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The Cloudways Insider’s Guide

Everything we know about Cloudways in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.

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ToolGPAOctober 2026

Cloudways

The Insider’s Guide

Managed cloud hosting on DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS or Google

Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among web hosts, read from Cloudways’s own pages.

Made by Cloudways, LLC · checked Oct 17, 2026 · toolgpa.com

2.0GPA

Contents

  1. 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
  2. 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
  3. 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
  4. 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
  5. 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
  6. 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
  7. 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from Cloudways’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Cloudways’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 17, 2026.

Part 01 · Overview

Welcome

What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first

2.0

GPA, above 7 of the 21 other web hosts we grade

Cloudways runs managed servers for WordPress, WooCommerce, Magento, Laravel and other PHP apps on a cloud provider you pick, such as DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS or Google Cloud. It handles the server, SSL, backups, staging and security, and an AI tool called Copilot watches the server and helps diagnose problems.

To get you started, here are 8 things to know about Cloudways, taken from its own pages and our grades.

You choose and size the server yourself, which is more decisions than a shared hosting plan asks of you.
From our grade for ease of use
  1. 1

    Best for managed cloud servers without running them yourself

    But we couldn't read its prices, and email, the CDN and fuller malware protection all cost extra.

  2. 2

    You can try it first

    3-day free trial, no credit card required

  3. 3

    It runs on Web

    Web.

  4. 4

    Choice of cloud provider

    Servers run on DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud, and you pick the provider, size and location, then scale up later.

  5. 5

    Managed server essentials

    Cloudways sets up and maintains the server with free SSL, backups, one-click staging and Object Cache Pro, and moves an existing site over for free.

  6. 6

    Copilot AI monitoring

    Cloudways Copilot watches the server's critical components and uses AI to diagnose issues and suggest fixes.

  7. 7

    A 2.0 GPA, above 7 of 21

    That is against the other web hosts we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.

  8. 8

    Keep it

    To replace Cloudways you would be making an engine that recognises new malware as it appears. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.

Cloudways at a glance

Pricing
Free trial
Free plan
No
Free trial
3-day free trial, no credit card required
Runs on
Web
Made by
Cloudways, LLC
Category
Web Hosting
Our grade
2.0 GPA, fair

The report card

Best for managed cloud servers without running them yourself

Cloudways sits between shared hosting and running your own server: you pick a cloud provider and a server size, and it handles SSL, backups, staging, security and an AI monitor called Copilot. You can try it for 3 days with no card. But we couldn't read its prices, and email, the CDN and fuller malware protection all cost extra.

ToolGPA report cardCloudwaysGraded Oct 17, 2026
SubjectGradeComment
Value for moneyCNo price on record: Cloudways' pages answered our readers with a bot check, so no two-year figure can be worked out. With nothing to compare, it sits at C, the grade for no stated price. Email, the CDN and malware protection are extra on top.
Free plan and trialDA 3-day free trial with no credit card, which is nice. But three days is less than a week, too short to judge a host properly, so it lands at D.
FeaturesCManaged servers on DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS or Google Cloud, with SSL, backups, staging, Object Cache Pro, Copilot and free migration. The gaps the listing names: email, the CDN and the malware protection service are paid add-ons.
Ease of useCNo app store rating to go on. You choose and size the server yourself, which is more decisions than a shared hosting plan asks of you.
Platforms and integrationsBA web console with no app on record, plus a published API and a choice of five cloud providers, with WordPress, WooCommerce, Magento and Laravel apps on top.
Grade point averageFair, out of 4.02.0

An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.

Who Cloudways is for

  • Great if your site has outgrown shared hosting but you don't want to run a server
  • Handy when you host Laravel or other PHP apps next to WordPress
  • Good for agencies hosting many client apps on servers they control

Who it is not for

  • Not for you if you want email included, as it's a paid add-on
  • Skip it if picking a server size sounds like homework, since you choose it yourself
  • Tight if you want a proper look before paying, as the free trial lasts 3 days

Good to know

Good for

  • Sites that have outgrown shared hosting but do not want to run a server
  • Agencies hosting many client apps on servers they control
  • Developers running Laravel or other PHP apps alongside WordPress

Worth knowing

  • Cloudways' pages answered our readers with a bot check, so its server prices could not be read and are not listed here.
  • Email hosting, the Cloudflare CDN and the malware protection service are paid add-ons rather than part of the server price.
  • You choose and size the server yourself, which takes more decisions than a shared hosting plan.

Part 02 · Pricing

What it costs

Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved

Cloudways's current pricing could not be confirmed from its own site.

No price on record: Cloudways' pages answered our readers with a bot check, so no two-year figure can be worked out.
From our grade for value for money

We could not confirm Cloudways’s current prices from its own site, so this guide lists no plans. cloudways.com has them.

