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Cloudways

  • Hosting
  • Manage clients

Managed cloud hosting platform for WordPress, WooCommerce and PHP applications with scalable infrastructure, staging, backups, caching, security and server management tools.

Overview

Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that lets users deploy and manage WordPress, WooCommerce and other PHP applications on cloud infrastructure without managing the underlying server stack manually.

Cloudways Flexible provides pay-as-you-go managed servers with staging and cloning, automated backups, server-level caching, free SSL, SSH/SFTP access, Git deployment, security controls and centralized management for multiple websites and applications. Infrastructure options include DigitalOcean, AWS, Google Cloud, Vultr and Linode.

Pricing Plans

  • DigitalOcean 1 GB

    Price: 11 USD

    • Billed monthly

    1 GB RAM, 1 CPU core, 25 GB storage and 1 TB bandwidth with Cloudways managed hosting features.

    Cloudways Flexible DigitalOcean Basic server with 1 GB RAM, 1 CPU core, 25 GB storage and 1 TB bandwidth. Cloudways bills Flexible infrastructure on a pay-as-you-go basis with hourly usage reflected in monthly billing.

    View Cloudways pricing

    Plan last verified: 30 Sept 2026

  • DigitalOcean 2 GB

    Price: 24 USD

    • Billed monthly

    2 GB RAM, 1 CPU core, 50 GB storage and 2 TB bandwidth with Cloudways managed hosting features.

    Cloudways Flexible DigitalOcean Basic server with 2 GB RAM, 1 CPU core, 50 GB storage and 2 TB bandwidth. Cloudways bills Flexible infrastructure on a pay-as-you-go basis with hourly usage reflected in monthly billing.

    View Cloudways pricing

    Plan last verified: 30 Sept 2026

  • DigitalOcean 4 GB

    Price: 46 USD

    • Billed monthly

    4 GB RAM, 2 CPU cores, 80 GB storage and 4 TB bandwidth with Cloudways managed hosting features.

    Cloudways Flexible DigitalOcean Basic server with 4 GB RAM, 2 CPU cores, 80 GB storage and 4 TB bandwidth. Cloudways bills Flexible infrastructure on a pay-as-you-go basis with hourly usage reflected in monthly billing.

    View Cloudways pricing

    Plan last verified: 30 Sept 2026

  • DigitalOcean 8 GB

    Price: 88 USD

    • Billed monthly

    8 GB RAM, 4 CPU cores, 160 GB storage and 5 TB bandwidth with Cloudways managed hosting features.

    Cloudways Flexible DigitalOcean Basic server with 8 GB RAM, 4 CPU cores, 160 GB storage and 5 TB bandwidth. Cloudways bills Flexible infrastructure on a pay-as-you-go basis with hourly usage reflected in monthly billing.

    View Cloudways pricing

    Plan last verified: 30 Sept 2026

Features

Developer

  • Git Deployment
  • Multiple PHP Versions
  • SSH and SFTP Access

Hosting

  • Automated Backups
  • Managed Cloud Servers
  • Pay-As-You-Go Billing
  • Vertical Scaling

Performance

  • Built-in Server Caching
  • Redis Object Caching

Security

  • Dedicated Firewalls
  • Free SSL Certificates
  • WordPress Vulnerability Scanner

Workflow

  • Advanced Staging and Cloning
  • Cloudways Copilot
  • Free Managed Migration
  • Team Collaboration

Best for

Freelancers, agencies, developers and growing WordPress or WooCommerce sites that want managed cloud infrastructure with server-level control, staging, scaling and the ability to host multiple applications under one platform.

Not for

Users looking for traditional shared hosting with domain registration and mailbox hosting bundled into the base plan, or site owners who want a completely hands-off WordPress platform with no infrastructure or server-sizing decisions.

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • Pay-as-you-go server pricing avoids a traditional long-term hosting contract
  • Multiple WordPress applications can be managed from one Cloudways account and server
  • Provides more server-level control than many fully managed WordPress hosts
  • Includes staging, SSL, caching, security and backup management tools
  • SSH, SFTP and Git support developer workflows
  • Supports WordPress, WooCommerce and WordPress Multisite
  • Servers can be vertically scaled as resource requirements grow

Cons

  • Pricing is based primarily on server resources rather than a simple fixed price per website
  • Off-site backup storage, excess bandwidth and optional services can add to the base server cost
  • Users still need to make infrastructure-provider and server-sizing decisions
  • Mailbox hosting is not included in the core managed server price and requires an email service or add-on
  • AWS and Google Cloud pricing varies by infrastructure configuration and usage

Verdict

Cloudways sits between traditional managed WordPress hosting and managing a raw cloud server yourself. It handles much of the infrastructure, security, caching, backups and application management while still providing SSH access, Git deployment, vertical scaling and a choice of cloud infrastructure providers.

Its pay-as-you-go model and ability to host multiple applications on a server can work particularly well for developers and agencies. The trade-off is that pricing and capacity are primarily server-resource based rather than simple per-site plans, and additional services such as off-site backup storage and email can add to the base hosting cost.

Integrations & relationships

Integrates with

Alternatives

  • K
    Kinsta

    Managed WordPress hosting alternative with infrastructure, performance and platform management handled through a WordPress-focused service.

  • S
    SiteGround

    Managed hosting alternative offering WordPress-specific tools with a more traditional hosting-plan structure.

  • WE
    WP Engine

    Managed WordPress hosting platform focused on WordPress performance, security, staging and developer workflows.

Sources & verification

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