What is a Cloud Hosting?

Cloud hosting is a hosting service that uses virtualization technologies to virtualize physical resources. As a result, we can have multiple virtual servers in one physical system. It gives better and more efficient management of resources, so the cloud is becoming popular nowadays.

Cloud hosting gives us several benefits over normal Shared Hosting or VPS hosting. 

• Scalability: Cloud hosting allows you to scale your resources up or down based on demand easily. This means you can handle traffic spikes without investing in physical hardware.

• Cost Efficiency: With cloud hosting, you typically pay only for the resources you use. This can be more cost-effective than traditional hosting, where you might have to pay for more capacity than you need

• Reliability and Uptime: Cloud hosting providers often have multiple data centers across different locations. This redundancy helps ensure high availability and minimizes downtime if one server fails.

• Flexibility: You can choose from various services and configurations tailored to your needs, including virtual machines, storage options, and databases.

• Automatic Updates and Maintenance: Cloud providers handle server maintenance, software updates, and security patches, reducing the burden on your IT team.

• Disaster Recovery: Cloud hosting solutions often include backup and disaster recovery features. Your data is stored in multiple locations, making it easier to recover in case of data loss or hardware failure.

• Performance Optimization: Cloud services can provide content delivery networks (CDNs), load balancing, and other tools to optimize performance and ensure fast response times for your users.

• Accessibility: Since cloud hosting is internet-based, you can access your resources and manage your applications from anywhere with an internet connection.

• Security: Leading cloud providers invest heavily in security infrastructure and offer features like encryption, firewall protection, and multi-factor authentication to safeguard your data.

• Environmentally Friendly: Cloud hosting providers often use energy-efficient data centers and optimize their resources to minimize environmental impact compared to traditional data centers.

Here are the top 10 cloud hosting providers you can consider.

1. AWS(Amazon Web Services)

AWS was the first in the market to make cloud computing available to the public. Its services include computing, storage, networking, database, serverless, and many more. 

Services provide by AWS

• Compute: EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud), Lambda, ECS (Elastic Container Service), EKS (Elastic Kubernetes Service), Fargate, Lightsail, Batch, Outposts

• Storage: S3 (Simple Storage Service), EBS (Elastic Block Store), Glacier, Storage Gateway, FSx (File System), EFS (Elastic File System)

• Databases: RDS (Relational Database Service), DynamoDB, Aurora, Redshift, ElastiCache, Neptune, DocumentDB

• Networking and Content Delivery: VPC (Virtual Private Cloud), CloudFront, Direct Connect, ELB (Elastic Load Balancing), Global Accelerator

• Security, Identity, and Compliance: IAM (Identity and Access Management), KMS (Key Management Service), Shield, WAF (Web Application Firewall), Secrets Manager

• Developer Tools: CodeBuild, CodeDeploy, CodePipeline, Cloud9, X-Ray

• Analytics: Athena, EMR (Elastic MapReduce), QuickSight, Glue, Kinesis

• Machine Learning and AI: SageMaker, Rekognition, Comprehend, Polly, Lex

• IoT (Internet of Things): IoT Core, IoT Greengrass, IoT Analytics, IoT Button

• Management and Governance: CloudFormation, CloudTrail, Config, Systems Manager, Trusted Advisor

• Migration and Transfer: Migration Hub, DataSync, Snowball, Transfer Family

When to Choose AWS

• AWS is best for large-scale applications, you can host Web Applications, APIs, Database Server, Storage, and many more. 
• Aws only charges for the resources you use, not for the services.
• It has flexible billing, for the resources you have used.
• Best for setup CI/CD pipelines and DevOps Workflow

Try out the AWS free trial for 12 months, 

Demerits of AWS

It has a vast range of services and needs an advanced cloud skillset.

Certification provided by AWS.

2. GCP(Google Cloud Platform)

Like AWS, GCP also gives us a wide range of services that can meet the needs of millions of traffic. Backed by Google, so no need to worry about speed, scalability and performance.

