Cloudflare Review: Main Features, Pros, and Cons

After dedicating countless hours to building and refining your website, ensuring it loads quickly is essential for capturing and retaining your audience from the get-go. That’s where Cloudflare comes into play. The global cloud platform is a widely trusted and popular solution for boosting your site performance and making visitors’ online experience faster and more reliable. In this comprehensive Cloudflare review, we’ll delve deeper into the platform’s main features available under the Free Plan, cover its pros and cons, and discuss its major applications.

What Is Cloudflare?

Founded by Matthew Prince, Lee Holloway, and Michelle Zatlyn, Cloudflare originated from Project Honeypot, a tool aimed at tackling online threats like hacking and spam. While at Harvard Business School, Prince and Zatlyn further refined the original concept, won a prestigious Harvard Business Plan competition, and officially launched Cloudflare at TechCrunch Disrupt in 2010.

Although initially, Cloudflare was all about security, the focus shifted drastically when a group of beta testers noticed an unexpected side effect — a 30% boost in site loading speed. Since then, Cloudflare has continuously improved performance and scalability, but it is dead set on making latency an issue of the past.

Today, Cloudflare is a powerful Content Delivery Network (CDN) that optimizes site performance by routing traffic through its global network, ensuring fast load time while blocking threats from bots, crawlers, and hackers. The global cloud platform is designed to protect and accelerate your apps, application programming interfaces (APIs), and websites, eliminate security-induced latencies, and boost performance and reliability.

Cloudflare Free Plan: Main Features and Add-Ons

The company provides its basic set of tools for free: all you have to do is sign up for an account. Normally, many of the following would come with a hefty price tag; luckily, they won’t cost you a dime. Here’s a look at the main features and perks that come with a free Cloudflare membership:

• Unmatched DDos Mitigation. Safeguard your site with Cloudflare’s leading DDoS mitigation solution, ranked #1 worldwide. The network neutralizes malicious traffic, ensuring uninterrupted performance even during large-scale attacks.
• Powerful DNS Resolver. Benefit from Cloudflare’s lightning-fast Domain Name System (DNS) and boost your website’s speed and performance. Cloudflare offers access to 1.1.1.1 — its public DNS resolver, which grants near-instantaneous website resolution and fast and private internet browsing. The company doesn’t sell data to advertisers, so your online activity remains private, secure, and swift.
• Global CDN. Your website is displayed from Cloudflare’s worldwide network of servers while removing latency, ensuring faster load for visitors no matter the location. The company boasts 335 data centres across the globe — essential for providing seamless and high-speed access to your content.
• Universal SSL Certificate. Protect your website’s connection with robust encryption, preventing personal information theft for you and your visitors. If you don’t currently use one, Cloudflare provides a free shared SSL certificate for secure browsing and safeguarding from unauthorized access. 
• Free Network Security. Cloudflare’s network security products and free Zero Trust — a security model based on maintaining strict access controls — protect your apps, users, and devices with robust threat mitigation tools.
• Always Online Service. The feature caches a static version of your website’s most popular posts and pages, keeping it accessible even if the site goes down. The crawling frequencies depend on the plan, with Free — websites being crawled once every 30 days, while the Business and Enterprise plan’s websites are crawled once every 5 days.
• Web Application Firewall. Secure your web assets with WAF — a security tool that protects web applications from online threats and automatically deletes and blocks cyberattacks.
• Caching. Reduce the server’s load by serving a cached copy of your site to boost the overall speed and deliver content faster.
• Hotlink Protection. Prevent your images from being displayed and linked on other websites, preserve bandwidth, and reduce unauthorized use of your assets.

To bring the performance to the next level, it’s not necessary to subscribe to a pricy plan; you can buy add-ons or activate the free ones to boost overall security and site performance. Currently, Cloudflare offers a range of add-ons, including:

• Load Balancing. Ensure uninterrupted availability of your critical resources with load balancing — the process of dynamically distributing traffic across local and global servers. Improve performance and reliability with geographical routing, server health checks, and automatic failover. The add-on starts at $5 per month.
• Argo Smart Routing. This service enhances security and performance through Smart Routing (automatic selection of the fastest path for user requests) and Tiered Caching (reduced bandwidth consumption and latency through caching content across the company’s global network). The add-on starts at $5 per month.
• Rate Limiting. Restrict suspicious requests and safeguard against brute-force password attempts, denial-of-service attacks, and other malicious activities. The add-on is priced on total HTTP traffic.
• Cloudflare One. Enjoy comprehensive security and performance by helping businesses and users connect, protect, and accelerate their traffic. Currently, you can try it for free.
• Advanced Certificate Manager. Issue and manage SSL/TSL certificates and boost the security of your apps and websites. The add-on starts at $5 per month.

