# Craft Cloud alternative for Craft CMS hosting Source: https://www.fortrabbit.com/alternatives/craft-cloud Created: 2026-06-12 Reviewed: 2026-06-12 ## Why pick fortrabbit as an independent Craft Cloud alternative? **fortrabbit is the independent Craft Cloud alternative.** [Craft Cloud](https://craftcms.com/cloud) is the official hosting platform by Pixel & Tonic, the makers of Craft CMS — launched in 2024, serverless, with the Craft license bundled into the plan. Buying CMS and hosting from the same vendor is convenient, but it concentrates everything in one place: one roadmap, one pricing model, one company your site depends on. fortrabbit has hosted Craft CMS since the early days of the CMS — long before Craft Cloud existed. You get classic PHP hosting with full SSH and SFTP access, git-push deployments with Composer builds, and a free Craft plugin that automates setup checks, database syncs, and deploys. Apps run in EU (Dublin) or US (North Virginia) data centers. Pricing is per component and billed in arrears — a small Craft site starts around €5 a month, and the trial doesn't require a credit card. ::ContentButton{property="dashboard" text="Start a free trial — no credit card" route="/signup"} ## How does fortrabbit compare to Craft Cloud? | Feature | Craft Cloud | fortrabbit | | ----------------- | --------------------------------- | ----------------------------------- | | Made by | Pixel & Tonic, the Craft makers | Independent, bootstrapped | | Runs | Craft CMS only | Any PHP, Craft CMS included | | Architecture | Serverless, read-only filesystem | Classic hosting, persistent storage | | SSH / SFTP | No | Full SSH + SFTP | | Deployment | Push-to-deploy | git push, atomic | | Craft license | Included in plan | Bring your own | | Regions | US, CA, EU, UK, SE, APAC | EU (Dublin), US (N. Virginia) | | Pricing model | $120–$240 / mo plans, per project | Per component, billed in arrears | | CDN | Global CDN included | Via Cloudflare or similar | | Trial | Free trial | 7-day trial, no card | | Support | E-mail + community | Human chat, all plans | Craft Cloud's serverless design is a real architectural choice with benefits — auto-scaling, CDN image transforms, zero-config queues. It also means workflows built on direct server access don't translate: no SSH session, no rsync, no running `craft` commands straight on the host. fortrabbit keeps the classic model with modern tooling on top. ## Pricing comparison | Use case | Craft Cloud | fortrabbit | | ----------------------------- | ------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------- | | Small site (Craft Solo) | **$120 / mo** — Team is the entry plan | **€5 / mo** | | Production site | **$120 / mo**, Team license included | **€30 / mo** + Craft license | | Larger project, more environments | **$240 / mo** (Pro) | **€60–€120 / mo** + Craft license | Craft Cloud bundles the license; on fortrabbit it's a separate purchase from Pixel & Tonic — Craft Solo is free, Team is $279 and Pro $399 one-time, plus $99 a year for updates after the first year. Even with a self-bought license, a production Craft site on fortrabbit lands at roughly half of Craft Cloud's Team plan or less. See :ContentLink{href="/pricing" text="fortrabbit pricing"} for the current matrix. ## Migrating from Craft Cloud to fortrabbit 1. **Provision the app on fortrabbit.** Pick a region — EU (Dublin) or US (North Virginia) — and a plan. The trial is enough to validate the move. 2. **Add the MySQL component.** Export the database from Craft Cloud, import via fortrabbit's SSH tunnel — see :ContentLink{href="/guides/general/mysql-import" text="MySQL import guide" prefix="docs"}. 3. **Move assets to persistent storage.** Point the Craft filesystem at a local volume instead of Craft Cloud's CDN storage and rsync the files in via SFTP / SSH. 4. **Remove the Craft Cloud extension.** Take it out of `composer.json` and drop the Cloud-specific config. 5. **Connect your git provider.** Install the fortrabbit GitHub App (or connect GitLab / Bitbucket) and link the repo — see :ContentLink{href="/platform/deployment/intro" text="deployment intro" prefix="docs"}. Pushes trigger an automatic deploy; Composer runs as part of the build. The :ContentLink{href="/guides/craft-cms" text="Craft guides" prefix="docs"} cover the details. 6. **Move environment variables and set up the queue.** Craft Cloud env vars map 1:1 to fortrabbit env vars; add a cron job for Craft's queue runner. 7. **Bring a Craft license.** Craft Cloud plans include one; self-hosted sites need their own Team or Pro license from Pixel & Tonic — Solo is free. 8. **Cut over DNS.** Add the domain in the fortrabbit dashboard, update the CNAME, and watch the certificate issue automatically via Let's Encrypt. ## Why teams switch - **Full access.** SSH, SFTP, console commands on the host, database tunnels — no abstraction layer in between. - **Smaller, fairer bills.** Pay per component, in arrears, only for what the site actually needs — no bundled license for sites that don't need one. - **Human support.** You chat with the engineers who run the platform, on every plan. - **Separation of concerns.** CMS vendor and hosting vendor stay independent — if one changes pricing or direction, the other is unaffected. For background on Craft Cloud itself, see our :ContentLink{href="/hosting-guide/providers/vanity-hosting/craft-cloud" text="hosting guide entry"}. If you're earlier in the decision and still comparing categories, read :ContentLink{href="/how-to-choose-the-right-hosting-for-your-php-project" text="how to choose the right hosting for your PHP project"}. ::ContentButton{property="dashboard" text="Start a free trial — no credit card" route="/signup"} ::ContentButton{property="www" text="See pricing" route="/pricing" variant="secondary"} ## FAQ ### Is fortrabbit cheaper than Craft Cloud? **For most sites** — Craft Cloud starts at $120 a month per project — the Craft Team license is bundled in, whether the site needs it or not. On fortrabbit, a small Craft site with a MySQL component starts around €5 a month, a production site around €30, and the Craft license is a separate purchase from Pixel & Tonic (Craft Solo is free). Billing is in arrears: use first, pay at the end of the month, cancel any time. ### Does fortrabbit offer SSH and SFTP for Craft CMS? **Yes** — Full SSH and SFTP access on every plan. Run Craft console commands directly on the host, tunnel into the database, rsync files, read logs. Craft Cloud's serverless architecture has a read-only filesystem and no SSH or SFTP; everything goes through their console and deploy pipeline. ### Do I need my own Craft license on fortrabbit? **Yes** — Craft Cloud bundles the license into its plans; on fortrabbit you bring your own. Craft Solo is free, Craft Team is $279 and Craft Pro $399 one-time, each with $99 a year for updates after the first year — billed by Pixel & Tonic, not by us. Two vendors, two bills, but also two independent decisions. ### How well does fortrabbit run Craft CMS compared to Craft Cloud? **Very well** — fortrabbit has hosted Craft CMS since the early days of the CMS, long before Craft Cloud launched in 2024. Deploys run via git push with Composer in the build, a free Craft plugin automates setup checks, database syncs, and deploys, and assets live in persistent storage. Craft Cloud is more deeply integrated — CDN image transforms, zero-config queues — at the price of a serverless architecture without direct server access. ### Can a Craft site be moved from Craft Cloud without a migration service? **Yes** — Migration is self-service for developers, with docs and personal support along the way, but there is no done-for-you migration service. Export the database, import it via the SSH tunnel, point the Craft filesystem at persistent storage, and connect the git repo for push-to-deploy. --- - [About Craft Cloud](/hosting-guide/providers/vanity-hosting/craft-cloud) - [Craft CMS hosting](/software/craft-cms) - [All alternatives](/alternatives)