Web Hosting can make or break your website. Bad hosting means your website will load slowly, crash constantly, and be a prime target for malware attacks. (But you knew that.) The problem is that there are so many hosting options that it’s hard to choose the one that’s right for your website. So, we’re breaking things down. In this guide, we take a closer look at four of the best options for fast WordPress hosting, so you can have a secure and speedy business website or WordPress blog. Let’s get into it!
Types of WordPress hosting
There are four main types of hosting that can work for your WordPress website:
- Shared hosting
- VPS hosting
- Dedicated hosting
- Managed WordPress hosting
Shared WordPress hosting
To understand shared hosting, you need to know a bit about how websites are stored. Every website is stored on a server, and every server has finite resources. With shared hosting, many websites are stored on a single server. This isn’t a problem for smaller, more personal websites, because these websites don’t need much storage, and they don’t need enhanced security features. This brings us to what’s great about shared hosting: Because the server’s resources are spread among many websites, the cost of shared hosting is also spread among many website owners. That’s why shared hosting is usually the cheapest hosting package you can buy from a web hosting company.But because the server’s resources are shared among hundreds, and sometimes, thousands of websites, sometimes the bigger websites suck away all the server’s resources, leaving little for the smaller websites. And that’s not the only thing that can go wrong with shared hosting. If one website is facing security issues, those problems can bleed over into your website. Also, when you share a server, you don’t have much say over your server’s Operating System or security features. That’s not a problem for newer website owners or for website owners whose sites don’t need that much security. But if you anticipate that your website will attract lots of traffic, or if your website is an eCommerce site or a business site that needs more security than, say, a family blog, you should stay away from shared hosting. This brings us to another hosting option: dedicated hosting.
Dedicated server hosting for WordPress
Dedicated hosting is essentially the opposite of shared hosting. With dedicated hosting, one website benefits from all the resources of a server. As you can imagine, this means that websites hosted on a dedicated server are faster and more secure than websites hosted on a shared server. And that’s not all. When you choose a dedicated server, you get ultimate control over your server specs, including which Operating System you’ll use, and whether you’ll add any extra security features. That doesn’t mean dedicated hosting is perfect for every website. For one thing, dedicated hosting is usually the premium hosting package at any web hosting company where it’s offered, so it’s usually well out of budget for most website owners. Also, with dedicated hosting, you’ll have to do everything yourself. This means you either need to be very tech-savvy, or you’ll need to hire someone to manage your server for you. Luckily, there is a middle ground. Enter: VPS hosting.
VPS - Virtual Private Server hosting
Now that you understand shared hosting and dedicated hosting, understanding VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting will be a breeze. With VPS hosting, your website is stored on a server that also stores other websites, just like shared hosting. But when you choose VPS hosting, your website is partitioned from the other websites on the server, using virtualisation technology. This means that instead of having to battle for resources, your website will be allocated a specific portion of the server’s resources that won’t ever be shared with any other website on the server. In this way, it’s a lot like dedicated hosting. And, just like dedicated hosting, you can also tailor your Operating System (OS) and security enhancements to suit your needs. This means you can choose an OS that’s compatible with cPanel, so you can enjoy all the benefits that come with having a graphically based control panel. And because the server hosts multiple websites, the cost of VPS hosting is significantly lower than the cost of dedicated hosting, which means you’ll get to enjoy all the security, customisation, and privacy benefits of dedicated hosting, at a fraction of the cost. If your website needs more security than you’re likely to get with a shared server, but you don’t have the budget for dedicated hosting, VPS hosting is perfect for you. But what if you don’t know the first thing about managing a server? Then, you might want to look into managed WordPress hosting.
Managed WordPress hosting
With managed WordPress hosting, your web hosting provider tailors the server environment to enhance your WordPress website. And your web host will manage your server for you, which means you don’t have to worry about accidentally installing a plugin with known security issues, or losing track of your updates and leaving your site vulnerable to attacks. Your web host will take care of all of this for you. If you have a smaller website, you’ll be fine with just a shared server. But if you’re anticipating getting lots of traffic, or if your WordPress website needs more security choose managed WordPress hosting.
The Takeaway
The type of web hosting that’s right for your WordPress website depends on a lot of factors, like how big your website is, how much traffic you’re expecting, and how secure you need your website to be. And remember: If you try a hosting package and decide you need to switch, you can! So, while hosting is an important decision, don’t spend too long mulling over it. Try a hosting option and see how it works with your site. If you need to adjust your hosting plan, just ask your hosting provider to help you upgrade. Good luck!
