Welcome to my in-depth Cloudways WordPress Hosting Review, a popular web hosting service that promises fast and reliable hosting for businesses of all sizes. In this review, I will take a look at the features, performance, and support offered by Cloudways to help you decide if it is the right hosting solution for your needs. I will share my personal experiences with the service and provide an honest evaluation of its pros and cons. By the end of this review, you should clearly understand what to expect from Cloudways and be able to make an informed decision about whether it is the best WordPress hosting option for your business.
Table of Contents
Features of Cloudways WordPress Hosting
- Unlimited websites.
- Vertical server scaling.
- Staging environments.
- Fast SSD storage.
- Global CDN network.
- Firewalls.
- SSL certificates.
- Daily backups.
- Live chat, email, and phone support.
- Customized control panel.
- Multiple cloud provider options.
- Advanced security measures.
A little bit more about the features
Cloudways is a website hosting service that stands out for its rich set of features, which are designed to make it easy for businesses to host and manage their websites. One of the standout features of Cloudways is the ability to host unlimited websites on a single account, a rare and valuable feature not offered by many competing hosting services.
In addition to unlimited websites, Cloudways also offers easy vertical Scaling, which means that the hosting infrastructure can be upgraded without interruption of service to meet the needs of your website as traffic increases. It ensures that your website will always be able to handle the increased load without any downtime.
Cloudways also offers staging environments, which allow you to test new features or changes to your website in a separate, isolated environment before pushing them live. This is an important feature for businesses that want to ensure the stability and integrity of their live website, as it allows you to safely test new changes without any risk of affecting the live site.
Overall, the features offered by Cloudways are competitive with other top hosting services and provide a lot of value for businesses of all sizes. Cloudways makes it easy to host and manage multiple websites, ensure that your website can handle traffic spikes, and provide a safe and stable environment for testing and development.
Performance of Cloudways WordPress Hosting
Performance is a critical factor to consider when choosing a website hosting service, and Cloudways delivers impressive performance across many key metrics.
One of the most important performance metrics for any web hosting service is uptime, and Cloudways has consistently delivered uptimes of 99.99% or higher. This means that customers can expect their websites to be available and accessible to visitors almost all of the time.
In addition to high uptimes, Cloudways also boasts fast loading times for websites hosted on its platform. This is achieved through a combination of optimized servers, fast SSD storage, and a global CDN network. These features work together to ensure that websites hosted on Cloudways load quickly and smoothly for visitors, no matter where they are located. You can also use their WordPress caching plugin Breeze to make your WordPress website load even faster.
Most tiers of Cloudways managed WordPress hosting include a premium object caching plugin for free; this is important, especially for the eCommerce websites running WooCommerce.
Security is also an important aspect of performance, and Cloudways takes it seriously. The service includes several security measures, such as firewalls, free SSL certificates, and daily backups to protect websites from potential threats.
Overall, the performance of Cloudways web hosting is excellent, with high uptimes, fast loading times, and strong security measures in place. These features combine to provide a reliable and enjoyable experience for website visitors and help to build trust and credibility for businesses that use Cloudways to host their websites.
Support offered by Cloudways
One of the key benefits of using Cloudways as a web hosting service is the high level of support that is available to customers. The company offers a variety of support options, including live chat, email, and phone support, so that customers can choose the best method for their needs and preferences.
In my experience, the live chat support offered by Cloudways is particularly helpful. Whenever I have had a question or issue, I have been able to get quick and helpful responses from the support team via live chat. The team is knowledgeable and has been able to resolve any issues I have had promptly.
Apart from live chat support, Cloudways also offers email and phone support. I have not had the need to use these support channels, but they are available for customers who prefer to communicate in these ways.
Overall, the support offered by Cloudways is excellent. The team is knowledgeable and responsive, providing various support options to meet the needs of different customers. I have been very happy with the support we have received from Cloudways and feel confident that I can get the help I need whenever I need it.
My experience and my client sites on Cloudways
I host most of the client websites on Cloudways since they offer the best value for money. Not that it has compromises, but it really achieves great results even with entry-level tiers of hosting service.
