Discover the benefits and drawbacks of using Cloudways as your hosting provider in our Cloudways hosting review.
Additionally, you’ll learn how to use a few of the Cloudways hosting platform’s capabilities.
The majority of the frequently asked topics concerning Cloudways hosting are finally covered in-depth in this study.
You would be in the best position to decide if Cloudways is a suitable web hosting company for you or not.
However, a hosting provider that offers reliable optimal performance with affordable pricing and optimal performance is definitely the number one choice of all website owners.
This is where
What is Cloud Hosting?
As you are probably aware, traditional shared hosting involves sharing server resources across numerous websites. However, cloud hosting is a little different.
Cloud hosting spreads out your data across a variety of systems, including numerous servers dotted throughout the world that are all connected to one another, as opposed to keeping it all on a single system.
The performance of other websites on the same server has an impact on how quickly your website loads when using shared hosting. For this and many more reasons, cloud servers perform better than shared servers.
Cloudways Hosting Review Highlights (Features)
In the Cloudways hosting review below, there are a few things to keep an eye out for:
- Cloudways offers managed cloud hosting services.
- With Cloudways, you have your own server. You do not share server resources with anyone.
- You are able to host unlimited websites on your server.
- Cloudways offers a free trial, lasting for 3 full days with no credit card required.
- You can choose from top cloud providers in the industry such as Digital Ocean, Linode, AWS, Vultr and Google.
- Pay moderate monthly hosting fees for your server.
- One-click installation of your favourite software (WordPress, Magento, Drupal and other CMS).
- Free SSL Certificate for all your websites.
- Host your PHP web applications.
- Create a staging environment with one click.
- Enjoy ultra-fast speed and performance.
- You can always scale your server resources.
- Seamlessly clone your websites and servers.
- Automated backups of your websites/applications.
- SSH/SFTP features.
- Top-notch security.
- Built-in caching features.
- Pay as you go; no large upfront payment
- Create free unlimited Cloudways subdomains.
1. Managed Cloud Hosting
Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting company that offers you dedicated cloud servers from cloud providers like
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)
- Google Cloud Platform
- Digital Ocean
- Linode
- Vultr
These are well-known brands in the world of cloud computing, which is unsurprising given how well their SSD-based VPS and dedicated servers perform.
To use Cloudways’ servers, however, you would need to have knowledge in Cloud Computing.
As a result, managed cloud hosting by Cloudways enables you to reap the rewards of cloud computing without having to become an expert.
This means that technologies like cloud computing and everything related to it are entirely controlled by professionals so you can concentrate on creating your website.
In particular, Cloudways offers you a user-friendly dashboard stocked with potent tools to quickly manage your cloud servers and websites in place of handling them via Command Line.
2. Deploy a server with one-click
You can manage your servers and website applications with ease using the control panel that Cloudways offers you.
In fact, you get going by quickly launching a server.
In order to give your website exceptional performance, 99.9% uptime, and high speed, Cloudways enables you to select your server from one of the best cloud service providers.
When launching your server on Cloudways, you have the option of choosing a variety of cloud providers in addition to:
- server size (disk space and RAM size)
- server location
3. Managed WordPress Hosting
WordPress sites can be hosted by Cloudways on a managed cloud server with multiple copies of your content replicated throughout the data center of your choice.
A complex algorithm controls data transit in cloud hosting, and in the event that your primary server fails, a backup of your website is offered from the next available server.
4. PHP Hosting
Almost all of the major frameworks, including Laravel, Symfony, Codeigniter, Yii2, and other micro-frameworks, are supported on Cloudways’ servers.
From the fundamentals to the advanced, Cloudways has everything you’ll need to run your project on these frameworks.
Cloudways PHP web hosting supports all of the popular PHP versions. The platform offers PHP versions 5.6, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, and 8.1, so you can choose the one you want for your applications.
It’s wonderful how quickly and easily you can go from one version to another with a few mouse clicks.
A superb administration console is provided by Cloudways. Via the interface, you can simply install numerous clouds and web applications.
When it comes to security, Cloudways doesn’t skimp. As a result, their platform’s PHP and MySQL hosting servers have all been hardened.
To ensure data security and protection, they have also set up a platform-wide firewall. Additionally, as soon as a security update is published, they upgrade package versions.
Additionally, they have a system in place for automatic backups, and all backup data is stored elsewhere. ThunderStack is a cutting-edge caching technique used by Cloudways.
They make sure that all programs on their PHP MySQL hosting platform are performance-optimized, which speeds up their web hosting platform.
5. Host Multiple Websites
On your server, you can host a variety of websites. You can host an unlimited number of websites on a cloud server for $10 per month! Due to the fact that you pay for the server and not the number of websites, this is possible.
