Website hosting is required if you’re planning on making a website. The faster you start researching your options, the more you’ll discover that there are many types of hosting, each with different prices, performance, features, and technical complexity.

You should know what each hosting type is and what its pros and cons are before choosing a hosting package.

That’s the purpose of this post. The first thing we should do is explain what website hosting is in general. Our next step will be to explain the types of hosting most popular and help you choose the one that’s right for you.

What Is Website Hosting?

An organization or individual can post a website on the Internet through web hosting. Website hosts provide the technology and services necessary for websites to be viewed on the Internet, such as web hosting. Special computers called servers host or store websites. You simply need to type the address or domain of your website into a browser for Internet users to view your website. They will then be able to access your web pages through the browser once they connect to your server.

A majority of hosting companies require that you own your domain before hosting with them. A hosting company can help you purchase a domain if you do not already have one.

7 Different Types of Web Hosting

When you know about the different types of web hosting technology, you can decide which one is right for what situation. It can be quite challenging to keep up with the various technologies, however. The information on this page will provide an overview of the best choices for both individuals and small businesses.

1.  Shared Hosting

It is most popular among small businesses and individuals to host their websites on shared servers. A single web hosting server can be shared by many websites using this technology. Hosting providers differ greatly in the number of sites they host on a single server.

Despite the fact that each site uses its own files, resources such as disk space, CPU power, network capacity, and memory are shared among all sites. Finding a decent shared hosting company is a terrific method to get high-quality service at a low cost.

PROS

• The plan starts at just $1 per month.
• It does not require any specific technical knowledge.
• The ability to manage your website natively out of the box.
• Environments that have been preconfigured.
• Maintaining and administering servers on a managed basis.

CONS

• It is possible for other sites to affect the performance of your page.
• Various features can only be controlled to a limited extent.
• Generally, support only HTML and PHP programming languages.
• If you exceed a certain traffic threshold, you’ll have to pay more.

2.  Virtual Private Server (VPS) Hosting

It is a good idea to upgrade to virtual private hosting from a shared hosting plan. There is still shared physical server space between you and other website owners in this case. An independent website can rent this virtual “real estate”.

There are two keywords in this type of hosting:

• Private: Your hosting resources (RAM, CPU, and bandwidth) are private and are not shared with others.
• Virtual: You don’t have a physical machine running your server; rather, you have a partitioned piece of hardware (virtual machine) that is running on a “parent” server that hosts other virtual machines as well.

It’s like renting an apartment in a multistoried building. In your rental, you are free to do whatever you want, but you are not able to make any changes to the building itself.

It is possible to run any type of software with a VPS (not just PHP for WordPress). The storage and bandwidth caps are also higher. The website traffic can be accommodated to a greater extent.

The elasticity of VPS hosts is still limited. When there is a spike in traffic, some VPS hosts will increase your disk space or bandwidth temporarily. While some websites may redistribute their content repeatedly, most won’t, since such distribution would also affect other websites.

PROS

• A dedicated server.
• Scalability and stability.
• The server must be accessible by root.
• You are able to install any software you want/need.
• Compared to a dedicated server, it is more cost-effective.

CONS

• Choosing the right system resources can be difficult.
• Advanced configuration requires technical expertise.
• You are also responsible for tuning the performance of the server and performing “housekeeping” tasks.

3.  Cloud Hosting

A cloud hosting service is a virtualization of a virtual private server, where your website is hosted across a network of servers.

If your shared hosting server fails for any reason, or your VPS server fails, then your website will not be available to customers. The cloud network will seamlessly point visitors to another server in case one goes down.

There are other benefits to hosting your website “in the cloud.” By caching your website on different servers around the world, international visitors are able to access it faster. A cloud-hosted website can also be scaled up easily. You won’t have to worry about moving servers or installing new hardware if your website takes off. Simply buy more traffic and storage space.

Many web hosting companies are moving to cloud hosting, which is more suitable for large-scale websites. Therefore, cloud hosting becomes more relevant even for small creative websites as the price drops.

PROS

• Excellent hosting service.
• It is easy to upgrade when necessary.
• Large data centers house the servers.
• Customizability and scalability.
• The ability to access value-added services.

