Kinsta vs Cloudways for WordPress and Joomla Sites (2026)

The Kinsta vs Cloudways question comes up constantly among bloggers, agencies, and small business owners who want faster, safer hosting. But the honest answer depends on the content management system you run. Kinsta is a premium managed WordPress host built on Google Cloud. Cloudways, owned by DigitalOcean, is a managed cloud platform that runs your sites on servers from five infrastructure providers.

Both companies deliver strong performance and round-the-clock support. However, they treat Joomla very differently. Kinsta reserves its managed platform for WordPress. Cloudways, by contrast, lets you run Joomla as a custom PHP application on the same server as your WordPress sites. So if you manage a mix of CMSs, that single difference can decide the whole matchup.

This guide breaks down the Kinsta vs Cloudways decision from every angle that matters. You will see how each hosting model works, what you really pay, and how the platforms perform. You will also learn how they handle security, backups, and support. Finally, you will get step-by-step guidance for hosting Joomla on each platform, plus clear recommendations for different types of site owners.

Prices and features below reflect each provider’s public information as of September 2026. Hosting companies adjust their plans often, so confirm current rates on the official pricing pages before you buy.

Kinsta vs Cloudways at a Glance

If you want the short version, Kinsta wins for hands-off WordPress hosting, while Cloudways wins for price, flexibility, and Joomla support. Here is the Kinsta vs Cloudways comparison in one table.

Still, a table only tells part of the story. So the sections below explain why these differences exist and how they affect your budget and your workload.

What Is Kinsta?

Kinsta is a managed WordPress hosting company, founded in 2013, that runs every customer site on Google Cloud Platform. It focuses on one job: keeping WordPress sites fast, secure, and online without making you touch a server.

First, each site lives in its own isolated Linux container, and its database runs inside that same container. As a result, a traffic spike on another customer’s site cannot drain your resources. You then manage everything from MyKinsta, a clean dashboard that handles domains, SSL, caching, backups, staging, analytics, and user access.

Kinsta also bundles features that many hosts charge extra for. For example, every verified domain gets Kinsta’s Cloudflare integration, which includes free SSL with wildcard support, a global CDN, firewall protection, and edge caching. In addition, plans include daily backups, a built-in application performance monitoring (APM) tool, and free expert migrations.

Kinsta prices its plans by the number of WordPress installs and by either monthly visits or server bandwidth. Specifically, it counts a visit as one unique IP address within a 24-hour period. Because of that method, your Kinsta visit numbers may run higher than your Google Analytics reports.

Where Joomla Fits at Kinsta

Here is the catch for Joomla users. Kinsta’s managed hosting supports WordPress only, and its plans do not let you create extra databases outside a WordPress install. Therefore, you cannot simply upload Joomla next to your WordPress site on a Kinsta plan. That limitation also makes Joomla the first big divider in any Kinsta vs Cloudways comparison.

Instead, Kinsta points non-WordPress projects to Sevalla, its separate platform for application, database, and static site hosting. Since February 2, 2026, Kinsta manages those services only through the Sevalla dashboard, although you still log in with your MyKinsta credentials. Sevalla can run Joomla in a container, but it is a developer platform rather than managed CMS hosting. We cover that setup later, in the Joomla section.

What Is Cloudways?

Cloudways is a managed cloud hosting platform that DigitalOcean acquired in 2022. Rather than selling fixed hosting plans, it lets you launch a server on DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS, or Google Cloud. Cloudways then manages that server for you.

The platform handles the operating system, web server stack, security patches, firewall, monitoring, and backups. Meanwhile, you decide the provider, the data center, and the server size. You can then install as many applications as the server can handle, with no extra charge per site.

In addition, Cloudways offers one-click installs for WordPress, WooCommerce, Magento, and Laravel. It also supports custom PHP applications, which is exactly how Joomla runs on Cloudways today. The company once listed Joomla as its own one-click app, but the current lineup routes it through the custom PHP option instead. You can see the current list of supported applications in the Cloudways knowledge base.

Also Read: https://beginnerstack.com/where-to-deploy-your-first-node-js-app-in-2026-a-beginners-guide/

Cloudways Flexible vs Cloudways Autonomous

The company now sells two main hosting products, so the difference matters in any Kinsta vs Cloudways comparison.

