Affiliate Link Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, you won’t pay any more, and I’ll get a commission. Thank you for supporting the site!
Quick Comparison
| Product Review | Free Plan? | Starting Price | Ease of Implementation | Ease of Use | Key Differentiators | Host Capabilities Vs. Business Needs | |
| Bluehost | Free month | Basic: $2.95/month* *for first year, higher pricing after | Very easy, watch for unnecessary additions while registering. | Easy Very simple domain name registration | Bluehost connects with WordPress Many plug-ins and applications available for ecommerce Large storage space available US-only server centers, may make international speeds slow CDN available through Cloudflare | Appropriate for small to medium projects, low-traffic sites (landing pages and specialized ecommerce) May be too simple or overpriced for large companies | |
| Hostgator | No | Hatchling: $2.75/month* *for first year, much higher pricing after | Very easy, avoid upselling and unnecessary features | Very easy, includes free migration services within 30 days of signing up. | HostGator connects to WordPress Dedicated servers available for increased traffic load Unlimited storage for all plans Programming languages (Ruby On Rails, Perl, Python, etc.) can be used | Appropriate for small to medium projects, low-traffic sites (landing pages and specialized ecommerce) Overpriced, insistent upselling may be difficult to avoid | |
| Godaddy | No | Economy: $5.99/month* *price increase after first month | Professional difficulty for server configuration and external hosting No website migration service | Easy website builder Very simple domain name registration | Established brand with reliable tools Unlimited storage for all tiers except basic Transparent costs for add-ons and services Windows-based servers available | Too expensive for small projects, too simple for large companies Good for moderate level development | |
| Cloudways | Free for three days | Basic: $10 a month No contract required | Fantastically easy to implement One free website migration | Requires more technical knowledge of cloud-services No built-in website builder beside those tools of the migrated site | Cloudways duplicates access websites to multiple datacenters all over the world for excellent connection speeds almost anywhere Cloudways can support WordPress, Magento, PHP, and Laravel | Too complex for beginning WordPress users Fantastic for those that have experience using cloud-based services Flexible enough for businesses of any size | |
| Hostwinds | No | More than can be listed here! | Fairly easy, with free migration tools available for all plans Can be difficult to determine pricing and what services are available | Website builder through Weebly easy to use Shared hosting can be moderate, while knowing what other services are helpful requires know-how | Offer many different plans for specific services Shared hosting increases speeds Supports cPanel, Softaculous Auto Installer, and Weebly | Has plans for all business types, including white labels and the ability to create your own web hosting service | |
| Siteground | No | StartUp: $6.99/month $14.99 after trial | Very easy to implement WordPress, WooCommerce. | Very intuitive tools for beginners and professionals | Cloud services available Impressive array of services that most other hosting sites only offer partly (free SSL, SSD storage, daily backups, white label hosting) | Has something great for everyone, though may feel a bit restrictive for large or specialized businesses and too expensive for individual beginners | |
| Hostinger | No | Single: $.99/month $2.99 after renewal | Extremely easy for WordPress, Magento, WooCommerce, Presta, and more | Super user-friendly for beginners! Has tools for intermediate and advanced users | Impressive services for such a low price: SSD storage, weekly backups, Cloud hosting, SSL Depending on location, some of the fastest uptimes in the industry | Not realistic for professional businesses, but great for beginners and intermediate users Shared hosting only Upselling pop-ups may be confusing | |
| WP Engine | No | Startup: $25/month $300/year | Automated migration services and site tools are excellent for fast implementation | Very easy to use, available knowledge base for tutorials and guides | Very professional web host for ecommerce and large-scale business ventures Some of the most impressive services included in the high price, even at the base level | Not cheap in the least, but features almost every service under the sun with fast uptimes, excellent storage space, and the capacity to host thirty websites at once | |
| LiquidWeb | No | More than can be listed here! | Easy to integrate into a larger system, may require 24-48 hours to set-up depending on service | Intermediate, good for experienced web developers | An excellent choice for large businesses and corporations Dedicated servers, cloud servers, multiple OS options, great uptimes | More expensive than most, but offers the widest selection of services by far Every service is unique and should be chosen depending on need |
Bluehost
Overview:
Bluehost presents a number of user-friendly tools for beginning to intermediate individuals and business owners that will place them in a good position to create landing pages, storefront web pages, blogs, and e-commerce pages through their connection with WordPress and WooCommerce. The storage space available for even their basic package is an impressive 50GB with SSD speeds. Basic users have access to a single domain and up to five email accounts, whereas the higher tiers have access to unlimited accounts and domains. Choice Plus and Pro plans have access to domain privacy and automated site backup.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Excellent for users looking for a simple and intuitive way to create a website or blog
- Great perks even for basic users
- Plug-ins available for simple e-commerce and design
- Security features at higher tiers such as domain privacy and two-factor authentication
- Perfect for landing pages and small business
- 24/7 customer support for all plans
Cons:
- Not designed specifically for large companies or teams
- Servers solely based in the US, potentially making uptimes slower internationally
- No backups with basic accounts without purchasing an add-on
- Monthly costs beyond the first year can become expensive quickly
Recommendation:
Bluehost is a great way to start or continue a presence online. Overall, their software, e-commerce accessibility, and 24/7 customer support are excellent. While Bluehost may not explicitly cater to medium-to-large size businesses, it is still possible to use their service as an extension to your existing web services for landing pages and SEO development. Bluehost’s popularity is well-earned, and while it doesn’t do everything, it has something for everybody.
HostGator
Overview:
Similar to Bluehost and a few other web hosting services, HostGator is meant for small-to-medium businesses who wish to expand their presence online. In comparison, their tools are very intuitive to learn for those that have no experience in building web pages. All plans feature free transfer of WordPress sites to the platform as well as unlimited storage space for users (up to 250,000 files). The plans presented below are set for the first year, after which pricing can become expensive. Connects to many different ecommerce tools, including Magento, Joomla, and Drupal.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Very simple interface for inexperienced users
- Available to connect to the most popular ecommerce and blogging tools
- Unlimited storage capacity available on all plans
- Many programming languages available to use with their web builder
- Very inexpensive for the first year
Cons:
- Fairly pricey after the first year is up, many services charge additional fees
- Cheaper shared web services do not offer as programming languages for advanced development
- Slower uptime than other tools, which may lead to long load times
- Customer service can be slow or lacking and tries to upsell regularly
Recommendation:
Overall, HostGator is good for simple projects and low-traffic ecommerce websites for those that are learning how to put websites together for the first time. However, understand that constant upselling and the pricing of unessential services can make your budget disappear quickly. Advanced options that you might find in tools like DreamHost and SiteGround are missing, but experienced users can use programming languages to customize their sites. HostGator is a toss-up, not too good, but not too bad.
GoDaddy
Overview:
If you are searching for a time-tested web hosting brand that has existed almost as long as the internet, look to GoDaddy. With over one in twenty websites managed online, they certainly know their stuff. The main question is whether they have kept up with the times. They have a variety of different tools available, such as domain name registration, shared hosting plans for small-to-medium projects, custom VPS server configurations, and server hosting for improved speeds. Their website builder is very intuitive and can easily connect to WordPresss.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Plan prices that seem higher than the competition, but don’t increase nearly as much after the trial period
- One of the only web hosting providers to offer Linux and Windows-based hosting options
- Very intuitive website builder for the inexperienced
- Fantastic storage space, even for basic accounts
- Transparent costs on add-ons
Cons:
- Overall higher web hosting prices that may or may not outweigh the advantages
- No SSL built-in, which will require you to purchase one
- No website migration from an outside host
- Missing advanced features for developers such as staging areas
- No website backup unless an add-on is purchased
Recommendation:
There’s a reason GoDaddy has maintained its reputation after all of these years. But while some of the features they offer are above and beyond the capabilities of their competitors, they are missing key solutions that others do provide. They may be too expensive for simple landing pages and blogs, yet not robust enough for large ecommerce projects. We recommend GoDaddy as a middle-of-the-road provider for established business owners on their way towards success. Weigh the pros and cons and see what you might gain from GoDaddy.
