Cloud86 Review: Everything You Need to Know About This Web Host

Whether you're about to launch a new website or looking to switch to a new web host, you might be in the market for a fresh web hosting service and scratching your head, wondering which hosting provider to choose. 

If that sounds like you, never fear because you're in the right place.

In this blog post, I'll try to make your decision easier by reviewing one such option: Cloud86. 

Here, you'll find the low-down on who Cloud86 is, the web hosting types available, its pricing, and its pros and cons. 

However, if you don't have time to read my entire Cloud86 review, here are my key takeaways.

That's enough preamble! Let's dive into the nitty-gritty of this Cloud86 review.

What is Cloud86?

Cloud86 has been in the web hosting industry since 2019. Fast forward to 2023, and this independent European hosting provider continues to champion its mission: ‘Making fast hosting affordable.' 

At the time of writing, Cloud86 is trusted by over 20,000 companies across 25+ countries and boasts a few accolades. Most notably, in an autonomous study by Start24, Cloud86 was deemed the fastest web hosting provider in 2020, 2022, and 2023. And recently their hosting has also been selected as the fastest in 2023 by Webhosters, a well-known Dutch review site.

Cloud86 Products

Cloud86 splits its offering into the following categories:

1. Web hosting
2. Managed WordPress
3. Ultra-fast WooCommerce hosting
4. Managed VPS

Let's examine each in turn:

Web Hosting

Cloud86 offers various standard web hosting plans (more on these in the pricing section below). 

So, here I'll focus on the services included in each package:

• Fast SSD storage 
• Hosting for at least ten business emails
• Hosting for more than one website.
• Free SSL website security. Cloud86 automatically installs this within an hour of purchasing.
• Website files and emails are scrutinized for malware and quarantined when required to avert harm. You'll also benefit from server-side security protection against brute force and DDoS attacks. 
• Cloud86's Plesk control panel. From here, you can manage your email and web hosting, duplicate your site, and switch to your website's PHP version. The Plesk control panel also has a convenient CMS installer that makes installing CMSs like WordPress as easy as a click. 
• Daily automatic backups are made of your website files and email messages and stored for up to two weeks. Should you wish to restore a backup, this is easily done from the Plesk control panel.
• Cloud86's WordPress Toolkit enables you to automatically update plugins, themes, and even WordPress installations hosted on other servers.
• Automatic spam and virus protection for your email. You can even customize your spam filter settings for each email account, including deny listing and/or safe listing specific email addresses. 
• Cloud86 will migrate your website for free if you're hosting a website elsewhere. Manually migrating your website to another web host is often laborious and complicated, which is why Cloud86 simplifies the process. You just need to provide them with the login details of your current control panel, and Cloud86 handles the rest. Please note: Cloud86's free migration service is available on all plans except the Web Hosting Start plan. 
• Website performance is fuelled by the LiteSpeed Enterprise web server for quicker loading speeds (for the uninitiated, the LiteSpeed Enterprise server is a lightweight software that provides fast performance and resource conservation without compromising security).

Managed WordPress

Again, Cloud86 offers a few managed WordPress hosting plans (more about these different options in the pricing section below).

For now, I'll just focus on the features included in all of Cloud86's managed WordPress plans. But before I do, I'll outline the key differences between Cloud86's standard web hosting and its WordPress/WooCommerce hosting packages:

• You'll share a server with a maximum of 49 other customers. In contrast, with the standard packages you share it with around 200. So, with more resources at your disposal, this should result in a better service. 
• Website and email backups are every 12 hours instead of every 24.
• You benefit from additional technical support, including managed WordPress support. 
• Additional resources are available, including more CPU power and RAM memory.

With that in mind, let's now look at some of the most notable features included in Cloud86's managed WordPress plans:

• One-click staging: This empowers you to copy your website to test modifications within a staging environment. You can duplicate and start tinkering with your website within seconds. Then, once you're happy with the changes, publish your edits live.
• Cloud86 makes managing and maintaining your WordPress installations easy. The dashboard is intuitive, and you can automatically update plugins and themes to keep your website secure.
• An SSL certificate
• Monitoring for potential hacks and malware.
• Fast SSD storage
• Hosting for at least ten business emails

Ultra-fast WooCommerce Hosting

Cloud86 also offers numerous hosting plans optimized for WooCommerce (we'll discuss these packages in more depth in the pricing section below). 

So, here, I'll just focus on the features included in each WooCommerce hosting plan:

• As with the other hosting types listed above, Cloud86's WooCommerce hosting is easy to manage, thanks to the WordPress toolkit. You benefit from automatic theme, plugin, and WordPress core updates across multiple stores from the convenience of one dashboard.
• All stores benefit from a free Let's Encrypt SSL certificate. 
• Cloud86 monitors your store for hacks and malware to help prevent cyberattacks.
• Cloud86 backs up your website's databases and email data every 12 hours. 
• Access to the LiteSpeed Cache plugin for extended caching with faster loading times.

