issue for example dropping down in packages they were very helpful and guided me through the process after I determined my package was more than what I needed.
If there is an issue with anything then customer support go out of there way to fix it so n
Uptime and storage was a huge issue for us it was affecting site speed also. Everytime we uploaded content the site would crash. The reliability was a huge factor given we have paid customers who expect to have their content live at all times.
User-friendly interface which lets you select from a number of different server options, giving you the ability to get cloud hosting at a reasonable price, but with the support needed to keep things running (without having to be a server guru). Chat support is available if you do need help, and I've found them generally responsive and helpful the few times I've used it. The Elastic Email addon to allow transactional emails to be sent from a website hosted on the server is useful.
Limited access to server configuration files, which can be a detriment. I've specifically needed this for items like automatically serving WebP images from a CDN, but can't implement without being able to add to the config files.
Primarily providing an alternative to managed VPS hosting for certain websites which don't require access to server configuration. It also helps me quickly spin up a staging site to test plugins before applying to a live site.
Cost is the #1 reason I moved, Their support is great and they help fast with questions.
Least favorite thing is not being able to manage the files on the server (similar to flie explorer on other hosts)
Cost is the big one for me but speed is second
I like the ease of use of their platform. It is well set out and easy to understand. Their customer support is amazing and they are there 24/7 to healp out and there is never a long wait period like other hosting companies I have used in the past. It is easy to create and impliment a new application, which in my case is a new website. The web hosting is lightning fast and I like the way that aoutomatically instal their proprietry caching plugin when you install WordPress.
At first, I did miss the cPannel, but I quickly got used to this plat from.
Cloudways is cost effective, fast and efficient. It is a great time saver!
Honestly the support is absolutely unmatched, never had any issues really with the hosting, but they're very happy to help with stuff that's not even related to hosting!
I don't dislike anything right now, they've managed to create the perfect service that i was in need of, really.
fast servers, extremely good support, stability
The suport is great. Actually get to talk to real people and they are very knowledgeable.
Need more features for firewalls on autoscaling
Website support and speed of loading on sites.
Convenient WordPress installation and good performance. Easy to use dashboard.
Price doesn't scale well for higher end offerings.
Hosting a website with continuous uptime
I really like their interface and the amazing support they have available at all times. We have many different sites and apps running and its always easy to move them around and launch test sites if we need to.
It is more expensive than do it yourself but the peace of mind and the level of support they have is totally worth it.
Not having to sys admin servers
They offer best cloud hosting services with affordable plans.
It is not known to many. But a strong word of mouth can make it popular and liked by many.
Cloudways helps me to get additional cloud storage and keeps my data secure.
It is easy to set up and use and provides every protection you need for your online business. And the customer support is quick and provides immediate solutions. I have been using Cloudways for over a year and have integrated three WordPress websites.
If you can provide a switching of server locations for different projects it would be great.
Cloudways provide me dedicated hosting for all of my websites which has significantly improve my websites core vitals and also user experience.
The scalability and price. A close second is the great customer service. I also love the "marketplace" of features that are offered.
That you have to clone your server to scale down. It seems like unnecessary added steps.
Cloudways has made it incredibly simple to have a server and offer it to my clients. The website is very easy to use, and is something I feel very confident with. Pricing is very good and helps smaller agencies, like mine, to offer great features at a low cost.
I was somewhat terrified when a colleague recommended that I purchase a server, with Cloudways, all by myself. It was an alien landscape for me but Cloudways made it easy. There is an abundance of online help, and explainers, to take someone with limited knowledge through the process of adding a domain and website to the server. Support was available on the very rare occasion when I floundered. Even setting up an email (using Rackspace) was plain sailing. My Developers found it easy to get access and the service has been robust and consistent with no downtime or other issues. Cloudways' own staff kicked in to help when there was a server change. This was done in a way that was considerate of my time and finances. Overall a great experience that has added to my confidence and knowledge. Maybe all managed server suppliers are this good but I have no intention of finding out
Cloudways are the only supplier of this service that I have used and I can find no fault
Quality hosting for a website with an SQL database. They were recommended to me by a person who knows the products on offer. Easy to use with no downtime.
Ever since I tried Cloudways I've been impressed with their strong performance and ease of use. Once I experienced that, I inmediately brought all of my past and future projects to Cloudways. Their support is top notch, and they will always answer a chat session of support ticket really quick.
