{"id":15331,"date":"2026-03-24T17:16:32","date_gmt":"2026-03-24T15:16:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/?p=15331"},"modified":"2026-03-24T17:24:08","modified_gmt":"2026-03-24T15:24:08","slug":"cloudways-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/cloudways-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Cloudways Review 2026: The Best Managed Cloud Hosting for WordPress?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>If you&#8217;re looking for <strong>managed cloud hosting<\/strong> that delivers professional-grade performance without requiring you to be a sysadmin, Cloudways deserves your serious attention. We&#8217;ve been testing this platform for over 3 years across various projects, and here&#8217;s our honest, data-driven assessment.<\/p>\n<p>In this comprehensive review, we cover everything you need to know: <strong>real performance benchmarks<\/strong>, detailed pricing breakdowns, pros and cons, and how Cloudways stacks up against competitors like Kinsta, SiteGround, and WP Engine.<\/p>\n<h2>What Is Cloudways?<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/cloudways-dashboard-server-management-2026.webp\" alt=\"Cloudways dashboard \u2013 server management and performance monitoring\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>Cloudways is a <strong>managed cloud hosting platform<\/strong> that acts as a management layer between you and major cloud infrastructure providers. Instead of configuring servers directly on DigitalOcean, AWS, or Google Cloud, Cloudways handles the heavy lifting \u2014 server optimization, security, caching configuration, and automated backups.<\/p>\n<p>The company serves <strong>over 100,000 customers<\/strong> and hosts more than 570,000 websites worldwide. In 2022, DigitalOcean acquired Cloudways, bringing even stronger infrastructure support to the platform.<\/p>\n<h2>Key Features That Set Cloudways Apart<\/h2>\n<p>Unlike traditional hosting providers, Cloudways offers several advantages that make website management significantly easier and more efficient.<\/p>\n<h3>Multi-Cloud Provider Choice<\/h3>\n<p>You can choose from five leading cloud providers: <strong>DigitalOcean, AWS (Amazon Web Services), Google Cloud Platform, Vultr, and Linode<\/strong>. This means you can select the exact infrastructure that best matches your project requirements.<\/p>\n<h3>Built-In Performance Stack<\/h3>\n<p>Every Cloudways server comes pre-configured with a powerful performance stack:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Varnish<\/strong> \u2014 full-page caching for blazing-fast load times<\/li>\n<li><strong>Redis &amp; Memcached<\/strong> \u2014 object caching to speed up database queries<\/li>\n<li><strong>Cloudflare Enterprise CDN<\/strong> \u2014 content delivery across 300+ global edge servers<\/li>\n<li><strong>PHP-FPM<\/strong> \u2014 optimized PHP processing for WordPress<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Automated Security<\/h3>\n<p>Cloudways handles security automatically: <strong>free SSL certificates, OS-level firewalls, DDoS protection, regular security patches<\/strong>, and automated backups. You don&#8217;t need to worry about server security \u2014 it&#8217;s already covered.<\/p>\n<h3>Easy Vertical Scaling<\/h3>\n<p>Need more resources? Cloudways&#8217; <strong>vertical scaling<\/strong> lets you upgrade server resources with a few clicks, with zero downtime. This is especially valuable for e-commerce stores and growing websites.<\/p>\n<p><!-- IMAGE MISSING: cloudways-dashboard --><\/p>\n<h2>Performance Benchmarks: How Does Cloudways Actually Perform?<\/h2>\n<p>The numbers speak for themselves. In our testing, Cloudways delivered impressive results:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>TTFB (Time to First Byte):<\/strong> average 147ms on Vultr HF server \u2014 one of the best results in managed hosting<\/li>\n<li><strong>Global TTFB:<\/strong> average 444ms across 40 test locations worldwide<\/li>\n<li><strong>Uptime:<\/strong> 99.99% guaranteed uptime with SLA<\/li>\n<li><strong>Google PageSpeed:<\/strong> our test site scored 95+ on both mobile and desktop<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These results were achieved with a <strong>real WordPress site<\/strong> running Elementor Pro, WooCommerce, and multiple plugins \u2014 not a bare installation.<\/p>\n<h2>Cloudways Pricing 2026: What Does It Actually Cost?<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/cloudways-pricing-plans-digitalocean-aws-google-cloud-2026.webp\" alt=\"Cloudways pricing plans 2026 \u2013 DigitalOcean, AWS and Google Cloud comparison\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>One of Cloudways&#8217; biggest advantages is its <strong>flexible, pay-as-you-go pricing<\/strong>. You only pay for what you use, with no long-term contracts required. Here&#8217;s a breakdown of the main plans:<\/p>\n<table style=\"width:100%;border-collapse:separate;border-spacing:0;border-radius:12px;overflow:hidden;box-shadow:0 4px 24px rgba(0,115,170,0.12);font-size:15px;\">\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:left;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;border:none;\">Cloud