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5 Best WordPress Hosting Providers In India (2023) is a post from ShoutMeLoud – Shouters Who Inspires
Tag: WordPress Hosting
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8 Fastest WordPress Hosting in 2023 (Performance Tests)
Are you looking for the fastest WordPress hosting?
Fast hosting can help your website load more quickly. Fast loading pages improve user experience, increase your pageviews, and help with your WordPress SEO.
In this article, we will share our performance test results to help you find the fastest WordPress hosting for your website.
Why Fast WordPress Hosting Is Important
Do you want a fast WordPress website? One way to do that is to choose a reputable WordPress hosting provider that is optimized for speed.
The most important performance indicator is your website’s speed. It not only affects user experience, but it can also hurt your site’s search engine optimization (SEO). Users may leave a slow website before it even loads.
According to a case study that involved Amazon, Google, and other larger sites, a 1-second delay in website speed can reduce your conversions by 7%. A delay of 3 seconds can cost you 50% of your traffic.
On top of that, Google and other search engines penalize slower websites by pushing them down in the search results.
This means slow sites get less traffic, while a fast WordPress website will help you get more traffic, subscribers, and revenue.
How We Tested Website Performance for the Fastest WordPress Hosting Providers
One reason that WPBeginner is the most trusted WordPress resource site is that our reviews are based on actual data and experience.
To find the fastest WordPress hosting providers, we actually signed up with each provider and thoroughly tested their services.
We wanted to accurately measure performance across all WordPress hosting companies, so we created the same sample WordPress site on each hosting provider and used the default WordPress theme.
Next, we imported dummy content for theme development, including images and media, so our test resembles an average user website.
Then, we used independent third-party tools to test the performance of our sample website on each hosting provider:
- We used Pingdom, an industry-leading website speed test service, to get a performance grade for each provider and measure how long it took a page to load.
- We used the Load Impact (k6) service to send virtual users (VU) to each website to see how the hosting server would handle multiple connections at once, like peak traffic times of up to 100 visitors at once.
- We used Bitcatcha to test server response times across many geographical locations, including the United States, London, Singapore, São Paulo, India, Sydney, and Japan. This helps us decide which hosting company is best for each geographical location.
Now that you know our testing process, let’s compare the performance of different hosting companies to see which is the fastest WordPress hosting company on the market.
1. Hostinger
Hostinger is a popular web hosting provider with a reliable and user-friendly platform to launch websites. They offer affordable shared hosting plans with great customer support, a free domain name, a free SSL certificate, and more.
You can learn more in our complete Hostinger review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for Hostinger.
Our test site loading speed was a fraction of a second at 181 milliseconds, which is great. But keep in mind that this test was performed when the website had no traffic. Let’s take a look at how that speed is affected by more visitors.
k6 Load Impact Test
Here are the k6 performance overview results for Hostinger. To see how more visitors would impact the site’s speed, we gradually built up to 100 unique visitors at once.
As you can see, Hostinger performed really well on this test. As we increased virtual users (purple line), the response time (blue line) remained steady, with an average of 460 milliseconds.
This means that if you have a small business website, an online store, or a growing blog, your Hostinger website will easily handle sudden traffic spikes.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
The web server’s response time will vary depending on how far your visitors are from the server. The Bitcatcha test measures how fast the Hostinger server actually responds from different locations around the world without loading the web page.
You can see that the response times were great across the board. They were particularly fast in Europe and North America.
Hostinger Pros and Cons
Hostinger is a robust platform to host your website. Now that you have seen their performance test results, you might like to see some of their other pros and cons.
Pros:
- Most affordable hosting on the market
- Performance-optimized hosting
- Excellent customer support
- 1-click WordPress install
- Free domain and free SSL certificate
- Many datacenters across the world
Cons:
- Renewal prices are a bit higher
Why We Chose Hostinger
Hostinger is a great option for beginners who want to start a website without spending too much money. Their low-price shared hosting options offer good value for money with great performance and an extremely easy-to-use control panel.
Hostinger Pricing Plans
Hostinger offers many hosting plans with different features starting at $2.99/month. These plans include shared hosting, eCommerce hosting, VPS hosting, cloud hosting, a website builder, and more.
Pro Tip: WPBeginner users can get the best price using our Hostinger coupon code.
2. DreamHost
DreamHost is a popular, award-winning hosting company and one of WordPress.org’s officially recommended hosts. Their plans include automatic daily backups, a free SSL certificate, a free domain name, WordPress privacy features, and more.
Learn more in our complete DreamHost review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for DreamHost.
Our test site loaded in less than half a second with a total of 335 milliseconds, which is excellent. This test was done during low traffic, so let’s now see how DreamHost responds during peak traffic times.
k6 Load Impact Test
Here are the k6 performance overview results for DreamHost. We built up to 100 unique virtual visitors at once to see how the server would handle more requests and connections at the same time.
While our site remained available throughout the test, the response time went up as users increased. The average response time was 2,193 milliseconds.
This poor result happened because we turned off DreamHost’s pre-installed WordPress caching solution. So, we tried enabling a caching plugin, and the stress test result improved dramatically. Notice how much lower the light blue line is in the graph below.
This time, our test site handled 97 requests per second (16,000 requests total), and the average response time was a very fast 77 milliseconds.
This means that WordPress blogs, small business websites, and eCommerce stores hosted on Dreamhost can easily handle sudden traffic spikes.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
Next, we used Bitcatcha to test our Dreamhost test site’s response time from different geographic locations.
DreamHost’s response times remained consistent around the world and were fastest in North America and Europe.
DreamHost Pros and Cons
DreamHost has been around for 18 years and is known for making web hosting easy. Now that you have seen their performance test results, you might like to see some other pros and cons.
Pros:
- Award-winning hosting
- Excellent customer support
- Officially recommended by WordPress
- 1-click WordPress install
- Free domain name, SSL certificate, and privacy
- Automatic daily WordPress backups
Cons:
- No free business email address
Why We Chose DreamHost
DreamHost is highly rated for their fast and reliable hosting, which is great for bloggers, online store owners, developers, and web designers. They have won many awards and get excellent reviews from their customers. But they may not be the right choice if you need a lot of help getting started.
DreamHost Pricing Plans
DreamHost’s shared hosting plans start at $2.59 per month (for a 3-year billing period). You can also pay monthly for the Shared Starter plan, which costs $4.59 per month.
WPBeginner users can get the best price on shared hosting using our DreamHost coupon code and shared hosting using our DreamPress coupon code.
3. WP Engine
WP Engine specializes in VIP managed WordPress hosting, which is an ideal choice for people looking for hassle-free, premium WordPress hosting. They provide automatic backups, security updates, caching, WordPress security, and more.
You can learn more in our complete WP Engine review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for WP Engine.
Our WP Engine test site loaded in less than half a second (337 milliseconds) without any performance optimizations on our end. This is a good result.
k6 Load Impact Test
Next, we tested how WP Engine servers respond under peak traffic using a tool called k6. Here are the results as we gradually built the test up to 100 unique visitors at once.
As you can see, our test WP Engine website maintained an incredible response rate throughout the test, with an average response time of 67.01 milliseconds. It performed really well with only minor spikes.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
The Bitcatcha test measures how fast a server responds from different locations around the world. Here are the results for WP Engine:
WP Engine’s server response time was fastest on the east coast of the United States (30 milliseconds), and even its slowest speed of 235 milliseconds in Bangalore is very fast at less than one-quarter of a second.
WP Engine Pros and Cons
WP Engine offers fast servers, security, and peace of mind that users need from a managed WordPress host. Now that you have seen their performance test results, you might like to see some of their other pros and cons.
Pros:
- Fast loading times
- 24/7 expert WordPress support
- Advanced security tools to protect your website against DDoS attacks, SQL injections, brute force attacks, and more
- 1-click WordPress install
- Free SSL certificate, content delivery network (CDN), and site backups
- WordPress staging tools
- 36+ Premium Themes
Cons:
- No free domain
- WP Engine doesn’t allow you to install some WordPress plugins
Why We Chose WP Engine
WP Engine can be a great option if you are looking for a completely hassle-free web host for your WordPress site. Their advanced features will save you time, and there is plenty of room to scale as your traffic increases.
WP Engine Pricing Plans
WP Engine only offers managed WordPress hosting, and 5 different levels are available, starting at $20/month and going up to $194/month.
WPBeginner users can get the best price using our WP Engine coupon code.
4. SiteGround
SiteGround is one of the most recommended WordPress hosting companies, and we use them ourselves on WPBeginner. Among other features, they allow customers to choose between 6 different datacenters worldwide.
Learn more in our complete SiteGround review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for SiteGround.
Our SiteGround test site loaded in 491 milliseconds, which is less than half a second. This speed is incredible, but the website had no traffic during this test. Let’s see how more visitors will affect the speed.
k6 Load Impact Test
To test how SiteGround servers would respond to increased traffic, we used a tool called k6 to gradually send up to 100 users to our test website.
Here are the results:
This test shows that SiteGround is a good choice if you are looking for a really fast website. It performed consistently throughout the test without any hiccups, and an average response time of 249.71 milliseconds.
This is partly because of some of the innovations they use. For example, most of their servers are hosted on the Google Cloud Platform, and they have a custom plugin for optimization called SG Optimizer.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
We also ran a Bitcatcha test to see the response time around the world. Here are the results:
The server responded in just a fraction of a second in the United States, making SiteGround a great choice if your target audience is mostly in North America.
It responded quickly in other locations as well. Plus, SiteGround lets you choose a data center closer to your target audience so you can get the best response times in a particular region.
SiteGround Pros and Cons
We found SiteGround to be fast and reliable. Here are some of their other pros and cons.
Pros:
- Speedy servers powered by Google Cloud
- Excellent customer support
- 1-click WordPress install
- Free domain name, SSL certificate, CDN, and website backups
- WordPress staging tools
- Free website migration
Cons:
- A bit more expensive than other hosting options
Why We Chose SiteGround
SiteGround offers fast and reliable web hosting with great customer support. They have hosting plans for every budget, and each plan comes with super fast servers and the option to pick your datacenter.
