Cloudways vs InterServer
Cloudways and InterServer compared on measured uptime, response time, pricing and features from our own tests. Cloudways scores higher overall.
By Jennifer T. · Updated
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Verdict
CloudwaysWins overall
DigitalOcean's managed cloud layer: servers from $11 a month on five clouds, billed hourly, staging and caching included
Secaucus host since 1999 with a $7 monthly plan, stated resources, free migration and a 30-day refund
Cloudways wins 3 of the six sub-scores and comes out ahead overall (7.8 vs 7.5).
How do the scores compare?
Cloudways leads on 3 sub-scores, InterServer on 1. Higher is better.
| Cloudways | InterServer | |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | 8.0 (better) | 7.5 |
| Uptime | 8.5 (better) | 7.0 |
| Support | 7.5 (better) | 7.0 |
| Features | 8.0 | 8.0 |
| Value | 7.0 | 8.5 (better) |
| Ease of use | 7.0 | 7.0 |
Which one is faster and more reliable?
| Cloudways | InterServer | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 7.8 (better) | 7.5 |
| Uptime (published)Kripesh Adwani 365 d vs Cybernews 14 d; methods differ | 99.99% | 100.00% (better) |
Which one costs less?
On renewal, InterServer is cheaper ($7.00/mo vs $14.00/mo). Intro prices need the listed term.
| Cloudways | InterServer | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan | DigitalOcean Premium Micro | Standard |
| Intro price | $14.00/mo | $2.50/mo (better) |
| Renewal price | $14.00/mo | $7.00/mo (better) |
| Required term | 1 months | 1 months |
| Websites | unlimited | unlimited |
| Storage | 25 GB | Unlimited |
| Money back | 0 days | 30 days (better) |
What does each include?
| Cloudways | InterServer | |
|---|---|---|
| Free domain | No | No |
| Free SSL | Let's Encrypt certificates on every application | SSL support is listed on every plan |
| Backups | On-demand and scheduled server backups with one-click restore; offsite storage billed at $0.033 per GB per server | Weekly backups on Standard |
| Free migration | Free migration of existing sites | The migration team moves the site, database and email for new accounts |
| Free CDN | No | Cloudflare CDN on every plan |
| Caching | Lightning Stack (NGINX), Object Cache Pro and Redis included on every plan | SSD caching servers, RAM caching for small files, LSCache for dynamic content and QUIC |
| Staging | Advanced staging and cloning on every plan | No |
| No | Unlimited accounts with outgoing mail routed through smart hosts for deliverability; 200 emails an hour on Standard | |
| Resource limits | A whole server per customer: 1 to 8 GB RAM and 1 to 4 vCPU on the listed sizes, larger sizes and other providers available | Printed per plan: cores, memory, IOPS, processes, entry processes, inodes and emails per hour |
| Data center choice | The provider's regions, chosen per server: DigitalOcean 9, Vultr 30, Linode 25, AWS 28, Google Cloud 28 | No |
| Uptime guarantee | No | No |
| Security | Built-in firewall with IP blocking, WordPress vulnerability scanner, bot protection and dedicated firewalls per the pricing page | InterShield attack blocking, malware scanning and a machine-learning firewall, with free DDoS protection |
| Free trial | 3 days without a credit card | Not stated |
| Phone support | No | No |
| Windows hosting | No | A separate Windows hosting package |
Company facts
| Cloudways | InterServer | |
|---|---|---|
| Control panel | Cloudways platform (its own console); no cPanel | DirectAdmin on Standard and Boost; cPanel on the cPanel hosting plan |
| Data centers | 1 | 3 (better) |
| Support channels | chat, ticket, knowledge-base | ticket, knowledge-base |
| Founded | 2011 | 1999 |