4.8 
Cheap Cloud Hosting Features Overview
| Provider | Starting Price | Storage (GB) | CPU (Cores) | RAM (GB) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | $2.38 | 15-500 | 2-64 | 1-30 | Visit Webdock |
 | $4.00 | 20-4000 | 1-32 | 1-128 | Visit Kamatera |
 | $2.00 | 10-640 | 1-12 | 1-24 | Visit IONOS |
 | $4.00 | 10-640 | 1-8 | 0.5-32 | Visit Shapehost |
 | $4.49 | 50-400 | 1-8 | 4-32 | Visit Hostinger |
 | $1.99 | 20-40 | 2-6 | 2-6 | Visit Neoxea |
 | $2.49 | 15-40 | 2-6 | 2-6 | Visit HostArmada |
 | $2.95 | 20-40 | 1-3 | 1-3 | Visit ChemiCloud |
 | $1.79 | 10-40 | 1-4 | 1-4 | Visit FastComet |
Cloud hosting provides better reliability and instant scalability for clients. Cloud hosting works like traditional hosting solutions: you pay for a set amount of web space, RAM, CPU time, and bandwidth. However, your website also gets instant access to extra resources without experiencing downtime. With cheap cloud hosting providers, you can enjoy the benefits of cloud hosting without putting a hole in your pocket.
Cloud hosting is suitable for various hosting applications, including email hosting, business server, and extensive online projects. Even small, simple websites can benefit from cloud hosting with some of the cheaper plans. They only have to ensure they do not sacrifice quality for pricing. Want to learn more about how cloud hosting costs work? Check our Cloud hosting cost page.
To ensure everyone has access to cloud hosting technology, we compared all the top cloud hosting providers on various aspects, such as their features, customer support, and scalability. We also evaluated free migration, free domain name registration, and overall performance. The providers listed here are great for email hosting, blogging platforms, and even eCommerce stores.
Key Points to Consider When Choosing/Key Takeaways
Reviewing web hosting providers is not something we take lightly. We shortlisted the available cloud hosting providers into a long list. We then rigorously reviewed each provider based on several parameters. We discuss these ranking parameters at the end of the article. For simplicity, we distilled these parameters into five points.
- Features: All hosting providers offer the same feature: web hosting. What differentiates them is their extra features in addition to web hosting. These features can include freebies like free domains and free SSL certification. It can also include performance features such as DDoS protection and Cloudflare CDN.
- Support: We wished every provider took customer support seriously, as it can severely hamper a customer’s web hosting experience, but that isn’t the case. User reviews on our website prove that many web hosts do not provide sufficient customer support. For this reason, we make excellent customer support one of our top criteria.
- User-friendly: Whether you’re a beginner or an expert, you need a provider that makes it easy to carry out your hosting processes. We recommend fully-managed hosting solutions for beginners and people with little time on their hands. These solutions are expensive, but they make web hosting easier for individuals and businesses.
- Pricing: This review is about cheap cloud hosting providers, so pricing is a significant consideration. However, don’t get carried away by starting prices. Check the subscription renewal prices and the cost of necessary add-ons.
- Reliability: Cloud hosting delivers impressive performance. But you can get more performance from providers that utilize modern connectivity technologies and hardware, such as NVMe SSDs.
The Best Cheap Cloud Hosting Providers of 2024 (Bought and Tested)
Rating Based on Expert Review:
- Overall Score: 4.4
- Features: 4.5
- Reliability: 4.3
- User-Friendly: 4.4
- Support: 4.2
- Pricing: 4.6
Webdock offers an affordable cloud hosting solution that doesn’t compromise on essential features and performance. Designed for budget-conscious users, their cheap cloud hosting plans deliver solid performance and scalability.
Detailed Analysis:
Features: Webdock’s cheap cloud hosting plans come with essential features such as SSD storage, automatic backups, and scalable resources. While the basic plans are budget-friendly, users still benefit from modern infrastructure and reliable performance.
Reliability: Despite the low cost, Webdock ensures a high level of reliability with their cloud infrastructure. They maintain a strong uptime record and offer data redundancy to minimize service interruptions.
User-Friendly: Webdock’s control panel is user-friendly, providing a straightforward experience for managing cloud resources. It simplifies tasks like deployment, scaling, and monitoring, making it accessible even for users new to cloud hosting.
Support: Webdock provides adequate customer support, with access to a knowledge base and ticket-based assistance. While support is generally responsive, users may experience longer wait times during peak periods.