With a single click, any website application, including WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento, and other CMS, may be launched.
The best aspect is that you only have to make small monthly payments; there is no significant up-front cost for this reliable service.
6. Super-Fast Page Loading
Along with collaborating with the best cloud service providers available, Cloudways leverages technology to accelerate your website, including Varnish, Memcached, Apache, Nginx, Redis, PHP-FPM, MariaDB for databases, and Solid State Drives (SSD). In fact, Cloudways is known for its quickness!
7. Server and Website Cloning
There might be a need to duplicate your server or websites for one reason or another.
Server cloning becomes necessary when you want to
- switch from one cloud provider to another.
- migrate a website to a new server
- change your server location
- downgrade your server size
When building a website using WordPress or another CMS up to a certain point, you may quickly duplicate it for subsequent projects, saving you the time and effort of starting from scratch. This is another way that website cloning can be quite helpful.
8. Build Staging Sites with One-Click
A staging site is a copy of your primary website that you can work on and modify without affecting the primary website.
It’s a setting where new applications can be evaluated to make sure your website won’t be harmed. In WordPress, you can use this function to test updates, themes, and plugins.
Once you’re satisfied with the changes, you can easily push all of them to the live website with a single click, and the updates will take effect as expected.
This means that if your website has problems, they might be found and fixed before a user encounters them, providing a positive user experience.
9. Scale your Server
Because of Cloudways’ vertical scaling, you may easily update your server if you need to for any reason. You could do this to expand the RAM, storage, and core CPU capacity.
When necessary, you can also reduce the server size. What’s best? All of these things are possible without any downtime.
10. Cloudways Server Transfers
You can move a server from one account to another using Cloudways. If you manage a digital agency, this function can be incredibly useful because it makes it simple to install a server and an application, build a website for a client, and move the server to that client by providing their email address.
They will be charged for any additional server charges as soon as they accept the transfer, adding the server to their account.
11. Easily Backup and Restore Websites
The backup tool on Cloudways is quite efficient and just requires one or two clicks. You can choose the automated backup frequency using this feature, whether it be every hour, every two hours, every day, every three days, and so on.
The site can also be manually backed up if the necessity arises. It only takes a few clicks to restore a backup by selecting the website application, the desired date and time, and the restore button.
12. Cloudways Managed Security
The platform’s architecture incorporates security, with firewalls removing malicious traffic from the network before it reaches your websites.
Similar to this, all Cloudways Platform accounts have two-factor authentication (TFA) activated by default. Additionally, Cloudways Bot was cleverly designed to monitor your Cloudways account and notify you as soon as your accounts are accessed in an unauthorized fashion.
In order to increase the security of your managed servers, Cloudways Platform offers a robust IP Whitelisting function that enables users to permit (or prohibit) specific IP addresses from accessing their managed servers.
By adding users’ IP addresses to a whitelist, you can stop unauthorized access while still enabling remote administration of your server and websites.
13. Free SSL Certificate
All client-server communication is encrypted with a free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate provided by Cloudways. Installing this SSL on all of your websites, including subdomains, is completely free.
14. Team Management
You may cooperate with people to work on your servers, websites, and everything else nearby thanks to this capability. You can add additional members and give them roles using this tool.
You can grant a member full console access, allowing them to control all servers and available applications and have full access to the platform.
You can utilize the “Limited Access” functionality to grant a member access to and control over just one specific server or website.
To be more explicit, you can choose to let them use the server you’ve given them access to exclusively for a limited set of tasks.
15. 24/7 Customer Support
Amazingly, if you are unable to, they will even handle jobs on your website for you. I have been a beneficiary of this. Starting out with their platform, I could not perform tasks like HTTPS redirects and the addition of some DNS records. I reached out to Cloudways and they performed these on my behalf.
16. Free Website Migration
When you initially sign up for Cloudways’ managed cloud hosting service, they’ll move your website for free. All you need to do is give them your CPanel or other hosting platform’s login information (or provide SFTP or SSH details).
Utilizing their WordPress Migrator Plugin makes it simple to migrate a WordPress-powered website on your own. With that, you would simply provide the plugin with your Cloudways SFTP credentials, sit back, and it would handle the rest.
17. Cloudways is Credible
18. Server and Application Monitoring
On Cloudways, performance monitoring shows crucial information about server resource usage. This comprises the RAM, CPU, storage space, and bandwidth that you use.
In order to help you quickly and easily maintain track, this area also shows a graphic representation of how your server’s resources are being used.
19. Seamlessly Configure SMTP
You may set up an SMTP service on your server so that your websites can send emails using Cloudways. You can use the same service for your websites hosted on that server by configuring SMTP on the server.