Provider<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;border:none;\">RAM<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;border:none;\">CPU<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;border:none;\">Storage<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;border:none;\">Bandwidth<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;border:none;\">Price\/month<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">DigitalOcean<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">1 GB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">1 Core<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">25 GB SSD<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">1 TB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;font-size:17px;\">$11<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#f4f9fd;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">DigitalOcean<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">2 GB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">1 Core<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">50 GB SSD<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">2 TB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;font-size:17px;\">$24<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#e6f3ff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">DigitalOcean <span style=\"background:#0073aa;color:#fff;font-size:10px;padding:2px 8px;border-radius:10px;margin-left:6px;font-weight:600;vertical-align:middle;\">RECOMMENDED<\/span><\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;font-weight:600;\">4 GB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;font-weight:600;\">2 Cores<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;font-weight:600;\">80 GB SSD<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;font-weight:600;\">4 TB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;font-size:17px;\">$46<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">AWS<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">2 GB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">2 Cores<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">20 GB SSD<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#444;\">Flexible<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;font-size:17px;\">$38.56<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#f4f9fd;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Google Cloud<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#444;\">1.7 GB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#444;\">1 Core<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#444;\">20 GB SSD<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#444;\">Flexible<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;font-size:17px;\">$37.45<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><strong>Important:<\/strong> Cloudways offers a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cloudways.com\/en\/?id=2126254\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener sponsored\">3-day free trial<\/a> with no credit card required. This gives you enough time to thoroughly test the platform before committing.<\/p>\n<p><!-- IMAGE MISSING: cloudways-pricing --><\/p>\n<h2>Cloudways vs Competitors: Head-to-Head Comparison<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/cloudways-vs-kinsta-siteground-wp-engine-comparison-2026.webp\" alt=\"Cloudways vs Kinsta vs SiteGround vs WP Engine \u2013 managed hosting comparison\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1200\" \/><\/figure>\n<p>How does Cloudways compare to other popular managed hosting providers? Here&#8217;s an honest side-by-side comparison:<\/p>\n<table style=\"width:100%;border-collapse:separate;border-spacing:0;border-radius:12px;overflow:hidden;box-shadow:0 4px 24px rgba(0,115,170,0.12);font-size:15px;\">\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#2c3e50 0%,#1a252f 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:left;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;letter-spacing:0.3px;border:none;min-width:120px;\">Feature<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#0073aa 0%,#005177 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:700;font-size:14px;letter-spacing:0.3px;border:none;min-width:130px;\">Cloudways<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#2c3e50 0%,#1a252f 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;letter-spacing:0.3px;border:none;min-width:110px;\">Kinsta<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#2c3e50 0%,#1a252f 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;letter-spacing:0.3px;border:none;min-width:110px;\">SiteGround<\/th>\n<th style=\"background:linear-gradient(135deg,#2c3e50 0%,#1a252f 100%);color:#fff;padding:16px 18px;text-align:center;font-weight:600;font-size:14px;letter-spacing:0.3px;border:none;min-width:110px;\">WP Engine<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Starting Price<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;\">$11\/mo<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">$30\/mo<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">$2.99\/mo<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">$20\/mo<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#f8fbff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Cloud Providers<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;\">5 choices<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Google