Cloudways Affiliate Program: How To Make Money With Cloud Hosting Commissions

Picture this: you send someone to a hosting service, they sign up, and you earn money. Not just once, but every single month they stay a customer. That’s the Cloudways affiliate program in a nutshell. With commissions starting at $50 per sale and climbing to $125+ as you scale, plus lifetime recurring payments, this cloud hosting program has caught the attention of affiliate marketers worldwide. Let me show you exactly how to tap into this opportunity.

💰 Quick Program Stats

Commission Structure: $50-$125+ per sale (tiered based on volume)
Cookie Duration: 90 days
Payment Method: PayPal
Minimum Payout: $250
Payment Schedule: 10th of each month
Special Feature: Lifetime recurring commissions
Program Access: Join the Cloudways Affiliate Program

Why Cloud Hosting Affiliates Are Seeing Real Money

The web hosting affiliate space is crowded, sure. But Cloudways has carved out something different. They’re not competing on price with $2.99 shared hosting plans. They’re targeting a more sophisticated customer: developers, agencies, and serious website owners who need performance.

This matters for you as an affiliate because higher-tier customers mean better commissions and longer retention. Someone paying $50-300 monthly for hosting isn’t jumping ship for a dollar discount somewhere else.

Let’s talk real numbers. If you send 20 qualified signups per month at the tier-two commission rate of $75 each, you’re looking at $1,500 monthly. But here’s where it gets interesting. Cloudways offers lifetime recurring commissions on those customers. If they stick around (and cloud hosting customers typically do), you continue earning month after month.

The math works like this: 20 customers paying an average of $100/month to Cloudways, with you earning recurring commissions, compounds quickly. After six months of consistent promotion, you could be earning from 120 active customers, not just the 20 you sent this month.

Understanding the Commission Tiers

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Cloudways structures their commissions to reward volume, which means the more you promote, the more each sale is worth.

When you’re starting out with 1-5 sales per month, you earn $50 per customer. Nothing to sneeze at, especially for recurring income. Once you hit 6-20 sales monthly, each commission jumps to $75. That’s a 50% increase for the same work.

The sweet spot for many affiliates is the 21-45 sales tier at $100 per customer. At this level, you’re looking at $2,100 minimum monthly if you’re hitting 21 sales. Push to 45 sales and you’re at $4,500 per month from new customers alone, not counting recurring commissions from previous months.

Beyond 46 sales monthly, you’re earning $125 per customer. This is where Cloudways starts calling you a “super affiliate” and typically offers additional support and promotional opportunities.

There’s also a hybrid commission model available, though the details vary. Worth exploring once you’ve got some momentum and can negotiate based on your performance.

Who Actually Converts on Cloudways

Not every hosting affiliate program attracts the same customer. Understanding who signs up for Cloudways helps you target your promotion efforts effectively.

The typical Cloudways customer falls into a few categories. First, you’ve got the WordPress developers and agency folks. These are people managing multiple client sites who need reliable, scalable hosting without the headache of server management. They’re often transitioning from traditional VPS hosting or tired of dealing with unreliable shared hosting for client projects.

Second, there’s the serious blogger or online business owner who’s outgrown basic hosting. Their site is getting real traffic, maybe 50,000+ visitors monthly, and they need something that won’t crash during traffic spikes.

Third, you’ll find e-commerce store owners, particularly those on WooCommerce or Magento. These folks need the performance and reliability that cloud hosting provides because every minute of downtime literally costs them money.

What all these customers have in common is they’re willing to invest in their hosting infrastructure. They understand the connection between site speed, uptime, and their bottom line. This makes them great customers for you as an affiliate because they convert well and they stick around.

Step-by-Step: Your First 30 Days Promoting Cloudways

Getting approved for the Cloudways affiliate program is straightforward. Head to their affiliate program page, fill out the application, and you’ll typically hear back within 24-48 hours. They’re looking for people with established websites or audiences, but they’re not unreasonably strict. A decent blog or YouTube channel focused on web development, WordPress, or digital marketing should get approved.

