Cleavr vs ServerPilot (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Cleavr if

• Fits if you run a handful of PHP or Node.js sites on a VPS and want a dashboard instead of SSH
• Works for freelancers who already pay a VPS provider and only need the deployment layer

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you want hosting included, because every server is billed separately by your provider
• Tight if you need more than one server, as Lite is capped at one
• Pricey if you need backups, which start at Pro at $15 a month
• Watch out: team members and API access need Business at $30 a month, and the trial is 5 days
• Not for you if you need to see monthly-billing prices, which the pricing page doesn't list

Pick ServerPilot if

• Fits if you run PHP or WordPress sites on a VPS and want hourly billing with no contract
• Works for people who want the panel price to stay flat when they upsize the server

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if your apps run Node.js, Python or anything outside PHP and static sites
• Tight if you want monitoring, as the log viewer and resource metrics start at $10 a server
• Watch out: MySQL and app request metrics need First Class at $20 a server
• Watch out: the 14-day trial covers basic functionality only, and servers are billed by your provider

Cleavr

• Servers are not included: you pay your VPS provider separately.
• Lite is limited to one server, and backups and server monitoring start at Pro.
• Team members and API access need Business, which is $30 a month billed yearly.
• The pricing page shows yearly-billed figures; the monthly-billing prices are not listed in the page text.

ServerPilot

• Servers are not included; the cloud provider bills them separately.
• Apps are PHP applications or static sites, so other runtimes are outside what the pricing page defines as an app.
• Log viewer and resource metrics need Business at $10 a server, and MySQL metrics need First Class.
• The 14-day trial covers basic functionality; paid features start once a card or PayPal is added.

Cleavr

Server provisioning

Servers are created at Vultr, DigitalOcean, AWS, UpCloud, Linode or Hetzner, or a custom VPS is connected.

App types

AdonisJS, NuxtJS, NextJS, Laravel, Strapi, NodeJS, WordPress, PHP and static HTML apps can be installed from the dashboard.

Zero-downtime deploys

Deployments run with one click or by push-to-deploy from GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket, to one server or several behind a load balancer.

Databases and backups

MySQL, PostgreSQL and MariaDB servers are managed, and backups can go to AWS S3, Wasabi, Backblaze, DO Spaces, SFTP or local storage.

Security

Free Let's Encrypt SSL, Fail2Ban, UFW configuration, SSH key handling and site isolation are listed.

Monitoring and API

Server health monitoring and notifications to Slack, Discord, Telegram or email are available; the API needs the Business plan or an active trial.

ServerPilot

Any server provider

Servers from any provider can be managed as long as you have root access, and the vendor says you keep ownership of them.

Apps and WordPress

Apps are PHP applications such as WordPress and Laravel, or static sites, isolated from one another, with a one-click WordPress installer and multiple PHP versions.

Server stack

Nginx fronts Apache, with HTTP/3, a default firewall, automated updates and Let's Encrypt SSL certificates.

Monitoring

Business adds a log viewer and server resource metrics; First Class adds app request and MySQL health metrics.

Migrations

Sites and databases can be transferred between servers.

Hourly billing

Server and app charges accrue by the hour and are billed after each month ends, and a server's plan can be changed at any time.

Cleavr

• Lite$5.5

  per month, billed yearly ($66 a year)

  One server, unlimited apps, cron jobs and process monitors.

• Pro$15

  per month, billed yearly ($180 a year)

  Everything in Lite plus unlimited servers, server monitoring and log reports, database and filesystem backups, and quick scripts.

• Business$30

  per month, billed yearly ($360 a year)

  Everything in Pro plus team members and team management, resource management and Cleavr API access.

ServerPilot

• Economy$5

  per server / month, plus $0.50 per app, billed hourly

  Server management, free SSL, firewall, one-click WordPress and email support, without monitoring or priority support.

• Business$10

  per server / month, plus $1 per app, billed hourly

  Adds a log viewer, server resource metrics and priority support.

• First Class$20

  per server / month, plus $2 per app, billed hourly

  Adds app request metrics and MySQL metrics, with high priority support.

Cleavr

• Annual discount

  Yearly billing savings

  The pricing page states yearly billing saves $30 a year on Lite, $36 on Pro and $72 on Business.

• Education

  50% off yearly plans for students

  Students, non-profits and individuals from low-income regions can ask for 50% off yearly plans by emailing proof of status.

• Startups

  Free for open-source projects

  Open-source projects can ask to be sponsored with Cleavr at no cost in return for a README credit and link.

ServerPilot

No public discounts listed.