Part 03 · Features

What it does

Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it

1

Place it runs: Web

Managed cloud hosting on DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS or Google. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: public API, AI features, malware protection.

The gaps the listing names: email, the CDN and the malware protection service are paid add-ons.
From our grade for features
Choice of cloud provider
Servers run on DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud, and you pick the provider, size and location, then scale up later.
Managed server essentials
Cloudways sets up and maintains the server with free SSL, backups, one-click staging and Object Cache Pro, and moves an existing site over for free.
Copilot AI monitoring
Cloudways Copilot watches the server's critical components and uses AI to diagnose issues and suggest fixes.
Security and malware scanning
Servers get malware scanning and vulnerability alerts, with a fuller malware protection service and a Cloudflare CDN sold as add-ons.
Cloudways API
Cloudways publishes an API, linked from every page, for working with the platform from your own scripts and tools.

Where it runs

  • Web

What it works with

  • WordPress
  • WooCommerce
  • Magento
  • Laravel
  • DigitalOcean
  • Amazon Web Services
  • Google Cloud
  • Cloudflare

Cloudways is made by Cloudways, LLC.

Part 04 · Standing

Where it stands

Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own

7/21

Other web hosts it is graded above

Cloudways's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 7 of the 21 other web hosts we grade, and level with 7.

It stands best on platforms and integrations (B, above 12 of 21) and worst on free plan and trial (D, above 19).

Each grade against the category

Every bar is all 22 web hosts we grade, cut by the letter each got. Cloudways’s own letter is outlined.

  • CValue for moneyAbove 1 of 21
  • DFree plan and trialAbove 19 of 21
  • CFeaturesAbove 0 of 21
  • CEase of useAbove 0 of 21
  • BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 12 of 21

Keep it, or make your own?

Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.

Keep it

To replace Cloudways you would be making an engine that recognises new malware as it appears. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.

What you could not

  • An engine that recognises new malware as it appears.
  • It plugs into other products, WordPress, WooCommerce and Magento among them, and has an API.
  • AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.

What this rests on. Cloudways’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.

Part 05 · Alternatives

The alternatives

The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side

Kinsta, WP Engine, Rocket.net, Liquid Web and SiteGround

The 5 tools Cloudways is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.

Part 06 · Questions

Quick answers

The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two

11

Questions, each answered in a line or two

The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.

Is Cloudways free?

No, Cloudways is a paid product, but you can try it first. 3-day free trial, no credit card required.

What platforms does Cloudways work on?

Cloudways is available on Web.

Does Cloudways have an Android app?

No Android app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Cloudways is listed for Web.

Does Cloudways have an iPhone app?

No iPhone app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 17, 2026. Cloudways is listed for Web.

Is Cloudways open source?

Cloudways is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 17, 2026.

Does Cloudways have an API?

Yes. Cloudways offers a public API, according to its own site.

What does Cloudways integrate with?

Cloudways's listing names WordPress, WooCommerce, Magento, Laravel, DigitalOcean, Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud and Cloudflare.

Who makes Cloudways?

Cloudways is made by Cloudways, LLC.

What are the alternatives to Cloudways?

The closest alternatives to Cloudways in our directory are Kinsta, WP Engine, Rocket.net, Liquid Web and SiteGround.

How does Cloudways compare with other web hosts?

Cloudways's GPA of 2.0 is higher than 7 of the 21 other web hosts we grade, and level with 7.

Could I make my own version of Cloudways?

To replace Cloudways you would be making an engine that recognises new malware as it appears.

Where this guide comes from

The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Cloudways’s own pages on Oct 17, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 17, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Cloudways's own pages on 17 October 2026. Its pricing page answered our reader with a bot check when we checked it again that day. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews.

Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Cloudways, LLC. Prices change, so check cloudways.com before you buy.

Part 07 · About

About ToolGPA

Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

1,880

Tools graded, in 47 categories

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

ToolGPA is free to read. It may earn a commission from affiliate links and it works with sponsors, but anything paid for is labelled and no one can pay for a grade. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

  • 1,880

    tools graded

  • 47

    categories

  • 426

    price changes on record

  • 579

    apps priced in 12 countries

What else is on toolgpa.com

Scan for the live page

Prices and grades as they are today

Quoting this guide?

Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:

ToolGPA, "Cloudways: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 17, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/cloudways

Know someone choosing between web hosts?

Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/cloudways/guide

ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa

See our other guides

The best-graded web hosts after Cloudways, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.

ToolGPA

Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.

Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›

Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Cloudways’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. ToolGPA uses affiliate links and may earn a commission from them, and it works with sponsors; anything paid for is labelled, and no one can pay for a grade. Cloudways is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Cloudways, LLC. Prices and plans change: check cloudways.com before you buy.