ArduMaker vs cPanel
Resell hosting accounts or deploy your own apps?
Verdict
14–10 
ArduMaker wins
Criteria won: ArduMaker 4, cPanel 0. Tied on 10.
Only criteria that resolve to yes, partial or no are counted. Price has no single winner: it depends on each case.
Comparison table
| Criterion | ArduMaker | cPanel | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type of service | VPS with panel and MCP | Hosting panel you install yourself | Depends |
| Starting price | From €5.00/month, flat | From $29.99/mo per license | Depends |
| Root and SSH | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Server included | Yes | No | ArduMaker |
| Deploy from Git | Yes | Partial · Git Version Control with .cpanel.yml | ArduMaker |
| Docker and one-click apps (n8n) | Yes | Partial · Node and Python, no Docker | ArduMaker |
| Databases | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| WordPress | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Email on your domain | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Automatic SSL | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Backups | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Teams and permissions | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| MCP and AI management | Yes | Yes | Tie |
| Panel maintenance | Yes | Manual · You maintain the OS and server | ArduMaker |
| Open source | No | No | Tie |
| Start for free | Partial · Free tools, paid VPS | Partial · 15-day trial | Tie |
cPanel & WHM is the classic panel for splitting a server into hosting accounts, licensed per account. ArduMaker ships the VPS plus a panel built for apps, with no separate license.
Quick summary
ArduMaker
- Who it is for: Developers, freelancers and agencies hosting apps, APIs, WordPress and automations who want an AI agent to be able to operate the server.
- Biggest strength: No panel license and no separate server: you pay for the VPS plan and get the panel, GitHub deploys, Docker and MCP.
cPanel
- Who it is for: Hosting providers and resellers who split one server into many separate accounts, each with its own cPanel.
- Biggest strength: Multi-account hosting and reselling through WHM: isolated accounts, packages, quotas and a huge ecosystem of plugins and providers who know it.
The main difference: cPanel is software you license and install on your server to divide it into hosting accounts. ArduMaker gives you the server and the panel together, built for apps and agents rather than for reselling accounts.
Last reviewed: 2026-10-17
Key differences
Per-account licensing vs. per-server pricing
cPanel charges by how many cPanel accounts you host: Solo allows one, Admin five, Pro thirty and Premier a hundred, with a fee for each extra account. On top of that comes the server you install it on. With ArduMaker you pay for the VPS plan and create as many sites, apps and databases as its resources allow, without counting accounts.
Shared hosting vs. a server for apps
cPanel was built to split a server into hosting accounts with PHP, email and FTP, and it does that very well. ArduMaker starts from Ubuntu with root and adds GitHub deploys, Docker with Compose, PostgreSQL, Redis, n8n with workers, systemd services and native WordPress. If your project is a Node or Python API or a worker that runs 24/7, ArduMaker is the more direct fit.
Who maintains the platform
With cPanel you are the server administrator: you pick a supported distribution, do a clean install, keep up with updates and fix whatever breaks. With ArduMaker the platform maintains the panel, and inside the VPS you still have root for your own work.
AI agents
Since version 138, cPanel ships official MCP: you link your WebPros account and load the mcp.json file into Claude Code or another client, within whatever the admin enables. ArduMaker includes a remote MCP server with OAuth and human approval, with the same permissions the person has in the panel.
Pricing and costs
With cPanel the cost has two parts: the license, which grows with the number of accounts, and the server, which you rent separately from another provider. Several providers report another increase from December 16, 2026, so confirm the current price. Many providers resell the license at their own price, so compare the total. Add your admin time as well: clean installs, OS updates, security and off-server backups. With ArduMaker the VPS and the panel come in the same plan; email mailboxes are billed separately, per mailbox.
| Item | ArduMaker | cPanel |
|---|---|---|
| Entry plan | VPS from €5.00/month with the panel included | Solo license $29.99/month (1 account) plus the server |
| Several client sites | Same plan as long as the VPS resources hold | Admin $35.99/month (5 accounts) or Pro $53.99/month (30 accounts) |
| More than 100 accounts | Not applicable: no per-account billing | Premier $69.99/month plus $0.49 per extra account |
| Server | Included in the plan | Separate, from the provider of your choice |
| Email on your domain | Mailboxes billed monthly per mailbox | Included with the license, uses your server's resources |
Assumptions: cPanel Store prices checked on October 17, 2026, in effect since December 16, 2025, in US dollars, billed monthly, excluding taxes. Cloud licenses (for VPS); Metal licenses for dedicated servers exist only on Premier. Server not included.
Real-world scenarios
Agency with 20 client WordPress sites
On ArduMaker: Each site is a native app with its own PHP-FPM pool and database, isolated from the others, with staging, backups and editing over MCP. Several sites share one VPS; as they grow you change plans or spread them across another VPS.
On cPanel: A Pro license covers up to 30 accounts, one per client, each with its own cPanel and WP Toolkit. It is the classic model and clients can log into their own panel; the server and its upkeep are on you.
