Disclosure: HostingDive earns a commission when you buy through our links, at no extra cost to you. Prices come from the vendor pages named in the Sources section, read on 2026-11-01.
By HostingDive Team. Vendor pages read on 2026-11-01.
The best Cloudways alternatives are the cloud servers it runs on: Vultr at $5.00 a month for 1 GB RAM, DigitalOcean at $6.00 for 1 GiB and Linode at $5 for 1GB. Cloudways lists its Micro server at $14 for 1GB RAM, so you pay a management premium of $9 a month at that size over the cheapest of them. Pick an alternative if you can run a server yourself. Stay on Cloudways if you cannot or do not want to.
Skilled with SSH and updates: choose Vultr or DigitalOcean and keep the difference. Want a managed panel: stay with Cloudways or move to a managed WordPress host. Want the most RAM per dollar and can accept prepaying: Hostinger VPS.
Cloudways alternatives at a glance
| Option | Type | Lowest 1GB-class list price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cloudways | Managed cloud panel | $14 (Micro, 1GB RAM) | Owners who want no server administration |
| Vultr | Self-managed cloud server | $5.00 (1 GB) | Lowest entry price among the raw clouds here |
| DigitalOcean | Self-managed cloud server | $6.00 (1 GiB) | Developers who value tutorials and documentation |
| Linode (Akamai Cloud) | Self-managed cloud server | $5 (Nanode, 1GB) | Buyers who want the Akamai network behind the server |
| AWS Lightsail | Self-managed, simplified AWS | $7 (1 GB) | Teams already on AWS |
| Hostinger VPS | Self-managed VPS, prepaid term | $6.49 intro for 4 GB (KVM 1) | Most RAM per dollar if you commit to the term |
Sources: cloudways.com/en/pricing.php, vultr.com/pricing, digitalocean.com/pricing/droplets, the Linode plan types API, aws.amazon.com/lightsail/pricing and hostinger.com/vps-hosting, all fetched 2026-11-01. Full links are in the Sources section.
Managed or raw: the decision that matters
Most lists of alternatives compare like with like. This one cannot, because Cloudways is a management layer on top of other clouds. Its own pricing page lists DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS and Google Cloud as the providers it manages hosting on. That makes the DigitalOcean, Vultr and Linode servers below the raw material, not rivals of the same shape.
When you leave Cloudways for a raw server you take over patching, the firewall, backups, caching and recovery. The Cloudways pricing page lists a dedicated firewall, automated or on-demand backups, free SSL and a staging environment as part of every plan, and that is the work you inherit. The cloudways pricing page covers what the managed side costs in full, so this page does not repeat the whole ladder.
Same-RAM price comparison
Match the RAM and compare list prices. Units differ by vendor (GB, GiB), and Vultr, DigitalOcean and Linode are billed as self-managed servers, so the figures are not like-for-like in support or software.
| RAM class | Cloudways | Vultr | DigitalOcean | Linode | Lightsail |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GB class | $14 (1 vCPU) | $5.00 (1 vCPU) | $6.00 (1 vCPU) | $5 (1 vCPU) | $7 (2 vCPUs) |
| 4GB class | $54 (2 vCPU) | $20.00 (2 vCPUs) | $24.00 (2 vCPUs) | $24 (2 vCPU) | $24 (2 vCPUs) |
| 8GB class | $99 (4 vCPU) | $40.00 (4 vCPUs) | $48.00 (4 vCPUs) | $48 (4 vCPU) | $44 (2 vCPUs) |
Monthly list prices in USD. Sources: cloudways.com/en/pricing.php, vultr.com/pricing (Regular Performance), digitalocean.com/pricing/droplets (Basic Droplets), the Linode plan types API (shared CPU types) and aws.amazon.com/lightsail/pricing, all fetched 2026-11-01. Cloudways prices exclude taxes.
Chart: monthly price at the 4GB class
Bar length is proportional to the monthly price of a 4GB server, with Hostinger shown at its renewal rate.
The management premium, by size
Subtract the cheapest matching raw server from the Cloudways price and you get what the managed layer costs each month at list. The gap widens with size.
Derived by HostingDive from the list prices above (Cloudways minus Vultr Regular Performance), fetched 2026-11-01. Whether the premium is worth it depends on how many hours server work would cost you.
Vultr
Vultr's Regular Performance range, listed as powered by previous generation Intel CPUs and regular SSD, runs $5.00 a month for 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, 25 GB storage and 1.00 TB bandwidth. Next up are $10.00 for 2 GB and $20.00 for 2 vCPUs with 4 GB. The page also shows a $2.50 plan at 0.5 GB with 10 GB storage; it sits next to an "IPv6 Only" label, so check which plan carries it before you rely on it. Vultr is the lowest list price in the same-RAM table at every size. For a direct matchup with another raw cloud read DigitalOcean versus Vultr. Check Vultr plans.
DigitalOcean
DigitalOcean's Basic Droplets start at $4.00 for 512 MiB and 1 vCPU, then $6.00 for 1 GiB with 25 GiB SSD, $12.00 for 2 GiB and $24.00 for 4 GiB with 2 vCPUs. The pricing page says Droplets move to per-second billing effective January 1, 2026, with a minimum charge of 60 seconds or $0.01, whichever is higher. That suits short-lived test servers. For the managed-versus-raw angle see DigitalOcean versus Cloudways. Check DigitalOcean plans.
