Cloudways Review 2023: Expert Rated 4.5/5

What Are the Pros and Cons of Cloudways?

Cloudways is popular due to its ability to keep users online, maintain site security, and offer pay-as-you-go pricing. However, there may be drawbacks if you pick Cloudways as your web host service provider.

Easy-to-use site migration

Cloudways handles the migration of your site when you have to change hosts. I appreciate the one-click installation so you can easily move your site and get it running and functional for your customers and clients.

You can easily reach out to their experts to help move your website in one piece. Cloudways guarantees that your website will not have downtime throughout the migration process.

Other tools that can be used to migrate your website to Cloudways include configuration services like Apache and MySQL. You can also use Cloudways’ migrator tool to move your current WordPress site to the Cloudways hosting platform.

Account management dashboard

Using the Cloudways console, I reviewed server management features. Multiple add-ons or apps can be used to improve and optimize your website. You may benefit from adding transactional email services or add-ons for DNS management.

With Cloudways, I could access integration, resources, and health features with just a click. Although domain or email management isn’t included, you can scale your site, make changes to hosting, and improve your site’s performance.

Free site builders

When you are ready to create a new site for your business, Cloudways is a great choice. The site builder was easy to explore, so I’m confident it allows even the most novice web designers to make functional and beautiful websites.

One-click installation: Easily set up a new site on your server

One of the top benefits of Cloudways is the ability to set up a new site on your server. First, you will need to choose one of the preferred providers via the Cloudways console:

• DigitalOcean
• Vultr
• Google Compute Engine
• Amazon Web Services
• Linode

After selecting your preferred cloud provider, you can configure your server via the control panel. Select your anticipated number of page views, and Cloudways can recommend the ideal server size for your business.

You also have the option of customizing your server specifications by setting limitations on RAM, bandwidth, storage, and core processors.

Two-factor authentication

Cloudways offers two-factor authentication (2FA) for primary accounts and all team members for tighter security. Two-factor authentication provides maximum security against phishing, brute-force attacks, or keylogging.

I used my mobile device to download and install an authenticator app and connected it to my Cloudways account.

In case you misplace the 2FA-enabled device, Cloudways allows the use of backup codes for logging in to your account. It’s recommended that you generate backup codes.

Auto-healing feature

When there are issues with your site, Cloudways’ auto-healing feature addresses problems immediately, reducing the time your site is down. This feature helps to ensure your site will be up and running smoothly at all times.

Technology to support faster site speeds

Cloudways automatically configures websites to use their Cloudflare system, which distributes files across multiple data centers so your webpages load more quickly. In my testing, Cloudways had an average load time of approximately 2 seconds and an average response time of approximately 63 milliseconds.

Built-in SSL certificate

One of the top Cloudways benefits is using a built-in, free SSL certificate that secures your site and allows you to communicate safely with your customers. The free SSL certificate is available on all hosting packages and plans and will help ensure your website adheres to Google’s recommended security practices, which can help boost your site rankings.

Dedicated firewalls

Having powerful firewalls in place will help reduce unauthorized traffic to your website and help increase the site’s security overall. With Cloudways’ dedicated firewalls, you can:

• Create email and user filters
• Develop blacklists for IP addresses
• Create password-protected directories

With Cloudways’ pay-as-you-go pricing options, you can select the backup frequency to increase your website’s security.

Uptime and reliability

Cloudways users experience 99% uptime, but there is no uptime guarantee. Cloudways technology features used to increase reliability and site uptime include:

• MariaDB/MySQL
• Varnish
• Redis
• Apache
• PHP-FPM
• Nginx
• Memcached
• SSD for storage

Site response times

My testing showed that Cloudways had an average site response time of 0.063 seconds. This is impressive and demonstrates the efficiency with which Cloudways can load your site pages and comply with users’ web requests.

Optimized WordPress tools

Cloudways also allows you to use WordPress site-building tools to design your website and configure it to ensure fast web page load speeds and functionality.

Cloudways takes server and site security seriously. Through the WordPress-managed hosting click-and-go platform, cloud servers are safeguarded by firewalls. Cloudways uses “security hardening techniques” to protect servers from potential hacking.

Cloudways offers a choice in how often you want to back up your data or opt for automatic site backups, depending on your needs. You can set up your server to automatically back up every day, every three days, or at whatever interval you want. You also have the option of simply clicking a button to back up your server manually at any time.

Contacting Cloudways for help when you run into issues with your site is simple. You can email them, contact the support team by phone, or initiate a live chat.

Live chat may be the best way to communicate with the technical support team at Cloudways. However, if you have simple questions, Cloudways has a dedicated page for technical queries, billing, sales, and other questions through their frequently asked questions page.

I got help immediately via live chat, but it took longer to resolve issues when I reached out via phone or email.

Cloudways’ user interface gives you the information to address many problems without technical support. Even if you cannot reach Cloudways representatives by phone or email immediately, live chat allows you to immediately address many issues.

Compare Cloudways Alternatives

Although Cloudways is a great option when searching for a web host provider, some alternatives could be better options. See how Cloudways compares to other top-tier hosting companies the team here at Digital.com recommends:

How I Rated Cloudways

I test web hosts based on the following factors:

• Plan value: What plans are available, and do they offer a good value?
• Ease of use: Is the dashboard easy to navigate?
• Support: How fast can you get help when needed, and is support genuinely helpful?
• Features: What features does the host offer, and how do they compare to similar competitors?
• Security: Does the host offer SSL certificates, Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack protection, backup services, and scans for viruses and malware?
• Speed and uptime: Does the provider offer a fast, stable environment for your website? How does it perform in tests, and what kind of servers does the hosting company use?
• Recent improvements: What has the host done lately to update its technology and services?

Learn more about our review methodology.