Services provide by GCP

• Compute: Compute Engine (Virtual Machines), Cloud Functions (Serverless Computing), Kubernetes Engine (Managed Kubernetes), Cloud Run (Serverless Containers), App Engine (Platform-as-a-Service), Batch (Managed Batch Processing), Bare Metal Solution (Dedicated Hardware)

• Storage: Cloud Storage (Object Storage), Persistent Disk (Block Storage), Filestore (Managed File Storage), Nearline Storage (Infrequent Access), Coldline Storage (Archival Storage)

• Databases: Cloud SQL (Managed Relational Databases), Cloud Spanner (Globally Distributed SQL), Cloud Bigtable (NoSQL Wide-Column), Firestore (NoSQL Document Database), BigQuery (Serverless Data Warehouse), Datastore (Scalable NoSQL Database)

• Networking and Content Delivery: Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) (Isolated Network Environments), Cloud CDN (Content Delivery Network), Cloud Interconnect (Dedicated Connections), Cloud Load Balancing (Global Load Balancing), Traffic Director (Service Mesh Management)

• Security, Identity, and Compliance: Cloud IAM (Identity and Access Management), Cloud KMS (Key Management Service), Security Command Center (Security Management), Cloud Identity (Identity Management and SSO), Cloud Armor (DDoS Protection and Web Application Firewall)

• Developer Tools: Cloud Build (CI/CD), Cloud Source Repositories (Managed Git Repositories), Cloud Deployment Manager (Infrastructure as Code), Cloud Code (IDE Extensions)

• Analytics: BigQuery (Data Analytics and Warehouse), Dataflow (Stream and Batch Processing), Dataproc (Managed Hadoop and Spark), Pub/Sub (Messaging and Event Ingestion), Looker (Business Intelligence and Data Visualization)

• Machine Learning and AI: AI Platform (End-to-End ML Platform), AutoML (Custom ML Models), Vision AI (Image Analysis), Natural Language AI (Text Analysis), Dialogflow (Conversational AI)

• IoT (Internet of Things): IoT Core (Device Management), IoT Edge (Edge Computing), Cloud Functions for Firebase (Serverless Functions for IoT)

• Management and Governance: Cloud Monitoring (Monitoring and Observability), Cloud Logging (Log Management), Cloud Trace (Distributed Tracing), Cloud Profiler (Performance Profiling), Cloud Deployment Manager (Resource Provisioning)

• Migration and Transfer: Transfer Appliance (Data Migration), Database Migration Service (Database Migration), Storage Transfer Service (Data Transfer from Other Clouds)

When to Choose GCP

• For scalable web applications, a wide range of services in one console
• When you want cloud computing with various Google Services like SSO, Firebase, Google Workspace APIs 

Try the GCP trial for 90 days with $300 free credits

Demerits

Has a steeper learning curve, and professional skills required for managing GCP console.

Enhance your cloud skillset with the GCP Certifications.

3. Microsoft Azure

Microsoft also has a public cloud service called Azure. Also gaining popularity next to AWS and GCP.

Services Provided by Azure Cloud

• Compute: Azure Virtual Machines (VMs), Azure Functions (Serverless Computing), Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) (Managed Kubernetes), Azure Container Instances (ACI) (Serverless Containers), Azure App Service (Platform-as-a-Service), Azure Batch (Managed Batch Processing), Azure Spring Apps (Managed Spring Applications), Azure Dedicated Hosts (Dedicated Hardware)

• Storage: Azure Blob Storage (Object Storage), Azure Disk Storage (Block Storage), Azure Files (Managed File Storage), Azure Archive Storage (Long-Term Archival), Azure Data Lake Storage (Scalable Data Storage)

• Databases: Azure SQL Database (Managed Relational Database), Azure Cosmos DB (Globally Distributed NoSQL Database), Azure Database for MySQL (Managed MySQL), Azure Database for PostgreSQL (Managed PostgreSQL), Azure SQL Managed Instance (Managed SQL Server), Azure Synapse Analytics (Analytics Service), Azure Cache for Redis (In-Memory Cache), Azure Table Storage (NoSQL Key-Value Store)

• Networking and Content Delivery: Azure Virtual Network (VNet) (Isolated Network Environments), Azure CDN (Content Delivery Network), Azure ExpressRoute (Dedicated Network Connections), Azure Load Balancer (Traffic Distribution), Azure Front Door (Global Load Balancing and Application Acceleration)