SiteGround Pricing Plans
SiteGround’s shared hosting packages are available in three levels to match different budgets. The Startup plan is limited to one website and costs $4.99/month. The GrowBig plan costs $7.99/month, and the GoGeek plan costs $14.99/month. These plans offer unlimited websites.
WPBeginner users get an exclusive 70% discount and free SSL with our SiteGround coupon code.
5. GreenGeeks
GreenGeeks is a web hosting provider whose goal is to be as environmentally friendly as possible. Their hosting plans also offer great performance, managed updates, a choice of 5 datacenters, and more.
You can learn more in our complete GreenGeeks review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for GreenGeeks.
Without additional traffic, our test site loaded in about half a second (527 milliseconds), which is great. Next, we ran a k6 stress test to see how extra traffic affects the site performance.
k6 Load Impact Test
We used the k6 tool to measure how GreenGeeks performs during peak traffic, gradually building up to 100 unique visitors.
Here are the results:
Unfortunately, GreenGeeks didn’t perform well during this test. Performance started to degrade after there were 30 users visiting the site. The response time became too slow, and the server started giving errors.
This means that GreenGeeks will work well on a small website but isn’t recommended for sites with lots of visitors. Traffic spikes will significantly degrade your website performance and may cause downtime.
Installing a WordPress caching plugin may help a little. But it won’t make a significant improvement on a slow web server.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
We also tested GreenGeeks’ response time around the world using Bitcatcha. Here are the results:
Our test GreenGeeks site responded quickly for visitors in North America. It was slower in other parts of the world, such as India and the Asia Pacific region, but these times are still quite fast.
GreenGeeks Pros and Cons
GreenGeeks is affordable, and their plans include plenty of useful features. Now that you have seen their performance test results, you might like to see some pros and cons.
Pros:
- Environmentally-friendly hosting
- A free domain name
- Great customer support
- 1-click WordPress install
- Free SSL certificate, CDN, and website backups
- Built-in performance tools, including LiteSpeed caching
Cons:
- Their phone support isn’t available 24/7
Why We Chose GreenGeeks
GreenGeeks is the most eco-friendly web hosting. It is a good hosting solution for anyone who is just starting out. For higher traffic volumes, you may need to upgrade to a high-performance plan or move to a managed WordPress hosting provider.
GreenGeeks Pricing Plans
GreenGeeks has a wide range of hosting plans for customers of every size, starting at $2.95/month.
WPBeginner users can get the best price using our GreenGeeks coupon code.
6. Rocket.net
Rocket.net is a managed WordPress hosting company offering super-fast and fully managed WordPress hosting solutions. Their plans come with a custom, user-friendly hosting dashboard, a CDN, automated backups, and more.
You can learn more in our complete Rocket.net review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for Rocket.net.
Our test website loaded in 588 ms, which is just over half a second.
k6 Load Impact Test
We then used the k6 tool to test how Rocket.net would hold up under traffic spikes. We slowly increased the number of virtual users to 100, sending multiple page requests.
This is an excellent result. Our test site responded quickly, regardless of the number of users and page requests. It also had an average response time of 13.91 milliseconds.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
Next, we used Bitcatcha to measure response times for Rocket.net from different geographic locations.
These results are incredibly fast. Our test site responded in just a couple of milliseconds for all locations.
That’s because Rocket.net uses a CDN and cloud edge network. Users are sent to the closest server for the fastest response time.
Rocket.net Pros and Cons
Rocket.net offers a fast and reliable platform to host your website. Now that you have seen their performance test results, here are some of their other pros and cons.
Pros:
- Very fast servers
- Excellent customer support
- 1-click WordPress install
- Free SSL certificate and CDN
- WordPress staging tools
- Integrated firewall and WordPress security features
Cons:
- No free domain
Why We Chose Rocket.net
Rocket.net’s servers are fast and highly optimized for WordPress websites. You also get peace of mind with enhanced security, automatic updates, and knowledgeable support. This is why we recommend Rocket.net as one of our best choices for a managed WordPress hosting provider.
Rocket.net Pricing Plans
Rocket.net offers 4 levels of managed WordPress hosting plans starting at $25/month (billed annually).
WPBeginner users can get the best pricing using our Rocket.net coupon.
7. HostGator
HostGator is one of the largest and most popular hosting companies in the world. They offer all kinds of hosting plans, including shared, managed, and VPS hosting.
You can learn more in our complete HostGator review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for HostGator.
Our test site loaded in just 1.03 seconds. This is a great result without traffic, so we also ran a k6 stress test to see how extra users affect our site’s performance.
k6 Load Impact Test
We sent up to 100 users at once to our test site using the k6 tool to see how HostGator performs under load. Here are the results:
The average response time of 234.99 milliseconds is particularly good for a shared hosting account.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
Response time is also affected by how far your visitors are from the server. We ran a Bitcatcha test to measure response time from 10 locations around the world.
In the United States, our HostGator testing site responded in just 26 milliseconds. Times from other locations were also fast, and the slowest speed in India was still a respectable 262 milliseconds.
You can be confident that a HostGator website will load quickly around the world.
HostGator Pros and Cons
HostGator has grown quickly due to their great shared hosting plans, reliable web hosting, and quality customer service. Here are some of their pros and cons.
Pros:
- Reliable web hosting
- Free domain and SSL certificate
- Free business email address
- 1-click WordPress install
- 45-day money-back guarantee
Cons:
- Higher monthly pricing
- HostGator uses a lot of aggressive upselling tactics
Why We Chose HostGator
Over 2 million customers trust HostGator. They offer a variety of fast hosting plans that fit all budgets and requirements, as well as the user-friendly tools you will need to build a website.
HostGator Pricing Plans
HostGator plans include shared hosting, VPS hosting, cloud hosting, reseller hosting, and dedicated hosting. The Hatchling plan starts at $3.75/month and allows you to host only one website.
WPBeginner users get an exclusive 60% off with our HostGator coupon code.
8. Bluehost
Bluehost is one of the biggest web hosting companies in the world and an official WordPress-recommended hosting provider. They are a great option for beginners, and their budget-friendly plans are suitable for all kinds of websites.
Learn more in our complete Bluehost review.
Pingdom Website Speed Test
Here are the Pingdom speed testing tool results for Bluehost.
Our test site loaded in well under two seconds. However, this test was performed when the site had little traffic.
k6 Load Impact Test
We then used the k6 tool to test how Bluehost servers respond to increased traffic. We gradually sent up to 100 visitors to the site to see how it would handle increased requests from multiple connections at once.
You can see that the blue server load time line remained stable even though traffic and page requests increased. There was an average response time of 156.45 milliseconds.
Bitcatcha Server Response Time
We also used the Bitcatcha server response test to see how the server response time varies around the world.
The fastest response times were for users in the United States and Canada. In other parts of the world, the time was higher, but still acceptable.
Note that this test was performed with a Bluehost server in the United States. If your users come from other parts of the world, then you can change the server location to improve the response time.
Bluehost Pros and Cons
Bluehost is reliable, fast, and affordable, with friendly 24/7 customer support. Now that you have seen the Bluehost performance test results, you can check out their pros and cons.
Pros:
- Affordable hosting prices
- Free domain name
- Free CDN + SSL certificate
- Great customer support
- Officially recommended by WordPress
- 1-click WordPress install
Cons:
- Higher domain renewal price
Why We Chose Bluehost
Bluehost is often ranked the #1 web hosting provider by many websites. They offer a wide range of hosting options with tons of features that help you easily build your website. All their hosting plans include expert 24/7 customer support from knowledgeable staff. Most importantly, they offer affordable starter plans that fit any budget requirement.
Bluehost Pricing Plans
Bluehost offers a shared hosting package suitable for starter websites. Their shared plan is available at 4 different levels starting at just $2.75/month.
WPBeginner users can get the best price using our exclusive Bluehost coupon code.
Which Is the Fastest WordPress Hosting Provider?
Now that we’ve shared our performance test results for each hosting provider, let’s take a look at which services are the fastest.
Page Load Time
Pingdom assigned a performance grade to each service to give you an idea of how optimized the hosting is for speed. The grade is based on how well the service implemented its recommended performance optimization strategies.
Half the services in this review were given an A, and the rest a B.
Hosting Provider Performance Grade Page Load Time Hostinger B 86 181 ms Dreamhost A 95 335 ms WP Engine A 94 337 ms SiteGround A 94 491 ms GreenGeeks B 89 527 ms Rocket.net B 87 588 ms HostGator B 85 1,030 ms Bluehost A 91 1,480 ms A more important metric is the page load time. Here, Hostinger was quickest, with the page loading in just 181 milliseconds.
Three other services, DreamHost, WP Engine, and SiteGround, had loading times of less than half a second.
However, all providers had loading times of well under 2 seconds, which is very good.
Response Time During Peak Times
The page load times above were tested during low-traffic periods. So, we also tested how each provider’s response time changed when we sent multiple users to the site.
Note that this test didn’t time how long it took the page to load, just how long it took until the server could respond. It also measured how that response time changed as we sent more and more users.
Here are the average response times for each provider during our stress test.
Hosting Provider Average Response Time Rocket.net 13 ms WP Engine 67 ms Dreamhost 77 ms Bluehost 156 ms HostGator 235 ms SiteGround 250 ms Hostinger 460 ms GreenGeeks 3450 ms Rocket.net performed especially well in the stress test, and most of the other services maintained a stable load during the test.
However, GreenGeeks did not perform well when encountering a lot of visitors at the same time. You can address this by installing a WordPress caching plugin. However, if your web server is slow, then caching alone won’t make much difference.
Response Time Around the World
We also tested each provider’s response times from different locations around the world. That’s because the response time will be slower the further your users are away from the company’s web servers.
Here are the response times (measured in milliseconds) for each provider from 8 locations around the world.
Host US
(W)US
(E)UK Singapore Brazil India AU Japan CA Germany Hostinger 147 83 10 280 192 126 270 255 90 10 Dreamhost 18 81 153 182 190 283 158 112 83 168 WP Engine 56 30 95 189 140 23 190 128 30 109 SiteGround 60 34 104 254 157 257 200 161 29 114 GreenGeeks 50 27 89 214 147 212 185 152 20 101 Rocket.net 2 1 3 7 4 5 1 2 2 2 HostGator 26 71 152 189 193 262 163 128 92 159 Bluehost 46 35 107 212 140 226 179 159 47 116 Rocket.net recorded blazing-fast speeds around the world.
