Cloudways already gives you access to fast cloud infrastructure, but adding Cloudflare on top can take things further, reducing load times, protecting against attacks, and serving cached content from a location close to each visitor.
So should you use Cloudflare with Cloudways? Yes, and here is what you need to know before you set it up.
What is Cloudflare?
Cloudflare is one of the world’s largest internet networks, used by millions of websites and applications to improve performance and security. As of 2025, Cloudflare processes more than 60 million HTTP requests every second and operates in over 330 cities across more than 100 countries.
It works as a reverse proxy. When a visitor requests your website, the request passes through the nearest Cloudflare data centre first. Cloudflare serves cached content from that location, reducing the distance data has to travel and cutting load times. If your server is under heavy demand, Cloudflare absorbs a large portion of that load before it even reaches Cloudways.
Research has consistently shown that for every second of additional load time, websites lose around 7% of traffic and revenue, making any meaningful speed improvement worth having.
Does Cloudflare Work With Cloudways?
Yes, Cloudflare works with Cloudways without any conflict. You can point your domain’s DNS to Cloudflare, leave your Cloudways server as the origin, and Cloudflare will proxy all traffic through its network. The full setup process is covered in our guide to using Cloudflare with Cloudways.
Cloudways Built-in Cloudflare CDN
Cloudways also offers a native Cloudflare Enterprise CDN add-on directly from the Cloudways dashboard. This gives you access to Cloudflare’s enterprise-tier features, including Argo Smart Routing and HTTP/3, without needing to configure Cloudflare as a separate account. It is available as a paid add-on and is billed alongside your server costs.
If you want the full Cloudflare free plan, you can set it up independently through your own Cloudflare account. If you want enterprise features without the management overhead, the built-in add-on is the simpler option.
Cloudflare vs Cloudways CDN: Which Should You Use?
Cloudways offers its own built-in CDN (powered by Cloudflare’s network at the enterprise tier). If you are comparing a standalone Cloudflare free account against the Cloudways CDN add-on, here is how the two options differ:
- Cloudways CDN add-on: Integrated with your server dashboard, no separate account needed, billed per GB of bandwidth delivered. Covers static asset delivery from a global edge network. No free tier.
- Cloudflare free plan: Requires a separate Cloudflare account and a DNS change. Takes 15-30 minutes to set up. Includes static asset caching, DDoS protection, a Web Application Firewall, free SSL, and firewall rules. No bandwidth charges on the free tier.
- Cloudways Cloudflare Enterprise add-on: Gives you Cloudflare’s enterprise network integrated directly into the Cloudways dashboard, including Argo Smart Routing and image resizing. Suitable for high-traffic sites where every millisecond of latency matters.
For most WordPress sites on Cloudways, the Cloudflare free plan is the practical first choice. You get a global CDN, DDoS mitigation, and SSL without extra charges. The Cloudways CDN add-on is a reasonable alternative if you prefer one billing relationship, but it lacks Cloudflare’s firewall and security layer.
What are the Advantages of Using Cloudflare with Cloudways?
There are several clear advantages to adding Cloudflare to a Cloudways site.
Faster Load Times
Cloudflare caches your static assets, images, CSS, JavaScript, at the data centre nearest to each visitor. This reduces the load on your Cloudways server and shortens the response time your visitors experience.
DDoS Protection
Cloudflare automatically filters malicious traffic and absorbs volumetric attacks before they reach your server. The free plan includes basic DDoS mitigation; paid plans add more sophisticated protection layers.
Free SSL Certificate
Cloudflare provides a free SSL certificate for your domain through its Universal SSL feature. This means even if your Cloudways server runs HTTP internally, visitors always connect to your site over HTTPS.
Improved Redundancy
If there is a short-lived issue with your Cloudways server, Cloudflare can continue serving cached pages to visitors rather than showing them an error.
Recommended Cloudflare Settings for Cloudways WordPress Sites
Once you have pointed your domain to Cloudflare, a few settings are worth adjusting to avoid common conflicts with WordPress on Cloudways.
SSL/TLS Mode: Set to Full (Strict)
In the Cloudflare SSL/TLS tab, set the mode to “Full (Strict).” The “Flexible” option causes redirect loops on sites that already have an active SSL certificate on the Cloudways origin server. Full (Strict) tells Cloudflare to encrypt traffic all the way to your origin and to verify the certificate is valid, which is the correct configuration for a Cloudways site with Let’s Encrypt installed.
Caching Level: Leave at Standard
Leave caching at “Standard” for most WordPress sites. Aggressive caching can serve stale admin-bar pages to logged-in users, which leads to confusing behaviour in the dashboard. Standard caching still delivers strong performance for anonymous visitors while keeping the WordPress admin functional.
Rocket Loader: Disable on WordPress
Rocket Loader defers JavaScript loading to speed up perceived page rendering, but it conflicts with WooCommerce, Elementor, and many other WordPress plugins. Disable it in the Cloudflare Speed settings. If you later find specific JavaScript issues on your site, Rocket Loader is often the cause worth checking first.
