Purpose Despite the importance of investigating the impact of cloud computing on the e-learning process, the relationship development between the two is not examined well. Thus, the main goal of this research is to assess how to improve the e-learning process by using cloud services. This paper aims to attempt to investigate the impact of cloud computing on e-learning development. Design/methodology/approach The paper is based on both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. For review-related work and statistical analysis of questionnaires, the SPSS 22 and SMART-PLS 3.2 software package are used. Findings The results from the study show that e-learning development is significantly influenced by the quality of services, cloud features, university readiness and users’ readiness. Originality/value The adoption of cloud technology within an instructional environment has the capacity of offering new opportunities for improvement and innovation for gaining knowledge of the process.