First, Cloudways Flexible is the classic model. You pick a cloud provider and server size, choose a web stack, and pay hourly or monthly. Flexible supports WordPress, Joomla (through custom PHP), and other PHP apps. For that reason, it is the product this guide compares in most scenarios.

Second, Cloudways Autonomous is a Kubernetes-based product that autoscales WordPress and WooCommerce sites during traffic surges. Plans start at $99 per month and include Cloudflare Enterprise, Object Cache Pro, and unmetered visits. However, Autonomous does not host Joomla, so Joomla users should stick with Flexible.

Kinsta vs Cloudways: How the Hosting Models Differ

The biggest difference in the Kinsta vs Cloudways matchup is not speed or price. It is the hosting model itself, because that model shapes every cost and every task that follows.

Kinsta works like a fully serviced apartment. You pay for a plan that covers a set number of WordPress installs, a monthly allowance of visits or bandwidth, and a fixed amount of storage. Kinsta owns every layer below WordPress, from the server to the CDN. Consequently, you never size a server, but you do pay overage fees if you exceed your allowance.

Cloudways works more like leasing a building with a professional manager on site. You rent a server with a set amount of RAM, CPU, and storage, and Cloudways keeps it maintained. In fact, that server can host one site or twenty. The only real limit is how much load the server can carry before you need to scale up.

This difference changes your cost curve. On Kinsta, each extra site usually pushes you toward a bigger plan. With Cloudways, each extra site costs almost nothing until the server runs short of resources. However, Cloudways asks you to watch CPU and memory graphs, while Kinsta watches them for you.

In short, Kinsta sells an outcome, and Cloudways sells capacity. Neither approach is better in every case, so the right choice depends on whether you value simplicity or control more.

Kinsta vs Cloudways Pricing in 2026

Cloudways costs less for almost every setup, but the gap narrows once you add the extras that Kinsta already includes. Let’s look at both price lists first, then compare realistic monthly bills.

Kinsta Pricing

Kinsta sells single-site, multi-site, and agency plans. You can also switch any plan between visit-based and bandwidth-based billing at the same price. Here are the most popular tiers from the Kinsta pricing page:

The entry plan includes 10 GB of storage and 125 GB of CDN bandwidth. Annual billing gives you two months free, which brings that plan to $350 per year. New customers also get the first 30 days free on the Single 35k, Single 20GB, and WP 2 plans, plus a 30-day money-back guarantee.

If you exceed your allowance, Kinsta charges $0.50 per 1,000 extra visits or $0.50 per extra GB of server bandwidth. You can read the full rules in Kinsta’s plan documentation.

Cloudways Pricing

In contrast, Cloudways Flexible bills by server, so prices depend on the provider and server size. DigitalOcean is the most popular choice, and its Premium servers use faster NVMe storage. Current Cloudways pricing for DigitalOcean Premium servers looks like this:

A DigitalOcean Standard 1 GB server starts at about $11 per month. Vultr and Linode servers start around $14, while AWS and Google Cloud servers start in the high $30s. Every Flexible server supports unlimited sites and unmetered visits.

Cloudways also bills by the hour, so a short test server costs very little. Better still, you can try the platform free for three days without a credit card.

Add-Ons and Hidden Costs

Headline prices never tell the full story. So budget for these common extras:

• Cloudways Cloudflare Enterprise: from $4.99 per domain per month at standard pricing, including 100 GB of bandwidth, then $0.02 per extra GB. Kinsta, however, includes its Cloudflare integration at no extra charge.
• Cloudways offsite backup storage: $0.033 per GB per server each month. Kinsta, meanwhile, includes daily backups in every plan.
• Cloudways SafeUpdates: about $3 per application per month for automated, tested WordPress updates.
• Cloudways support upgrades: the Advanced and Premium support tiers cost extra.
• Kinsta extra sites: $30 per month for each WordPress site add-on.
• Kinsta premium staging: $20 per month for each premium staging environment.
• Email: neither host includes mailboxes by default. Cloudways sells Rackspace email as an add-on, while Kinsta customers typically use Google Workspace or a similar service.

