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Cloudways vs Linode (Akamai)
Cloudways
Linode (Akamai)
Side-by-side comparison of features, pricing, and performance to help you choose the right hosting provider.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | Cloudways | Linode (Akamai) |
|---|---|---|
| Rating | N/A | N/A |
| Price | Not offered | Not offered |
| Storage | 25 GB SSD | 25 GB SSD |
| Bandwidth | 1 TB | 1 TB |
| Websites | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| CPU | 1 vCPU | 1 vCPU |
| RAM | 1 GB | 1 GB |
| Free Domain | ||
| Free SSL | ||
| Server Locations | ||
| Regions | 9 | 10 ★ |
| Locations | US East, New York, Virginia US West, San Francisco, Oregon Western Europe, London, Amsterdam Central Europe, Frankfurt Southeast Asia, Singapore East Asia, Tokyo India, Mumbai, Bangalore Australia & Oceania, Sydney South America, Sao Paulo | US West, Fremont, Seattle, Los Angeles Western Europe, London, Paris, Amsterdam Central Europe, Frankfurt, Milan Southeast Asia, Singapore, Jakarta East Asia, Tokyo, Osaka India, Mumbai, Chennai Australia & Oceania, Sydney, Melbourne South America, Sao Paulo Africa, Johannesburg US East, Newark, Atlanta, Washington DC, Chicago |
| Plan Details | ||
| Limited plan details available | Limited plan details available | |
| Monthly Visitors | Unlimited | |
Features | ||
CMS & Platforms (7) | ||
Languages & Frameworks (9) | ||
Databases (4) | ||
Developer Tools (8) | ||
Performance & CDN (4) | ||
| Caching | ||
| CDN | ||
| LiteSpeed | ||
| SSD Storage | ||
Security (6) | ||
| 2FA | ||
| Backups | ||
| DDoS Protection | ||
| Malware Scan | ||
| SSL | ||
| WAF | ||
Support (4) | ||
Extras & Guarantees (5) | ||
| Slight discrepancies are possible. We recommend verifying details on the provider's website. | ||
| Visit Cloudways | Visit Linode (Akamai) | |
Pricing & Plans
Cloudways Plans
Linode (Akamai) Plans
Pros & Cons
Cloudways
Pros
- Choice of 5 cloud providers (DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, AWS, Google Cloud)
- Pay-as-you-go monthly billing — no long-term contracts required
- No price increase on renewal
- Free staging environments with 1-click push/pull
- Imunify360 server firewall and vulnerability scanner
- Object Cache Pro included on 4 GB+ servers
- 3-day free trial without credit card
- 24/7/365 support on all plans
Cons
- No annual billing discount on Flexible plans
- Cloudflare Enterprise CDN is a paid add-on ($4.99/domain/mo)
- No free domain included
- No built-in email hosting (Rackspace add-on $1/mailbox/mo)
- Advanced Support is expensive ($100/mo)
- AWS and Google Cloud plans are significantly more expensive
- No cPanel or Plesk — custom control panel only
Linode (Akamai)
Pros
- Simple and predictable pricing — no hidden fees or renewal increases
- Hourly billing with monthly cap across all plans
- 25+ global data center locations
- 100% SSD/NVMe storage on all instances
- Full root access with KVM virtualization
- Comprehensive REST API and CLI (linode-cli)
- Managed Kubernetes (LKE) with free control plane
- Free inbound network transfer on all plans
- 99.99% SLA uptime guarantee
- One-click Marketplace apps for quick deployment
Cons
- No managed shared hosting (IaaS only, self-managed)
- Backups cost extra (20% of instance price)
- No free domain registration
- No cPanel/WHM — command-line or custom panel required
- No phone support — ticket and community-based only
- No live chat for standard support tier
- Stopped instances continue to charge until deleted
Frequently Asked Questions
Cloudways
Is there a discount on managed cloud hosting for the first month?
Yes, many managed cloud hosting providers offer discounts for new users during the first month. These offers let you try the platform at a lower cost before fully committing. At Cloudways, we are offering 30% off for the first 5 months on all web hosting plans, along with free migrations handled by experts and making it easier for you to get started with our managed cloud hosting platform.
Which web hosting provider offers the best value for long term plans?
Finding the best long term web hosting provider depends on performance, scalability, and transparent pricing. While many providers attracts users with low starting prices that jump sharply at renewal, Cloudways offers pay-as-you-go pricing to keep costs predictable. With managed cloud servers starting at $11/month, Cloudways provides enterprise-level performance, 24/7 expert support, and full scalability across top cloud providers like AWS, Google Cloud, and DigitalOcean. For small to medium bus
How does 24/7/365 support work?
Every cloud hosting plan on Cloudways includes 24/7/365 support via Live Chat and our ticketing system. The Advanced and Premium Support add-ons offer exclusive benefits such as quicker response times and enhanced support access. For assistance, contact Cloudways support at '[email protected]'.
Do you charge any tax on monthly invoices?
Yes, as part of DigitalOcean LLC, Cloudways is required to collect fiscal taxes (such as VAT, GST, or Sales Tax) from customers located in specific countries and U.S. states to comply with local regulations. The tax rate is determined by your billing address and will be listed as a separate line item on your monthly invoice. Registered businesses in most locations can apply for a tax exemption on future invoices by providing a valid Tax ID via the Cloudways Platform. Click to read more about how
What is a free trial?
It is a chance for you to familiarize yourself with Cloudways Platform and test its capabilities. No risk, no obligation, no credit card required and you can cancel anytime.
