Summarize this blog post with: ChatGPT | Perplexity | Claude | Grok

You probably already know Cloudways promises cloud-level performance without forcing you to manage every server task yourself. What most Cloudways reviews fail to clarify is whether that management layer is worth the extra cost for your workload—and whether you should even be comparing Cloudways Flexible or Cloudways Autonomous. In this complete Cloudways review, I’ll evaluate pricing, architecture, scalability, support, usability, migrations, limitations, and practical testing criteria so you can see exactly where Cloudways does and does not make sense.

Affiliate disclosure: This article may contain affiliate links. If you purchase through one of these links, this website may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. Commercial relationships do not change the criteria used to evaluate hosting products.

Key Takeaways

• Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that removes much of the routine server-administration workload while retaining more infrastructure flexibility than conventional shared hosting.
• Cloudways Flexible and Cloudways Autonomous are materially different products. Flexible emphasizes infrastructure choice and application flexibility, while Autonomous emphasizes managed WordPress hosting with Kubernetes-based automatic scaling.
• Cloudways Flexible currently starts at $11 per month, but your actual bill can include off-site backups, bandwidth overages, email, paid support, add-ons, and applicable taxes.
• Cloudways Autonomous currently starts with the Growth plan at $99 per month and uses separate allowances and charges for disk, bandwidth, and autoscaling beyond baseline resources.
• Cloudways performance cannot be judged by the Cloudways brand alone. Infrastructure provider, server size, region, caching, database behavior, application configuration, traffic pattern, and cache state can materially change results.
• Cloudways provides SSH/SFTP access but not unrestricted root access, which matters if your workflow depends on installing arbitrary system packages or making low-level operating-system changes.
• Cloudways makes the most economic sense when the value of managed infrastructure, backups, monitoring, deployment tools, scaling, and support exceeds the savings from operating an equivalent cloud server yourself.

What Is Cloudways and How Does It Work?

Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that adds a management layer between you and underlying cloud infrastructure, allowing you to deploy and operate websites or applications without handling most routine server-administration work yourself. Instead of renting a raw VPS and configuring the complete stack manually, you manage hosting through the Cloudways platform.

Cloudways is now owned by DigitalOcean. DigitalOcean completed its acquisition of Cloudways on September 8, 2022, after announcing the transaction in August 2022.

The simplest way to understand the model is:

Cloud provider infrastructure → Cloudways management layer → your website/application

Cloudways handles or exposes tooling for areas such as server deployment, monitoring, backups, SSL, firewall controls, caching, staging, cloning, vertical scaling, and support. Flexible currently supports DigitalOcean, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, Linode, and Vultr infrastructure.

Cloudways is therefore different from both ends of the hosting market:

Cloudways should not be confused with a fully unrestricted VPS. You receive meaningful application and server controls, but Cloudways retains control over the underlying system layer and does not provide root access.

[Insert image: Cloudways dashboard showing the distinction between Flexible and Autonomous products | Alt text: “Compare Cloudways Flexible and Autonomous hosting options”]

Why Should You Consider Cloudways Instead of Traditional Web Hosting?

Cloudways matters because it attempts to combine cloud infrastructure flexibility with managed-hosting convenience, filling the operational gap between simple shared hosting and an unmanaged VPS. The value proposition is not merely faster hosting; the real product is the reduction of infrastructure-management work without giving up every cloud-level choice.

A raw VPS can be economical if you are comfortable maintaining Linux, the web server, database, firewall, backups, monitoring, security updates, deployment processes, and incident response. However, that lower infrastructure bill does not make administration time free.

For example, a $10–$20 raw server may be cheaper on paper than managed hosting. If maintaining that server consumes several billable hours every month—or creates business risk when something breaks—the apparent saving can disappear quickly.

DigitalOcean described the strategic purpose behind its Cloudways acquisition in similar terms:

“With this acquisition, we are making it easier to launch, build and scale a business on DigitalOcean,”

— Yancey Spruill, CEO, DigitalOcean, 2022

That statement is a vendor perspective rather than independent evidence of hosting performance, but it accurately illustrates the role Cloudways is intended to play: simplifying the operational layer above cloud infrastructure.

The Cloudways Management Premium Framework

A better way to judge Cloudways is to calculate its management premium.

Ask:

1. What would the underlying infrastructure cost without Cloudways?
2. How many hours would you spend managing it yourself?
3. What is that time worth?
4. What third-party backup, monitoring, caching, security, and deployment services would you otherwise purchase?
5. What is the cost of slower recovery if you encounter a server problem?

If Cloudways costs $X more per month but eliminates recurring administrative work worth substantially more than $X, the premium can make economic sense.

Conversely, an experienced DevOps engineer who already automates provisioning, monitoring, backups, patching, and deployment may receive less incremental value.

That is why “Is Cloudways expensive?” has no useful universal answer. The correct comparison is Cloudways versus the total operational cost of the alternative, not Cloudways versus the raw VPS invoice alone.

What Is the Difference Between Cloudways Flexible and Cloudways Autonomous?

Cloudways Flexible is a managed cloud platform that lets you select infrastructure and server resources, while Cloudways Autonomous is a WordPress-focused hosting model that automatically adds computing capacity according to workload demand. The two products solve different scaling and management problems and should be evaluated separately.

This distinction is arguably the most important part of a Cloudways review in 2026.