Kinsta vs Cloudways Cost Scenarios

To make the Kinsta vs Cloudways cost comparison concrete, here are three common setups. The Cloudways figures assume a DigitalOcean Premium server, Cloudflare Enterprise on every domain, and a small backup storage bill.

As you can see, Cloudways saves money at every level, and the savings grow as you add sites. However, remember what Kinsta’s price includes: a managed CDN, daily backups, expert support, and zero server sizing. If your time is expensive, that bundle can easily outweigh the monthly difference.

Kinsta vs Cloudways Performance and Infrastructure

Both hosts can deliver excellent speed, but they get there in different ways. Kinsta tunes one platform for everyone, while Cloudways hands you the tools and lets you choose the hardware.

Inside Kinsta’s Google Cloud Platform

Kinsta runs on compute-optimized virtual machines across 37 Google Cloud data centers. In a growing list of those locations, it now defaults to Google’s C3D machines, which use AMD EPYC processors. According to Kinsta’s own testing, C3D machines respond 20% to 50% faster than the older C2 machines.

Kinsta also routes traffic over Google’s Premium Tier network and serves content through Cloudflare’s global edge network. Edge caching stores full HTML pages close to your visitors, so repeat page views often skip your origin server entirely. In addition, the integration adds Early Hints, image optimization, and HTTP/3 support.

For reliability, Kinsta offers a 99.9% uptime SLA, as its uptime guarantee explains. Keep in mind that standard Kinsta sites run in a single container rather than a load-balanced cluster. If you need higher availability, custom plans can raise the guarantee to 99.99%.

Cloudways Lightning Stack vs Hybrid Stack

Unlike Kinsta, Cloudways ties performance closely to the provider and server size you pick. Still, its software stack does a lot of heavy lifting. In late 2025, Cloudways made its Lightning Stack generally available. It replaces Apache with a pure NGINX and PHP-FPM setup, and Cloudways cites benchmarks showing up to 65% faster response times for dynamic pages.

Lightning has one important trade-off. NGINX ignores .htaccess files, so Cloudways built Web Rules, a dashboard tool for redirects, rewrites, and headers. According to Cloudways, Web Rules cover about 80% of common .htaccess use cases. For anything more complex, the Hybrid Stack, with NGINX in front of Apache, still reads .htaccess normally.

Beyond the web server, Cloudways servers ship with Varnish, Redis, and Memcached. Flexible servers also include Object Cache Pro for WordPress, and the free Breeze plugin handles page caching. On top of that, Cloudways advertises a 99.99% uptime SLA for Flexible.

Which Is Faster: Kinsta vs Cloudways?

So who wins on speed in the Kinsta vs Cloudways debate? For a single WordPress site with a global audience, Kinsta’s edge caching delivers top-tier speed with no tuning at all. In contrast, for dynamic, uncached workloads such as WooCommerce checkouts, membership sites, or Joomla, a well-sized Cloudways server can match Kinsta at a lower price.

The important word there is well-sized. An overloaded 1 GB server will not beat anyone, so give busy sites enough RAM and CPU from the start.

Kinsta vs Cloudways for WordPress Sites

For WordPress, this Kinsta vs Cloudways comparison is close, and your choice comes down to how much control you want. Both hosts offer staging, backups, SSL, caching, and developer access. The real difference lies in how much each platform does automatically.

Staging and Developer Tools

Kinsta gives every site a free staging environment with selective push, so you can deploy only files, only the database, or both. You can also add premium staging environments that mirror live resources for heavier testing. Furthermore, developers get SSH, WP-CLI, Git, and ready-made CI/CD guides for GitHub Actions, GitLab, and Bitbucket. For local work, the free DevKinsta app builds WordPress sites on your computer and pushes them to Kinsta.

Cloudways includes free advanced staging and one-click cloning for single apps or entire servers. It also supports SSH, SFTP, WP-CLI, and Git-based deployment. In addition, its AI assistant, Cloudways Copilot, monitors your servers and suggests fixes, with one-click SmartFix actions for common problems.

Caching and CDN

Kinsta handles caching at the server and edge levels with no caching plugin required. Its must-use plugin clears the cache automatically when you publish or update content. If your site leans heavily on database queries, you can add Redis object caching as a paid add-on.

