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Cloudflare pros and cons

Vendor: Cloudflare

4.3 out of 5

77 reviews
96% willing to recommend

Pros & Cons summary

Cloudflare offers simplified HTTP to HTTPS redirects with Page Rules and a robust DNS service known for global reach and fast updates. It provides security features like a web application firewall, though areas like API integration and technical support need improvement. Limitations exist in DNS management on the free plan. Despite pricing concerns, it integrates smoothly with services like Heroku and offers SSL management, appealing to users seeking basic security and performance at no cost.

Buyer's Guide

Get pricing advice, tips, use cases and valuable features from real users of this product.

Prominent pros & cons

PROS

Cloudflare provides robust DDoS protection, preventing attacks and ensuring website security.

It offers an easy integration of end-to-end SSL and TLS for securing servers.

Users benefit from centralized DNS management, which is both secure and rapid in updating records.

The service enables high-availability self-hosting of applications using round robin DNS and efficient load balancing.

Cloudflare includes a built-in SSL certificate that automatically secures websites with ease.

CONS

APIs are difficult to work with and lack openness for better integration with existing solutions.

Reporting does not provide sufficient explanations of events, lacking clarity and detail.

Configuration documentation is highly technical, posing challenges for non-technical users.

On-premise or hybrid deployment options are absent, limiting flexibility for diverse customer needs.

Technical support is lacking and tends to rely on a self-service model rather than providing hands-on assistance.

Cloudflare Pros review quotes

Owner at Tech Exchange

Dec 1, 2022

Many websites require an SSL certificate because they sell stuff and want SSL. Cloudflare comes with an SSL certificate built in. It's automatic. You sign yourself up for Cloudflare, and an SSL certificate automatically protects your website. You don't necessarily need a certificate if you have a connection between your website and your host, the server, Cloudflare, and the host.

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HA

Owner at Hga consulting

Oct 7, 2025

Cloudflare makes it easier for me to handle and set up DNS for multiple users and multiple clients, and basically go in and access their account, make the changes they need, and it's a one-stop shop.

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Senior IT Professional at a non-profit with 11-50 employees

May 30, 2023

The solution automatically detects and responds to certain types of traffic based on geolocation.

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VP/Director of IT at a tech vendor with 51-200 employees

Sep 17, 2020

New and innovative way to protect the client's data.

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MP

Maciej Piaskowy

Senior Security Engineer at ManpowerGroup

Jun 26, 2025

It's a great product because it's scalable, has great coverage, and is mature with good defenses against DDoS attacks.

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DW

Darryl Wethington

Senior Cloud Solution Architect at Integrated Technology Solution Group (ITSG)

Jan 18, 2024

The most valuable features of the solution are performance and security.

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Linux System Administrator at Ergode

May 25, 2023

Even when there is a high load on our servers, Cloudflare is able to cache the data and serve it to users, ensuring they can still access the website.

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reviewer2541525

Principal Cyber Prevent and Defense Engineer at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Sep 10, 2024

The tool is user-friendly.

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reviewer2198715

DevOps Engineer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

Jun 1, 2023

I rate its stability a ten out of ten.

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DP

Network Engineer at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Oct 24, 2022

What I like best about Cloudflare is that my company can use it to trace and manage applications and monitor traffic. The solution tells you if there's a spike in traffic. Cloudflare also sends you a link to check your equipment and deployment and track it through peering, so it's a valuable tool.

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Cloudflare Cons review quotes

Owner at Tech Exchange

Dec 1, 2022

It should be easier to collect the logs with companies like Sumo. However, based on my discussions with the salespeople, I understand that's how they make their money. With the enterprise product, they want people doing those kinds of enterprise features to do the logging. They want them to pay a lot of money, and that's where I have an issue with them. That should be a default. You should be able to get the log no matter what. The logging should be universal.

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HA

Owner at Hga consulting

Oct 7, 2025

The Cloudflare load balancing capability hasn't really helped in enhancing my website's uptime and resiliency because we don't really get that much traffic; it's mostly remote users, and web hosting is done by a web hosting service.

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Senior IT Professional at a non-profit with 11-50 employees

May 30, 2023

The solution could be more user-friendly.

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Free Report: Cloudflare Reviews and More

Learn what your peers think about Cloudflare. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: October 2025.

869,832 professionals have used our research since 2012.

VP/Director of IT at a tech vendor with 51-200 employees

Sep 17, 2020

Technical support is lacking.

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MP

Maciej Piaskowy

Senior Security Engineer at ManpowerGroup

Jun 26, 2025

Eventually, things go sideways and require fixes when it would have been easier to prevent the issue initially.

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DW

Darryl Wethington

Senior Cloud Solution Architect at Integrated Technology Solution Group (ITSG)

Jan 18, 2024

Areas like how assessment, discovery, and payload are dealt with and how it all comes into your organization can be considered when trying to make suggestions to Cloudflare for improvements.

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General Manager at bKash Limited

Dec 14, 2023

It would be beneficial for us if Cloudflare could offer a scrubbing solution. This would involve taking a snapshot of my website and keeping it live during a DDoS attack, ensuring uninterrupted service for our users. DDoS attacks are typically short in duration, and having Cloudflare maintain the site's availability from its secure network would enhance the overall user experience. I would appreciate it if Cloudflare could consider implementing this feature. Many organizations already utilize similar capabilities in their CDN platforms, where a static snapshot of the web page is displayed during DDoS attacks. In terms of features, Cloudflare needs to enhance its resilience and stay more focused on adopting new technologies. For instance, solutions like F5 XC Box, Access Solution, and Distributed Cloud Solution have impressive features, and Cloudflare should strive to match and exceed those capabilities. There's a need for improvement in areas like AI-based DDoS attacks and Layer 7 WAF features. Cloudflare should prioritize enhancements in areas such as behavioral DDoS and protection against SQL injection attacks, considering the prevalent trend of public exposure to the internet for business reasons. Overall, Cloudflare needs to invest more in advancing its feature set.

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Linux System Administrator at Ergode

May 25, 2023

We have noticed multiple instances where Cloudflare falsely indicates that our servers are down, even when there is no actual load on them. This makes it challenging for us to identify the exact issue.

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reviewer2541525

Principal Cyber Prevent and Defense Engineer at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Sep 10, 2024

The integration of LLMs on the dashboard is something that is needed in the tool.

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reviewer2198715

DevOps Engineer at a tech services company with 51-200 employees

Jun 1, 2023

Even if I wanted to, I wouldn't be able to buy Cloudflare in my country.

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Show 10 more reviews (out of 51)

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