Always Use HTTPS: Enable
Enable “Always Use HTTPS” under Edge Certificates in the Cloudflare SSL/TLS tab. This redirects all HTTP requests to HTTPS at the Cloudflare edge, before they reach your Cloudways server. It is a cleaner approach than relying solely on a WordPress redirect plugin or an .htaccess rule.
Auto Minify: Enable with Caution
Cloudflare can minify HTML, CSS, and JavaScript at the edge. Enable this only if your WordPress caching plugin is not already minifying those files. Running both at the same time can produce garbled output or break scripts. If you already have minification active in your caching plugin, leave Cloudflare’s Auto Minify off entirely.
Cloudflare Free vs Paid: Which Do You Need?
For most Cloudways users, Cloudflare’s free plan is enough to see a meaningful improvement. It includes the CDN, basic DDoS protection, free SSL, and the firewall rules you need to block common threats.
Paid plans add features like image optimisation, advanced bot management, load balancing, and priority support. These are worth considering if you run a high-traffic e-commerce site or if security is a major concern. For most small to medium WordPress sites on Cloudways, the free tier covers the important bases.
Common Issues When Using Cloudflare with Cloudways
The combination of Cloudflare and Cloudways works well once it is set up correctly, but there are a handful of issues that come up regularly. Here is what causes them and how to fix each one.
Redirect Loops After Enabling Cloudflare
The most common issue new Cloudflare users run into on Cloudways is an infinite redirect loop. The site keeps bouncing between HTTP and HTTPS until the browser gives up and shows an error. The cause is almost always the “Flexible” SSL mode in Cloudflare. With Flexible mode, Cloudflare connects to your origin over HTTP even though your Cloudways server already has an SSL certificate and forces HTTPS. The two systems end up redirecting each other indefinitely.
The fix is simple: go to the SSL/TLS tab in Cloudflare and switch the mode to “Full (Strict).” This tells Cloudflare to connect to your origin over HTTPS and to validate the certificate. Once you make that change, the redirect loop stops immediately. If the loop persists after switching to Full (Strict), also check that you do not have a conflicting redirect rule in your .htaccess file or WordPress settings.
Mixed Content Warnings After Switching
After enabling Cloudflare and switching your site to HTTPS, you may notice browser warnings about insecure content. This happens when images, scripts, or stylesheets are still referenced in your database with “http://” URLs rather than “https://” ones. The page loads over HTTPS but tries to pull in resources over HTTP, which modern browsers flag as a security risk.
There are two ways to fix this. The first is to run a Search and Replace tool such as the Better Search Replace plugin or WP-CLI to update all “http://yourdomain.com” references in your database to “https://yourdomain.com”. The second option is to enable Cloudflare’s “Automatic HTTPS Rewrites” setting, found under SSL/TLS in the Cloudflare dashboard. This rewrites insecure resource URLs on the fly at the edge without touching your database, which is useful as a stopgap while you plan a proper database update.
Admin Bar Showing Stale Content
WordPress logged-in users sometimes see an outdated admin bar, missing notifications, or stale user menus after Cloudflare is enabled. This happens when Cloudflare serves a cached version of the page that includes an admin bar from a previous session.
The most reliable fix is to keep Cloudflare’s caching level at Standard rather than switching to Aggressive or Cache Everything. Standard caching respects cookies and serves dynamic content fresh to logged-in users. You can also create a Cloudflare Cache Rule that bypasses the cache entirely for any request with a WordPress login cookie (cookie names start with “wordpress_logged_in”). This ensures the admin bar is always served live from your Cloudways server, while static pages for anonymous visitors continue to benefit from edge caching.
SSL Certificate Provisioning Fails After a DNS Change
When you move your domain’s DNS to Cloudflare and enable the proxy (the orange cloud icon in Cloudflare’s DNS settings), Cloudflare starts handling all traffic to your domain. If you then try to renew or provision a new SSL certificate on Cloudways, the Let’s Encrypt verification can fail. Let’s Encrypt needs to reach your origin server directly to confirm domain ownership, but Cloudflare’s proxy intercepts the request before it arrives.
The fix is straightforward. In Cloudflare’s DNS tab, temporarily set your domain’s A record to “DNS only” by clicking the orange cloud icon so it turns grey. This disables the proxy for that record and lets traffic reach your Cloudways server directly. Trigger the SSL certificate renewal on Cloudways, wait for it to complete, then switch the DNS record back to “Proxied” in Cloudflare. The whole process takes only a few minutes.
Final Word: Should I Use Cloudflare with Cloudways?
Cloudflare is a straightforward addition to any Cloudways site. The free plan costs nothing, takes under an hour to set up, and immediately adds CDN caching, DDoS protection, and SSL. If you are running a live WordPress or e-commerce site on Cloudways, there is no good reason not to use it. When you are ready to connect the two services, the Cloudflare with Cloudways setup guide covers the full walkthrough including SSL mode configuration. For the full WordPress performance stack on Cloudways, including Varnish, Redis, OPcache, and Breeze alongside Cloudflare, see the guide on how to make Cloudways faster for WordPress.