• Security, Identity, and Compliance: Azure Active Directory (Identity and Access Management), Azure Key Vault (Key Management and Secrets), Azure Security Center (Unified Security Management), Azure DDoS Protection (DDoS Protection), Azure Policy (Governance and Compliance)

• Developer Tools: Azure DevOps (CI/CD and DevOps Tools), Azure Repos (Git Repositories), Azure Pipelines (Build and Release Pipelines), Azure CLI (Command-Line Interface), Visual Studio Code (IDE with Azure Extensions)

• Analytics: Azure Synapse Analytics (Integrated Analytics Service), Azure Data Factory (ETL and Data Integration), Azure Databricks (Apache Spark-Based Analytics), Azure Stream Analytics (Real-Time Data Stream Processing), Power BI (Business Intelligence and Data Visualization)

• Machine Learning and AI: Azure Machine Learning (End-to-End ML Platform), Azure Cognitive Services (Pre-Built AI Capabilities), Azure Bot Services (Conversational AI), Azure Cognitive Search (AI-Powered Search), Azure Custom Vision (Custom Image Classification)

• IoT (Internet of Things): Azure IoT Hub (Device Management and Connectivity), Azure IoT Central (IoT Application Platform), Azure Sphere (Secure IoT Device Platform), Azure Digital Twins (IoT Modeling and Analysis)

• Management and Governance: Azure Resource Manager (Resource Management), Azure Monitor (Monitoring and Analytics), Azure Log Analytics (Log Management), Azure Automation (Process Automation), Azure Policy (Governance and Compliance)

• Migration and Transfer: Azure Migrate (Migration Assessment and Tools), Azure Site Recovery (Disaster Recovery and Migration), Azure Data Box (Data Transfer Appliances), Azure Database Migration Service (Database Migration)

When to Choose Azure

• If you have requirements with Windows Server, can go for Azure.

Try Azure Cloud for 30 days with a free credit of $200.

Demerits

Has a steeper learning curve, and the console is more complex.

Azure cloud certifications.

4. Digital Ocean

Digital Ocean doesn't have vast services like AWS, GCP, and Azure but has a variety of services that can solve most of your needs. 

Services provide by Digital Ocean

Compute:

• Droplets: Scalable virtual private servers (VPS) with various configurations, including Standard, General Purpose, CPU-Optimized, and Memory-Optimized options.
• Kubernetes: Managed Kubernetes clusters for container orchestration.
•  App Platform: Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) for building, deploying, and scaling applications without managing infrastructure.

Storage:

• Spaces: Object storage for storing and serving large amounts of unstructured data, such as media files or backups.
• Volumes: Block storage that can be attached to Droplets for additional disk space.
• Backups and Snapshots: Automated backups and snapshots for data protection and recovery.

Networking:

•  Load Balancers: Distribute incoming traffic across multiple Droplets for high availability and reliability.
• VPC (Virtual Private Cloud): Private networking solutions to isolate and secure your resources.
• Floating IPs: Static IP addresses that can be moved between Droplets for high availability.
• Private Networking: Connect Droplets within the same data center using a private network.

Databases:

• Managed Databases: Fully managed databases for PostgreSQL, MySQL, and Redis, with automated backups, scaling, and maintenance.
  

Developer Tools:

• API: Access and manage DigitalOcean resources programmatically.
  
• CLI: Command-line interface for managing resources.
• Marketplace: Pre-configured one-click applications and development stacks.

Monitoring and Alerts:

• Monitoring: Integrated tools to monitor the performance and health of Droplets and other resources.
  
• Alerts: Customizable alerts for performance metrics and events.

Security:

• Firewalls: Control inbound and outbound traffic to your Droplets and other resources.
• SSH Keys: Secure access to Droplets using SSH keys.

Support and Documentation:

• Documentation: Comprehensive guides and tutorials for getting started and advanced usage.
• Support Plans: Different levels of support for troubleshooting and technical assistance.

When to Choose Digital Ocean

• DigitalOcean is known for its simplicity and developer-friendly approach, making it a popular choice for those looking to deploy and manage cloud infrastructure with ease.
• Straightforward pricing options

Try Digital Ocean for 60 Days with a $200 free credit.

