Choosing the right hosting for your WordPress website is very important. Your website’s health will rely on the hosting provider your use.
But how do you know which one is the best WordPress host?
There’s so many to choose from: Bluehost, SiteGround, HostGator… etc.
How To Choose the best WordPress Hosting in 2020
We have set some basic ground rules in terms of software, cPanel, security, WordPress optimization, PHP version, MySQL version and so on. However, before I share my list of the top WordPress hosts, let’s look at the official requirements needed to run WordPress’s software smoothly in any hosting environment.
Here is a rundown:
- Value for money: A lot of hosting offers similar features but charges 2X-3X for no reason. The features like free domain, Support, free SSL, CDN, and a few others were influencing factors.
- Speed: 2020 is all about the need for speed. If the hosting environment is not optimized for WordPress, expecting a blazing fast WordPress website is not idle.
- Uptime: The uptime of hosting compared with industry standard has been another big factor. Anything which is below industry standard has been discarded. As a user of below mentioned hosting companies, I have monitored them for uptime to ensure they fit to be part of ShoutMeLoud’s best WordPress hosting guide.
- Response time: The hosting provider should have a really fast response time. Anything below 200ms is good. I have shared the response time of various hosting providers. The response time should also stay high under the stress test. This is where I have removed many shared hosting provider like Greengeeks, HostGator that didnot perform in the stress test.
For instance, is it enough for you to host a medium server site or do you require a high traffic site? Do they have a limit in terms of bandwidth, and can they handle occasional or frequent traffic spikes?
Next, server geographical location is very important for two reasons: Speed and Latency. Server location has a direct correlation with load time for your idle customers and visitors.
Types of WordPress Hosting Services you should know
Free WordPress Hosting
WordPress is open source free software that comes in two flavors officially: WordPress.com and WordPress.org. The major difference between these two WordPress platforms is ‘hosting’ i.e WordPress.com is a free hosted platform while WordPress.org is a self-hosted platform. Yes, the hosting provided by WordPress.com is free WordPress hosting.
You can create a WordPress website completely FREE in WordPress.com free hosting but there are limitations. You have limited control and customization possibilities. In addition, it displays advertisements in your site and in case you want to remove them, you have to pay.
Shared Hosting
Shared web hosting is the cheapest and most popular option available. With shared hosting, multiple websites share the same IP address and resources of the server including the memory, hard disk space, and the bandwidth. The advantage of shared hosting plan is the low cost – ideal choice for the low-budget projects and beginners. However, there are some disadvantages like limited memory space, slow site speed, SEO and security issues as there are multiple sites hosted on the same server and use the same IP address.
VPS (Virtual Private Server)
With VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting, you will be provided a certain portion of resources on a server. You will share a server with other VPS users but there are not as many as in Shared hosting. Server resources are allocated to the VPS users according to their needs. Therefore you can get more resources like space and memory anytime you need at an additional cost. Hence, it’s a good choice for quickly growing business websites. It is costlier than shared hosting however it is a good solution for more secure hosting. Failure of other VPS users to protect the security of their sites on the server doesn’t harm your site.
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting refers to a hosting configuration where all the server resources are devoted to a single client. Unlike shared hosting and VPS hosting, dedicated hosting is used by a single user. You can use the full hard disk space, memory, bandwidth, while you have the full control over security, speed, and SEO aspects. Dedicated hosting is very expensive compared to the Shared hosting but it is worth it if you have a large online enterprise hit by a very large number of the audience every day.
Best WordPress Hosting Providers
Let’s jump to the best hosting providers first, then move down the list to see which ones you should avoid. Without further ado, here are the 10 best web hosts for WordPress:
Siteground
Siteground is one of the most commonly used WordPress shared hosts. With its fast speeds, great customer support, and high levels of security it’s a great bargain for the features you get. It’s also one of the four hosts recommended by WordPress.org.
SiteGround has developed an in-house cache technology called Supercacher, which makes a WordPress blog ultra-fast. Supercacher is an advanced website optimization solution, which uses the Varnish web accelerator. Simply stated, SiteGround will ensure that your blog can handle high traffic and high loads blazingly fast.
- Uptime: 99.98%
- Load time: 629 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: Google cloud servers, free https (SSL), free email
- Website: www.SiteGround.com
Bluehost
One of the oldest web hosts started in 1996, Bluehost has become the largest brand name when it comes to WordPress hosting. They are an official ‘WordPress’ recommended hosting provider. With Bluehost, you never have to worry about your website being slow even when there is a lot of traffic. Their 24/7 expert support is always there to help when you need it by phone, email, or live chat.