Cloudways
Overview:
Cloudways is an impressive toolset for businesses looking to host an already-established WordPress website. Cloudways also hosts websites that offer Magento, Laravel, and PHP sites. In addition to its capabilities to migrate any website onto their platform for free, they support a number of data centers including Linode, Vultr, AWS, and the Apple Cloud. If bandwidth has been an issue in your past, this customization is a sure-fire solution. Their pricing is surprisingly inexpensive for the amount of services offered. Some of these include free SSL, automatic backups, regular automatic security updates, and unlimited application installation.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Free trial period for the first basic tiers
- Very little service option differences between all four tiers besides RAM, storage space, and processing power
- Flexible focus on WordPress, Magento, Laravel, and PHP sites.
- Duplication to different databases for speedy website loading
- No contract and pay-as-you-go
- On-demand free backups of your website
- Includes affiliate links that pay very well
Cons:
- Perhaps too complex for website owners
- No built-in website builder besides the tools connected to your migrated site
- Cloud-based hosting may not be for everyone due to its expert nature
Recommendation:
Cloudways is a killer hosting package with an amazing collection of tools, storage, and security built in to every single package. While Cloudways may require more experience to take full advantage, there are few other web hosting sites that can take your WordPress site to new heights. If you have (or are) a dedicated web designer or IT professional that takes care of the backend, Cloudways is the perfect host. So long as you have the expertise, Cloudways is flexible enough for small, medium, and large businesses. There are way more pros than cons here: we fully recommend Cloudways.
Hostwinds
Overview:
Hostwinds is built for moderate to professional businesses and individuals looking to host their website on a platform with more technical functionality than traditional web hosting services. This is apparent in the way they offer their services as well: the packages they present include shared web hosting, enterprise hosting, white label hosting, and even the ability to create your own web hosting service. While not as transparent with their pricing and services, the performance of the load times and free migration tools make them a host to check out.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Nightly backups
- Access to software functionality with cPanel, Softaculous Auto Installer, and Weebly
- 24/7 support and great information for help and how-to’s
- Unlimited bandwidth and storage space included even in lower tiers
- More technical tools than traditional hosting services
Cons:
- Pricing is high even before 25% off, and other pricing options can be difficult to determine
- Does not directly support WordPress, but does so through Softaculous
- Oddly, Hostwinds is not 100% transparent about the services offered by each plan type
- Restricted functionality with Weebly, more expensive than working with Weebly directly
- Not generally recommended for beginners
Recommendation:
It depends on what you are looking for with Hostwinds. Moderate to professional businesses with knowledgeable web developers will appreciate the tools Hostwinds offers. But those beginning in building websites and ecommerce businesses may want to look elsewhere for less complex and cheaper software. Their plan with Weebly is shaky at best, considering you could create a website with Weebly and then migrate it for less cost than it would be to build it inside Hostwinds itself. While Hostwinds does a whole lot of things, it depends on whether or not it does everything as well as services that specialize.
Siteground
Overview:
Siteground is a web hosting site established in 2004, right in the middle of the boom of the internet. It has everything you would need from a web host, including dedicated SSD storage, free SSL, daily backups, and connection to WordPress, WooCommerce, and cloud-hosting. Their highest plan even has access to Git repositories and white label hosting. The starting prices of their three plans are fair, but rise significantly as they are renewed. Impressively, however, they have a 30-day money back guarantee if their services don’t match your needs.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Has an impressive collection of services you would only find in part or not at all with other services, such as free SSL, SSD storage, unlimited bandwidth for even the basic plan, and free daily backups (you can also backup on-demand for free)
- Free migration for WordPress sites
- 30-day money back guarantee (as long as the trial period)
- Complex services available for the highest plan, making it possible for medium and large companies to take advantage of Siteground
- Worldwide server locations
Cons:
- Prices rise significantly after trial period – not the cheapest option on the market
- Limited database size
- No free domain name
Recommendation:
I’m not going to lie, Siteground is impressive in ways that a lot of other web hosting companies wish they could be. Siteground gives their clients everything they need to be successful on the web, whether you are a beginning start-up with a WordPress blog or a large corporation looking to create white labels. The pricing might turn off the most basic user, and limitations of database size and storage may make large companies hesitate, but there’s a wide audience that will feel right at home. With fast speeds, worldwide servers, and a surprising list of free services included in every plan, and you have a hosting service that other hosting services should emulate.
