If you have outgrown cheap shared hosting but do not want to babysit a raw server, managed cloud hosting is the sweet spot — and Cloudways is one of the most popular ways to get it. The big question people ask before switching is simple: what can Cloudways actually host? The short answer is almost any PHP-based site or app, running on top of premium cloud servers, without you touching the command line.

Here is the full rundown of the platforms Cloudways manages, and who each one is best for.

The cloud underneath: pick your provider

Before the platforms, it helps to know what Cloudways is. It is a managed layer that sits on top of five best-in-class cloud providers. You pick the raw power; Cloudways handles the server management, security patches, caching, and scaling.

• DigitalOcean — the developer favorite, fast and affordable
• Vultr — high-frequency compute for speed-sensitive sites
• Linode (Akamai) — reliable, globally distributed
• AWS — enterprise-grade with the biggest region footprint
• Google Cloud — premium network and performance

You get the muscle of these clouds with none of the DevOps homework. Spin up a server in a few clicks here.

Platforms Cloudways can host

WordPress

This is the headliner. Cloudways is purpose-built for fast, secure WordPress — with its own Breeze caching plugin, server-level Redis and Varnish, free SSL, staging environments, and one-click cloning. If you run a blog, a business site, or a portfolio and speed matters, this is the flagship use case.

WooCommerce

Because WooCommerce is WordPress under the hood, Cloudways is a natural fit for online stores. Dedicated resources mean your checkout does not crawl during a traffic spike, and the auto-healing servers keep the cart online. For anyone selling products, the performance headroom pays for itself.

Laravel

Cloudways offers a one-click Laravel stack with Composer, Git deployment, cron jobs, and SSH access already wired up. It is a genuinely great home for Laravel apps and APIs — you get a production-ready PHP 8 environment without configuring Nginx and PHP-FPM by hand.

Magento

Magento is resource-hungry, and shared hosting chokes on it. Cloudways gives it the dedicated CPU and RAM it needs, plus full-page caching, making it a solid pick for larger ecommerce catalogs.

Drupal, Joomla, PrestaShop and more

Cloudways ships one-click installers for Drupal, Joomla, PrestaShop, and other popular CMS and ecommerce platforms — so agencies and site builders can standardize on a single dashboard.

Custom PHP applications

Have a custom-coded PHP app, a framework we did not list, or a legacy project? Cloudways provides a plain custom PHP stack with full server access. If it runs on PHP and MySQL, it runs on Cloudways.

Who should use Cloudways

Cloudways is the managed middle ground. It is ideal if you:

• Have outgrown slow, cramped shared hosting
• Want cloud performance without learning server administration
• Run WordPress, WooCommerce, or Laravel and care about speed
• Manage multiple client sites and want one clean dashboard

You get free SSL, automated backups, staging, 24/7 support, and a free trial with no credit card, so you can kick the tires before committing. Start your free Cloudways trial here.

Prefer someone else to handle it?

The DIY route is great, and Cloudways makes it about as painless as managed cloud gets. But if you would rather not touch a dashboard at all, GTStudios offers done-for-you managed hosting and site care — we run everything on the same premium cloud so you can focus on your business. Either way, you win: launch it yourself, or let us launch it for you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Cloudways good for beginners?

Yes. While it runs on serious cloud infrastructure, the dashboard is built for non-technical users — one-click installs, managed updates, and a free trial with no credit card required mean you can launch a site without any server knowledge.

Can Cloudways host more than one website?

Absolutely. A single Cloudways server can host multiple applications and sites, and you can add more servers as you grow. This makes it especially popular with freelancers and agencies managing many client sites from one dashboard.

Does Cloudways include a free trial?

Yes, Cloudways offers a free trial that lets you launch and test a server before paying, with no credit card required to start. It is the easiest way to see if the performance fits your project.

What is the difference between Cloudways and shared hosting?

Shared hosting puts hundreds of sites on one server competing for resources, which is why it slows down. Cloudways gives each account dedicated cloud resources on providers like DigitalOcean and AWS, with managed caching and security, for much better speed and reliability.

You’ll get a quick answer up front, a breakdown of how to evaluate your options, a closer look at the leading apps and their real pricing, and the mistakes that trip up first-time loyalty program owners.

Quick Answer

For most small Shopify stores just starting out, Smile.io is the best first loyalty app because it has a genuinely usable free plan for stores under 200 orders a month. If you want deeper analytics and VIP tiers as you grow, LoyaltyLion and Rivo are strong paid options. WooCommerce stores should look at YITH WooCommerce Points and Rewards, myCred, or WPLoyalty instead, since most Shopify loyalty apps don’t work outside the Shopify ecosystem.

How to Choose the Right Loyalty App

Start with your platform. Shopify has the deepest bench of dedicated loyalty apps, all installed from the Shopify App Store and billed as a recurring app charge. WooCommerce stores instead use WordPress plugins, which are usually licensed with a one-time or annual fee rather than a monthly subscription tied to order volume — worth factoring in if you’re comparing costs across platforms.

