Webdock(io) is an affordable, partially managed cloud web host based in Denmark. I like smaller web hosts like Webdock. I spent a lot of time using web hosting, mostly unmanaged. In my experience, they always have better prices and service than the popular ones. Whenever possible, I like to try different kinds of host. I’ve used a bunch of servers and providers, and it’s kind of my hobby.
I prefer VPS hosting over shared or fully managed hosts like Rocket or WP Engine. Yes, shared hosting is suitable for sites that aren’t really busy. You can manage multiple sites with it, and it’s fast enough if you pick the right web host.
As soon as you hit over monthly 10k visits, you should consider a VPS (cloud server). The speed will amaze you, especially if you’re new to VPS/CLOUD.
With a VPS, you have more flexibility because you can customize the resources for your site. Typically, you can make some changes and do things differently without getting in trouble. This is why people like hosting their sites this way.
You should be aware of the specifications when using a virtual private server. Typical sites should have at least 2 GB of server memory when choosing a VPS.
Yes, I’ve used 1GB or less, and my site crashed when I got some traffic. If you have a dynamic site, you’re better off with 8GB RAM. When you move up to memory levels, you need to add more CPU cores, too. Usually, 4GB RAM and 2 cores are enough. With 8 GB RAM and 4 cores, most websites run smoothly.
Why I Am Excited About Webdock Cloud Hosting
I am a big fan of VPS hosting, notably smaller web hosts, which is why I started using Webdock a year or two ago.
So, let me share my first-hand experience…
Compared to other VPS providers I have used, Webdock is affordable, and I also like its UI. Web-dock’s control panel is robust and easy to use. It is simple. You know how bad the control panel is if you’ve used OVHcloud, Amazon Lightsail, etc. I can do a lot really fast with Webdock’s UI because it’s immaculate.
It’s up to me how much control I want over the server. They’re good. My server keeps an event log so I can see everything that’s happening.
What Makes Webdock Cloud Hosting Better?
Manage team: If you work together, you can use manage team feature. You can choose from different permissions, such as full access, billing, or API management, and decide which specific servers users can access.
Custom VPS: This one’s good because you can select the kind of server resource you want. I’ll explain this in pricing.
SSH terminal: You don’t need to use Putty or third-party logging tools to access your server because they have a built-in SSH terminal.
Fast processing: If you’ve used OVH, IONOS, or something similar, you know how slow the process is. However, Webdock is super quick, even with custom apps. They’ll set up your VPS in less than 2 minutes.
Free trial for 24 hours: There’s a 24-hour trial period where I can delete my server for free. I like it because I can even test big plans with it. You know, there are a lot of web hosts that give free credits, but this is different.
Mobile App: I don’t think even big hosting companies have mobile apps. BUT, these guys offer Android and iOS apps. There are many things you can do with it.
Detailed documentation: These guys are real developers, and their features surpass those of the largest web hosts. The documentation is super detailed, and if you follow it correctly, you don’t even need support.
All right, let’s take a look at their pricing…
Webdock Pricing
Webdock charges only for the hardware you use; there’s no additional fee for support or dashboard access. The cheapest VPS is the SSD Pico4, which costs $0.95 a month. In my case, I wouldn’t recommend this for an active website because it only has 10 GB storage, one thread, and 768 MB RAM.
In some cases, you can use it to test websites or as a proxy. I tried this VPS with an active website; YES, it was a disaster. Also, this plan isn’t upgradeable.
Webdock’s prices also depend on which CPU you pick, from Intel Xeon to AMD Epyc. In general, Xeon profiles are cheap, but AMD Epyc is a little expensive but more powerful. One of my favorite things is that I can make my own VPS profile.
On the other hand, I have the option to add RAM, threads, space, and network speed to suit my needs. There’s a minimum amount, but if you desire, you can put more RAM than threads or less RAM with more storage or whatever.
Here are a few examples of how custom Intel Xeon and AMD Epyc VPS profiles differ in price.
In my case, I selected two CPU threads, two GB of RAM, 15 GB disk space, and 1 GB network speed, and the price was only $2.95 per month.
Now, I’m going to AMD Epyc Custom VPS…
And then there’s exactly the same specs as Intel, but $5.90/month instead. This is because AMD Epyc is more powerful, so you can host a WP docs website on that VPS without issues.
Unless you pick a plan that costs more than $6/m, you won’t get some features like the server control panel, WordPress management, bot protection, etc.
For me, this isn’t an issue since I can do it with my hands. There is, however, a free version of a cloud hosting control panel available, such as Xcloud.
