Is managed hosting worth the added cost?

Like so many of our answers to these questions, our response here is along the lines of the ultra-decisive “it depends.” How much technical expertise do you have? What’s your budget? How much time do you want to spend?

Even if you have the know-how to stay on top of security patches and software updates, we find many experienced website and business owners would rather skip the tedious server maintenance in favor of focusing on creating great content and products. Many hosts are inclined to include basic levels of managed services in hosting plans for free, with others offering various levels of management for an extra fee, be sure to check out my managed hosting reviews.

Can I get help upgrading to a VPS or dedicated server when I’m ready?

Of course. Hosts are happy to see customers succeed and move through the ranks of services. Just as several hosting providers offer free site transfers or migrations to welcome new customers to shared servers, the companies have a vested interest in getting you up and running on the more powerful hardware.

Help is usually just a chat, phone call, or support ticket away. Reputable hosts will help you choose the best plan for your hosting needs, configure your virtual or dedicated server, and get to work transferring your files and databases.

What is an uptime guarantee, and does it cost extra?

Uptime, which is basically another word for reliability or availability, is simultaneously critically important and one of the least worrisome components for most people’s quest for a new hosting plan.

Uptime guarantees are essentially a promise that your hosting provider will make sure the infrastructure supporting your website or application is working properly and making your content available online for a prescribed amount of time. This is especially important for business websites and online stores, as time directly equates to revenue and positive customer relationships.

Uptime guarantees are included with hosting contracts, technically without an extra charge. Hosting providers use uptime guarantees as a marketable feature to attract new customers. However, plans with better uptime guarantees tend to cost slightly more than those at the industry average of 99.9% or lower.

What is domain privacy, and is it included in most hosting packages?

What is domain privacy, and is it included in most hosting packages?
Simply put, domain privacy protects your personal information by keeping it out of a publicly accessible database. The global organization in charge of overseeing domain name ownership requires a name, mailing address, phone number, and email address to be associated with every registration. The data is compiled into the WHOIS database, which can be searched and mined by anyone for information.

How does domain pricing work?

How does domain pricing work?
Particularly at the shared hosting level, many hosting providers throw in a free domain registration (or domain transfer) when a new customer purchases a plan. Domain name registrations must be renewed each year, however, and the perk usually only covers your first year. A select few hosts, including WebHostingHub, will cover your domain name fees for the life of your account. Otherwise, expect subsequent renewal fees to cost between $10 and $15 for typical domain names and hosting providers.

Is month-to-month billing available?

Is month-to-month billing available?
Most providers advertise their services in terms of month-to-month prices, but in reality, most will apply that rate and bill customers for a full year. A few hosts offer month-long plans, but be prepared to pay a little extra for the privilege.

Monthly billing is a more common practice in VPS, cloud, or dedicated hosting plans because of the scalable memory, storage, and bandwidth resources. If this payment schedule is important to you, be sure to read the fine print when signing up with a host.

What types of payment do web hosting providers accept?

What types of payment do web hosting providers accept?
As we alluded to in our response to the first question, web hosts have a vested interest in making it easy for customers to give them money. The vast majority of providers will accept credit cards, with many others also welcoming payments from services such as PayPal. A handful of hosts will accept checks, money orders, or wire transfers, but not many. Regardless, we can say with confidence that it’s rare for a web host to credit your account upon receipt of a cash deposit.