If you have been considering starting an online business or building a website, then you need excellent web hosting!
There are about 1.2 billion websites on the internet. Yes, 1.2 billion. There's 1 website for every 6 people in the world, which is growing daily. Regardless of why, that's a lot of websites. Ensuring that your website gets noticed among the other billion is proving increasingly difficult, especially if your web hosting provider consistently lets you down.
We're going to take a closer look at some of the best web hosting companies and the services that they provide. So, if you're considering web hosting services right now, you've come to the right place!
What Is Web Hosting?
When someone wants to visit your website, they type your web address into their browser search bar and are automatically taken to your website. This only happens because your web hosting company ensures your website is online for everyone to see or visit with minimal delays or interruptions.
Great web hosting will ensure your website is discoverable, consistent, and reliable. Of course, your choice of web hosting will depend significantly on your budget and how much traffic you expect.
Obviously, we all want to see thousands of people visiting our website but being realistic about expected traffic will help you get a better deal on web hosting and a website host that better suits your needs.
Top 5 Web Hosting Solutions for Small Businesses
Excellent web hosting will provide you with security, uptime, reliable site speed, ease of use, and integrations with your website. In this section, we'll check out five of our favorite web hosting solutions tailored to small businesses just starting online.
1. Bluehost Web Hosting
Bluehost comes in at number one for various reasons, but with a free domain, free SSL, 1-click WordPress install, FTP, and 24/7, 365-day customer support, it's hard to beat. They have various pricing plans, but their basic plans are a very affordable way to get your website online. Their live chat and phone support are great, and their advertised 99.99% uptime is 100% on target. It's our number one choice, and if you're planning on using WordPress, then Bluehost definitely worth a closer look.
2. GoDaddy Web Hosting
You've probably seen some celebrity advertising GoDaddy and its web hosting services. They have various packages, but if you want a domain name included, then it will bump up the package cost quite a bit. They offer 24/7 support, a 99.9% uptime promise, a one-year SSL certificate, and free daily backups. They may be one of the biggest names in the web hosting game, but recent customer reviews have highlighted that they may need to improve their customer service.
3. SiteGround Web Hosting
SiteGround offers one of the fastest speeds of all web hosting providers. So, if it's the speed you're looking for, then they're definitely worth checking out. They have four dedicated servers located in London, Chicago, Amsterdam, and Singapore. This allows you to choose a server that is best suited to your location. They offer 99.9% uptime, SSD storage, daily backups, customer support, and easy WordPress hosting. While some users have highlighted the limited cap on storage, it still gets the job done.
4. HostGator Web Hosting
HostGator makes it easy to transition from one web hosting service to another, but they don't offer a free domain name. They offer the same 99.9% uptime, cloud hosting, unlimited emails, 24/7 customer support, and one-click installs for most platforms. If you're just getting started with your website, page load times aren't an issue, but as your business gets bigger, it could struggle with HostGator's page load times.
5. IPage Web Hosting
IPage offers a free domain name and free SSL certificate for the first year. They don't offer free website transfer, but you can purchase it as an option for $150 per website migration. You get unlimited emails, daily backups, 24/7 customer support, and one of the cheapest basic packages at $1.99 monthly, which is excellent for a small or new business just starting. IPage is a great starting point, but as your business gets bigger, it may struggle, and after your promotional periods end, it can get a little pricey.
6 Things To Consider When Choosing A Web Hosting Solution
Reliability – The best web hosting solutions offer you reliability and ensure your website is up with no interruptions. All good web hosting companies provide you with an uptime listed as a percentage. 99.9% is excellent. You should never settle for less than 99.8% uptime.
Private IP and SSL Certificate – A good web hosting solution should be concerned with your security and website safety. Private IPs and SSL certificates add a layer of security to your website and reassure visitors that your website is safe.
Support Popular Frameworks – If you have built your website on a WordPress framework, finding a web hosting service that supports WordPress is vital. Always check what frameworks your web hosting company offers before committing to any hosting package.
Storage and Bandwidth – Most websites only need basic storage, so buying unlimited storage isn't a priority when building your website. However, be wary of how much you pay for that unlimited storage.
Price and Budget – Pricing will vary greatly depending on which company you look at. Most businesses just starting should be able to find web hosting services from about $5-10 per month.
Customer Service – Good customer service is necessary when something goes wrong or you need advice. It's not unusual for something to go wrong, but it's typically easy to fix with good customer support. Check out their reviews and what sort of customer service they offer.
Choosing the Right Service
There you go! Five of the best web hosting solutions for small businesses, how they stack up against their competition, and what to look for when choosing a web hosting provider.
When choosing a web hosting service, focus on what you need while avoiding the services you don't need. It can save you time and hassles in the long run, especially when your business is just starting.
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