Cloudways operates on a postpaid model, with server usage and add-on charges billed around the 5th–6th of the following month. Since April 15 (April 16 Korea time), Cloudways updated its system to bill on the 1st of the following month and to support multiple payment methods (credit card, PayPal, and more). Notably, recurring PayPal payments are now possible, so if you have a PayPal account you can set it as your default payment method.
Cloudways Payment System Update
In Korea as well, Cloudways, widely used for running WordPress sites including monetized blogs, has revamped its payment system to improve usability and streamline payment management.
Previously, payment-related features such as Real-Time Billing, Payment & Address, Invoices, Funds, etc., were spread across multiple sections under My Account, making it tedious to locate information. The overhaul consolidates all these functions into a single Billing section for easier, centralized payment management.
Additionally, the invoice issuance date has been moved from the 4th–5th of each month to the 1st, creating a more predictable billing cycle, and new support for multiple card registrations and PayPal recurring payments has been added to broaden available payment methods.
Here are the main updates:
- Consolidation of Real-Time Billing, Payment & Address, Invoices, Funds into a single Billing section
- Invoice issuance date changed from the 4th–5th to the 1st
- Added multiple credit card registrations and PayPal recurring payments
- New Billing Alerts to notify you when usage exceeds a specified amount
- From May 2026, CSV invoice download support
- Separated management of Credits and Funds on its own page for easier use
Registering Multiple Payment Methods to Prevent Site Downtime from Payment Failures
Cloudways, being a postpaid service, bills the charges for the previous month’s server usage and add-ons (e.g., Elastic Emails addon) to the credit card you registered around the 5th–6th of the following month. However, for various reasons (such as exceeding credit card limits), payments can fail.
In such cases, you’ll receive two warning emails. If you don’t act on the warnings, your server may be suspended or deleted after a period. Based on user experiences and Cloudways documentation, the process generally unfolds as follows:
- Consolidation of billing-related pages (Real-Time Billing, Payment & Address, Invoices, and Funds) into a single Billing section
- Invoice issuance date changed from the previous 4th–5th of each month to the 1st
- Support for multiple credit card registration and PayPal recurring payments added
- New Billing Alerts feature to receive notifications when monthly usage exceeds a specified amount
- Invoice CSV download support coming from May 2026
- Credits and directly topped-up Funds separated into a dedicated page for improved management convenience
Cloudways allows server recovery within 14 days of deletion. If you settle the overdue charges within this window, the server can be restored. However, restoring after deletion requires updating the domain’s IP address in DNS settings, which can be quite cumbersome.
Some users occasionally face deleted servers because they missed overdue notices due to other commitments. While resolving the balance in time can restore service, delays may render restoration impossible.
To avoid such troubles, you could previously pre-load a balance using the Funds feature. I personally keep at least two months of charges prepaid via PayPal. 😄
With the payment system overhaul, Cloudways has added multiple payment options to prevent payment failures due to overdue charges.
- An email notification is sent if payment fails on the billing date. (1st notification)
- If the account remains unpaid after a follow-up notification (2nd notification), server access may be restricted or the server may be suspended/stopped. Based on user experience, suspension typically occurs within 48 hours to a few days after the warning.
- Continued non-payment may result in server deletion. While the exact number of days is not specified in official documentation, based on user experience, deletion occurs approximately 2–7 days after suspension or following a final notice. Backups may also be removed upon deletion, but recovery may be possible upon settlement of the outstanding balance.
If you have a PayPal account with a balance, adding PayPal as a payment method can be advantageous. PayPal is popular for international transfers, but within Korea domestic transfers between users are restricted by government regulations, so PayPal isn’t widely used domestically.
Withdrawing funds from PayPal to a local bank account typically results in exchange rate losses. For context, the effective rate is often around 50 KRW worse per unit than the mid-market rate. If you receive payments through PayPal, you'll generally get more value by using those funds for international purchases rather than converting them to your local currency for domestic spending.
How to Add More Payment Methods
If you already have a credit/debit card on file, you can add another card or add PayPal. Adding PayPal triggers a $5 Pre Payment. The next payment will deduct from the Pre Payment amount, and any shortfall will be charged to PayPal.
1 In your Cloudways account, click your profile name at the top right and select My Account from the dropdown, or click the Billing item.
My Account page shows a dropdown menu; click Billing.
When the revamped billing system overview appears, click Explore Now.
2 Billing page appears. Now you can manage all payment-related matters from this page.
Note that amounts previously charged via the Funds menu are now shown as Pre Payments.
To add more payment methods, click the Settings tab.
👉If you see an "An unexpected error occurred" popup and can’t access the page, try another browser (for example, if you use Chrome, try Edge). Sometimes browser extensions cause the error.
3 Scroll down to see the Payment Method section, which lists the payment methods currently added.
In the Billing Alerts section you can set up email alerts when charges reach a certain amount. While account or server hacks causing huge bills have been reported for services like AWS, enabling two-factor authentication and Billing Alerts with Cloudways can help prevent such incidents.
To add a payment method, click the Add Payment Method button on the right of Payment Method.
4 You can add credit cards and PayPal.
When you add PayPal, a $5 charge is placed as a Pre Payment for verification.
Choosing PayPal lets you enter your name, country, and address to register PayPal as a payment method. When PayPal is set, your balance is used first; if it runs short, the remaining amount is charged to the PayPal-linked card.
5 After adding PayPal, PayPal becomes the primary payment method, while previously added credit cards appear as backup payment methods.
When PayPal is added, the $5 charge is applied and added to Pre Payment.
Billing History lets you view your history.
Make a Payment
Previously you could top up charges via the Funds tab. With the redesigned Billing system, the Funds menu is removed; instead you can click the Make a Payment button on the Billing screen to add a specified amount.
Preloading a set amount helps prevent server downtime or deletion caused by payment failures.
Enter the prepaid amount and choose a payment method from the Payment Method section.
Especially if you have a PayPal account, preloading in this way is convenient.
👉 By signing up for Cloudways through this link, you can enjoy a small discount. No credit card is required at sign-up, and you'll get 3 days of free access to explore the platform. During the trial period, you can decide whether you'd like to continue using the service. Once the 3-day trial expires, your server will be deleted — however, recovery is possible within 14 days of deletion.