They are rated #1 in web hosting for small businesses. On top of that, they are offering WPBeginner users an exclusive 63% off discount, a Free Domain, Free SSL, and a free Site Builder with templates.
- Uptime: 99.99%
- Load time: 390 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: One-click install for WordPress, https (SSL), free domain for 1 year
- Website: www.Bluehost.com
Hostgator Managed WordPress
HostGator hosts over 8 million domains and is one of the most popular web hosts in the industry. With 1-click WordPress installation, 99.9% up time guarantee, and 24/7 support, it’s a smart choice for every website owner.
We consider them one of the best web hosting for businesses. They’re offering our readers an exclusive 62% off discount, a free domain name, and free SSL certificate.
- Uptime: 99.99%
- Load time: 369 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: Free site transfer and backups. WordPress optimized servers
- Website: www.HostGator.com
Hostinger
Hostinger is all about providing you with a simple alternative to complicated hosting plans. The service is designed to be as user-friendly as possible, allowing you to get your site set up in only a few minutes. Each WordPress hosting plan includes access to a one-click installer that already has several performance-based plugins.
The built-in caching plugin is custom-made, ensuring that it works well with the service. If you need even more performance capabilities, Hostinger offers speed optimization features as well. The mid-range plan includes twice the performance speed while the highest plan offers 4x the speed.
- Uptime: 99.93%
- Load time: 339 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: Free email account, 24/7 customer support, free SSL (https)
- Website: www.Hostinger.com
Dreamhost
DreamHost has been committed to WordPress and its community for over 10 years. Our hosting platforms are optimized for WordPress and our team actively contributes to the WordPress community. At DreamHost, you take total control of your server or let our team of experts handle everything for you. DreamHost offers choice, performance and value for new users and experts alike.
- Uptime: 99.92%
- Load time: 569 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: WordPress is pre-installed, drag and drop builder, unlimited bandwidth/storage
- Website: www.DreamHost.com
A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting is an independently owned provider. While some of the biggest names fall under the umbrella of a parent company, A2 Hosting is the only one calling the shots. Thus, the company offers some unique hosting features that you won’t find anywhere else.
This provider offers several WordPress hosting plans. They’re separated into two categories. The first is shared WordPress hosting. With one of these plans, you’re getting unlimited disk space and data transfer. While the most affordable plan only allows for one site, the mid-range and top-level plans include unlimited sites and email accounts.
- Uptime: 99.93%
- Load time: 295 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: Fast servers, free SSL, free CDN, 24/7 live support
- Website: www.A2Hosting.com
GreenGeeks
GreenGeeks is an established web hosting provider that offers much more than just reliable service. One of the company’s biggest advantages is its reliance on green energy. For every bit of power that’s used, GreenGeeks puts three times as much back into the grid through renewable energy.
The hosting provider currently offers three managed WordPress plans. It includes a one-click installer to get your site up and running in minutes. Updates and security issues are taken care of automatically, allowing you to focus on building your audience.
- Uptime: 99.99%
- Load time: 375 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: Unlimited storage & bandwidth, automatic updates, free SSL
- Website: www.GreenGeeks.com
iPage
iPage also offers “WordPress” hosting. They have 2 WordPress plans which cost $3.75/month and $6.95/month(renew at $7.49 and $10.49/mo respectively), both plans come with a free domain name for 1 year. iPage main goal is to ensure the best possible experience, from registration to customer support.
iPage offers support via 24/7 live chat and phone. Both plans come with one-click installs for WordPress as well as a free SSL certificate. Bandwidth and storage are both unlimited.
- Uptime: 99.94%
- Load time: 709 ms
- Support: 24/7 live chat
- Features: Free domain, unlimited storage & bandwidth
- Website: www.iPage.com
Final Verdict
We’d like to stress that none of the WordPress hosting providers here failed any test. The overall standard was refreshingly high. Furthermore, all providers also offer a full range of more advanced hosting options if you start to outgrow the entry-level packages.
Our hope is that the information above will help you do two things:
- provide a framework to distinguish between high-profile providers, and
- use their overall offerings as a sensible reference point if you are comparing with other hosting services in the market.
Also checkout WordPress recommendation for the hosting services here. WordPress Recommended Hosting Services.
We’d love to hear more about your experience in finding the best WordPress host in the comments below. Get in touch!
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