Hostinger
Overview:
Looking for the cheapest web host online? You would be hard-pressed to find one cheaper than Hostinger. At just $.99 to start with their basic plan (and $2.99 thereafter if you renew for their monthly service), Hostinger is a web host that offers a surprising amount of services for their low price. While their base plan does not include a free domain name, it does include WordPress support, an impressive amount of SSD storage, GIT repositories for more advanced web development, and weekly backups. The higher plans offer even more for less than the beginning plans of other web hosts.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- An amazing price point that will match just about anyone’s budget; for example, Hostinger offers Minecraft server hosting
- Impressive uptimes, perhaps one of the best in the US
- Simple and intuitive implementation of installers, plug-ins, and tools
- Features cloud hosting at different price points
- Features integration for ecommerce tools like Magento, WooCommerce, and Presta
Cons:
- Expect some upselling of features, some of which can be annoying to avoid
- Guaranteed but very slow and sometimes roundabout customer support
- No dedicated hosting
Recommendation:
It may come as a surprise that a company with such low prices for web hosting could also have high-quality tools and capabilities. Hostinger does. While its tools may not be advanced enough for professional companies, we heartily recommend Hostinger as a web host for someone just getting into the digital scene. So long as you avoid all the upselling pop-ups, Hostinger can create landing pages, simple ecommerce sites, blogs, and even Minecraft servers. How cool is that?
WP Engine
Overview:
WP Engine is a web host specifically created for hosting WordPress-built websites. WP Engine boasts several impressive features even at the basic level, including free SSL and SSH security, a single site to thirty sites hosted at once, daily backups, and free automated migrations. Tracking and performance tools are included, as well as 24/7 customer support and a resource center with impressive tutorials and information about web development. Uptimes are very good compared to other services, with servers all around the world for fast site loading. You can call for a custom web hosting experience as well to set up the features you need.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- Extreme flexibility with the custom web hosting option
- Very impressive set of services offered even at the basic level
- Resource and knowledge base for working one-on-one with the service
- Built for large companies or businesses wanting to make the most of their ecommerce
- Web host specifically designed for WordPress, expands the toolbase familiar to WordPress users
- Impressive customer support available 24/7
Cons:
- Very expensive compared to other web hosts
- Shared hosting only
- No email service
- Does not sell domains, although WordPress does
Recommendation:
Hoo boy, this is a serious web host. If you have the budget for a host that has all the bells and whistles attached, WP Engine might be the web hosting service for you. Large companies can take advantage of the number of websites WP Engine can support at once, and smaller businesses will get features that other web hosts would charge you an arm and a leg for, like SSL and SSH security, daily backups, and impressive worldwide uptimes. The only other bummer is the lack of email support. With WP Engine, it seems the sentiment is correct: you get what you pay for.
LiquidWeb
Overview:
LiquidWeb offers so many different services, it is difficult to know where to start. But as a web host in particular, LiquidWeb has many different tiers under many categories, including WordPress management, WooCommerce management, VPS hosting, dedicated servers, cloud servers, and private cloud services. All of these come with different perks, from operating system and setup time to root access and scalability. To give you an idea of how broad LiquidWeb’s services range, pricing starts anywhere between $19 per month for WordPress to $1,599 for private cloud service.
Pricepoint:
Pros:
- WordPress and eCommerce hosting are easy to manage together
- No shared web hosting
- Excellent uptimes
- Excellent customer support for individuals and businesses
- Every web hosting service under the sun for any business
- Cloud services and dedicated servers for corporations
Cons:
- No refund services
- No shared web hosting
- Priced higher than common web hosts
Recommendation:
As you might be able to compare on our pros and cons list, it’s both a good and a bad thing that shared hosting is not offered. On the one hand, shared hosting tends to be cheaper than dedicated. But dedicated servers tend to be faster and offer more control. This comparison applies nicely to LiquidWeb in general: LiquidWeb specializes their service towards large businesses looking for large-scale hosting and cloud services, but it is more expensive and not recommended for beginners. But just look at their home page: there’s so many service options! We can cover those later.