You can also try out other add-ons, such as Cloudflare Workers, which allows developers to deploy serverless code to Cloudflare’s edge, and Video Streaming, which grants access to high-quality streaming at scale.

Overall, although the Free plan has limitations, it’s one of the most powerful and efficient solutions for enhancing your site performance and providing fast and reliable online experience. To put things in perspective, the Pro plan is priced at $25 monthly, and Business — $250 monthly. The enterprise plan doesn’t have a fixed price because it’s highly customizable but includes round-the-clock technical support and a designated customer success manager.

Where to Start: Setting Up Your Account and Domain

If you don’t have an account, creating one is straightforward. After clicking the Sign-Up button on the upper right of the official Cloudflare page, enter your email and password and agree to the Terms of Service and privacy policy. Cloudflare will automatically send you a verification email.

If you don’t have a domain, you can purchase your domain name through Cloudflare Register. On the other hand, if you have a domain, you need to log into the Cloudflare dashboard, select “Add a domain,” and follow the prompts to complete the process, including nameserver updates and completing SSL/TLS setup. 

Although it might sound challenging, the process is pretty straightforward and described in detail (including the potential issues and challenges) in the Cloudflare Docs, the company’s easy-to-follow guide on everything from domain management to security, performance, APIs, etc.

Popular Cloudflare Use Cases

Cloudflare is used across various industries due to its high-security measures, robust toolset, and top-tier performance. Here’s a look at some of the most widespread applications of the platform through the popular use cases:

1. E-Commerce

An online store deals with many issues, including slow loading times, frequent DDoS attacks, and bots. Cloudflare boasts an efficient network within 50 ms of 95% of the Internet-connected population worldwide, robust WAF, DDoS protection, and CDN caching, which will improve site speed, help conduct secure transactions, and prevent bot threats. Using CDN is essential for any e-commerce owner, as it reduces fraud, boosts load times, and grants an uninterrupted shopping experience that results in higher conversion rates.

2. News and Media

Any news site undergoes traffic spikes during breaking news events, resulting in crashes and slowdowns. Cloudflare’s massive content delivery network is essential for eliminating slow load time, whether you’re an owner of a large media, small blog, or WordPress site. With a network of 335 data centres, Cloudflare decreases load times, boosts web security, and provides a seamless user experience even during high-traffic periods.

3. Gaming and Streaming

When you’re engrossed in an intense multiplayer match, every millisecond counts. A good DNS is crucial as it reduces latency and provides smoother gameplay, especially in intense and fast-paced online games. The same goes for video streaming that struggles with buffering issues: Cloudflare reduces latency and bandwidth costs and grants a better user experience.

From start-ups and bloggers to large enterprises, DSN is essential for a wide range of businesses across numerous industries. Cloudflare is a perk for any company, prioritizing scalability, better website performance, and security.

Cloudflare: Pros and Cons

Although Cloudflare is a popular and robust cloud-based platform that offers a range of services for free, no experience is without a hitch. Here, we’ll take a more detailed look at the platform’s advantages and drawbacks.

The Good

• Robust WAF. The web application firewall protects against cyber threats like cross-site scripting (XSS), SQL injections, and other potential attacks.
• SSL/TLS Encryption & HTTPS Support. Cloudflare provides stalwart SSL/TSL encryption and easy HTTPS implementation, including a free Universal SSL option for all websites — crucial for secure communication between your website and its visitors.
• Domain Management. Manage your website’s domain through the platform with Cloudflare’s domain registration services, offering transparent renewals, competitive pricing, and centralized DNS management.
• Cost-effectiveness. Although pricier plans, like Business, have a more robust toolkit, they can cost a pretty penny. Luckily, Cloudflare offers a Free plan with a range of essential features that won’t cost you a thing.
• Straightforward Setup. Registration and site setup are quick and hassle-free, while configuring settings is easy with the extensive guides.

