Shared Hosting

What is Shared Web Hosting?

Shared hosting is a method of hosting that allows you to have multiple websites on a server. You’re also on the same server as other users who are hosting their websites, and every customer actually has a limit on the total amount of bandwidth (even with “unlimited” hosting plans). On the upside, you can increase the amount of priority you have by upping your plan and paying a little bit extra.

Shared hosting is also one of the most affordable solutions for your hosting needs. You may have some limitations, but in most cases this doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re going to be left in the dark. Having a shared hosting plan can give you a plethora of benefits to go along with it, such as:

1. You pay the least for shared hosting as compared to a dedicated hosting package.
2. You can often choose various levels of hosting and resources that you can use based on the package that you choose to have with your hosting provider.
3. You don’t need to worry about any technical side maintenance. You can literally have your site up in no time, and then end up not having to worry about anything else.
4. If you’re on a smaller budget, you can get great uptime and not have to worry about your site going down.

There are Some Disadvantages of Course

There is nothing in this world that is out there that doesn’t have its drawbacks. There is nothing that can be completely perfect, and in the world of web hosting, this is true no matter what type of server you choose. On top of that, you need to understand that you can rely on your shared hosting provider to give you the best hosting experience possible.

1. Customer service may not be as great as it would be for dedicated hosting customers or even lifetime hosting customers.
2. The server can be affected by traffic to other domain name accounts on the server, although many people wouldn’t notice this.
3. The load times of your website can be slower than dedicated hosting providers. That’s basically because you’re sharing your website’s files with a server that is housing other peoples’ websites.
4. You don’t get to choose who your shared neighbors are. This means that some other sites on the server can have the chance to cause some serious turmoil – even though it’s very rare.
5. Shared hosting doesn’t always give you the best customization possible with your website.

Is Shared Hosting Recommended?

If you’re a smaller person who’s wanting to get started, such as business upstarts, freelancers, gig workers, digital marketers, or entrepreneurs, then using a shared hosting plan can definitely give you a lot of the positive benefits. As a matter of fact, you may not even notice that your site is running slow (and neither will your customers) when you first start your site. Of course, most of the companies out there who are offering shared hosting provide you with all of the tools you need in order to start the growth process.

So Shared Servers Aren’t as Secure?

Most shared hosting packages do post a slight risk for a data breach, but this doesn’t happen to a lot of the bigger names out there. This is why most of the hosting providers allow their users to pay a small fee for additional site securing services, such as SSL encryption and more.

How Expensive is Shared Hosting?

Most hosting plans you can get range anywhere from $10 to $100 per year. This is simply because you have a lot of choices on just what you’re aiming to get. If you’re wanting to get the most out of your services, web hosts allow you to also choose not only personal tier packages, but also professional and business tiers. You are able to buy just what you need and nothing more, then pay for that. Some shared hosting sites don’t just charge you the flat rate per month (although this is an option, sometimes it costs more), but they’ll add other fees for various other services. You wouldn’t even notice these on your bill anyway. And it’s worth being able to protect your websites and your data even if you have to pay for it. This also allows you to have more secure websites than some lifetime shared service providers.

What Do I Need to Do In Order to Find Out if Shared Hosting is Right By Me?

1. 1.First off, you need to consider how much you’re willing to pay. Virtual private servers, cloud hosted servers, and even dedicated servers are often much more expensive. Not only that, but many companies will offer special sales on a regular basis. They do advertise so much per month, but many of these companies will charge you for the whole year – still not bad if you’re considering all of the other benefits on it.
2. Some shared hosts don’t use things like C-Panel’s control panel. If this is the case, you need to consider just how much work you’re going to need to put forth into navigating. If you don’t have any technical skills, then this may not be the best option.
3. Are you needing a website hosted on WordPress? Or are you wanting other packages to be managed by the shared hosting provider? If so, you’re in luck! Many shared hosting sites actually give you things for free like managed WordPresses (so you don’t have to worry about keeping it all up to date with plugins and the site itself).
4. Consider how big your project is going to be. No company has the same amount of websites, but when it comes to shared hosting, you don’t want your website to host a humongously large amount of data, or you can get your account flagged. This also applies to your bandwidth. If your storage is unlimited and so’s your bandwidth, this doesn’t mean that it’s truly unlimited. If you’re needing to host a large amount of files, you want to make sure you get the hosting plan you need.
5. Other websites can also affect your website’s performance as well. For example, if you have a website that’s being ran that requires a ton of bandwidth, then you may end up experiencing slow loading times and more before it ever gets caught in he hosting provider’s system.
6. Consider just how much memory your website is going to take. Some web hosting plans offer unlimited memory, but this is based on the amount of memory you’re sharing in order to run additional plugins, etc. You may also have restrictions that won’t let you upload just anything. Therefore, to keep their servers running smoothly, shared servers need to take extra precautions (and more now that it’s 2020 and COVID has taken its toll).

Does Shared Hosting Offer More Benefits?

When it comes to hosting providers, it can greatly vary on just what you need to purchase. As mentioned throughout this article, you can get other hosting packages, and if you have any problems, it’s often easy to upload your website and get it up and running. That’s why this is a great benefit for those who are just trying to get their feet off of the ground. Some people think that there are great benefits to other web servers, so they choose that and not know what they’re thinking and having to do. If you’re wanting a unique experience, then you definitely don’t have to worry about site upkeep and more.

Who is the Best Shared Hosting Provider?

There are many names out there, like BlueHost, DreamHost, GoDaddy, HostGator, Ionos, and many more. Whichever one is the best for you greatly depends upon what your needs are, and what the price is going to be. If you’re going to need SSL (which is a MUST for Google), you may need to look into getting a host that will not only house your style and files, but will also provide you with whatever promotion they’re running.

Conclusion

If you’re just wanting to get your feet wet when it comes to hosting your website and getting it up and going, then shared hosting may be the best bet. Hosting packages and prices vary, but they offer extensive security, and are often easier to your wallet in the short and long run as well.