Best Web Hosting
Best Web Hosting For Small Business
The Top Eight Hosting Providers
Last updated on March 25, 2019
Weave through the world of website hosting with our reviews of the top eight providers for small businesses.
Hosting refers to where your site lives on the internet. You wouldn’t move house without checking the property was affordable, big enough for your family’s needs, and structurally sound – would you?
Finding a hosting provider for your small business should be no different.
If
you run a small business, getting the best web hosting is very
important. Pick a second-rate provider and it will affect everything.
From your site speed, to your revenue.Worse still, if your website’s server goes down, you’re in big trouble. The latest stats show that server downtime costs an average of $7,908 per minute.
Your small business hosting needs to be reliable: time is money, and you lose dollars for every minute your site is down. It should also be fairly priced, and include the security certificates you need to provide a safe online experience for your users.
If you run a small business and are looking for a hosting provider, you’ve come to the right place. In this guide, we’ll introduce you to the eight best web hosting services for small businesses.
We’ll look at price, guaranteed uptime, ease of use, and customer support.
Before we wrap up, we’ll give you a crash course in how to pick the best web hosting for your small business.
If you’re in a hurry, you can compare the key features of our top web hosting services using the chart below.
Summary of our top 8 best web hosting services for small business
Below, we’ve picked out the top four providers and highlighted how they perform across the important areas. This should give you a clear idea of where a provider’s strengths lie, and what’s most important to you.
1
Best Web Hosting for Small Business
There
are thousands of web hosting providers out there. At times, it can all
get a bit confusing. Luckily, we’re here to help you make sense of it
all.
At Website Builder Expert, we conduct our own detailed research. We look at the areas most important to you – like features, performance, support, and value for money – and test hosting providers to really see what they’re made of.
At Website Builder Expert, we conduct our own detailed research. We look at the areas most important to you – like features, performance, support, and value for money – and test hosting providers to really see what they’re made of.
Best Web Hosting for Small Business: Head-to-Head Comparison
Here, we’ve picked out some of the key features to look out for. These limits and figures are taken from a range of plans to show you the minimum and maximum capacity each provider offers:| Provider | Uptime | Storage | Bandwidth | RAM | Pricing(monthly) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HostGator | 99.99% | unlimited | 1.5TB – unmetered | 2GB – 30GB | $6.95 – 289 |
| InMotion | 99.97% | unlimited | 4TB – 15TB | 4GB – 64GB | $7.99 – 589.99 |
| Bluehost | 99.98% | 50GB – unlimited | 1TB – 15TB | 2GB – 16GB | $7.99 – 209.99 |
| 1&1 IONOS | 99.98% | 100GB – 1TB | unmetered | 1GB – 64GB | $8 – 140 |
| A2 Hosting | 99.95% | unlimited | 2TB – 20TB | 4GB – 16GB | $7.99 – 349.99 |
| SiteGround | 99.98% | 10GB – 960GB | 10TB | 16GB – 64GB | $11.95 – 729 |
| GoDaddy | 99.97% | 100GB – unlimited | unmetered | 2GB – 32GB | $7.99 – 349.99 |
| iPage | 99.94% | unlimited | 1TB – 15TB | 1GB 16GB | $7.99 – 239.99 |
1. HostGator
Best For: Overall Hosting Services
HostGator is our top recommended hosting provider. It came out as the best overall hosting service from our research, and holds its rightful title as the best web hosting for small businesses. It’s a beginner-friendly, feature-rich service with an unrivalled uptime of 99.99%.Pricing: $2.75/month – $289/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Cloud
- Reseller
2. InMotion
Best For: Shared and VPS Hosting
While HostGator tops the charts, InMotion certainly makes a compelling case. Granted, it’s not the cheapest if you’re looking for basic shared hosting, but the security, support, and storage space on offer are excellent. It’s also got its own website builder, should you still need to build your business website.Pricing: $6.39/month – $589.99/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Cloud
- Reseller
- WordPress
3. Bluehost
Best For: WordPress Specific Hosting
If you’re on a budget and need a host for your business’ WordPress site, look no further. With great uptime, free backups, and one-click WordPress installation, Bluehost has all the tools you need. Storage space is a bit tighter than some of its competitors, but there’s still plenty to love about Bluehost.Pricing: $2.75/month – $209.99/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Reseller
- WordPress
4. 1&1 IONOS
Best For: Cloud Hosting
1&1 IONOS has amazing promotional deals ($1/month shared hosting for the first year!) but what really sets it apart is its help and support. Each customer is assigned their own personal consultant, who is on-hand to help with any issues or queries you may have.Pricing: $1/month – $140/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Cloud
- WordPress
5. A2 Hosting
Best For: Customer Service
Most hosting works off a Linux server, but if you’re after Windows hosting, A2 has you covered. Windows hosting comes with the addition of a Plesk Onyx 17.8 control panel, free site migrations, and one-click installs across loads of CMSs – including WordPress.Pricing: $3.92/month – $349.99/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Cloud
- Reseller
- WordPress
6. SiteGround
Best For: Reliability
SiteGround isn’t the cheapest option, but it does have clear strengths. Versatile across multiple CMSs with one-click installation, you’ll also get free email accounts and daily backups. The extra freebies balance out the rise in price, if you ask us.Pricing: $3.95/month – $729/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Cloud
- Reseller
- WordPress
7. GoDaddy
Best For: Extra Features
GoDaddy can be viewed as a jack of all trades. It’s the world’s largest domain registrar, while also providing a web hosting service and website builder. Its uptime is fantastic, and GoDaddy represents the best all-in-one service. If you need the works – domain, website and hosting – you’re in the right place.Pricing: $7.99/month – $349.99/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Reseller
- WordPress
8. iPage
Best For: Cheap Plans
iPage can be seen as a mean, green hosting machine. It’s cheap, has one-click install for select CMSs, and is committed to reducing its carbon footprint. It’s also great if you’re just looking for a cheap hosting option. Be warned though, you may sacrifice speed for the price.Pricing: $1.99/month – $239.99/month
Types of Hosting On Offer
- Shared
- VPS
- Dedicated
- Cloud
- Reseller
- WordPress
Now
you’ve got a taste for each web hosting provider, it’s time for the
main course. Read on as we go into more detail about the top four
services, looking at each one’s features, and reviewing its pricing
plans.
