If you’re good at something, and want to show the world your talent, then you might have heard this pretty often… “You’re so good at this! Go get your own website.”
And, may be you thought, sure, why not, after all it’s not all that hard. Well, you’re right! It isn’t that difficult.
But before you go about it, you need to decide on the best web hosting service provider for your website.
Now this can get all confusing given that there are so many web hosting service providers out there, and while some of these hosting providers might look great, they’re probably not worth all that money that you would spend.
If you’re confused about what exactly a web hosting service is, here are some basics that you should know about, before this article dives right into the topic.
What is a Web Hosting Service?
A web hosting service is a facility that companies provide to other businesses to host their websites on the internet.
When you get a hosting service, once you type in the web address in a web browser, your website will show up, as it connects to your website’s server AKA the website hosting service you purchased.
This server, in the most basic sense, helps you store your website files. So if you have a visitor on the website, they will be able to view all the data that has been sent to them via the server.
Factors determining the Best Web Hosting Service Provider
Here are the aspects that you need to pay attention to while determining which web hosting service provider is best suited for your web hosting needs.
Number of years
Are you doubtful about the credibility of a web hosting service provider? Then the number of years that they have been active in the industry is a key deciding factor.
The more the number of years that they have been active in the industry, the better.
Uptime
Uptime refers to the time a server runs without a shutdown or a restart. Server uptime is the total duration for which a server is fully functional, and running. It is a metric used to denote the performance of a server.
Server uptime is monitored, and measured by server monitoring tools. If the uptime is very high, then the respective server is real good. Server uptime is measured in terms of percentage.
Customers
This is another determinant that will help you figure out if a web hosting service is actually trustworthy.
Find out how many customers the web hosting service provider has, and the locations that the hosting service provider as well as the customers are based out of before taking a decision.
Support
Customer support is extremely crucial.
If the customer support is available 24×7, then you’ll be able to focus, and work on your website without facing any server problems because of the all round help being provided.
And, if web hosting is an unfamiliar territory for you, then all you need to know is that customer support is key to building, developing, and growing your website.
Security
Security is the key factor that you should look out for when opting for your web hosting service.
Since websites have access to important information, it’s best to keep your website as secure as possible. With strict security norms in place, your website can prevent hackers from accessing private information.
Online reviews
Online reviews are a great way of determining if a hosting service is worth the investment.
If the online reviews are honest, then they have value! And, online reviews on the different hosting parameters are then a good indicator if the respective hosting service provider is any real good.
Online reviews will help you understand if the hosting service is really trustworthy. 94% state that online reviews have made them avoid a business.
Access on mobile
There may be occasions when you might have an instant idea or a thought that requires you to make some quick changes on the website.
Instead of reaching out to your assistant, the quickest way to go about this work is doing it yourself on your mobile.
Backup functionality
Performing backups of your server is real important.
Data loss can occur at any given moment, and your database, and website back ups help you retrieve that data, and thus sometimes even a full website backup is essential.
Note –
You may have several web hosting options available to you out there but to actually narrow down your choice, ask yourself these questions –
What kind of website do you want to host online? A blog? A website? An ecommerce site?
Accordingly, you’ll need to figure out how much web traffic to expect, and at what stage?
How well your website needs to perform for optimum functionality?
Do you expect your website to grow any time soon?
What are the goals that you set for your website?
Once you answer all your questions, you’ll know what to expect from your website, and then you’ll be able to select the best web hosting service provider that is suited for your needs.
Top and Best Web Hosting Service Providers
It can be real difficult to choose just one web hosting service provider that delivers great results. That’s why, here we list the top 5 web hosting service providers that deliver great functionality, and results.
Bluehost
Are you planning on building a WordPress website? If yes, then without doubt Bluehost is your web hosting service provider to go in for.
WordPress is the undisputed leader in website creation. It currently powers 39.6% of the internet.
WordPress is the platform of preference of those who are new to creating their own website. And, irrespective of the purpose of creating one, WordPress is quite a safe bet.
If you don’t know how to navigate through a WordPress site, here’s a simple guide that will help you.
Bluehost has a couple of great features like that of 24/7 live support, free email accounts, and SSL. If you’re someone who is just starting off with a website, and are completely clueless, Bluehost would be your best bet.
Apart from WordPress, you can also use Bluehost for other content management systems like Joomla, and Drupal.
And, if you’re expecting heavy traffic on your website, Bluehost can accommodate for that as well. It also has a great uptime with 99.96%.