The Bad

• Overreliance on Cloudflare’s Infrastructure. Since your website’s daily operations depend on Cloudflare’s network, any service disruptions or outages could have a detrimental effect on site performance and availability.
• Data Privacy Considerations. If you’re handling sensitive user information, keep in mind that Cloudflare processes and caches site data, which may pose a compliance challenge.
• Steep Learning Curve. Although registration and setup are pretty straightforward, the platform’s robust feature set requires technical expertise for proper configuration. Cloudflare becomes challenging to use if a user is unfamiliar with CDN and security settings.
• Complexity in Debugging. Troubleshooting can transform into an ordeal, as you’ll have to diagnose issues with an additional layer in the traffic route.
• Limited Control. While the platform offers various configuration operations, utilizing Cloudflare means surrendering control over security and site performance.

Top 6 Cloudflare Alternatives

While Cloudflare is a popular and widely used CDN, it’s not necessarily the best choice for every case. Here’s a look at some of the best alternatives available on the market:

1. Fastly

With lightning-speed cold start time, Fastly is among the best CDNs on the market, offering configurability and real-time caching. Although it’s a great choice for dynamic sites, some of the top users’ concerns include cost limitations and an advanced feature set that requires higher-tier technical expertise. Overall, Fastly is a solid choice for enterprises, developers, and users who look for a tool offering advanced customization to boost their websites’ performance and security.

2. Akami

Akami is an enterprise-grade and highly reliable alternative to Cloudflare, offering advanced cybersecurity solutions, extensive integrations with a range of technology providers, and top-tier customer support. On the offside, the platform is way too complex for a beginner-level user and comes with a hefty price tag. Overall, Akami is not the best choice for smaller businesses, but it certainly should be considered by bigger organizations.

3. Amazon CloudFront

One of the biggest perks of Amazon CloudFront is that it seamlessly integrates with Amazon Web Services, providing robust security and scalable performance. Developers will especially benefit from this CDN service, as it provides a suite of developer-friendly tools and APIs. However, the set may be challenging for non-AWS users, and the pricing model is a bit complex. Overall, CloudFront is an excellent choice if you’re already deeply invested in the AWS platform and have complex security requirements.

4. BunnyCDN

User-friendly and cost-effective, BunnyCDN is a good alternative to Cloudflare, as it comes with competitive pricing, an easy-to-use dashboard, decent scalability, and a range of customization options that may not be as extensive as other CDNs but typically more than sufficient for smaller businesses. Overall, although BunnyCDN lacks advanced security features, it’s still a great choice for medium- and small-sized sites and apps looking for an inexpensive content delivery network

5. Imperva

With robust analytics, efficient caching and optimization, robust DDoS protection, and other security features, Imperva is a prominent CDN and one of the best Cloudflare alternatives. However, this tool is more suitable for larger organizations with complex security requirements. Overall, Imperva is a good choice for large enterprises and businesses that deal with sensitive data and want to ensure seamless transactions without security breaches.

6. Securi

As with other CDNs on this list, Securi offers features like DDoS mitigation, WAF, and malware detection. Although it offers a broad range of security services, Securi is focused solely on web security. The CDN also provides seamless integration with already existing infrastructure, as well as compliance with regulatory requirements, such as HIPPA and GDPR, which makes it a great choice if you want to operate in these highly regulated fields. Overall, Securi is a great alternative to Cloudflare, especially if you’re focused on web application security.

Final Thoughts

The free version of Cloudflare is an excellent option for large and small businesses alike, ensuring malware protection, performance boosts, and security for your apps, APIs, and websites. With the robust WAF, stalwart SSL/TSL encryption, straightforward setup, and centralized DNS management, the company is among the most prominent on the market, attracting thousands of customers worldwide. Depending on your requirements, the Free plan can be more than enough; sure, it has its limitations, but you still have access to a range of essential features, so there is nothing to complain about.

Of course, no experience is without a hitch. Cloudflare is not perfect; for instance, troubleshooting can be an ordeal, while using the platform is challenging for beginner-level users. Still, Cloudflare is one of the world’s leading CDNs and one of the best free tools available on the market, boosting site performance and providing security against pesky malware.