What Is Cloudways?
Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that sits between you and major cloud infrastructure providers like DigitalOcean, Linode, Vultr, AWS, and Google Cloud. Instead of dealing with server configuration, security patches, and optimization yourself, Cloudways handles all of that so you can focus on running your WordPress site.
Founded in 2012, Cloudways has grown into one of the most popular choices among WordPress developers, agency owners, and performance-obsessed site owners who want cloud-level speed without the DevOps headache.
Speed Test Results
We tested a standard WordPress installation with Elementor, WooCommerce, and a typical plugin stack. Here is what we found:
- Time to First Byte (TTFB): 95ms average from a New York location
- Fully Loaded Time: 1.2 seconds with object caching enabled
- Core Web Vitals (LCP): 1.8 seconds after Cloudflare CDN integration
- Google PageSpeed Score: 91 mobile / 97 desktop on a clean install with Breeze caching
For comparison, we ran the same test on shared hosting. TTFB came in at 680ms and mobile PageSpeed sat at 54. The difference was not close.
Pricing
- DigitalOcean 1GB RAM: ~$14/month — good for low-traffic sites
- DigitalOcean 2GB RAM: ~$28/month — handles most WordPress blogs comfortably
- Vultr High Frequency 2GB: ~$35/month — NVMe storage, better for WooCommerce
- AWS and Google Cloud: Available at higher price points for enterprise reliability
No per-site fees. You can host multiple WordPress installs on a single server, which makes the per-site cost very attractive for agencies.
Pros and Cons
What We Like
- Genuinely fast infrastructure out of the box — no tuning required
- Redis object caching with a one-click toggle
- Breeze WP Rocket built and optimized for their stack
- Free Cloudflare Enterprise CDN integration
- Vertical and horizontal scaling without downtime
- 24/7 live chat support that resolves issues on first contact
What Could Be Better
- No built-in email hosting — you need a third-party transactional email service
- Dashboard can feel overwhelming for cPanel migrants
- Pricing can creep up if you are not monitoring bandwidth usage
Verdict
Cloudways in 2026 remains one of the strongest choices for WordPress site owners who want real cloud performance without managing servers themselves. The combination of NVMe-backed cloud infrastructure, Redis caching, Nginx, and Cloudflare CDN delivers scores that shared hosting cannot match.
If you want fast Kinsta without the complexity, Cloudways is worth trying. Use our link for a 3-day free trial.
Is Your Site Slow? Get a Free Speed Audit
Disclosure: Some links in this article are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Disclosure: Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you purchase through them, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
