Even before cPanel raised prices this summer (2019), I had been looking at platforms like ServerPilot, Runcloud, and Forge.
The stacks that these providers offer are tuned for speed and ease of use. After testing out ServerPilot + DigitalOcean compared to a VPS with cPanel, I right away noticed that sites were loading nearly 5x faster.
Sure, you could attribute some of this to a slow cPanel VPS provider perhaps. Or you could argue that cPanel wasn’t tuned properly and was causing lag. Whichever way you slice it, it’s hard to compete with what ServerPilot provides out of the box without any tweaking. ServerPilot is fast, lean, and super minimal.
It took me several months to finally commit to leaving the cPanel eco-system. I’ve been a loyal customer since 2008 and leaving behind built-in email, easy backups with plugins like Jetbackup, etc., were not easy.
So, here’s the way I’ve set-up my new hosting platform:
- ServerPilot (control panel)
- DigitalOcean (web host)
- Snapshooter.io (creates scheduled backups of your DO droplet)
- All in One Migration (full backup of each WordPress to a remote server)
- PolarisMail (premium email host)
- BlogVault (for large WordPress sites that need incremental backup)
Why go for ServerPilot when they charge per server and per site?
They provide incredible support, security, stability, and are based in my home country. Not to mention, the minimal design cuts out distractions and creates a rock-solid service–it’s actually fun to use. Don’t be fooled by cheaper alternatives, ServerPilot is worth every penny.