Cloudways Free Trial: Your Complete Guide to Testing Premium Cloud Hosting in 2026

Looking for a way to test professional cloud hosting without pulling out your credit card

You’ve landed in the right place. The Cloudways free trial offers something rare in the hosting world: a genuine opportunity to experience premium managed cloud hosting without any financial commitment upfront.

In this comprehensive guide, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about the Cloudways trial, from signing up to maximizing every minute of your test period. Whether you’re running a WordPress blog, managing an e-commerce store, or developing client websites, this guide will help you determine if Cloudways is the right hosting solution for your needs.

What Makes Cloudways Different from Traditional Web Hosting?

Before diving into the trial details, let’s understand what sets Cloudways apart. Unlike traditional shared hosting providers like Bluehost or HostGator, Cloudways operates as a managed cloud hosting platform.

Think of it as the bridge between complex cloud infrastructure providers (like DigitalOcean, AWS, and Google Cloud) and everyday users who want powerful hosting without the technical headaches.

Here’s the deal: major cloud providers offer incredible performance, but they require serious technical expertise to set up and manage. Cloudways takes that powerful infrastructure and wraps it in an intuitive management platform. You get the speed and reliability of cloud hosting with the simplicity of traditional hosting.

The platform currently serves over 100,000 businesses worldwide, hosting more than 570,000 websites. That’s not just impressive numbers – it’s proof that Cloudways has found a sweet spot between performance, usability, and value.

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Understanding the Cloudways Free Trial: What You Actually Get

The Cloudways free trial comes in two flavors, and understanding the difference is crucial for choosing the right option for your testing needs.

The Standard 3-Day Free Trial

The most straightforward option is the three-day trial that requires absolutely no credit card. You can sign up, deploy servers, test applications, and explore the entire platform for 72 hours without sharing any payment information.

During this trial period, you get:

Full access to DigitalOcean servers (the most popular choice for beginners)
Ability to deploy WordPress, WooCommerce, Magento, Laravel, and custom PHP applications
24/7 customer support via live chat
All core features including staging environments, SSL certificates, and automated backups
Server management tools and monitoring dashboards
Up to 4GB of RAM during the trial period

One important limitation: AWS and Google Cloud servers aren’t available during the free trial. You’ll need to upgrade to access those premium cloud providers. However, DigitalOcean servers deliver excellent performance and are more than sufficient for testing purposes.

Cloudways Autonomous Trial

If you’re specifically interested in Cloudways Autonomous – their fully managed, auto-scaling WordPress solution built on Kubernetes – there’s a separate three-day trial available. This trial also requires no credit card and gives you access to:

15GB disk space
50GB bandwidth
10,000 visits
US data center location
Kubernetes-based infrastructure with Google C2 machines
Integrated Cloudflare Enterprise CDN
Object Cache Pro for database caching
Unlimited PHP workers

The Autonomous trial is ideal if you’re planning to run a high-traffic WordPress site or e-commerce store that needs automatic scaling capabilities. However, keep in mind that these resource limits are hard caps – if you exhaust any of them before the three days are up, your trial ends immediately.

How to Sign Up for the Cloudways Free Trial (Step-by-Step)

Getting started with your Cloudways trial takes less than five minutes. Here’s the exact process:

Step 1: Visit the Cloudways Website

Head to Cloudways.com and click the “Start Free” button. You’ll see this prominently displayed on their homepage.

Step 2: Create Your Account

You’ll need to provide:

Your name
Email address
Password

Alternatively, you can sign up faster using Google, LinkedIn, or GitHub authentication.

Step 3: Verify Your Account

Cloudways uses a two-step verification process to prevent spam and ensure only real users access the trial. You’ll receive an email verification link, click it to activate your account. They may also send a quick phone verification code, which takes less than a minute.

This verification step might seem like extra friction, but it’s actually protecting you. It ensures the platform remains spam-free and maintains the quality standards that make Cloudways worth using in the first place.

Step 5: Launch Your Server

Once verified, you’re ready to deploy your first server. This is where the magic happens:

Choose your cloud provider (DigitalOcean for the free trial)
Select your server size – start with the smallest option ($11-12/month tier) to maximize your free credits
Pick your server location from nine available data centers (choose the one closest to your target audience)
Select your application type (WordPress is the most popular choice)
Name your server and application
Click “Launch Now”

Your server typically deploys within 5-7 minutes. You’ll see a progress indicator showing the setup status.

