Finest Net Internet hosting Providers for 2022

Finest Net Internet hosting Providers for 2022

There are a variety of nice causes to start out your individual web site. Whether or not you are trying to create your individual weblog, kick off a aspect hustle or construct a portfolio, there is no higher time than proper now to construct an internet presence. Nonetheless, there’s much more to it than simply clicking round and hitting save once you’re comfortable. You will want to seek out the suitable internet hosting service in your wants earlier than you begin constructing your web site.

A internet hosting service has information facilities that home your web site on a number of servers. Selecting the correct internet hosting service will be complicated, and the selection will be arduous. We regarded over the information for 22 internet hosting providers, to make issues just a little simpler on you.

You may learn extra about our standards for internet hosting providers, together with how we assess safety and buyer help, and you’ll try necessary internet hosting phrases to know.

Word: Pricing for internet hosting is a bit difficult to comply with. Listed costs are usually introductory charges hooked up to contracts that often final a yr or extra and renew on the common (greater) price at contract’s finish. Be certain that to take common charges under consideration when attempting to determine a long-term internet hosting supplier. You may also see our suggestions for how internet hosting suppliers ought to promote their costs.

Net hosts in contrast

Finest for… Month-to-month shared plan pricing Security measures Uptime assure Buyer help
Ionos Security measures $1 Nice 99.99% Nice
GreenGeeks Clear-energy internet hosting $3 Good 99.90% Good
A2 Internet hosting Customer support $3 Nice 99.90% Nice
InMotion Internet hosting First-time web site homeowners $2.29 Nice 99.99% Nice
HostGator Knowledge-heavy websites $2.75 Good 99.90% Nice
AccuWeb Internet hosting World prospects $4 Good 99.99% Good

Finest internet hosting providers

Sarah Tew/CNET

Professionals:

  • In depth security measures, together with backups
  • Limitless visitors, so no have to scale up plans to deal with further visitors
  • 99.99% uptime assure

Cons:

  • Web site builder prices further
  • Plan costs enhance, typically by enormous margins, over time

Our take

Ionos has the bottom beginning worth level of every other service on this checklist, however as soon as the plan renews, the worth will increase drastically. Ionos additionally has buyer help numbers for 14 nations, making it a sensible choice for worldwide prospects.

Internet hosting plans

Ionos gives shared, VPS, devoted and managed and unmanaged WordPress internet hosting. The corporate additionally differentiates between internet hosting plans meant for smaller and bigger organizations to assist prospects higher perceive what plan is finest for them.

Security measures

Ionos gives security measures that transcend what different internet hosting providers provide. All plans embrace SSL certificates, malware scans and DDoS protections. Some plans additionally assist restore harm malware would possibly trigger in your web site. Backups a minimum of as soon as each 24-hours are additionally normal with every plan, and every backup is held for 20 days. A full set of a buyer’s information can be saved in two separate information facilities as a safety measure, that approach prospects will all the time have entry to their information, even when one information heart is introduced down by a cyberattack.

Uptime

Ionos has a 99.99% uptime assure, which is the next assure than most different internet hosting providers. Battery-operated energy provides and backup turbines assist keep energy to Ionos information facilities so your website and providers keep on-line even when its information heart loses energy.

Buyer help

Help is out there any time, both by cellphone or chat. A listing additionally gives buyer help numbers for patrons in 14 completely different nations. Ionos additionally gives a private advisor who will likely be your important level of contact should you need assistance along with your website. A private advisor and cellphone numbers for various help facilities all over the world provides Ionos prospects extra methods to get assist in comparison with another internet hosting suppliers.

Different options

Ionos gives a standing web page to alert prospects when providers go down or are being repaired. The web page additionally logs the instances when providers go down and are introduced again up, and it lets prospects know of any scheduled upkeep. 

Pricing

Ionos’ costs begin decrease than most different internet hosting providers for comparable providers. Nonetheless, costs rise — shared and WordPress internet hosting rise by 800% — after a sure period of time. Which means Ionos is an effective entry level for internet hosting, but it surely might not be one of the best long-term residence in your web site if value is your main concern.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Professionals:

  • Presents all kinds of plans for all wants
  • Options web site builder to assist create your website
  • Produces 3 times the quantity of wind vitality it makes use of

Cons:

  • Telephone help is not lively 24/7
  • Costs of some plans are above common

Our take

GreenGeeks’ promise to offset its vitality wants makes this service a transparent alternative for climate-conscious prospects. Some plans additionally provide limitless storage and bandwidth. Nonetheless, costs are just a little excessive in comparison with different plans.

Internet hosting plans

GreenGeeks gives shared, VPS, devoted, WordPress and reseller internet hosting plans. Every plan gives tiered choices that allow you to scale up as your website’s wants develop. Some plans are managed, however at the next value. Every plan additionally features a web site builder so you do not have to construct your website from scratch.