Web Server Control Panel
If you spend more than $6 with Webdock, get their server control panel for free. This is an ideal alternative to control panels like RunCloud, Xcloud, FlyWP, etc.
You can manage all aspects of your web server, including WebFTP, SSH, and database, as well as set up WordPress in a couple of clicks. It’s got a file manager, too; even Cloudways lacks it.
You can choose Nginx or Apache stack; however, it would be nice to have Litespeed as well. Often, it’s better to use LiteSpeed for server-side caching.
It also comes with application-level backups, bot protection, free SSL, MariaDB, custom scripts, and more. Indeed, it does lack some useful features, such as Litespeed, multiple websites per VPS, redis, custom SSL, and firewall.
But, if you prefer pure Nginx, this is an ideal control panel.
Where Is Webdock Cloud Hosting Lacking?
I’ve been using this for a while. Are there any things I don’t like?
So far, I’ve had no trouble. However, I noticed a few annoyances…
- Data centers only in Denmark: This is probably the most significant negative aspect of Webdock cloud hosting. And certainly, Denmark is OK for people who want web hosting from Europe, but it may not be suitable for others.
- Downtime: Personally, I don’t experience downtime, but if you check their network status page, you will see some outages. Also, downtime has gotten some bad reviews. It’s because Webdock runs its own datacenter.
- No Windows: Well, this is fine with me; I have never used Windows for web hosting. However, they do not offer this service by default.
- No Open/LiteSpeed: You can only run Nginx or Apache if you use their control panel. In my case, I use Xcloud, RunCloud, or FlyWP instead of their web server control panel.
There are probably other cons, too, but if they improve in those areas, they’ll be one of the best cloud VPS providers.
Webdock Alternatives
There are many cloud VPS providers you can choose from. When I get a chance, I try out new providers. So here are some affordable Webdock alternatives.
Vultr
Vultr is one of the biggest providers of cloud computing services, with 32 data centers worldwide. I mainly prefer Vultr high frequency and high-performance droplets due to their speed and ability to handle actual traffic.
These droplets use 3GHz+ AMD EPYC or Intel Xeon, along with NVMe. Based on benchmark tests, Vultr’s high frequency 1GB RAM server beats Webdock’s midrange server. DigitalOcean Premium provided the same performance.
But, I do not recommend Vultr regular performance droplets because they use previous-generation Intel CPUs and regular SSD drives.
I mean, they are suitable for testing environments but not for real-world use. Or use a powerful CDN like FlyingCDN that uses Cloudflare Enterprise.
Let’s be honest, Vultr is a solid and reliable solution for real-world use. Yes, it’s hard to compare with low-end VPS companies like Web-Dock. Read my Vultr review for more details since there isn’t enough time to cover everything.
DigitalOcean
DigitalOcean, Vultr, and UpCloud are the most competitive cloud hosts at present. DO is an established company that bought Cloudways a few years ago. I like DO too; it’s fast and reliable, but I can’t say who’s the best at them all.
Similar to Vultr, DO offers AMD and Intel droplets with basic and high-frequency capabilities. Cloud hosting is essential for page builders and WordPress themes.
When I tried Vultr, I noticed notable differences between basic and high-frequency servers. But, with DO, there weren’t significant differences between basic and premium CPUs. I like their AMD servers; they’re fast for small and midsized sites.
Basically, Vultr, Linode, UpCloud and DigitalOcean have very similar pricing (One to two dollars can be changed). So, if you’re looking for a Webdock alternative, DigitalOcean is one of the best. It’s faster and more reliable. And DigitalOcean has a robust server monitoring feature, but it has to be setup manually.
UpCloud
UpCloud is Finland’s cloud hosting company, with 13 data centers worldwide. This is another Vultr-type company. And it is lesser-known but cheap to use.
I wouldn’t recommend UpCloud to beginners; its UI isn’t like Linode or Vultr. However, it is ideal for those who enjoy messing with unmanaged hosting. This does not mean that UpCloud is not usable by first-time users; you can play around with it by browsing documents. But it’s not as easy as other hosts.
Developer plans are great for trying out DIY projects or hosting them. SSD VPS starts at $3.3/mo and has 1GB RAM, one vCPU core, and 10GB storage. Get better speed on low-end hosting with a caching plugin like FlyingPress.
Yes, it’s a bit pricey compared to Webdock, but it’s reliable. There’s no built-in SSH terminal in UpCloud; users have to use Putty or something. I don’t like that. Even hard-to-navigate interfaces like Amazon Lightsail offer SSH terminals.
I think Webdock is better than UpCloud in some parts. The UI is nice, it has in-depth tutorials, and it’s cheaper. However, UPcloud has more data centers and is a lot more reliable. Windows servers are also available at an extra charge.
