If you're considering signing up for Cloudways and are uncertain about choosing between the Premium and Standard plans, you've landed on the right page.
We bought a hosting account and set up a test website on both Standard and Premium servers utilizing the same configuration. We extensively tested the website on both servers to find the best choice.
This article will provide a comprehensive analysis of Cloudways DigitalOcean's Premium in contrast to the standard plans.
It will cover the distinctions in processor, storage, performance, configuration, and pricing and help you make an informed decision.
TL;DR:
- After 212 days of testing, we found both Cloudways Premium and Standard offer similar performance in TTFB and load handling.
- Cloudways Premium has a powerful processor and NVMe storage, offering a faster backend performance than the Standard.
- If you're just getting started, then Cloudways standard is cost-efficient. If you have a resource-hungry site, then choose Cloudways Premium droplets.
- Whatever plan you choose, don't forget to use our Cloudways coupon “BIO25” to get $25 free credits added to your new Cloudways account.
Contents
Cloudways Premium Vs. Standard
Cloudways Premium Vs. Standard: Performance
I deployed an identical test site on both plans to evaluate the performance of Cloudways Premium and Standard Digital Ocean plans.
I collected performance data over 212 days (7 months) from August 30, 2022, to March 31, 2023.
Our findings revealed that both plans offer similar performance scores, with the Standard site registering a TTFB of 302ms and the Premium droplet site recording 318ms.
One should also note the Cloudways standard site has a 100% uptime record while the Cloudways premium site has 99.99% with a single outage.
Furthermore, I conducted a load test on both sites by sending 1000 concurrent visitors to the site. As expected, the results are very similar. The average response time for the Standard and Premium droplet sites were 306ms and 305ms, respectively.
Based on our findings, if you're considering upgrading to a Premium droplet solely for improved TTFB and load handling, it may not be the most effective solution.
We recommend sticking with the Standard droplet, as it offers fast and reliable performance.
Cloudways Premium Vs. Standard: Processors & Memory
The processor is a crucial component that determines the speed at which a computer executes instructions.
Cloudways DigitalOcean Premium utilizes robust Intel Xeon Second Generation Scalable Processors with built-in AI acceleration and Intel mesh architecture.
Compared to the Standard series, Cloudways DigitalOcean Premium has more powerful processors with a base frequency of 2.50 GHz and a max turbo frequency of 3.90 GHz. This provides a significant performance boost over the Standard series.
Furthermore, Cloudways Premium offers accelerated memory and NVMe storage, while the Standard series uses SSD storage.
It is important to note that NVMe drives have faster read/write speeds than traditional SATA SSDs, and Cloudways Premium also has enhanced memory performance with a frequency of 2933 GHz.
To validate the fact that Cloudways Premium offers faster backend performance, we utilized the WPBenchmark Plugin to measure performance.
The results indicated that the Premium site achieved a server score of 7.7, while the Standard site scored 6.6. The Premium site excelled with faster CPU & Memory operations and database operations.
Based on our findings, Cloudways Premium is an ideal choice for those seeking improved server-side cache workloads, database management, and disk performance, thanks to its powerful processor and NVMe storage. This translates to significant improvements in backend performance, making it an excellent option for resource-intensive sites.
However, if your site is not particularly resource-intensive, the Standard droplet may be more than sufficient for your needs. Ultimately, the choice between Cloudways Premium and Standard should be based on your specific needs and budget.
Cloudways Premium Vs. Standard: Pricing
Let's take a closer look at the pricing for Cloudways Premium and Standard.
Cloudways Premium offers five different plans, with the lowest tier plan starting at $14 per month and the highest tier plan costing $160 per month for maximum resources.
It's important to note that we have an exclusive partnership that offers $25 free hosting credits to new customers who apply the Cloudways Coupon Code 2023.
On the other hand, Cloudways Standard plans start at $10 per month, making it a more affordable option. Customers can choose from various plans based on their resource requirements, with the highest tier plan costing $80 per month.
Here are the details of the Cloudways Premium plans:
- DO1GB: 1 GB RAM, 1 Core Processor, 25 GB Storage, $14 per month
- DO2GB: 2 GB RAM, 1 Core Processor, 50 GB Storage, $28 per month
- DO4GB: 4 GB RAM, 2 Core Processor, 80 GB Storage, $54 per month
- DO8GB: 8 GB RAM, 4 Core Processor, 160 GB Storage, $99 per month
- DO16GB: 16 GB RAM, 8 Core Processor, 320 GB Storage, $170 per month
DO4GB happens to be the most popular plan amongst the five Cloudways Premium plans.
Cloudways Standard offers customers as many as eleven different plans to choose from.
The lowest tier starts at $10 per month. Here are the plan details:
- DO1GB: 1 GB RAM, 1 Core Processor, 25 GB Storage, $11 per month
- DO2GB: 2 GB RAM, 1 Core Processor, 50 GB Storage, $24 per month
- DO4GB: 4 GB RAM, 2 Core Processor, 80 GB Storage, $46 per month
- DO8GB: 8 GB RAM, 4 Core Processor, 160 GB Storage, $88 per month
- DO16GB: 16 GB RAM, 6 Core Processor, 320 GB Storage, $149 per month
As you can see, Cloudways Standard plans are slightly cheaper than Cloudways Premium. We also covered detailed Cloudways Pricing here.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Cloudways Premium?
Cloudways Premium or Cloudways DigitalOcean Premium Droplets offer better and faster performance than Cloudways Standard. It is achieved through Robust Intel Xeon Processors (built-in AI acceleration), Accelerated Memory, and NVMe Storage.
Can I upgrade from a Standard Server to a Premium Droplet?
You can upgrade from a Standard Server to a Premium Droplet through the vertical scaling feature. Here are the steps you need to follow to do it:
- Login to your Cloudways account and open Servers from the top menu bar
- Next up, choose the desired server that you want to scale up
- After that, select Vertical Scaling from under Server Management
- Next, get to the server size to select a server size and click on “Scale Now.”
What are the differences between Cloudways Premium and Cloudways Standard?
Cloudways Premium offers a comparatively more powerful performance than Cloudways Standard through a faster processor and NVMe Storage combined with enhanced memory.
what is the Cloudways Performance Difference between 2GB Standard and 2GB Premium?
The performance difference between a 2GB standard and a 2GB Premium Cloudways server in terms of TTFB and load handling are almost similar.
which Cloudways hosting plan we should buy 10$ or 12$ premium?
The choice between the $10 plan and the $12 Premium plan on Cloudways depends on your website's hosting requirements and performance needs. Based on our test, I recommend the $10 plan is enough for most sites.
Cloudways Standard vs Premium – Which is Best?
After careful consideration of the data and analysis presented in this post, it is evident that Cloudways Premium and Standard both have their unique advantages.
While Cloudways Premium offers better backend performance due to its powerful processor and NVMe storage, the TTFB and load handling performance between the two plans is similar.
If you're on a budget or just starting with your online journey, Cloudways Standard is a suitable option.
However, if you have a resource-intensive site or are seeking improved backend performance, Cloudways Premium may be the better choice.
