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Cloudways vs Spacelift Comparison

Last updated:

Cloudways

4.8

Starting at Contact for pricing

  • Freelancers / Consultants
  • Large Enterprises

Cloudways is a cloud hosting solution. Cloudways is a cloud management platform that simplifies the process of deploying, administering and scaling applications from any popular cloud infrastructure provider: Amazon Web…

Spacelift

4.7(185 reviews)

Starting at Free free

  • Mid-Market
  • Enterprise

Spacelift is a CI/CD and collaboration platform for infrastructure-as-code — providing a managed orchestration layer for Terraform, OpenTofu, Pulumi, Ansible, and Kubernetes. It handles the operational challenges of IaC…

Cloudways vs Spacelift — at a glance

FeatureCloudwaysSpacelift
Rating4.8 / 54.7 / 5
Reviews185
Starting priceContact for pricingFree free
Free trial No No
Free version No No
Best forFreelancers / Consultants, Large Enterprises, Medium BusinessMid-Market, Enterprise
CategoryCloud Management PlatformCloud Management Platform
PlatformsSaaS/Web/CloudCloud, On-Premise
APIAvailableAvailable
Support modes24/7 (Live rep), OnlineSlack Community, Help Center, Email Support, Enterprise Support
CertificationsGDPR
Data residencyGlobal

Key differences between Cloudways and Spacelift

  • Pricing: Spacelift starts at Free free. Cloudways pricing is not publicly listed.
  • Target audience: Cloudways is built for Freelancers / Consultants and Large Enterprises, while Spacelift targets Mid-Market and Enterprise.
  • User satisfaction: Cloudways scores higher with a 4.8-star average.
  • Deployment: Cloudways supports SaaS/Web/Cloud; Spacelift supports Cloud, On-Premise.

Cloudways vs Spacelift — find the better fit before you commit.

01

Which tool fits your team best

02

Which is actually cheaper for your team size

03

Where each product wins, per real buyers

Most Cloud Management Platform tools look identical on paper. This comparison cuts to the differences that matter — pricing structure, team fit, and what real buyers found after signing up.

Cloudways - Cloud Management Platform
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Spacelift logo
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Biggest differences

Start here before you go deeper into features.

Cloudways

Best for simplified cloud app deployment with exceptional personalized support.

Choose if
  • You need easy, low-complexity deployment and scaling on major cloud providers.
  • You are a freelancer or small IT team managing cloud applications.
  • You value responsive, knowledgeable customer support for quick issue resolution.
Consider alternatives if
  • You require deep, advanced platform customization beyond standard options.
  • You need highly complex cloud infrastructure configurations without relying on support.

Spacelift

Best for

Mid-Market, Enterprise

Cloudways typically suits Freelancers / Consultants and Large Enterprises. Spacelift tends to fit Mid-Market and Enterprise better. The right choice depends on your team size, workflow, and whether a free trial matters.

Description

Cloudways is a cloud hosting solution. Cloudways is a cloud management platform that simplifies the process of deploying, administering and scaling applications from any popular cloud ... Read More about Cloudways

Spacelift is a CI/CD and collaboration platform for infrastructure-as-code — providing a managed orchestration layer for Terraform, OpenTofu, Pulumi, Ansible, and Kubernetes. It handles the ... Read More about Spacelift

Entry Level Pricing

  • Not Available
  • Starts from Free , up to 2 users

Free Trial Availability

  • No free trial
  • No free trial

SpotScore

What's this? ↗

9.8/10

9.4/10

User Ratings

Based on verified Spotsaas reviews

4.8

Best Company Size

1-50 employees51-500 employees
Get pricing help
Get pricing help

Where each option fits best

See where each product is strongest, which teams it fits, and what causes buyers to keep looking — before you commit.

Based on buyer reviews and verified product data collected by Spotsaas.

Strengths

Key strengths

Spacelift

  • Safe Parallel IaC at Scale: Run dozens of Terraform stacks concurrently with proper state locking and dependency ordering — eliminating the serialized, manual apply process that slows platform teams.
  • Catch Drift Before It Causes Incidents: Automated drift detection alerts teams when infrastructure diverges from code — preventing the configuration drift that causes midnight incidents.
  • Governance Without Bureaucracy: OPA policies enforce infrastructure standards automatically (tagging, sizing, approval requirements) without manual review of every Terraform plan.
Best fit

Best fit

Spacelift

  • Platform engineering teams managing 50+ Terraform stacks who need safe, parallel execution with proper dependency management
  • Organizations enforcing infrastructure governance policies (required tags, approval gates, cost limits) across multiple engineering teams
  • DevOps teams replacing custom Terraform CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins + Atlantis) with a managed orchestration platform

Software Demo

Demo

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Step 1 of 4

How big is your team?

We tailor recommendations to companies your size.

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How do Cloudways and Spacelift Compare on Features?