Here, you can choose either Elastic Email SMTP or your SMTP.
To use Elastic Email, you can easily activate it as an add-on for as low as $0.10 per month.
To use your own SMTP, you must register with a third-party SMTP service like Mailgun, Mandrill, SendGrid, AuthSMTP, Gmail SMTP, or any other email gateway provider of your choice.
The following information can be obtained from your SMTP provider and entered in the Cloudways SMTP settings page:
- SMTP host
- SMTP port number
- SMTP username
- SMTP password
To check whether the setup was successful, you can send a test email.
Cloudways Pricing and Plans
The costs are at least $10 per month.
In essence, the cost of Cloudways depends on the cloud hosting company you choose and the resources you need. Which cloud service provider to employ for your website is up to you.
Here are the prices for each cloud service provider that Cloudways works with:
Digital Ocean Pricing
The cheapest cloud service is Digital Ocean, with plans costing $10 to $80 per month, offering 1 GB to 8 GB of RAM, 1 to 4 core processors, 25 GB to 160 GB of storage space, and 1 TB to 5 TB of bandwidth.
Linode Pricing
For $12 to $90 per month, Linode offers 1 GB to 8 GB of RAM, 1 to 4 core processors, 25 GB to 160 GB of storage space, and 1 TB to 5 TB of bandwidth.
Vultr Pricing
The Vultr plan comes with 1 GB to 8 GB RAM, 1 to 4 core processors, 25 GB to 160 GB of storage capacity, and from 1 TB to 5 TB of bandwidth. It costs between $11 and $84 per month.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) Pricing
The price of an AWS plan for 20 GB of storage and 2 GB of bandwidth varies from $36.51 to $274.33 per month, with variations in RAM from 2 GB to 16 GB and vCPU from 2 to 4.
Google Cloud Platform Pricing
The Google Cloud plan ranges from $33.18 to $225.93 per month for 20 GB of storage space and 2 GB of bandwidth for each plan, with variations in RAM size ranging from 1.7 GB to 15 GB of RAM and vCPU from 1 to 4.
Setting Up Cloudways (FAQs)
It can be a lot of fun working with Cloudways. This section of the Cloudways hosting review highlights frequently asked queries. So, to get you started, here are some often asked questions and their related answers:
What is Cloudways Hosting?
Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that provides you with an easy-to-use interface and tools for you to harness the power of cloud hosting provided by top cloud providers.
No, Cloudways is not a shared hosting service. Instead, you can set up your own server and add numerous apps (websites) to it without having to share disk space or other resources with anyone else.
Why use Cloudways?
If you want to take advantage of cloud hosting’s best performance and have it readily managed for you, you should utilize Cloudways. Simply select your preferred cloud infrastructure and administer your server and webpages using a minimal user interface.
How many websites can I host on my Cloudways server?
As many websites as your server’s resources can support can be hosted there. These comprise the size of the server you’ve selected, the size of the RAM, the number of processors, and the bandwidth used by each website on the server.
The number of websites you can really host on your cloud server will be determined by the aforementioned parameters. You may always check performance monitoring to get information about how many websites you can comfortably add to your server.
How Can I Install WordPress on Cloudways?
To install WordPress on Cloudways, click on the “Applications” tab, then click on “Add Application.”
Select your server and click on Add Application.
Select the most recent WordPress version, give your WordPress application a name, and decide how to organize your applications by choosing a project. You can now add an application to get WordPress installed.
After the WordPress application installs, go to applications once again and click on it.
Here, you will find credentials that you will use to log in to your WordPress dashboard.
A temporary website address is generated for your website when your program has been installed. While your website is being built, you can use this URL. You may really point your domain name to the website once you are done developing it, as you will learn here.
You will therefore be directed to the home page of your WordPress website by clicking the arrow next to “application URL.” Click on the URL in the admin panel to access your WordPress dashboard.
With the supplied username and password, you may now log in. (As shown in the image above, you may also change the password.)
Is there Cloudways domain registration?
No, Cloudways does not provide services for registering domain names. They also do not provide dedicated nameservers.
This is not a big deal at all, though. To point your domain name to Cloudways’s platform, you don’t need to use their nameservers.
Users only need to add the IP address of their server to the DNS records’ A record. The free DNS administration service from Cloudflare, the DNS management add-on from Cloudways, or your domain registrar are all options for managing your domain name’s DNS.
How Can I Connect My Domain Name to My Website on Cloudways?
To connect or point your domain name to your website on Cloudways, you will need to:
- own a domain name or buy one.
- manage DNS of domain name
Buy a Domain Name at NameCheap
In essence, a domain name is the name of your website. It makes it possible for people to find your website online.
