Using a VPS to host your websites provides both control and seamless scalability. However, many people find it difficult to work with command-line systems.

Tasks like configuring web servers, database setups, installing SSL certificates, patching vulnerabilities, and updating software stacks suddenly become challenging.

This is where the best VPS control panels become invaluable.

These tools provide a graphical interface to handle all those critical server tasks, which makes VPS hosting accessible and efficient for everyone from solo developers to growing businesses.

In this guide, we’ll explore some of the market’s most popular server control panels, looking at options for every budget. We’ll dive into what makes a great panel, compare popular choices such as cPanel, Plesk, CyberPanel, and CloudPanel, and ultimately show you why we believe RunCloud is leading the pack.

Let’s get started!

What Makes a “Good” VPS Control Panel?

Before we explore and compare different web panels, let’s first understand what makes a “good” VPS control panel:

  • Easy to Use (Good UI/UX): The panel should be simple to understand and navigate, even if you’re not a server expert. You shouldn’t need to spend ages learning how to do basic tasks.
  • Fast Performance: It should help your websites load quickly by using server resources efficiently, and support modern web technologies like Nginx and the latest PHP versions.
  • Strong Security: A good panel offers easy ways to manage firewalls, install SSL certificates (for HTTPS), and protect against common attacks.
  • Simple App Management: Installing popular applications like WordPress or phpMyAdmin should be easy with just a few clicks.
  • Helpful Server Tools: You need tools to monitor your server’s performance, set up automatic backups, schedule tasks (cron jobs), and manage your databases – all without any hassle.
  • Good Support & Clear Guides: When you run into trouble or have questions, you need to be able to find clear instructions or get help from a reliable support team.
  • Fair Price & Good Value: Whether free or paid, you want to feel like you’re getting good features and benefits for the cost (or your time, if it’s free).

A Quick Look at Popular VPS Control Panels

Let’s see some of the well-known VPS control panels available today for managing servers and deploying web applications.

cPanel

cPanel has been around for a long time (nearly thirty years), and for good reason. It has provided a wide array of tools for managing websites and servers, making it a popular choice, especially for traditional web hosting companies that manage many client accounts. It offers a familiar interface for users who need to handle everything from email accounts to database management.

However, this comprehensive nature comes with a few considerations. cPanel can sometimes use a significant amount of your server’s resources, potentially impacting performance, and its licensing fees can make it a more expensive option compared to some modern alternatives. While it aims to simplify server tasks, the sheer number of features can feel overwhelming for users new to server management or those who prefer a more streamlined approach.

Additionally, if you are using WHM (WebHost Manager), you’ll typically need to handle the initial server setup yourself, and getting the most out of cPanel often requires a certain level of server knowledge.

This contrasts with solutions such as RunCloud, which are designed to simplify server setup from the start and offer a more focused, modern experience, particularly for developers and performance-conscious users.

Plesk

Plesk is well-regarded for its ability to simplify what’s often called “WebOps”. This makes it easier for IT administrators and web professionals to manage their servers and websites.

Plesk works smoothly with various operating systems, including popular Linux versions such as Ubuntu and AlmaLinux, as well as Windows Server. This flexibility makes it an attractive option for those with specific OS needs or managing diverse server environments. It also supports different web servers like Apache and Nginx, giving users choices in setting up their sites.

Plesk provides a user-friendly web interface for managing your web server. From here, you can set up new websites, manage email accounts, and even control how much server power (like CPU and RAM) each site can use.

It also includes security tools to help you defend against common online threats and offers extensions for things like WordPress management and SSL certificate installation.

While Plesk offers a good set of features and is a viable choice for those who need Windows support or a traditional panel experience, it still operates by being installed directly onto your server.

This approach differs from modern SaaS platforms such as RunCloud, which only installs a small agent on your server to manage it. This results in a lighter footprint on your server’s resources and a more streamlined dashboard, which allows you to deploy or delete server instances with only a few clicks.

