Build a $400/mo WordPress Hosting Experience for Just $100/mo (or Less)

Want to match the performance of WP Engine’s $400/month plan without burning a hole in your wallet? Whether you’re a freelancer managing a few client sites or a WordPress agency reselling hosting, this setup guide shows you how to achieve blazing-fast, production-ready WordPress hosting for ~$100/month using a DigitalOcean VPS, EasyEngine, and an optimized Cloudflare stack.

This is the exact setup we use to host high-traffic WordPress sites like megabyte.space — and with everything tuned correctly, the performance speaks for itself.

Infrastructure Overview

Here’s the basic tech stack:

• DigitalOcean VPS (NVMe storage, high CPU) – Get started here
• Ubuntu Server
• EasyEngine for provisioning WordPress with Redis, HTTPS, and subdomain multisite
• Cloudflare Pro, APO, and Argo Smart Routing
• WordPress plugins like Hummingbird Pro, WP Rocket, and Smush Pro

Let’s walk through the steps.

Provisioning with EasyEngine

EasyEngine makes it ridiculously simple to install and manage multiple WordPress sites, complete with Redis caching and automatic HTTPS via Let’s Encrypt and Cloudflare integration.

# Install EasyEngine
wget -qO ee rt.cx/ee4 && sudo bash ee

# Configure admin email and Cloudflare
# Replace INSERT_CLOUDFLARE_API_KEY_HERE with your API key that has permissions on the DNS entry you want to modify
ee config set le-mail "brian@megabyte.space"
ee config set cloudflare-api-key INSERT_CLOUDFLARE_API_KEY_HERE

# Create a WordPress Multisite with Redis caching and wildcard SSL
ee site create --ssl=le --wildcard --type=wp --cache --admin-email=brian@megabyte.space --admin-user=brian@megabyte.space --skip-content --local-db --with-local-redis --mu=subdom megabyte.space

Once done, your site is live with caching, security, and subdomain multisite support ready to go.

Want to enable built-in tools like PHPMyAdmin and Redis Explorer? Just run:

ee admin-tools enable

EasyEngine Admin Tools Docs

Cloudflare Configuration for Maximum Speed

To hit ABOVE WP Engine-tier performance, upgrade Cloudflare with:

• APO (Automatic Platform Optimization) – $5/month
• Argo Smart Routing – $5/month
• Cloudflare Pro Plan – $25/month

These ensure your content is cached on the edge network, cutting load times drastically — especially when combined with full-page caching.

Performance Plugins & Optimizations

WP Rocket vs. Hummingbird Pro

Both support Cloudflare APO, but:

• WP Rocket (affiliate link): More advanced CSS/JS/HTML compression.
• Hummingbird Pro (from WPMU DEV): Easier UI and comes bundled with other useful plugins.

We use Forminator from WPMU DEV for forms, not because it’s the best form plugin out there, but because choosing one trusted ecosystem simplifies management.

WPMU DEV also includes Smush Pro, arguably the best image optimization plugin. It auto-converts images to .webp and compresses them on-the-fly — a must-have for image-heavy sites.

Note: WPMU DEV hosting is not recommended. They impose strict PHP and caching limitations that degrade performance unless you’re deeply invested in their stack.

Bonus Performance Enhancers

Performance Lab

Developed by WordPress contributors, Performance Lab introduces cutting-edge features like:

• Speculative Loading – preloads likely-to-be-clicked links
• Web Worker Analytics – loads Google Analytics in a Web Worker, which reduces render-blocking scripts and boosts Lighthouse scores

A must-install for large sites or anyone serious about performance.

Progressive Web App (PWA)

Install PWA for WP to:

• Enable offline browsing
• Cache your site for instant navigation
• Deliver an app-like experience

Turn Your WordPress into a Static Site

For the ultimate performance boost, convert your site into a static site using Simply Static. This eliminates PHP entirely and serves HTML directly from a CDN or static host.

For convenience, you can even try Simply Static Studio, their upcoming hosted platform that builds and serves your static WordPress site for you.

Gaps in the Ecosystem

Two tools that don’t yet play nicely with EasyEngine:

• Local by WP Engine – No direct integration
• Sail by DigitalOcean – No EasyEngine guide yet

If you’re doing most of your work inside the WP admin using Gutenberg, Elementor, or WPBakery, this isn’t a big deal. But we hope better tooling arrives soon.

Add Swap (for low-RAM VPS setups)

sudo fallocate -l 4G /swapfile
sudo chmod 600 /swapfile
sudo mkswap /swapfile
sudo swapon /swapfile
echo '/swapfile none swap sw 0 0' | sudo tee -a /etc/fstab

Adding swap ensures stability under heavy load.

Final Checklist

• DigitalOcean VPS with EasyEngine
• Full-page caching + Redis
• Cloudflare APO, Argo, and Pro
• WP Rocket or Hummingbird Pro
• Smush Pro for image optimization
• Performance Lab for next-gen speed
• Optionally convert to static with Simply Static

Now run your site through Google Lighthouse and watch those scores soar.

Final Thoughts

If you’re managing multiple sites and want total control with elite performance, this is likely the best WordPress hosting method available right now. You’ll spend around $100–$135/month for something that competes with (or outperforms) WP Engine’s $400/month plan — while maintaining the ability to resell hosting.

Want to try it yourself?

👉 Get your DigitalOcean VPS here

Have questions or want a one-click setup guide? Let me know — happy to help!