Cloudways gives you more knobs to turn. You get Varnish, Redis, Object Cache Pro, and the Breeze plugin, plus the optional Cloudflare Enterprise add-on with edge page caching and Argo Smart Routing. Therefore, Cloudways can be just as fast, but you configure more of it yourself.

Updates and Maintenance

Kinsta offers an automatic updates add-on that updates plugins and themes daily. If an update breaks something, Kinsta restores the backup it took before that update. Cloudways offers SafeUpdates, which tests WordPress updates on a staging copy before deploying them to your live site.

One more detail deserves attention. Kinsta publishes a list of banned and incompatible plugins, so check it before you migrate. Cloudways gives you broader freedom because the server belongs to you.

Overall, pick Kinsta if you want WordPress to feel maintenance-free. On the other hand, pick Cloudways if you enjoy tuning performance or host many WordPress sites on one budget.

Kinsta vs Cloudways for Joomla Sites

For Joomla, the Kinsta vs Cloudways decision is easy: Cloudways is the practical choice for most people. It runs Joomla on the same managed servers as WordPress. Kinsta, in contrast, requires you to build a container setup on Sevalla.

Before comparing setups, check Joomla’s requirements. Joomla 6.0 arrived on October 14, 2025, and it needs PHP 8.3 or newer plus MySQL 8.0.13 or MariaDB 10.4 or newer. You can confirm the details in the official Joomla technical requirements. Cloudways Flexible supports PHP 8.3 and 8.4 and offers MariaDB 10.11 or MySQL 8.4, so it meets those requirements today.

How to Host Joomla on Cloudways

Setting up Joomla on Cloudways takes roughly 20 minutes. Follow these steps:

1. Launch a server with a custom PHP application. In the Cloudways dashboard, add a server, select the PHP application type, and choose your provider, server size, and location.
2. Pick the Hybrid Stack. Joomla ships with an htaccess.txt file for search engine-friendly URLs and security rules, and the Hybrid Stack reads it without changes. You can switch an application’s stack later if you want to test Lightning.
3. Set PHP 8.3 or 8.4. Open your server’s Settings and Packages tab and select a PHP version that meets Joomla 6 requirements.
4. Upload Joomla. Download the latest package from Joomla.org, then upload and extract it into the application’s public_html folder over SFTP or SSH.
5. Run the web installer. Visit your application URL, enter your site details, and use the database name, username, and password from the application’s Access Details tab.
6. Enable friendly URLs. Rename htaccess.txt to .htaccess, then turn on Search Engine Friendly URLs and URL Rewriting in Joomla’s Global Configuration.
7. Go live securely. Next, add your domain, point your DNS to the server, and install a free Let’s Encrypt certificate. Optionally, enable the Cloudflare Enterprise add-on.
8. Protect the site. Schedule automated backups and create a staging clone, then test Joomla and extension updates there before production.

If you prefer the faster Lightning Stack, recreate Joomla’s rewrite rule with Web Rules and test it on a staging copy first. Also review any security extension that writes rules to .htaccess, because NGINX will ignore them.

Also Read:https://beginnerstack.com/git-tools-for-beginners-the-10-best-picks-for-2026/

How to Host Joomla on Sevalla by Kinsta

If you want to keep WordPress on Kinsta, you can still run Joomla under the same login through Sevalla. The process looks like this:

1. Create a managed database. Sevalla supports MySQL 8.0 and 9.0, plus MariaDB 10.4 through 11.1. The smallest database pod costs $5 per month.
2. Deploy an application. Use a Docker image, such as the official Joomla image, or a Git repository with your own Dockerfile.
3. Add persistent storage. Container file systems reset on each deploy, so Joomla’s files, media uploads, and configuration need a persistent disk.
4. Connect the app to the database. Use Sevalla’s internal connection so traffic between the two stays on a private network.
5. Add your custom domain. Choose at least a Standard pod, because the $5 Hobby pod does not support custom domains.

Sevalla application pods start at $10 per month for 0.5 CPU and 1 GB of RAM on the Standard tier, and bandwidth costs $0.10 per GB. In addition, Sevalla notes that it cannot guarantee zero-downtime deployments for apps that use persistent storage.