Security measures

Every plan features a slew of security measures like SSL certificates, DDoS protections, day by day backups, malware cleanups and extra to assist shield your website. 

Uptime

Like most net hosts, GreenGeeks gives a 99.9% uptime.

Buyer help

GreenGeeks says it checks its servers each 10 seconds for any points, whereas different providers would possibly test each 30 seconds, minute or longer. This implies in case your website runs into any points, GreenGeeks would possibly already be engaged on resolving it earlier than you contact them. For extra direct buyer help GreenGeeks gives 24/7 chat help, however cellphone help is just lively from 9 a.m. to midnight ET. 

Different options

For each internet hosting account, GreenGeeks vegetation a tree, and GreenGeeks additionally creates 3 times the quantity of vitality used via renewable vitality sources. Knowledge facilities contribute about 0.3% of world carbon emissions, in keeping with the Worldwide Power Company, so GreenGeeks’ environmental dedication makes it a internet hosting choice that provides again.

Pricing

GreenGeeks’ pricing is common in comparison with different internet hosting providers. Nonetheless, many of the lowest costs from GreenGeeks require a three-year contract paid in full upfront. Different contracts can be found at an elevated worth per thirty days, however should even be paid in full upfront.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Professionals:

  • 24/7 “Guru Crew” buyer help by chat, electronic mail or cellphone
  • Free website migration when coming from one other service
  • Servers are bodily safe on website

Cons:

  • Lowest costs require three-year contracts
  • Some plans do not provide sufficient to justify greater costs

Our take

A2 Internet hosting gives nice customer support choices, in addition to many various kinds of multi-tiered internet hosting plans. Plans provide a variety of options at no further value. The largest draw back is that the most cost effective plans require a three-year contract.

Internet hosting plans

A2 Internet hosting gives shared, VPS, devoted, WordPress, reseller and cloud internet hosting, together with tiered choices inside every plan. Shared internet hosting, for instance, gives plans labeled Startup, Drive, Turbo Enhance and Turbo Max. These further plans give prospects extra choices to select from to raised match their wants, and permit prospects to scale their operation as wanted.

Security measures

Every plan comes with security measures like an SSL certificates, twin firewalls, virus scanner and brute power protection. Every plan comes with a Patchman enhanced safety instrument, which often prices about $25 a month, in addition to DDoS protections that may detect DDoS assaults as quickly as they occur to assist preserve your website secure. A2 Internet hosting additionally boasts concerning the bodily safety of its servers — as a way to entry them, somebody must have two separate key playing cards to enter the car parking zone and the server heart. 

Uptime

A2 Internet hosting has a 99.9% uptime dedication. An uptime of 99.9% means your website should not be down for greater than 9 hours a yr, which is the {industry} normal.

Buyer help

The actual distinction for A2 Internet hosting is its dedication to buyer help. A2’s “Guru Crew” is out there by chat, electronic mail or cellphone 24/7. And if you wish to determine one thing out with out speaking to anybody, A2 Internet hosting has a big Data Base crammed with data that can assist you develop and develop your website.

Different options

In case you are trying to swap internet hosting service suppliers, A2 Internet hosting gives free website migration. The common value of a website migration in 2021 was between $300 to $400, making this a beneficiant provide.

Pricing

A2 Internet hosting pricing is about common at first look, however the lowest costs additionally include a three-year contract, so to get the bottom worth you’re locked into this service for a very long time. A number of the service’s tiered plan choices won’t provide sufficient to justify the worth enhance, as nicely. The Turbo Enhance and Turbo Max shared internet hosting, for instance, are $7 and $13 per thirty days, respectively. The plans seem to have two variations: Enhance has 2GB of bodily reminiscence in comparison with the Max’s 4GB. As well as, Max gives “5X Extra Sources” by utilizing nonvolatile reminiscence specific drives, that are quicker than solid-state drives. Nonvolatile reminiscence specific drives do not appear a lot quicker than SSDs on paper, however should you’re attempting to promote one thing in actual time on-line each second — or millisecond — counts.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Professionals:

  • 90-day a reimbursement assure
  • Many customer support choices
  • Free web site builder

Cons:

  • US servers solely
  • Month-to-month cost plans not accessible for all plans

Our take

InMotion Internet hosting has one of many longest money-back assure time frames, so even should you aren’t completely happy with its service you may nonetheless get some money again after a month or two. Nonetheless, InMotion Internet hosting solely has US-based servers, so it is not your best option for anybody with a world viewers.

Internet hosting plans

InMotion Internet hosting gives shared, VPS, devoted, WordPress and reseller internet hosting with completely different tiered choices for every kind of internet hosting. InMotion Internet hosting additionally gives hourly managed internet hosting providers. These providers will be bought for one, two or three hours for $40 to $100 per thirty days, or exterior of a plan at $75 per hour.

Security measures

Every plan comes with free SSL certificates, DDoS protections and hack and malware protections. Computerized day by day backups are additionally accessible for some plans.

