Pricing · Web Hosting

Cloudways pricing

What Cloudways really costs, and why the cloud provider and server size you pick, not a flat plan, decide your bill.

Cloudways does not sell fixed plans. It is managed cloud hosting that runs on top of five providers, so your cost tracks the provider and server size you launch, billed monthly or hourly with no long contract. Entry rates run from DigitalOcean through Vultr and Linode to AWS and Google Cloud, each a different price for the same management layer. The figures that move your real bill are server size, bandwidth overages and paid add ons. Below is each provider entry point as published, then the things that move the number.

Read the full Cloudways review
Reviewed by ·Updated MAY 2026·How we vet

Plans and prices

Per month, per server, pay as you go

Pricing as of June 2026. Cloudways bills per cloud server with no long contract; the rate depends on the provider and server size you pick, and annual billing lowers the effective monthly rate. Check the vendor for current pricing.

★ Our pick
DigitalOcean
$11
The standard entry, most start here
+1 GB RAM, 1 core, 25 GB storage
+1 TB bandwidth included
+Same management layer as every tier
+NVMe option for about $3 more a month
Vultr
$14
Standard or high frequency
+From 1 GB RAM standard servers
+High frequency servers from about $16
+Choose your data center region
+Free SSL, staging and CDN add on
Linode
$14
Akamai cloud servers
+1 GB RAM, 1 core, 25 GB SSD
+1 TB bandwidth included
+Hourly or monthly billing
+Scale or destroy servers any time
AWS and Google Cloud
$38
Enterprise clouds for scale
+AWS from about $38 a month
+Google Cloud from about $37 a month
+Premium network and global reach
+Best for compliance and scale needs
What moves the real bill

Server size and add ons set the real bill.

Cloudways prices the server, not a plan, so a few things tend to separate the entry rate from what you actually pay. Plan for these before you launch.

Provider and server size. Your bill tracks the cloud provider and server you choose. DigitalOcean starts near $11 a month, Vultr and Linode near $14, and AWS or Google Cloud near $38. Bigger servers with more RAM and cores cost proportionally more.
Bandwidth overages. Each server includes a bandwidth allowance, for example 1 TB on the entry tiers. Traffic beyond it bills extra per GB, so high traffic sites should size bandwidth, not just RAM and cores.
Paid add ons. Premium features bill on top of the server: automated off site backups, premium 24/7 support, dedicated firewalls and extra application credits each carry their own charge.
Email and managed extras. Cloudways does not include email hosting, so inboxes come from an add on or a separate provider. Optional managed extras such as automated updates are also paid features rather than included.
Pricing questions

Cloudways pricing FAQ

How much does Cloudways cost per month?

Cloudways bills per cloud server, starting near $11 a month on DigitalOcean, $14 on Vultr or Linode, and about $38 on AWS or Google Cloud. There is no long contract. Pricing as of June 2026; check the vendor for current pricing.

Does Cloudways charge a flat plan price?

No. Cloudways is pay as you go and prices by the cloud server you launch rather than a fixed plan. You pick the provider and size, pay monthly or hourly, and can scale or destroy servers at any time, so the bill matches your usage.

Why is Cloudways more expensive than shared hosting?

Because you are renting a managed cloud server rather than a slot on a shared machine. The entry DigitalOcean server gives you dedicated resources and the same management layer as the largest plans, which commodity shared hosting near $3 a month does not.

What adds to the Cloudways bill beyond the server?

Bandwidth overages, automated off site backups, premium support, add on email and dedicated firewalls all bill on top of the base server. Sizing the server and watching bandwidth are the two biggest levers on your monthly cost. Verified June 2026.

Keep reading

Get the free shortlist: the tools worth your time in each category, without the fluff.