Step 6: Access Your Dashboard

Once deployment completes, you’ll land in your Cloudways dashboard. This is your command center for managing servers, applications, monitoring performance, and accessing all platform features.

Congratulations! You’re now officially testing Cloudways with full access to their managed cloud hosting platform.

Features Available During Your Free Trial Period

One of the best aspects of the Cloudways trial is that it’s not a watered-down version. You get genuine access to the features that make Cloudways worth considering. Let’s break down what’s available:

Server Management Features

One-Click Application Deployment: Install WordPress, WooCommerce, Magento, Laravel, Drupal, Joomla, or custom PHP applications with a single click. No FTP uploads, no manual database configuration, no wrestling with file permissions.

Vertical Scaling: Need more resources? You can scale your server’s RAM, CPU, and storage by moving sliders in the dashboard. This happens in minutes, not hours, and with zero downtime.

Server Cloning: Create exact replicas of your servers for testing, backup purposes, or deploying multiple similar sites. This feature saves countless hours when managing multiple client projects.

SSH and SFTP Access: For developers who need command-line access, Cloudways provides full SSH terminal access and SFTP capabilities. You’re not locked out of your server – you just don’t have to manage it.

WordPress-Specific Features

Staging Environment: This is huge. You can create a complete copy of your live website to test updates, new plugins, or design changes without any risk. Once you’re satisfied, push changes to production with one click.

Free SSL Certificates: Every site gets free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates with automatic renewal. HTTPS is no longer optional for SEO or user trust, and Cloudways makes it completely hassle-free.

WordPress Optimization: Pre-installed caching mechanisms including Varnish, Memcached, Redis, and Nginx deliver significantly faster page load times compared to traditional shared hosting.

Breeze WordPress Plugin: Cloudways’ own caching plugin comes pre-installed, trusted by over 300,000 users. It’s lightweight, effective, and integrated perfectly with the platform.

WP-CLI Access: For power users and developers, WP-CLI is available for managing WordPress installations via command line.

Performance and Speed Features

Built-In CDN Integration: Cloudways offers Cloudflare Enterprise CDN integration, which can improve page load times by up to 70%. This distributes your content across global servers, ensuring fast delivery regardless of visitor location.

Advanced Caching: The platform uses a multi-layer caching approach combining server-level caches (Varnish, Nginx), application-level caches (Memcached, Redis), and page caching (Breeze plugin).

NVMe SSD Storage: All servers use high-performance SSD storage, with premium servers offering even faster NVMe drives for database-intensive applications.

PHP 8.0, 8.1, and 8.2 Support: Run the latest PHP versions for optimal performance and security, with free seamless updates when new versions release.

HTTP/2 Support: All servers are HTTP/2 optimized for faster content delivery and improved performance.

Security Features

Dedicated Firewalls: Every server includes OS-level firewalls that automatically block malicious traffic and bot attacks.

Regular Security Patches: Cloudways handles all security updates and patches automatically. You never need to worry about outdated software creating vulnerabilities.

Two-Factor Authentication: Secure your account with 2FA to prevent unauthorized access.

IP Whitelisting: Restrict administrative access to specific IP addresses for enhanced security.

Automated Backups: Schedule automated backups hourly, daily, weekly, or on-demand. While backups aren’t entirely free (they use server storage), you can configure them during your trial.

Free SSL Certificates: As mentioned earlier, every application gets free SSL with automatic renewal.

Monitoring and Management

Real-Time Monitoring: Track over a dozen metrics in real-time, including CPU usage, memory consumption, disk space, bandwidth usage, and application response times.

CloudwaysBot: This AI-powered assistant monitors your server health and sends notifications via email, Slack, or API webhooks. Get alerts about storage scaling, bandwidth usage, performance issues, and more.

Application and Server Logs: Access detailed logs for troubleshooting and debugging without needing SSH access.

Team Collaboration: Add team members with customizable permissions, perfect for agencies managing client websites.

