In the world of web hosting control panels, there are two most prominent names in the present times: Plesk and cPanel.

On the one hand, we have an older but reliable cPanel, and on the other hand, we have comparatively newer but feature-packed Plesk. These are here to serve the same function; provide a graphical user interface and/ or web-based interface and tools for managing a website and hosting a web account. This service sometimes extends to managing servers as well.

Since both Plesk and cPanel are meant for the same task, it is natural for there to be comparisons between them. While both of these are still widely used to this day, which one is better?

Let’s find out.

What are Plesk and cPanel?

cPanel is a web hosting Control panel that provides you with a GUI interface along with automation tools to simplify web hosting. This is the older of the two and was initially released in 1996. This control panel is widely known for being simple to use.

On the other hand, we have Plesk, a web hosting control panel known for its user-friendly interface and wide set of features.

Both of these web hosting control panels have their own advantages and disadvantages. But at the end of the day, which one is better?

Let’s break their features down into smaller chunks. This will make the comparison of cPanel & Plesk easier to make a final judgment.

Usability

For Usability, Plesk has a slight edge over cPanel. Although both Plesk and cPanel have a GUI, the one used in cPanel is simply not outdated. The GUI for Plesk is redesigned with modern JavaScript, making it better to look at and easier to navigate.

Along with this, Plesk is flexible on a wide range of Operating systems. This includes:

• Debian
• Ubuntu
• CentOS
• RHEL

Let’s see how the backup support differs in Plesk vs cPanel:

• Cloud Linux
• Amazon Linux
• Virtuozzo Linux
• Windows Server 2008 R2 SP

Compared to Plesk, cPanel is compatible with only 4 operating systems, all of which are covered by Plesk. They are:

• CentOS
• CloudLinux
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux
• Amazon Linux

So when we put these two factors together, Plesk easily wins over cPanel in terms of Usability.

Security

Security is one of the major concerns of any web host and web user. Both the platform and the user access need to be extremely secure in order for the users to feel secure. The good news is that both Plesk and C panels are really secure.

Plesk has one-click SSL security, monitors plugin updates and automatic updates of security patches and bug fixes for security.

Some of the key features of Plesk Security are:

• Quick Security Patches
• DNS and DNSSEC configuration
• Lets Encrypt and Symantec SSL
• Automatic healing and recovery
• Turn on SSL and HTTP/2

At the same time, cPanel offers you the ability to blacklist individual IPs, Deploy SSL certificates, encrypt outbound messages, and form multi-factor authentication.

Some of the key features of cPanels security are:

• Blacklist and whitelist specific IPs or regions
• Deploy SSL certificates
• encrypt outbound messages
• Multi Factor authentication
• easy third party integration

So which one is better? The answer is hard to tell since both of these features have their own set of uses and shine in specific areas. If you have a small number of sites with a decent budget, then the security of Plesk should be your choice. However, if you have a large number of websites to run, then the security of Plesk can be both expensive and somewhat cumbersome.

Backup

Besides security and Usability, backup is another important factor in deciding which one is better. Since the internet is not the safest of places, even with the best security measures, it is necessary to have a web hosting control panel. The good news is that both Plesk and cPanel have pretty good backup systems.

Plesk offers you two types of backup: Complete Backup and Incremental Backup. Complete backup has every data starting from the creation of the website. Meanwhile, incremental backup has data since the last backup. The backup files can be stored in either Plesk Storage or external FTP storage.

As for cPanel, it offers you compressed, uncompressed and incremental backups. Compressed backup is basically a compressed version of all the data. This is slower but takes less space. Meanwhile, an Uncompressed backup is the full version of the data, which runs faster but consumes larger disk space. Similar to Plesk, incremental backup is the type that only records the data from the previous backup.

So it seems that when it comes to backup, cPanel performs slightly better than Plesk.

Accessibility

Since more than half of the internet users (including website owners) are mobile users, mobile accessibility has become an integral part of a website. This includes both the front-end and back-end aspects.

Not so surprisingly, this means that a web host control panel with mobile accessibility gains a slight edge over the one without. This is where Plesk shines.

In the battle between Plesk and Cpanel, Plesk easily won over cPanel in mobile accessibility. The reason is simple; you cannot access cPanel with mobile devices, while you can access Plesk with mobile devices.

WordPress Support

If you want one sentence to which one is better for WordPress support between Plesk and cPanel, the answer would be Plesk. This is simply because the GUI and WordPress integration of Plesk is extremely compatible and similar to the WordPress dashboard.

While you can still use and manage WordPress with cPanel, you will find it somewhat difficult to work with due to less compatibility. That being said, once you get past the first few awkward months of getting familiar with the controls, you will not find any differences between using WordPress via Plesk or cPanel.

There are no winners here since the only difference between WordPress support of Plesk and cPanel is its ease of use.

Extensions and Addons

If this was still in the earlier days of the internet, then add-ons would not be a factor. However, it is in modern times. A web hosting control panel with better services for Addons will naturally have an edge.

Plesk comes with just about every addon you need. These include:

• Security Advisor
• WP toolkit
• Joomla! Toolkit
• Let’s Encrypt SSL support
• SEO Toolkit

And so on. You can add in your own addons as necessary as well.

As for the cPanel, although you still need to use auto-installers for add-ons, you can install just about every add-ons you need from the web.

So which is better? If you are looking for secure extensions, the Plesk is undoubtedly the winner. However, if you are looking for versatility with the addons, then cPanel is your choice.

Conclusion
There can be no winner in this battle between Plesk and cPanel if we make the face head-on. cPanel is versatile and works with just about everything – but is a bit cumbersome to use; Plesk is modern and packed with features and has the best services but has limited freedom.

If we look at pure functionality, there can be no winner in this battle. However, if you look at this battle from a regular user’s perspective, then Plesk is the winner by a small margin, all because it is easier to use.

That being said, cPanel is still extremely useful and is not outdated at all. If you have a large number of websites and are working with a small number of servers, the cPanel is the choice for you. However, if you are new and have fewer websites to work with, then Plesk is your best choice.

If you are seeking a cloud hosting provider with Plesk or cPanel, then be sure to let us know.

We hope this was helpful for you. If you have any queries, then let us know in the comments. And as always, thank you for reading till the end.