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    • 44195
    • 293 Posts
    Hi,

    I currently host on a Linode VPS where I have to manage everything and obviously tempted by the MODX Cloud service, plus I want to support them. The pricing is quite confusing though (and seemingly expensive), so hoping for some clarification.

    https://modxcloud.com/#pricing

    Looking at the "Pro" plan, am I correct in thinking that if I have 5 sites it is going to cost me US$50 per month? and if I have 25 sites it will cost me US$300 per month? (without SSL of course).

    Also, why the limit of 25? I would think it would be a better pricing structure to base the price on space rather than how many domain names are pointed at the server. What's the reasoning for this?

    Cheers in advance!
      I'm lead developer at Digital Penguin Creative Studio in Hong Kong. https://www.digitalpenguin.hk
      Check out the MODX tutorial series on my blog at https://www.hkwebdeveloper.com
      • 44195
      • 293 Posts
      I just found more information at https://modxcloud.com/userguide/using-modx-cloud/clouds/manage-domains.html
      which seems to suggest that you pay an extra $10 per month on top of the $25 base price and can use 25 domains as opposed to $10 per domain.

      So this would mean the monthly price is $35 as opposed to $300. BIG difference haha

      This makes more sense and is far more reasonable. What say you MODX clouders? smiley
        I'm lead developer at Digital Penguin Creative Studio in Hong Kong. https://www.digitalpenguin.hk
        Check out the MODX tutorial series on my blog at https://www.hkwebdeveloper.com
        • 3647
        • 177 Posts
        Actually, I'm not even sure that doesn't make it worse...

        It looks to me as if that example is adding a custom domain to a specific cloud, so really it is just a alias, you couldn't add multiple domains showing multiple sites that way.

        So, it now looks as if you have to pay extra to have a proper domain on the sites you are paying for.

        I am sure something doesn't make sense here, somelse will hopefully explain my mistake. I have a development account but have never paid for a production account because it is just seemed too expensive - seems I was right.

        On my Development account if I try and add a production cloud it says the price is $24 a month - so $288 dollars a year for one site.
        • Hi and thanks for asking for clarification here. smiley

          The new plans allow for as many dev sites as you can fit in your allotted space at each level. Effectively, this is unlimited. Some users use MODX Cloud to build more sites than they host in Cloud. This is even easier now that you can download Snapshots and Backups right from the Dashboard without opening a support ticket. The basic plans covers the local and offsite storage of automatic nightly Backups and any Snapshots or additional manual backups you make.

          To launch a site live when you're ready, you'd purchase a custom URL. Why do we charge extra for live sites? Because they typically see more traffic than development ones, and consume more resources. The basic custom URL purchase allows you up to assign up to 5 URLs to a single MODX instance, for things like .com and .net versions of a URL, or common domain misspellings. The larger 25-URL option was made available at customer requests to handle sites with lots of URLs assigned to them; they're not very uncommon. "Domain packs" are not shareable across individual MODX Cloud instances.

          MODX Cloud isn't aiming to be in the same category as a self-managed VPS or most control panel hosts that have to support pretty much anything under the sun. It is tailored to MODX site builders, and has a few things that are not entirely common except for other specialized hosting platforms like Pantheon (for WP and Drupal … $25-$100 per individual site) or WPEngine (for WP … starting at $29/month for one site). Both of these examples limit the number of Page Views you can serve per month, starting at just 10K. We don't limit page views in MODX Cloud.

          We strive to make MODX Cloud a good choice for people who prefer to just build vs manage infrastructure. For example, we recently rolled out free SSL testing for sites on the internal Cloud URLs—you get to test under SSL without having to buy a certificate ahead of time for when you develop. Some cPanel and other Cloud hosts don't even let you have SSH access, and its also hard to get things like Compass/Sass running for front end workflows. MODX Cloud supports SSH logins/SFTP and Compass/Sass if you were curious. We also strive to point people in the right direction when they have MODX-specific implementation questions in support tickets.

          MODX Cloud lets people that are either not technical—or just simply tired of putting on a DevOps hat—do things that normally take time. You don't have to worry about security updates for the core stack, and updating MODX itself—after taking a manual backup of course through the dashboard with a few clicks—is another few mouse clicks away. You can find some hosts that will also do this for you for MODX sites, too, but the vast majority don't target their offering to the unique needs of MODX site builders.

          If you choose to host in MODX Cloud, the Basic plan is the most affordable until you hit 3 sites, where the Pro plan starts saving more due to the lower price per live site with custom domains. We went this route based on customer feedback and not wanting people to be constrained by running out of dev sites during experimenting or testing changes on Snapshots of sites.

          Behind the scenes, we've been hard at work on a new billing system that will also allow us to do things like make per instance and per account upgrades available. For example, you might have a site that needs extra resources like additional PHP workers, or you could add more storage or a private server allocated 100% to your projects to your account. In the coming weeks we'll be able for everyone to transition off the legacy billing platform onto the new one and access the current pricing and new functionality that will be coming on the new plans.

          In the end, MODX Cloud won't be for lots of people, and that's OK. Others find it invaluable and useful, and that's even better! We'd love to have your support and to help you get the most from MODX. wink

          [ed. note: rethrash last edited this post 8 years, 8 months ago.]
            Ryan Thrash, MODX Co-Founder
            Follow me on Twitter at @rthrash or catch my occasional unofficial thoughts at thrash.me
            • 44195
            • 293 Posts
            Hi Ryan,

            Thanks for the clarification. Are there any plans to have an affordable service for resellers in the future? I believe there would be a lot of interest! smiley

            Cheers,
            Murray
              I'm lead developer at Digital Penguin Creative Studio in Hong Kong. https://www.digitalpenguin.hk
              Check out the MODX tutorial series on my blog at https://www.hkwebdeveloper.com
            • Quote from: muzzstick at Jul 09, 2015, 01:26 AM
              Are there any plans to have an affordable service for resellers in the future? I believe there would be a lot of interest! smiley

              Hi Murray,

              Thanks for the reply. We do have a referral program now where you can earn a good chunk up front (2 months billings), or more over the life of the account with an ongoing but smaller percentage. https://modxcloud.com/referral-program.html

              We're discussing ways to make it easier for site builders to sign up their clients and have a few ideas there, but I'd be interested in your thoughts about the referral program in general.
                Ryan Thrash, MODX Co-Founder
                Follow me on Twitter at @rthrash or catch my occasional unofficial thoughts at thrash.me
                • 36575
                • 104 Posts
                hi, I have a few modx sites across various hosts and i'm looking at changing to the cloud for a project I am currently doing.

                I am also finding the pricing confusing.

                In terms of the actual cost for a single site with one domain (just basic here), it'll be $20 a month, once the site is live? Is that correct?