When you’re launching your WordPress website, choosing the right hosting provider is a crucial decision.
Web hosting can have a critical impact on your site’s speed, uptime, security, and performance when it comes to Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
However, there are several different types of hosting for you to pick from: free, shared, dedicated server, VPS and managed. Plus, there are hundreds of providers out there vying for your attention – and your cash.
It can quickly get overwhelming to navigate this flood of information on your own.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the ups and downs of different kinds of WordPress hosting, and we’ll give you the run-down on the top 15 WordPress hosting providers in 2023.
Let’s get started!
What Different Kinds of WordPress Hosting Are There?
As mentioned above, there are different kinds of WordPress hosting – free, shared, dedicated server, VPS, and managed.
The first of these, free web hosting, is basically what it says on the tin. Normally, free WordPress Hosting is offered in small groups or online forums managed by people who are reselling part of their server space.
Free hosting may sound great, but there’s usually a catch. Often, you have to include banner ads or text in the footer of your sites. Most importantly, though, free hosting is typically unreliable – the providers can leave you hanging at any time.
Shared WordPress Hosting is the most common type of web hosting for people who are just launching their sites. It’s affordable and gives you a good technical basis.
Shared hosting means that providers use the same server for multiple sites. This allows them to offer their services at budget-friendly rates. The downside is that you may have to upgrade your hosting plan if your site takes up too much of their server space.
Next up, VPS Hosting stands for web hosting via Virtual Private Servers. In this approach, a physical server is partitioned into multiple servers, which allows individual users a greater amount of freedom. If you have the technical know-how, you can configure it to run specific software and install system upgrades.
Do you have solid technical knowledge and want a maximum of control? Then dedicated server hosting may be the best choice for you. Here, you lease a server from the hosting provider but take care of all other aspects yourself – from your choice of hardware to the OS you want to run.
Finally, managed WordPress hosting is the most straightforward option on this list. You open an account with a provider and can get straight to building your WordPress site – everything else is managed for you, from security updates to regular backups and performance optimization.
What You Need to Consider When Choosing the Best WordPress Hosting
There are a few main aspects you need to consider when you’re launching your WordPress site.
First, there’s your own technical expertise. If you’re completely new to building websites, a beginner-friendly option like managed hosting or shared hosting is the best choice. You can always scale your website later and switch to VPS or dedicated server hosting.
Second, you need to take into account the amount of traffic you’re expecting to get. Do you want to set up a personal portfolio page for your CV or a freelancer profile? Or do you want to launch a web shop to attract thousands of customers every day? Depending on the answer to this, you’ll have different priorities when it comes to comparing providers’ in terms of reliability, server capacity, and security.
What are the Best WordPress Hosting Providers?
Here’s our run-down of the 15 best WordPress Hosting providers in 2023.
1 – Bluehost
Topping the list is Bluehost, which is a fantastic provider for e-commerce stores and small business websites.
It offers a native website builder with a solid WordPress integration that allows for flexible content management, as well as a broad range of marketing and analytics tools.
Bluehost offers shared, VPS, and dedicated hosting. If you run into any problems, its 24/7 customer service is there to help you.
Plus, with plans starting at $2.95 per month, Bluehost is one of the most budget-friendly hosting options out there.
2 – DreamHost
Next up, DreamHost is one of the most reliable and versatile providers out there. Its team can boast 18 years of experience that’s the basis of solid in-house assistance.
In addition, you get a free domain, free SSL certificates, and free email hosting. A custom dashboard, automatic updates, and a straightforward 1-click WordPress install are also part of the package.
Plans for shared hosting start at $2.59 a month, though there are also VPS options at $15 a month.
3 – Liquid Web
Liquid Web is one of the most long-lived services on the list. Since it was launched in 1997, its managed hosting has convinced millions of customers, including companies like Red Bull, FedEx, and Audi.
Liquid Web offers lighting-fast servers, free backups and SSL, integrated security, and outstanding customer support.
However, it doesn’t come with a free domain name.
Hosting plans for managed WordPress start at $13.30 per month, and range all the way to $149 per month for cloud dedicated hosting.
4 – SiteGround
In third place, SiteGround is a fantastic option for managed WordPress hosting in particular. It’s one of the providers that WordPress itself recommends to anyone planning to use it as a CMS.
SiteGround impresses with some of the fastest website speeds out there, 24/7 support, and features such as free SSL, free CDN, daily backups, and automatic upgrades. Plus, you can benefit from location-specific hosting, with data centres located in the US, Asia, Europe, and Australia.
SiteGround’s managed WordPress hosting offers start at $2.99 a month.
5 – WP Engine
Next up, WP Engine is another solid managed WP hosting option. Apart from high-quality, secure hosting, it can also boast an award-winning customer service team.
WP Engine prides itself on near-constant uptime, easy setup, daily backups, and all the flexibility a cloud platform can offer.
A minor downside: It doesn’t provide domain names or email accounts. Those you’ll have to purchase from a separate service.
Plans for managed hosting start at $20/month. If you want to add eCommerce solutions, you’re looking at $50/month.
6 – HostGator
Another solid hosting option is HostGator, which has a reputation for affordable prices and its 99.9% uptime guarantee.
