In this article two popular control panels DirectAdmin and cPanel will face off. Let’s see who will win the DirectAdmin vs cPanel battle.
When it comes to website hosting, there are countless factors you need to consider and numerous points you must keep in mind for your website to function well. The major decision that you will have to make is about the control panel as the overall web hosting experience is heavily dependent on its features and usability. When we talk about web hosting, the most versatile and popular control panel options in the market are cPanel and DirectAdmin. In this article, we will target these two control panels and give you an insight into DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Which one is better? Letโs begin!
DirectAdmin
Features
- DNS administration
- IP management
- Show all users
- Reseller packages
- Create/ modify resellers and admins
- System/services info
- Complete usage statistics
- Mail queue administration
- SPAM fighting tools
- DNS clustering
- Licensing/updates
Overview
DirectAdmin is a renowned graphical web-based control panel for web hosting services. It works well with all sorts of hosting accounts and makes maintenance, web designing, troubleshooting, and development easier. DirectAdmin is also known for its remarkable speed, allowing for fast website development and maintenance. It allows users to develop, remove, or acquire sub-domain information, add or remove information from the server, and modify the MX setting. DirectAdmin also offers DNS admiration, free SSL certificates an IP manager, and automatic data recovery.
| Pros | Cons |
| Easy to use interface | For advance users |
| Budget friendly | Additional functionalities require extra cost. |
| Great speed | User base is small |
| Remarkable stability |
What is cPanel?
Features
- Backup/restoration
- Security center
- File management
- DNS zone management
- Service configuration
- Create calendars and emails
- Backup, transfer, and manage files
- Publish a website
- Launch databases
- Add or remove subdomians
Overview
cPanel is immensely popular among hosting companies and web developers. It is a Linux-based control panel that works almost like a desktop application, allowing users to perform a variety of actions via a single dashboard instead of running a series of difficult commands. This control panel facilitates the users to operate management functions with ease, without much technical expertise, and is simple to use. The control panel makes use of automation and an intuitive interface, to make website administration easy. By employing a point-and-click graphical interface, users can effectively perform tasks with zero to no hurdles.
| Pros | Cons |
| Works with various web browsers | Expensive license |
| Use-friendly interface | Is vulnerable to cyber attacks |
| Great customer support | Risk of corruption and data loss |
| Automated software installation | |
| Multiple features |
DirectAdmin vs cPanel
DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Comparison at a Glance
| DirectAdmin vs cPanel | DirectAdmin | cPanel |
| Pricing | Comparatively affordable | Heavy priced license |
| Free trial | 30-day | 14-day |
| Scalability | Expensive add-ons | Affordable add-ons |
| Features | Not that many useful features | Multiple useful features |
| Ease of use | Geared towards experts | Beginner-friendly |
DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Price Comparison
Despite being affordable DirectAdmin cannot be used by many as it is comparatively tech-savvy and is geared toward people with technical knowledge and experience. The control panel also has a 30-day free trial, paired with a cheaper license. It offers three plans with prices ranging from $5 to $29.
On the other hand, cPanel is more beginner-friendly, and geared toward technophobes and those with little technical expertise. Its free trial of 14 days is also shorter than DirectAdmin, and it is also heavily priced, offering four plans the price of which range from $15.99 to $59.99.
DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Scalability Comparison
When we look into scalability, we find that DirectAdmin offers much more scalability as compared to cPanel. As your website grows, DirectAdmin allows you to add more functionalities and increase the number of resources as well. However, these web features and resources come at a steep price.
cPanel is also scalable although not as scalable as DirectAdmin. However, it is much cheaper and easier to use. You can add web plug-ins to your website via cPanel at a more affordable price. Moreover, cPanel also allows site users to customize code options on the system and prolong the features of the control panel for better scalability.
DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Ease of Use Comparison
Even though DirectAdmin offers a less overwhelming, easy-to-navigate user interface, those who are just starting out might find it to be more on the complicated side. Whereas, On the other hand, cPanel offers all the functionalities and configurations one might need, along with customized links making navigation less torturous and access to queries easier. All of these aspects make cPanel extremely easy to use.
DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Features Comparison
Both control panels offer stellar features. DirectAdmin provides its users with many features including an IP manager, DNS administration, reseller packages, spa fighting tools, licensing, and complete usage statistics. However, cPanel offers more extensive features such as email and calendar creation, migrating new customers, launching databases, and managing domains. Apart from that cPanel also facilitates customizing your brand, reseller hosting, backup and file management, and spawning cPanel user accounts.
DirectAdmin vs cPanel: Which One is Better?
The answer to the above-mentioned question actually depends on your personal preferences and hosting needs. If you are more tech-savvy and have the necessary knowledge and expertise to work with DirectAdmin, go for it, it is affordable and has great features. However, if you are just starting out it’s better to opt for cPanel, The price is a bit steep, but its add-ons arenโt that expensive, it’s easy to use, and offers robust features.ย