Cloud<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Google Cloud<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">AWS + GCP<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Sites Allowed<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;\">Unlimited<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">1-150+<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">1-unlimited<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">1-30+<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#f8fbff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">CDN<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;\">Cloudflare Enterprise<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Kinsta CDN<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">SG CDN<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Cloudflare<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Free SSL<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;color:#16a34a;font-weight:700;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#f8fbff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Staging<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;color:#16a34a;font-weight:700;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; Yes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">24\/7 Support<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;font-weight:600;color:#333;\">Live chat<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Live chat<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Chat + phone<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#666;\">Chat + phone<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#f8fbff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">Plugin Restrictions<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;color:#16a34a;font-weight:700;\">&#x2714; None<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#dc2626;font-weight:600;\">\u2718 Some<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#16a34a;font-weight:600;\">&#x2714; None<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;border-bottom:1px solid #e8f0f6;text-align:center;color:#dc2626;font-weight:600;\">\u2718 Some<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr style=\"background:#fff;\">\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;font-weight:600;color:#1a1a1a;\">TTFB<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;background:#f0f9ff;font-weight:700;color:#0073aa;\">~147ms<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#666;\">~200ms<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#666;\">~350ms<\/td>\n<td style=\"padding:14px 18px;text-align:center;color:#666;\">~190ms<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><!-- IMAGE MISSING: cloudways-vs-competitors --><\/p>\n<h3>Why Cloudways Wins on Value<\/h3>\n<p>While SiteGround is cheaper upfront, its renewal prices jump significantly after the initial period. <strong>Kinsta and WP Engine<\/strong> are excellent but start at $30+ per month with limited site counts.<\/p>\n<p>Cloudways stands out by offering <strong>unlimited websites on a single server<\/strong>, flexible pay-as-you-go pricing, and the freedom to choose your cloud provider. This makes it the ideal choice for small businesses, agencies managing multiple client sites, and cost-conscious developers who still want top-tier performance.<\/p>\n<h2>Pros and Cons<\/h2>\n<h3>Pros<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Excellent performance<\/strong> \u2014 sub-150ms TTFB with built-in CDN and caching<\/li>\n<li><strong>Flexible pricing<\/strong> \u2014 pay only for what you use, starting at $11\/mo<\/li>\n<li><strong>Multi-cloud support<\/strong> \u2014 choose from DigitalOcean, AWS, Google Cloud, Vultr, or Linode<\/li>\n<li><strong>Unlimited websites<\/strong> \u2014 unlike Kinsta and WP Engine<\/li>\n<li><strong>No plugin restrictions<\/strong> \u2014 use any WordPress plugin you want<\/li>\n<li><strong>Free SSL, CDN, and backups<\/strong> \u2014 all included in the base price<\/li>\n<li><strong>3-day free trial<\/strong> \u2014 no credit card required<\/li>\n<li><strong>Easy scaling<\/strong> \u2014 upgrade resources with zero downtime<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Cons<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>No email hosting<\/strong> \u2014 you&#8217;ll need a separate email service<\/li>\n<li><strong>No domain registration<\/strong> \u2014 domains must be purchased elsewhere<\/li>\n<li><strong>PHP-only applications<\/strong> \u2014 not suitable for Node.js or Python projects<\/li>\n<li><strong>No root access<\/strong> \u2014 limited server customization options<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Who Should Use Cloudways?