Should I use a CDN or nearby hosting for a regional website?
The short answer
They can work together. A CDN can serve cached content from an edge location, while requests that need your origin still depend on its performance. Choose the combination by testing your pages and users’ locations.
In more detail
A CDN keeps eligible content at edge locations and can answer a request there when it has a usable cached copy. On a cache miss, it may fetch content from the origin. A nearby origin can still matter for requests that cannot be served from cache.
For a mostly static site, measure how well the CDN serves pages and assets in your target markets. For a store or application, also test sign-in, search and other dynamic requests. Configure caching carefully so personal or session-specific content is not shared between users.
Choose hosting and a CDN for measured performance and operating needs. For geographic search targeting, use appropriate language and regional content, clear URLs and hreflang where relevant. A CDN or a local server IP should not be treated as a promise of higher local rankings.