CyberPanel

CyberPanel is a control panel that has gained attention for its promise of high performance. One of CyberPanel’s biggest draws is its integration with LiteSpeed web server technology, both the open-source OpenLiteSpeed and the commercial LiteSpeed Enterprise. This focus on LiteSpeed, along with features like built-in caching (LSCache for WordPress is a notable one), is central to its claims of making websites run much faster.

It also offers everyday conveniences, including one-click installers for popular applications like WordPress and Joomla, and free SSL certificates. As an open-source project, it has a thriving community, and many users appreciate the support they can get, especially for a free tool.

While having a free trial and offering potential speed benefits with LiteSpeed is very appealing, it’s worth noting that, like other panels you install directly on your server, managing everything effectively might still require some technical know-how.

Although many open-source projects are powerful, they can sometimes have a steeper learning curve for specific advanced configurations or might not always offer the same polished user experience across all features compared to commercially developed SaaS platforms.

CyberPanel can undoubtedly manage your server and websites. However, if you prefer a solution that handles more of the server management heavy-lifting from a separate, streamlined interface, you should consider RunCloud. It supports OpenLiteSpeed servers and native nginx, hybrid nginx (nginx + Apache), and containerized Docker applications.

CloudPanel

CloudPanel is a modern control panel with a clean user interface. It’s designed with developers in mind and offers support for popular technology stacks like PHP, Node.js, and Python. If you’re looking for a lightweight solution that doesn’t try to be everything to everyone, CloudPanel might catch your eye.

It provides essential site management tools such as database management (MySQL/MariaDB), easy Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate integration, cron job scheduling, and a built-in file manager – all presented in a straightforward way.

We picked CloudPanel for this post because it focuses on simplicity and automation. It aims to streamline the process of setting up new sites and deploying applications, and even offers a command-line interface (CLI) for users who want to automate these tasks. The dashboard provides a quick overview of server health, showing important stats including CPU, memory, and disk usage.

CloudPanel is a good option if you are looking for a simple interface to interact with your web server. However, if you want to manage multiple servers across different cloud providers and grant restricted access to your team members, RunCloud offers far more flexibility and management capability.

Hestia Control Panel

HestiaCP is an open-source control panel recommended by users looking for a free, self-managed solution. HestiaCP offers a solid range of features for managing web domains, including support for multiple domains, easy app installations (like WordPress, Joomla, and Laravel), and nginx caching options to help speed up websites.

It allows users to manage their own DNS servers, which can be helpful for those who want more control over their domain name configurations. Additionally, it has built-in mail server capabilities that allow you to host your own email accounts, complete with TLS encryption and support for popular webmail clients like Roundcube. This can be a cost-saver for those who don’t want to pay for a separate business email provider.

While HestiaCP provides a comprehensive set of free tools and is quite configurable, you must install and maintain it directly on your server. This means you’re responsible for server updates and troubleshooting.

Also worth bearing in mind is that if you want an option to create and manage different workspaces from a single dashboard to manage server resources for multiple clients, then HestiaCP might not be right for you.

VestaCP

VestaCP is another great control panel released under open-source licenses. It offers all of its core functionality for free. However, many of its advanced features are available as add-ons or plugins that are sold separately.

You can use VestaCP to manage your domain names and easily set up DNS records. It integrates with Let’s Encrypt to provide free SSL/TLS certificates, essential for secure websites today. It also handles database management, allows you to manage your website files directly, and schedule tasks using cron jobs.

In addition to basic site management, VestaCP includes server administration features. You can manage user accounts with different permission levels, configure backups to protect your data, and monitor your server’s resource usage, such as CPU, memory, and disk space, to monitor performance. It also includes a firewall to help secure your server, with plans for additional security such as a Web Application Firewall (WAF) in future versions.

While VestaCP offers a broad suite of tools at no cost, it’s important to remember that it does not have a dedicated support team. Since it is open-source software, you will not get a dedicated support assistant to look into your problems, and instead, you’ll have to rely on community forums to resolve your issues.

Additionally, you can also expect slow updates and sparse documentation. When a vulnerability is discovered, it might not get patched for days, which makes it a huge security risk if you plan to host a website that needs to follow specific regulations and protect customer data.