Support During Trial

24/7 Live Chat Support: This is not a trial-only limitation. You get the same expert support as paying customers. Average response time is around 90 seconds, and the support team can help with technical issues, migrations, and platform questions.

Knowledge Base: Access comprehensive documentation covering everything from basic setup to advanced configurations.

Community Forum: Connect with other Cloudways users (though this is primarily their Facebook group, not a traditional forum).

Support Tickets: For complex issues, you can open support tickets that receive attention from senior technical staff.

Cloudways Flexible vs. Cloudways Autonomous: Which Trial Should You Choose?

Cloudways offers two distinct hosting solutions, and choosing the right one for your trial depends on your specific needs. Let’s break down the differences:

Cloudways Flexible

This is the traditional Cloudways experience and what most users should start with during their trial. Here’s what defines it:

Best for: Developers, agencies, small to medium businesses, and anyone wanting control over their hosting environment

Key characteristics:

Choose from five cloud providers (DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS, Google Cloud)
Select and customize server specifications
Host multiple applications on a single server
Full control over server configurations (within managed hosting limits)
Pay-as-you-go pricing model
Pricing starts at $11-14/month for basic DigitalOcean servers

Ideal use cases:

Managing multiple client websites on one server
Running different application types (WordPress, Magento, Laravel)
Needing specific server configurations
Budget-conscious projects that don’t need enterprise scaling
Developers who want SSH access and more control

Cloudways Autonomous

This is Cloudways’ premium, fully managed WordPress solution built on Kubernetes infrastructure. It’s designed for hands-off management with automatic scaling.

Best for: High-traffic WordPress sites, e-commerce stores, membership sites, and businesses that need guaranteed uptime during traffic spikes

Key characteristics:

Built on Google Kubernetes Engine with C2 machines
Automatic scaling based on traffic demands
WordPress and WooCommerce only
Integrated Cloudflare Enterprise CDN
Object Cache Pro included (normally a paid plugin)
Unlimited PHP workers
Pricing starts at $35/month (Plan 1)

Ideal use cases:

E-commerce stores with unpredictable traffic
Membership sites with concurrent user demands
Marketing campaigns with traffic surges
Business-critical WordPress sites needing maximum uptime
Sites requiring enterprise-level performance without technical management

Which Should You Trial?

For most users, start with Cloudways Flexible. Here’s why:

Lower barrier to entry: The $11-14/month tier is more affordable, and your $30 trial credits last longer
More versatility: You can test different applications, not just WordPress
Better learning experience: You’ll understand how the platform works without the abstraction layer
Easier migration: Moving from shared hosting to Flexible is more straightforward

However, choose Cloudways Autonomous trial if:

You’re running a high-traffic WordPress site (10,000+ daily visitors)
You experience regular traffic spikes from marketing campaigns
You need guaranteed performance during peak times
Your business can’t tolerate any downtime
You want completely hands-off infrastructure management

You can always start with Flexible and upgrade to Autonomous later if needed. Your data and configurations transfer seamlessly.

Making the Most of Your Cloudways Free Trial

Three days might sound short, but with proper planning, it’s enough time to thoroughly evaluate whether Cloudways meets your needs. Here’s how to maximize your trial period:

Before Your Trial Starts: Preparation

1. Define Your Testing Goals

Don’t go in blind. Write down specific things you want to evaluate:

Page load speed improvements compared to your current host
Ease of migration from your existing hosting
Dashboard usability and learning curve
Support responsiveness and helpfulness
Specific features you need (staging, CDN, backups)
Price comparison with your current hosting costs

2. Prepare Test Content

If you’re migrating an existing site, gather necessary information:

Current hosting credentials
Database access
FTP/SFTP details
List of plugins and themes
Recent backup files

3. Benchmark Your Current Performance

Before switching, document your current site metrics:

Page load times (use GTmetrix or Google PageSpeed Insights)
Server response times
Uptime statistics
Current hosting costs
Number of monthly visitors and bandwidth usage

During Your Trial: What to Test

Day 1: Setup and Initial Configuration

Start by deploying your server and getting familiar with the dashboard. Key tasks:

Launch your server with the smallest configuration to preserve credits
Install your application (WordPress recommended for most users)
Explore the dashboard interface – locate key features like monitoring, backups, and SSL
Install your theme and a few essential plugins
Enable SSL certificate (it’s free and takes one click)
Test the staging environment by cloning your application

Day 2: Performance and Migration Testing

This is when you dig deeper into what matters:

Migrate a real website using Cloudways’ free migration plugin or contact support for assisted migration
Run speed tests on your migrated site using GTmetrix, Pingdom, or Google PageSpeed Insights
Compare results with your previous hosting benchmarks
Test the CDN by enabling Cloudflare integration
Simulate a small traffic spike using a load testing tool (be reasonable – don’t overdo it)
Test backup and restoration processes
Configure automated backups with your preferred schedule

Day 3: Support and Advanced Features

Use the final day to test support quality and advanced capabilities:

Contact support with a technical question via live chat
Test response time and solution quality
Experiment with team collaboration features if managing client sites
Try vertical scaling by upgrading server resources temporarily
Test server cloning capabilities
Review monitoring tools and CloudwaysBot alerts
Calculate actual costs based on your usage patterns

Smart Tips for Extended Testing (With Promo Credits)

If you’re using promo codes for extended trial credits, you have more time for in-depth evaluation:

Month 1: Basic Functionality

Migrate your site completely
Configure all settings and optimizations
Monitor daily performance metrics
Test all features you’ll actually use

Month 2: Real-World Performance

Handle actual traffic patterns
Test during your typical peak periods
Evaluate support when issues arise
Fine-tune server resources based on actual needs

Month 3: Decision Making

Review total usage costs
Calculate ROI compared to current hosting
Assess whether Cloudways solved your original pain points
Compare with alternative hosting solutions
Make informed decision on whether to continue

Questions to Answer During Your Trial

Create a simple evaluation checklist:

Performance:

Are page load times faster than my current host?
Does the site handle traffic spikes better?
Is there noticeable improvement in backend speed?

Usability:

Can I navigate the dashboard without constant documentation?
Are common tasks easy to accomplish?
Do I need technical knowledge for basic operations?

Features:

Does the platform include everything I need?
Are there any missing features that are deal-breakers?
Do the included features actually work well?

Support:

How fast are support response times?
Can support actually solve my problems?
Is documentation comprehensive and helpful?

Value:

What will my actual monthly costs be?
How does this compare to alternatives?
Is the performance improvement worth the price difference?

Understanding Cloudways Pricing After Your Trial

Once your free trial or promo credits run out, you’ll need to decide whether to continue with Cloudways. Understanding the pricing structure helps you make an informed decision.

Pay-As-You-Go Model

Unlike traditional hosting with fixed monthly fees, Cloudways uses hourly billing. You pay only for the resources you actually use. If you run a server for 10 days and then cancel, you’re charged only for those 10 days, not the full month.

This flexibility is particularly valuable for:

Seasonal businesses with fluctuating needs
Testing and development projects
Client projects with uncertain timelines
Scaling resources up during traffic spikes and down during quiet periods

Cloudways Flexible Pricing

Pricing varies based on your chosen cloud provider:

DigitalOcean (Most Popular):

1GB RAM: $11/month
2GB RAM: $22/month
4GB RAM: $42/month
8GB RAM: $80/month
Higher tiers available up to 192GB RAM

Vultr:

Similar pricing to DigitalOcean
1GB RAM: $11/month
High-frequency options available with NVMe storage

Linode:

1GB RAM: $12/month
Competitive pricing across all tiers
25 global data center locations

AWS:

1.75GB RAM: $36.51/month
Premium performance and global infrastructure
Higher costs but enterprise-grade reliability

Google Cloud:

1.75GB RAM: $33.30/month
Excellent for those already in Google ecosystem
Premium infrastructure and performance

Cloudways Autonomous Pricing

For the fully managed WordPress solution:

Plan 1: $35/month (suitable for growing sites)
Plan 2: $75/month (medium traffic sites)
Plan 3: $115/month (high traffic sites)
Plan 4: $155/month (very high traffic sites)
Custom plans: Available for enterprise needs

All Autonomous plans include automatic scaling, so resources adjust based on actual traffic without manual intervention.