Uptime

InMotion Internet hosting gives 99.99% uptime, putting InMotion Internet hosting above the usual when it comes to uptime. Prospects ought to anticipate lower than an hour of downtime per yr, in comparison with 9 hours for corporations that solely provide 99.9% uptime.

Buyer help

InMotion Internet hosting’s buyer help gives extra methods for patrons to contact them than many different providers. Prospects can contact a buyer help consultant by cellphone, chat, or electronic mail 24/7, they will file help tickets or Skype with a consultant. InMotion Internet hosting additionally gives prospects entry to a database of tutorial posts, in addition to a group discussion board prospects can look via for the reply to a query if you cannot discover it wherever else.

Different options

Most internet hosting providers provide a 30-day a reimbursement assure, however all InMotion Internet hosting plans include a 90-day a reimbursement assure. That makes InMotion a fantastic choice for anybody who’s attempting out an internet site for the primary time however is not positive in the event that they’re prepared for an extended dedication.

Pricing

As with different internet hosting providers, the listed worth is just relevant earlier than the renewal value. These will be complicated when evaluating costs since some plans seem to value the identical regardless of one providing extra perks. For instance, the shared internet hosting Launch plan prices $5 a month with a three-year contract and the shared internet hosting Energy plan prices the identical for a similar contract size however has extra options — looks like a no brainer to go along with the Energy plan, proper? Nonetheless, after the contract ends, the Launch plan renews at $12 a month and the Energy plan renews at $16 a month, leaving subscribers paying extra for the Energy plan.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Professionals:

  • Unmetered bandwidth and disk area
  • Free website and area transfers
  • 45-day a reimbursement assure

Cons:

  • Restoring information from backups prices further
  • Add-ons add up

Our take

HostGator makes it simple to start out and keep an internet site with a database of tutorials and walkthroughs. If you have already got a website, you may switch it to HostGator for no further cost. Be sure you learn the high-quality print with regards to backups, although — it left us with questions.

Internet hosting plans

HostGator gives shared, VPS, devoted, WordPress and reseller internet hosting plans with tiered choices. Every plan comes with unmetered bandwidth and disk area so you may load as a lot information in your website as you need. That makes it a fantastic choice for anybody with a lot of video, photographs or animated web page components. 

Security measures

HostGator gives free SSL certificates, DDoS protections and automatic backups. After the backups are taken, HostGator scans the recordsdata and makes positive they’re freed from malicious code, and if any is positioned the recordsdata are quarantined. Nonetheless, HostGator writes that anybody with “vital enterprise data or necessary information are STRONGLY inspired to hunt a third-party backup service…” (emphasis theirs). Undermining your individual backup system is an odd alternative.

Uptime

HostGator has an industry-standard 99.9% uptime assure. Shared and reseller internet hosting prospects can request a one-month refund if their uptime does not meet that assure. Nonetheless, VPS and devoted internet hosting prospects will not get a refund if their uptime is not met. As a substitute these prospects obtain a prorated credit score for the way lengthy the server was down.

Buyer help

Prospects can attain HostGator buyer help representatives by chat, electronic mail or cellphone 24/7. A database additionally gives prospects video tutorials, articles and guides. Not all providers provide video tutorials, which may assist remedy a problem when it seems like speaking to buyer help over the cellphone or on-line is not serving to.

Different options

HostGator gives a 45-day a reimbursement assure, which is above common when in comparison with most different internet hosting providers. The tutorials and walkthroughs accessible additionally make it simple for first-time website managers to get began.

Value

Along with renewal costs leaping after a plan’s contract ends, add-ons can even considerably enhance the worth. Restoring backups, for instance, prices an extra $25. So whereas, sure, HostGator gives automated backups, you continue to should pay further to entry these backups, which makes it really feel like backups are actually an extra value. That is definitely uncommon.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Professionals:

  • World information facilities 
  • Cloud internet hosting gives 100% {hardware} uptime
  • Free website migration

Cons:

  • No limitless information choices on most plans
  • Buyer help cellphone service not accessible all hours

Our take

AccuWeb Internet hosting has information facilities all over the world to raised serve worldwide prospects. It gives each Linux and Home windows servers for internet hosting wants, however cellphone help is proscribed to 9 a.m. to five p.m. ET, which is lower than best should you’re in one other time zone.

Internet hosting plans

AccuWeb Internet hosting gives shared, VPS, devoted, WordPress, reseller and completely different cloud internet hosting choices. There are alternatives for cloud shared and cloud VPS internet hosting plans as nicely. Prospects can even select which of AccuWeb Internet hosting’s world information facilities will host their information. This implies should you anticipate most of your visitors to come back from exterior the US, you may select to have your information in a distinct information heart so your website hundreds faster for non-US guests. 

Security measures

AccuWeb Internet hosting gives free SSL certificates with every plan, free antivirus instruments and free day by day backups, that are an improve over the extra normal weekly backups. Safety instruments like malware cleanup are additionally included.

