While every small business needs a good website, getting a suitable web hosting is not a walk in the park.
Given that many packages are designed for single users, they lack the features that small businesses need.
Every professional web hosting plan should come with an SSL certificate. Although these are not included in every plan, they don’t have to be expensive.
In fact, many web hosting plans currently comes with a free SSL certificate. So, one of the most important decisions to make is choosing the right web hosting plan.
With so many plans available out there, choosing the right one can be challenging. Before setting on anyone, you need to know the different types available in the market.
Basically, the main types include cloud, dedicated web hosting, bundled, and shared hosting. There is, therefore, a lot to think about when shopping for the right hosting plan.
If you are looking for the best web hosting plan for a small business, you are in the right plan.
We’ve reviewed some of the best plans that you need to know about.
1. BlueHost
As one of the best choices and the most popular web hosting plans, Bluehost has everything that small businesses need.
Having been in the market for long, it not only has the best plan but is also quite affordable. The best part is that it will support you all through.
Whether you have an issue or you are finding it get to get around, it will provide you with 24/7 support.
Its live chat options and support number are listed on the site thus you can reach them within a click.
Coming with a variety of features, you’ll definitely get what you are looking for. For instance, with its SEO tool, you can see how your site is doing and know if there is anything that you need to do more.
This way, you’ll be well informed about other things that you must do. Regardless of the direction that your business takes, its plans will support you in the best way possible.
Even if you start with a standard hosting plan, you can easily upgrade or manage a hosting as your business grows. This will not only boost security but speed as well.
More so, if you want a dedicated or VPS hosting, it has a plan for this. The bottom line is its features everything that you may need in a web hosting plan.
Bluehost Pricing
- The basic plan is $7.99 per month
- WordPress Pro plan is $59.99 per month
Pros
- It’s one of the most affordable plans
- Simple and easy to use interface
- Stable uptime
- Good speed and superior security
Cons
- No windows servers
- No monthly plans
2. DreamHost
Unlike other web hostings for small businesses, DreamHost does things differently. For instance, they do not use the normal cPanel that other hosting plans use.
On the contrary, it provides a custom panel to help you manage the website. The best part is that it’s quite intuitive. This makes it user friendly regardless of the skills that you have.
Endorsed by WordPress as one of the best web hosting services, it comes with features such as real-time SEO recommendations, 200 plus starter sizes, and drag and drops WordPress builder.
If you are not good at WordPress it comes with its own website builder. You can also use a variety of website builders including Drupal, Joomla, Zen Cart, and Shopify among others.
In addition, to these, it’s dedicated shared and VPS plans are similar to other web hosting companies.
Whether you are looking for customized services or you want to migrate DreamHost will make everything easy for you.
It features a free plugin that you can use to migrate your WordPress site in just 5 steps.
Apart from its managed WordPress hosting and shared hosting, it provides you with low-cost upgrades and some of the best dedicated servers.
Although their email support is available 24 hours, you can only access live chat during business hours.
More so, if you are looking for technical support through the phone you have to pay $9.95.
DreamHost Pricing
Pros
- It’s very easy to use
- Its quite affordable
- It comes with a free trial
Cons
It does not suit all small businesses
3. Hostinger
Started in 2004 at Lithuania, Hostinger is also one of the most popular Web Hosting services that power up to 29 million websites.
From basic to shared to advanced VPS hosting plans, this company provides a number of comprehensive hosting services.
What sets it apart is the pricing that starts at $0.99 per month. This is quite suitable if you are you are just starting out.
If you are already established, it provides a range of features including free domain name, SSL certificate, built-in Cloudflare protection, 24/7 dedicated support, and daily website backups.
However, the best option for any small business is the Business plan that provides you with the features that you need.
With this plan, you’ll enjoy a 30gb Bandwidth, databases, and unlimited websites. It also provides cheap VPS packages that you can enjoy using.
If you are looking for a simple basic site to showcase your business, this is the right web hosting service for you.
Although the introductory prices will generally go up after one year, they will tell you the cost right from the start. This way, you can decide whether to continue with them or not.
Overall, if you are on a budget this is the right company for you.
Hostinger Pricing
- A single plan is $0.80 per month
- The premium plan is $2.15 per month
- A business plan is $3.45 per month
Pros
- Solid server performance and good uptime
- It’s very cheap when just starting out
- Comes with drag and drop website builder
- Provides free website migration
Cons
- A single plan is cheap but very basic
- The prices increases after the first term
4. GoDaddy
If you want to try something different, GoDaddy has the best features for your business. As a hybrid plan, it provides simplified cPanel management or a shared hosting plan with a similar performance to Virtual Private Server hosting.
