Cloudways vs Fastly · 2026
What's the difference between Cloudways and Fastly?
Short answer
Cloudways and Fastly are both web hosting tools. Cloudways is like a personal chef for your website - you know how you need to buy ingredients, cook them, and serve them to your guests. Fastly is a company that provides a content delivery network, or CDN, to help websites load faster and more securely. Pick…
Vendors update features and pricing often. For the most accurate, up-to-date details, always check Cloudways's site and Fastly's site directly.
Services that store your website files and make them accessible on the internet.
Cloudways: Cloudways is like a personal chef for your website - you know how you need to buy ingredients, cook them, and serve them to your guests. Well, imagine if you could hire someone to do all that for you. That's what Cloudways does for your website. Basically, instead of you having to manage all the technical stuff like setting up a server, installing software, and optimizing performance, Cloudways takes care of all that for you. They use cloud-based servers (kind of like a virtual kitchen) to make sure your website is fast, secure, and always available to your customers. Think of it like hiring a professional to handle all the behind-the-scenes work of running your website, so you can focus on the fun stuff like creating content and selling products.
Fastly: Fastly is a company that provides a content delivery network, or CDN, to help websites load faster and more securely. Think of it like a big network of computers around the world that work together to make sure your favorite websites load quickly and don't crash. When you visit a website, your computer has to send a request to the website's server to get all the files it needs to display the page. This can take a lot of time, especially if the website has a lot of visitors at the same time. Fastly helps to speed up this process by storing copies of popular website files in different places around the world. When you visit the website, your computer can request these files from the Fastly servers closest to you, which is much faster than getting them directly from the website's server. For a business, Fastly can help to make sure their website loads quickly and smoothly, even during busy times like sales or holidays. This can improve the user experience for customers and make it more likely that they will buy something from the website. Fastly can also provide extra security measures to protect against cyber attacks, which is important for any business that handles sensitive information like credit card numbers. Overall, using Fastly can help a business to improve website performance and security, which can lead to more sales and happier customers.
Cloudways vs Fastly: at a glance
| Cloudways | Fastly | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Web Hosting | Web Hosting |
| Best suited for | Web Agencies, Developers, eCommerce Stores, and Growing Businesses. Not for absolute beginners. built for web agencies, developers, digital marketers, e-commerce stores, and growing small-to-medium businesses who need the high speed and power of cloud servers (like DigitalOcean, AWS, or Google Cloud) without the headache of manual server setup and technical management | Engineering & DevOps Teams, High Growth and Media Enterprises, eCommerce & Retail, and Streaming and Gaming. platform built for developers, large enterprises, and high-traffic websites that need real-time performance, custom programmability, and robust web security |
| Standout strength | High Performance Websites | Reduced Website Downtime |
| In one line | Cloudways is like a personal chef for your website - you know how you need to buy ingredients, cook them, and serve them to your guests. | Fastly is a company that provides a content delivery network, or CDN, to help websites load faster and more securely. |
| Current pricing | Published on Cloudways's site | Published on Fastly's site |
Why is Cloudways right for my business?
Cloudways is like a personal chef for your website - you know how you need to buy ingredients, cook them, and serve them to your guests. Well, imagine if you could hire someone to do all that for you. That's what Cloudways does for your website. Basically, instead of you having to manage all the technical stuff like setting up a server, installing software, and optimizing performance, Cloudways takes care of all that for you. They use cloud-based servers (kind of like a virtual kitchen) to make sure your website is fast, secure, and always available to your customers. Think of it like hiring a professional to handle all the behind-the-scenes work of running your website, so you can focus on the fun stuff like creating content and selling products. Built for Web Agencies, Developers, eCommerce Stores, and Growing Businesses. Not for absolute beginners. built for web agencies, developers, digital marketers, e-commerce stores, and growing small-to-medium businesses who need the high speed and power of cloud servers (like DigitalOcean, AWS, or Google Cloud) without the headache of manual server setup and technical management.
- High Performance Websites
- Managed Services
- Free Migration
- Multiple Cloud Providers
Why is Fastly right for my business?
Fastly is a company that provides a content delivery network, or CDN, to help websites load faster and more securely. Think of it like a big network of computers around the world that work together to make sure your favorite websites load quickly and don't crash. When you visit a website, your computer has to send a request to the website's server to get all the files it needs to display the page. This can take a lot of time, especially if the website has a lot of visitors at the same time. Fastly helps to speed up this process by storing copies of popular website files in different places around the world. When you visit the website, your computer can request these files from the Fastly servers closest to you, which is much faster than getting them directly from the website's server. For a business, Fastly can help to make sure their website loads quickly and smoothly, even during busy times like sales or holidays. This can improve the user experience for customers and make it more likely that they will buy something from the website. Fastly can also provide extra security measures to protect against cyber attacks, which is important for any business that handles sensitive information like credit card numbers. Overall, using Fastly can help a business to improve website performance and security, which can lead to more sales and happier customers. Built for Engineering & DevOps Teams, High Growth and Media Enterprises, eCommerce & Retail, and Streaming and Gaming. platform built for developers, large enterprises, and high-traffic websites that need real-time performance, custom programmability, and robust web security.
- Reduced Website Downtime
- Better Website Scalability
- Improved Conversion Rates
- Customer Security
Which is better, Cloudways or Fastly?
Both Cloudways and Fastly are web hosting tools, so the decision comes down to fit rather than capability. Choose Cloudways if you are web Agencies, Developers, eCommerce Stores, and Growing Businesses. Not for absolute beginners. built for web agencies, developers, digital marketers, e-commerce stores, and growing small-to-medium businesses who need the high speed and power of cloud servers (like DigitalOcean, AWS, or Google Cloud) without the headache of manual server setup and technical management. Choose Fastly if you are engineering & DevOps Teams, High Growth and Media Enterprises, eCommerce & Retail, and Streaming and Gaming. platform built for developers, large enterprises, and high-traffic websites that need real-time performance, custom programmability, and robust web security. Confirm current pricing and integration coverage on each vendor's site before committing.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cloudways better than Fastly?
Neither is universally better—it depends on your use case. Cloudways is typically chosen for high performance websites, while Fastly is often picked for reduced website downtime. Evaluate both against your team size, existing stack, and budget before deciding.
What's the main difference between Cloudways and Fastly?
Both are web hosting platforms, but they take different approaches. Cloudways is like a personal chef for your website - you know how you need to buy ingredients, cook them, and serve them to your guests. Fastly is a company that provides a content delivery network, or CDN, to help websites load faster and more securely. Check each vendor's site for the latest feature breakdown.
Can I switch from Cloudways to Fastly?
Most teams can migrate between web hosting tools, but the effort depends on data volume, custom configurations, and integrations. Plan for an export/import cycle, a parallel-run period, and updates to any downstream systems. Both vendors publish migration documentation—check Cloudways's and Fastly's sites for current export options.
Which is more affordable, Cloudways or Fastly?
Pricing for both tools changes frequently and depends on seats, usage tiers, and contract length. Refer to Cloudways's and Fastly's pricing pages for the most accurate, up-to-date figures before committing.
Still deciding between Cloudways and Fastly?
Our consultants can evaluate both tools against your specific stack, budget, and go-to-market motion.