Additional Costs to Consider

Offsite Backup Storage: $0.033 per GB per server
Extra Bandwidth: $0.12 per GB beyond your plan’s allocation (AWS)
Additional Storage: $0.17 per GB for extra disk space
Email Hosting: $1 per email address per month (via Rackspace add-on)
Premium Support: Available as an add-on for priority responses and enhanced support access
Advanced Support: For mission-critical sites needing faster resolution times

What’s Included in All Plans

Regardless of which tier you choose, every Cloudways plan includes:

24/7 expert support via live chat and tickets
Free SSL certificates with automatic renewal
Free website migration (after account upgrade)
Automated backups (you pay only for storage used)
Staging environments
Git integration
Team collaboration tools
Real-time monitoring
CloudwaysBot notifications
Regular security patches and updates
PHP version management
Server cloning capabilities
Dedicated IP address
HTTP/2 support

Comparing Value Proposition

At $11/month for the basic DigitalOcean plan, Cloudways costs more than typical shared hosting ($3-8/month) but offers dramatically better performance. You’re getting:

Dedicated server resources (not shared with hundreds of other sites)
Cloud infrastructure with superior reliability
Managed services that save hours of technical work
Professional-grade features typically reserved for expensive VPS plans
Scalability without migration headaches

For most businesses, the productivity gains and performance improvements justify the higher cost. A faster website means better conversions, higher search rankings, and happier visitors.

Who Should Try the Cloudways Free Trial?

Cloudways isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay. Here’s who benefits most from testing this platform:

Perfect Candidates for Cloudways

Growing Businesses: If you’ve outgrown shared hosting but aren’t ready for enterprise solutions, Cloudways hits the sweet spot. You get enterprise-level performance at reasonable prices.

WordPress Developers and Agencies: Managing multiple client sites? Cloudways’ team features, server cloning, and staging environments make client management significantly easier.

E-commerce Store Owners: WooCommerce and Magento sites benefit enormously from Cloudways’ performance optimizations and ability to handle traffic spikes without downtime.

Performance-Conscious Marketers: When page load speed directly impacts your conversion rates, Cloudways’ optimization features deliver measurable ROI.

Developers Needing Control: You get SSH access, Git integration, and the ability to run custom applications while still enjoying managed hosting benefits.

Scaling Startups: Start small with $11/month and scale seamlessly as your traffic grows, without migrating to new infrastructure.

Who Might Want to Skip

Absolute Beginners: If you’ve never set up a website before, Cloudways might have a steeper learning curve than Wix or Squarespace. You can handle it, but expect some learning time.

Extremely Budget-Conscious Users: If you need the absolute cheapest hosting and your site has minimal traffic, traditional shared hosting might suffice.

Those Needing Email Hosting: Cloudways doesn’t include email hosting in standard plans. You’ll need the Rackspace add-on ($1/email/month) or use external email services.

Non-Technical Users Wanting Full Automation: While Cloudways simplifies cloud hosting, it still requires more involvement than fully managed platforms like Kinsta or WP Engine.

Sites Under 1,000 Monthly Visitors: The performance benefits might not justify the cost difference if your traffic is very low. Consider starting with cheaper hosting and migrating to Cloudways as you grow.

Common Questions About the Cloudways Free Trial

Q: Do I really not need a credit card for the free trial?

Absolutely not. The three-day trial requires only your email address and phone number for verification. No payment information whatsoever. This is one of Cloudways’ best features – you can genuinely test the platform risk-free.

Q: What happens when my trial ends?

If you haven’t added a payment method, your servers automatically shut down after three days. Your data remains accessible for a grace period, allowing you to retrieve any content if needed. If you’ve added payment details, your account auto-converts to a paid plan and billing begins based on your server usage.

Q: Can I migrate my existing website during the trial?

Yes! This is actually recommended. You can use Cloudways’ free WordPress migration plugin or contact support for assisted migration once you upgrade your account. Testing with your actual website gives you the most accurate performance comparison.

Q: Will I get charged automatically after the trial?

Only if you’ve added a payment method. If you complete the trial without adding payment details, nothing happens – your servers simply stop running after three days. There are no surprise charges or recurring fees.

Q: Can I try both Flexible and Autonomous during my trial?

