[ad_1] Final recommendations After reviewing all these options, here are my top recommendations, based on what I think each host is best suited for: Namecheap – my recommendation for long-term hosting (5-10 years) For anyone planning to keep their website running for several years, Namecheap is hands down the best choice. It’s the absolute cheapest option for long-term hosting, with the 5-year cost of ~$230 and the 10-year cost of ~$475. Despite the low cost, you still get solid features like 10 GB of storage and support for up to 50,000 visits per month. I’ve found that Namecheap offers reliable performance, and if you’re focused on keeping costs low over the long haul, it’s hard to beat. Bluehost – my pick for a 1-year test run If you’re looking to test the waters with a new website for a year, Bluehost is my go-to choice. At $1.99 per month, it’s the second cheapest host for a one-year plan, costing just $23.88 in total. Keep in mind, though, that it gets expensive over the long term. You’ll also get a free domain for the first year, along with easy WordPress installation and solid performance. From my experience and feedback from users, Bluehost has a good reputation for uptime and speed, making it perfect for those wanting to try out WordPress hosting without a long-term commitment. Common sins of cheap hosts This might sound a bit harsh, but these “sins” aren’t necessarily due to bad intentions. They’re just the reality of the hosting market, driven by the constant demand for cheaper and cheaper options. Hosts are more than willing to offer what seems like a great deal upfront, but as the saying goes: if something looks too good to be true, there’s usually a catch. Here are some of the most common caveats you’ll run into with cheap WordPress hosting: 1. The entry price is a marketing myth The low entry price you see advertised is often little more than a hook. Once that initial term ends, you’re looking at a price increase anywhere from 2x to 8x what you originally paid. For example, you might sign up for $3 a month, but when it’s time to renew, you could be paying $10, $20 (I’m looking at you, SiteGround), or more. Always be aware of what the long-term costs will be, not just the first-year promotional price. Here’s one insightful table I can share with you about the price thing that comes from our annual hosting survey. This is what these hosts advertise their entry price is vs what the average user actually pays (I’ve included only hosts with more than 15 votes in the survey): Host Entry price / mo Median price / mo Hostinger $2.69 $7.25 GoDaddy $6.14 $16.50 Bluehost $1.99 $20.00 SiteGround $2.99 $32.00 Namecheap $2.91 $7.00 Some of these prices are not even close to where they were advertised to be, right? 2. No email hosting included A professional email address that matches your domain (like you@yourwebsite.com) is key for any business or project. While some hosts will include this as part of the package, many cheap hosts will not. That means you’ll either need to pay extra for email hosting or set up a separate service for your domain email – an added hassle and cost you might not expect. For example, all high-end managed hosts for WordPress – such as Kinsta or WP Engine – are known for not offering email. It’s hard to blame them, don’t get me wrong, but there are still users surprised that they pay this much for hosting and still don’t get email. Even some budget hosts will give you email only “partially”…kind of. This is what Bluehost says for example: 3. Domain name not included I should have probably led with that. Well, you can’t have a website without a domain, and while many users already have a domain of their own when they search for hosting, many don’t. Having your host throw in a free domain (for the first year) is a nice perk, and especially if the project you’re working on is only a test and you’re not sure if it’s going to pick up or not. Don’t get me wrong, though, a host not offering free domains is not a dealbreaker at all, but still an important additional cost to factor in – roughly $15 a year. When you sign up for a cheap plan, expect to be bombarded with add-ons and upsells for things like premium SSL certificates, automated hourly or on-demand backups, enhanced security scanning, and more. While some of these are nice (like SSL for securing your site), they’re often offered at an additional cost when you thought you were getting everything in the base package. These “extras” can add up quickly, turning that cheap hosting plan into something far more expensive. 5. Low price means key features are missing The reason these hosts can offer such low prices is because they strip out key features or services that you’d typically expect to be included. For example, customer support might only be available via email (and response times can be slow), or advanced features like a web application firewall (WAF) or malware protection could be locked behind a paywall. In some cases, you might even need to pay extra for things like daily backups or a CDN, which are crucial for keeping your site safe and fast. Let’s zoom back out 🔭 Our methodology Choosing the right hosting provider can be challenging, so we’ve developed a thorough methodology to test and review web hosting companies. Since 2009, we’ve reviewed over 50 providers using a combination of expert analysis, real user feedback, and performance monitoring. Our team of experienced reviewers offers honest opinions, while our annual hosting survey provides additional insights from real users. We continuously update our reviews to ensure they reflect the latest information. Our review process starts by signing up for hosting plans and setting up test websites with demo data.
Continue reading7 Best Cheap WordPress Hosting Services (2024 Deals)