Uptime

Whereas AccuWeb Internet hosting ensures a powerful 99.99% uptime, its cloud internet hosting plans provide 100% {hardware} uptime. Nonetheless, simply because the {hardware} is up 100% of the time, does not imply your website is reachable on a regular basis as nicely. If a server is up and operating however the community is down, positive the {hardware} is okay, however your website nonetheless will not be reachable.

Buyer help

Prospects can chat and file tickets with customer support 24/7, however cellphone providers are restricted. Proper now, cellphone service is from 9 a.m. to five p.m. ET and based mostly within the US and Canada, regardless of having information facilities across the globe.

Different options

Whereas different providers restrict the variety of domains an account can have and often solely enable one area with primary shared plans, AccuWeb Internet hosting provides you limitless domains it doesn’t matter what plan you join. Different providers additionally restrict the variety of electronic mail accounts primary shared plans can host, often between one and 10, however primary shared plans with AccuWeb Internet hosting provide 150 enterprise electronic mail accounts, so as an alternative of sending an electronic mail out of your private account, you may ship an electronic mail from your corporation account and provides your message extra credibility.

Pricing

Some AccuWeb Internet hosting plans, like shared plans, are just a little greater than different providers, whereas mid-level plans, like VPS plans, are cheaper than different providers. In case you select a shared plan, however plan to scale as much as a VPS plan, the worth averages out.

Different internet hosting providers to think about

These providers do not provide one of many three internet hosting choices, do not embrace adequate security measures, an uptime assure or have some restricted customer support choices. The next providers aren’t as strong as our high picks, however they’re nonetheless cheap choices.

Dreamhost

Dreamhost gives a 97-day money-back assure, which is the longest time-frame for a internet hosting service on this checklist. In case you’re new to internet hosting, this window may provide you with sufficient time to make an knowledgeable determination about whether or not to stick with Dreamhost or not. Dreamhost gives shared, VPS, devoted and WordPress internet hosting plans, in addition to an upgraded WordPress plan known as DreamPress. Dreamhost has a 99.9% uptime assure, and plans include security measures like SSL certificates and malware remover. Chat and electronic mail help can be found 24/7, and cellphone help is out there through callback, nevertheless one cellphone callback request prices an extra $10. You may also buy three callback requests a month for an extra $15. Dreamhost gives a step-by-step on-line consumer information with the way to deal with technical points. The least costly plan contains one month of internet hosting. Afterwards, the worth renews to the usual price, which is about quadruple the beginning worth.

Dreamhost plans begin at $2.59 a month.

Sarah Tew/CNET

NameCheap gives among the most cost-effective pricing plans. Month-to-month plans particularly are inexpensive in comparison with month-to-month plans from different providers. Another providers would possibly provide month-to-month shared internet hosting plans for $20, however a NameCheap month-to-month shared internet hosting plan can value lower than $5. NameCheap additionally gives VPS, devoted, WordPress and reseller internet hosting plans. NameCheap has a 99.9% uptime assure for VPS and reseller plans, in addition to a 100% uptime assure for many shared, VPS and devoted plans. Every Namecheap plan comes with a free virus scanner, two-factor authentication and DDoS safety to assist safe your information and your guests’ information. SSL certificates are free for one yr. After that yr, you should buy SSL certificates via NameCheap. Costs begin at $6 a yr with a five-year contract. NameCheap gives 24/7 electronic mail and chat help, however no cellphone help. The pricing for some plans will be complicated. For instance, the most cost effective devoted internet hosting plan comes with a one month contract for $41.88, after which the worth reverts to the usual price of $53.88. Over a one yr interval, this plan will value $634.56. This seems to be a great deal, however the identical plan with a one yr contract prices $566.88, a distinction of about $68.

NameCheap plans begin at $1.58 a month.

Hostinger

Hostinger gives a aggressive worth level. Shared and WordPress plans begin at $2 a month, VPS plans begin at $3.49 and cloud internet hosting plans begin at $10 a month. There are additionally video modules on YouTube to point out you the way to, for instance, construct your WordPress website or the way to change your area title. Plans embrace SSL certificates and all servers have an superior safety module to guard your information. Some lower-tier plans provide weekly backups, whereas higher-tier plans provide day by day backups. Hostinger has a 99.9% uptime assure, too. Buyer help is proscribed, although. Reside chat is out there 24/7, as is electronic mail, however Hostinger does not provide cellphone help.  

Hostinger plans begin at $2 a month.

Day by day Host Information

SiteGround is an effective choice should you’re new to internet hosting. It gives a 99.99% uptime, 24/7 buyer help and plans embrace security measures like SSL certificates, spam safety and an internet entry firewall to assist shield your website. The corporate additionally has a 100% renewable vitality match. Nonetheless, Siteground gives shared, cloud, WordPress and reseller internet hosting choices, so whereas these are good choices to have, as your website grows and features extra visitors you would possibly need to take into account a service that provides VPS or devoted internet hosting.  