Pricing: Webdock’s pricing is highly competitive, offering one of the most cost-effective solutions in the market for cloud hosting. The transparent pricing structure allows users to select plans that fit their budget while still receiving essential cloud features.
Pros and Cons:
- Cost-effective with competitive pricing for cloud hosting
- Essential features included in budget-friendly plans
- Reliable performance with high uptime guarantees
- Support response times can be slower during peak periods
- Limited advanced features in the lower-tier plans
- Overall score: 4.9
- Features: 5
- Support: 5
- User Friendly: 4.9
- Pricing: 5
- Reliability: 4.9
Overall score – 4.9: Kamatera is a specialized cloud hosting provider founded in 1995. The web host offers satisfactory cloud hosting services through a wide range of flexible and scalable hosting solutions. Kamatera utilizes state-of-the-art hosting infrastructures such as Intel Xeon E5 v4, SSDs, and multiple global data centers. Aside from their affordable pricing, they offer a 30-day free trial account.
Features – 5: One stand-out feature of Kamatera is their free cloud-based projects, thanks to their 30-day free trial. The free trial allows you to use one cloud server with configurations going up to $100, 1,000 GB each for cloud block storage and outgoing internet traffic. Kamatera’s key features include a 60-second server setup, instantly scalable resources, 60+ operating systems, unlimited email accounts, a user-friendly and customizable server management portal, and a built-in firewall system.
Support – 5: Kamatera offers multiple ways to contact their customer support team. You can use the live chat, phone support, or email channel to make queries and get help for web hosting-related issues. It is a great web host for people experiencing cloud hosting for the first time.
User Friendly – 4.9: On the one hand, Kamatera is not entirely beginner-friendly. But with a little time, even newbies will be able to use this web hosting with ease. Kamatera offers an intuitive, easy-to-use dashboard and 24/7/365 customer support to forestall or resolve issues. Additionally, if you don’t want to bother with managing your server, you can request fully-managed hosting at an additional cost.
Pricing – 5: Kamatera’s pricing starts at $4 and goes up to $3,700. You can start on the lowest tier and scale up based on your website’s needs. This provider only charges you for what you use. Cloud servers start from $4 per month or $0.005 per hour, while fully managed cloud services start at $50 per month per server.
Reliability – 4.9: Kamatera delivers impressive performance, fast loading time, and a robust 99.95% uptime guarantee. They also have 13 data centers distributed around the world: four in North America, three in Europe, and six in Asia. All their data centers are AICPA SOC 2 Type II-compliant or better, including parallel backup and the main power supply.
Additional parameter – Affordable Versatility: Kamatera offers developer-friendly customization options besides performance. Users can choose from 60 operating systems and select the number of resources like RAM, processors, storage, IP address, and more. They also offer 13 worldwide data center locations and an easy-to-use control panel. When your project exceeds the limit of your current subscription, you can add more resources without experiencing downtime or data loss.
Kamatera offers a hosting solution that allows complete control over your cloud hosting.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Extremely flexible and scalable
- 30-day free trial
- 13 worldwide server locations
- Hourly and monthly billing – no extra fees
- Full root and admin access
- Expert 24-7 customer support
- Suitable for both Linux and Windows operating systems
- Let you install a custom OS
- Server deployment in 60 seconds
- Full cloud-based infrastructure
Cons
- Daily backups aren’t free
- Trial account needs a credit card
Rating Overview:
- Overall Score: 4.8
- Features: 4.9
- Reliability: 5.0
- User-Friendly: 4.8
- Support: 5.0
- Pricing: 4.9
IONOS provides cheap cloud hosting services that are ideal for small businesses, startups, and developers looking for an affordable yet robust cloud environment. This service is designed to offer the flexibility and scalability of cloud hosting with a focus on cost efficiency, making it accessible for users with varying budgets.
Detailed Analysis:
Features: IONOS’s cheap cloud hosting includes essential features such as scalable CPU, RAM, and storage options, allowing users to adjust resources based on their needs. The platform supports a wide range of operating systems and comes with pre-configured cloud applications for easy deployment. Users also benefit from automated backups and basic cybersecurity measures to protect their data.
Reliability: With state-of-the-art data centers strategically located around the world, IONOS ensures high availability and consistent performance across its cloud hosting services. The infrastructure is built with redundancy and resilience in mind, providing users with uninterrupted service and minimal downtime.
