CloudPanel vs RunCloud (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, CloudPanel grades higher than RunCloud: 2.4 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
CloudPanel grades higher on the free plan. RunCloud grades higher on ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
RunCloud
Web server control panel for PHP sites on your own cloud servers
Which one is for you
Pick CloudPanel if
- Fits if you host PHP, Node.js or Python sites on a Debian or Ubuntu VPS
- Works for people who want a panel without licence fees
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need paid support, as the ticket system and managed offer are listed as coming soon
- Not for you if you want mail or DNS handled in the panel, since the listing doesn't show either
- Watch out: the Premium and Enterprise columns show no prices
- Watch out: only Debian 11 and 12 and Ubuntu 22.04 and 24.04 are listed, and you maintain the server
Pick RunCloud if
- Fits if you rent your own servers for PHP and WordPress sites
- Works for small setups that need one server on the cheapest plan
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there's only a 7-day trial
- Watch out: servers are billed by your cloud provider
- Tight if you need more than one server: Professional starts at 50
- Watch out: the API, zero-downtime deploys and WAF are Business and above
- Watch out: only monthly prices could be read
How we grade them
| 2.4GPACloudPanelFair | 2.0GPARunCloudFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CThe Community Edition is free for commercial and hobby use, but only if you host it yourself on a server you pay for, so it counts as C. | C$9 a month for 1 server on Essentials, $19 for 50 servers, $49 for Business, near the category middle of $11. Server rental is extra. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree outright for commercial and hobby sites, with no site or user cap listed. Support is the docs and Discord. | DA 7-day free trial, and the page read doesn't say whether it needs a card. No free plan. |
| Features | CA site wizard, isolated sites, several PHP versions, firewall rules, a CLI and WordPress quick install. The listing shows no mail or DNS management. | CUnlimited apps, caching, backups, staging, Git deploys and a firewall. A smaller job than hosting, and the API, zero-downtime deploys and WAF need Business. |
| Ease of use | DNo store rating on record. You provide a Debian or Ubuntu server and install it yourself. | CNo store rating on record. You connect a cloud provider and set up servers. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb only, but it launches on AWS, DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Google Cloud, Azure and Vultr, and uses Let's Encrypt. | BWeb only, with Vultr, Linode, Hetzner, AWS, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean and Cloudflare. |
| Best for | a free panel for PHP, Node.js, Python | managing PHP and WordPress servers |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: CloudPanel and RunCloud. How we grade
Price against what you get
CloudPanel has no paid plan and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. RunCloud starts at $9 a month and scores 2.3.
RunCloud scores higher, and starts $9 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other web hosts on the chart, none scores higher than CloudPanel for less, and 2 score higher than RunCloud for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- CloudPanel is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- CloudPanel also covers managed WordPress.
- RunCloud also covers page speed.
At a glance
| CloudPanel | RunCloud | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free trial |
| Starts at | Free | $9 per month (Essentials, billed monthly) |
| Free plan | The Community Edition is free for commercial and hobby sites, with documentation and Discord for support. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | 7-day free trial. |
| Web | ||
| Made by | MGT-COMMERCE | RunCloud |
| Price read from | cloudpanel.io | runcloud.io |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
CloudPanel
- The vendor lists Debian 12 or 11 and Ubuntu 24.04 or 22.04 as the choices for the operating system.
- The Premium and Enterprise columns on the pricing page show no prices, and their ticket system is listed as coming soon.
- A managed offer for support is announced as coming soon, so there is no paid support plan today.
- You supply and maintain the server; CloudPanel is the panel, not the hosting.
RunCloud
- Servers are paid separately to your cloud provider.
- Essentials covers a single server; Professional starts at 50 servers.
- The RunCloud API, zero-downtime deployments and the web application firewall are limited to Business and above.
- The pricing page has a Monthly and an Annually toggle; only monthly figures could be read. It states a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Key features
CloudPanel
- Site wizard
- Create a WordPress site, PHP application, Node.js app, Python app or static site from templates, including a free Let's Encrypt certificate.
- Isolated sites
- Each site is isolated at the system level, so a vulnerability in one site does not reach the others on the server.
- Several PHP versions
- The panel ships with multiple PHP versions, and changing the version for an app is a single selection.
- Firewall and access rules
- A UFW-based firewall interface, IP restrictions for panel access, an IP blocker and a bot blocker.
- Cloud launch options
- Launch images on AWS, DigitalOcean, Hetzner Cloud, Google Compute Engine, Azure or Vultr, with automated backups on those providers.
- CLI
- Sites can also be set up from the command line with their application-specific configuration.
RunCloud
- Server and app management
- Plans list unlimited web applications, domain management and one-click SSL certificates, with server counts from 1 to 500.
- Caching
- Server-side caching with NGINX FastCGI and Redis full-page and object cache is listed on every plan.
- Backups
- Full and incremental backups come with 2 to 100 GB of free storage by plan, with external backups to providers that widen on higher plans.
- Staging and Git deployment
- Essentials has 1 staging environment, Professional has 10 and Business is unlimited; Git deployment is on all plans.
- Security
- A 6G, 7G and 8G firewall starts on Professional, and Business adds ModSecurity with the OWASP Core Rule Set.
- Team and API
- Business adds roles, 10 team seats and the RunCloud API, at 120 requests a minute and 10,000 a month on monthly billing.
Plans
CloudPanel
Community Edition$0
Free for commercial and hobby sites; support through the documentation and Discord.
RunCloud
Essentials$9
per month, billed monthly
1 server, unlimited web applications, 2 GB of backup storage, Git deployment, server-side caching and 1 staging environment.
Professional$19
per month, billed monthly
50 servers, 10 GB of backup storage, 10 staging environments, application cloning, custom NGINX configuration and 6G, 7G and 8G firewall.
Business$49
per month, billed monthly
100 servers, 30 GB of backup storage, 10 team seats, zero-downtime deployments, the RunCloud API and a WAF with the OWASP core rule set.
Enterprise$399
per month, billed monthly
500 servers, 100 GB of backup storage, up to 5 workspaces, 50 team seats and a higher API rate limit.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, CloudPanel or RunCloud?
As of Nov 13, 2026, CloudPanel is cheaper to start with: it is free, against $9 a month for RunCloud. CloudPanel is free, and RunCloud starts at $9 per month (Essentials, billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, CloudPanel or RunCloud?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only CloudPanel has a free plan. RunCloud does not, though it has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.