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Cloudways Review

Worth it

Should I use Cloudways?

Managed cloud hosting platform, a DigitalOcean company - cloudways.com

· 1 month ago

Buy if you run multiple WordPress/PHP sites and want managed cloud without hiring a sysadmin. Skip it if you can manage raw DigitalOcean yourself or just need one cheap site hosted.

Confidence

High. Based on 20+ public sources: G2, Trustpilot, Reddit, vendor pages, and one CVE advisory.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support quality
  • Security posture

Pricing

From $11/mo

Flexible (standard)

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
AWS-based plansFrom $38.5/mo
AutonomousNot disclosed in sources

Best for

  • Agencies hosting many client WordPress sites
  • Freelancers wanting managed cloud without sysadmin work
  • Small businesses needing scalable WP/e-commerce hosting
  • Teams wanting cloud provider choice (DO, AWS, Vultr)

Not for

  • Single low-traffic hobby sites — shared hosting is far cheaper
  • Devs comfortable managing raw DigitalOcean directly
  • Anyone needing root-level server control or custom stacks
  • Budget hunters unwilling to pay markup over raw cloud prices

Gotchas - check before you buy

medium

Malware scanning costs extra; some users call its upsell tactics a 'scare tactic'

medium

Breeze cache plugin had CVE-2025-69364, an authorization bypass vulnerability

medium

You pay Cloudways' markup on DO/Vultr/AWS; self-managed raw cloud is cheaper

low

Support and performance get mixed marks in some independent reviews

Pros and cons

Pros

  • 4.7/5 on G2 across 1,124+ reviews
  • Entry plans from $11/month, pay-as-you-go
  • Reviewers call it very good value for money
  • Users praise top-notch technical support on G2
  • One-click features bundle common hosting tasks

Cons

  • Higher learning curve than typical shared hosting
  • Premium malware protection is a paid add-on
  • Critics say Cloudways marks up raw DigitalOcean heavily
  • AWS-based plans jump to $38.5/month
  • Some reviewers report performance and support falling short

Sources & method

- 11 sources - One CVE found in Cloudways' Breeze plugin (authorization bypass); malware scanning sold as a paid add-on.

official x2review x7security x1news x1
  • CVE-2025-69364: Cloudways Breeze Auth Bypass Vulnerability, Authorization bypass vulnerability in Cloudways' Breeze caching plugin.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 4/5

    Rating

  • From $11/mo

    Starting price

  • 11

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 4/5. Cheap entry; reviewers call it very good value
  • Ease of use: 3/5. User friendly, but steeper curve than shared hosts
  • Feature depth: 4/5. 1-click tasks, vulnerability scanner, high-availability option
  • Support quality: 4/5. G2 users praise top-notch technical support
  • Security posture: 3/5. Breeze CVE found; malware scanning costs extra
  • 4.7/5 G2 rating 1,124+ reviews
  • $11/mo Starting price Pay-as-you-go; AWS from $38.5/mo
  • 102,000+ Customers Company-claimed
  • 2012 Founded Owned by DigitalOcean

Pricing

Flexible (standard)

From $11/mo

  • Managed WordPress/PHP cloud hosting
  • Pay-as-you-go
  • Choice of cloud providers

AWS-based plans

From $38.5/mo

  • Same platform on AWS infrastructure

Autonomous

Not disclosed

  • High-availability managed hosting

Security

One CVE found in Cloudways' Breeze plugin (authorization bypass); malware scanning sold as a paid add-on.

  • CVE-2025-69364: Cloudways Breeze Auth Bypass VulnerabilityAuthorization bypass vulnerability in Cloudways' Breeze caching plugin.⁹

What users say

Users mostly rate it highly (4.7/5 G2) for support and value, with a minority complaining about learning curve and add-on costs.

“NEVER had a problem with Cloudways.”
Trustpilot reviewer
“Very good value for money.”
Cats Who Code review
“IMO, Cloudways fails in almost everything.”
Online Media Masters review

Companies that use it

  • iSynergy
  • Bigfork
  • WP AOS
Full analysis

Based on 20+ public sources: G2, Trustpilot, Reddit, vendor pages, and one CVE advisory.

Solid managed cloud hosting (4.7/5 G2) from $11/mo — great for multi-site agencies; marked-up overkill for DIY devs and single-site users.

Methodology

Based on 20+ public sources: G2, Trustpilot, Reddit, vendor pages, and one CVE advisory.

Read how a report is made.

Sources

  1. Cloudways Reviews, Details, Pricing & Features (G2)g2.com
    review
  2. Companies Using Cloudways in 2026technologychecker.io
    review
  3. Cloudways customer reviews on Trustpilottrustpilot.com
    review
  4. Cloudways Review 2026: Managed Cloud Hosting Testedcatswhocode.com
    review
  5. Cloudways Review: Features, Pricing and More (Forbes)forbes.com
    review
  6. Cloudways Review 2026: Caveats You Should Be Aware Ofonlinemediamasters.com
    review
  7. Cloudways Pricing & Planscloudways.com
    official
  8. Ultimate Malware Security Add-oncloudways.com
    official
  9. CVE-2025-69364: Cloudways Breeze Auth Bypass Vulnerabilitysentinelone.com
    security
  10. Cloudways Alternative — ServerAvatarserveravatar.com
    review
  11. Cloudways — Crunchbase Company Profilecrunchbase.com
    news

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