Once you’re in, here’s how to approach your first month.

Days 1-7: Content Foundation

Your first move is creating content that targets people actively researching Cloudways. Write a comprehensive Cloudways review post. Cover the dashboard, performance benchmarks, pricing breakdown, and honest pros and cons. This becomes your anchor content.

Also create a “Cloudways vs [Competitor]” comparison post. Popular comparisons include Cloudways vs SiteGround, Cloudways vs WP Engine, or Cloudways vs Kinsta. People searching these terms are in buying mode.

Days 8-15: Technical Content

Now you’re creating tutorial content. Think “How to Migrate to Cloudways from Shared Hosting” or “Setting Up WordPress on Cloudways in 10 Minutes.” These pieces demonstrate value while naturally incorporating your affiliate links.

Another angle is performance-focused content. Create case studies or tutorials about improving site speed using Cloudways. Before and after PageSpeed Insights screenshots work incredibly well here.

Days 16-23: Community Engagement

Join relevant Facebook groups, Reddit communities, and forums where your target audience hangs out. Don’t spam links. Instead, genuinely help people with hosting questions and naturally mention Cloudways when it’s the right solution. Include your review post link in your signature or profile.

Start building relationships with other WordPress developers or bloggers. Many of them hate dealing with hosting recommendations and would be happy to refer people to your comprehensive resources.

Days 24-30: Amplification

Now you’re promoting your content. If you’ve got a budget, run targeted Facebook or Google ads to your review content. Start with $5-10 daily and target audiences interested in web hosting, WordPress, or website development.

Build an email sequence for your list. Create a “hosting decision guide” as a lead magnet, then follow up with educational emails that naturally lead to Cloudways as a solution.

Traffic Sources That Actually Work

Let’s get specific about where to send traffic from. Not all channels perform equally for hosting affiliate offers.

Organic Search (The Long Game)

SEO is incredibly valuable for hosting affiliates because people actively search for solutions. Target keywords like “best cloud hosting for WordPress,” “Cloudways review,” “managed cloud hosting comparison,” and “how to speed up WordPress site.”

The competition is real, but so is the payoff. A single blog post ranking on page one for a high-intent keyword can send you 10-50 qualified visitors daily. Over a year, that’s potentially thousands of dollars in recurring commissions from one piece of content.

Focus on creating genuinely helpful content that goes deeper than your competitors. Instead of a 1,000-word surface-level review, write 3,000+ words with actual screenshots, performance tests, and honest assessments.

YouTube (The Secret Weapon)

Video content for hosting is surprisingly underutilized. Create screen recording tutorials showing actual Cloudways setup, migration processes, or performance comparisons. These videos rank well and convert excellently because viewers can see the product in action.

Your video description should include your affiliate link (disclosed as such) along with a brief summary of why you recommend Cloudways. Pin a comment with additional resources and your affiliate link.

Paid Search (If You’ve Got Budget)

Google Ads can work for hosting, but you need to be careful with margins. Bidding on competitor keywords (like “SiteGround alternative” or “WP Engine pricing”) often converts better than broad hosting terms.

Start with a small daily budget of $10-20 and focus on highly specific, lower-competition keywords. Send traffic to dedicated landing pages, not just your homepage.

Email Marketing (The Multiplier)

If you’ve already got an email list in the WordPress, web development, or digital marketing space, you’re sitting on gold. Create a dedicated email series about choosing the right hosting, with Cloudways as your recommended solution.

Don’t just send a single promotional email. Build a narrative over 3-5 emails that educates readers about hosting types, performance considerations, and why you personally use and recommend Cloudways.

Making Your Content Convert

Writing about hosting isn’t sexy, but it pays. The key is making your content useful enough that people trust your recommendation.

Start by addressing the actual pain points your audience experiences. Slow load times. Confusing dashboards. Terrible customer support. Security concerns. These are the hot buttons that make someone ready to switch hosting providers.

