What each host includes (29 October 2026)
| Kinsta | WP Engine | SiteGround | |
|---|---|---|---|
| CDN provider | Cloudflare, 300+ PoPs | Cloudflare | SiteGround CDN |
| Included | Yes, enabled by default on new sites | Yes, active once DNS points to the Advanced Network or GES | Free plan on all hosting plans |
| Static files | Images, CSS, JavaScript; 5 GB per file limit | Images and theme assets; check cache headers (its docs give 24 hours and 365 days) | Static files such as images, CSS and JavaScript |
| HTML page caching at the edge | Edge caching, free on all plans | Edge Full Page Cache is documented; confirm it is active on your plan | Dynamic caching on Premium CDN only (12-hour default TTL) |
| Bandwidth terms | 125 GB (Single 35k) to 1,500 GB (Single 750k) a month; $0.05/GB over | Plan bandwidth: 75 GB listed for Essential; CDN-specific terms not stated | Premium adds 'unlimited bandwidth traffic'; free tier limit not stated on the pages we read |
| Paid upgrade | Not required for CDN or edge caching | Global Edge Security extension (WAF, DDoS mitigation) on shared plans | Premium CDN (dynamic caching, Under Attack mode, keep site online) |
Kinsta: CDN plus edge caching
Kinsta CDN is 'a premium CDN powered by Cloudflare at no additional cost', serving static content such as images, CSS and JavaScript. CDN bandwidth is listed per plan: 125 GB on Single 35k, 250 GB on Single 65k, 500 GB on Single 125k, and $0.05 per GB beyond. Kinsta's billing documentation says anything served by a CDN or edge cache is excluded from server bandwidth, which on bandwidth-billed plans costs $0.50 per GB.
Edge caching is a separate, free feature that saves Kinsta's page cache to Cloudflare's network so HTML is served near the visitor. It bypasses logged-in users and requests that return a Set-Cookie header, has rules for standard WordPress, BuddyPress and WooCommerce, and does not respect custom cache exclusions set in Advanced Site Cache. It cannot be enabled while password protection is on.
WP Engine: CDN on the Advanced Network, GES as an extension
WP Engine says Cloudflare is the CDN included with each plan and becomes active automatically once the site points to the Advanced Network or Global Edge Security. Its CDN article says static files are cached for 24 hours by default, while its cache article lists a 365-day static asset expiration on the Advanced Network and GES, so check the cache headers on your own files. The network cache can be cleared from the environment's Cache page. WP Engine does not currently support zones in mainland China.
Global Edge Security adds a web application firewall, DDoS mitigation and automatic SSL; shared-plan customers buy it from the Modify Plan page, and it is included with Secure Hosting plans. The GES page did not list a price. WP Engine's cache documentation notes that Edge Full Page Cache will not respect custom cache exclusions for cookies, which matters if your membership plugin relies on a custom cookie to vary content.
SiteGround: free static CDN, Premium for pages
SiteGround's CDN is available on all hosting plans in free and premium versions. The free plan caches static files only. Premium adds dynamic content caching, unlimited bandwidth traffic, Under Attack mode, a keep-site-online mode that serves cached copies when the server is unreachable, and coverage for subdomains and parked domains.
Dynamic caching has a 12-hour default TTL that your Cache-Control max-age header overrides, and it bypasses logged-in users, carts, checkout and certain WordPress and WooCommerce cookies. The pages we read did not give a Premium price or a free-tier bandwidth figure; check Site Tools before relying on either.
What a CDN does and does not do for logged-in lesson pages
Does: serves the lesson page's images, stylesheets, scripts and downloadable files from a nearby location, which reduces load on the origin and, at Kinsta, keeps that traffic off server bandwidth.
Does not: cache the lesson HTML itself. All three hosts bypass HTML caching for logged-in users, so the time to first byte for a lesson, quiz or dashboard still depends on PHP workers and database queries at the origin. A CDN also does not replace a video streaming service; self-hosted video still counts as CDN or server bandwidth.
Hypothetical: a lesson page of 1.5 MB where 1.4 MB is images, CSS and JS. With the CDN, about 93% of bytes come from the edge; the remaining HTML still has to be generated by PHP for every student, every time.
Choosing by CDN needs
- Global marketing audience and no budget for a CDN add-on: Kinsta includes both static CDN and HTML edge caching on every plan.
- Need a WAF and DDoS mitigation at the edge: price WP Engine's Global Edge Security or SiteGround's Premium CDN Under Attack mode.
- Mostly logged-in students in one region: the CDN matters less than PHP capacity; compare worker documentation instead.
- Membership content that varies by a custom cookie: test edge caching on staging, because Kinsta's edge caching and WP Engine's Edge Full Page Cache do not honour custom cookie exclusions.
- Large video library: move it to a streaming service rather than relying on any host's CDN quota.
Questions before you decide
Do I need Cloudflare APO or a separate CDN on Kinsta or WP Engine?
Both already bundle a Cloudflare CDN, and Kinsta includes edge caching of HTML. A separate CDN in front of either adds a second layer to configure and is rarely needed for a course site.
Will the CDN cache my students' lesson pages?
No. Kinsta, WP Engine and SiteGround all bypass page caching for logged-in users. The CDN still serves the page's images, CSS and JavaScript.
What happens if I exceed Kinsta's CDN bandwidth?
Kinsta keeps sites running and charges $0.05 per additional GB of CDN bandwidth.
Sources & verification
Product details and prices can change. Check the linked provider before buying.
- Kinsta: Kinsta CDN Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Kinsta: Edge caching Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Kinsta: Billing for WordPress hosting plans Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Kinsta: WordPress hosting overages Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- Kinsta: WordPress hosting plans and pricing Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine: Configure content delivery network Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine: Configure Global Edge Security Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine: Server and browser caching Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- WP Engine: Plans and pricing Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- SiteGround KB: What is CDN Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- SiteGround KB: SiteGround CDN configuration, headers and purging Accessed 29 Oct 2026
- SiteGround KB: Manage your CDN in Site Tools Accessed 29 Oct 2026
Sources link directly to providers. Product buttons may use separately labeled affiliate links. Read our disclosure.