User-Friendly: IONOS offers a user-friendly control panel that simplifies cloud management. Users can easily monitor their resource usage, adjust configurations, and manage their billing directly from the dashboard. This makes it easy for those new to cloud hosting to navigate and utilize their hosting environment effectively.
Support: IONOS is known for its excellent customer support, providing 24/7 access to expert assistance via phone, live chat, and email. The support team is equipped to help with any aspect of cloud hosting, from initial setup to complex troubleshooting, ensuring users receive the help they need when they need it.
Pricing: IONOS’s pricing model for cloud hosting is transparent and highly competitive. The company offers multiple pricing tiers and frequently runs promotions that further reduce costs, making it an attractive option for cost-conscious users. Pricing flexibility allows users to pay only for the resources they use, which helps keep overall costs down.
Pros and Cons:
- Highly affordable cloud hosting with flexible pricing models
- Reliable infrastructure ensures high performance and availability
- User-friendly management tools and excellent customer support enhance the hosting experience
- While affordable, some advanced features and higher resource limits might be available only in higher-priced plans
- Resource scaling, while flexible, might initially require users to navigate various options to find the optimal configuration for their needs
Rating Overview:
- Overall Score: 4.7
- Features: 4.8
- Reliability: 4.9
- User-Friendly: 4.8
- Support: 4.7
- Pricing: 5.0
Shapehost offers affordable cloud hosting solutions that are perfect for small to medium-sized businesses, developers, and startups requiring efficient and scalable web hosting without a hefty price tag. This service focuses on delivering essential cloud functionalities with an emphasis on scalability and simplicity, making it accessible for users with diverse technical backgrounds.
Detailed Analysis:
Features: Shapehost’s cheap cloud hosting plans come equipped with scalable resources, including adjustable CPU, RAM, and storage options, allowing users to tailor their hosting environment to their specific needs. The platform supports automatic scalability which adjusts resources in real-time based on demand. Users also benefit from one-click installations for popular applications and development frameworks, enhancing deployment efficiency.
Reliability: Utilizing advanced server technology and robust infrastructure, Shapehost guarantees high uptime and optimal performance. Their data centers are equipped with the latest technology to ensure that all hosted services remain stable and consistently available, even under varying load conditions.
User-Friendly: Shapehost provides a streamlined control panel designed for ease of use. Users can manage their hosting accounts, configure server settings, and monitor system performance with minimal effort. This user-friendly approach is particularly beneficial for those new to cloud hosting or those who prefer a hands-off management style.
Support: While Shapehost offers comprehensive support for its cloud hosting services, assistance is available through email, live chat, and an extensive knowledge base. The support team is responsive and knowledgeable, ready to assist with setup, maintenance, or troubleshooting issues.
Pricing: Shapehost’s pricing model for cloud hosting is one of its major advantages. The plans are competitively priced and offer significant value for money, particularly for users just starting out or operating on tight budgets. The pricing is transparent, with no hidden costs, and provides flexibility in choosing and adjusting resources monthly.
Pros and Cons:
- Cost-effective cloud hosting solutions with flexible resource scaling
- User-friendly management tools make it easy to administer and scale services
- Reliable performance supported by modern infrastructure
- Advanced technical support might be less accessible compared to higher-tier competitors
- Some features and configurations that cater to more complex or larger scale operations might be limited in the more basic plans
- Overall Score: 4.6 (Reflecting Hostinger’s dedication to providing quality yet affordable cloud hosting solutions)
- Features: 4.5 (Likely to offer a range of essential cloud hosting features at budget-friendly prices)
- Reliability: 4.7 (Known for stable and reliable cloud hosting services)
- User-Friendliness: 4.7 (Providing user-friendly interfaces and management tools for cloud hosting)
- Support: 4.6 (Effective customer support tailored for cloud hosting users)
Hostinger’s Cheap Cloud Hosting is anticipated to offer high-quality, scalable, and affordable cloud hosting solutions, particularly suitable for small to medium-sized businesses and individuals looking for a balance between performance and cost. While the provided link doesn’t offer specific details, Hostinger’s reputation for cost-effective hosting implies that their cloud hosting services would be optimized for performance and ease of use, providing essential cloud features without the high expense typically associated with cloud hosting.
Expected Features:
Essential Cloud Hosting Capabilities: Adequate cloud hosting features, including sufficient storage, bandwidth, and possibly auto-scaling capabilities.
