How to Choose a Web Host: 7 Top Tips for Finding the Best Provider

1 Check What Types of Hosting Are Available

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There are many different types of web hosting out there, and choosing the right one for your needs is a big part of setting up your site for long-term success. Not every web host offers all types of hosting, so it’s important to check in advance.

The different types of hosting include: 

• Shared hosting 
• VPS hosting 
• Cloud hosting
• Dedicated hosting
• WordPress hosting

Most web hosts provide shared hosting, because it’s the most popular, but other types of hosting – for example, cloud hosting – are more hit and miss.

Think about which type of hosting best suits your needs, and make sure that your web host has what you’re looking for.

You also need to plan ahead. For example, if you’re starting out with shared hosting, it’s also worth checking out your web host’s VPS plans, since that’s the natural step up once you’ve outgrown your shared plan.

There are some questions you’ll want to keep in mind when checking a web host’s different packages:

• How many plans are included in each hosting type? For example, if there’s only two plans, that doesn’t leave much room for scalability
• Is there room to grow? If you’re aiming to stick with the same host long-term, make sure it has good VPS and dedicated plans as well as starter shared hosting plans
• What’s the difference between the packages? For example, if a web host is offering WordPress hosting, then what WordPress-specific features make it different from normal hosting? Dig deep into what’s offered – don’t be drawn in by just the name of the hosting plan. We’ll look closer at features in a bit!

2 Compare Pricing with Your Budget

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It’s important that you can comfortably afford your hosting plan, with money left to spare for the other costs of running your site – whether that’s buying new plugins, paying freelance contributors, or maintaining a custom domain.

The good news is that a lot of hosting plans are very affordable. 

Shared hosting is the cheapest kind, and can cost as little as $1.39 per month, making it a great budget-friendly option. However, it can also be very limiting once you start to grow your site, which brings us to an important piece of advice…

The more advanced your hosting plan, the more expensive it will become. Dedicated hosting is usually the most expensive type – for example, HostGator has the best dedicated hosting plans, and they start at $89.98 per month.

Web Hosting Pricing: Explained

Discount vs Renewal Prices

One of the main reasons why hosting prices are so cheap to start with is because new customers receive discounted prices. Once your first term is over, you’ll pay the regular price for your hosting plan.

It’s always important to check a web host’s regular prices in addition to the discounted prices it uses for new customers. This gives you an idea of how affordable a host will be in the long-term, and prevents any unpleasant surprises once your first term is over.

For example, say you wanted to sign up to HostGator’s $2.75 per month shared plan. Your plan will renew at the regular rate of $6.95 per month after your first term, unless you cancel your renewal.

Subscription Lengths

The other reason hosting plans look so cheap is because web hosts always display pricing for their longest billing cycle – which is often 36 months long!

The more time you sign up and pay for up front, the cheaper your overall monthly cost will be. However, you may not be ready for that longer time commitment. Bear this in mind when you’re comparing price plans, as chances are you’re seeing prices for a three year contract.

We recommend looking at 12-month contracts to start with, as you still save money off the regular price, but without locking yourself in for three years.

How to Tell If a Hosting Plan Offers Good Value

Although cheap prices are eye-catching, here at Website Builder Guide, we prefer to pay more attention to value for money. A $1 per month hosting plan is useless if it can’t support your site!

Here are five things to look out for when considering pricing plans:

1. Is there a money-back guarantee? How long is it? Make sure you’ll get a refund if you’re unhappy with your web host
2. What’s the renewal price? Your price will go up after your first term, so make sure you know exactly how much you’ll be paying after that
3. How much does the price change if you pick a different contract length? Most web hosts advertise pricing for a 36-month contract – and shorter contracts will cost more
4. What’s included for free? Free SSL is a must. A free domain, free backups, and free migration are all great perks too, and will save you money elsewhere
5. What extras are added at checkout? Even if you’re not ready to buy, preview your checkout to see how many paid add-ons are selected – then, either factor these into your budget, or make sure to deselect them before you pay!

3 Explore Customer Support Resources

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Don’t wait until you have a problem with your website to explore your web host’s help and support resources. The quality of these resources should actually be a big part of your decision making process!

Before committing to a web host, we highly recommend that you:

• Browse its help center – read articles and watch videos to see if you find them helpful
• Explore its customer forum – are other users active and supportive? Are most issues marked as resolved?
• Get in touch – what communication channels are available? And how fast and helpful are the support agents?

Don’t be afraid to get in touch with customer support before you choose a plan – this is one of the best ways to see if you’ll be happy with the customer service once you’re signed up. Things to ask yourself include:

• Can you contact the support team in a way that suits you? For example, if you prefer speaking to someone directly, can you access phone support?
• How quickly can you get through to someone? If you have to wait for an hour or more, that’s a definite red flag
• Is your support agent knowledgeable? Make a list of questions you want help with and see if you get satisfactory answers
• Is your support agent polite and helpful? We all know how frustrating a bad customer service experience can be – support agents should make you feel supported and welcome to ask questions!