SiteGround and Bluehost are good options anywhere in the world because you can choose a data center location where most of your users are.
Besides these hosting providers, if most of your visitors are in the United States, then your best options include DreamHost, HostGator, and WP Engine.
Your visitors in Europe will have the fastest experience with Rocket.net and Hostinger, and the Asia Pacific users will enjoy the fastest speeds with Rocket.net.
Fastest Overall WordPress Hosting Providers
Our top web hosting recommendations are:
- Bluehost for budget hosting
- SiteGround for premium hosting
- Hostinger for small businesses
- WP Engine for managed hosting.
Based on our performance tests, these are all good choices for fast hosting.
However, if website speed and performance are your highest priority, then you should also look carefully at Rocket.net. They have a better response time under load and around the world than any other provider.
FAQs About WordPress Hosting
Having helped over 400,000+ users start their websites, we have answered quite a lot of questions. Below are some of the answers to the most frequently asked questions about WordPress hosting.
Do I need WordPress hosting to start a website?
If you want to build a WordPress website, then you need web hosting. Your hosting server is where your website files are stored.
Every website that you see online uses a web hosting provider.
Are there any free WordPress hosting providers?
Yes, there are several free website hosting companies out there, but we highly recommend that you stay away from them.
In most cases, free WordPress hosting providers put advertisements on your website. They may even distribute malware to your users. Last but not least, they can shut down your website at any time without any notification.
Avoid anyone who offers to give you free WordPress hosting, especially if you are serious about your site. Here are reasons why having a ‘free website’ is a bad idea.
How much does it cost to build a WordPress site?
The cost of building a WordPress website varies based on your needs. It can range from $100 to as high as $30,000. We have created a detailed guide explaining how much it really costs to build a WordPress website.
How do I install WordPress on my WordPress hosting account?
Every WordPress hosting provider that we recommend comes with a 1-click WordPress install. You can follow our step-by-step guide on how to install WordPress on your host.
Can I switch my WordPress hosting provider later?
Yes, you can absolutely switch if you are unhappy with your WordPress hosting company.
Most WordPress hosting companies offer free migration services, which makes the process fairly smooth. However, if you want to do the migration yourself, then you can follow our step-by-step guide on how to move WordPress to a new host with no downtime.
Best WordPress Guides for Web Hosting
Want to learn more about WordPress hosting? Here are our best guides on the topic:
- What’s the Difference Between Domain Name and Web Hosting (Explained)
- How to Host a Website (Simple Guide for Beginners)
- When Do You Really Need Managed WordPress Hosting?
- How to Choose the Best WordPress Hosting (Compared)
- Ultimate Web Hosting Statistics and Market Share Report
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
The post 8 Fastest WordPress Hosting in 2023 (Performance Tests) first appeared on WPBeginner.
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WP Engine vs. GoDaddy: Which One Will Supercharge Your WordPress Site
Choosing between WP Engine and GoDaddy for your WordPress hosting? Dive into our comprehensive comparison of their core features, performance, security, and pricing. Discover the pros and cons of each platform, real-time speed data, and insights into their hosting dashboards. Whether you prioritize budget, speed, or security, our review will guide you to the best choice for your unique WordPress needs. Ready to make an informed decision? Let’s explore WP Engine vs. GoDaddy Managed WordPress Hosting.
The post “WP Engine vs. GoDaddy: Which One Will Supercharge Your WordPress Site” first appeared on WP Mayor.
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How to Host Multiple Websites on One Server (Beginner’s Guide)
Do you want to host multiple WordPress websites on a single server?
You can easily manage multiple domains from a single place by hosting them on one server. Plus, it helps save costs as you won’t need to purchase separate servers for each website.
In this article, we will show you how to host multiple websites on one server.
Why Host Multiple Websites on One Server?
If you’re planning on expanding your business from one website to more, then it’s a feasible option to host them on a single server.
That’s because it is easier to manage them from a single place. It can be time-consuming and inconvenient to log in and out of multiple WordPress websites on different servers. If all your websites are on one server, then you can simply switch between them from the same dashboard.
Hosting multiple sites on a single server will also help save and be more economical for your business.
Many hosting providers offer dedicated hosting where you have full control over the server and allow you to set up more than 1 website.
Instead of purchasing individual hosting plans for each site, you can choose a plan that allows multiple WordPress sites on one server. This will also allow you to fully utilize your server resources.
That said, let’s see how you can host multiple websites on one server.
Select a Hosting Service and Buy Domains
Before you can add any website to a server, the first step is to purchase a hosting service and domain names for your websites.
Choosing a WordPress Hosting Provider
There are many services to choose from, but we recommend Hostinger. It is a fast-growing web hosting provider that offers different types of hosting options.
For instance, you can get premium shared hosting, WordPress hosting, VPS hosting, cloud hosting, managed hosting, and more.
In the Hostinger WordPress Starter plan, you can add up to 100 websites, get free email, an SSL certificate, unlimited bandwidth, managed WordPress, and more. You also get 1 free domain name, but you’ll need to purchase other domains.
The best part is that WPBeginner users can get up to 81% OFF on WordPress hosting plans. Simply click the link below to claim the offer.
Another advantage of using Hostinger WordPress plans is that WordPress comes pre-installed. You don’t have to manually install WordPress for your websites.
If you’re looking for alternatives, then you can also use Bluehost or SiteGround to add multiple sites to one server.
Purchasing Domain Names for Your Website
After choosing a web hosting platform, the next step is to purchase domain names that you’ll need to host on a server.
Hostinger lets you buy a new domain or transfer an existing domain. To purchase a domain, simply go to the ‘Domains’ tab from your Hostinger dashboard.
From here, simply select the ‘Get a new domain’ option.
Next, you can search for a domain name.
Go ahead and enter a keyword or brand name in the search bar.
From here, you’ll see a list of URL options along with different domain extensions and prices.
Simply select an option you want and click the ‘Buy domain’ button.
Next, a popup will open with different billing periods for your domain name.
Go ahead and choose a billing period.
After that, you can complete the checkout process by choosing a payment method and purchasing the domain name.
You can repeat this process to purchase as many additional domains as you’d like.
Alternative Method: If you don’t want to buy a domain from Hostinger, then there are many domain registrars that allow you to register a domain name with ease. For instance, you can use Domain.com as it offers top-level extensions, an easy domain registration process, and a bunch of features.
Adding Multiple WordPress Sites to One Server
After selecting a hosting provider and buying domain names, you can add multiple sites to one server.
From your Hostinger dashboard, you can go to the ‘Websites’ tab and click on the + Create or migrate a website option.
Next, Hostinger will walk you through the process of creating a new website on the same server.
For instance, you can select a website type. This includes an online store, blog, business, portfolio, and other types.
After that, you’ll need to select whether you’d like to create or migrate a website.
If you already have a website on another hosting platform, then you can transfer it to Hostinger. Simply select the ‘Migrate my website’ option and follow the steps.
For this tutorial, we will select the ‘Create a new website’ option.
Next, you can select a platform to build a new website. Hostinger will offer 2 methods, where you can use WordPress with artificial intelligence (AI) or use Hostinger’s website builder with AI to create a site.
Go ahead and choose the ‘WordPress with AI’ option.
From here, you’ll need to enter login details for your account.
Simply choose a language, select an administrator email, enter a password, and click the ‘Continue’ button.
In the next step, Hositnger will ask you to add WordPress plugins to your site.
You can simply select the plugins you want to install and click the ‘Continue’ button.
After that, you will need to select a website design.
Hostinger will load the default theme, but you can click the ‘Browse more templates’ option to view more designs.
From here, you can choose a different theme for your website.
You can also click the ‘Show More’ button at the bottom to load more templates.
Once you’re done, simply choose a design and click the ‘Select’ button.
Next, Hostinger will ask you to enter a brand name and a description of your business.
It uses ChatGPT to generate a few pieces of content for your website. Once you are done, simply click the ‘Continue’ button.
You can also skip this step by entering a name and brief description and then clicking the ‘Skip, I will write content later’ option at the bottom.
After that, you’ll need to enter a name for your website. Hostinger will show 2 options, you can either select the ‘buy a domain or ‘use an existing domain’ option.
If you haven’t purchased a domain name yet, then you can select the ‘Buy a Domain’ option and get one with Hostinger.
However, if you already have multiple domains on another provider, then you can select the ‘Use an Existing Domain’ option.
For this tutorial, let’s choose the ‘Use an Existing Domain’ option.
Next, you will need to enter the domain name and click the ‘Continue’ button.
A popup window will now open with details for pointing the domain to Hostinger nameservers.
You can see your domain’s existing nameservers and the required nameservers you’d need to change in the domain registration service. The instructions will vary depending on the domain registrar you’re using.
If you need help with domain transfer, then Hostinger offers step-by-step guides and documentation. You can also reach out to their support for further assistance.
Note: You’ll also need to ensure that the domain you’re transferring is not locked by the current registrar and that 60 days have passed since initial registration.
After noting down the nameservers, you can click the ‘Continue’ button.
Hostinger will then start to set up your website. It will take a few minutes for the setup to complete.
The final step is to click the ‘Connect’ button under the Connect Your Domain option after you’ve set nameservers in your domain registrar.
Once connected, you can view your website from the Hostinger dashboard.
Simply visit the ‘Websites’ tab to see your newly added site.
You can now repeat these steps and click the ‘+ Create or migrate a website’ option to add as many websites as you want to a single server.
Bonus: How to Create More Sites Using WordPress Multisite
A WordPress multisite allows you to run and manage multiple websites from a single WordPress installation. You’ll see multisite networks used by large corporations that need separate domains for each department, universities and schools, news outlets, online businesses, and more.
There is a slight difference between hosting multiple sites on a single server and a WordPress multisite.
In a multisite, you have the same parent domain (example.com), and the new sites are subdomains (blog.example.com). They can share plugins, users, and other elements based on your settings.
On the other hand, hosting multiple sites on a single server means you have different domain names for each website. They’re all completely separate from one another.