Node.js API with PostgreSQL and a worker
On ArduMaker: You connect the GitHub repo, every push deploys with a domain and SSL, PostgreSQL is installed from the panel and the worker runs as a systemd service or in Docker.
On cPanel: cPanel offers Application Manager for Node apps and PostgreSQL, but it is designed around per-account sites; long-running processes, Docker and queues usually mean manual setup over SSH outside the panel.
Reselling hosting to end clients
On ArduMaker: It is not designed for that: members access the company and its projects, but there are no hosting packages or client panels to resell.
On cPanel: This is its strength: WHM creates accounts and resellers with packages, quotas and their own login, and it integrates with hosting billing tools.
Letting an AI agent maintain the sites
On ArduMaker: You connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor to the MCP server over OAuth: the agent updates plugins, reads logs or creates a staging site, and sensitive actions ask for your approval.
On cPanel: With cPanel 138 and Meridian you connect your client over MCP through your WebPros account, if the admin turned it on. Servers on the LTS branch do not have it yet; the fallback is a community MCP server with a tightly scoped WHM token.
When cPanel is the better fit
- You sell hosting and need isolated accounts, resellers and packages with quotas.
- Your clients expect to log into their own cPanel, which they know from other hosts.
- You need email included for many accounts without a per-mailbox fee.
- You already run servers and prefer to choose the provider and hardware location.
- You want a broad ecosystem of plugins, installers and third-party support.
When ArduMaker is the better fit
- You don't want to pay for a panel license and a server separately or count accounts.
- You deploy apps from GitHub, APIs, workers or bots that run 24/7.
- You need Docker, PostgreSQL, Redis or n8n with workers without assembling them by hand.
- You want an AI agent to operate the server over MCP with OAuth and human approval.
- You'd rather the platform maintain the panel while you keep root.
How to migrate from cPanel to ArduMaker
Moving from cPanel to ArduMaker is usually done site by site. WordPress comes over from a backup; other sites, databases and email move separately. Give yourself time and keep the old server running until everything checks out.
- Take inventory: For each cPanel account, list the domains, subdomains, databases, mailboxes, cron jobs, PHP versions and any Node or Python apps. That tells you what goes to native WordPress, what to GitHub deploys and what to services.
- Lower DNS TTLs: A few days ahead, lower the TTL on the records you will change so the cutover is short. If cPanel hosts your DNS, export the zone to copy the records.
- Create the VPS: Pick a plan with enough memory and disk for every site you are moving. With many clients, consider spreading them across more than one VPS.
- Move the WordPress sites: Create a backup with All-in-One, Duplicator or UpdraftPlus, or use the .tar.gz the panel exports, and create the site in ArduMaker from that source. It keeps a temporary address until you publish the domain.
- Move databases and apps: Export each database with mysqldump or pg_dump and import it into the VPS's MySQL or PostgreSQL. Apps that lived in Git move to GitHub deploys; environment variables go into their configuration.
- Migrate email: Add the email domain, create the mailboxes and copy messages over IMAP with a tool such as imapsync. Keep in mind that each mailbox is billed in ArduMaker.
- Switch DNS and SSL: Point the records at the VPS or delegate the zone to ArduMaker. Publishing each domain issues its certificate; for email, add SPF, DKIM and DMARC with the guided setup.
- Verify and cancel: Test forms, payments, cron and outgoing email. Keep the cPanel server for a few days as a fallback and cancel the license once everything is stable.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a cPanel license cost in 2026?
Bought directly from the cPanel Store, since December 16, 2025 it costs $29.99/month for Solo (1 account), $35.99 for Admin (5), $53.99 for Pro (30) and $69.99 for Premier (100), plus $0.49 per additional account. The server is extra, and resellers may charge a different price.
Does ArduMaker have WHM or reseller accounts?
No. ArduMaker organizes work into companies with admins and members, plus per-project roles, but it does not create hosting accounts to resell or separate client panels. If your business is reselling hosting, cPanel with WHM is built for that.
How do I migrate a WordPress site from cPanel to ArduMaker?
Make a backup with All-in-One, Duplicator or UpdraftPlus, or use the .tar.gz the panel exports, and set it as the source when you create the site in ArduMaker. Then publish your domain, update DNS and the certificate is issued.
Can I keep using cPanel on a VPS?
Yes: cPanel needs a server with a supported, freshly installed OS, and the Cloud license is meant for VPS. An ArduMaker VPS is not the intended place for it: it is a system container with Ubuntu and its own panel, and cPanel has its own installation requirements.
Does cPanel have an MCP server for AI agents?
Yes, since cPanel & WHM 138 (July 2026): with the Meridian interface and a WebPros account you connect clients such as Claude Code over MCP. The server admin has to enable it, and servers on the LTS branch do not have it yet.
Is email extra in ArduMaker?
Yes: each mailbox on your domain has a monthly fee based on the plan you choose, with webmail, IMAP/SMTP and guided DNS. In cPanel mailboxes come with the license and use your server's resources.
Sources
cPanel data checked on 2026-10-17 on its official pages. Prices change: confirm them before deciding. Logos belong to their owners and are shown only to identify each service.