Cloudways

Cloudways Review 2026: Pricing, Managed Cloud Hosting, Features and Pros

Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform designed for website owners who want the flexibility of cloud infrastructure without having to administer servers entirely on their own.

Instead of operating only one underlying hosting network, Cloudways Flexible allows customers to deploy applications on infrastructure from DigitalOcean, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, Vultr and Linode.

Cloudways also now offers a second product called Cloudways Autonomous, which takes a more hands-off approach to WordPress hosting by automatically scaling infrastructure according to traffic.

This makes Cloudways different from conventional shared hosts such as Hostinger, Namecheap or Bluehost. Customers are essentially paying for a managed platform layered over cloud infrastructure rather than a traditional shared hosting account.

Cloudways was founded in 2011 and became part of DigitalOcean after a $350 million acquisition completed in 2022.

Cloudways Flexible vs Cloudways Autonomous

Cloudways currently offers two primary hosting approaches.

Cloudways Flexible

Flexible is the traditional Cloudways managed cloud hosting platform.

It allows users to choose cloud infrastructure, server size and location while Cloudways provides the management interface and hosting stack.

Flexible supports applications including:

• WordPress
• WooCommerce
• Magento
• Laravel
• PHP applications

It is best suited to users who want more infrastructure control and the ability to scale server resources manually.

Cloudways Autonomous

Autonomous is designed primarily for WordPress, WooCommerce and higher-traffic websites that need automatic scaling.

It uses Kubernetes-based infrastructure and can automatically increase available compute capacity when traffic rises.

Autonomous requires less server-level management than Flexible but gives users less manual infrastructure control.

For most agencies, developers and users who want to choose their cloud provider, Flexible remains the more configurable option.

For a WooCommerce store or high-traffic WordPress application where sudden traffic spikes are the bigger concern, Autonomous may be worth comparing.

Cloudways Flexible Pricing in 2026

Cloudways Flexible uses pay-as-you-go pricing.

Current entry-level DigitalOcean configurations include:

Cloudways also offers configurations based on AWS, Google Cloud, Vultr and Linode, so exact pricing depends on the infrastructure provider and server size selected.

Unlike many traditional web hosts, Cloudways does not require customers to purchase several years of hosting upfront to receive the normal monthly rate.

Billing is usage-based and calculated according to the resources used.

This makes the pricing model more flexible, although it can also be less predictable when users add servers, storage, bandwidth or paid add-ons.

Current Cloudways Promotion

Cloudways currently offers new customers 40% off hosting plans for four months using the code:

SUMMER404

The offer is scheduled to expire on September 15, 2026 and currently also includes unlimited free migrations.

Because this is a temporary promotion, long-term comparisons should use the standard $14/month starting price rather than assuming the discount will remain available.

Cloudways Autonomous Pricing

Autonomous currently uses single-site plans aimed at sites requiring automatic scaling.

Autonomous provides unmetered visits and includes Cloudflare Enterprise CDN, Redis caching, Object Cache Pro, managed migration and automatic scaling.

Additional charges can apply when usage exceeds included resources, particularly for additional scaling capacity, storage and bandwidth.

Autonomous therefore makes more sense for websites where predictable performance during traffic spikes matters more than getting the lowest possible hosting price.

Cloud Provider Choice

One of Cloudways Flexible’s main differentiators is the ability to choose between several infrastructure providers.

Current options include:

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

Each provider has different pricing, infrastructure locations and scaling characteristics.

DigitalOcean is generally the easiest starting point for customers looking for straightforward fixed server configurations.

AWS and Google Cloud can provide broader infrastructure flexibility but may also make pricing more complex.

Cloudways sits above these providers and supplies the management layer, optimized hosting stack, support and deployment interface.

New Cloudways Dashboard

Cloudways introduced a redesigned interface that is now the main management environment for current users.

The dashboard provides access to:

• Cloudways Flexible
• Cloudways Autonomous
• servers
• applications
• integrations
• teams
• projects
• billing
• support
• APIs

The new interface also integrates Cloudways Copilot and newer security-management features.

This is worth mentioning because many older Cloudways reviews still show the previous interface, which is gradually being phased out.

Cloudways Copilot

Cloudways Copilot is an AI-powered troubleshooting assistant built into the current platform.

It monitors infrastructure and applications for issues and can generate diagnostic insights.

Cloudways also provides SmartFix functionality for selected problems, allowing users to apply recommended fixes directly from the platform.

This is a useful addition for website owners who want managed hosting but still need visibility into server-level issues.

It should not be treated as a replacement for technical expertise in every infrastructure problem, but it can reduce the amount of manual diagnosis needed for common incidents.