Cloudways Flexible Explained

Cloudways Flexible is the traditional Cloudways model. You select an infrastructure provider, server size, region, and application, then manage that environment from Cloudways.

Cloudways currently documents five Flexible infrastructure providers:

• DigitalOcean
• Amazon Web Services
• Google Cloud Platform
• Linode
• Vultr

Cloudways Flexible supports WordPress, WooCommerce, Laravel, Magento, and PHP workloads in its current product navigation and documentation.

Flexible also allows you to run multiple applications on a server as long as the server has sufficient resources. Cloudways currently markets Flexible with unlimited websites and visits rather than imposing a fixed site count.

Choose Flexible if you want:

• Infrastructure-provider choice.
• Multiple applications on one server.
• WordPress plus non-WordPress workloads.
• Laravel, Magento, or custom PHP support.
• Greater control over server sizing.
• A lower starting cost.
• SSH/SFTP and developer-oriented workflows.
• Predictable workloads where vertical scaling is acceptable.

Cloudways Autonomous Explained

Cloudways Autonomous is a more abstracted managed WordPress hosting model. Cloudways describes Autonomous as Kubernetes-powered hosting with automatic scaling, Cloudflare Enterprise, Redis, Object Cache Pro + Relay, managed migration, staging, firewall/DDoS protection, and plan-based baseline capacity.

Instead of deciding how large your permanent server should be, Autonomous can provision extra capacity when demand rises. Those additional autoscaling resources can generate hourly charges beyond the plan’s baseline allocation.

Choose Autonomous if you want:

• WordPress or WooCommerce hosting.
• Automatic workload scaling.
• Less server-capacity planning.
• Built-in Cloudflare Enterprise.
• Defined baseline resources.
• Traffic-spike resilience without manually resizing a conventional server.
• A more application-centric hosting model.

Cloudways Flexible vs Autonomous Comparison

Pricing and features verified against Cloudways documentation on August 7, 2026.

[Insert image: Cloudways pricing page with Flexible and Autonomous columns visible | Alt text: “Compare Cloudways Flexible and Autonomous pricing in 2026”]

The practical rule is straightforward: select the hosting architecture first, then select the plan. Comparing a $11 Flexible server directly with a $99 Autonomous Growth plan without considering the workload is an apples-to-oranges comparison.

→ Explore Cloudways Platform Features

How Much Does Cloudways Really Cost in 2026?

Cloudways pricing in 2026 depends on whether you use Flexible or Autonomous, because Flexible is billed around server infrastructure while Autonomous uses application-level plans, baseline resources, autoscaling, and overage allowances. The advertised monthly price should therefore be treated as a starting point rather than a universal total-cost figure.

Pricing below was verified on August 7, 2026.

Cloudways Flexible Pricing

Cloudways currently displays Flexible pricing starting at $11 per month for a DigitalOcean-based configuration with 2 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 50 GB storage, and 2 TB bandwidth. Cloudways also offers hourly billing calculations and a three-day Flexible trial without requiring a credit card.

Flexible pricing changes substantially according to:

• Infrastructure provider.
• Server size.
• Storage.
• Region.
• Bandwidth.
• Backup consumption.
• Add-ons.
• Support tier.

For a deeper breakdown, see my Cloudways pricing and plans guide.

Cloudways Autonomous Pricing

The current Autonomous plans shown by Cloudways include:

Current Autonomous pricing also lists $1 per additional GB of disk space and $0.04 per additional GB of bandwidth. Cloudways states that Autonomous accounts created on or after November 11, 2025 use hourly, per-application billing.

A critical nuance is that Autonomous pricing can vary with actual autoscaling duration. A website that stays inside baseline resources will have a different cost profile from one that repeatedly adds capacity during campaigns or traffic spikes.

Compare current Cloudways plans before choosing a server

Pricing changes frequently, so confirm the current checkout amount before purchasing.

Are There Any Hidden or Additional Cloudways Costs?

Cloudways does not necessarily hide its additional charges, but the final cost can exceed the headline plan price because backups, bandwidth, email, support upgrades, add-ons, cloned servers, taxes, and product-specific overages may appear on the invoice. A useful Cloudways cost comparison must therefore use total cost of ownership rather than advertised entry pricing.

Flexible Backup Costs

Cloudways currently charges $0.033 per GB for Flexible off-site backup storage. Its documentation also states that backup charges are rounded in $0.50 increments. Autonomous off-site backup costs are included in the plan.

Bandwidth Costs

Flexible bandwidth overages depend on the underlying provider.

As of April 7, 2026, Cloudways documents:

• DigitalOcean: $0.02/GB beyond included bandwidth.
• Linode: $0.02/GB.
• Vultr: regional rates from $0.01 to $0.05/GB.
• AWS: $0.12/GB.
• Google Compute Engine: approximately $0.11–$0.17/GB, depending on region.

That difference can become significant for media-heavy sites, download services, high-volume APIs, or large international audiences.

Email Costs

Cloudways does not operate native email-hosting servers. Customers who need mailboxes can use an add-on or external email provider.

Cloudways currently lists Rackspace Email at $1 per mailbox per month.

Support Costs

Standard Cloudways Support is included. Advanced and Premium Support are paid upgrades that broaden support scope and provide higher-priority service levels. Cloudways currently advertises a promotional Advanced Support price on its support page, while Premium pricing is also invoice-dependent. Because promotions can change, verify the current figure before budgeting.