Namecheap is a reputable domain registrar. You may buy domain names through Namecheap for prices that are literally double what you would spend elsewhere. Namecheap is currently giving away free domain privacy protection, a premium add-on service.
Let’s get started, by buying a domain name at Namecheap. Click here to take you to the registration page.
Enter your desired domain name in the search box below and click on the search icon on the right.
If your prospective domain name has been taken, you can try a different one. Then Click on Add to Cart.
Look at the right bottom corner and checkout.
Choose the duration of the registration, at least 1 year and confirm the order.
Create an account and follow subsequent steps to continue.
Choose a payment method, either Card or Paypal and click on “Continue.”
Review your order and continue with payment if everything is OK.
After payment, check your inbox for an email from Namecheap to verify your email address.
Access your Namecheap account with the link on the success page, as seen in the screenshot above.
Manage DNS of your Domain Name
While the steps outlined below are specific to Namecheap, you can essentially follow the same steps in the control panel of any domain registrar to manage your domain’s DNS and point it to your Cloudways website.
Click on “Domain List,” identify your domain name and click on the corresponding “manage” button at the right.
Go to Advanced DNS and then “Add a New Record.”
Choose “A record” as the “Type” of record. At the text box below “Host,” enter “@“
Login to your Cloudways Control Panel. Go to your “Applications” and select the website to which you want to point the domain name. Click on the IP address to copy it.
Switch to your Namecheap domain control panel. Paste the IP address in the text box below “Value.”
Leave “TTL” as “automatic” or select the minimum value, then save changes.
Go back to your cloudways application (website). Click on “Domain Management.”
Enter your registered domain name in the text box below “PRIMARY DOMAIN” and save changes.
Congratulations. You have successfully added your domain name to your website on cloudways.
But there is one more thing to do: the addition of www alias to the domain name.
To add www to the domain name, go to your Namecheap domain control panel. Here, we are adding a new record, known as CNAME.
Choose “CAME Record” as the “Type” of record. At the text box below “Host,” enter “www” and type your domain name as the value. Save all changes.
Go ahead and enter your domain name in the address bar to view your website. Your website is now live!
How Can I Install an SSL Certificate on Cloudways?
To install an SSL certificate on Cloudways:
Open the Cloudways Control Panel and log in. Select the website you wish to perform this activity on by going to Applications.
You will be taken to the application management area. Click on SSL Certificate.
Choose “Let’s Encrypt” free SSL if it is not the default one. Provide an email address and the domain name of the website on which you are installing the certificate.
Then click on “Install Certificate.”
You should now enable HTTPS redirection. This ensures that your website always loads the secured version (“https”//” and not “http://”).
Visit your website now and take a look. It should now have a valid SSL certificate installed on, and fully load over HTTPS.
Does Cloudways have CPanel?
No, Cloudways does not have CPanel. However, they give you access to a user-friendly control panel that makes it simple for you to handle all of your servers, websites, domain names, SSL certificates, and other things you might require. Their dashboard is more user-friendly and less crowded.
Having previously used CPanel, using the Cloudways platform was truly novel. However, I discovered that the Cloudways control panel was much easier to use because it had a minimalist dashboard and all the necessary tools for managing a website are readily available.
It is comforting to know that moving your website from the CPanel platform to the Cloudways platform is simple. You can do this by asking the Cloudways staff for a free website migration service.
By using their WordPress Migration Plugin or the All in One WP Migration plugin, you may also handle it yourself.
What is Cloudways Hosting Rating?
Without a doubt, Cloudways’ hosting rating is 5 stars! When you give them a try, I’m confident that you will agree with my assessment. You may easily use Cloudways’ user-friendly platform to take advantage of cloud hosting for your website.
Is this the best Cloudways hosting review?
This Cloudways review does a good job of encompassing practically all pertinent information. I’ve adequately addressed the majority of Cloudways’ capabilities and the accompanying advantages you would experience if you decided to use Cloudways as your hosting company.
Along with reviewing Cloudways’ features and offerings, I’ve also provided you with a behind-the-scenes look at how Cloudways is set up properly.
With these, you can easily tell whether Cloudways is worth your while or not.
Summary of Cloudways Hosting Review
In terms of managed cloud WordPress hosting, Cloudways is one of the few companies that manages to balance cost and functionality well.
Cloudways is the place to go if you’re looking for super-fast servers with excellent security, solid support, and affordable costs.
To test out the Cloudways platform, sign up now for the free 3-day trial.
In order to find out if Cloudways is the best host for you, they provide a risk-free trial that enables you to build a server, develop your website, and get started right away. This shows how certain they are that you will appreciate their service.
No credit card is necessary to sign up for the free trial. Nevertheless, you have access to all the tools you’ll need to launch your website and assure its top performance.