Managed WordPress hosting services for UK businesses

What does managed WordPress hosting mean?

With ordinary web hosting you rent space on a server and look after most of what runs on it: the web server settings, PHP version, caching, security hardening, backups and moving your site in. Fully managed WordPress hosting hands that work to the host, which builds and tunes its platform for WordPress. You will also see it called WordPress managed hosting; the meaning is the same.

The hosts describe it in similar terms:

• WP Engine calls it a service where "your hosting provider takes care of the technical side of running WordPress", naming server performance, security, updates and support
• Krystal says it handles "WordPress updates, backups, caching and platform-level security, while you keep control of your website, content, plugins and themes"
• Cloudways describes its product as "managed cloud hosting for WordPress on the provider you choose", with staging, backups and caching ready from the start

The common thread is that the host runs the platform and you run the website. Where hosts differ is in the detail: which updates they apply, what comes with each plan, and what their support covers. If you are new to the terms, our explainer on web hosting and WordPress hosting covers the basics.

What does a managed host look after?

A managed WordPress host typically takes on the work below. Check each host's plans page for exactly what is included at each level:

• The server stack: web server, database and PHP versions, kept up to date
• Caching: at server level and often at the edge, so you do not need to set up caching plugins
• A CDN: copies of your pages and files served from locations near each visitor
• Security: a firewall, DDoS protection, SSL certificates and, at some hosts, vulnerability protection and malware help
• Backups: automatic backups with straightforward restores
• Staging: a private copy of the site you can test changes on and push to live
• Migration: help moving your existing site in, by the host's team or with a plugin
• Support: people who understand WordPress as well as servers

Some managed hosts go further and update WordPress, plugins and themes for you. Krystal lists automatic updates on its managed plans, WP Engine includes automated WordPress and PHP updates on every plan with plugin and theme updates as an add-on on Essential, and Cloudways offers managed updates through its Site Manager add-on. More on that below.

How each host describes its managed hosting

Each host packages managed hosting differently. This table uses each host's own wording:

The models suit different people. A WordPress platform such as Krystal's Onyx or WP Engine packages features by plan, so you choose by size. Cloudways gives you a server you size and scale yourself, with Cloudways managing the software on it. Our WordPress hosting plans guide explains how to read the plan limits.

Caching, CDN and performance tools

Managed hosts handle caching at server level rather than leaving you to configure plugins. Here is what each says it provides:

• Cloudways: Varnish, Memcached and Redis built in, its Breeze cache plugin pre-installed, and Object Cache Pro on servers of 4GB and above. Cloudflare Enterprise, with edge page caching, is an add-on on its Flexible plans
• Krystal: LiteSpeed Cache pre-installed and configured, Redis on premium plans, and a CDN on Business plans and above. Krystal's help centre advises against adding further caching plugins, and its platform shows live requests, error logs and resource use
• WP Engine: its EverCache technology and a global CDN powered by Cloudflare, with application performance monitoring available as an add-on on Business and Enterprise

If you are moving an existing site, check what happens to your current caching plugin before you move, because a managed host's own caching usually replaces it. Our guide to fast WordPress hosting covers speed in more depth.

Security, backups and staging

Security, backups and staging are where managed hosting takes the most work off your hands. What each host lists:

Krystal says its team can step in when malware needs investigating or removing. Cloudways sells automated malware removal as an add-on.

For more, read our guides to secure WordPress hosting and WordPress hosting with staging.

Support: channels and scope

Support is part of what you pay for with managed hosting, so check both how you reach it and what it covers:

Support at a managed host covers the hosting and the WordPress platform, not everything on your site. Changes to your site's design, content, SEO and custom code usually sit with you or your developer. Cloudways, for example, sells an Advance Support add-on that extends its support to plugin and theme troubleshooting and performance work. Each host publishes its own scope, so read it before you move.

What stays your responsibility

Managed hosting looks after the platform your website runs on. The website itself, and what you put on it, stays with you:

• Content and design: your pages, posts, images and the look of the site
• Plugins and themes: choosing them, and keeping them updated unless your host's managed updates do it. Krystal lists automatic updates on its managed plans; WP Engine includes AI-powered plugin and theme updates on Business and Enterprise and as an add-on on Essential; Cloudways Site Manager is an add-on
• Custom code: bespoke themes, plugins and integrations, usually looked after by your developer or agency
• SEO and marketing: rankings, analytics and campaigns
• Domain, DNS and email: your domain registration, DNS records and email service. Krystal offers Onyx mailboxes as a paid add-on, and Cloudways lists Rackspace Email as an add-on

Your developer or agency looks after the website, and the host looks after the hosting. Agree early who owns the domain, DNS and email, because those sit between the two.

Managed hosting compared with running it yourself

Instead of managed WordPress hosting, you can run WordPress on a self-managed virtual server or your own hardware. That gives you full control, and it also means you, your developer or your own technical staff do the work below:

Self-managed hosting suits teams that want to control every setting and have the time and skills to do so. For most businesses whose website matters but who would rather not run a server, managed hosting is the simpler choice. Our guides to shared vs VPS WordPress hosting and self-hosted WordPress explain the other routes.

Choosing a managed WordPress host

With three capable hosts to choose from, the decision usually comes down to fit. Work through these questions with each host's plans page open:

1. Where will the site be hosted? For UK visitors, check the host lists a UK data centre on the plan you want.
2. Platform or server? Decide whether you want a WordPress platform packaged by plan, or a managed cloud server you size yourself.
3. What is included at your plan level? Staging, on-demand backups, CDN and managed updates differ between plans at some hosts.
4. How long are backups kept? Hosts state their own retention periods, and some vary them by plan, so check the figure for yours.
5. How will you reach support? Chat, phone or tickets, and at what hours on your plan.
6. Who moves your site? The host's team, a plugin, or you.
7. What about email? Check whether email is included, an add-on, or something you keep elsewhere.

Our WordPress hosting comparison sets the three hosts side by side, and WordPress hosting for small business looks at the same questions from a smaller firm's point of view.