Can I have servers on separate pricing plans and separate cloud providers?
Yes, you can launch multiple servers of the same or different cloud hosting plans and providers. It is entirely up to you how many servers of which cloud hosting pricing plans and infrastructure provider(s) you launch.
Can I launch separate applications?
Yes. There is no restriction on the number of applications you can launch on a single server.
What if I change my Cloudways pricing plan midway through the month?
Cloudways charges you hourly. This means you are charged only for what you use. As soon as you change your cloud hosting pricing plans, it will be reflected immediately on your invoice.
When will I be charged?
We use post-billing method and charge in arrears. Invoices are issued in the first week of every month for usage of services in the previous month. You will be notified by email of your invoices. For details, click here.
Do you charge differently for servers in different regions?
Yes, pricing varies by region. AWS and GCP have different prices for their infrastructure in each region. We pass those regional pricing differences along to customers. Generally, North America and Europe regions tend to be less expensive than Asia Pacific and South America.
What if I exceed my bandwidth?
Cloudways follows a pay-as-you-go model for bandwidth usage. This means you only pay for the additional bandwidth you consume beyond your plan's limit. On Amazon Web Services (AWS), bandwidth is billed on-demand at $0.12/GB for all regions. On Google Cloud Platform (GCP), bandwidth is billed on pay as you go basis at $0.10 to $0.17 per additional GB, varying by region. On DigitalOcean, additional bandwidth is charged at $0.02/GB.
Is there a way to estimate costs prior to launching your server?
Yes. The exact pricing for whichever configuration you choose will be visible while launching your server. Note that pricing may vary based on location for AWS & GCP servers.
Linode (Akamai)
What is Linode (Akamai Cloud Computing)?
Linode is a cloud infrastructure provider, now part of Akamai Technologies. Founded in 2003, it offers cloud compute instances, managed Kubernetes, object storage, databases, and more across 25+ global data centers. It provides simple, predictable pricing with hourly billing capped at a monthly maximum.
How does Linode billing work?
Linode uses hourly billing with a monthly cap. You are charged by the hour for the time your instance is running, but the total monthly charge will never exceed the listed monthly price. Charges begin when an instance is created and stop when it is deleted — powering off does not stop billing.
What is the difference between Shared CPU and Dedicated CPU instances?
Shared CPU instances share processor cores with other instances, making them ideal for general workloads like web servers and small databases. Dedicated CPU instances guarantee physical CPU cores exclusively for your instance, providing consistent performance for CPU-intensive tasks like CI/CD, video encoding, and high-traffic applications.
What are Premium CPU instances?
Premium CPU instances use the latest AMD EPYC processors and are available in select high-performance data centers. They offer the best single-thread and multi-thread performance, ideal for latency-sensitive applications, enterprise workloads, and production databases. Pricing starts at $43/month.
What are High Memory instances used for?
High Memory instances are optimized for memory-intensive workloads such as in-memory databases (Redis, Memcached), real-time data processing, and caching layers. They offer a high ratio of RAM to CPU cores, starting at 24 GB RAM with 2 vCPUs for $60/month.
Does Linode offer free backups?
Linode Backups are an optional paid service costing approximately 20% of the instance price. The Backup Service takes automatic daily, weekly, and biweekly snapshots of your instance, and you can also create a manual snapshot. You can restore from any available backup at any time.
What operating systems does Linode support?
Linode supports Ubuntu, Debian, CentOS, Fedora, Rocky Linux, AlmaLinux, Arch Linux, openSUSE, Alpine, Gentoo, Kali Linux, and Slackware. You can also upload and deploy custom images. All instances use KVM virtualization with full root access.
Does Linode offer managed Kubernetes?
Yes, Linode Kubernetes Engine (LKE) provides a fully managed Kubernetes service with a free control plane. You only pay for the compute instances in your cluster. LKE supports auto-scaling, load balancers, and persistent storage integration.
What is Linode network transfer and how does it work?
Each Linode instance includes a monthly outbound transfer allowance (1-20 TB depending on plan). Inbound transfer is always free and unlimited. Transfer allowances are pooled across all instances on your account. Overage charges apply at $0.01/GB for outbound transfer beyond your pool.
Does Linode have a money-back guarantee?
Linode does not offer a traditional money-back guarantee. However, since billing is hourly, you can create an instance, test it, and delete it within hours for minimal cost (typically under $1). There are no contracts or long-term commitments required.
Where are Linode data centers located?
Linode has 25+ data centers across North America (US, Canada), Europe (UK, Germany, France, Netherlands, Sweden, Italy, Spain), Asia-Pacific (Singapore, Japan, India, Australia, Indonesia), South America (Brazil), and Africa (South Africa). Pricing may vary by region.
Can I deploy WordPress on Linode?
Yes, Linode offers a WordPress One-Click Marketplace app that deploys a fully configured WordPress instance in minutes. You can also manually install WordPress on any compute instance. Linode is unmanaged hosting, so you are responsible for server maintenance, security updates, and backups.
Ready to Choose?
Both providers offer great features. Visit their websites to see the latest deals and pricing.
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US East, New York, Virginia
Western Europe, London, Amsterdam
Central Europe, Frankfurt
Southeast Asia, Singapore
East Asia, Tokyo
India, Mumbai, Bangalore
Australia & Oceania, Sydney
South America, Sao Paulo
Western Europe, London, Paris, Amsterdam
Africa, Johannesburg