Which control panel to install on your VPS: cPanel, Plesk, Webuzo, HestiaCP or CloudPanel

VPS & Servers·· 17 views· 5 min read

The short answer: it comes down to three questions. Do you need mailboxes on the server itself? Will you have separate accounts for clients? Do you want to pay for a licence? cPanel and Plesk are the most complete, with a paid licence and e-mail; Webuzo also has a licence and e-mail and asks less of the server; HestiaCP is free and comes with e-mail; CloudPanel is free, without e-mail, for PHP, Node.js and Python apps. cPanel and Plesk licences are chosen when you order the server (or, if you already have it, through a support ticket); the Webuzo licence is always requested through a support ticket. For any licence bought from us, first-line help is ours, through a support ticket, and we escalate to the vendor.

The five side by side

Panel Who it is for Systems you can choose with us Licence E-mail
cPanel and WHM Anyone running many separate accounts or reselling hosting: WHM creates the accounts, each customer logs in to their own cPanel. AlmaLinux 8 or 9, CloudLinux 8. Ubuntu only 24.04, through a support ticket. It no longer installs on Rocky Linux. Paid: Solo Cloud (1 account), Admin Cloud (5), Pro Cloud (30) or Premier Cloud (100) Included
Plesk Anyone running sites for several clients who prefers Plesk. It also exists for Windows Server. AlmaLinux 8 or 9, Rocky Linux 8, Debian 12, Ubuntu 22.04. Not advised: Ubuntu 20.04, Debian 10 and 11, CentOS 7. Paid: Web Admin, Web Pro or Web Host Included
Webuzo Anyone who wants a full panel that asks less of the server, with one panel for the administrator and another for the user. AlmaLinux 8 or 9, Rocky Linux 8, CloudLinux 8, Ubuntu 20.04 or 22.04. No Debian. Paid: requested through a support ticket Included
HestiaCP Anyone who wants sites and mailboxes on the same server without paying for a licence. Debian 12 or Ubuntu 22.04. Ubuntu 24.04 and Debian 13 through a support ticket. Free (open source) Included
CloudPanel Anyone who only needs PHP, Node.js or Python sites and apps, and keeps e-mail with another service. Ubuntu 22.04 or Debian 12. Ubuntu 24.04 and Debian 13 through a support ticket. Free Not included

The minimum each one needs, and where it opens

Panel Minimum memory and disk Panel address
cPanel and WHM 2 GB and 20 GB https://server-IP:2087 (WHM; cPanel on 2083)
Plesk 1 GB (plus 1 GB of swap) and 20 GB https://server-IP:8443
Webuzo 1 GB and 5 GB https://server-IP:2005 (administrator; 2003 for the user)
HestiaCP 1 GB and 10 GB https://server-IP:8083
CloudPanel 2 GB and 10 GB https://server-IP:8443

All of them fit on a VPS1 or a Cloud1 (2 GB of memory). These are the minimums for the panel to start: sites, databases and e-mail need more on top.

Deciding in four steps

1 Do you need e-mail on the server? If so, CloudPanel is out. If your e-mail is already with another service, any of them will do.
2 Will you create accounts for clients, each with their own login? cPanel with WHM and Plesk are built for that, and Webuzo also separates administrator and user.
3 No licence? Choose HestiaCP (with e-mail) or CloudPanel (without e-mail).
4 Choose the right system when you order, from the table, and follow the panel's article: cPanel and WHM, Plesk, Webuzo, HestiaCP or CloudPanel.
One panel per server, on a freshly installed system. All five need a clean system: do not install a panel on top of another, or on a server that already has sites. If yours runs another system or has been used, ask for a clean reinstall in a support ticket, and save what is on it first. We do not recommend aaPanel or CyberPanel: both have had serious security flaws, used in mass attacks on servers. And CentOS 7 no longer gets security updates: even where a panel still accepts it, do not choose it for a new server.
Do you really need a panel? For a single app, a server without a panel uses less memory and has fewer open ports: a VPS without a panel. Our VPS servers are unmanaged, so installing and updating the panel is your job; what that means, and what changes on a managed server, is in managed or unmanaged VPS.

Not sure which panel or system to choose for what you will run on the server? Tell us and we will answer before you order.

Open a support ticket

SEE ALSO

Choosing a control panel for your VPS: what to decide before you install one

cPanel, DirectAdmin or Plesk: what actually differs between control panels

Managed or unmanaged VPS: which to choose and who does what

Running a VPS without a control panel: what the panel did and how you do it by hand

First steps with your VPS

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