Total Features

13 Features

4 Features

Unique Features

No unique features

No unique features

Get Quote
Get Quote

Compare Cloudways and Spacelift on pricing

Review starting price, plan structure, and free-trial access side by side so you can see which option fits your budget and buying process.

Pricing Option

      Starting From

      • Not Available
      • Free , up to 2 users

      Pricing Plans

      • Not Available
      • Free

        Free

        • All features

        • Community support

        • Cloud workers

      • Cloud

        $499

        paid

        • Unlimited users

        • Priority workers

        • SLA

        Show more +

      • Enterprise

        Custom

        paid

        • Self-hosted workers

        • SSO

        • Custom SLA

        Show more +

      Pricing Page

      Cloudways pricing

      Pricing information not available

      Other Details

      Organization Types supported

      • Small Business
      • Large Enterprises
      • Medium Business
      • Freelancers
      • Individuals
      • Small Business
      • Large Enterprises
      • Medium Business
      • Freelancers
      • Individuals

      Platforms Supported

      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Installed - Windows
      • Installed - Mac
      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Mobile - Android
      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Installed - Windows
      • Installed - Mac
      • Browser Based (Cloud)
      • Mobile - Android

      Modes of support

      • 24/7 (Live rep)
      • Business Hours
      • Online
      • 24/7 (Live rep)
      • Business Hours
      • Online

      API Support

      • Available
      • Available
      Get help choosing
      Get help choosing

      Security & Compliance

      Certifications, data handling, and security controls for IT and compliance evaluators.

      GDPR

      ✓ Yes

      Data Encryption

      ✓ Yes

      Data Residency

      🌐 Global

      Cloudways User Reviews & Rating Comparison

      User Ratings

      No reviews available for the product

      4.7

      (based on 185 reviews)

      Rating Distribution

      1811

      9

      1

      1

      21

      0

      0

      0

      0

      0

      Spotsaas Editor’s POV generated by AI

      Buyer sentiment

      Users consistently praise Cloudways for its exceptional support and user-friendly platform, though some note limitations in advanced customization.

      What buyers like

      • Customer support
      • Ease of use
      • Reliability

      Common complaints

      • Limited customization
      • Compatibility maintenance

      Buyer sentiment

      Buyer sentiment is very strong across 185 reviews, with consistently positive feedback.

      What buyers like

      • Stack dependency management automatically runs dependent stacks in order when upstream infrastructure changes — eliminating the manual coordination that breaks IaC at scale.
      • Drift detection surfaces when live infrastructure has diverged from Terraform state — the most dangerous condition in IaC that most teams discover only when something breaks.
      • OPA policy-as-code gates enable infrastructure governance: requiring approvals for production changes, blocking certain resource types, enforcing tagging standards automatically.

      Common complaints

      • Pricing jumps from free (2 users) to $499/month — there is no mid-tier for small teams that have outgrown free but are not yet mid-market scale.
      • Primarily optimized for Terraform and OpenTofu — teams using CloudFormation or CDK will find less native support.

      Pros and Cons

      • Exceptional and personalized customer support with knowledgeable staff

      • User-friendly interface simplifying cloud deployment and scaling

      • Reliable server performance and quick issue resolution

      • Limited advanced customization options for non-technical users

      • Need to stay updated to avoid compatibility issues with evolving platform features

      • Stack dependency management automatically runs dependent stacks in order when upstream infrastructure changes — eliminating the manual coordination that breaks IaC at scale.

      • Drift detection surfaces when live infrastructure has diverged from Terraform state — the most dangerous condition in IaC that most teams discover only when something breaks.

      • OPA policy-as-code gates enable infrastructure governance: requiring approvals for production changes, blocking certain resource types, enforcing tagging standards automatically.

      • Pricing jumps from free (2 users) to $499/month — there is no mid-tier for small teams that have outgrown free but are not yet mid-market scale.

      • Primarily optimized for Terraform and OpenTofu — teams using CloudFormation or CDK will find less native support.

      Positive Reviews

      No reviews available for the product

      No reviews available for the product

      Used Cloudways or Spacelift? Tell buyers what actually differs.

      Media and Screenshots

      Videos

      video-0

      2 Videos

      No videos available.

      Top Alternatives to Cloudways and Spacelift in 2026

      Alternatives

      No Alternative products available.

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      Disclaimer: This research has been collated from a variety of authoritative sources. We welcome your feedback at [email protected].

      Frequently asked questions

      Which is better, Cloudways or Spacelift?
      Cloudways edges out the other on user ratings (4.8 vs 4.7). That said, the best pick depends on your use case — use the comparison tables above to evaluate each dimension.
      Do Cloudways and Spacelift offer a free trial?
      Neither Cloudways nor Spacelift currently lists a free trial.
      What is the starting price of Cloudways vs Spacelift?
      Cloudways starts at Contact for pricing. Spacelift starts at Free free.
      What are the top alternatives to Cloudways?
      Top alternatives to Cloudways include CloudFlare, Cloudyn, Flexera Cloud Management Platform, AWS Systems Manager, WP Engine.