2
HostGator
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
|
3
InMotion
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
|
4
Bluehost
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
|
5
1&1 IONOS
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
|
Overview
1&1 IONOS brings German engineering to your website. Whether you want to take advantage of its website builder, or just the hosting services, you can be sure you’re in safe hands.1&1 IONOS currently owns over 12 million domains around the globe. It is, in every sense, an international powerhouse.
Features
The features you get are mostly industry standard. This includes things like a free domain, daily backups, an SSL certificate, and SSD storage.What sets 1&1 IONOS apart is its unlimited traffic, and dedicated 24/7 support. When you sign up to one of 1&1 IONOS’ plans, you will receive your own personal consultant. They are there to supply you with the answers to your questions. They are highly trained and available via phone, email or live chat
One thing to bear in mind when considering 1&1 IONOS is the lack of storage on the basic shared plan. While other providers – such as InMotion – equip you with unlimited storage, with 1&1 IONOS, you’re limited to between 100-500GB.
If you need a website built, it can help with that too. 1&1 IONOS’ website builder, MyWebsite, is designed specifically for white-collar businesses. So if you’re looking to establish an online presence for your brand, it’s a great place to start.
Pricing
Like most other shared hosting services, 1&1 IONOS splits its plans into three tiers: Business, Pro and Expert. All three have a sign-up deal of $1/month – this lasts for the first six months on Pro and Expert, and for a whole year on the Business plan. The renewal prices after that are as follows:- Business: $8/month – hosts 1 website, 100GB of storage, 1GB SSD, 25 email accounts, free domain
- Pro: $10/month – hosts 5 websites, 250GB of storage, 1GB SSD, 100 email accounts, free domain, SiteLock protection
- Expert: $14/month – hosts 50 websites, 500GB of storage, 1GB SSD, 500 email accounts, free domain, SiteLock protection, CDN
VPS
hosting runs over four plans, and ranges from $5-$30/month. If you need
more SSD storage, VPS represents a massive step up from its shared
offerings, with 50GB SSD even on its most basic VPS plan.
1&1 IONOS’ dedicated hosting is a little different. It works on a pay-as-you-use basis, meaning there’s no concrete final cost. There are caps, though, so don’t worry about ending the month with a bill the size of Everest!
1&1 IONOS’ dedicated hosting is a little different. It works on a pay-as-you-use basis, meaning there’s no concrete final cost. There are caps, though, so don’t worry about ending the month with a bill the size of Everest!
7
What About Other Web Hosting Services?
9
Best Web Hosting for Small Business: FAQs
How much does small business web hosting cost?
Depending on the length of time you’re willing to commit for, web hosting can cost businesses as little as $1/month. Small businesses tend to opt for shared hosting packages which come at cheap promotional rates, with renewal costs varying from $5-30/month.What are the most important hosting features for a small business to look for?
Aside from scanning uptime rates, you’ll also want to be clued up on the support and security on offer. One-click installation is another important feature, so if you need hosting for a certain CMS, make sure this is available.What is the difference between shared, VPS and dedicated hosting?
Shared hosting is where you share a server with other websites. Dedicated hosting is where you have your own server which is more expensive and more powerful. VPS is a virtualized server that acts like a dedicated server, but in a shared server environment – a nice middle ground.What is the cheapest way to host a business website?
1&1 IONOS offers the cheapest hosting packages. Its promotional deals mean you can host your website from just $1/month for the first year. After that, you’re looking at around $8/month for shared hosting, which is a price offered by multiple providers.How often do you have to pay for web hosting?
Generally, there are two payment options: monthly or annually. Paying annually will usually shave a few bucks off the monthly fee as you’re committing to the provider for the year. On the flipside, you get more flexibility by paying monthly and it’s easier to switch providers down the line.Related Articles
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HostPapa Review: Independence at a Price
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InMotion Hosting Review: Feature-Rich and Business-Focused
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