SiteGround plans begin at $3 a month.

PR Newswire

GoDaddy Net Internet hosting gives unmetered storage and bandwidth with its plans so you may add as many photographs and movies onto your website as you need. GoDaddy gives shared, VPS, devoted and WordPress internet hosting plans, has a 99.9% uptime assure and 24/7 buyer help. Nonetheless, its safety choices are inconsistent. For instance, SSL certificates are included with some higher-tiered shared plans, however not lower-tiered plans. If that is your first website, you would possibly need to begin with one of many lower-tiered choices, however the lack of security measures would possibly push you to get a dearer plan. 

GoDaddy Net Internet hosting plans begin at $6 a month.

HostPapa

HostPapa has world information facilities, so you may select one of the best information heart to achieve your guests the quickest. Internet hosting choices embrace shared, VPS, managed WordPress, reseller internet hosting and PapaCare Plus, which is analogous to managed shared internet hosting. HostPapa has free SSL certificates, DDoS safety and different security measures included in every plan, a 99.9% uptime assure and 24/7 cellphone, chat and electronic mail help. Nonetheless, the shortage of a devoted internet hosting choice means in case your website grows too massive, you’ll have to migrate to a different service. Additionally, should you select HostPapa, be sure that to look over what you’re shopping for once you’re testing. As I went via checkout, some options, like automated backups and a safety instrument, had been robotically added for an extra cost. When evaluating plans, these further options are talked about and marked as included in higher-tier plans, however not in all plans.

HostPapa plans begin at $2.95 per thirty days.

Hostwinds

Hostwinds gives limitless storage and bandwidth, in addition to limitless free enterprise electronic mail accounts with every plan. It gives shared, managed and unmanaged VPS, devoted, reseller and cloud internet hosting plans, has a 99.99% uptime assure and gives 24/7 chat help. Hostwinds plans additionally include free SSL certificates and free nightly backups. Nonetheless, compared to different providers, Hostwinds is not as forthcoming with data on different options or plan variations. Often providers present detailed charts that lay out what options include plans. Hostwinds’ shared chart, for instance, solely lists bandwidth, disk area and what number of domains include every plan. Since bandwidth and disk area are limitless, the one noticeable variations with every plan are the domains provided with every plan, the worth and title of every plan. 

Hostwinds plans begin at $5.24 a month.

FastTech

Bluehost makes a speciality of WordPress internet hosting and gives further sources, like its Blue Flash buyer help staff, for anybody who chooses WordPress internet hosting. It gives shared, VPS and devoted internet hosting in addition to managed and unmanaged WordPress internet hosting. All plans embrace free SSL certificates, two-factor authentication and anti-spam protections. Bluehost prospects can name or chat with a buyer help consultant 24/7. Bluehost does not provide an uptime assure, however as an alternative says it resolves points inside quarter-hour of them being reported. Nonetheless, it does not say what number of points you need to anticipate on common. In case your website is down for about quarter-hour per week, your website might be down for about 13 hours a yr, which is greater than normal. 

Bluehost plans begin at $2.95 per thirty days. 

Day by day Host Information

GlowHost’s worldwide information facilities provide the flexibility to host your website from a sure area should you anticipate most of your visitors will come from that area. Glowhost gives shared, cloud VPS, devoted, semi-dedicated, reseller and what Glowhost calls an elastic plan which it compares to a managed VPS plan. Security measures embrace free SSL certificates and McAfee Safe, which begins at $30 a yr, and buyer help is out there by cellphone or chat 24/7. Uptime is more durable to discern although. Some devoted internet hosting plans assure 100% uptime, however a Glowhost administrator in 2008 stated it may vary between 99.5% and 99.9%, which suggests your website might be down for a minimum of a day over the course of 1 yr. 

Glowhost plans begin at $3.47 per thirty days.

Wikipedia

iPage gives prospects a free web site builder to get their website up and operating, in addition to e-commerce instruments to simply combine into your website. iPage gives shared, VPS, devoted and WordPress internet hosting plans, and has a 99.9% uptime assure. The service additionally gives 24/7 chat help, in addition to cellphone help accessible seven days per week from 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. Jap time. Every iPage plan comes with a free SSL certificates, however further security measures like day by day malware scans and backups aren’t included. To fill these safety gaps, iPage gives SiteLock, which begins at an additional $3.99 a month. iPage’s website can be arduous to navigate compared to different providers. For instance, I needed to scroll to the underside of its homepage to seek out further internet hosting plans, like VPS and devoted. 

iPage plans begin at $2 per thirty days.