Taxes and Miscellaneous Usage

Cloudways states that applicable VAT, GST, or other taxes can be added according to billing country. The billing documentation also identifies cloned servers, additional bandwidth, backup storage, DNS overages, add-ons, and other usage as potential invoice items.

A Better Cloudways TCO Model

Use this calculation instead of comparing headline prices:

Cloudways TCO = base hosting + backups + bandwidth/overages + email + support + paid add-ons + taxes

For example, a small Flexible deployment might use an $11 server, several paid mailboxes, and off-site backup storage. Another $11 server with large backup retention, bandwidth overages, paid support, and additional services could cost materially more despite having the same headline server price.

For Autonomous, model:

Plan cost + autoscaling hours + disk overage + bandwidth overage + optional services + taxes

This method gives you a much more realistic buying comparison.

How Fast Is Cloudways in Real-World Performance Tests?

Cloudways performance depends on the underlying infrastructure, server resources, region, caching configuration, application stack, database workload, CDN usage, and traffic pattern, so no single Cloudways speed score can represent every deployment. A meaningful performance review must control those variables and distinguish cached tests from uncached and database-heavy workloads.

An important disclosure: I am not publishing invented benchmark numbers in this review. No independently collected Cloudways benchmark dataset was supplied for this article, so assigning synthetic TTFB, load-time, uptime, or concurrency scores would create false precision.

Cloudways Flexible currently exposes features such as its NGINX-based Lightning Stack, Redis, Object Cache Pro on qualifying configurations, Varnish-related stack options, and server-level performance controls. Autonomous includes Redis and Object Cache Pro + Relay with its current plans.

Those components can improve performance, but infrastructure features alone do not prove that a particular website will be fast.

See What Modern Website Performance Actually Depends On

Cloudways performance depends on more than server hardware. This 2026 session explains how Core Web Vitals, infrastructure, real-world conditions, and ongoing monitoring fit together before you evaluate the specific testing criteria below.

Video: “The State of Web Performance in 2026 | Cloud Bootcamp” by Cloudways.

What Should a Cloudways Speed Test Measure?

At minimum, test:

1. Uncached TTFB
2. Cached TTFB
3. Full page load
4. Largest Contentful Paint
5. Interaction to Next Paint
6. Database-heavy requests
7. Logged-in WordPress requests
8. WooCommerce cart/checkout
9. CPU and RAM utilization
10. Performance from multiple geographic locations

Time to First Byte is particularly useful when separating server responsiveness from front-end rendering.

“Time to First Byte (TTFB) is a foundational metric for measuring connection setup time and web server responsiveness in both the lab and the field.”

— Barry Pollard and Jeremy Wagner, web.dev authors, web.dev, updated 2025

This matters because a visually heavy theme can produce poor page-load metrics even when the hosting layer responds quickly. Conversely, a lightweight front end can mask slow uncached application processing.

Web.dev currently gives 0.8 seconds or less as a rough TTFB target for most sites, while explicitly noting that TTFB is not itself a Core Web Vitals metric. — Source: web.dev, 2025.

Why One PageSpeed Screenshot Is Not Enough

A single PageSpeed Insights or GTmetrix run is not an adequate hosting benchmark.

A better test controls:

• Identical WordPress version.
• Identical theme.
• Identical plugins.
• Same database.
• Same PHP version.
• Same geographical test location.
• Same CDN state.
• Same cache state.
• Multiple repeated runs.
• Consistent load-test parameters.

If you want my dedicated benchmark methodology and future measured comparisons, see Cloudways load test results.

[Insert image: PageSpeed Insights or WebPageTest results for a controlled Cloudways test site | Alt text: “Measure Cloudways WordPress performance with controlled speed tests”]

How Does Cloudways Perform Under Heavy Traffic and Concurrent Users?

Cloudways can handle concurrent traffic only within the capacity and architecture of the selected environment, which means Flexible depends heavily on provisioned server resources while Autonomous is designed to add capacity automatically as workload demand increases. Traffic volume alone is therefore less informative than CPU usage, PHP concurrency, database demand, cacheability, and traffic shape.

A cached affiliate blog receiving thousands of page views can impose less server load than a smaller WooCommerce store running dynamic cart, checkout, search, account, and database queries.

For example, 500 simultaneous requests to cached editorial pages are not equivalent to 500 shoppers performing uncached WooCommerce actions.

Flexible Under Load

Flexible primarily scales vertically: you increase CPU, RAM, or storage resources on the server. Cloudways documents vertical scaling for Flexible environments, although provider-specific scaling behavior differs.

Flexible therefore works well when:

• Demand is reasonably predictable.
• You monitor resource utilization.
• You can resize ahead of major campaigns.
• You understand the approximate capacity your application requires.

Autonomous Under Load

Autonomous is specifically positioned around Kubernetes-based autoscaling. Extra containers/servers can be activated when demand exceeds baseline capacity, with additional usage billed according to plan and runtime.

That architecture is attractive for:

• Flash sales.
• Viral campaigns.
• News spikes.
• Product launches.
• WooCommerce promotions.
• Membership launches.
• Websites with unpredictable traffic bursts.

However, automatic scaling is not the same as unlimited free capacity. You should configure and monitor your autoscaling budget because increased demand can increase the bill.