The only downsize I've found is that some basic functions, like DNS server or email accounts, require to pay extra as an addon. Then you would have to create a ticket to have a support guy modify DNS records for you.
I''m a web developer that runs news, personal and business sites for my clients. I used to work with other cloud VPS providers but implementations was always a hassle as you'd have to deal with command line arguments to get going and to perform mantenaince. But Cloudways have most of this initial setup packaged and available within the dashboard, so that's very convenient for me.
CloudHosting turbocharges my digital agency, ecommerce store, simple managed cloud hosting platform, Choose from WordPress, Magento, Laravel, or PHP apps. Cloudways has proven essential in implementing WebP redirection based on my firsthand experience.
I think Major Issue With Cloudways is Complex Functionality. Cloudways Tricky For New User.
Incredibly fast, secure, and simple cloud hosting platform, unbelievable performance and value.
I recently moved to cloudways from wp engine and I couldn't be happier. Cloudways servers are fast and give you more customization than what was offered at wpengine.
I can't think of anything that I dislike about the platform. I find it easy to use and I work on their servers every day.
Cloudways is a great alternative to wpengine
Incredible page load speeds, quick tech support,
Limited 'on-server' mailbox hosting options, no native file manager.
Tried many different hosting companies for hosting multiple websites and always ran into performance and memory problems. Very easy migration to Cloudways and all of my problems have been resolved.
What I liked best abut Cloudways was the depth of the dashboard, with full control of every nuance of the hosting, from selecting PHP versions to turning on Varnish or Elastic Search. Migrating 30+ sites over to the platform was pretty straight forward, either using their own migration app or other approches. Support has been great and accurate when they were needed. Pricing is fair and I like being able to EASILY bump up the server level with just one click.
The sole thing I'd like to see changed is the ability to use different PHP versions on the same server but, this is apparently coming soon,
Cloudways managed to rin in soaring costs that were upcming on my old host. I had essentially run out of gas there and Cloudways gives me an easy, incremental approach to boosting performance.
Very Professional & Amazing Cloud you can join. Easy to use , Fast , Secured
Nothing all thing is ok , they are very helpfull
I pay for the service I use and the space I use without interrupting the service at all
Cloudways has a plethora of functionality which they provide. It is easy to use, reliable and affordable. In terms of performance, it's much better than shared hosting. Cloudways' convenient chat feature with the support engineers is a great addition to its managed service. It's easier than cPanel and choosing from top providers such as DigitalOcean, Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services, Vultr, or Linode is very impressive. You can host multiple apps on a single server and upgrade anytime based on your traffic. It's just way better than anything out there.
There's nothing to dislike about Cloudways, but sometimes, the support system's communication could be improved. You can expect some waiting time for 1-2 days if your problem is a little more complex and requires additional help through a ticket that must be opened.
The main reason why I'm staying with Cloudways is because the previous hosting services like Siteground are becoming more and more expensive. Cloudways' is extremely user-friendly compared to many previous hosts I have been with and with fixed cost per month.
Fast hosting and super fast intuitive control panel- Excellent support and affordable overall
It's not cheap, fairly priced considering the instant support
speed, its considerably faster than my previous hosting
The best I like with the Cloudways platform is that it has an easy-to-use and implement user-friendly interface, which simplifies server management for end users of various technological know-how. Activities like server implementation, scaling, as well as application management, are streamlined for an intuitive experience. Cloudways prioritizes site performance by having features like server-level caching, Content Delivery Networks (CDNs), as well as automated back-ups. These resources lead to quicker loading times that have enhanced overall site operation. Cloudways offers a great customer support service to its users 24x7
Although Cloudways is user-friendly, individuals who are newcomers to cloud hosting may experience a learning curve. Understanding of cloud terminology and server management concepts might improve the onboarding practical experience for newbies.
Cloudways successfully resolves the complications related to cloud hosting. Its user-friendly user interface and managed services enable individuals to set up and handle cloud servers without making use of in-depth technological experience. Cloudways handles the problem of scaling by providing a smooth as well as efficient method. Individuals can simply scale their server resources to fulfill the requirements of their growing sites or applications.
1. Ability to choose from different hosts such as Google, AWS 2. Cloudflare integration 3. 100% uptime 4. Ease of dashboard 5. Quick customer care
1. A little expensive compared to some of the other hosts
It has made my website faster, while keeping having very little downtime