RunCloud

RunCloud is the premier choice for modern cloud server management. What sets RunCloud apart is its intelligent architecture.

Unlike traditional control panels that install directly onto your server and consume its precious resources, RunCloud securely connects to and manages your server remotely.

This is a better approach as your server’s power is dedicated solely to your applications, not to running a heavy panel.

Plus, you gain a single, elegant dashboard to oversee all your servers, which is incredibly efficient. This modern design is complemented by an exceptionally user-friendly and sleek interface, which makes complex server tasks feel intuitive, whether you’re a seasoned developer or just starting with a VPS.

In addition, RunCloud is engineered for top-tier performance and robust security. It provides an nginx stack optimized for speed right from the start, supports various advanced caching mechanisms like Redis and Memcached, and allows you to switch PHP versions effortlessly.

RunCloud comes with sensible security features that are enabled out of the box. For example, it contains:

  • A one-click Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate that auto-renews
  • Integrated firewall management
  • Proactive server hardening.

Developers and agencies should pay special attention to features such as Git deployment, atomic (zero-downtime) updates, and dedicated staging environments.

These features make it easier to deploy new WordPress sites with one click, and manage databases, cron jobs, server health, and even team collaboration – all of which are streamlined and efficient.

Key Features of RunCloud:

  • SaaS-Based Architecture: Manages your server remotely, keeping it lean and fast.
  • Optimized Performance: Native nginx, advanced caching (Redis, Memcached), and the latest PHP versions.
  • One-Click WordPress Deployment: RunCloud simplifies deploying new WordPress sites, installs necessary plugins, and configures DNS records – all with a single click.
  • WordPress Staging Environments: Before going live, you can safely test changes on WordPress sites. RunCloud provides free test domains for this purpose, so you don’t need to worry about DNS configuration either.
  • Modern Security: Automated Let’s Encrypt SSL, firewall management (Fail2Ban), server hardening.
  • Server Health Monitoring & Alerts: RunCloud keeps you informed about your server’s resource usage.
  • Reliable Backup Solutions: Automated and on-demand off-server backups.
  • Team Collaboration Features: Manage server and web application access for your team.
  • Developer-Centric Tools: Git deployment, atomic updates, WP-CLI, Composer, Docker support.
  • RunCloud API: For custom automation and integrations.

Why Paying for RunCloud is a Smart Investment for Your Business

While many VPS control panels offer a free tier to get you started, RunCloud can transform your server management and, by extension, your business. RunCloud allows you to manage more servers, access advanced features such as staging environments and backup options, use team collaboration tools, and receive priority support.

But perhaps the real value lies in the immense amount of time you save.

Think about the hours spent on command lines, configuring security, manually updating software, or troubleshooting performance issues. RunCloud automates and simplifies these tasks to an incredible degree.

Instead of being bogged down with server administration, you can focus on developing new products, serving your clients, marketing your services, and innovating. When considering the cost of your time or the potential expense of hiring a dedicated server administrator, a RunCloud subscription is exceptionally good value.

Conclusion: Use RunCloud to Manage your VPS

Choosing the right VPS control panel can feel like a major decision, and as we’ve seen, several capable options exist. While other panels have their merits and serve specific needs, RunCloud truly stands out by offering an exceptional balance of ease of use, raw power, blazing-fast performance, and a suite of genuinely modern features. 

What makes RunCloud particularly compelling is its universal appeal. If you’re a beginner just dipping your toes into the world of VPS hosting, RunCloud’s intuitive user interface and generous free tier make it incredibly welcoming, removing the fear factor from server management. You can get started, deploy your first WordPress site, and learn the ropes all without feeling overwhelmed.

But for seasoned developers, agencies, and businesses, RunCloud scales beautifully. Its developer-centric tools, like Git deployment, staging environments, API, and team features, allow you to efficiently build, deploy, and manage complex applications.

Ultimately, RunCloud simplifies the complexities of server administration so you can focus on what you do best: building amazing things online.

Ready to experience the RunCloud difference firsthand? Sign up for your free account today.

Have questions or need a little guidance getting started?
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