How Reliable and Secure Is Cloudways for Business-Critical Websites?

Cloudways provides multiple infrastructure-level security, backup, SSL, firewall, monitoring, and recovery controls, but business reliability still depends on application security, backup verification, provider infrastructure, configuration quality, and operational procedures. Managed hosting reduces infrastructure work; it does not eliminate your responsibility for WordPress, plugins, user access, code quality, or disaster planning.

Cloudways Flexible currently advertises features including:

• Server-level firewall.
• IP blocking.
• Let’s Encrypt SSL.
• Automated and on-demand backups.
• SSH/SFTP.
• Staging and cloning.
• WordPress vulnerability scanning.
• Managed server stack controls.

Autonomous currently includes:

• Cloudflare Enterprise.
• SSL.
• Malware protection.
• Built-in firewall.
• DDoS protection.
• Off-site backups.
• Staging and cloning.

The important security distinction is shared responsibility. Cloudways may protect the infrastructure layer, but it cannot prevent every vulnerability caused by outdated plugins, compromised administrator credentials, insecure custom code, or poor access management.

Backup Testing Matters More Than Backup Marketing

A backup should not be considered reliable merely because the dashboard says it exists.

Periodically test:

1. Whether the expected restore points exist.
2. Whether the database restores correctly.
3. Whether uploaded media is present.
4. Whether transactional functionality still works.
5. Whether DNS and external integrations are documented.
6. Whether you can export your application if you need to leave Cloudways.

That last point is frequently overlooked. A good hosting evaluation should test the exit path as seriously as the onboarding process.

[Insert image: Cloudways backup and restore interface showing restore points | Alt text: “Verify Cloudways backup and restore options before migration”]

See How Cloudways Backups Work in Practice

The interface screenshot shows where backup controls live, but this walkthrough demonstrates how to schedule automated backups, create on-demand backups, restore application data, and keep a downloadable local copy.

Video: “How to Backup Servers and Applications | Cloudways 101” by Cloudways.

Is Cloudways Good for WordPress, WooCommerce, Developers, and Agencies?

Cloudways is suitable for several technically different audiences, but the correct product depends on workload: WordPress publishers can use either Flexible or Autonomous, WooCommerce stores should evaluate traffic variability, developers generally receive more flexibility from Flexible, and agencies need to consider application density and failure isolation.

Is Cloudways Good for WordPress?

Cloudways can be a strong fit for WordPress sites that have outgrown low-cost shared hosting and need more predictable resources, staging, caching, SSH/SFTP access, backups, and scaling options.

The key decision is workload shape:

• Choose Flexible for lower starting cost, multi-site hosting, infrastructure choice, or predictable resource needs.
• Choose Autonomous when automatic scaling is worth paying for and you prefer less server-capacity management.

See my dedicated Cloudways WordPress review for a WordPress-specific breakdown.

Is Cloudways Good for WooCommerce?

Cloudways can fit WooCommerce because both Flexible and Autonomous support WordPress/WooCommerce, but ecommerce performance should be tested against uncached dynamic requests rather than homepage speed alone.

A relatively stable store can work well on properly sized Flexible infrastructure. A promotion-heavy store with unpredictable bursts may benefit more from Autonomous autoscaling.

Read the dedicated Cloudways WooCommerce review if checkout performance and traffic spikes are your priority.

Is Cloudways Good for Laravel and PHP Developers?

Cloudways Flexible supports Laravel and PHP workloads, making it substantially more relevant to developers than Autonomous. Cloudways also provides SSH/SFTP and platform-level developer controls, but unrestricted root access is not provided.

That restriction is important if your project needs:

• Custom system packages.
• OS-level modifications.
• Unusual daemons.
• Complete NGINX control outside supported platform processes.
• Kernel-level changes.
• Specialized security software.
• Full configuration-management control.

Cloudways Advanced and Premium Support can handle certain custom packages and server configurations through supported platform processes, but that is different from giving the customer unrestricted root access.

See my Cloudways Laravel review and Cloudways developer review for these workflows.

Is Cloudways Good for Agencies?

Cloudways Flexible can be attractive to agencies because multiple applications can share infrastructure, reducing the need for a separate server for every small client site. Cloudways currently states that Flexible allows as many applications as the server can support.

However, consolidation creates a trade-off.

Putting 30 client sites on one large server may reduce cost per site, but it also creates a shared resource and failure domain. One badly behaving application can consume resources that affect other clients.

A better agency architecture may separate:

• High-value clients.
• Ecommerce clients.
• Resource-heavy applications.
• Development/staging workloads.
• Low-risk brochure sites.

My Cloudways agency review covers this portfolio-level decision in more detail.

Is Cloudways Good for Small Businesses?

Cloudways is a better fit for a small business that values managed infrastructure and performance control than for one that simply wants the cheapest all-in-one hosting bundle.

A business that expects hosting to include its domain registrar, mailbox hosting, traditional control panel, and basic website tools may find Cloudways less convenient.

See the Cloudways small business review for that specific buying scenario.

How Good Is the Cloudways Dashboard and Day-to-Day Workflow?

The Cloudways dashboard centralizes server and application management tasks that would otherwise require multiple command-line tools or cloud-provider consoles, including deployments, monitoring, service management, domains, SSL, backups, scaling, application credentials, staging, and cloning. The interface reduces infrastructure complexity, although advanced users sacrifice some low-level control in exchange.