This route works well for developers who already use Docker. However, you own the image, the PHP extensions, and the update process. In other words, it is not the managed experience Kinsta gives WordPress.

The Joomla Verdict: Kinsta vs Cloudways

Cloudways wins this round clearly. After all, it offers a familiar server environment, current PHP and database versions, staging, backups, and support for the underlying server, all at a low price. Sevalla is a capable fallback for technical users, but beginners and agencies will find Cloudways far simpler for Joomla.

Kinsta vs Cloudways Security, Backups, and Support

On security, the Kinsta vs Cloudways gap is smaller than most people expect. Indeed, both platforms protect sites well. The main differences are what comes included and how much responsibility stays with you.

Security

Kinsta protects every site with its Cloudflare integration, which adds a firewall and DDoS mitigation at the network edge. Moreover, sites run in isolated containers, SSL certificates support TLS 1.3, and MyKinsta includes IP blocking and bot protection tools. Kinsta also offers free malware removal and maintains SOC 2 compliance.

Cloudways secures Flexible servers with an Imunify360 firewall that adds IP and country blocking, bot protection, and brute-force defense. In addition, you get free Let’s Encrypt SSL, two-factor authentication, IP whitelisting for SSH and SFTP, and a WordPress vulnerability scanner. However, dedicated malware protection and the managed WAF inside Cloudflare Enterprise cost extra.

One practical difference matters here. On Cloudways, you share responsibility for app-level decisions, such as which PHP version and which applications run on each server. Kinsta, on the other hand, makes more of those choices for you.

Backups

Kinsta creates automatic daily backups and keeps them for 14 days on entry plans, with longer retention on larger plans. You can also take manual backups and restore to staging. For extra safety, Kinsta sells add-ons for hourly backups and for external backups to Amazon S3 or Google Cloud Storage.

Cloudways lets you schedule automated offsite backups, choose how often they run, and set retention. You can also run on-demand backups and restore individual applications. The flexibility is excellent, but storage costs $0.033 per GB, so large media libraries add a few dollars each month.

Ease of Use

MyKinsta is one of the most beginner-friendly hosting dashboards available. In fact, everything revolves around your sites, and most tasks take one or two clicks.

Cloudways organizes everything as servers first, then applications. That structure makes perfect sense once you understand it, but it adds a learning curve for first-time users. Neither platform uses cPanel, so expect a short adjustment period if you are coming from shared hosting.

Kinsta vs Cloudways Customer Support

Every Kinsta plan includes 24/7/365 chat support, staffed by engineers who know WordPress deeply. Because Kinsta only manages WordPress, its agents can often help with plugin conflicts and performance issues within its published scope of support.

Cloudways offers 24/7 live chat and ticketing on all plans. However, standard support focuses on the server and platform. For faster responses and deeper application-level help, you can buy the Advanced or Premium support add-ons. This point matters for Joomla owners, because Joomla-specific debugging may fall outside standard support.

Migration

Kinsta offers free expert migrations for WordPress sites, and its docs also cover self-service tools such as Migrate Guru and Duplicator. Similarly, Cloudways migrates your first site for free and offers its own WordPress migration plugin. Autonomous plans include free managed migrations as well.

For Joomla, plan a manual move. For example, many site owners package the site with a Joomla backup extension such as Akeeba Backup, upload the archive to the new server, and restore it there. Always test the restored copy on a temporary URL before you switch DNS.

Kinsta vs Cloudways Pros and Cons

Here is a quick Kinsta vs Cloudways summary of where each host shines and where it falls short.

Kinsta Pros and Cons

Pros

• Truly hands-off managed WordPress hosting
• Google Cloud C3D machines and Cloudflare edge caching included
• Polished MyKinsta dashboard with APM, staging, and DevKinsta
• 24/7 expert support on every plan
• First month free on entry plans, plus a 30-day money-back guarantee

Cons

• Higher cost per site, especially for small sites
• Visit or bandwidth limits with overage fees
• No Joomla support on managed plans
• WordPress multisite unavailable on the Single 35k and Single 20GB plans
• Add-ons such as extra sites and Redis raise the bill

Cloudways Pros and Cons

Pros

• Low entry price with unlimited sites per server
• Choice of five cloud providers and dozens of data centers
• Runs Joomla and other PHP applications alongside WordPress
• Hourly billing and a 3-day free trial without a credit card
• Current PHP and database versions with fast caching layers

Cons

• Cloudflare Enterprise, backup storage, and premium support cost extra
• You must size, monitor, and scale your own server
• The Lightning Stack drops .htaccess support
• A server-first dashboard with a steeper learning curve
• Standard support does not cover deep application debugging

Kinsta vs Cloudways: Which Should You Choose?