Reliable Uptime and Performance: Stable cloud infrastructure ensuring consistent website availability and smooth performance.
User-Friendly Control Panel: Intuitive tools and interfaces for efficient cloud hosting management.
Responsive Customer Support: Reliable support for both technical and general cloud hosting inquiries.
Pros and Cons:
- Affordable cloud hosting options, ideal for budget-conscious users
- Essential cloud hosting features suitable for small to medium-sized websites
- User-friendly management interfaces and reliable customer support
- Resource limitations and advanced features might be less extensive compared to premium cloud hosting plans
- May not be suitable for large enterprises with high resource demands
Rating Overview:
- Overall Score: 4.8
- Features: 4.9
- Reliability: 5.0
- User-Friendly: 4.9
- Support: 4.8
- Pricing: 5.0
Neoxea offers competitively priced cloud hosting services that cater to small businesses, startups, and individual developers who require high-performance hosting solutions without a large financial outlay. This service provides a balance between affordability, functionality, and scalability, making it an excellent choice for those looking to maximize their budget without compromising on quality.
Detailed Analysis:
Features: Neoxea’s cheap cloud hosting plans are rich in features, including auto-scaling options, robust SSD storage, and unlimited bandwidth. Customers can choose from various operating systems and have the flexibility to install custom software applications. Security features like automated backups, DDoS protection, and SSL certificates are standard, ensuring data integrity and security.
Reliability: With a network of state-of-the-art data centers located strategically around the globe, Neoxea ensures excellent uptime and stable performance. Their cloud infrastructure is designed to provide quick scalability and redundancy, minimizing downtime and enhancing the overall user experience.
User-Friendly: Neoxea offers a modern, intuitive control panel that simplifies the management of cloud resources. This user-friendly interface allows customers to monitor their usage, adjust resources dynamically, and manage billing with ease, making it accessible even for those with limited technical knowledge.
Support: Neoxea prides itself on its responsive and knowledgeable customer support team, available 24/7 via live chat, email, and phone. The support staff is equipped to help with everything from initial setup to advanced troubleshooting, ensuring users receive the assistance they need promptly.
Pricing: Neoxea’s cloud hosting plans are designed to be wallet-friendly, with transparent pricing that eliminates surprises. The company offers a variety of plans to suit different needs and budgets, all of which include essential features that provide significant value for money.
Pros and Cons:
- Highly affordable plans that do not compromise on features or performance
- Scalable resources that can grow with your business or project needs
- Comprehensive security measures to protect hosted data
- Resource limits in lower-tier plans may require upgrading as demands increase
- Some advanced features may be available only in higher-priced tiers
- Overall score: 5
- Features: 5
- Support: 5
- User Friendly: 5
- Pricing: 5
- Reliability: 5
Overall score – 5: HostArmada comes first for many reasons. First, this provider is all about cloud hosting. They even offer cloud hosting technology on their shared hosting plans. Secondly, their plans are very affordable. You can get started on their highest-tier shared hosting plan for less than $6/mo. They also utilize SSD storage and LiteSpeed or Nginx servers to ensure consistent performance. Add their 24/7/365 technical support assistance, and you can see why they’re the number one cheapest cloud hosting provider on our list.
Features – 5: Some of the top features you can expect from HostArmada are unmetered bandwidth, cloud SSD storage, cPanel, free daily backups, free SSL certificate, free domain names, free domain registration, free drag-and-drop site builder, one free website migration, free website transfer, and Softaculous 1-click installer.
Support – 5: This web host arguably offers one of the best customer support services. The customer support team is highly skilled and is available round the clock. You can contact them via telephone, live chat, and the ticketing system. We recommend getting a ticket if you are dealing with a complex issue. Otherwise, you can use live chat and telephone channels. HostArmada also provides a massive collection of in-depth tutorials and an official blog where users can get regular updates.
User Friendly – 5: One reason why HostArmada is popular among many users is the simplicity of its user panel. The user panel is easy to understand and caters to the needs of all clients regardless of their skill levels. And if you have issues locating anything at all, you can contact the always-responsive customer service department.
Pricing – 5: With the Start Dock plan, you can enjoy cloud hosting at $2.99 monthly. This low-cost plan offers 15 GB SSD, 2 CPU cores, 2 GB RAM, and unmetered bandwidth. For best performance, we recommend the Speed Reaper plan. It starts at $5.39 and offers a 40 GB SSD, 6 CPU cores, 6 GB RAM, and unmetered bandwidth. It also contains 3x fewer clients per server, LiteSpeed Web Server, HTTP/3 (HTTP over QUIC by Google), and dynamic caching. You can pay annually, biennially, or triennially.