You can easily set up a WordPress multisite using any web hosting service, including Hostinger. Once it’s set up, you’ll be able to add multiple sites to the network and manage them from the same dashboard on one server.
To learn more, please see our guide on how to install and setup a WordPress multisite network.
We hope this article helped you learn how to host multiple websites on one server. You may also want to see our guide on how much does it cost to build a WordPress website and the best GoDaddy alternatives.
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
The post How to Host Multiple Websites on One Server (Beginner’s Guide) first appeared on WPBeginner.
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BionicWP: The Managed WordPress Hosting Solution for Agencies
Discover the game-changing world of BionicWP’s Managed WordPress Solutions for agencies! Unlock top-notch website performance, ensuring lightning-fast load times that impress clients and engage users. Bid farewell to security worries with robust measures like regular malware scans and firewall protection. Seamlessly manage multiple client websites with user-friendly dashboards and one-click staging environments, streamlining your workflow and saving time. Embrace scalable solutions that grow with your agency, empowering you to manage an increasing workload without compromising on quality. And with expert support from a team of WordPress gurus, troubleshoot any issues with ease. Join BionicWP, scale your agency’s success, and elevate your digital presence to new heights!
The post “BionicWP: The Managed WordPress Hosting Solution for Agencies” first appeared on WP Mayor.
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5 Best Monthly Web Hosting Plans (Starts at $4.95/mo.)
Are you looking for the best monthly web hosting plans?
Most popular web hosting companies offer big discounts on annual, bi-annual, and multiple-year payment terms.
These discounts may be promoted as low monthly payments, but when you go to the checkout page, you’ll pay a hefty amount upfront to buy the web hosting.
In this article, we will share some of the best monthly web hosting plans that let you truly sign up for a month-to-month hosting service.
Why Choose a Monthly Web Hosting Plan?
Many web hosting companies only offer discounts if you buy hosting for a full year or multiple years. That makes it can cost hundreds of dollars just to get started.
Plus, if you don’t like the web hosting service, you may not be able to get a full refund, and you will lose your initial investment.
A true monthly web hosting plan will be cheaper to get started. With a month-to-month hosting plan, you won’t commit to a hosting provider long-term, and it’s easier to move to another web hosting company.
This allows you to choose the best hosting provider with the features you need to host your WordPress website.
And more importantly, you will only pay a low monthly cost for the web hosting service you use.
Without further delay, let’s look at some of the best monthly web hosting plans for small businesses.
1. Dreamhost – $4.95/mo.
DreamHost is one of the most well-known web hosting companies, and they’re an official WordPress-recommended hosting provider. They offer the cheapest month-to-month web hosting plan on the market.
They provide a custom control panel to add your domain name, manage emails, and access web hosting features.
Moreover, DreamHost comes with automated website backups. These daily backups ensure the complete safety of your content.
When it comes to DreamHost’s monthly pricing, their WordPress Starter or Shared plan costs $4.95/month with a free SSL certificate, free website migration, and more.
You will have to pay for the domain name separately, which is fair.
But if you’re willing to commit for the year, WPBeginner users can get up to a 72% discount on their Shared plan with a free domain name, website builder, SSD storage, and more.
Our DreamHost coupon code is applicable on the 1-year and 3-year payment plans.
DreamHost has other web hosting solutions, including VPS hosting, managed WordPress hosting, dedicated server hosting, WooCommerce hosting, and cloud hosting.
Don’t miss our complete DreamHost review for more details on their shared hosting options and pricing plans.
2. Hostinger – $2.69/mo.
Hostinger is one of the leading web hosting companies on the global market. It offers WordPress website hosting, shared hosting, and cloud hosting plans.
The month-to-month shared hosting plan from Hostinger starts at $11.99 for a single website.
If you’re looking for a web hosting plan for multiple sites, then we recommend their WordPress Starter plan. It comes with a free domain name, a free SSL certificate, and free unlimited email accounts.
The Hostinger WordPress Starter plan costs $11.99/month.
You can use WPBeginner’s exclusive Hostinger coupon code to get a discount on your monthly web hosting plan. The Hostinger promo code offers more discounts on longer commitments.
For example, if you choose to pay for up to 12 months, the cost for the WordPress basic hosting plan reduces to $2.99/month.
And WPBeginner users get an additional discount that makes it $2.69/month.
In short, you’ll pay $32.29 at once to get WordPress hosting for the full year.
Their shared hosting plans cost similar to WordPress hosting. However, you’ll need to pay an additional setup fee.
Hostinger also offers Virtual Private Server hosting (VPS hosting) plans, Minecraft server hosting, and other solutions.
We ran several tests on Hostinger, and here’s our complete Hostinger review that may interest you.
3. Bluehost – $2.75/mo.
Bluehost is one of the most popular web hosting providers and an officially recommended WordPress hosting partner.
Though they don’t offer a month-to-month web hosting plan, the initial cost is so low that we couldn’t resist adding them to this list.
And you’ll save triple your investment with a free domain name, free SSL certificate, and a BIG discount on your web hosting package.
So if you’re just starting out, we recommend Bluehost as the best web hosting for beginners, startups, and small businesses.
The initial cost for your web hosting plan will be as low as $33 for the first year.
This also includes your free domain name, free SSL certificate, and a cPanel for a one-click WordPress installation.
However, on the renewal, you’ll need to pay the full cost for your web hosting plan and domain name. But by then, you’ll be able to grow your business to afford the price.
And if you still want to switch, you can easily move your WordPress site to a new web hosting company for a month-to-month hosting plan. Some web hosting providers also offer free migration services, so you’re safe anyway.
On a side note, we thoroughly tested Bluehost for its features, speed, and uptime. And we recommend it to everyone, all the time.
Most of our WPBeginner users start their websites with Bluehost web hosting and grow their businesses to the next level.
4. SiteGround – $19.99/mo.
SiteGround is one of the best WordPress hosting providers. Their web hosting is optimized for speed and security. We use SiteGround to host the WPBeginner website.
Among top features, SiteGround offers automatic WordPress updates, a free CDN network to improve page load time, a custom web application firewall to protect your web server against malware and DDoS attacks, and more.
Their customer support team is available 24/7 to help you with any of your concerns, which you may rarely have with SiteGround web hosting.
SiteGround has data centers all over the world since they use the Google Cloud network. It’s the reason they can provide a 99.9% uptime guarantee on their web hosting platform. Over the years of using their platform, we have never had downtime for the WPBeginner site.
The SiteGround’s StartUp plan costs $19.99/month.
It’s an expensive monthly web hosting plan compared to other hosting providers on the list, but it also includes functionality like free site migration, free SSL certificate, eCommerce support, basic WordPress site management, out of the box caching addons, and more.
And WPBeginner’s exclusive SiteGround coupon code lets you buy their WordPress hosting plan with an 80% discount.
This reduces the cost to up to $2.99/month for the StartUp plan.
SiteGround’s discount deal is only valid when you choose to pay for up to 12 months upfront. So you’ll pay $35.88 for 12 months and get access to all their WordPress hosting features.
The best part is that they also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Aside from WordPress, SiteGround also has cheap web hosting for other content management systems like Drupal, Joomla, Magento, and basically any other Linux based app.
We have done a detailed SiteGround review which shared performance tests from various locations along with coverage of their additional services like Site Scanner.
5. WP Engine – $30 / mo.
WP Engine is the most popular managed WordPress hosting company in the market. They are typically the go-to choice for large websites, enterprise customers, as well as small businesses and developers who want a fully managed web hosting platform with speed, security, and support.
WP Engine offers monthly cloud hosting plans starting at $30 per month on a month-to-month billing which gives you access to 10GB of disk space, 50GB of bandwidth, 10 premium themes from StudioPress, free automated migration, automated website backups, and more.
All their plans come with advanced developer tools like one-click staging, dev & prod site environments, threat blocking & security, built-in CDN for turbo website speed, transferable sites for easy client handoff, activity log, and more.
WP Engine also offers managed hosting solutions for WooCommerce online stores starting at $50 per month as well as enterprise cloud hosting starting at $600 per month.
But if you use the WPBeginner’s WP Engine coupon code and pre-pay for annual plans, then you will get 4 months free.
WP Engine also offers additional services like automated plugin updates, extra SOC2 level security with managed WAF, site monitoring, and more which can be purchased separately.
We did a detailed performance test of their platform in our WP Engine review that we highly recommend you check out.
BONUS: Other Popular Month-to-Month Web Hosting Options
6. HostGator: One of the most popular web hosting providers, HostGator offers unmetered bandwidth, a 99.9% uptime guarantee, and more. Their shared hosting plan costs $7.65 for the first month (including tax) for WPBeginner readers. The plan renews at $11.95 per month from the second month.
7. GreenGeeks: The eco-friendly WordPress hosting offered by GreenGeeks comes with multiple types of hosting, including reseller hosting, dedicated hosting for websites, and more. It has built-in caching for fast performance, which costs $11.95 per month. You also need to pay a setup fee of $15 for the first time.
Which Month-To-Month Web Hosting Plan Should I Buy?
If you’re looking for true monthly web hosting with no long-term commitment, then DreamHost has the best monthly web hosting packages.
DreamHost’s top features include free website migration, free SSL, security, and a 97-day money-back guarantee.
With that said, when you’re starting a website, you want to get the best web hosting deal because it’s highly unlikely that you’ll be switching hosting providers every month.
Most people that choose a reliable hosting provider rarely ever switch. In over a decade of running the WPBeginner website, we have switched hosting providers only once, and that was after 10 years when we outgrew our previous provider.
So, in that case, what’s more important is that you choose a provider that’s giving you the best deal with one-year commitment.
We recommend Hostinger, SiteGround, or Dreamhost for those just starting out.
Hostinger’s WordPress Starter plan ($32.29 for the first year) is the cheapest web hosting option on paying upfront for 12 months, and you get a free domain name worth $9.99/year.
On the other hand, SiteGround’s StartUp plan on a 12-month upfront payment ($35.88/for the first year) is close to Hostinger’s pricing for the basic starter plan.
