Cloudways Wins
Winner
VS
Score Comparison
Criteria
Cloudways
Linode (Akamai)
Overall Score
8.6
8.4
Performance
9.5
8.6
Features
8.5
8.2
Ease of Use
7.8
8.5
Pricing/Value
8.2
8.6
Support
8.5
8.0
Pricing & Features
Specification
Cloudways
Linode (Akamai)
Starting Price
$14/mo
$5/mo
Pricing Model
Usage-based
Subscription
Making Your Decision
When to Choose Cloudways
Growing businesses and developers who need cloud performance without server management
Cloudways bridges the gap between shared hosting simplicity and cloud performance, offering managed infrastructure on top-tier cloud providers for users who've outgrown traditional hosting.
Strengths
- Managed cloud hosting with major providers (AWS, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean)
- Excellent performance with built-in caching and CDN
- Pay-as-you-go pricing with no long-term contracts
- Free staging environments and easy cloning
Limitations
- Higher starting price than shared hosting
- Email hosting not included (requires third-party)
- Steeper learning curve for beginners
When to Choose Linode (Akamai)
Price-conscious developers who want reliable performance and good support
Linode (now part of Akamai) offers solid VPS hosting with competitive pricing and reliable performance. A great middle-ground choice for those who find AWS too complex but need more than basic shared hosting.
Strengths
- Consistent performance with dedicated CPU options
- Competitive pricing with generous bandwidth
- Now backed by Akamai CDN infrastructure
- Strong uptime track record
Limitations
- Fewer one-click apps than competitors
- Akamai acquisition creating some uncertainty
- Control panel less polished than DigitalOcean