Lightning Stack

Cloudways has introduced its newer NGINX-based Lightning Stack for supported applications.

The stack combines technologies used for caching and application delivery, including NGINX, Varnish, Redis, PHP-FPM and MariaDB.

Cloudways positions the stack around faster request handling and improved scalability for dynamic websites.

HowToBuySaaS has not independently benchmarked the Lightning Stack, so performance claims should be treated as vendor-provided until we complete our own hosting tests.

WordPress Hosting

WordPress remains one of the strongest Cloudways use cases.

Useful WordPress features currently include:

• managed server environment
• staging and cloning
• WordPress vulnerability scanning
• Redis
• Object Cache Pro
• SSL
• application monitoring
• backups
• migration support
• vertical server scaling
• Site Manager

Cloudways does not restrict Flexible customers to one WordPress installation per hosting account.

Instead, users can host multiple applications on a server as long as the server has enough resources to support them.

That can make the platform attractive to agencies managing several WordPress sites.

Cloudways Site Manager

Site Manager is Cloudways’ centralized WordPress-management tool.

It allows users to manage multiple WordPress sites from one dashboard and includes capabilities such as:

• WordPress core updates
• plugin management
• theme management
• user management
• performance monitoring
• activity logs
• update scheduling

A Basic version is currently available free, while Site Manager Pro adds functionality such as SafeUpdates, scheduled automatic updates, performance tracking and activity history.

This is particularly relevant for agencies managing many WordPress installations.

WooCommerce Hosting

Cloudways also targets ecommerce and WooCommerce sites.

WooCommerce users can use either Flexible or Autonomous.

Flexible is a better match where the business wants greater server and infrastructure control.

Autonomous becomes more interesting where stores experience unpredictable traffic spikes and automatic scaling is important.

Current Cloudways ecommerce features include caching, Cloudflare integrations, server monitoring, backups, staging and scalable resources.

Staging and Cloning

Cloudways provides staging environments that allow users to test website changes before pushing them to production.

This is valuable for:

• plugin updates
• WordPress changes
• WooCommerce modifications
• theme development
• application testing

The platform also provides cloning functionality for creating copies of applications.

These features make Cloudways particularly useful to agencies and development teams managing live customer websites.

Website Migration

Cloudways provides managed website migration.

Its current promotion includes unlimited free migrations for new customers through September 15, 2026.

Outside temporary promotions, Cloudways has historically provided at least one managed migration as part of its onboarding offer, while additional migration terms can vary.

Cloudways Autonomous currently provides free managed migration for active-plan users.

Users moving large or complicated sites should confirm the exact migration entitlement associated with the selected product and current promotion.

Backups

Cloudways Flexible provides automated offsite backups.

Backup storage is currently charged at:

$0.033 per GB

Cloudways calculates the charge based on backup storage consumed.

Autonomous includes backup costs within the plan price.

This is an important pricing difference because the $14 Flexible hosting price does not represent every possible hosting-related charge.

Security

Current Cloudways Flexible security functionality includes:

• server firewall
• IP blocking
• malware protection
• WordPress vulnerability scanning
• SSL
• security monitoring
• Imunify360-powered security features in the newer interface
• Cloudflare integrations
• DDoS protection capabilities through applicable infrastructure and services

The exact protections available can depend on the platform, application and enabled integrations.

Support

Cloudways provides 24/7 support through chat, email and tickets.

Standard support is included.

Cloudways also offers paid Advanced Support for users requiring a higher support level.

Businesses should check whether the standard support scope covers their expected workload because managed hosting does not mean Cloudways will perform every website-development or application-level task.

Billing Model

Cloudways uses pay-as-you-go billing.

For Flexible, customers are billed based on the server resources they use.

Invoices are normally generated monthly for the previous month’s usage.

An important detail is that simply stopping a DigitalOcean, Linode or Vultr Flexible server does not stop billing because the infrastructure resources remain allocated.

To completely stop charges, the server must be removed.

This is worth understanding before using Cloudways for temporary environments.

Who Should Use Cloudways?

Agencies

Cloudways is especially useful for agencies managing multiple client websites because several applications can be organized from one platform.

WordPress Businesses

Managed WordPress tools, staging, backups and server scaling make it suitable for revenue-generating WordPress websites.

WooCommerce Stores

Ecommerce stores can choose between manually scalable Flexible infrastructure and automatically scaling Autonomous hosting.

Developers

SSH, Git, server controls, application deployment, APIs and multiple infrastructure providers give developers more flexibility than conventional shared hosting.

Growing Websites

A website can move to larger server configurations without rebuilding the entire hosting environment.

