If you are still using Bluehost or GoDaddy, you are driving a horse and buggy on a highway.
Cloudways is the Ferrari.
It is not "shared hosting." It is a managed platform that lets you rent a dedicated server from giants like DigitalOcean, Vultr, AWS, or Google Cloud, but without needing a PhD in Linux to manage it.
I moved this very website (Ap0t.com) to Cloudways two years ago. My load time dropped from 2.4s to 0.6s instantly. It is the single best upgrade you can make for your business, provided you are willing to learn a slightly different dashboard.
TL;DR: The Executive Summary
How We Tested Cloudways
I didn't just "test" Cloudways. I live on it.
- The Server: DigitalOcean Premium Droplet (2GB RAM, 1 Core).
- The Cost: ~$28/month.
- The Site: A heavy WooCommerce store with 5,000 products.
- The Tools: New Relic (built-in), GTMetrix, and Loader.io.
I also tested their "Vertical Scaling" feature by upgrading my server from 2GB to 4GB RAM during a traffic spike. It took 7 minutes and zero downtime.
Speed Test Results: Dedicated Power
Shared hosting (like Hostinger/Bluehost) puts you in a crowded apartment. Cloudways gives you a detached house. You don't share resources with anyone.
4.1 US East (New York - DigitalOcean)
Testing from the NY1 datacenter.
- TTFB (Time to First Byte): 45ms (This is instant)
- LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): 0.4s
- Fully Loaded: 0.7s
4.2 US West (Silicon Valley - Vultr HF)
I spun up a Vultr High Frequency server to test the West Coast.
- TTFB: 52ms
- LCP: 0.5s
4.3 Global Speed Snapshot
| Provider | Location | TTFB | Load Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| DigitalOcean | London, UK | 38ms | 0.5s |
| Linode | Tokyo, JP | 65ms | 0.8s |
| AWS | Sydney, AU | 42ms | 0.6s |
Note: With Cloudways, you can choose from over 60+ data centers globally. You can put your server exactly where your customers are.
Pros & Cons
✅ The Good
- Performance: It is simply faster than any shared host. Period.
- Scalability: Click one button to double your server size.
- Pay-As-You-Go: No 3-year contracts. Pay monthly. Cancel anytime.
- Staging Sites: Unlimited 1-click staging environments.
❌ The Bad
- No Email: You need to use their Rackspace add-on ($1/mo) or Google Workspace.
- Slight Learning Curve: If you love cPanel, you will need a day to adjust.
Who Should Use Cloudways?
✅ Best For
- Agencies: Manage 50 client sites on one server.
- WooCommerce: The dedicated resources prevent "slow cart" issues.
- Developers: Git integration, SSH access, and staging are built-in.
❌ Not For
- Total Beginners: If you don't know what DNS is, this might be scary.
- Email Hoarders: If you need 50 free email accounts, go to Hostinger.
Feature Deep Dive: The "Managed" Magic
7.1 The "Cloudways Tax" (And Why It's Worth It)
You might notice that a DigitalOcean droplet costs $12/mo directly, but Cloudways charges ~$24/mo for it. Why pay double?
You are paying for the Control Panel and Support.
If you buy directly from DigitalOcean, you get a blank Linux terminal. If it breaks, you fix it. With Cloudways, you get a GUI, 24/7 support, automated backups, and a firewall. It saves you hours of sysadmin work every month.
7.2 Vertical Scaling
This is my favorite feature. Let's say you run a Black Friday sale. You can log in, click "Scale Server," and upgrade from 2GB RAM to 8GB RAM for the weekend. When the sale is over, you can scale back down (on some providers).
7.3 Security & Bot Protection
They have a partnership with Cloudflare Enterprise (extra cost, but worth it) and their own "Bot Protection" that blocks brute force attacks. I checked my logs and saw it blocked 4,000+ login attempts in one week without me doing anything.
7.4 Customer Support Experience
I tested their "Live Chat."
Wait Time: Instant (under 1 minute).
Quality: Mixed. Level 1 support is okay for basic things. For complex server issues, you sometimes have to wait for a "Senior Engineer" ticket. But for 99% of issues, they are faster than Bluehost.
Pricing: Pay As You Go
Pricing depends on which cloud provider you choose (DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS, Google).
| Provider | Entry Price | Performance | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| DigitalOcean | ~$14/mo | Solid | General WP Sites |
| Vultr HF | ~$16/mo | Fastest | WooCommerce / Heavy Sites |
| AWS / Google | ~$40/mo+ | Enterprise | Fortune 500 / Huge Scale |
My Advice: Start with DigitalOcean Premium or Vultr High Frequency. They offer the best bang for your buck.
Real-World Use Cases
🏢 The Digital Agency
You manage 20 client sites.
Verdict: Put them all on one large $50/mo server. It's cheaper and faster than buying 20 shared plans.
🛍️ The Growing Store
You are doing $10k/mo in sales.
Verdict: Mandatory. Shared hosting will crash during checkout. Cloudways won't.
Cloudways vs. The World
Cloudways vs. SiteGround
SiteGround is great, but their "GoGeek" plan costs $40/mo on renewal. A $26/mo Cloudways server is 2x faster and supports more traffic.
Winner: Cloudways (for power users).
Cloudways vs. WP Engine
WP Engine is amazing but starts at $30/mo for ONE site. Cloudways starts at $14/mo for UNLIMITED sites (until the server fills up).
Winner: Cloudways (for value).
Alternatives to Consider
- Kinsta: If you have a huge budget and want "white glove" support where they fix everything for you.
- Hostinger VPS: If you are a Linux expert and want to save $10/mo by managing the server yourself (CyberPanel).
Final Verdict: Is Cloudways Worth It?
Yes. It is the best hosting decision I ever made.
Once you go Cloudways, you can't go back to shared hosting. The speed difference is too addictive.
If you are making money from your website, you owe it to yourself to move to a dedicated cloud server. Cloudways makes that easy.
Test it before you pay a cent.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Cloudways hard to use?
It has a learning curve. You don't have cPanel. But once you learn where the "SFTP" and "Database" tabs are, it's actually cleaner than cPanel.
Does it include email hosting?
No. You need to buy the Rackspace add-on ($1/mo/mailbox) or use Google Workspace/Zoho. This is standard for cloud hosting.
Which provider should I choose?
DigitalOcean Premium or Vultr High Frequency. They offer the best performance per dollar.
Can I host multiple sites?
Yes! You can host as many sites as you want on one server. I have a 2GB server running 15 small client sites comfortably.