For a first-timer, building a business website can be overwhelming. There are too many choices of web hosting types and services available, which can make deciding on the best bet for your business’ health a long and complicated process.

However, that’s only if you don’t know what you should look for. That’s why it’s important to be aware of what’s available and which options can provide the resources you need.

To help you with this process, we’ll share two hosting types suitable for business websites: cPanel-managed VPS hosting and cloud server hosting. Let’s get started by defining the two terms.

What is cPanel-Managed VPS Hosting?

cPanel refers to a website hosting control panel that allows users to manage their hosting server.

VPS hosting is a web hosting type that uses virtualization technology to divide one physical server’s resources. It utilizes a virtual layer on top of the web hosting operating system to ensure the guaranteed allocated resources among the hosted websites.

That said, cPanel-managed VPS hosting is a hosting service that integrates cPanel as the custom dashboard to help configure the virtual private server. As a result, this hosting type is among the most popular options for beginners due to its ease of use.

Here are the benefits of cPanel-managed VPS hosting:

• Increased security. cPanel allows you to install an SSL certificate that enables your website to move from HTTP to HTTPS. In other words, it encrypts all of the data passed between the browser and the webserver.
• Improved backup policy. From cPanel’s intuitive dashboard, you can initiate backup for your website files and databases. It’s also feasible to schedule an automatic backup and save the backed-up files on an external destination, like Google Drive.
• Root access to the server. Lets you add, remove and configure web development packages.

cPanel-managed VPS hosting is the middle ground between shared hosting and cloud hosting. VPS is a way to go if you’re tight on budget but need more power and resources than shared hosting offers.

What is Cloud Server Hosting?

Cloud server hosting refers to a hosting type that uses a virtual server running in the cloud environment.

The cloud server is built upon a network of physical servers. When using cloud hosting, your data will be stored across multiple connected servers in different geographical locations. This can result in faster website speed and improved user experience.

Here are other benefits of using cloud server hosting:

• Excellent server uptime. If one physical server fails, another will kick in to ensure that the site won’t crash.
• Easy scalability. You may be able to scale your cloud server resources without the need to purchase and install new hardware.
• Pay-on-the-go pricing. This means you’ll only pay for the resources you use, and most cloud hosting providers allow this payment system. Therefore, there’s no need to worry about spending too much money on any unused resources.

Cloud server hosting is one of the most powerful hosting services on the market. This hosting type may be the best option if you’re building a large project, such as web applications or streaming services.

The Five Key Differences of cPanel-Managed VPS Hosting and Cloud Server Hosting

Both cPanel-managed VPS hosting and cloud server hosting use virtualization technology. The primary difference comes from the utilization of the physical server.

cPanel-managed VPS hosting uses a single physical server and installs virtual layers that guarantee separated server resources. Meanwhile, cloud server hosting connects multiple physical servers to build a powerful cloud-based server.

Now, let’s find out the five differences between cPanel VPS hosting and cloud server hosting to help you decide which hosting type suits your project better.

1. Server Performance

Server performance is about how fast the server responds to requests. Therefore, it relates closely to how quickly your website can fulfill a user’s request.

Taking server performance into consideration is vital as most users won’t wait for more than three seconds for their requests to load. On top of that, poor website speed may result in lower search engine rankings and increased bounce rates.

The virtualization technology in the cPanel-managed VPS hosting translates to excellent performance for your website. The dedicated server power and resources help make sure your site loads quickly and run smoothly.

However, cloud server hosting offers a more impressive website performance. Having your data stored in different locations will help to reduce latency and ensure stellar website speed across the globe.

2. Security

Website security refers to the protective measures and protocols taken to shield a website from cyber attacks.

According to Security Magazine, some of the most common threats include phishing, ransomware, and DDoS attacks. Understanding cyber threats helps you improve your website security as each of them requires a different security measure to take.

In terms of website security, cloud server hosting offers a more robust system. It’s because the cloud infrastructure allows data encryption, which makes it harder for hackers to get your website data.

With cPanel-managed VPS hosting, your site’s information remains private to you despite being hosted on the same physical server as multiple other websites. Implementing basic cybersecurity practices for VPS hosting helps grow a secure VPS environment for your website.

3. Scalability

Scalability looks at the web hosting’s ability to add and remove resources to meet the website’s changing needs. Easy scalability is essential as it can affect your website uptime.

Both cPanel-managed VPS hosting and cloud server hosting grant scalability. However, cloud server hosting is more sophisticated in this area.

Cloud computing’s on-demand system makes cloud server hosting highly scalable. With it, you can have your resources upgraded in just a few clicks. If you’re lucky, opt for autoscaling to save more time, as some cloud service providers offer this excellent feature.

Similarly, the cPanel-managed VPS hosting belongs in the easy-scalability category. However, the scaling process may depend on how busy the server is and how big the data being transmitted.

4. Ease of Use

When it comes to ease of use, cPanel-managed VPS hosting is arguably on the winning side. This hosting type provides a beginner-friendly interface. Therefore, it can help with your website configuration process as everything will be accessible through its dashboard.

With cloud server hosting, you may need a team of experts to handle the website development. Managing and configuring cloud servers can be testing as it requires server administration knowledge.

On top of that, access to the entire server is one of the biggest benefits of cloud server hosting. However, you’ll be looking at unused server resources if you only have little knowledge in cloud computing.

5. Pricing

Typically, website hosting uses an annual subscription system, which means purchasing a one-year subscription upfront and deciding to resume your subscription once it’s due. However, you may also find providers that offer a money-back guarantee.

cPanel-managed VPS hosting is particularly well-known for its cost-effectiveness. The subscription plans start from $120/year and may go up to approximately $1,200/year, depending on the resources you get.

Cloud server hosting falls in the higher price point category. However, this hosting type doesn’t have set pricing as it depends on what you need from the cloud infrastructure. Roughly, it can be as high as $70,000/year.

Conclusion

cPanel-managed VPS hosting and cloud server hosting have their strengths and weaknesses. While both are using virtualization technology, cloud server hosting is the more powerful option.

Here’s a recap on the five key differences between the cPanel-managed VPS hosting and cloud server hosting:

• Server performance. Cloud server hosting offers more powerful website performance as it stores your data in different geographical locations.
• Encryption is one of the most vital security components to feature. With cloud server hosting, you can get your data encrypted.
• The cloud infrastructure is highly scalable because of the on-demand delivery system.
• Ease of use. cPanel-managed VPS hosting may be more beginner-friendly, as the cPanel custom dashboard helps ease configuration.
• cPanel-managed VPS hosting is more affordable than cloud server hosting. However, it also depends on the number of server resources you use.

Opt for cloud server hosting should your project need more power and resources. On the other hand, cPanel-managed VPS hosting may be the perfect solution for your new business or online store.