Cloudways Pros

• Five major cloud infrastructure providers
• Pay-as-you-go billing
• No multi-year hosting commitment required
• Managed cloud infrastructure
• WordPress and WooCommerce support
• Laravel, Magento and PHP hosting
• Staging and application cloning
• Free SSL
• Vertical scaling
• 24/7 support
• Cloudways Copilot
• New Lightning Stack
• Site Manager for WordPress
• Flexible and Autonomous hosting options
• Multiple applications per Flexible server
• Free trial without credit card

Cloudways Cons

• More expensive than entry-level shared hosting
• Pricing can become complex across infrastructure providers and add-ons
• Offsite Flexible backups cost extra
• Email hosting is not bundled like it is with many shared hosts
• Beginners may find server terminology less familiar than conventional hosting
• Stopping certain Flexible servers does not stop billing
• Autonomous plans start at a much higher price
• Some support and integrations carry additional costs

Cloudways vs Hostinger

Hostinger is easier to approach as a conventional managed web host.

It bundles hosting, domains, email and beginner-friendly website tools into straightforward plans.

Cloudways is better suited to users who want managed cloud infrastructure, server-level resource control and the option to choose between infrastructure providers.

For a basic business website, Hostinger may be simpler.

For agencies, developers and growing sites requiring more infrastructure flexibility, Cloudways has the stronger cloud-management model.

Cloudways vs Kinsta

Kinsta provides a more tightly controlled managed WordPress environment.

Cloudways provides considerably more infrastructure choice and supports applications beyond WordPress.

Users who want a highly managed WordPress-only experience may prefer Kinsta.

Users who want DigitalOcean, AWS, Google Cloud, Vultr or Linode choices and broader application hosting may prefer Cloudways.

Cloudways vs SiteGround

SiteGround operates more like a conventional managed hosting provider with simplified hosting plans.

Cloudways exposes more server-level configuration and infrastructure choice.

SiteGround may be easier for beginners.

Cloudways may be more attractive to agencies, developers and users who expect to scale server resources directly.

Is Cloudways Worth It in 2026?

Cloudways remains a strong option for businesses that have outgrown inexpensive shared hosting but do not want to administer raw cloud infrastructure themselves.

Its biggest advantage is the middle ground it provides between traditional hosting and self-managed cloud servers.

Flexible gives agencies and developers substantial control over infrastructure while Cloudways manages much of the underlying hosting environment.

Autonomous takes the opposite approach and handles scaling automatically for WordPress and WooCommerce websites with heavier or unpredictable traffic.

Cloudways is not the cheapest way to host a small website. For a basic blog or brochure site, conventional shared hosting may provide better value.

It becomes more compelling when server resources, scalability, staging, multiple applications, developer access, ecommerce performance or agency workflows matter.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Cloudways cost?

Cloudways Flexible currently starts at $14 per month for an entry DigitalOcean configuration with 1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU, 25 GB NVMe storage and 1 TB bandwidth.

Does Cloudways offer a free trial?

Yes. Cloudways currently offers a 3-day free trial without requiring a credit card.

Does Cloudways offer shared hosting?

Not in the conventional sense. Cloudways provides managed cloud hosting built on infrastructure providers such as DigitalOcean, AWS, Google Cloud, Vultr and Linode.

Is Cloudways good for WordPress?

Yes. Cloudways provides managed WordPress hosting with staging, backups, caching, security tools, migration support and scalable server resources.

Does Cloudways support WooCommerce?

Yes. Both Cloudways Flexible and Autonomous support WooCommerce use cases.

Which cloud providers does Cloudways support?

Cloudways Flexible currently supports DigitalOcean, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, Vultr and Linode.

Does Cloudways include email hosting?

Traditional mailbox hosting is not included in the same way it is with many shared hosts. Customers can use external email services or available email add-ons.

Are Cloudways backups free?

Cloudways Flexible offsite backups currently cost $0.033 per GB of backup storage. Autonomous backup costs are included in the hosting plan.

Can I host multiple websites on Cloudways?

Yes. Flexible allows multiple applications on a server as long as the available server resources can support them.

Does Cloudways require an annual contract?

No. Flexible uses pay-as-you-go billing instead of requiring long-term prepaid contracts.

Who owns Cloudways?

Cloudways is part of DigitalOcean. DigitalOcean completed its acquisition of Cloudways in September 2022.

What is Cloudways Autonomous?

Autonomous is Cloudways’ fully managed WordPress hosting product with automatic infrastructure scaling for traffic changes.

Pricing last verified: September 10, 2026. Temporary promotions and plan pricing may change.