Suppose you have a relatively simple WordPress website. In that case, the entry-level tier with 1GB RAM starting at $12 per month is more than enough to load your website lightning fast, provided it is built to a standard and basic optimisation is done. For decent traffic and anything more than a calling card website, a 2GB RAM tier is a great option and should be a starting point. It can handle 1-5 WordPress installs with no issues (roughly combined traffic of 10.000 visitors per month).
For WooCommerce websites, I would recommend starting with a Cloudways WordPress hosting plan that offers a minimum of 4GB of RAM since WooCommerce needs it due to its dynamic nature of it.
Since they offer unlimited applications (WordPress installs, for example), you can host multiple websites on one server. In my experience, if you have low-traffic sites with no WooCommerce, you can run 10 websites on the second tier without issues. Again, providing no plugin overloads, bad code, basic website optimisations done, and the websites are running with no issues.
For the server provider, I use Cloudways WordPress hosting on VultrHF servers for most clients, as those proved to be the fastest loading in my experience. The Digital Ocean Performance series is also a great choice. There are rumours that VultrHF will stop getting new lines of servers soon, but that is not the issue since you can easily clone the server right from the user control panel to a new one with another provider.
There is a choice for Cloudways hosting providers between Amazon AWS or Google Cloud servers for large-scale websites. Those are pricey, and I use them if clients insist on them. They are more involved in managing.
Here is the client’s server example; it is the second tier with 2GB RAM / 1 CPU Core that is hosting 11 WordPress installs with relatively low traffic of 12k visitors per month.
And here is the GTMetrix test of one of the websites hosted on that server, Hello theme with Elementor website builder. Only image optimisation performed:
Conclusion
In conclusion, Cloudways is a top-performing web hosting service that offers a rich set of features, excellent performance, and reliable support. The ability to host unlimited websites, automatic scaling, and staging environments make it a valuable hosting solution for businesses of all sizes. The high uptimes, fast loading times, and strong security measures ensure that websites hosted on Cloudways are always available and perform well for visitors. And the knowledgeable and responsive support team is available to help customers whenever needed.
Overall, I highly recommend Cloudways WordPress hosting service. It delivers on its promises and provides a lot of value for its customers. Whether you are a small business owner, blogger, or developer, Cloudways is a great choice for hosting your website.
You can also check my list of best hosting providers.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cloudways managed WordPress hosting?
Yes, Cloudways offers managed WordPress hosting. Managed WordPress hosting is a type of hosting service that is specifically optimized for hosting WordPress websites. It includes a range of features and services that are designed to make it easy for businesses to host and manage their WordPress websites, including automatic updates, security measures, and performance optimization.
Cloudways offers a range of managed hosting plans for WordPress, which include all of the features and support needed to run a successful WordPress website. In addition to hosting, Cloudways also provides tools and resources to help customers with tasks such as staging, backup, and scaling. Overall, Cloudways is a good choice for businesses that are looking for a managed hosting solution for their WordPress website.
Is Cloudways hosting good?
Short answer: Yes! Cloudways is a great option for beginner and advanced users, small to large WordPress websites and Woocommerce websites.
In my experience, Cloudways is a top-notch web hosting service that delivers on its promises of fast and reliable hosting. I’ve been really impressed with the uptimes – my websites have always been available and accessible to visitors. And the loading times are fast, thanks to the optimized servers, fast SSD storage, and global CDN network.
Cloudways also takes security seriously, which is important to me.
But perhaps the most impressive aspect of Cloudways is the support team. They’ve always been quick to respond to any questions or issues I’ve had and have been able to resolve everything in a timely manner. I’ve been really happy with the level of support I’ve received from Cloudways.
Can Cloudways WordPress hosting handle large traffic?
Yes, Cloudways can handle large amounts of traffic.
One of the features that makes this possible is vertical scaling, which ensures that the hosting infrastructure can be adjusted to meet the increased needs of the website as traffic fluctuates.