Given that it’s large, you can use it for all your business hosting needs. Unlike other web hosting services, it provides regular malware scans and backups to ensure that your website remains safe and secure.
With its drag and drop features, you can build your website even if you don’t have the skills needed.
In case you are stuck along the way, it has a comprehensive helpline that you can contact. As one of the most unique web hosting services, it provides both Windows and Linux hosting plans.
If you are looking for a host with good storage space, GoDaddy is the right service for you. With its range of services and features, you’ll get most of the things you need at quite an affordable price
The best thing is that it comes with a number of templates. In fact, one of its apps is the GoCentrral that has a range of templates that you can always customize based on your business needs.
It also has a site builder known as WordPress quick start that you can use to comfortably build your website. With this builder, you don’t even have to understand WordPress. You can start it and use it quite well.
GoDaddy Pricing
- GoDaddy Launch is $20.99 per month
- GoDaddy Enhance is $24.99 per month
- GoDaddy Grow is $34.99 per month
Pros
- It’s quite easy to set up and manage
- It comes with several resources dedicated to your site
- Has managed WordPress Hosting
- Unlimited Bandwidth with all the plans
Cons
- Comes with money-back guarantee within 30 days
- You might lose some content when you change the theme
5. Liquid Web
Founded over 20 years ago, Liquid Web is a US-based web hosting service used to manage up to 1.5 million websites all over the world.
Targeting professional and small businesses, it provides powerful hosting products. This means it does not provide free or shared hosting plans for any business.
Focusing on the quality of the website, it offers cloud VPS hosting, dedicated servers, managed WordPress hosting, and several custom hosting solutions.
One thing that sets it apart is its exceptional stability and server speed. Providing one of the most reliable supports, in case of anything, you can always get in touch with them.
Although it focuses on professional users, even if you don’t have any skills you’ll realize that it’s quite easy to use.
If you are not sure what you are looking for it has live chat support that you can use to request for any information you need.
Once you get in touch with them they will quickly get back to you and furnish you with all the information you need.
If you are ready, you just need to choose the right plan, fill in your details, and then pay for the same. Since it’s a very straightforward site your account will be activated within no time.
One of the simplest options that they offer is the Managed WordPress account. Even if you have a website somewhere else they will ensure that you get a smooth migration.
You can also buy a dedicated server or a VPS and get an excellent platform that you can use to install WordPress and other apps that you may need.
If you have any query they provide the best support. You can contact them through telephone, live chat, and email 24/7.
Liquid Web Pricing
- Cloud VPS hosting is $19.99 per month
- Cloud VPS hosting is 4GB is $29.99 per month
- Cloud VPS hosting 8GB is $39.99 per month
Pros
- All its plans and high performance
- It’s the only host with up to 100% uptime guarantee
- All support members are well trained
- Its comes with excellent uptime
Cons
The price for every plan is a bit high
6. SiteGround
SiteGround not only comes with the best features but also offers one of the best customer services.
Given that WordPress includes web hosting plans, you’ll enjoy streamlined security, automatic updates, and external technical support.
Widely considered to be the best, it’s both extra secure and fast. To ensure that it remains that it constantly upgrades its services.
Although most of its plans are very powerful, it’s mostly popular for its GoGeek Plan that has some of the best tools for developers.
Whether your business is small or big, you’ll realize that it has everything you love. It also comes with cloud hosting and dedicated servers that you can comfortably use for your business needs.
If you are planning to upgrade in the future it also has several features that make this quite as. Besides this, it provides the best support system through email, chat, and phone.
With its reliable uptime, you’ll ensure that your website visitors are happy. More important your website will always be working. This means you’ll never miss out when customers want to buy something.
If you are looking for something it also provides you with all the information that you need. You can either use its 24/7 live chat or call them over the phone.
As compared to other hosting services, there is no delay. This means their agents know what they are looking for.
What sets it apart is that you can move as many websites as you want. Plus if you need a professional assistant it will provide you with this in their high-end tiers.
SiteGround Pricing
- The startUp pricing plan is $6.99 per month
- GrowBig pricing plan is $9.99 per month
- GoGeek pricing plan is $14.99 per month
Pros
- Its provides one of the best customer support
- Provides extremely good servers
- It provides a 30-day money-back guarantee
- Advanced and beginner features available
Cons
- Comes with higher renewal rates
- Provides a limited cheap plan
7. InMotion
Although InMotion may look less flashy, it’s a solid web hosting plan with an assortment of plans, excellent technology, and several years of experience.