However, SiteGround servers are blazing fast since it’s hosted on Google Cloud, and you get tons of advanced performance and security features which is why we use SiteGround for the WPBeginner website.
If you’re looking for a more managed web hosting provider with enterprise support, then WP Engine is going to be your best bet since they offer monthly web hosting plans for cloud hosting.
Note: At WPBeginner, we regularly look into dozens of web hosting companies that are not listed in this article, like A2 hosting, GoDaddy, InMotion Hosting, Cloudways, Namecheap, LiquidWeb (Nexcess), and others. We decided not to list them all in this article because we don’t want to cause choice paralysis. If you choose a host from our recommended list, you won’t go wrong.
We hope this article has helped you find the best monthly web hosting plan.
You may also want to check out our other guides on related web hosting and business growth.
Best Web Hosting Guides for Small Businesses
- Top Web Hosting Sites for WordPress
- Ultimate Web Hosting Statistics and Market Share Report
- When Should You Change Your WordPress Web Hosting (Top Key Indicators)
- How to Find Out Who is Hosting a Certain Website (2 Ways)
- Best Free Website Hosting Compared
- What’s the Difference Between Domain Name and Web Hosting (Explained)
Best WordPress Guides for Small Businesses
- Best Email Marketing Services for Small Businesses
- Ultimate WordPress SEO Guide for Beginners (Step by Step)
- The Ultimate Guide to Boost WordPress Speed & Performance
- Best Lead Generation WordPress Plugins (Compared)
- Best Identity Theft Protection Services for Small Business
- Best Team Communication Tools for Small Business
- Best Help Desk Software for Small Business (Compared)
- Best Referral Program Software for Small Businesses Compared
If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for WordPress video tutorials. You can also find us on Twitter and Facebook.
The post 5 Best Monthly Web Hosting Plans (Starts at $4.95/mo.) first appeared on WPBeginner.
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5 Best HostGator Alternatives: Swap to Success
Are you currently using HostGator, but you’re not happy with its services? If that’s the case, you may be in need of some information on HostGator alternatives. In this post we’ll share five of the best options for you to consider. You’ll learn about their key features, pricing, and even their load times based on testing that we conducted ourselves.
The post 5 Best HostGator Alternatives: Swap to Success appeared first on Themeisle Blog.
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How to Choose Your WordPress Hosting in 2023 (Complete Guide)
When choosing a WordPress hosting provider, there are many things to consider, including speed, security, support, pricing, and hosting type. Your needs will vary depending on your business type, so it’s important to understand the differences. In this post, we’ll walk you through the steps to take in making your decision, the options available, and our recommendations for hosting partners based on type.
Let’s dive in.
What is WordPress Hosting?
WordPress hosting is a type of hosting that specializes in the WordPress content management system (CMS). It typically provides the server setup and resources required to run WordPress efficiently. The best WordPress hosting companies offer features such as automatic updates, excellent security, and optimized performance. WordPress hosts provide either cPanel or a proprietary admin dashboard to make managing websites and their settings user-friendly and intuitive. There are several types, including shared, managed, VPS, cloud, and others, which we’ll explore later in this post.
Factors to Consider When Choosing WordPress Hosting
When in the market for a WordPress host, there are a few things you need to consider, including how fast your site will load, the security measure in place, how easy it is to scale, the level of support you can expect, the learning curve, and most importantly, how much it will cost you. Let’s look at what you should think about when purchasing a new WordPress hosting plan.
Speed and Performance
In short, a fast website keeps your customers and Google happy. With much of Google’s core web vitals focused on performance, choosing a hosting provider that prioritizes speed is essential. Look for hosts that offer features such as object caching, a free CDN, support for the latest versions of MySQL and PHP, and other speed-boosting features that will help your site rank higher in the search engine ranking pages (SERPs).
Security Features
When researching hosting partners, ensure that they offer things like free SSL certificates, web application firewalls (WAF), malware scanning, distributed denial of service (DDoS) protection, and the ability to back up and restore your site. Having good security measures in place keeps your website safe from nefarious actors, such as hackers, that would love nothing more than to gain control of your website.
Scalability
When choosing a hosting partner, consider the big picture rather than where you are right now. While your business is new, selecting the cheapest hosting provider you can find might be tempting, but it’s important to plan for future growth by ensuring your WordPress site is scalable. Choose a host that can easily alter your plan as your business grows. That way, you’ll avoid costly downtime or potential issues when transferring your site to another host.
Ease of Use
Whether you’re new to WordPress or a seasoned professional, finding a host with an intuitive dashboard is important. Most WordPress hosts offer cPanel or something similar to navigate the server’s settings. For example, SiteGround uses a proprietary Site Tools dashboard that allows you to access the file manager, manage FTP accounts, access MySQL and phpMyAdmin, and more. Regardless of the host you choose, research how you’ll manage your server’s settings to ensure you can navigate server-related tasks easily.
Customer Support
Server-related issues are one of the most frustrating aspects of being a site owner. When looking for your next hosting provider, evaluate the type of support they have. Pick hosts that offer round-the-clock assistance because you never know what time of day your site will experience a problem. Also, look for multiple ways to contact the host, whether live chat, phone, email, or a combination of all three. Good customer support can provide peace of mind knowing that help is there when needed.
Pricing
When researching hosting companies, weigh the features they provide and compare them with the cost. Ultimately, you want to find a hosting provider that balances features and value for your budget. This way, you can ensure you’re getting the most bang for your buck and making a wise investment for the future of your WordPress website.
What Types of WordPress Hosting Are There?
There are several different types of WordPress hosting, each with its features and benefits. The most common types are shared, managed, dedicated, VPS, cloud, and reseller hosting. We’ll explain each type and who they are best suited for.
Shared WordPress Hosting
The most affordable option for WordPress hosting is shared. Its name is based on the idea of a shared server that is divided into sections, then distributed amongst multiple clients. In addition to sharing server space, those with shared hosting also divide up server resources, such as ram, bandwidth, and disk space, which can result in less-than-stellar performance. One benefit of shared hosting is the ability to take a more hands-off approach. As a shared hosting customer, you won’t have to worry about maintaining the server’s security or updates. The downside is that shared hosting is slower, making it suited for those who have small informational websites or blogs.
Managed WordPress Hosting
For those looking for a more hands-off approach, managed WordPress hosting is an excellent solution. While all hosting types can be managed or unmanaged, a managed hosting provider handles all the heavy lifting, such as server security patches, maintenance, and updates. They also implement specialized server settings to enhance your WordPress website’s speed and performance.
Managed hosting is great for site owners who want the best for their sites but lack the time or expertise to maintain them personally. However, there is a trade-off with managed hosting: the freedom to choose plugins may be limited, as managed providers often have a list of disallowed plugins. That said, these restrictions are usually in place because the host offers settings to control caching, image compression, and other performance-enhancing features.
Dedicated WordPress Hosting
This type of WordPress hosting is designed for larger sites, big web agencies, or freelancers who want a server they plan to maintain themselves. Dedicated hosting allows you to lease an entire server with dedicated resources exclusively for your websites. The main benefit of it is not having to share your server’s resources with other clients. You’ll generally get the highest-performing server with excellent security features. Still, you’ll be responsible for troubleshooting any errors that arise. We should also note that dedicated hosting is much more expensive than other types, such as shared, VPS, or managed.
VPS WordPress Hosting
VPS hosting is similar to shared hosting in that you share a server with other customers. That said, there are quite a few differences. With VPS, you share physical hardware with others but have your own resources, such as RAM, storage, and bandwidth. This gives you a server environment that functions more like a dedicated server. Because of this, you benefit from a private server without the added cost of dedicated hosting.
Cloud WordPress Hosting
With cloud hosting, multiple servers are utilized to distribute resources, resulting in much faster delivery of your site’s content to visitors. Because of this unique setup, websites hosted in the cloud have access to almost unlimited resources offering faster speeds, a platform that is easily scalable, and superior reliability than other hosting types. Cloud hosting providers often provide excellent uptime thanks to automatic failover protection, which allows your site’s files to be quickly swapped to a different server in case of a hardware failure.
Reseller WordPress Hosting
The last type of WordPress hosting is reseller hosting. Similar to dedicated hosting, reseller hosting allows you to lease an entire server (or a portion of one), then rent it out in pieces to your clients. You can usually white-label WordPress so it appears as a customized hosting plan offered by your company, rather than the company you purchase from. Additionally, it’s not uncommon for a managed hosting provider to offer reseller hosting, reducing the time you’ll need to spend maintaining client websites.
WordPress Hosting Recommendations
We realize that choosing a WordPress hosting provider can be a huge undertaking. That said, now that your brain is full of WordPress hosting knowledge, we have compiled an excellent option for each type of hosting. Whether you’re content with a shared budget option or a more robust dedicated solution, these hosting providers are at the top of their game.
Best Managed WordPress Hosting: SiteGround
SiteGround is widely known as being the best managed WordPress hosting provider you can get. With all of their features, it’s easy to see why. You’ll get a huge speed bump thanks to a cloud-based infrastructure, free website migrations, an SSL certificate, CDN, email, WP-CLI, SSH, and FTP access, excellent caching capabilities through the SG Optimizer plugin, and more.
Key Features of SiteGround:
- 10 GB storage
- Free SSL, CDN, email, backups, and migration
- 10,000 monthly visits
- Unmetered traffic
As previously mentioned, the site tools dashboard is packed full of features for managing your hosting plan. You can easily monitor your site’s traffic statistics, bandwidth, and disk space, access security features such as backups, SSL certificates, and a site scanner, make speed enhancements through caching and Cloudflare CDN, and more.
Best For:
SiteGround is an excellent choice for those looking for a stellar managed WordPress host. Customer support is stellar, the site tools dashboard is feature-rich, and the Google Cloud backbone provides lightning-fast speeds.
If you’d like to learn more about SiteGround, check out our comprehensive review.
Pricing: $14.95 per month.
Best Shared WordPress Hosting: Bluehost
If you are most concerned with finding a good budget hosting provider, then check out Bluehost. As one of the three hosting providers recommended by WordPress, Bluehost has plenty of bang for your buck. Even their most basic plan comes standard with freebies like a domain for one year, an SSL, CDN, and at least 10 GB of solid state drive (SSD) storage.