ReviewPlan

Mochahost, not like most different internet hosting providers, gives a lifetime low cost assure. Nonetheless, this low cost does not apply to each contract, so it may be a headache to determine the place the lifetime low cost does or doesn’t apply. From what we have seen, the lifetime low cost assure is often hooked up to three-year contracts, however these contract lengths aren’t often the bottom priced. The marketed costs may be the bottom worth, however that does not imply they will prevent essentially the most cash. The most important reductions usually apply for only one month, and the renewal worth might be double that authentic value. Longer contracts, like these which are three years lengthy, are dearer for the primary month, however you will lower your expenses in the long run as a result of the lifetime low cost is decrease than the renewal worth of shorter plans. In different phrases, longer contracts that seem dearer prevent cash after concerning the second month. Mochahost gives shared, VPS, devoted cloud, WordPress and reseller plans, a 100% uptime assure and 24/7 dwell chat help. Telephone help can be accessible on callback. Free SSL certificates are included in every plan as nicely, however different security measures, like spam and malware filters, come at an extra value or with dearer plans. 

Mochahost plans begin at $1.95 per thirty days.

WebHostingPad

WebHostingPad gives shared, managed and unmanaged VPS, WordPress and a mini internet hosting plan for smaller websites. Every plan contains free SSL certificates and SiteLock Lite, and WebHostingHub has a 99.9% uptime assure. Chat help is out there 24/7, however cellphone help is just accessible Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Central Time. WebHostingPad additionally gives aggressive costs, beginning at $1.99 a month, however they’re solely accessible with four-year and five-year contracts. There’s a mini plan that has a hard and fast worth level of $3 a month, but it surely’s provided with a three-year contract, in any other case the worth is $3.50 a month for one yr or $3.25 a month for 2 years. Domains are additionally an extra $17 at checkout. 

WebHostingPad plans begin at $2 a month.


Extra internet hosting providers we checked out

Most of those providers focus on one kind of internet hosting, like shared or WordPress, which suggests they are not one of the best should you plan to develop your website. Additionally they are typically lacking some security measures and buyer help choices. Nonetheless, they might be best for you and your wants in case you have particular or smaller-scale internet hosting wants.

Liquid Net: No shared internet hosting. Security measures embrace an built-in firewall and normal DDoS protections. Presents 99.99% uptime and 24/7 chat or cellphone help. Costs begin at $15 a month.

Net Internet hosting Hub: Presents shared and WordPress internet hosting. Has free SSL certificates however different security measures value further. Presents 99.9% uptime and has 24/7 chat and cellphone help. Costs begin at $6 a month.

WP Engine: Presents WordPress internet hosting. Security measures like free SSL certificates and day by day backups. Has a 99.95% uptime assure and gives 24/7 chat and cellphone help. Costs begin at $20 a month.

Kinsta: Presents WordPress internet hosting. Security measures like free SSL certificates and computerized backups. Has a 99.9% uptime and 24/7 chat help. Costs begin at $35 a month.

Pantheon: Presents WordPress internet hosting. Security measures embrace DDoS safety and automatic backups. Presents 99.9% uptime and buyer help is out there 24/7 through chat, cellphone and even Slack. Costs begin at $41 a month. 

Woman at desk with computer

Discovering the suitable internet hosting service might help you launch a weblog or an internet site in your small enterprise. 


Richard Peterson/CNET

Standards for internet hosting providers

Whereas we did not take a look at the providers, we did rigorously look at every service’s choices and ranked them in keeping with important internet hosting options. Here is what we regarded for to find out one of the best internet hosting providers. You may also try CNET’s 11 issues to find out about internet hosting for extra details about these and different options.

  • Internet hosting plans: We checked to see if the service provided shared, VPS and devoted internet hosting plans. Inclusion of all three plan varieties permits prospects to scale their plan up as their website grows. 
  • Security measures: Providers want to incorporate some primary security measures similar to SSL certificates, DDoS protections and backups to guard your information in addition to your guests’. The most effective net hosts do that at no further cost.
  • Uptime of 99.9% or greater: An uptime of 99.9% or greater ensures your website will not go down for greater than 20 minutes a month, so you retain losses of readers and gross sales to a minimal.
  • Buyer help: All providers provide some form of buyer help. Most providers provide electronic mail help, which is an effective begin. Others provide dwell chat — which is best — and others provide cellphone help — which is finest. The most effective providers provide all three at no further cost. Even when cellphone help is just accessible in a sure timeframe, it is higher than nothing.

The most effective internet hosting providers meet all 4 of these standards. If a service falls brief on a number of of these measures, you will discover it in our checklist of different internet hosting providers to think about or our checklist of further net hosts we checked out.

Website hosting phrases to know

Some internet hosting phrases will be complicated. If a time period on this checklist or on an internet hsoting service’s website has you scratching your head, I will clarify them in additional element right here.

What’s a CMS and what does it do?

Content material administration methods might help create and keep your web site. A CMS is rather a lot just like the instruments used to create posts or add footage to your social media profile, for instance. A CMS does the identical factor, however in your website. You do not want a CMS, however with out one you will should code your website from the bottom up. Along with WordPress, a couple of different CMS instruments are Joomla and WooCommerce.