<\/h2>\n<p>Cloudways is an ideal choice for the following users:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Small businesses and startups<\/strong> \u2014 who need professional hosting at a reasonable price<\/li>\n<li><strong>Web developers and agencies<\/strong> \u2014 managing multiple client sites who need flexibility<\/li>\n<li><strong>E-commerce stores (WooCommerce)<\/strong> \u2014 where speed and uptime are mission-critical<\/li>\n<li><strong>Growing blogs<\/strong> \u2014 that need a scalable hosting solution<\/li>\n<li><strong>European businesses<\/strong> \u2014 DigitalOcean and AWS offer European data centers ensuring fast load times across the continent<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>How to Get Started with Cloudways<\/h2>\n<p>Getting started with Cloudways is incredibly straightforward and takes under 10 minutes:<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Sign up for free<\/strong> \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cloudways.com\/en\/?id=2126254\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener sponsored\">visit Cloudways<\/a> and create your account (no credit card needed)<\/li>\n<li><strong>Choose your cloud provider<\/strong> \u2014 we recommend starting with DigitalOcean for the best price-performance ratio<\/li>\n<li><strong>Select your server location<\/strong> \u2014 pick a European data center (e.g., Amsterdam or Frankfurt) for optimal speed in Europe<\/li>\n<li><strong>Install WordPress<\/strong> \u2014 one-click WordPress installation<\/li>\n<li><strong>Configure SSL and CDN<\/strong> \u2014 free Let&#8217;s Encrypt SSL and Cloudflare CDN activated in just a few clicks<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><strong>Pro tip:<\/strong> Start with the 2 GB DigitalOcean plan ($24\/mo) which provides enough resources for most business websites. You can always scale up later as your traffic grows.<\/p>\n<div style=\"background:#f0f7ff;border-left:4px solid #0073aa;padding:20px;margin:20px 0;border-radius:4px\">\n<h3 style=\"margin-top:0\">Try Cloudways For Free<\/h3>\n<p>Test Cloudways for 3 days completely free \u2014 no credit card required. See for yourself why over 100,000 businesses trust their websites to Cloudways.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cloudways.com\/en\/?id=2126254\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener sponsored\" style=\"background:#0073aa;color:#fff;padding:12px 24px;border-radius:4px;text-decoration:none;font-weight:bold\">Start Your Free Trial \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2>\n<h3>Is Cloudways good for beginners?<\/h3>\n<p>Yes, Cloudways&#8217; dashboard is designed for ease of use. While it&#8217;s not as simple as traditional shared hosting, it&#8217;s significantly easier than configuring cloud services yourself. Plus, 24\/7 support is available via live chat.<\/p>\n<h3>Does Cloudways offer email hosting?<\/h3>\n<p>No, Cloudways doesn&#8217;t include built-in email hosting. We recommend using Google Workspace, Zoho Mail, or another professional email service.<\/p>\n<h3>What&#8217;s the difference between Cloudways and using DigitalOcean directly?<\/h3>\n<p>Cloudways adds a managed layer on top of DigitalOcean&#8217;s infrastructure: automated backups, security updates, CDN, cache optimization, and a user-friendly dashboard. This saves you from the complexities of server administration.<\/p>\n<h3>Does Cloudways have a money-back guarantee?<\/h3>\n<p>Cloudways doesn&#8217;t offer a traditional money-back guarantee, but the 3-day free trial without requiring a credit card lets you test the platform completely risk-free.<\/p>\n<h3>Which data center is best for European users?<\/h3>\n<p>DigitalOcean&#8217;s Amsterdam (AMS3) or Frankfurt data center offers the best latency for European visitors. AWS Frankfurt (eu-central-1) is also an excellent choice for enterprise workloads.<\/p>\n<h2>Final Verdict: Is Cloudways Worth It?<\/h2>\n<p>After thorough testing and over 3 years of hands-on experience, we can confidently say: <strong>Cloudways is one of the best value-for-money managed hosting platforms on the market<\/strong>. It delivers professional performance, security, and flexibility at a price point that&#8217;s significantly more affordable than Kinsta or WP Engine.<\/p>\n<p>Whether you&#8217;re a small business owner, web developer, or agency looking for <strong>reliable, scalable hosting<\/strong>, Cloudways is a choice you won&#8217;t regret.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cloudways.com\/en\/?id=2126254\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener sponsored\">\u2192 Try Cloudways free for 3 days \u2014 no credit card required<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Honest Cloudways review 2026: real performance benchmarks, pricing from $11\/mo, comparison with Kinsta &#038; SiteGround. Discover why 100,000+ businesses trust Cloudways.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":15329,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[442],"tags":[443,439,444,446,445,447],"class_list":["post-15331","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-hosting","tag-cloud-hosting","tag-cloudways","tag-managed-hosting","tag-pilvehosting","tag-wordpress-hosting","tag-447"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15331","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15331"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15331\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15340,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15331\/revisions\/15340"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15329"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15331"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15331"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iweb.ee\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15331"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}