xCloud Hosting Review: Good Enough To Switch From Cloudways?
In early 2024, I became aware of xCloud due to the announcement that Shahjahan Jewel was investing in it and becoming a partner. Jewel is the CEO of WP Manage Ninja… the company behind some of my favorite plugins like FluentCRM, FluentForms and FluentBooking.
I thought this was a pretty interesting move. They’re investing in a hosting company?
Then they came out and launched it using a limited-time lifetime offer. That was definitely interesting and got some attention. It is also a pretty classic move for these guys as a launch strategy.
On the flip side, xCloud is actually a brand of Startise. This is the same company behind the WP Developer brand, which has created plugins such as Better Links, BetterDocs, Templately, Essential Addons and others.
So, this is indeed a team of people who live, eat and breathe WordPress. And they came out with a hosting solution. So, the question is…
Is xCloud any good?
The hosting space is pretty crowded already. Does xCloud have what it takes to make a dent?
Well, spoiler alert! I’ve now moved 11 sites over to xCloud. I moved them away from Cloudways and I put them on xCloud instead. And I cancelled my Cloudways server.
So, it was definitely good enough for me. Better – and faster – than Cloudways.
In This Post…- What xCloud Hosting Actually Is…
- Why xCloud Over Traditional Hosting?
- My Experience Switching To xCloud Hosting (from Cloudways)
- Why xCloud Performs Better Than Cloudways
- Working Within xCloud Hosting (And Why It’s Better Than Cloudways)
- Downsides to xCloud Hosting?
- xCloud Pricing (Versus Cloudways)
- Final Thoughts on xCloud Hosting
xCloud is basically software. It is server management software that allows you to easily manage WordPress sites on virtual private servers (or VPSs).
So, you are actually hosting your sites on a VPS from Vultr, Digital Ocean, Google Cloud, Amazon, etc. You get to pick your provider.
In this way, xCloud is much closer to Cloudways in how it functions. It is also similar to RunCloud, ServerAvatar or Gridpane. Each of these companies basically provide the software and the support, but your VPS is elsewhere. GridPane is way more geared toward larger agencies and hosts.
xCloud does also offer their own servers as an option. I don’t know for sure, but I think they are outsourcing their managed servers through Vultr. And you can save a little bit of money by going through xCloud directly.
Why xCloud Over Traditional Hosting?There are a lot of different kinds of hosting out there.
You’ve got your traditional all-in-one consumer hosts such as Bluehost, SiteGround, Hostinger, etc. These kinds of hosts are usually pretty beginner-friendly and they offer one-stop-shops for everything. They’ll manage your domains, your email, your websites, etc.
You’ve also got more expensive, managed cloud-based hosting options. This would include companies such as Rocket, Kinsta and WPEngine. These kinds of hosts usually come with limits on the number of sites, limits on disk space etc. This is due to how the cloud works (since many of these companies use Google Cloud or Amazon behind the scenes).
A virtual private server is another option. It is more of a DIY option, but it has the advantages of:
- No limits on number of sites. Basically, it is the specs of the server which determine how much you can run on it. There are no artificial limits.
- Much higher disk space.
- No shared server resources.
- Usually far more cost effective. In other words, you get more horsepower for your money.
That’s where xCloud comes in. You’re using a VPS server, so you can pack a punch with your hosting and practically do whatever you want with it. But, xCloud simplifies usage of a VPS. The usual nerdy and “raw” management of a server is turned into a pretty user-friendly experience that is much closer to other types of hosting.
VPS hosting offers more horsepower for the money and more flexibility without the hard limits. That’s why a lot of people like hosting their sites this way.
My Experience Switching To xCloud Hosting (from Cloudways)Now, I want to first be clear here…
My web host of choice right now is Rocket Hosting. You can read my Rocket hosting review here. I love them and I host a majority of my Concierge clients as well as this very site on Rocket.
But, like anybody who is in the business, I have accounts with other web hosts as well. And, until recently, I was using Cloudways for 11 websites. Some of those sites are for some of my clients with smaller sites… and some of them are mine. These are sites that I elected to keep on Cloudways because they just didn’t warrant a host like Rocket.
Migrating sites to different hosting isn’t rocket science. I often make use of Migrate Guru to move sites and it works flawlessly in most cases. So, the process basically worked like this for each site:
- Create a new staging site on xCloud. This ensures it is a blank install of WordPress on a temporary URL.
- Use the built-in “Magic Login” to log right into the new WordPress and install Migrate Guru.
- Log into the site on Cloudways and install Migrate Guru.
- Enter the migration key and kick off the migration process. And wait.