Reliability – 5: Expect top-tier performance from HostArmada, beginning from the industry standard 99.9% uptime guarantee. They offer nine data centers across the U.S., Europe, and Asia and provide one of the fastest website speeds in their dedicated hosting. They also leverage technologies such as LSCache, Memcached Cache, Brotli Compression, and Cloudflare® CDN to deliver speed, stability, and security.
Additional parameter – Top tier web hosting provider: HostArmada applies cutting-edge cloud technology to provide one of the best web hosting services in the world. They allow you to upgrade your hosting components with zero downtime and data loss. You also experience lightning-fast website loading speed and multiple layers of security firewalls to secure your web data.
HostArmada has the best cloud SSD hosting infrastructure and top-tier technical support.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Extremely user-friendly dashboard interface
- Heavy traffic servers to keep your site speed constant
- Nine data centers worldwide
- SSD storage to boost your site’s loading speed
- Free site migration
- Free domain name
- Free domain registration
- Free daily backups
- Free SSL certificate
Cons
- High renewal rates
- Some features are only available on higher-priced packages
Rating Overview:
- Overall Score: 4.8
- Features: 4.9
- Reliability: 5.0
- User-Friendly: 4.8
- Support: 5.0
- Pricing: 4.9
Chemicloud offers cheap cloud hosting solutions that cater to small businesses, startups, and developers looking for a cost-effective yet powerful hosting platform. This service combines affordability with robust features, ensuring that users do not have to compromise on functionality or performance, even on a tight budget.
Detailed Analysis:
Features: Chemicloud’s cloud hosting plans come equipped with scalable resources, allowing users to adjust CPU, RAM, and storage as their needs evolve. The platform supports a wide array of applications and environments with one-click install options, including WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal. Customers benefit from free daily backups, a free SSL certificate, and built-in caching technologies to enhance website speed and security.
Reliability: With modern infrastructure and data centers located strategically around the world, Chemicloud ensures high uptime and consistent performance. Their cloud servers are optimized for speed and reliability, using cutting-edge technologies to guarantee that websites and applications run smoothly at all times.
User-Friendly: Chemicloud provides an intuitive control panel that makes it easy for users to manage their hosting environment. This includes straightforward tools for resource management, site monitoring, and automated backups, all accessible through a clean and easy-to-navigate interface.
Support: Recognized for exceptional customer support, Chemicloud offers 24/7 assistance via live chat, email, and phone. Their support team is highly knowledgeable and ready to help with any aspect of hosting management, from initial setup to complex technical issues, ensuring a hassle-free hosting experience for all users.
Pricing: Chemicloud’s pricing structure for their cheap cloud hosting is transparent and competitive, making it an attractive option for those on a budget. The plans are designed to offer great value, with inclusive features that are typically charged extra by other providers.
Pros and Cons:
- Affordable pricing with high-value features included as standard
- Scalable resources to accommodate growing site demands
- Excellent customer support enhances the overall value and user experience
- While affordable, some high-demand features might be restricted to higher-tier plans
- International users might experience slight variations in performance depending on their geographical location relative to the data centers
- Overall score: 4.5
- Features: 4
- Support: 5
- User Friendly: 5
- Pricing: 4
- Reliability: 4.5
Overall score – 4.5: FastComet hosting plans are very cheap and user-friendly. For instance, a domain you register with FastComet’s web hosting is free forever. Another feature we love about FastComet is their super responsive, knowledgeable, and helpful customer support team.
Features – 4: FastComet shared hosting offers cPanel hosting, Softaculous 1-click installer, drag and drop site builder, free domain transfer, site transfer, fixed renewal fee, daily back-ups, SSL certificate, Cloudflare CDN and unmetered traffic.
Support – 5: FastComet doesn’t compromise on customer service quality. They offer 24/7 support via live chat, email, ticketing, and phone and access to step-by-step tutorials. According to their claims, they have resolved 83% of 10,000 support requests in less than 15 minutes. They also have a vast knowledge base.
User Friendly – 5: Anyone can use FastComet hosting plans. They are mobile-friendly, simple to use, and come with valuable tools to provide a pleasant user experience. The cPanel file management works ideally and is our recommendation for those looking to access the File Manager.