A file switch protocol is a technique for transferring massive recordsdata — like movies and different data-heavy recordsdata — from one location, like a server or pc, to a different. Consider FTP as a sort of supply service. Think about you order a tv from an organization and have it delivered to your property. The supply truck that drops off the tv at your property is the FTP. In case you’ve ever used software program like FileZilla, you’ve got used an FTP. Whereas FTP is usually weak to malicious actors intercepting your information, safe file switch protocol (SFTP) and FTP over SSL/TSL (FTPS) provide safer methods to switch your recordsdata and information with safety measures, like firewalls and information encryption. If given the choice, all the time select SFTP or FTPS somewhat than FTP when selecting a internet hosting service.

I preserve seeing the phrase ‘e-commerce’ in some internet hosting plan descriptions. What’s that?

Digital commerce (e-commerce) is shopping for and promoting objects on-line. In case you’ve purchased something on-line like a brand new shirt, meals or digital music, you’ve got participated in e-commerce. Website hosting providers will often point out e-commerce in plan descriptions to sign it contains instruments to assist get your on-line store up and operating. In case you plan on opening an internet retailer or promoting objects on-line, you need to search for plans that embrace e-commerce instruments and sources.

Content material supply networks, or content material distribution networks, are teams of knowledge facilities and servers that assist ship content material to individuals on the web based mostly on a customer’s bodily location. Think about you’re internet hosting a website out of Dallas: 

With no CDN, if individuals from the Netherlands attempt to entry your website, your guests may need to attend some time for the content material of your website to be delivered to them due to the space. Nonetheless, in case your internet hosting service makes use of a CDN and has an information heart within the Netherlands, your guests from the Netherlands will entry a model of your website saved within the a lot nearer information heart. This model of your website has some cached recordsdata saved in it to spice up webpage load instances and cut back bandwidth utilization. That is good for you since some internet hosting providers restrict bandwidth utilization, and quicker load instances means happier guests. 

In keeping with a examine by Digital.com, half of buyers anticipate a website to load in three seconds or much less, and nearly 1 / 4 of buyers stated gradual load instances are their important supply of dissatisfaction when buying on-line.

Website hosting FAQs

You may try CNET’s internet hosting FAQ or ideas to assist safe your website for extra data, too.

Website hosting is the act of storing an internet site’s information on a server or sequence of servers. Think about an internet site as a murals. That artwork must be housed someplace for individuals to see, and internet hosting is sort of a gallery the place your artwork will be saved for others to view.

Server room with blue lights

Knowledge facilities are crammed with servers that may home lots of of internet sites.


Stephen Shankland/CNET

What are the essential sorts of internet hosting?

There are three frequent sorts of internet hosting: shared, digital personal server and devoted internet hosting.

Shared internet hosting is often essentially the most primary, and the least costly, kind of internet hosting. Persevering with the artwork instance, shared internet hosting is sort of a small gallery introduced in a espresso store. Sure, the artwork you created is there, however so is artwork by different individuals. Shared internet hosting is analogous. You are often charged a couple of bucks a month to deal with your website, however you do not get a variety of sources that can assist you handle your website. These plans often value between $2.50 and $15 a month.

VPS internet hosting is a step up from shared internet hosting and is just a little bit dearer. Right here, your artwork is saved in a gallery downtown. Different artwork remains to be saved and displayed alongside yours, however not like shared internet hosting, every artist has their very own sales space throughout the gallery. With VPS internet hosting, you get extra sources which let you deal with extra visitors and show extra objects. These plans often value between $20 and $80 a month.

Devoted internet hosting is once you home your website on an entire server with out anybody else. That is like having the complete artwork gallery to your self. Every part there may be your artwork and also you get devoted individuals to assist handle your artwork. These plans are the most costly, however you get essentially the most sources. Devoted internet hosting plans often value between $80 and $300 a month.

What are another sorts of internet hosting?

Another sorts of internet hosting embrace reseller, cloud and WordPress internet hosting.

Reseller internet hosting includes subscribing to a internet hosting service and promoting that area to an individual who needs to place an internet site on-line. Again to the artwork instance: Think about you do not personal any artwork, however you see a bunch of people that need to show their artwork. You’ve some cash so you purchase an area in a constructing for artists to show their work and cost them for utilizing that area. That is reseller internet hosting. You purchase area on a server, to not use, however to resell to individuals as a way to earn money. 

Cloud internet hosting is like having copies of your artwork featured on-line, as an alternative of simply bodily areas. That approach, even when one gallery is closed your artwork remains to be viewable some place else. Cloud internet hosting is analogous in that your information is saved in a community of servers so if something occurs to 1 server, guests can nonetheless view your website like normal. These are usually utilized by bigger companies and organizations.

WordPress internet hosting is optimized to make use of WordPress as a content material administration system. WordPress is a well-liked system utilized by many organizations, providing over 54,000 plugins to assist construct your website. This method is designed to be simple to study, which suggests WordPress is an effective alternative for people who find themselves internet hosting their first website.