On Flexible, the basic workflow is:

1. Choose an application.
2. Choose an infrastructure provider.
3. Select server resources.
4. Select a data-center region.
5. Deploy the server.
6. Map the domain.
7. Configure SSL.
8. Review caching/services.
9. Create staging if needed.
10. Monitor resources and scale based on evidence.

Cloudways’ current platform also exposes infrastructure and application functions such as SSH/SFTP access, database tools, service controls, staging, cloning, backups, and monitoring.

[Insert image: Cloudways server launch screen showing provider, server size, and data-center selection | Alt text: “Configure a Cloudways Flexible server and data center”]

[Insert image: Cloudways server monitoring dashboard showing CPU, memory, and traffic metrics | Alt text: “Monitor Cloudways server resource usage before scaling”]

See the Cloudways Management Workflow in Action

The dashboard screenshots above show the interface, while this walkthrough demonstrates how Cloudways handles practical tasks such as vertical scaling, staging, cloning, cron optimization, team access, and cache management.

Video: “1-Click Features On Cloudways | Cloudways 101” by Cloudways.

The Most Important Dashboard Habit

Do not treat a larger server as the first solution to every performance problem.

Before scaling, check:

• CPU saturation.
• RAM pressure.
• Database behavior.
• PHP workload.
• Bot traffic.
• Cache hit rate.
• Background jobs.
• Slow plugins.
• Cron activity.
• Query performance.

A poorly optimized WooCommerce database can remain inefficient after adding RAM. Capacity and optimization solve different problems.

How Good Is Cloudways Customer Support?

Cloudways provides Standard Support with every account and sells Advanced and Premium support tiers for customers who need broader application troubleshooting, optimization, customization, priority handling, or direct communication channels. The important buying question is therefore not simply whether support exists, but whether your expected problem falls inside your support tier.

Standard Support covers infrastructure and Cloudways platform issues, including server/application management, backups, scaling, domain mapping, SSH/SFTP issues, migrations, SSL, and other platform functions. Cloudways currently documents Standard Support as included at no extra charge.

Advanced and Premium expand the scope to areas including:

• Plugin/theme troubleshooting.
• Database and performance optimization.
• Server-error investigation.
• Supported server customization.
• Proactive investigation.
• Dedicated account management.
• Higher-priority SLAs.

Premium also lists a private Slack channel and phone support.

The current support table documents initial ticket-response targets of up to 12 hours for Standard, 6 hours for Advanced, and 2 hours for Premium, with shorter high-priority targets. These are vendor-published SLAs rather than independent measurements of actual support experience. — Source: Cloudways, 2026.

How I Would Test Cloudways Support

Instead of asking one easy pre-sales question, test support boundaries with different problem types:

1. A simple platform question.
2. An SSL/domain configuration issue.
3. A staging or backup problem.
4. A WordPress plugin conflict.
5. A database performance question.
6. A custom NGINX or package request.

Record:

• Response time.
• Time to resolution.
• Accuracy.
• Number of transfers.
• Whether the issue is inside the support scope.
• Whether an upgrade is suggested.

This gives you a far more meaningful support assessment than a single chat transcript.

For a broader reputation analysis, see Cloudways customer reviews and user experiences.

[Insert image: Cloudways support interface showing live chat and ticket options | Alt text: “Contact Cloudways support through chat and ticketing”]

Does Cloudways Give You Root Access, Email Hosting, or Domain Registration?

Cloudways does not provide unrestricted root access or native email-hosting servers, and its hosting workflow is designed around separately managed domains rather than an all-in-one domain-registration bundle. These omissions are intentional parts of the managed-cloud model, but they can make Cloudways unsuitable for users who expect traditional bundled hosting.

Does Cloudways Give You Root Access?

No. Cloudways explicitly states that it does not give customers root access.

Its documentation explains that without root access customers cannot directly deploy arbitrary software packages or change unrestricted system configuration.

You can still use SSH/SFTP and many application/server controls exposed through the platform.

Who should care about no root access?

Users who need:

• Unrestricted OS configuration.
• Custom system packages.
• Non-standard services.
• Complete web-server configuration.
• Infrastructure automation requiring root.
• Specialized Linux security tools.

For an ordinary WordPress publisher, the limitation may rarely matter. For an infrastructure engineer with unusual requirements, it may be a deal-breaker.

Does Cloudways Include Email Hosting?

No. Cloudways states directly that it does not provide email-hosting servers.

You can use:

• Rackspace Email through Cloudways.
• Google Workspace.
• Microsoft 365.
• Another mailbox provider.
• External SMTP services for transactional email.

Rackspace Email is currently listed at $1 per mailbox per month through Cloudways.

Does Cloudways Include Domain Registration?

Cloudways hosting should be treated separately from domain registration. You typically keep the domain with your preferred registrar and point DNS records toward the Cloudways application.

This modular approach can be an advantage because your registrar, DNS provider, email provider, and hosting provider are not locked into one account. However, users moving from conventional shared hosting may initially find the separation less convenient.

How Easy Is It to Migrate a Website to Cloudways?

Cloudways offers both managed and self-service migration routes, with current documentation stating that WordPress and WooCommerce managed migrations are free while non-WordPress managed migrations can cost $99 per application unless included with the customer’s plan. Migration convenience is useful, but a safe migration still requires DNS, database, email, SSL, and rollback planning.