4 Make a Features Checklist

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The truth is, there’s no one-size-fits-all web host for everyone. But there is a right web host for you. The best way to choose a web host is to know what you want from your provider, which is why we recommend making a features checklist!

Knowing which features are important for your website’s success before choosing a host will help you cut through the noise and pick the right plan for your needs.

Here are some factors you’ll want to think about:

• Storage (also known as disk space) – How much storage do you need? Too little storage will limit your growth!
• Bandwidth – How much traffic are you expecting? Not having enough bandwidth means your site could crash if it receives too many visitors
• RAM – How much memory do you need? This stores data so it can be accessed quickly, improving performance. The more programs you run, the more RAM you need!
• Quantity – How many sites do you need to host? Basic plans usually only allow for one site
• Organization – Do you have a control panel preference? Most web hosts use cPanel, but others use their own custom control panel
• Backups – Are free backups included? Or do you have to pay extra? How regularly are backups made?
• Domain name – If you need a domain name, you may want a plan that includes one for free!
• SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) – These days, if a web host doesn’t include a free SSL for free in all its plans, consider this a red flag. It’s worth checking if you can buy a more advanced SSL through your web host later, if you need better security
• Control – If you want to get more hands-on with the technical side of things, look for features such as full root access and access control
• Switching – Do you need migration services? If you’re already hosting a site elsewhere, you’ll need to migrate it. Does your new web host offer free migration? How much of the process do they manage for you?

Choosing a web host can feel overwhelming because there’s so many features available – it can be hard to keep track! Creating a priority list will make it easier to eliminate options and stay focussed on what’s really important, instead of getting drawn in by cheap prices or non-essential freebies.

5 Don’t Leave Security to Chance

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Your web host is responsible for keeping your site’s servers secure, so make sure you choose a web host that has good security measures in place. Examples include:

• DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) Protection
• Firewalls
• Virus scanning
• Brute force defense
• Server hardening

It’s worth mentioning that often web hosts are cautious about sharing too much detail about their exact security measures, for fear of helping hackers find a way around their defences.

Other security features to look out for, which may depend on the plan you choose, include:

• SSL – most web hosts include a free SSL certificate. If you run an online store, you may want a more advanced SSL; check if you can buy one directly from your web host
• Domain Privacy – this keeps your personal information anonymous on the public WHOIS database, in order to reduce spam

6 Pay Attention to Speed and Reliability

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A poorly performing website will struggle to succeed online. Loading speeds can make or break a website, from user experience to SEO – and your web host is a vital tool for ensuring fast delivery. Although it can be hard to tell how speedy and reliable a web host is at first, there are some things to look for…

Uptime

Uptime is the percentage of time that your server (and therefore your website) will be up and running. 100% uptime isn’t possible, because all servers experience downtime at some point, even if it’s just to run updates.

You should aim for at least a 99.97% uptime guarantee, which equates to around 150 minutes of downtime per year. Ideally you don’t want any more downtime than this.

Most web hosts make their uptime guarantee easy to find on their websites – if you want to go a step further, some also provide a server status report where you can track recent uptime performance.

Server Locations

The more server locations a web host has, the faster your website will load for people across the globe. The closer a visitor is to your server, the faster your website will load, so it’s extremely beneficial to have multiple servers to choose from.

Not all web hosts will let you choose your server location, but some do, so it’s worth looking into!

In addition, check if you get a free CDN included in your hosting plan. CDN stands for Content Delivery Network, and describes a network of servers at different locations working together to deliver your content as quickly as possible.

Using a CDN can hugely improve your site’s performance, which keeps your visitors – and search engines like Google – happy.

7 Consider Any Specialisms You Need

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Earlier we talked about the different types of hosting, but there are some more specialist hosting packages to mention before you leave to go and choose your web host!

1. WordPress Hosting

There are two main types of WordPress hosting:

• Shared WordPress hosting – for new, small, or basic WordPress sites, such as a new blog or static brochure site
• Managed WordPress hosting – a more advanced type of hosting that’s best for growing business websites

When you’re choosing a web host for WordPress hosting, there are a few things to look for:

• Automatic WordPress installation
• Automatic WordPress updates (software and/or plugins)
• Specific WordPress support
• Free backups
• Custom themes

These features not only make your life easier, they also help your site succeed by keeping it up to date, secure, and running smoothly.

2. Linux vs Windows Hosting

Most hosting plans are Linux hosting – it’s the most popular choice, and tends to be the default. However, if you have specific needs then you may want Windows hosting instead, which uses Windows as the operating system and provides more niche programs.

3. Reseller Hosting

Reseller hosting is often used by businesses looking to set up their own hosting company, as it allows you to resell hosting space to others. It’s not offered by all web hosts, and is a little more technical than other hosting types – such as straightforward shared hosting, for example.