Apart from its customer support, it has a massive self-help knowledge base that you’ll find quite useful. With its 90 days free trial period, you can try it out to see whether it’s the best.
The best part is that its plans are straightforward. If you plan to upgrade, you’ll enjoy greater servers, websites, extra databases, and several subdomains for your business.
If you have a small business, you’ll definitely enjoy its straightforward approach. This means it does not have any confusing tiers or pushy up sales to worry about.
Even if you choose its entry plan, you’ll enjoy one of the best customer supports. You can contact them through email, phone, and live chat.
The amazing thing is that none of its support is hidden. The live chat is easy to find and the phone number is broadcasted such that you can easily find it.
Whether you are just starting out or you are pro it has all the support you need. In fact, if you don’t know what to do it has someone to walk you through the steps.
It also has two types of VPS hosting plans to ensure that you get the right hosting for your business needs. Since it regularly runs promo, you can take advantage of this and enjoy the services.
InMotion Pricing
- Lite pricing plan is $2.49 per month
- The launch pricing plan is $4.99 per month
- The power pricing plan is $7.99 per month
- Pro pricing plan is $12.99 per month
Pros
- Its provides one of the strongest hosting performances
- Daily automated site backups
- Several options to upgrade
- 90 days money-back guarantee
Cons
- Server located in the USA only
- Hosting price increases after the first term
8. WP Engine
If you are looking for the easiest to use web hosting service, WP Engine is the right option. Also known as WordPress Engine, this web hosting service is among the best well-managed web services.
Based in Austin Texas, as compared to the dedicated or shared setups, it will take care of all your needs including security, hardware, plugin updates, and site backups for your company.
Just like other WordPress sites, their hallmark is the ease of set up. If you have it, creating your content and posting it on your website becomes very easy. It also has several WordPress plugins that you can try out to see the best one for your business.
In addition, it comes with plenty of support features. In case of anything, you can always contact them through live chat, email, and phone.
Offering plenty of performance services, it has a Page Performance solution that you can use to test your website to see whether you need any improvement.
It also offers an add-on called GeoTarget that you can use to optimize your website depending on your location.
Furthermore, it will keep the main WordPress software to ensure that your website is always up to date. Since it keeps your website updated and backed up, you can rest assured that you won’t lose anything.
Its backup contains all the themes, main files, databases, and plugins. This means, if anything affects your website, you can easily restore it back to the previous settings.
WP Engine Pricing
- Startup plan is $30 per month
- The growth plan is $115 per month
- Scale plan is $290 per month
- Premium and enterprise plans are custom plans
Pros
- It comes with a 60day money-back guarantee
- It has automatic daily backups
- Provides unlimited daily data transfers
- It includes firewall protection and Malware scanning
Cons
- It does not provide traditional hosting services
- Storage and traffic and capped on every hosting plan
9. GreenGeeks
Founded in 2008, GreenGeeks is a unique hosting service that provides high quality and affordable hosting for several customers.
From solid uptime to mission-driven service and support, it brings a lot of things on the table. Currently serving over 40,000 customers and hosting up to 500,000 websites, it’s one of the best web hosting companies in the market today.
Whether you are a beginner or an intermediate website owner, it comes with everything that you need. If you want to start small and later upgrade your website it’s the right service for you.
What sets it apart is offering a very scalable hosting, solid WordPress hosting, and accessible beginner packages for all your website needs.
The amazing thing is that all its plans come with security and backup features. Committed to sustainability, it works better than most services out there.
Unlike others, even the most basic plan comes with free domain registration, free website migration, and cPanel site management.
To ensure that your account is safe and protected, it has a two-pronged approach. Even if another account like your experiences a usage spike this won’t affect your account in any way.
Furthermore, each account has its own malware tracking feature. This means that regardless of what affects other accounts your account will always be safe.
When it comes to customer support, GreenGeeks not only offers phone support and 24/7 email support but also features interesting resources that you can rely on.
GreenGeeks Pricing
- Lite plan is 2.95 per month
- Pro plan is $5.95 per month
- The premium plan is $11.95 per month
Pros
- It has one of the best uptimes
- Has a good page loading time
- The best customer support
- Free website and domain migration
Cons
- It has a questionable refund policy
- Underpowered WordPress
10. HostGator
If you are looking for one of the best web hosting services for your site, HostGator won’t let you down. As a hugely popular hosting site, you can’t go wrong with this service.