Key Features of Bluehost:
- Free domain for 1 year
- 10GB SSD storage
- Free CDN and SSL
- Unmetered bandwidth
- Free WordPress themes
One of the best things about Bluehost is the dashboard. All tools are clearly marked, so they are easy to find. Additionally, there are a few attractive features for new business owners, such as free email accounts, marketing tools, and plenty of add-ons to upgrade your plan should the need arise.
Best For:
While Bluehost is a good budget host, there are some drawbacks. You must sign up for a one-year plan to take advantage of that low price. If you already have a website, you’ll need to migrate it yourself or employ Bluehost to do it for you. If that isn’t a dealbreaker for you, Bluehost might be a good fit.
If you’d like to learn more about Bluehost, read our in-depth review.
Pricing: $35.40 for one year of hosting.
Best Dedicated WordPress Hosting: DreamHost
When considering dedicated WordPress hosting, you’ll find an excellent solution with DreamHost. You have the freedom to choose each aspect of your server, from the hard drive, down to what type of CPU you want. DreamHost offers a 100% uptime guarantee, excellent technical support, and the ability to configure your server however you’d like.
Key Features of DreamHost:
- DDoS protection
- Reseller hosting available
- 100% uptime guarantee
- At least 1 TB of storage
The best feature of DreamHost is the ability to set up your server by specifying how many CPU cores, storage, and memory you need, giving you the ultimate freedom to build a plan that meets your specific needs. All plans have a free dedicated IP address, full root and shell access (SSH), DDoS protection, and 24/7/365 expert-level support.
Best For:
Developers or tech-savvy business owners will love DreamHost for their affordable, dedicated hosting plans. You can white-label WordPress if you want to sell off pieces of your server to start a web hosting business and have a lightning-fast environment that ensures your websites will be fast, reliable, and make money in no time.
Pricing: $149 per month (billed annually), or $169 per month without contract requirements.
Best VPS WordPress Hosting: Hostinger
We rated DreamHost as our top pick for VPS hosting, but Hostinger is a strong second because of its unbelievably low pricing and features. Plans start at an incredible $8.99 per month and come standard with at least 2 GB of RAM, 40 GB of SSD storage, and 2 TB of bandwidth, giving you plenty of bang for your buck.
Key Features of Hostinger:
- Dedicated IP address
- Weekly backups
- AI-powered firewall
- Choose from CentOS, Ubuntu, or Debian OS
With every VPS plan, you’ll get excellent features like weekly backups, a strong 100mb/s network, IP4V & IPV6 support, and a dedicated IP address. They also offer an AI-powered firewall that constantly scans network traffic to instantly identify and block any shenanigans. Additionally, a nice snapshot feature can be used to restore your site to a specific point should disaster strike. Besides those maintenance features, you’re on your own, so keep that in mind if you partner with Hostinger.
Best For:
Like a dedicated hosting plan, Hostinger VPS plans require at least some server maintenance knowledge because you’ll be responsible for important updates and security patches. Because of this, Hostinger is ideally suited for developers or site owners who know their way around a WordPress server and aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty. If you get in a pinch, their customer support can happily solve any issue.
Pricing: $8.99 per month.
Best Cloud WordPress Hosting: Pressable
Pressable is an excellent option for cloud WordPress hosting, thanks to a simple interface and features such as automatic WordPress and plugin updates, free migrations, and staging. Pressable’s most notable feature is its blazing-fast cloud infrastructure, perfectly optimized for WordPress. This should be no surprise because Pressable was created by the same folks who made WordPress – Automattic.
Key Features of Pressable:
- Expert level support
- Automatic failover system
- 20 GB storage
- 30,000 monthly visitors
Another notable feature of Pressable is its advanced security features, which include staples such as automatic malware scanning and removal, DDoS attack protection, a proprietary firewall, and an automatic failover system. With features like this, you can rest assured your site is safe and sound.
Best For:
Pressable cloud hosting is the perfect solution for balancing speed, support, and features. You’ll get a lightning-fast website with superior security features at an attractive price. Plus, there’s room for growth. Should you need to update your plan, you can easily do so with Pressable’s one-click plan upgrade feature that allocates more resources without downtime.
Do you want to learn more about Pressable? Check out our hands-on overview.
Pricing: $25 per month.
Best Reseller WordPress Hosting: LiquidWeb
LiquidWeb is one of the best options for reseller hosting providers. However, they offer a unique approach compared to other reseller hosting providers. With LiquidWeb, you must first sign up for a hosting plan, then apply to be a part of their reseller program. Don’t let that deter you, though, as it’s been our experience that process takes little time.
Key Features of LiquidWeb:
- Choose between VPS and dedicated hosting plans
- 250 GB of Acronis backups
- Automate customer billing
- Unlimited websites
Perhaps the most useful feature of LiquidWeb’s reseller program is the WHMCS license that allows you to create custom hosting packages, services, and add-ons that you can brand, then sell to your customers. Additionally, a built-in invoicing system allows you to easily keep up with client invoices, payments, and renewals.
Best For:
LiquidWeb offers affordable solutions for reseller hosting plans, so it appeals to a large demographic. Whether you’re a small business owner, web agency, or freelancer looking to build a lucrative side hustle, LiquidWeb is an excellent choice for any budget.
Pricing: $99 per month.
Final Thoughts on Choosing the Right WordPress Hosting
Finding the best WordPress hosting platform for your business doesn’t have to be scary. Sure, there are many options out there, but when armed with the right information, you can make an informed decision about what’s best for your specific situation. In this post, we’ve given you all the tools you need to make a confident decision. If you’re still on the fence, opt for an excellent host such as SiteGround. You’ll likely find what you need with their shared, managed, cloud, and reseller offerings.
Now that you’re up to speed on how to choose a WordPress host, you can start shopping for one. Check out some of our hosting reviews to research the best provider to use in WordPress:
- HostGator Managed WordPress Hosting Review
- Google Cloud Hosting: A Review for WordPress Users
- Cloudways Review: Managed Hosting for WordPress Users
- Flywheel Managed WordPress Hosting: An Overview and Review
Featured Image via ranjith ravindran / Shutterstock.com
The post How to Choose Your WordPress Hosting in 2023 (Complete Guide) appeared first on Elegant Themes Blog.
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How to Host Your WordPress Website Locally in 2023 (Tutorial)
WordPress is one of the world’s most popular content management systems (CMS), powering close to 43% of the internet. As a web developer, there are times when you prefer to host WordPress locally. In this post, we’ll explain local hosting and its benefits and provide a few ways to do it. Let’s dive in.
What is Local Hosting?
Local hosting, often referred to as local development, is the process of creating a web server on your computer to build, test, and experiment with websites before hosting them on the internet. Local hosting is a great way to test your website’s design, functionality, and performance without needing a live connection.
Let’s break down the requirements before we get into the programs you can use to host your WordPress websites locally.
- A computer running either Windows, Linux, or MacOS
- A web browser
- Web server software
- A text editor for writing code
- A stable internet connection (for pushing your site live)
What Are the Benefits of Hosting WordPress Locally?
There are several reasons why you should host WordPress locally. It allows beginners to learn how WordPress works and how to develop websites without pressure. New users won’t have to worry about breaking a live website or paying for a hosting provider. Additionally, it allows developers to test a website before pushing it live. You can try out different themes and plugins, explore adding custom code and other functionalities, and determine how they affect your website’s performance.
4 Ways to Install WordPress Locally
There are multiple ways to install WordPress locally. The method you choose depends on the type of operating system you’re using and, in some cases, which host you plan to push your local sites to when they are ready to be deployed. Let’s walk through the methods you can use to install WordPress locally, so you can decide which way is best for your unique situation.
Installing WordPress on Windows with WampServer
WampServer is a software for Windows that allows you to set up a local environment for WordPress. It integrates Apache, MySQL, and PHP on a Windows computer, so you can create and test web applications locally before pushing them live. The setup process is quite easy, only taking a few minutes. If you’d like to learn more about WampServer and how to install it, check out our post on how to install WordPress.
Installing WordPress on MacOS with MAMP
If you’re an Apple user, MAMP is an excellent choice for building WordPress websites locally. You can add as many sites as you like, personalize its settings to suit your needs, and connect MAMP to your remote host to push your sites live easily. We won’t go into depth on how to configure MAMP’s settings here, as we have the ultimate guide to MAMP Pro for WordPress users on our blog.
Using Local by Flywheel
Another way to set up a local server for WordPress is by using a program provided by your hosting provider. One such program is Local by Flywheel. It easily allows you to set up a local environment and then effortlessly push your site live to Flywheel or WP Engine.
If you’re a Flywheel or WP Engine customer, Local is a no-brainer. It allows you to add as many sites as you wish and provides a straightforward route to installing WordPress locally. To learn more about how Local works and how to install it, check out our post Local by Flywheel: An Excellent Tools for Local WordPress Development.
Installing WordPress Locally with XAMPP
XAMPP is an open-source software platform that allows users to set up a local server environment. XAMPP, which is short for cross-platform (X), Apache (A), MySQL(M), PHP (P), and Perl (P), is available on Windows, MacOS, and Linux operating systems. It’s an incredible tool for developers to test websites or applications before deploying them to a live server. It’s easy to install and configure, allowing developers to mimic a server environment in a few minutes.
This guide will walk you through the steps to install XAMPP on your machine and configure its settings. Let’s get started.
Step 1: Downloading the Software
To download XAMPP, navigate to the Apache Friends website and select the appropriate version for your operating system. You can choose between Windows, Linux, or MacOS. For this tutorial, we’ll be using the MacOS version. Once downloaded, run the application installer.
MacOS has a safety feature that prohibits software from unverified developers from being downloaded and installed. If you get this notification, press and hold the option button on your Mac to reveal the options window. From there, click open. This will override Apple’s security settings and allow you to install the software.
Step 2: Download WordPress and Add it to XAMPP
The next step is to download WordPress. Click the download WordPress 6.2.2 button to download WP to your computer.
Next, we need to add WP to XAMPP. To do this, click the open application folder button on the XAMPP welcome screen.
When the folder opens, double-click the htdocs folder to open it.