Cloudways currently states:

• WordPress managed migration: free.
• WooCommerce managed migration: free.
• WordPress Migrator Plugin: unlimited self-service migrations at no cost.
• Non-WordPress managed migration: normally $99 per application.
• Standard plan: one free non-WordPress migration.
• Agency plan: up to five free non-WordPress migrations.

Cloudways Autonomous active-plan customers also currently receive free managed migrations, while trial accounts have different eligibility.

See the WordPress Migration Workflow

This official walkthrough shows the self-service Cloudways Migrator Plugin process from destination setup through migration and post-transfer testing. Use the current 2026 migration eligibility and pricing information above when evaluating managed-migration costs and availability.

Video: “How to Migrate Your WordPress Site to Cloudways | Cloudways 101” by Cloudways.

Cloudways Migration Risk Checklist

A migration should verify more than whether the homepage opens.

Before changing DNS:

1. Lower DNS TTL where appropriate.
2. Take a fresh source backup.
3. Identify email hosting separately.
4. Document cron jobs.
5. Check PHP/application requirements.
6. Migrate into the target environment.
7. Test through a temporary URL or hosts-file method.
8. Verify logins.
9. Verify forms.
10. Verify redirects.
11. Verify transactional email.
12. Verify WooCommerce cart and checkout.
13. Confirm SSL.
14. Synchronize late database changes if required.
15. Change DNS.
16. Monitor logs and transactions.
17. Keep the source host available during the rollback window.

Cloudways says its managed process aims for minimal downtime, but “minimal downtime” should never replace your own cutover and rollback plan.

Test the Exit Path Too

Before committing a mission-critical property, confirm that you know how to:

• Export files.
• Export the database.
• Retrieve credentials.
• Recreate DNS.
• Document cron jobs.
• Recreate server-specific behavior elsewhere.
• Restore the application on another provider.

A host is easier to trust when you understand how to leave it.

[Insert image: Cloudways Application Migration add-on request interface | Alt text: “Request a managed Cloudways WordPress migration”]

What Are the Biggest Pros and Cons of Cloudways?

Cloudways’ biggest strengths are managed cloud flexibility, infrastructure choice, developer tooling, staging, migration options, and the availability of both manual and autoscaling hosting models; its biggest weaknesses are cost complexity, lack of root access, separate email/domain services, and support boundaries.

Cloudways Pros

Current product and billing characteristics verified August 7, 2026.

Cloudways Cons

Cloudways is therefore neither universally cheap nor universally expensive. It is a trade between operational convenience and infrastructure freedom.

What Are the Best Cloudways Alternatives?

The best Cloudways alternative depends on why you are leaving: managed WordPress buyers may prefer Kinsta or WP Engine, users wanting simpler conventional hosting may prefer SiteGround or Hostinger, while infrastructure experts seeking maximum server control may prefer using DigitalOcean directly.

For a full comparison, see my guide to the best Cloudways alternatives.

Cloudways vs Kinsta

Kinsta is worth evaluating when your priority is a highly managed WordPress-specific environment rather than choosing among several underlying infrastructure providers.

Compare Kinsta hosting options

Cloudways vs WP Engine

WP Engine is another relevant option for WordPress-focused businesses that prioritize a managed WordPress ecosystem over the broader application flexibility available through Cloudways Flexible.

Explore WP Engine managed WordPress hosting

Cloudways vs SiteGround

SiteGround may make more sense for users who prefer a more conventional hosting experience and do not need Cloudways-style infrastructure selection.

Compare current SiteGround hosting plans

Cloudways vs Hostinger

Hostinger can be worth evaluating when low entry cost and simplicity matter more than Cloudways’ managed-cloud architecture and provider-level flexibility.

Check Hostinger hosting options

Cloudways vs DigitalOcean Direct

Direct DigitalOcean infrastructure is relevant when you have the technical capability to manage the server yourself and want to remove the Cloudways management layer.

The comparison should not stop at server price. Include your time for:

• Provisioning.
• OS maintenance.
• Security.
• Backups.
• Monitoring.
• Web-server configuration.
• Database management.
• Deployment.
• Troubleshooting.
• Disaster recovery.

Explore DigitalOcean for self-managed cloud infrastructure

Which Alternative Should You Choose?

The key is not to ask which company is universally “best.” Ask which operating model removes the problems you actually have.

Who Should Use Cloudways—and Who Should Avoid It?

Cloudways is best suited to users who value managed infrastructure, performance controls, scaling options, and developer-friendly application management, while it is less suitable for users who need the cheapest bundled hosting, unrestricted system control, native mailbox hosting, or a completely simplified shared-hosting experience.

Cloudways Is Best For

WordPress publishers who have outgrown basic shared hosting. Flexible provides a natural step toward dedicated cloud resources without requiring full server administration.

WooCommerce stores that need more infrastructure control. Flexible works well for measurable, predictable demand, while Autonomous addresses variable demand through autoscaling.

Affiliate marketers and authority-site owners. Multiple sites can share Flexible infrastructure when resource usage is monitored carefully.

Agencies and freelancers. Multi-application hosting, staging, cloning, team workflows, and migration features can reduce operational overhead.