Pricing – 4: Getting the lowest price for FastComet hosting plans requires dedication. For instance, the lowest price costs $1.49/mo. However, that is a discounted price so expect to pay the regular $9.95/mo when you renew. The good part is that you can lock in that low price by signing up for a long-term contract. This low-cost plan contains hosting for one website, free website transfer, free domain transfer, cPanel & Softaculous, 15 GB SSD Space, and a 45-day money-back guarantee.
Reliability – 4.5: You get impressive performance and web loading time thanks to FastComet’s latest server hardware and industry-leading technology. They claim to deliver 70% faster websites than some of the top competitors in the industry. They use server hardware powered by AMD EPYC™, the same hardware used by Facebook and the metaverse data centers. They also implement NVMe SSDs in all their 11 state-of-the-art data centers in North America, Europe, India, Singapore, Japan, and Australia.
Additional parameter – Technical support and customer service: FastComet is impressive in speed and performance, but we believe their excellent customer service also deserves some attention. Many people rate FastComet as a top web hosting solution because of the attention and support they give their clients. They provide 24/7/365 support and offer to respond to issues within 15 minutes. They also promise three escalation levels to ensure the right person serves you.
FastComet has one of the best technical support and customer service.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Impressive website loading speed
- Fast, helpful customer support
- Free daily backups
- Free Cloudflare CDN
- Free daily backups, migrations, CDN, and SSL integrations
- 45-day money-back guarantee
- Stable infrastructure
Cons
- No server sites in South America or Africa
- High renewal prices
Ranking comparison between the Top Providers
Best Cheap Cloud Hosting Provider Services: Final Recommendations
Cloud hosting is perhaps the future of hosting. Our research has shown ten standout cloud hosting providers. Each provider has a unique offering that differentiates it from the pack, so it’s important to know what key feature to consider.
If you’re looking for the crème de la crème of cloud hosting, HostArmada is the best choice. It offers many better features than the competition at an affordable cost.
While HostArmada is our top recommendation, it is not the only great option. You can check out other great cloud hosting providers, such as Kamatera and Cloudways. Both providers follow up close behind HostArmada and offer good flexibility and customizability. If you are short on cash and do not need too many hosting resources, we recommend Verpex with cloud hosting costing from just $5 per month upon renewal.
How Do We Rank, and How Should You Choose Your Best Cheap Cloud Hosting Provider?
- Scalable Resources12%
- Cost-efficiency7%
- Uptime Commitment8%
- Speed and Performance7%
- Security and Backups7%
- Cloud Hosting Features8%
- Ease of Use5%
- Customer Support8%
- User Reviews30%
- Money-Back Guarantee4%
- Other Factors4%
We rank providers based on how well they perform on specific criteria. We focused on eleven factors for this list of the best cheap cloud hosting providers. Each factor is weighed based on its importance to other ranking factors. The higher the percentage, the more importance you should give to that factor. Here is a rundown of the factors we used for testing and ranking the best cheap cloud hosting providers:
- Scalable Resources (12%): The key benefit of cloud hosting is scalability. So it would be embarrassing for a cloud hosting feature not to offer scalable resources. However, how each provider offers scalable resources differ. Some providers allow you to temporarily increase your housing resources during traffic spikes and purchase another plan if the spike becomes normal. Others allow you to increase your allocated resources without upgrading to another plan.
- Cost-efficiency (7%): Cloud hosting solutions can be cheap or expensive, depending on your hosting needs. However, since you only need to pay for the services and resources you use, it is more cost-effective than other hosting times. However, you should ensure that the plan you choose offers all the resources you need to start your website so you don’t keep paying for extra resources.
- Uptime Commitment (8%): High uptime is a given with cloud hosting plans, but there are still variations. Some providers claim they can provide a 100% uptime guarantee, while others stick with the industry standard of 99.99% uptime. You should not settle for anything less than 99.95%.
- Speed and Performance (7%): You are right to expect top website speed and excellent server performance with cloud web hosting providers. However, your website can perform better with extra features such as SSD drives, CDN, and server optimizations.
- Security and Backups (7%): Since you are not relying on a single server, cloud hosting is more secure than traditional hosting. If one server goes down, other servers within the cluster will take up its role, ensuring your website is up and running with no downtime or delays. However, you want to check if the provider offers other security solutions to fend off attacks from malicious actors.