In addition to regular cloud services, UpCloud offers private clouds, kubernetes, database hosting, load balancing, VPN, and more.
UpCloud offers 4 types of cloud servers:
- Developer: They’re suitable for DIY projects and web hosting for average websites. The servers have regular SSD storage and 1000 Mbps Internet with IPv4/6. Starting at $3.3/mo, you can get 4GB RAM for under $20.
- General Purpose: These plans are ideal for most use cases and offer a balanced set of resources. Servers have AMD CPUs and MaxIOPS storage. They’re a little pricey, starting at $8/m. In this case, I think Vultr is better.
- High CPU: Plans offer resources that are ideal for higher CPU workloads. The price starts at 140 USD. Here, I think Vultr is better with NVMe.
- High Memory: Increase memory for RAM-heavy usage. A server with 24GB of RAM costs less than $100 a month.
And UpCloud lets you couple RAM, CPU, and storage to suit your needs. Every Up-Cloud plan comes with at least 1 TB of bandwidth.
Yes, Vultr and DigitalOcean beat UpCloud in certain areas, but it’s developer and general-purpose cloud servers are cheaper and have more resources.
Pros:
- Various types of cloud servers.
- 7-day free trial of up to 4GB RAM.
- 13 data centers around the world.
- Free backups for higher-tier plans.
- Cheaper than DigitalOcean, Vultr, etc.
Cons:
- Clunky control panel.
- Unsuitable for beginners.
- No web-based SSH terminal.
- Not enough production-ready server stacks.
ScalaHosting
ScalaHosting is better known for its managed VPS servers, which offer friendly support, LiteSpeed, and multiple server stacks. Again, it also provides an unmanaged VPS and a builder for custom VPSs.
But the thing is…
They’re expensive; you can’t get a VPS for less than 20 USD per month.
Sadly, they don’t have small plans like one vCore and 1 GB RAM. Prices for self-managed VPS start at 25 USD/M. If you pick a long-term, like 12 months, you’ll get a discount. It has stuff like free Spanel, OpenLiteSpeed, Nginx, IMAP, etc.
ScalaHosting is regularly recommended as a solid LiteSpeed hosting service. It’s good for people who like solid, powerful web hosting with LS, but it’s pricey.
At that price, I would prefer UpCloud or Vultr. But, Scala’s Trustpilot profile shows plenty of happy users, almost all giving five stars.
Contabo
Contabo is another German-based host known for its low price on VPSs and dedicated servers. Plus, they have 9 data centers around the world.
On the other hand, if you look at customer reviews, you will find plenty of negative comments, especially for downtimes and poor support.
Yes, unmanaged VPSs don’t usually provide support like regular hosts. But, when you experience trouble with the hosting end, you will need support through a ticket at minimum.
I’ve used Contabo’s entry-level VPS at the German data center but have never had problems. However, it appears that most of Contabo’s other data centers experience outages.
Contabo VPS is robust and offers many server resources at an affordable price. For less than $6, you can purchase 4 vCPU cores, 6 GB RAM, 100 GB NVMe, or 400GB SSD. And Contabo VPS does pretty well on benchmarks. It is unlikely that you can purchase such a VPS for that price, but the problem is downtime.
IONOS
IONOS is an old and popular provider of hosting and domains. Yes, it’s super cheap, but I don’t recommend – because it’s awful.
You can get an entry-level VPS for $2, but if you look at user reviews about IONOS VPS, you’ll think twice. Select US, Germany, UK, or Spanish data centers. BUT, IONOS won’t let you buy from certain countries, including Asian/African ones.
IONOS VPS features include free Plesk web host edition, SSL certificate, DDoS protection, email management, and DNS.
And get this… Customers who bought from IONOS have left a number of negative reviews related to billing circles and slow servers. If the IONOS Virtual Private Server actually included specifications, it would be ideal. However, it wasn’t as speedy as they said, and I doubt they’re using NVMe. So, use them wisely.
Final Thoughts About This WebDock Review
OK, friends. I hope that this guide has helped you understand some things about Webdock Cloud VPS and some alternatives to it.
At the time of writing, they only have one data center in Denmark. Although CDN reduces latency for other regions, a closer data center is still ideal.
In fact, shared and fully managed hosts differ in terms of features, usability, and customer service. You pay 90 percent more for customer service.
VPS and dedicated servers are all about hardware and performance. If you have a website with over 50k monthly visitors, you need $100 if you pick a host like Kinsta/WPE. But it can be managed with just a $10/12 server with a VPS.
I mean, these guys are pretty decent compared to many mediocre web hosts and are at least worth a shot.
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