Next, look at how pricing scales with your order volume. Nearly every loyalty app prices around a monthly order cap (for example, a few hundred orders included, with overage fees or a forced upgrade past that). A plan that looks cheap at your current size can get expensive fast once you scale, so check the next tier’s price before committing.

Decide which features you actually need on day one versus later. A points-and-referrals program is enough for most stores just starting out. VIP tiers, points expiry, birthday rewards, and advanced segmentation are valuable but usually gated behind mid-tier or higher plans — don’t pay for them until you’re ready to use them.

Check integrations with tools you already use, especially your email/SMS platform (Klaviyo is a common integration point for loyalty apps) and your POS if you sell in person. Finally, confirm you can export your customer and points data if you ever switch apps — some platforms make this easier than others.

Top Loyalty Apps Compared

Smile.io is the most widely installed Shopify loyalty app and holds Shopify’s Built for Shopify badge. Its free plan covers up to 200 orders a month with points, referrals, and basic branding. Paid plans start with Essential at around $15/month, then Standard at about $79/month and Growth at about $199/month (roughly 2,500 orders), adding a dedicated loyalty page, VIP tiers, and analytics as you move up. An Enterprise-level Plus plan runs closer to $999/month and is aimed at large-volume brands with API needs.

LoyaltyLion is built for stores that want deeper reporting from day one. Its entry-level Classic plan costs around $199/month for a few hundred orders and includes a branded loyalty page, pre-built earning rules, and Klaviyo integration. Higher Advanced and Plus tiers are custom-quoted based on order volume and add VIP tiers, multi-store support for brands running several storefronts, and a revenue-modeling tool for testing reward structures before launch. It’s a solid pick once you’ve outgrown a free plan and want to actually analyze program performance, not just run it.

Rivo offers an accessible entry point for smaller stores, then moves into its Scale plan, which uses usage-based pricing starting around $49/month and scaling up depending on order volume. Above that sits a flat-rate Plus plan at $499/month built for higher-volume stores that want advanced developer tools and API access, and an Enterprise tier with custom pricing for unlimited orders, aimed mainly at Shopify Plus merchants. All tiers include access to Rivo’s broader feature set (loyalty, referrals, memberships, and account features), so smaller stores can start light and grow into paid tiers as order volume increases.

Yotpo Loyalty is worth a look mainly if you’re already using Yotpo for reviews, since it bundles well with that product. It offers a limited free tier and paid pricing that scales with order volume and feature tier, with costs that can rise noticeably at higher volumes and often move to a custom quote — so it tends to make more sense for stores already invested in the Yotpo ecosystem than as a standalone first loyalty app.

If you’re on WooCommerce, your best options are plugin-based rather than app-based. YITH WooCommerce Points and Rewards and myCred are both established, widely used plugins for building a points system with purchase, review, and referral triggers. WPLoyalty and the official WooCommerce Points and Rewards extension are also common choices. These typically use one-time or annual licensing instead of the per-order pricing common on Shopify.

Tips / Common Mistakes

Don’t pick a plan based only on today’s order volume — check what happens to the price at double your current volume, since overage fees or forced upgrades can catch you off guard as you grow. Don’t turn on every feature at once; a simple points-and-referral program that customers understand beats a complicated tiered system nobody uses. Make sure the redemption flow is visible at checkout and in account pages — a loyalty program customers don’t notice won’t change their behavior. Promote the program through email, a dedicated landing page, and post-purchase messaging; installing the app isn’t enough on its own. And before you commit to a paid plan, test the free or trial tier first to confirm the app’s setup and design actually fit your store’s checkout experience.

Explore more: More customer loyalty guides.

Best loyalty program apps for small ecommerce stores FAQs

Is there a good free loyalty app for small ecommerce stores?

Yes. Smile.io offers a usable free plan for Shopify stores with up to 200 orders a month, covering points, referrals, and basic branding. Rivo also offers a free entry point for smaller stores before you need to move to a paid plan, making either a solid starting point.

What’s the difference between Smile.io, LoyaltyLion, and Rivo?

Smile.io is the easiest to start with and has the strongest free tier. LoyaltyLion focuses on deeper analytics and VIP tiers for growing brands, with paid plans starting around $199/month. Rivo has a free entry option for smaller stores, then a usage-based Scale plan starting around $49/month, a flat $499/month Plus plan for higher-volume stores, and custom Enterprise pricing for unlimited orders.

Can I add a loyalty program to a WooCommerce store?

Yes. Since most Shopify loyalty apps don’t support WooCommerce, use a WordPress plugin instead, such as YITH WooCommerce Points and Rewards, myCred, or WPLoyalty, which are typically licensed with a one-time or annual fee rather than a monthly subscription.

How much do loyalty program apps typically cost?

Most apps offer a free or low-cost entry tier for small order volumes, with paid plans commonly starting in the roughly $15-$50/month range and rising toward $200-$500/month as you add features like VIP tiers, analytics, and higher order caps, with custom enterprise pricing above that for high-volume stores.

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Photo by charlesdeluvio on Unsplash.