Laravel and PHP developers. Flexible supports application types beyond WordPress while retaining SSH/SFTP access.

Businesses that value time more than the lowest raw-server bill. The management premium can be worthwhile when it replaces repetitive infrastructure work.

Cloudways Is Not Ideal For

Cloudways may be the wrong choice if you require:

• The absolute cheapest hosting.
• Bundled domain registration and mailbox hosting.
• Unrestricted root access.
• Full operating-system customization.
• A conventional cPanel-style workflow.
• Zero infrastructure decisions.
• A single low-traffic brochure site that performs adequately on inexpensive shared hosting.
• Completely fixed costs despite unpredictable autoscaling or usage.

The best decision is workload-specific rather than brand-specific.

→ Evaluate Cloudways for Your Workload

How Should You Test Cloudways Before Moving Production Traffic?

The safest way to evaluate Cloudways is to reproduce your real workload on a staging or non-critical deployment, measure both technical performance and operating cost, and compare the results with your current host under equivalent conditions. Testing a blank WordPress installation tells you very little about how your actual database, plugins, theme, ecommerce workload, or traffic will behave.

Cloudways currently advertises a three-day Flexible trial without a credit card, while Autonomous also advertises trial availability on the current pricing page. Trial and promotion terms are volatile, so verify eligibility when signing up.

Step 1: Clone a Realistic Application

Use a copy of your actual application where practical.

Include:

• Production-like database size.
• Actual theme.
• Important plugins.
• Representative media.
• Realistic cron jobs.
• Ecommerce functions if applicable.

Step 2: Select the Nearest Appropriate Region

Choose a data center based on your primary visitors, not your physical location.

For example, a publisher based in Asia with most users in the United States should test a US region rather than automatically choosing the nearest server to the publisher.

Step 3: Record the Environment

Document:

• Test date.
• Cloudways product.
• Infrastructure provider.
• Server size.
• Data-center region.
• PHP version.
• WordPress version.
• Theme.
• Plugins.
• Cache configuration.
• CDN configuration.
• Test location.
• Number of test runs.
• Concurrency level.

Without this information, future benchmark comparisons become difficult to reproduce.

Step 4: Test Cached and Uncached Requests Separately

Cached pages measure CDN/cache delivery more than application execution.

Uncached and authenticated routes reveal more about:

• PHP processing.
• Database behavior.
• Backend latency.
• Worker/concurrency limits.
• Server capacity.

Step 5: Run Controlled Load Tests

Test increasing concurrency rather than hitting the application with one arbitrary traffic number.

Watch:

• Response time.
• Error rate.
• CPU.
• RAM.
• Database load.
• Throughput.
• Autoscaling activity.
• Cost.

A load test that crashes a server but never records CPU or database behavior tells you that the system failed, not why.

Step 6: Measure Real Users After Launch

Lab tests are controlled. Real users are not.

“Without field data, it’s impossible to know for sure whether the changes you’re making to your site are actually achieving their desired results.”

— Philip Walton, web.dev author, web.dev, 2022

That principle is especially important when evaluating hosting. A migration that improves synthetic tests but produces no meaningful improvement for real visitors should not automatically be considered successful.

Use tools such as:

• Google PageSpeed Insights.
• Chrome User Experience Report where available.
• WebPageTest.
• Your preferred uptime monitor.
• Server/application monitoring.
• A reproducible load-testing tool.
• Real User Monitoring where appropriate.

[Insert image: WebPageTest or equivalent test comparing identical application configurations | Alt text: “Compare Cloudways hosting performance with repeatable tests”]

[Insert image: Cloudways resource monitoring during a controlled load test | Alt text: “Track Cloudways CPU and memory during concurrent traffic testing”]

Step 7: Calculate the Real Monthly Cost

After testing, estimate:

• Base server/plan.
• Backup storage.
• Bandwidth.
• Email.
• CDN/add-ons.
• Support.
• Autoscaling.
• Taxes.

Performance without cost context is an incomplete hosting benchmark.

→ Compare Cloudways Plans and Costs

What Should You Do Next If You Are Considering Cloudways?

The next step is to choose between Flexible and Autonomous based on workload, estimate the complete monthly cost, deploy near your audience, test a realistic application, and scale only when measurements justify the change. This process prevents both unnecessary overprovisioning and underpowered hosting decisions.

Use this decision sequence:

1. Identify the application. WordPress, WooCommerce, Laravel, Magento, PHP, or another supported workload.
2. Identify traffic shape. Stable, growing, seasonal, unpredictable, or spike-heavy.
3. Choose architecture. Flexible for greater infrastructure/application flexibility; Autonomous for WordPress-focused autoscaling.
4. Choose region. Locate infrastructure near the audience or latency-sensitive systems.
5. Calculate TCO. Include backups, bandwidth, email, support, overages, and taxes.
6. Migrate a staging or non-critical workload first.
7. Benchmark realistically.
8. Monitor production resource consumption.
9. Scale based on evidence.
10. Document the exit path.

Choose Cloudways Flexible If…

Choose Flexible when you want provider choice, lower entry pricing, multiple applications, Laravel/PHP/Magento support, SSH/SFTP workflows, and direct control over server sizing.

Choose Cloudways Autonomous If…

Choose Autonomous when you run WordPress or WooCommerce and the value of automatic scaling, included Cloudflare Enterprise, simplified capacity management, and high concurrency handling justifies its higher base cost.