Use specific examples in your content. Instead of saying “Cloudways is fast,” show actual speed test results. Post screenshots of your GTmetrix scores or load time comparisons. Real data beats generic claims every time.

Be honest about limitations. No hosting solution is perfect for everyone. Cloudways might not be ideal for complete beginners who need hand-holding or people running only a single small blog on a tight budget. Acknowledging this actually builds more trust than pretending it’s perfect for everyone.

Create comparison tables in your content. Show Cloudways side-by-side with 3-4 competitors on factors like price, performance, support, and features. Make it scannable and honest.

The Real Challenges (And How to Handle Them)

Let’s talk about what makes promoting Cloudways harder than some other programs.

The $250 Minimum Payout

This is annoying, especially when you’re starting. At the lowest commission tier of $50 per sale, you need five sales before seeing your first payment. For beginners, this can take 2-3 months of consistent effort.

The solution is to promote multiple affiliate programs simultaneously. Don’t put all your eggs in the Cloudways basket. Mix in some lower-threshold programs to keep cash flowing while you build up to that first Cloudways payout.

PayPal-Only Payments

Some affiliates in certain countries find PayPal problematic due to fees or restrictions. Unfortunately, Cloudways doesn’t offer alternative payment methods currently.

If PayPal isn’t viable for you, this might not be your program. Focus your energy on hosting affiliates that offer wire transfers or other payment options. No point fighting an uphill battle.

The Competition

Search for “best WordPress hosting” and you’ll find thousands of articles from massive authority sites. Competing head-on with these established players is tough.

Instead, go niche. Target longer-tail keywords like “best cloud hosting for WooCommerce stores” or “managed WordPress hosting for agencies.” Create content for specific use cases where Cloudways genuinely excels. The traffic is lower, but the conversion rates are often better because you’re matching intent more precisely.

Technical Knowledge Barrier

Promoting hosting effectively requires understanding what you’re talking about. If you can’t explain the difference between shared hosting and cloud hosting, or why server location matters, you’ll struggle to create credible content.

Invest time in actually using Cloudways. Sign up for their free trial, build a test site, poke around the dashboard. Your content will be infinitely better when it’s based on real experience rather than regurgitating marketing materials.

Who This Program Isn’t For

Be real with yourself. Cloudways isn’t the right fit for every affiliate.

If you’re operating in a completely unrelated niche (like fashion, fitness, or cooking), forcing Cloudways promotion into your content feels unnatural and won’t convert. Unless your audience includes bloggers, developers, or online business owners, look elsewhere.

If you need quick cashouts, the $250 minimum might frustrate you. Programs with $50 or $100 minimums might be better while you’re building momentum.

If you can’t create decent content about technical topics, promoting hosting is an uphill battle. You don’t need to be a developer, but you do need to communicate clearly about hosting features and benefits.

Getting Started Today

Here’s your action plan. Open a new browser tab and sign up for the Cloudways affiliate program right now. Don’t wait until your website is perfect or your traffic is higher. Get approved, grab your affiliate links, and start creating.

Your first piece of content should be comprehensive. A 2,000-word Cloudways review that covers everything someone needs to know before signing up. Include your affiliate link early in the post and at the end.

Then create a content calendar for the next month. Schedule one hosting-related post per week. Mix reviews, comparisons, and tutorials. Each one should provide real value while naturally incorporating your Cloudways affiliate link.

Track everything. Use UTM parameters on your links so you can see which content drives actual conversions. Double down on what works and cut what doesn’t.

The Cloudways affiliate program isn’t a get-rich-quick scheme. But for affiliates willing to create quality content and play the long game, those recurring lifetime commissions add up. The affiliate who started a year ago and consistently promoted Cloudways is now earning from hundreds of active customers.

You could be that affiliate a year from now. Or you could still be reading articles about affiliate marketing without taking action.

Start your Cloudways affiliate journey here and see what you can build.