Then, you’ll right-click within the htdocs folder and click new folder to add a home for your WordPress files. Right-click on your new folder to rename it, then double-click to open it.
Finally, locate the WordPress zip file you downloaded from the WP repository. Double-click to unzip it, then drag the contents of the WordPress folder into the new folder you created within htdocs.
Step 3: Configuring the Settings
Now that you have the WordPress files where they need to go, you’ll need to configure the settings for it to work. Navigate to xampp/htdocs/your WordPress folder, then locate the wp-config-sample.php file. Right-click on it, then click open. This will allow you to open and edit the file with your favorite text editor.
In the PHP file, locate the line that begins with // ** Database settings. Next, we’ll need to enter a database name on this line:
define( 'DB_NAME', 'xx' );
Swap xx with the database name of your choice. Write it down and keep it safe because you’ll need it in the next step. Next, we’ll need to specify a username and password for our database. Specify root for the database username. As for the password, you can leave it blank. Now, your wp-config file should look like this:
define( 'DB_NAME', 'your-DB-name' ); /** Database username **/ define( 'DB_USER', 'root' ); /** Database password **/ define( 'DB_PASSWORD', '');
Save the file and close it. Next, right-click on the wp-config-sample.php file to rename it wp-config.php.
Step 4: Launching the Control Panel
The next step is to start the XAMPP server. Start with opening XAMPP. Click the manage servers tab, then click Start to launch your server.
Open your browser, type localhost/phpmyadmin into the search, then press enter. This will bring up the pmpMyAdmin panel so that we can create a database for our WordPress site.
Step 5: Creating the Database
Using the database name from the wp-config.php file in step 3, click on Databases in phpmyAdmin. Next, under the Create database header, type in your database name from the previous steps and click create. After creating your database, look for it in the database list.
Step 6: Configuring WordPress
The final step to host WordPress locally is to configure the WordPress settings. Type localhost/yourwebsite in your browser. Be sure to change yourwebsite to whatever you named your WordPress folder in htdocs. When the page loads, you’ll see the WordPress configuration screen. Give your site a title, create a username and password, add your email, tick the search engine visibility checkbox, and then click Install WordPress. Note your username and password; you’ll need it to log in to WordPress.
Finally, you can log in to your site by navigating to localhost/yourwebsite/wp-admin. That’s it! You’ve successfully installed WordPress on your local machine.
Want to Host Your Website Online? Here Are Our Top Picks
As previously mentioned, hosting WordPress locally is a great way to build your new site in a private environment. Eventually, you must push your site live to a web host. If you are looking for a new host, read on because we have a few recommendations.
1. SiteGround
When we recommend hosting providers, SiteGround is usually at the top of our list. This is primarily due to the extensive security features that they offer, including daily backups, a free SSL certificate, and a web application firewall (WAF). Additionally, SiteGround’s servers are optimized for WordPress, resulting in lightning-fast loading times and improved web performance due to their cloud infrastructure. Because of this speedy setup, SiteGround is the fastest WordPress hosting company you can get.
Key Features of SiteGround:
- Free site migration, CDN, email, and SSL
- Daily backups
- Optimized for WordPress
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Enhanced security features
Another thing that makes SiteGround shine is its customer support. It offers a convenient 24-hour, 7-day-a-week live chat feature and a knowledgeable support staff that can easily solve any problem. Plus, SiteGround is one of the most affordable solutions on the market. Their plans start at $14.99 per month but usually are offered at a steep discount for your first month.
Best For:
Overall, SiteGround is one of the best WordPress hosting platforms out there. They are suited for beginners, small businesses, and large agencies due to the different plans they offer. If you’re looking for a fast, reliable host to partner with, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better option.
Pricing: Starting at $14.99 per month.
2. WP Engine
Another excellent option is WP Engine. Those hosting their websites locally through Local by Flywheel software can easily push their site live to WP Engine with one click. This is an excellent feature for those looking to build their websites behind closed doors before revealing them to the world. Some stellar features of WP Engine are its speed boost through cloud hosting, EverCache, a proprietary CDN, a staging environment for making large changes to your sites, and free migration.
Key Features of WP Engine:
- Free migration, SSL, staging, and CDN
- Automatic WP and PHP updates
- 60-day money-back guarantee
- 10 Free WordPress themes
WP Engine has features to make hosting your WordPress website a dream. Security is a non-issue thanks to a global CDN with over 200 data centers, 24/7 customer support, auto-renewing SSL, and SSH access, daily malware scans, and advanced direct denial of service (DDoS) attacks. Plus, you’ll get instant access to a wealth of site-building tools, including 10 WordPress themes built on the Genesis framework, a 1-click staging environment, and the ability to easily transfer sites in and out. This feature is useful for freelancers or agencies who build client websites and want to pass them off when finished.
Best For:
Combining Local by Flywheel with WP Engine is a perfect solution for those who want to build websites locally and push them live with little effort. Plus, freelancers and web agencies will love the ease with which they can transfer sites to their clients once completed. If you’re looking for a solid cloud hosting provider, then WordPress is worth a try.
Pricing: Starting at $20 per month.
3. Flywheel
Our last recommendation, Flywheel, is a WordPress-optimized host built on a speedy Google Cloud environment. With Flywheel, users can easily manage their WordPress sites with features such as automatic nightly backups, easy 1-click staging environments, and site cloning. They offer free SSL certificates, malware removal, and daily site scans, so you can rest assured your site will be safe for visitors. Because of these incredible features, Flywheel is one of the best managed WordPress hosting providers available.
Key Features of Flywheel:
- Managed WordPress hosting
- Built on Google Cloud
- Free CDN, backups, staging, and SSL certificate
- Automatic nightly backups
Flywheel uses a blazing-fast Google Cloud infrastructure, which is constantly monitored for traffic spikes, then scales up instantly to allow maximum uptime. Combined with their custom caching solution, Flycache, your site will be one of the fastest. Flywheel’s server also employs auto-healing technology to fix itself in case of a hardware failure, giving you added peace of mind. Additionally, there’s no confusing cPanel to fool with, as Flywheel uses a custom interface, which is beginner-friendly, intuitive, and easy to navigate. They also offer the ability to white-label WordPress, which makes them one of the best reseller hosting providers out there.
Best For:
Flywheel is an excellent option for freelancers and small web agencies specializing in WordPress. Flywheel has perfected the hosting experience as a WordPress-only host to make green WordPress users feel right at home. With affordable pricing, a cloud infrastructure, and the ability to scale your plan with one click, you’re sites will be in good hands with Flywheel.
Pricing: Starting at $13 per month (billed annually).
Final Thoughts on Hosting WordPress Locally
Hosting your WordPress website locally is a great way to test your website before going live. You can explore different themes and plugins, learn the ins and outs of WordPress, and explore new functionalities without having to worry about breaking your live site. In this post, we’ve provided you with an easy-to-follow setup guide on different ways to host WordPress locally, so you’ll be confident to try it on your own. When you’re ready to push your site live, you can easily do so with XAMPP, WP Engine, or Flywheel.
Want to read up on more how-to articles? Check out a few of our popular WordPress-related posts here:
- How to Update PHP in WordPress: A Complete Guide
- How to Customize Your WordPress Header (in 2023)
- What is Keyword Research? (And How to Do It Right)
- How to Beta Test WordPress (& Why You Should)
Which method do you use to host WordPress locally? Let us know in the comments section below.
Featured Image via hasan as’ari /Â Shutterstock.com
The post How to Host Your WordPress Website Locally in 2023 (Tutorial) appeared first on Elegant Themes Blog.
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What is WordPress Hosting? A Breakdown of Different Hosting Solutions
Website hosting is one of the most important aspects of any online business. Making the wrong choice can result in a slow website with high bounce rates and lost revenue. In this post, we’ll dig deep into the specifics of WordPress hosting, discuss the types of hosting available, and provide you with some things to look for when selecting the perfect host. But first, what is WordPress hosting? Let’s dive in.
What is Web Hosting?
Web hosting involves storing your website’s files and data on a server, making it accessible to users on the internet. A server is a large computer that stores and processes data for your website. When someone types your domain name into their browser, the server sends the requested files to their device, allowing them to view your site.
What is WordPress Hosting?
WordPress hosting is a type of web hosting specifically designed for hosting WordPress websites. A good WordPress hosting plan optimizes your WordPress site to meet all speed, security, and performance requirements, with features such as caching, backups, ample storage, and adequate bandwidth. Generally, WordPress hosting plans offer easy, one-click installation for WordPress, automatic updates, scalability, and good customer support.
Types of WordPress Hosting?
You have several options when choosing the best hosting type for your WordPress site. Each type has advantages and disadvantages, and the best choice for you will depend on your budget, technical expertise, and website requirements. Let’s explore the different types of WordPress hosting available.
Shared WordPress Hosting
As the most popular and affordable solution, shared hosting is favored by new, growing, and budget-conscious businesses. However, the lower price often comes at a cost, as shared hosting involves resources (and customers) sharing the same server. The downside to shared hosting is its low performance. It can be unstable because you’re sharing a portion of a server with other people. Sometimes, peak traffic will absorb the server’s resources, causing downtime or, at the very least, reduced speeds.
However, there are a few good, cheap WordPress hosts out there that utilize shared hosting. The important thing to consider here is that the size of your website matters. You’ll likely be fine with shared hosting if you have a 3-5 page informational website with a few hits per month. On the other hand, if you have an ecommerce or high-traffic website, it might be smarter to go with a VPS host for better performance.
Dedicated WordPress Hosting
Dedicated hosting works very differently from shared hosting. Instead of dividing server resources amongst multiple customers, dedicated hosting provides a dedicated machine with its own resources for your website. It eliminates the shortcomings of shared hosting, gives you a solid performance boost, and offers a much more stable environment.
However, there are some cons to dedicated hosting. Maintenance can be quite challenging, as with most dedicated hosting providers, you are responsible for the upkeep of your server. You’ll either need to manage things yourself or hire a professional to monitor resources, deploy updates, install security patches, protect against hackers, and more. Another con is the cost. As a general rule, dedicated hosting is much more expensive than any other type of hosting, so it’s best suited for businesses with a healthy budget.