What’s uptime and why is it necessary?

Uptime is a measurement of how lengthy your website operates with out going offline. The longer your website stays up, the extra visitors it could actually deal with and the extra money you may doubtlessly make in case your website is for a enterprise. Think about you’ve got narrowed down the place to hold your artwork to 2 locations: One is open two days per week and the opposite is open seven days per week. You need extra individuals to see your artwork so that you go along with the place open seven days per week. That is just like uptime. Nonetheless, uptime will be complicated. Usually once you see one thing is 99% efficient, you assume that is fairly good. However a 99% uptime means your website is down for over three days a yr. The {industry} normal uptime is 99.9%, and something extra is finest for you and your guests. Most internet hosting providers have uptime ensures and provide some type of reimbursement in case your website is down longer than the assured uptime.

What are the variations between unmanaged and managed internet hosting?

Unmanaged internet hosting plans place duty for some administrative work on you because the buyer. Managed internet hosting plans, nevertheless, go away the heavy lifting to the internet hosting service supplier. Unmanaged is like should you hold your artwork in a gallery and it’s a must to clear it, be sure that it is hung proper and customarily keep it. Managed is like gallery staff dealing with these duties for you. Unmanaged plans are usually more economical, however managed plans unencumber your time to focus in your website.

What security measures ought to I search for in a internet hosting service?

A number of the key security measures you have to be looking out for are safe socket layer certificates, distributed denial of service protections and net utility firewalls. 

SSL certificates are a type of cryptographic protocols that encrypt and authenticate information between servers, machines and functions working inside a community. These are like a coded language between the server your website is hosted on and the pc of a customer. Solely your server and your customer’s pc have the keys to the coded language, making certain nobody intercepts any of your or your customer’s information.

A DDoS assault is a flood of visitors to your website that overwhelms and shuts down your website, and doubtlessly the websites of others relying in your internet hosting plan. Think about you hold your artwork up in a espresso store, for instance, and somebody does not like your artwork in order that they persuade lots of of 1000’s of protesters to swarm the store to cease anybody from seeing your artwork. Not solely can most individuals not see your artwork due to the group, however individuals cannot see different artist’s work both. Having DDoS protections in place helps monitor your website’s visitors for something suspicious, and stops DDoS assaults from taking place earlier than they trigger vital harm.

A WAF is a layer of safety in your website that filters, screens and blocks malicious visitors from accessing your website. You’ve hung your artwork up, and as a way to shield your artwork and anybody who’s come to see it, the gallery has employed a bouncer to pat down individuals as they stroll in to see your artwork. The bouncer is the WAF. If visitors appears suspicious, the WAF blocks it. 

Error 404

DDoS assaults could make your website unreachable for an prolonged period of time.


James Martin/CNET

What are web site builders? Do I would like a type of?

Not essentially, but when that is your first website you would possibly discover a web site builder useful, and a few internet hosting providers provide free web site builders with plans. As a substitute of coding your website from scratch, web site builders are instruments that enable you simply create your website via easier interfaces.

What’s website migration? Can I do this myself?

Website migration is the method of shifting your already established web site from one internet hosting service to a different. You would possibly do that as a result of the worth to resume your present internet hosting service elevated dramatically otherwise you’re sad along with your present service. Some providers will migrate your website at no cost, whereas others will cost you emigrate to their service. You may migrate your website manually, however you could possibly lose visitors in addition to content material if achieved improperly. If it is your first time migrating from one service to a different, it may be finest to let another person deal with it.

Ought to I take advantage of a Linux or Home windows server?

It is dependent upon your targets, however a Linux server will work for most individuals. Servers that run the Linux working system help most programming languages and have extra options net builders would possibly anticipate. Linux can be the extra common server working system, powering about 37.8% of all web sites on the web, in keeping with Net Expertise Surveys. Quite a lot of website-creation instruments and functions run on Linux so they are going to work on these servers with no further effort. Linux servers are additionally usually cheaper than Home windows servers. In case you’re a small enterprise proprietor sustaining your individual website, otherwise you’re beginning your individual weblog or on-line retailer, a Linux server has what you want. 

Servers that use the Home windows working system use the programming language C#. Which means should you already know Python, Perl or one other language, you will should study C#. Home windows servers additionally use Microsoft-specific instruments and functions like Microsoft Entry, Microsoft SharePoint and MSSQL. In case you run into points with these functions or your server, you may contact Microsoft’s buyer help who ought to have the ability to remedy your concern in a well timed trend. Linux is an open-source working system, so whereas there’s a group of individuals working to repair bugs, you will probably should dig round to discover a resolution that works for you. Many massive companies and organizations use Home windows servers, so if you wish to work for one in all them sooner or later, you may gain advantage from training with your individual server and placing that in your resume.

For extra on internet hosting, try the finest web site builders, the finest VPN providers and the finest identification theft safety providers.