Linode (Akamai Cloud)
Linode's public plan types list a Nanode at $5 a month with 1GB RAM and 1 vCPU, a Linode 2GB at $12, a Linode 4GB at $24 with 2 vCPUs and a Linode 8GB at $48 with 4 vCPUs, at base-region prices. The Akamai documentation notes that shared CPU cores can burst to 100% but should stay below 80% sustained usage on average. Dedicated CPU plans start at $36 for 4GB. Akamai pricing may vary by region.
AWS Lightsail
Lightsail's general purpose Linux bundles run $5 for 0.5 GB, $7 for 1 GB with 40 GB SSD and 2 TB transfer, $12 for 2 GB, $24 for 4 GB and $44 for 8 GB. Lightsail suits buyers who expect to grow into the wider AWS catalogue. Its 8 GB bundle lists 2 vCPUs, against 4 vCPUs at the 8GB class elsewhere in the table, so compare compute and not just price.
Hostinger VPS
Hostinger's VPS page lists KVM 1 at $6.49 a month for 1 vCPU core, 4 GB RAM, 50 GB NVMe disk and 4 TB bandwidth. The page says you pay $155.76 for 24 months today and that it renews at $11.99 a month for the same term. KVM 2 is $8.79 for 2 vCPU cores and 8 GB RAM, renewing at $14.99. A 30-day money-back guarantee is advertised. The catch is the prepaid term and the renewal step-up, so price the renewal rate, not the headline. See also the Hostinger review. Check Hostinger VPS plans.
Managed alternatives if you want to stay hands-off
If the reason to leave is price or fit rather than the managed model, look at managed WordPress hosts. The Cloudways pricing page itself names Kinsta and WP Engine as its managed-hosting comparison group. Read the Kinsta review and the WP Engine review for how each is priced and who it fits, and the Cloudways versus SiteGround comparison for a shared-to-cloud middle ground. For speed, use the Hosting Speed Index instead of vendor claims. If you want more raw-cloud options, see best cloud VPS alternatives and the cloud VPS hosting hub.
Which alternative fits which buyer
| If you are | Choose | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Comfortable with SSH and updates, price-led | Vultr | Lowest list price at each RAM class in the table |
| A developer who wants documentation depth | DigitalOcean | Simple Basic Droplet ladder and per-second billing |
| Wanting a global network behind the server | Linode (Akamai Cloud) | Akamai-run plans with transfer allowances in the plan types |
| Already running other things on AWS | Lightsail | Simple bundles with a path into AWS |
| Willing to prepay for the most RAM | Hostinger VPS | 4 GB RAM at the entry tier, with a renewal step-up |
| Not wanting to manage a server | Cloudways or a managed WordPress host | The management layer is what you are paying for |
What you take on when you leave managed
- Operating system updates and security patches.
- Firewall rules and access control.
- Backups and tested restores.
- Web server, PHP and database tuning and caching.
- Monitoring and incident response when something fails overnight.
Cost that out in hours before you decide. A premium of $9 a month on a small server is cheap for what it removes; a premium of $59 a month on a large one is easier to question if you already run servers.
Moving off Cloudways
Moving a WordPress site to a raw server means building the stack first, then copying files and the database, then switching DNS. Keep the Cloudways server until the new one passes a full test, and compare the new bill with the old one including add-ons and offsite backup storage. The Cloudways review covers what you give up.
Cloudways alternatives FAQ
What is the cheapest Cloudways alternative?
Among the options priced here, Vultr lists a 1 GB Regular Performance server at $5.00 a month, and Linode lists a 1GB Nanode at $5. Cloudways lists Micro, its 1GB server, at $14.
Is DigitalOcean a Cloudways alternative?
Yes, but a different kind. Cloudways lists DigitalOcean as one of the providers it manages hosting on, so DigitalOcean is the self-managed server underneath. A 4 GiB Droplet lists at $24.00 against $54 for the Cloudways Medium server.
Which alternative is best for WordPress with no server work?
Stay on Cloudways or move to a managed WordPress host. Raw servers from Vultr, DigitalOcean and Linode leave patching, firewalls and backups to you.
Does Hostinger VPS cost less than Cloudways?
On list pricing yes: KVM 1 is $6.49 a month for 4 GB RAM on a 24-month term, renewing at $11.99, against $54 for the Cloudways server with 4GB. The compute differs, and Hostinger is self-managed.
Do the raw clouds offer a money-back guarantee?
The saved pages show one only for Hostinger, which advertises a 30-day money-back guarantee. Check the other vendors' terms directly.
Are these prices the same in every region?
Not necessarily. Akamai states that pricing may vary by region, and the Linode figures here are base-region prices. Check the vendor page for your region.
How much faster is an alternative?
This page does not publish speed claims. Use the Hosting Speed Index for measured results.
Sources
- Cloudways pricing, fetched 2026-11-01.
- Vultr pricing, fetched 2026-11-01.
- DigitalOcean Droplet pricing, fetched 2026-11-01.
- Linode plan types (public API v4), fetched 2026-11-01.
- Akamai Cloud docs, shared CPU instances, fetched 2026-11-01.
- AWS Lightsail pricing, fetched 2026-11-01.
- Hostinger VPS hosting, fetched 2026-11-01.