Managed VPS

There's one primary difference between a Managed VPS and standard web hosting: you don't share the server with others, which offers the following benefits:

• As you don't share your server, you have maximum access to the server's resources, which speeds up your website's loading time.
• You get given your own IP address, so your reputation isn't affected by other users on your server.
• You get a reseller account, which allows you to resell your web hosting.

All that to say, a managed VPS is the perfect option if you're hosting a website or app where reliable uptime, performance, and scalability are paramount.

Other managed VPS features worth mentioning include

• Daily backups of all your data.
• Cloud86 scans your email and website traffic 24/7 so that if defects transpire, Cloud86 can try rectifying them as quickly as possible. 
• On average, you can get up and running within one working day after placing an order.
• SLA worth € 69,95 p/m is included, and software worth 139,- p/m is included too

Domain Names

In addition to being a first-rate web hosting provider, Cloud86 is also a domain name registrar. I.e., you can register your own custom domain starting at €10.95 a year for your website, eCommerce store, blog, online portfolio, etc. Then, with your domain in situ, you can host your site with one of the above hosting plans. 

Alternatively, you can transfer your existing domain names to Cloud86 and manage them all from one centralized control panel. You'll benefit from free DNS management for all domains, including the ability to create new DNS records and manage your own nameservers. 

Cloud86 Pricing

For ease, I'm listing prices as per the different hosting types on offer, starting with Cloud86's standard web hosting plans:

Web Hosting

You can sign up for a one-year or three-year contract, with the latter unlocking a discounted price. All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. 

Please note: prices below are quoted based on the cost of a three-year contract:

• Start: 1.95€ a month (ideal for small businesses and basic support)
• Medium: 2.95€ a month (ideal for growing businesses and includes premium support, unlimited traffic, and 50 email addresses).
• Power: 5.95€ a month (you get everything above, plus unlimited email addresses).

Managed WordPress Hosting plan

You can sign up for a three-year, one-year, or monthly contract. The longer the commitment, the greater the discount. Like the standard web hosting plans, these packages also come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. 

Please note: prices below are quoted based on the cost of a three-year contract:

• Start: 7.95€ a month (ideal for those getting started with a WordPress website)
• Medium: 15.95€ a month (perfect for hosting multiple websites, heavy plugins, and managing WordPress sites that are quickly scaling).
• Power: 25.95€ a month (a good choice if you need up to 100 GB storage and host up to ten sites and unlimited databases)

Managed WooCommerce Hosting

Like the managed WordPress hosting plans, you can also sign up for a three-year, one-year, or monthly contract. Again, the longer the commitment, the greater the discount, and all packages come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. 

• Start: 7.95€ a month (ideal for those getting started with a WooCommerce website)
• Medium: 15.95€ a month (perfect for hosting multiple quickly scaling stores).
• Power: 25.95€ a month (ideal for hosting several larger stores that need extra storage).

Managed VPS

• Start: 169.95€ a month
• Medium: 239.95€ a month
• Power: 359.95€ a month

Cloud86 Customer Support

You can contact Cloud86 via email ([email protected]). This channel is manned Monday to Friday from 09:00 – 21:00 (CET). Alternatively, you can call Cloud86 from Monday to Friday, 10:00 – 16:00 (CET) on +31 85 799 1000.

Cloud86 claims that its customer care team has a ‘deep knowledge of WordPress performance,' and to be fair, users seem pretty happy with the quality of support on offer, so this rings true!

Cloud86 also has an online help center where you can type queries into a search bar, which (hopefully) populates materials that answer your question.

If you scroll further down, you reach a section called ‘promoted articles,' where Cloud86 lists its most popular articles; at the time of writing, these were the listed titles:

• My Cloud86 accessible via new link
• Create an email address
• IMAP, SMTP and POP settings
• How do I request the free migration service?
• Beginner's Guide to Cloud86 webhosting
• Beginner's Guide to Microsoft 365

If you scroll further, you'll see a section called the knowledge base, where you'll find articles organized into the following categories:

• My Account
• Domains
• Email
• Web hosting
• Microsoft 365
• ManagedVPS

Cloud86 Pros and Cons

Cloud86 Review: My Final Verdict

You've made it to the end of my Cloud86 review – yay! Hopefully, you now have a better idea of whether this hosting provider is the right fit for your business. 

Before you go, here are a few of my final thoughts:

All in all, I think Cloud86 is a reliable and speedy web host, which is well worth a second glance for European WordPress/WooCommerce users. According to various sources, Cloud86 is even faster than competitors like Hostinger, SiteGround, and Kinsta – impressive, right?

However, you'll have to look elsewhere if 24/7 support is important to you. The same might be true if your time zone doesn't overlap with Cloud86's opening hours, and you know you'll find waiting for a response frustrating. In either instance, you might want to consider alternative providers. 

That's all from me; over to you. Do you have any experience using Cloud86? If so, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments box below!