Demerits

• If you use a load balancer, you have to pay, but it is free on AWS.
• For a heavy traffic application where you need Auto Scaling, prefer AWS, GCP, or Azure

5. Linode

Linode offers cloud services similar to DigitalOcean focusing on simplicity and performance. Here’s a detailed overview of what Linode provides:

Services Provided by Linode

Compute:

• Linodes: Scalable virtual private servers (VPS) available in various plans including Standard, High Memory, CPU-Optimized, and GPU instances.
  
•  Kubernetes: Managed Kubernetes clusters for container orchestration, allowing easy deployment and scaling of containerized applications.
•  Linode Kubernetes Engine (LKE): A managed Kubernetes service simplifying cluster management.

Storage:

• Block Storage: Flexible and scalable block storage that can be attached to Linodes for additional disk space.
  
• Object Storage: Scalable object storage for large amounts of unstructured data, such as backups and media files.
• Backups and Snapshots: Automated and manual backups and snapshots for data protection and recovery.

Networking:

• Load Balancers: Distribute incoming traffic across multiple Linodes to enhance availability and performance.
• Private Networking: Connect Linodes within the same data center using a private network for improved security and performance.
• Floating IPs: Static IP addresses that can be reassigned between Linodes for high availability and failover scenarios.
• VPC (Virtual Private Cloud): Private networking solutions to isolate and secure your resources.

Databases:

• Managed Databases: Fully managed databases for PostgreSQL, MySQL, and Redis, offering automated backups, scaling, and maintenance.
  

Developer Tools:

• API: Programmatic access to manage Linode resources.
  
• CLI: Command-line interface for managing Linode resources.
• Marketplace: Pre-configured one-click applications and development stacks to accelerate deployment.

Monitoring and Alerts:

• Monitoring: Integrated tools for tracking the performance and health of Linodes and other resources.
  
• Alerts: Customizable alerts for performance metrics and operational events.

Security:

• Firewalls: Control inbound and outbound traffic to your Linodes with flexible firewall rules.
  
• SSH Keys: Secure access to Linodes using SSH keys for enhanced security.

Support and Documentation:

• Documentation: Extensive guides and tutorials for getting started and advanced usage.
• Support Plans: Various support plans are available to assist with troubleshooting and technical issues.

When to Choose Linode

• Linode is well-suited for developers and small to medium-sized businesses looking for cost-effective and straightforward cloud solutions.
• It is known for its simplicity, predictable pricing, and developer-friendly approach.

Check out for free Perks by Linode.

Demerits

• Advanced Features: For highly complex or enterprise-level features like advanced auto-scaling, you might need to consider AWS, GCP, or Azure.
  
• Limited Free Services: Some features, like load balancers and premium support, might incur additional costs.
• Smaller Ecosystem: Compared to AWS, GCP, or Azure, Linode has a smaller ecosystem of integrated services and third-party applications.

6. Vultr

Vultr provides cloud services comparable to DigitalOcean and Linode, emphasizing simplicity, performance, and affordability. Here’s a detailed overview of what Vultr offers:

Services Provided by Vultr

Compute:

• Compute Instances: Scalable virtual private servers (VPS) available in various plans including Standard, High Frequency, and Dedicated instances.
  
•  Kubernetes: Managed Kubernetes clusters for container orchestration, simplifying deployment and scaling of containerized applications.
•  Vultr Kubernetes Engine (VKE): A managed Kubernetes service designed to ease cluster management.

Storage:

• Block Storage: Flexible and scalable block storage that can be attached to compute instances for additional disk space.
  
• Object Storage: Scalable object storage for handling large amounts of unstructured data, including backups and media files.
• Backups and Snapshots: Automated and manual backups and snapshots for data protection and recovery.

Networking:

• Load Balancers: Distribute incoming traffic across multiple instances to enhance availability and performance.
• Private Networking: Connect instances within the same data center using a private network for improved security and performance.
• Floating IPs: Static IP addresses that can be reassigned between instances for high availability and failover scenarios.
• VPC (Virtual Private Cloud): Private networking solutions to isolate and secure your resources.

Databases:

• Managed Databases: Fully managed databases for PostgreSQL, MySQL, and Redis, offering automated backups, scaling, and maintenance.
  

Developer Tools:

• API: Programmatic access to manage Vultr resources.
  