VPS WordPress Hosting
Virtual private server (VPS) hosting is a compelling option for users seeking a blend of shared and dedicated hosting. With VPS hosting, users can enjoy their virtual server with dedicated resources where only the hard drive is shared. This hosting option provides administration capabilities and flexibility that resembles owning a dedicated server or at least operates similarly.
One notable advantage of VPS over a dedicated environment is the freedom from hardware maintenance concerns, as the hosting provider typically handles that for you. Additionally, the cost of VPS hosting providers is significantly lower than that of a dedicated plan, making it an ideal choice for businesses operating on a smaller budget, while still enjoying a superior hosting solution compared to shared hosting.
Cloud WordPress Hosting
WordPress Cloud hosting is a type of WordPress hosting similar to VPS hosting, except that it uses a series of virtual servers over a vast network hosted in the cloud. The main benefit of cloud hosting is that it usually allows the user to choose their ideal server location, allowing for faster delivery of your website to visitors.
The best cloud hosting providers have considerable power. You can easily scale your plan to accommodate more bandwidth, storage, and RAM if needed. Providers such as Google and AWS offer their own cloud platforms, but they aren’t as beginner-friendly as other providers like Cloudways.
Managed WordPress Hosting
If you want fast speeds and server-side caching, you should opt for managed hosting. It offers improved hardware specifications and excellent security features, freeing your site from bugs, malware, and maintenance. Managed WordPress hosting is the improved version of shared hosting, as it offers everything shared offers, then tops it with added benefits.
Going for a managed hosting provider can save time and effort on site and server maintenance issues and focus on other aspects of your business. It offers excellent performance and is optimized specifically for WordPress. It’s designed for small to medium-sized businesses, high-traffic blogs, and companies that want top-tier support at shared hosting prices. That said, managed hosting can still be a bit on the pricier side, so you’ll need to decide if the added cost is worth it. Plus, some managed hosting providers prohibit using some plugins, so you should research when choosing a provider to ensure it aligns with the plugins you are adamant about using.
Things to Look For in a Hosting Provider
When choosing a WordPress hosting plan, it’s essential to consider the features that are most important to your website’s needs. What’s most important to one business owner may be less important to another, so researching different providers and what they offer is key. Let’s look at some of the most important features you should consider when looking for a new home for your website.
Performance
One of the most important factors in WordPress hosting is performance. The fastest hosting providers offer to provide at least a 99.9% uptime guarantee, speed enhancements, and a content delivery network (CDN). Another factor to consider when speed is concerned is what type of server hardware is being used. For example, look for hosts that provide servers with a speed boost through LiteSpeed web server software or something similar.
Security
A secure hosting environment is the most important feature to consider. With hackers and other nefarious actors constantly looking for ways to infiltrate websites, scam customers, and cause problems, good security measures are essential. Look for features such as malware detection and removal, a web application firewall (WAF), bot protection, a free SSL certificate, and application isolation so you can have peace of mind knowing that your website is protected at all times.
Scalability
Server scalability is another factor that shouldn’t be ignored. After all, everyone wants their website’s content to go viral. Still, if you don’t have a good hosting provider that can handle the traffic, then it doesn’t matter. A solid hosting provider offers the ability to scale your server as your business grows. Providers such as Cloudways make it easy to scale your server as your business gets more popular, so you won’t have to worry about missing out on new customers.
Uptime
There are multiple ways hosting uptime can affect your website. The last thing you want is for your site to go offline or slow down when your site is receiving a lot of visitors. It can impact sales, delegitimize your business, and send potential customers running for the hills. Thankfully, a reputable host will provide at least a 99.9% uptime guarantee to ensure you don’t miss out on revenue.
Caching
When choosing a WordPress hosting provider, it is important to consider their caching infrastructure and capabilities. Look for hosting companies that offer excellent caching solutions, such as server-side caching, WordPress object caching, or WordPress-specific caching plugins, such as SiteGround’s SG Optimizer plugin. These features can greatly enhance your WordPress website’s speed, scalability, and overall performance.
Backups
If you are familiar with WordPress, you know the importance of having backup and restore points for your website. They protect against unforeseen circumstances like failed updates, hacks, and human error. A good WordPress hosting company provides this service to give you peace of mind. For example, if you decide to update WordPress, your theme, or plugins, errors during the update process can occur, causing site issues such as the white screen of death. When a host provides backups, you can easily restore your site from a previous version to avoid downtime.
Free Migrations
Site migration is the process of moving your site from one host to another. The process can be tricky if you try to tackle it alone, so it’s best to choose a host that offers free migrations. By doing so, you can avoid the need for migration plugins, save yourself time and potential for errors, and it is a fast and simple way to move your site.
Staging
Staging sites allow you to make changes to your website in a testing environment rather than a live one. This is important because changes to a live website can cause issues like accidentally overwriting pages, plugin conflicts, and failed updates. Thankfully, a staging environment can eliminate these issues, allowing you to safely make changes to your site without affecting the live version. Reputable hosting companies usually offer this service, so you can avoid figuring out how to create a staging site or push your staging site live on your own.
Customer Support
One of the most important features of a hosting company is having good customer support. After all, any time you work with WordPress websites, there’s a risk of problems arising. With good customer support, you can avoid many headaches and losing hours of your time by allowing a professional to diagnose your problem. Look for a company that offers several contact support methods, including live chat, phone, and email. Also, ensure you choose a company that provides support around the clock because you never know when disaster might strike.
Budget
Last but certainly not least, choosing a hosting company that aligns with your budget is important. Opt for a good shared hosting provider to host your site if you’re trying to keep costs down. However, remember that there are better options than shared hosting out there. Consider a managed hosting provider if you are more concerned with features rather than price. As previously mentioned, managed hosting generally handles all maintenance, security, and server-side configurations, so you can worry more about running your business, not maintaining a website.
Recommended WordPress Hosting Providers
Now that you have learned about the types of hosting available, you might be wondering which companies have the most to offer at a reasonable price. Well, you’re in luck. We’ve hand-picked three excellent choices for you.
1. SiteGround
SiteGround is an excellent choice for WordPress hosting because of the immense amount of features you get for the price. With SiteGround, every plan comes with at least 10GB of storage, free migration, automatic updates for WordPress, a free SSL, daily backups, and a free CDN, to name a few. As one of three hosts recommended by WordPress itself, you can be sure that you’re making a solid choice.
Key Features of SiteGround:
- Free SSL, CDN, backups, and migration
- Managed WordPress hosting
- Excellent security features
- WordPress pre-installed
Additionally, SiteGround offers some of the best security features of any WordPress host. You’ll benefit from daily malware scans, a robust web application firewall, an AI-powered anti-bot that stops hackers in their tracks, and a proprietary security plugin.
Best For:
SiteGround offers three WordPress plans: StartUp, GrowBig, and GoGeek, that cater to freelancers, businesses, and everyone else. If you’re looking for a host packed with features, excellent support, and an affordable price point, you can’t do any better than SiteGround.
Pricing: Starting at $14.99 per month.
2. Cloudways
Cloudways is another excellent option for WordPress. Built on cloud infrastructure, Cloudways offers a more modular approach to hosting. Rather than choosing a traditional hosting plan, users build the plan that best suits their needs. There are three cloud hosting providers: DigitalOcean, AWS, and Google Cloud. You can choose the provider and location of your server and specify the amount of storage and bandwidth you need. Plus, as your business grows, you can easily change your plan, making Cloudways easily scalable.
Key Features of Cloudways:
- Scalable hosting plans
- Cloudflare CDN
- Free SSL, migration, staging, and backups
- 24/7 security monitoring
What’s most impressive about Cloudways is the abundance of features it offers. Even the cheapest plan (coming in at $11 per month) gives you a free SSL, free migration, team collaboration tools, amazing security features, automated backups, staging and cloning, and 24/7 real-time monitoring.
Best For:
Cloudways is a great option for those who prefer a more hands-on approach to hosting. Don’t get us wrong, Cloudways hosting is managed, but it isn’t your typical managed hosting provider. You see, it provides the best of both worlds. You can leave the maintenance and configuration settings to Cloudways or handle everything yourself.
Pricing: Starting at $11 per month.
3. Pressable
Our last recommended host is Pressable. Thanks to a robust cloud infrastructure, it’s one of the few managed WordPress hosts that guarantee 100% uptime, so you never have to worry about your site going down. Plus, their customer support is stellar. With a two-minute average response time and 98% satisfaction rate, you can be sure your problem will be handled quickly and efficiently.
Key Features of Pressable:
- 100% uptime guarantee
- Jetpack integration
- Free migration, CDN, backups, and staging
- Web application firewall, malware scanning, and threat monitoring
Pressable’s hosting plans are optimized for WordPress, so site speed, uptime, and security are explicitly catered towards WordPress. Excellent features include one-click backups, Jetpack security suite integration, and a fully managed experience that takes care of updates, security, monitoring, and maintenance.
Best For:
Pressable is more expensive than our other two recommended hosts, so it’s geared more toward professionals with multiple websites. That said, they offer a one-site personal plan that provides enough storage and bandwidth to create any site you’d like. Furthermore, Pressable is a great choice for those with ecommerce websites because of the lighting-fast speeds, impressive security, and ability to scale as your business grows.
Pricing: Starting at $25 per month.
What is WordPress Hosting: Final Thoughts
Understanding what WordPress hosting is and the different types is essential for anyone looking for a new hosting provider. As we’ve learned, there are five types: shared, VPS, dedicated, cloud, and managed. Depending on your needs and budget, one of these hosting types may be more suitable than the others. Take time to research different hosting providers, such as SiteGround, and the features they provide. After all, choosing the right WordPress hosting partner can significantly impact your website’s performance and success.
Looking for reliable, objective reviews about hosting providers? Check out some of our WordPress hosting reviews for popular providers:
- WP Engine Managed WordPress Hosting: An Overview and Review
- Flywheel Managed WordPress Hosting: An Overview and Review
- GreenGeeks Eco-Friendly Hosting: An Overview and Review
Featured Image via Shmai /Â Shutterstock.com
The post What is WordPress Hosting? A Breakdown of Different Hosting Solutions appeared first on Elegant Themes Blog.