CONS

• Getting the right resources can be tricky.
• There is a significant difference in price between companies.
• Costs can rise as a result of suboptimal resource usage.
• Experience with cloud computing is required.

4.  Dedicated Hosting

The only hosting plans so far that we’ve discussed are sharing servers. The price of servers is high, and if you want your own server, you’ll have to pay a lot more.

You’ll get exclusive access to one or more servers with a dedicated server. The web hosting provider will simply house it for you, and you’ll have full control over its configuration.

When it comes to web hosting, dedicated servers are the best choice. A minimum of $100 per month is expected at this level, and prices only rise from there. You don’t need a dedicated server if you’re launching a new website as a hobby. Only businesses and established websites with a need for powerful hardware should consider this kind of hosting solution.

PROS

• It’s like having your own server.
• The configuration of your server is generally up to you.

CONS

• Costs are high with this option.

5.  Managed Hosting

There is something different about managed hosting. In other words, it’s not a plan at all, but rather a service. You don’t have to worry about the day-to-day maintenance of your website when you have managed hosting. Backing up data, monitoring security, and updating software are some of these tasks.

There are a variety of managed hosting plans to choose from. Shared hosting plans, VPSs, and dedicated servers can all be managed. The advantage of these services is that you don’t have to worry about the nitty-gritty of hosting, so you can focus on your blog, portfolio, or e-commerce site.

There are a lot of differences between providers when it comes to managed hosting. It is possible to get around-the-clock assistance from some hosting companies to help you with just about anything you may need. Maintenance will be handled by others.

It is, therefore, crucial to find out exactly what “extras” your managed hosting provider offers before signing up for a plan. According to our experience, managed hosting usually starts around $15 per month, although there are higher-end plans available.

PROS

• A very small amount of technical knowledge is required.
• Focuses your attention on the site.
• You don’t have to worry about back-end upkeep.

CONS

• Upgrades and patches are subject to little to no control.
• Server configurations cannot typically be changed.
• Comparable hosting is more expensive.

6.  WordPress hosting

It is necessary to distinguish between the hardware used behind the scenes and the software that supports a website. The majority of web hosting companies offer WordPress hosting as a separate option.

Content management systems and preinstalled themes and plugins are usually included with your web hosting package. A WordPress website can be created within hours by using this method.

WordPress-specific plans aren’t the only hosting options available. Whole hosting platforms make use of this CMS exclusively. Many of these companies offer WordPress support, which can be a great perk. It’s also nice to know that WordPress-specific plans usually cost about the same as generic plans.

PROS

• Managed services are often included.
• Free plugin licenses and one-click installation are among the perks you get with WordPress.

CONS

• WordPress users can only benefit from it, and other platforms cannot be used.

7.  Reseller Hosting

Hosting is probably something you have to deal with if you run a web design or development agency. Several of our clients need help setting up and getting everything working because they aren’t familiar with how hosting works.

These situations can be addressed by reseller hosting. A hosting account provides you with the ability to host clients’ websites. It is your responsibility to manage the accounts of those clients who pay you directly.

When you’re able to pull it off, reseller hosting offers a lot of benefits. Reseller accounts with web hosts usually allow you to charge whatever you want. As a result, web development agencies can generate recurring revenue by renting hosting.

PROS

• Your business can benefit from this income stream.
• Simple to use.
• Hosting is completely up to you.

CONS

• Hosting individual sites is not typical.
• There is a lot of variation in price.

Which Type of Hosting Is Right for You?

This question doesn’t have a single right answer. It depends on a variety of factors, including your budget, your type of site, and more, to determine what type of hosting is best for you.

It is common for people who are starting a new site to start with either shared hosting or cloud hosting, then upgrade if needed. When you expect your site to get a lot of traffic right away, you may want to look into a VPS or dedicated server.

Decide what type of hosting will work best for your needs today by understanding your options. In the future, if you need more advanced hosting, you can always upgrade.

Final Words

When it comes to plans and features, you will have plenty of options with the best web hosting services. You will have more flexibility in getting the resources your website needs for growth.

What are the best options for web hosting? The best place to start is with shared hosting if this is your first time building a website. However, if you need full configuration control and are a more experienced user, a VPS could be ideal.

Let’s build our first website together, are you ready? You can build the website you’ve always dreamed of with one of our hosting plans. They’re very affordable and offer all the features you need.