• CLI: Command-line interface for managing Vultr resources.
• Marketplace: Pre-configured one-click applications and development stacks to accelerate deployment.

Monitoring and Alerts:

• Monitoring: Integrated tools for tracking the performance and health of instances and other resources.
  
• Alerts: Customizable alerts for performance metrics and operational events.

Security:

• Firewalls: Control inbound and outbound traffic to your instances with flexible firewall rules.
  
• SSH Keys: Secure access to instances using SSH keys for enhanced security.

Support and Documentation:

• Documentation: Extensive guides and tutorials for getting started and advanced usage.
• Support Plans: Various support plans are available to assist with troubleshooting and technical issues.

When to Choose Vultr

• Vultr is well-suited for developers and businesses seeking cost-effective and straightforward cloud solutions.
• It is recognized for its performance, straightforward pricing, and developer-friendly approach.

Check out the free tear provided by Vulter

Demerits

• Advanced Features: For highly complex or enterprise-level features like advanced auto-scaling, you might need to consider AWS, GCP, or Azure.
  
• Limited Free Services: Some features, such as load balancers and premium support, may incur additional costs.
• Smaller Ecosystem: Compared to AWS, GCP, or Azure, Vultr has a smaller ecosystem of integrated services and third-party applications.

7. Hostinger

Hostinger is a web hosting company known for affordability and ease of use. They provide services like Domain, Shared Hosting, VPS, Email, and Cloud Hosting.

But you can check out their VPS of Cloud Hosting, as an alternative to the above cloud hosting platforms, if you don't need advanced features like Auto Scaling, Load Balancer, Server Less Compute, etc.

When to Choose Hostinger

• Need a Cloud or VPS Server
• Simple Pricing, Pay off front, Need not to worry about Monthly Billing
• When you have low to moderate traffic
• Simple admin panel to manage cloud servers
• Automatic weakly or daily backup with all cloud and VPS hosting plans

See the simplified cloud hosting solutions by Hostinger. They give 2 months free with a 30 Days of moneyback policy

Demerits

• You get a discount when pay upfront for 1 year or more, Similar to the reserved instances in AWS.
• In cloud space, they only offer compute servers bundled with storage and networking in one plan like the Lightsail in AWS.

8. Heroku

Heroku gives fully managed cloud services, that can meet your needs without worrying about managing cloud platforms. It supports languages like Node JS, Ruby, Java, PHP, Python, GO, Scala, and Clojure.

When to Choose Heroku

• Want to be simplified and managed cloud services
• Integrates seamlessly with GitHub or GitLab
• Auto Deploy code without worrying about CI/CD

Browse services provided by Heroku

Demerits

• Pricing is higher than unmanaged services like AWS, GCP, or DigitalOcean

9. Netlify

Netlify is a powerful platform for building, deploying, and managing modern web applications with ease. It offers continuous deployment from Git repositories and comes with a range of built-in features for performance and scalability. It supports static site generators, and serverless functions, and has a focus on front-end frameworks like React, Vue, and Angular.

When to Choose Netlify

• Looking for a platform that simplifies deployment with continuous integration and delivery
• Needs seamless integration with GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket
• Requires built-in features like serverless functions, form handling, and global CDN
• Focuses on static sites or Jamstack architectures with fast, scalable deployments

Explore more about Netlify

Demerits

• Limited support for traditional server-side applications compared to full-fledged cloud platforms
• Pricing for advanced features and higher usage tiers can become costly

10. Vercel

Vercel is a platform designed for front-end developers, providing a seamless experience for deploying, hosting, and scaling modern web applications. It excels with static sites and serverless functions, offering automatic scaling, instant deployments, and a global Content Delivery Network (CDN) to deliver fast and reliable performance.

When to Choose Vercel

• Prefer a platform tailored for front-end frameworks like Next.js, React, and Vue.js
• Need automatic deployments from GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket
• Looking for a platform with built-in serverless functions, global CDN, and instant scaling
• Focus on performance and user experience with low latency and high availability

Discover more about Vercel

Demerits

• Primarily optimized for front-end and static site use cases; may not be ideal for traditional server-side applications
• Advanced features and higher usage tiers may involve additional costs