You can sign up for separate trials for each product. However, you can’t run both simultaneously on the same account using the same trial period. Choose the one more relevant to your immediate needs.

Q: Is support really available 24/7 during the trial?

Yes. Trial users get the same support access as paying customers. Average live chat response time is around 90 seconds, and support quality is generally excellent based on user reviews.

Q: Can I upgrade to a larger server during my trial?

Absolutely. You can vertically scale your server resources at any time by moving sliders in the dashboard. This happens within minutes with zero downtime. However, using larger servers consumes your trial credits faster if you’re using promo codes.

Q: What happens to my data if I don’t continue after the trial?

Your data remains accessible in your Cloudways account for a grace period. You can download backups or export your data before the account is fully closed. However, it’s best to backup your content before the trial ends to avoid any complications.

Q: Can I cancel my trial early if I decide it’s not for me?

Yes. Simply delete your servers from the dashboard. If you haven’t added payment information, you won’t be charged anything. If you have payment details on file, you’ll be charged only for the actual server usage up to that point.

Q: Can I use multiple promo codes?

No. Cloudways allows one promo code per account. Choose the code offering the best value for your situation, either free credits for extended testing or percentage discounts for long-term savings.

Final Verdict: Is the Cloudways Free Trial Worth Your Time?

After examining every aspect of the Cloudways free trial, here’s the bottom line: Yes, it’s absolutely worth trying – with some important caveats.

What Makes This Trial Stand Out

1. No Risk Testing: The no-credit-card requirement eliminates all financial risk. You can genuinely evaluate the platform without worrying about forgetting to cancel before charges hit.

2. Real Features, Not Limitations: Unlike many “free trials” that restrict important features, Cloudways gives you access to the actual platform you’d use as a paying customer. The testing experience reflects real-world usage.

3. Generous Extension Options: Combined with promo codes, you can test for up to three months essentially free, giving you ample time to make an informed decision.

4. Full Support Access: Getting the same 24/7 support as paying customers during your trial means you can resolve issues and learn the platform properly before committing financially.

Who Benefits Most

You’ll gain maximum value from this trial if you:

Currently use shared hosting and experience performance issues
Need to manage multiple WordPress sites efficiently
Run an e-commerce store requiring better performance
Want cloud hosting power without technical complexity
Work as a developer or agency managing client websites
Are willing to invest a few hours learning the platform

Potential Drawbacks to Consider

Time Investment: Three days requires focused testing. If you can’t dedicate a few hours to properly evaluate the platform, you might not get meaningful results.

Learning Curve: While simpler than managing cloud servers directly, Cloudways still requires more technical understanding than traditional shared hosting. Budget time for learning.

Cost Considerations: At $11-35+/month, Cloudways costs more than budget shared hosting. Ensure the performance gains justify the price difference for your specific situation.

Email Hosting Gap: Needing separate email hosting adds complexity and cost. Factor this into your decision if email is critical.

The Bottom Line

The Cloudways free trial delivers exactly what it promises: a genuine, risk-free opportunity to test premium managed cloud hosting. With no credit card required, full feature access, and optional extensions through promo codes, you have everything needed to make an informed decision.

Three days is enough to test basic functionality and performance. Three months (with promo credits) is more than enough to thoroughly evaluate if Cloudways solves your hosting challenges.

Should you try it? If you’re experiencing any of these pain points with your current hosting – slow load times, unreliable uptime, poor support, inability to handle traffic spikes, or frustration with technical management – you owe it to yourself to test Cloudways. The trial costs you nothing but a few hours, and it might reveal the hosting solution you’ve been searching for.

The worst-case scenario? You spend three days testing and decide it’s not for you. No charges, no commitments, no problem.

The best-case scenario? You discover a hosting platform that dramatically improves your website performance, saves you hours of technical frustration, and scales effortlessly as your business grows.

Given that contrast, the choice seems pretty clear. Sign up for the Cloudways free trial, spend a few focused hours testing it properly, and let the results speak for themselves. Your website – and your visitors – will thank you for doing your homework.

Ready to get started? Visit Cloudways.com, click “Start Free,” and take that first step toward potentially transforming your website’s performance.

Good luck with your trial, and may your page load times be forever fast.