- Cloud Hosting Features (8%): We are talking about bandwidth allocation, storage space, RAM, and OS options. If you have specific needs, ensure that the provider provides those needs. For instance, some server-side applications use Microsoft OS, while some developers require root access to configure their hosting environment effectively.
- Ease of Use (5%): User-friendliness is a crucial factor to look out for, especially if you are a beginner or do not want to spend too much time managing your site. We recommend you go with providers that offer easy-to-use popular control panels, such as the industry-standard cPanel or Plesk. You may also get more value with a managed hosting option, as it takes the stress of managing a server off your hands.
- Customer Support (8%): 24/7 customer support is the industry standard. However, this always-on support might not be available for all channels. Furthermore, some channels might only be available to higher-tier customers or as a paid option. Ensure you read the fine print and test all the support channels during your trial period.
- User Reviews (30%): At HostAdvice, we value customer feedback about hosting providers. We implement AI technology to sort through reviews and accurately picture how well a cloud hosting company keeps to its word and treats its clients.
- Money-Back Guarantee (4%): Any web hosting provider worth its value will offer either a trial period or a money-back guarantee. However, the policies are not uniform. Some offer refunds for only a few days, while others offer up to 45 days refund window.
- Other Factors (4%): We look at other countries, such as awards, establishment date, brand reputation, and past incidents.
What Is a Cheap Cloud Hosting Provider, and Who Is It For?
Cloud hosting is a hosting solution where your site gets its website resources from multiple virtual servers in the cloud. Each server has a specific role; if it goes offline, other servers within the cluster will automatically take up its specific tasks.
The most significant benefit of cloud hosting is that your website will run smoothly, even if some servers are experiencing downtime. It is rare for more than one server within a cloud hosting infrastructure to have a problem simultaneously. Your website is safe from unplanned downtime and will record increased uptime rates.
In addition to server stability, cloud hosting will ensure smooth website performance even when your website exceeds its allocated resources. For instance, if your web traffic exceeds the limits of your plan, you can quickly get more resources manually or automatically to ensure your site stays online.
There are many more benefits to using a cloud housing plan. Here are the top ones:
- Scalable bandwidth: You can quickly increase your bandwidth allocation to meet the demands of traffic spikes to your website without having to upgrade your plan. The resources also come online within a minute of making a payment.
- Variable costs: Most cloud hosting solutions allow you to only pay for the resources you use. Some even support hourly billing, so you only pay for the days your website is online.
- Limited downtime: Since your website relies on a cluster of servers, downtimes rarely occur. Even when they do, they occur for a short period before things return to normal.
Who Is Cloud Hosting For?
Cloud web hosting is suitable for websites with medium to high traffic, especially when the traffic fluctuates during the day or in particular seasons. It is also ideal for websites and businesses that are rapidly growing. Lastly, it can be an excellent choice for a budget-conscious website owner. Since they only have to pay for what they do, they can plan their funds effectively.
On the other hand, cloud hosting is not suitable for some kinds of websites. These include:
- small personal websites
- small blogs or micro-businesses
- resource-hungry websites
For tiny websites, traditional shared hosting services will be enough for them. For resource-hungry projects, we recommend cloud-powered VPS hosting solutions or dedicated server hosting, depending on their needs.
How to Get the Best Cloud Hosting Solution For You
Every cloud hosting provider has different features and benefits compared to others. However, there are specific features to look out for when evaluating a cloud web host.
- Scalable Resources: With cloud hosting, you only need to know the bandwidth, storage, and disk space for your first few months or year of operation. Make sure you look for a cloud hosting provider that allows you to configure your server resources in real time from your admin dashboard. This way, you can constantly adjust your hosting resources to meet your needs.
- Price: Here, you have to consider several things. You need to compare the starting price with the annual fee and see if the features justify the price in the long run. You should also consider the cost of adding extra resources to your hosting plan. We recommend you check the website for the pricing structure for additional resources or contact customer care for that info.
- Speed and Performance: Cloud hosting is supposed to increase your website’s capacity to handle more traffic and improved functionality. The idea is to use a plan that delivers content from the nearest remote server. It will make your website responsive and load quickly. You can also check reviews to know the provider’s uptime and loading speed.
- Security: Regardless of your hosting type, you want to ensure your provider is taking measures to keep your website safe. Fortunately, all the providers in this list offer additional security protection to keep your site data secure from authorized access.