Started in 2002, this service guarantees that you’ll enjoy an uptime of 99.99%. This means that your website unlikely to experience any major downtime thus making it very reliable.
Providing up to 5 types of hosting you can always choose the right one for you. From the most affordable which is the shared hosting to the most expensive one, you can always choose the right one for you.
All its plans come with unlimited bandwidth and a free SSL certificate. Apart from that, once you sign up with them you’ll enjoy a free domain name for the first year.
When it comes to creating your website you get the option of using its drag and drop feature to create the website that you want. Coming with a large number of templates you get to choose the right one for your business.
Even if you want to use CMS to create your website, it comes with convenient one-click installation. It also supports Magento, Joomla, and Drupal.
Coming with cheap hosting packages, it focuses on providing small businesses with the best hosting plans including speedy technology, WordPress cloud plan, and one of the best customer supports.
Unlike its competitors, it generally provides lower pricing. However, this does not mean that they don’t offer much. They provide some of the most powerful hosting infrastructures.
Pros
- The best customer support
- Stable and strong uptime
- Good customer support
- 45-day money-back guarantee
- Free cPanel migration
Cons
- Slow page speed
- Lots of extra fees for malware, Gmail and true backups
11. Linode
Linode is a cloud hosting provider that serves over 400,000 thus making it the best for beginners.
It not only provides a high-performance web hosting plan but also deploys a powerful server that you’ll use without any issue.
If you are not sure whether it’s the right hosting platform, you can sign up for its 7-day free trial.
Specializing in high-performance SSD Linux servers, which makes it stands is its approach to security.
Although the company does not use industry terms to refer to their hosting, its plans are almost the same as what others provide.
One thing that sets it apart is its high level of uptime. Even if you are using it for the first time you won’t experience
It also has a very easy to use control panel. Since its layout is well designed you won’t experience any difficulty navigating around.
More so, it gives you a chance to modify things to suit your business needs.
Once you’ve set it apart launching it and using it takes seconds. This allows you to focus more of your time on focusing on the main areas and perfecting your strategies.
As compared to others, it comes with a downloadable app that allows you to track existing systems, create new features, and manage the payment. This means you can do almost everything using your smartphone.
When it comes to support, it has customers in mind. Apart from providing many online guides, they have dedicated a whole section to tutorials.
If you want to contact them directly you can do so through skype, telephone, or social media platforms such as Twitter.
Linode Pricing
- Nanode 1 GB RAM is $5.00 per month
- Linode 2GB RAM is $20 per month
- Linode 4GB RAM is $20 per month
- Linode 16GB RAM is $80 per month
Pros
- Has a huge variety of hosting plans
- Easily scalable
- Top grade security
- Large library of guides and high-quality tutorials
Cons
It only provides a 7-day money-back guarantee
12. A2 Hosting
As one of the best web hosting services, A2 Hosting has everything you need in a hosting plan.
One thing that sets it apart is its money-back guarantee. This means if you feel that you’ve gotten a raw deal, you can always get back your money.
Having been in the market since 2001 it provides one of the best server speeds you can find out there.
Apart from its efficient customer support, it has developer-friendly plans and one of the best money-back guarantees.
Although it provides several resources and hundreds of articles, if you wish to speak to an agent, it will provide you with ticked based help, chat, and phone help.
As a matter of fact, if you try them out, you’ll find its customer support quite friendly. In addition, to its fast speed loading, it features a HackScan a security feature that not only scans all malware but also provides you with a 24-hour scanning service.
It also features scalable data centers. This means in case of any attack you can rest assured that you are protected.
Furthermore, it comes with a free site migration depending on your plan. With this feature, you don’t have to pay anything to migrate your existing website.
Once you reach out to them they will take care of the rest. Coming with developers, website builders, and content management system tools, it works seamlessly with most software.
A2 Hosting Pricing
- Lite plan starts at $2.96 per month
- The swift plan starts at $3.70 per month
- Turbo plan starts at $7.03 per month
Pros
- One of the fastest web hosting services
- Efficient and friendly customer support
- Free HackScan to ensure your website is safe
- Free site migration
Cons
- It has a high renewal rate
- A lot of restrictions on the cheapest plan
13. TMD Hosting
Although TMD Hosting is a new player in the web hosting platform, it has one of the best infrastructures. It’s not one of the largest platforms but it has several good features that you’ll just love.
Since it has 3 different types of hosting plans, if you are looking for something cheap, shared hosting is the right one for you. You can also choose VPS hosting if you want to enjoy virtual private machines.