In addition to vertical scaling, Cloudways also offers fast loading times and strong security measures, which can help to ensure that a website can handle large amounts of traffic without any issues. Overall, I have been very happy with the performance of Cloudways WordPress hosting when it comes to handling large amounts of traffic, and I have confidence that it can handle the needs of most businesses.
Is Cloudways good for WordPress?
Yes, in my experience Cloudways is a good choice for hosting WordPress websites. The service is specifically designed for WordPress, with a range of features and tools that make it easy to host and manage WordPress sites.
Some of the key features that make Cloudways good for WordPress include:
– Automatic updates: Cloudways automatically updates WordPress core, plugins, and themes to keep your site secure and up-to-date.
– Staging environments: Cloudways allows you to test new features or changes to your WordPress site in a separate, isolated environment before pushing them live. This is a valuable tool for ensuring the stability and integrity of your live site.
– Performance optimization: Cloudways includes a number of performance optimization features such as fast SSD storage and a global CDN network to ensure that your WordPress site loads quickly and smoothly for visitors.
– Strong security measures: Cloudways includes a number of security measures such as firewalls, SSL certificates, and daily backups to protect your WordPress site from potential threats.
Overall, I have been very happy with the hosting experience I have had with Cloudways for my WordPress sites. I believe it is a good choice for businesses looking for a reliable and feature-rich hosting solution for their WordPress websites.
Is Cloudways good for beginners?
Yes, Cloudways is a good choice for beginners who are new to web hosting. The service is designed to be user-friendly and easy to use, with a customized control panel and a range of tools and resources to help customers get started.
One of the key advantages of Cloudways for beginners is the managed hosting feature, which means that the company takes care of many of the technical tasks and maintenance required to run a website. This can be especially useful for beginners who may not have a lot of technical expertise or experience with web hosting.
In addition to the managed hosting feature, Cloudways also offers a range of support options, including live chat, email, and phone support. This means that beginners can get help whenever they need it and have access to a knowledgeable support team to answer any questions or resolve any issues that may come up.
Overall, Cloudways is a good choice for beginners who are looking for a user-friendly and supportive web hosting service.
How is Cloudways different from other providers?
Cloudways is different from other web hosting providers in a number of ways. Some of the key differences include:
– Cloud-based infrastructure: Cloudways uses a cloud-based infrastructure, which means that it relies on a network of servers in multiple locations to host websites. This is different from traditional hosting providers that typically use a single server or a small number of servers in a single location. The advantage of cloud-based infrastructure is that it can be more scalable and flexible, as it can easily adjust to changes in traffic and demand.
– Managed hosting: Cloudways offers managed hosting, which means that it takes care of many of the technical tasks and maintenance required to run a website. This is different from traditional hosting providers that typically require customers to handle these tasks themselves. The advantage of managed hosting is that it can be more convenient and require less technical expertise.
– Multiple cloud providers: Cloudways allows customers to choose from multiple cloud providers, including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud, Linode, DigitalOcean and Vultr. This is different from many other hosting providers that only offer a single cloud provider. The advantage of having multiple cloud provider options is that it can allow customers to choose the provider that best meets their needs and preferences.
– Customized control panel: Cloudways has a customized control panel that is designed to be easy to use and navigate. This is different from many other hosting providers that use a more traditional control panel interface. The advantage of a customized control panel is that it can be more intuitive and user-friendly, which can make it easier for customers to manage their hosting account and website.
Overall, Cloudways is a unique and innovative web hosting provider that offers a range of features and services that set it apart from other providers.
Exclusive offer for my visitors and customers
Since you came to the end of this pretty long article, here is the link to sign-up with Cloudways and get an exclusive discount for your new hosting account from Cloudways and me: Use this link for a signup, enter the coupon code RMWD20OFF, and you will get 20% off for the first two months.
If you are considering moving your current hosting to Cloudways and need help, Cloudways offers one free website migration. You can also hire me if you want someone to set a server up for you, tweak it for performance and migrate one or more websites.