HostGator offers a free domain name, free SSL certificates, auto-backups, 24/7 support, and one-click WordPress installation. In addition, if you already have a WordPress site, HostGator provides free migration for any plan.
Hosting options start at $5.95 a month.
7 – Kinsta
Our next entry is another cloud-hosting service: Kinsta. With an uptime of 99.9%, it harnesses all the reliability of cloud infrastructure and combines it with great customer experience.
Kinsta offers 24/7 chat-based support, free migration of existing sites, automatic database optimization and daily backups, as well as WordPress-specific architecture. Plus, you get a 30-day money-back guarantee.
The only downside to Kinsta is that it’s a little more pricey than other options on this list. Plans start at $35 per month.
8 – Hostinger
Next on this list, Hostinger is one of the most versatile and budget-friendly options on the market. It has some of the fastest loading speeds, global data centres, and sophisticated security.
Like other options on this list, Hostinger comes with automated backups and updates, migration tools, 24/7 customer support, and one-click installation. Plus, it provides geolocation-specific hosting services, with data centres scattered across the US, Europe, South America, and Asia.
Hosting packages start at $1.99 a month.
9 – GoDaddy
Next on the list is GoDaddy, another budget option on this list. Some statistics say that a whopping 5% of all websites are hosted on GoDaddy – and there’s a reason for this.
GoDaddy offers a range of solid services at affordable prices. It is one of the largest domain name registrars out there and offers both shared and VPS hosting. If you want a professional email address, GoDaddy also provides email hosting.
In terms of pricing, GoDaddy is also one of the more budget-friendly options on this list. Its shared hosting Economy plan starts at $5.99 per month for the first year, then renews for $8.99 per month.
If you’re looking for basic but reliable, budget-friendly hosting for a website that won’t have to handle huge amounts of traffic, GoDaddy is a solid option.
10 – GreenGeeks
For ecologically-minded WordPress enthusiasts, GreenGeeks is a shared hosting option that’s both robust and eco-friendly.
With plans starting at $2.95 per month, GreenGeeks offers free WordPress installs, migrations, and updates, as well as 24/7 live chat support and high-level WordPress security. Their stand-out feature is that they also provide a 300% renewable energy match, making them a carbon-reducing company.
11 – World4You
If you’re based in Europe, and especially in the EU, World4You is a solid option for bloggers, agencies, and small businesses. With servers based in Central Europe, it provides a maximum of data security and guarantees compliance with EU regulations such as GDPR.
Furthermore, it comes with a free domain, free email hosting, and free SSL, as well as an automatic WordPress install.
Pricing starts at €4.90 (approximately $5.00) per month.
12 – Flywheel
Another great WordPress hosting option is Flywheel, especially if you’re a freelancer or an agency building sites for your clients.
Flywheel offers a user-friendly interface, free website migration, custom support, and password-protected demo sites. Plus, you can create your own “blueprints”, in which you can customize themes and blueprints.
Flywheel also makes it easy to transfer billing to your clients.
Pricing starts at $13 per month.
13 – inMotion
If you’re running a site that experiences intense traffic, inMotion is one of the best hosting options for you. This provider guarantees an exclusive server for your sites and can boast speeds that are up to twelve times faster than other web hosts.
Its plans include automatic updates, advanced malware scans, free SSD storage, and unlimited bandwidth. For advanced users, inMotion also offers a command line interface and associated support.
Plans start at $3.99 per month (on a 2-year contract).
14 – Cloudways
Another stand-out contender when it comes to WordPress hosting is Cloudways. The aim of this company is to make enterprise-grade cloud hosting, with its many advantages, available to non-techies.
It’s important to mention that Cloudways isn’t a hosting provider in itself. However, its intuitive interface gives you access to high-profile cloud hosts such as Digital Ocean and Amazon Web Services. Similarly, you can also easily access managed hosting, one-click SSL certificates, server scaling, and SSH and FTP access.
It’s still slightly more complicated to deploy than other entries on this list. In return, though, it gives you access to powerful cloud hosting capabilities.
Pricing starts at $12 per month for 1 GB RAM, 25GB storage, and 1TB bandwidth. If you need faster servers, monthly plans scale all the way to $96 per month for 8GB RAM, 160 GB storage, and 5TB bandwidth.
15 – A2 Hosting
Finally, if you’re aiming to host multiple sites, you should put A2 Hosting on your list of candidates. Even though A2 is one of the more expensive options on this list, it comes with a few premium features that make managing multiple sites a breeze.
Hosting plans include free SSL certificates, 24/7 customer support, global server availability, pre-configurations for speed and security, and turbo servers to boost your site’s performance.
In addition, you can pay for any services on a monthly basis and easily add or cancel plans depending on how many sites you manage.
Prices start at $11.99 per month for managed WordPress hosting, though A2 also offers cheaper shared hosting plans from $2.99.
Conclusion – How to Choose the Best WordPress Hosting Providers
Choosing the right web host is a critical decision when you’re launching your WordPress site.
Different WordPress providers offer different pricing tiers, additional features, and types of WordPress hosting. It’s important to know your priorities, level of skills, and budget to pick the provider that best suits your unique needs.
Take the time to set your criteria and carry out an in-depth comparison of a few candidates that tick your boxes in-depth. It’s definitely worth it in the long run to guarantee the success, health, and security of your WordPress site.