When it comes to customer support, TMD Hosting is outstanding. Once you get in touch with them they will respond within minutes. This means you don’t have anything to worry about.
With features such as a drag and drop website builder, free domain name, and several open-source installers, you can rest assured that you have everything you need.
It also provides you with a free automatic daily backup, hence you don’t have to worry about forgetting to update your website.
It also promises to provide you with a 16 percent faster loading page to ensure that your website pages loads as first as possible.
If you are looking for a service that offers the best security, TMD Hosting won’t let you down. This is quite encouraging especially if you are worried about breaches and hacks.
While they do not promise full-proof malware protection it’s something that you can rely on.
Moreover, it provides 24/7 customer support. You can also contact them through live chat if you have any issues.
TMD Hosting Pricing
- Starter plan $2.95 per month
- Business plan $4.95 per month
- The enterprise plan is $ 7.95 per month
Pros
- It has the most responsive customer
- Great uptime
- It has unlimited accounts and free domain
- It has SSL security
- Free site transfer
- 60-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- Limited phone support
- There is no transparent pricing
How to Select the Right Web Hosting Service
1. Web Hosting Provider Uptime
The whole essence of creating a website is for visitors to access it. If your customers or visitors cannot access your website there is no reason for creating it in the first place.
Creating a website with great uptime means it won’t go down regularly. While most hosts provide some sort of guarantee, very few of them deliver the same.
Since there are a lot of details on these guarantees, you need to know all about them so you don’t make any mistakes.
2. Speed
When it comes to what your website does, site speed plays a very important role. For instance, if you want your website to rank well, you need to make it fast. Making it fast will also ensure that your website visitors are always happy.
When shopping for the best host, ensures that it can clearly portray every page. The bigger your website gets, the faster it should be. If you want to build a high traffic site, choose a host that can provide you with this.
3. Customer Support
If you have a website, you are likely to run into issues. With this in mind, you need a website host with the right support.
Since going through the user reviews will not give you the best idea, you need to choose a website host that has the best support.
Apart from phone and email, you should be able to reach their customer support 24 hours a day.
The best way to go about this is to choose one with a free trial. You can use this time to dig everything that they offer. By doing this you’ll know whether they have good support or not.
4. Price
Although you should not overpay on hosting you also need to avoid choosing a cheap hosting plan. While most basic hosting costs $10 or $20 a month, there are other cheaper options.
If you think the price is too cheap, it’s not the right one for your business. Regardless of the size of your business you need a high-quality web host that can also grow with your business.
5. Security
When looking for the right web host, security should also be your number one concern. The best web hosting service should be DSS compliant.
It should also come with a built-in network monitoring tool, auto malware scanning, in house security expert, and firewalls.
6. Migration Features
The ability to quickly and easily migrate your website is also worth considering. Did you know that even a simple WordPress site can be hard to migrate?
If you are handling all the migration work alone choose one that has easy to migrate features. This will help you decide whether the host is the right one for you.
6. Upscaling Features
Whether you are just starting out or not you can rest assured that your business will grow.
It’s therefore important to choose a hosting company that gives you the option to upgrade. A good web host will give you a chance to grow your business without any hassles.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, it’s quite possible to transfer the web host alone. Once you are away from the DIY guide you can always do this without any issues.
You also need to know that most companies provide free migration to their customers.
Web hosting service is basically used to host a website so people can access the content. If you want your website to be functional you need to have a domain name and web host.
Generally, there are up to 4 types of web hosting plans namely bundled hosting, shared hosting, dedicated hosting, and VPS hosting.
All these come with their pros and cons hence you can choose one based on what you are looking for.
Although most business websites are not different from other websites they require the best web hosting service so that they don’t experience downtime.
If you constantly experience downtime you are likely to affect the reputation of your business.
Yes, there are several free web host services in the market. However, you should know that free web hosting services may come with several risks that you need to avoid.
If you want to create a website, you definitely need a domain name.
Although you can develop a website using other companies’ domain names, if you are setting up a business website, it’s very important to get your own domain name.
SSL security is an abbreviation for the Secure Sockets Layer. It just refers to the process of passing the information safely only.
It provides a safe path that runs between two machines or two internet-connected machines.
Final Thoughts
Whether you have a small business or large enterprise, you need the best web hosting platform. But with several of them in the market, choosing the right one can be hard.
You should consider your budget and what you are looking for. This way, you’ll end up with the best.
If you are not sure, start with the above so you can get the best. Just one thing, if you want to get the most, ignore the free plans.