Bluehost web hosting service has three main hosting plans depending on the objective for which you want to create your website – Shared Hosting (for a blog or a basic website), Ecommerce, and Managed WordPress.
You will find more plans under each of these main type of plans. You can select the one from the above depending on the functionality you expect from the site, and basis your budget.
The cheapest plan under Shared Hosting starts from $2.95 per month.
HostGator
Are you someone who’s really keen on sticking to your budget? Don’t worry, here’s your best hosting service provider.
HostGator is known for it’s economical plan options, and hence is especially preferred by startups. Literally, their cheapest plan starts at just $2.75/month.
This web hosting service provider currently has more than 2 million websites hosted on it’s platform. Hostgator has been in the industry since 2002.
HostGator guarantees an uptime of 99%, and has some great features like 24×7 support for 365 days, unlimited storage, unmetered bandwidth, SSL, and a one-click download.
Of course, these features vary depending on the plan that you select. In total they have three plans – the Hatchling Plan which is for basic usage, Baby Plan, and the Business Plan.
If you have a WordPress site, and want cheap hosting, it’s advisable to go ahead with HostGator.
Hostgator hosting service is pretty easy to use, and hence you can rather focus on your work, and on the coding of your website if you’re well versed with the flow.
Dreamhost
Dreamhost is amongst the oldest hosting service provider in the market, and has been active in the web hosting industry since 1996.
It hosts more than 1.5 million websites, WordPress blogs, and other applications for small businesses, developers, etc.
As they have been in the web hosting industry for a very long time, they have more than 400 thousand customers on board with them.
Dreamhost’s website hosting plan starts at $4.95/month. There are two shared hosting plans provided by Dreamhost – Shared Starter at $4.95/month, and Shared Unlimited at $8.95/month.
Dreamhost has hosting for different hosting needs like WordPress hosting, VPS hosting, etc.
Dreamhost also provides features like strong security, unlimited data transfer per month, and domain management tools.
Although, Dreamhost does not provide a cPanel which is best for those well versed with coding, it has an admin panel which has similar functionality.
Dreamhost offers 24×7 support on live chat in case you’re confused about how to use their hosting services.
GoDaddy
GoDaddy is usually the preferred hosting service provider among businesses. GoDaddy has a community of more than 20 million customers.
GoDaddy is the most versatile hosting web server provider helping small as well as large businesses set up their website safely.
GoDaddy has an uptime of about 99.95% which pretty much speaks for itself when we discuss about quality hosting.
It is especially great for web developers who know what they want to achieve with their website since this hosting service provider provides great tools for web development along with the cPanel.
GoDaddy’s plans start at $6.99/month, and include features like security monitoring, more than 125 one-click install applications, and more.
However, it’s important to note here that website backups, SSL, and some other key features aren’t included. But they do offer an all round support if you need any sort of assistance with navigating the server.
Hostinger
Looking for another cheap web hosting option? Then hostinger is your answer. If you’re someone who’s thinking of launching their website, then Hostinger will help you, and is the best bet.
But if you’ve got a website, and a business that’s already doing well, then you need to properly evaluate, and compare Hostinger’s plans with that of the other web hosting service providers such as Bluehost, and Hostgator.
Hostinger has over 29 million users in 178 countries.
Hostinger is another great hosting service provider since in it’s hosting plans it includes web development tools like MySQL, PHP, advanced hPanel instead of the cPanel, etc.
Hostinger has an uptime of 99.74% which is not all that great but common reviews state that the loading time very well compensates for that.
Features offered here include an easy website builder, 24×7 support availability, free SSL, etc.
Conclusion on Top and Best Web Hosting Service Providers
The above listed web hosting service providers have a great reputation for the hosting quality that they provide along with their top notch features, and functionality.
A reliable web host is important to launch a website whether it’s for a newbie or even for someone who is adept at web development, and is a technical expert.
If you choose to use one of these web hosting service providers or if you would rather prefer to research some more to dig out a hidden hosting gem, please go ahead, and do so.
There are many other good web hosting service providers out there in the market such as Hostomy, Rackspace, i2k2, and many more.
After all, the success of your website, and business heavily depends on a good web host.
So which web hosting service provider will you choose, and why?
Disclaimer –
1) These hosting plans and prices are subject to change. You need to check out the latest price of the different plans, and the discounts if any on these plans on the respective hosting service provider’s website.
2) These plans and prices may be different for different geographies. The above illustrated prices are basis United States.