Your answer to the Kinsta vs Cloudways question depends on three things: your CMS, your budget, and how much server work you want to do. So use these scenarios as a guide.

Choose Kinsta if you run only WordPress, your site earns real revenue, and you want someone else to own performance and security. Kinsta also suits teams without a developer on call and businesses that value premium support over lower costs.

Choose Cloudways if you run Joomla, a mix of Joomla and WordPress, or many small sites on a tight budget. It also fits developers and agencies who like choosing providers, data centers, and server sizes.

Consider Cloudways Autonomous if you run a busy WooCommerce store or learning platform with unpredictable traffic spikes. In that case, autoscaling without server management can justify the higher starting price.

Consider Kinsta plus Sevalla if you already love Kinsta for WordPress and have the Docker skills to maintain a containerized Joomla site. However, remember that you will then manage two dashboards and two bills.

Still undecided? Then start with your CMS. If Joomla is in the picture, begin with Cloudways. Otherwise, if WordPress is all you run and budget is not tight, begin with Kinsta.

Kinsta vs Cloudways FAQs

Is Kinsta better than Cloudways for beginners?

For WordPress beginners, yes. Kinsta hides the server entirely, and its support team also handles most technical problems. Cloudways is still beginner-friendly compared with an unmanaged VPS, but you need a basic understanding of servers and applications.

Can I host Joomla on Kinsta?

Not on Kinsta’s managed WordPress plans. That is because Kinsta supports only WordPress there and does not allow extra databases. However, you can run Joomla on Sevalla, Kinsta’s application platform, as a containerized app with a managed database.

Does Cloudways still support Joomla in 2026?

Yes. Cloudways no longer lists Joomla as a separate one-click app, but you can install it as a custom PHP application. Moreover, Cloudways Flexible offers PHP 8.3 and 8.4 plus MariaDB 10.11 or MySQL 8.4, which meet Joomla 6 requirements.

Which is cheaper, Kinsta or Cloudways?

Cloudways is cheaper in nearly every scenario. For example, a single WordPress site costs about $20 per month on Cloudways with Cloudflare Enterprise, compared with $35 per month on Kinsta. The gap widens further as you add more sites.

Which host is faster in a Kinsta vs Cloudways test?

Kinsta usually wins for cached WordPress pages served worldwide, thanks to edge caching on Cloudflare’s network. Meanwhile, a properly sized Cloudways server on the Lightning Stack can match Kinsta for dynamic pages. Overall, your results depend on server size, location, and caching setup.

Can I move from Cloudways to Kinsta later?

Yes, for WordPress sites. Kinsta offers free expert migrations, and Cloudways lets you move sites out whenever you like. Joomla sites cannot move to Kinsta’s WordPress plans, though, so they would need Sevalla or another host.

Final Verdict on Kinsta vs Cloudways

The Kinsta vs Cloudways choice comes down to one question. Do you want a premium, fully managed WordPress service, or a flexible cloud platform that runs almost any PHP site?

Kinsta is the better pick for WordPress-only site owners who value speed, simplicity, and expert support, and who can afford a higher price per site. Conversely, Cloudways is the better pick for Joomla sites, mixed WordPress and Joomla portfolios, and anyone who wants to host several sites on a sensible budget.

Fortunately, both hosts make testing easy. Kinsta gives new customers the first month free on entry plans, and Cloudways offers a 3-day trial without a credit card. So launch a staging copy of your site on each platform, measure load times from your main audience’s region, and let real results settle the Kinsta vs Cloudways question for your own sites.

Also Read: Bolt.new vs Lovable vs Replit: Best Tool for Your First App