Research method: We checked Cloudways' official pricing, billing, backup, bandwidth, email and server-management documentation on July 16, 2026. Prices, infrastructure options, regions, tax and add-ons can change, so confirm the final configuration in the Cloudways console.
Review scope: This page focuses on Cloudways Flexible. We did not run independent speed tests, load tests or support-quality scoring.
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains no affiliate links at publication. Any future compensated link will be disclosed next to the link and under our Affiliate Disclosure.
Verdict: a managed cloud option for businesses that want infrastructure choice and usage-based billing
Cloudways Flexible
Cloudways adds a managed layer to cloud infrastructure such as DigitalOcean and lets teams operate WordPress and PHP applications. Official pricing lists a 1GB DigitalOcean server from $11 per month or $0.0153 per hour. It offers more infrastructure control than shared hosting, but backup storage, bandwidth overages, email services and the absence of root access must be planned.
- Starting price
- From $11/month
- Billing
- Monthly or hourly
- Default backup
- Every 24 hours, one-week retention
- Separate add-on
Officially documented advantages
- Choose the infrastructure provider and server size
- Free Let's Encrypt SSL, staging, SSH/SFTP and monitoring
- Backup frequency from one hour to seven days and retention from one to four weeks
- Multiple applications can run on one server
Contract checks and limitations
- Off-site backup storage is charged separately
- Bandwidth overage rules vary by infrastructure provider
- Cloudways does not provide server root access
- Business mailboxes and transactional email require separate configuration
Pricing and billing model
| Example | Official listing | Resources | Before purchasing |
|---|---|---|---|
| DigitalOcean 1GB | $11/month or $0.0153/hour | 1GB RAM, 1 core, 25GB storage, 1TB bandwidth | Cloudways says 1GB is primarily for testing and staging and recommends 2GB or more for live sites |
| DigitalOcean 2GB | $24/month or $0.0333/hour | 2GB RAM, 1 core, 50GB storage, 2TB bandwidth | Actual application load, region and add-ons |
| Off-site backup | $0.033/GB per server | Remote backup storage | Required feature billed by storage; separate from local backups |
Official USD examples as checked. Tax, promotions, provider, region, bandwidth and add-ons can change the final charge.
Key officially documented features
Application operations
- WordPress, WooCommerce and PHP applications
- Staging environments
- SSH and SFTP access
- Vertical scaling
Security
- Dedicated firewalls
- Regular security patching
- Free Let's Encrypt SSL
- 24/7 real-time monitoring
Migration and support
- WordPress Migrator plugin
- Managed migrations under eligible conditions
- 24/7/365 support
- Team management
Separate services to price
- Rackspace mailboxes
- Transactional email
- Cloudflare Enterprise add-on
- Additional backup storage
Backups and data portability
Default configuration
Cloudways documents a default backup every 24 hours with one-week retention for new servers. Frequency can be set from one hour to seven days, and retention from one to four weeks.
On-demand and download
Server-level and application-level on-demand backups are available. Enabling local backups allows the latest backup to be downloaded through SSH or SFTP.
Who may benefit and who should compare alternatives
Potential fit
- Teams running multiple WordPress or PHP applications on one server
- Businesses that want to scale cloud resources gradually
- Short-lived testing environments that benefit from hourly billing
- Agencies and developers using SSH/SFTP and staging
Compare alternatives
- You want email, domains and a site builder in one plan
- You do not want to manage resource or bandwidth choices
- Root access is mandatory
- You need a completely fixed price including backup storage
Pre-purchase checklist
- 1. Decide whether Flexible or Autonomous matches the workload
- 2. Select provider, region, RAM, storage and bandwidth
- 3. Estimate backup frequency, retention and storage charges
- 4. Design mailbox and transactional email separately
- 5. Confirm bandwidth overage, scaling and deletion billing
Frequently asked questions
What is Cloudways' lowest listed price?
The official pricing page lists a 1GB DigitalOcean server from $11 per month or $0.0153 per hour. Tax, backups, bandwidth overages and add-ons require separate confirmation.
Are backups free?
Backup functionality is built in, but off-site backup storage is billed separately. The official price is listed as $0.033 per GB.
Does the plan include domain email?
Cloudways does not bundle a conventional mailbox service into the server price. It documents Rackspace Email and external SMTP options for mailboxes and transactional email.
Official sources checked
- Cloudways — PricingStarting price, DigitalOcean resources, hourly billing, backup storage price and included platform features
- Cloudways — Configure server-level backupFrequency, retention, on-demand backups and downloads
- Cloudways — Billing guideBilling, tax, bandwidth, backup and add-on charges
- Cloudways — Email add-onsMailboxes versus transactional email
- Cloudways — Server settingsRoot access limitation