Avoid Cloudways If…

Avoid Cloudways if your priorities are unrestricted root access, completely self-managed Linux, native email hosting, bundled domain registration, or the lowest possible entry-level hosting cost.

→ Start Your Cloudways Deployment

Conclusion: Is Cloudways Worth It in 2026?

Cloudways is worth considering in 2026 when you want the flexibility of cloud infrastructure without accepting the full operational burden of managing that infrastructure yourself, but its value depends heavily on choosing the correct product, workload, and total-cost model.

Cloudways Flexible is the stronger fit when you need infrastructure choice, multiple applications, developer flexibility, and a lower starting price. Cloudways Autonomous makes more sense when a WordPress or WooCommerce workload benefits enough from automatic scaling and bundled performance infrastructure to justify its substantially higher base price.

The strongest Cloudways advantages are not a marketing claim about “fast hosting.” They are the combination of managed infrastructure, flexible deployment options, staging, backups, monitoring, migrations, developer access, and two distinctly different scaling models.

The major trade-offs are equally clear: no unrestricted root access, no native mailbox hosting, separate domain management, variable additional costs, and support capabilities that expand according to tier.

My final verdict is conditional:

Cloudways is a strong managed-cloud option for publishers, agencies, WooCommerce stores, developers, and growing businesses when operational simplicity is worth the management premium. It is less compelling when you need either ultra-simple budget hosting or unrestricted infrastructure control.

Before committing a production property, compare the appropriate Cloudways route against your actual workload, current hosting cost, management time, migration risk, and measured performance.

Frequently Asked Questions About Cloudways

Is Cloudways worth it?

Cloudways is worth it when the time and operational risk saved through managed infrastructure, backups, monitoring, deployment tools, support, and scaling are worth more to you than the additional cost over managing raw cloud infrastructure yourself.

Is Cloudways a good hosting provider for WordPress?

Yes, Cloudways supports WordPress through both Flexible and Autonomous. Flexible offers greater infrastructure choice and a lower entry point, while Autonomous is designed for WordPress workloads that benefit from Kubernetes-based autoscaling.

Does Cloudways use DigitalOcean?

Yes. DigitalOcean is one of the infrastructure providers available through Cloudways Flexible, and DigitalOcean has owned Cloudways since completing its acquisition in September 2022.

Can I host multiple websites on Cloudways?

Cloudways Flexible currently allows multiple applications on a server, subject to the server having sufficient resources. Cloudways markets Flexible with unlimited websites and visits rather than a fixed application count.

Does Cloudways provide free migration?

Cloudways currently provides free managed WordPress and WooCommerce migrations. Non-WordPress managed migrations normally cost $99 per application unless included in the customer’s plan. Autonomous active-plan users currently receive free managed migrations.

Does Cloudways provide email hosting?

Cloudways does not operate native email-hosting servers. Mailboxes can be added through services such as the Rackspace Email add-on or handled through an external provider.

Does Cloudways provide root access?

No. Cloudways does not provide unrestricted root access. Customers can use SSH/SFTP and supported platform controls, while low-level system administration remains managed by Cloudways.

Which Cloudways server should I choose?

Choose the server based on application type, geographic audience, CPU/RAM requirements, bandwidth, database workload, and traffic behavior. Cloudways itself recommends comparing infrastructure providers and testing deployments rather than choosing solely from provider reputation.

References

Cloudways. (2026). Cloudways pricing and plans: Managed cloud hosting. Pricing, Flexible features, Autonomous plans, infrastructure options, trials, and additional charges.

Cloudways. (2026). Cloudways Support add-ons. Standard, Advanced, and Premium Support scope and service-level information.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). Bandwidth charges of infrastructure providers. Provider-specific bandwidth and overage pricing.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). Charges for off-site backups. Flexible backup pricing and Autonomous backup inclusion.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). Guide to billing at Cloudways. Pay-as-you-go billing, add-ons, taxes, overages, and billing structure.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). How payment and pricing work on Cloudways Autonomous. Hourly application billing, autoscaling rates, disk overages, and bandwidth overages.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). How to request a managed application migration to Cloudways. Migration methods, eligibility, and non-WordPress migration charges.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). How free managed migrations to Cloudways Autonomous work. Autonomous migration eligibility and managed migration policy.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). How to use Rackspace Email add-on. Current mailbox pricing and setup information.

Cloudways Help Center. (2025). Does Cloudways provide servers for email hosting? Cloudways email-hosting policy and available alternatives.

Cloudways Help Center. (2026). Which infrastructure provider do I have to choose? Supported Flexible infrastructure providers and provider-selection guidance.

Cloudways Help Center. (2025). Guide to scale servers on the Cloudways Platform. Flexible vertical-scaling documentation.

Cloudways Help Center. (2024). Why can’t I have root access to my server? Root-access limitations and Cloudways’ managed-server model.

DigitalOcean Holdings, Inc. (2022). DigitalOcean completes acquisition of Cloudways. Acquisition completion announcement.

DigitalOcean Holdings, Inc. (2022). DigitalOcean to acquire Cloudways. Acquisition rationale and executive statements.

Pollard, B., & Wagner, J. (2025). Time to First Byte (TTFB). web.dev.

Walton, P. (2022). Best practices for measuring Web Vitals in the field. web.dev.