Hosting services are an essential element that all websites require. Whether you have more experience in the realm or you’re just launching your first website, it is always a good idea to be completely informed about how hosting works.
What Is Hosting and Why It Costs Money?
Web hosting is a service that allows people to publish their sites on the internet. A web hosting service provider, or a web host, is a company that provides services and technologies that are needed for a site to be viewed on the internet.
The websites are hosted on servers. When you pay money for hosting, you’re paying for a part of the space on the server. Usually, higher prices are set for servers that can handle more traffic and are generally more powerful.
A website hosting plan includes the following basic features: FTP access, disc space, data transfer or bandwidth, and email accounts.
Free Hosting Providers
Web hosting is a service that allows people to publish their sites on the internet. A web hosting service provider, or a web host, is a company that provides services and technologies that are needed for a site to be viewed on the internet.
The websites are hosted on servers. When you pay money for hosting, you’re paying for a part of the space on the server. Usually, higher prices are set for servers that can handle more traffic and are generally more powerful.
A website hosting plan includes the following basic features: FTP access, disc space, data transfer or bandwidth, and email accounts.
Hosting is mostly paid, although there are a few website hosting alternatives that are free. A free hosting provider can somewhat serve your purpose, but it’s not always a good idea in the long run.
Free hosting can be pretty unstable. Also, free hosting providers usually place restrictions on bandwidth and storage, which limit the traffic capacity and growth of your website.
If you have a website or a serious project that is meant to stay online for longer, an affordable web hosting plan is definitely a better choice.
Managed vs. Unmanaged Hosting
Managing a server takes technical expertise, effort, and time. With managed hosting, your hosting provider takes care of all the responsibilities that are related to the server, like core updates, hardware, software installation, maintenance, and so on.
On the other hand, with unmanaged hosting, you get a few or no additional services. This means that you’ll need to take care of the server on your own.
If you’re interested in the differences between managed and unmanaged hosting, make sure you read more about it!
What Affects Website Cost?
Factor 1 – Hosting Type
The price of the hosting will depend on the hosting type. You should choose a type of hosting that fits your needs:
How Much Does a Shared Hosting Plan Cost?
With shared hosting, multiple websites use one single server. The users on the shared server and sharing resources with each other. One of the best things about shared hosting is that by sharing the server with other website owners, you also get reduced costs.
Shared hosting on Verpex for one website is $3.50 per month. For five websites, it’s $5.50 per month, while for ten websites, it’s $9.99.
How Much Does Cloud Web Hosting Cost?
Cloud web hosting uses several different servers to maximize uptime and balance the load. Your website can use the resources of several clustered servers. This means that in case one of the servers fails, another one will keep running, and everything will function properly.
At Verpex, cloud web hosting for one website is $3.50 per month. For five websites, it’s $5.50 per month, and for ten websites, it’s $9.99.
How Much Does Dedicated Hosting Cost?
Dedicated hosting is a web hosting package that provides a dedicated server to a single client. It offers great flexibility and power but usually comes at higher prices. Dedicated hosting is great for websites with high traffic or large organizations.
At Verpex, we offer managed dedicated hosting, and our prices start at $69 and end at $999.
How Much Does Hosting for WordPress Cost?
Hosting for WordPress is a hosting that has been optimized to meet the security needs and performance of WordPress. Usually, hosting for WordPress has a support staff that will be better acquainted with issues related to WordPress than what a standard hosting staff would be.
At Verpex, we offer managed hosting for WordPress with three different plans. The growth plan is $23.99 per month, the professional is $35.99 per month, and the expert is $59.99 per month.
How much does Magento hosting cost?
Magento E-commerce hosting is used for electronic commerce websites, which include features like shopping cart software, SSL, security initiatives, payment processing services, and more.
At Verpex, we offer three Magento server plans. The Developer plan costs $109 per month, the Manager plan costs $159 per month, and the Premium plan costs $284 per month.
Factor 2 – Domain Registration/Renewal
Another thing that affects the price of the hosting is the domain registration and renewal. With domain name registration, you reserve a name on the internet for a certain period of time, usually for one year. As long as you renew your domain, it will stay yours.
Keep in mind that you can get a free domain name as a bundled offer.
At Verpex, we offer free domain registration with our plans.
Factor 3 – Business Email
In order to establish a relationship with your sponsors, partners, and colleagues, you will need a proper method of business communication, which is a business email. There are a few hosting providers that allow you to get a business email account completely for free as a bundle. Others will charge you extra for email accounts.
Factor 4 – SSL certificates
An SSL certificate or Secure Sockets Layer certificate allows a website to switch from HTTP to HTTPS encryption, which protects the information of your site’s visitors. You need an SSL certificate to prevent attackers from creating a false version of your site, verify ownership of your website, and keep your user data safe.
There are different types of SSL certificates, and they can range from $8 all the way to $450.
At Verpex, we provide free SSL certificates with all the hosting plans.
Factor 5 – Automated Backups
If you’re going to provide a good experience for your visitors, you need to have a solid restore and backup service. It’s really important to make sure that your website is up and running all of the time. Some hosting providers offer automated backups and some charge for this service.
Factor 6 – Storage Space
Another thing website owners need to consider is how much web hosting storage space their site is going to be using. If they plan to have a site that is heavily loaded with content, it will cost them more money.
Factor 7 – Bandwidth
Bandwidth is usually measured in seconds, and it represents the maximum data that can be transferred in a given time. The host capabilities are usually determined through bandwidth.
If the bandwidth is higher, then the systems, connectivity, network, and speed are better. The bandwidth also plays an important role in the cost of the plan.
Security Software
You need to find a provider that offers a secure web hosting solution. If the hosting package is secure, you can ensure that your website is protected and malware-free.
Additional Features That Influence Web Hosting Prices
Number of domains
Usually, the subscription cost is increased if you want to manage several domains in one web hosting account.
Dedicated IP
A dedicated IP will keep your site from being influences by other sites that have the same IP address.
Host Migration services
Some hosting providers offer free website transfer. However, with some hosting providers, you’ll have to pay extra.
Application compatibility
If you build your website on a content management system, it is important that the hosting provider is compatible. In some cases, this might cost extra.
cPanel(s)
The cPanel, which is an interface used for managing your website hosting, sometimes comes included in hosting plans, but sometimes you got to pay extra.
Summary
Web hosting is an essential part of your brand and business. There are many different hosting options you should consider. Depending on the web hosting you choose, the cost will vary.
Some options are more expensive than others. There’s even free web hosting, which we don’t really recommend if you have a serious project on your hands.
You can easily stay within your budget if you understand the costs that are associated with hosting. For your luck, in this industry, you can get great plans for an affordable cost while simultaneously getting high-quality service.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is hosting free?
There are many different hosting plans on the market, and some of them offer a free hosting option.
How much does hosting cost?
Shared hosting is usually cheaper, while managed cloud servers are more expensive. However, there are lots of options in between for different prices.
Does Google have free web hosting?
Google doesn’t provide free hosting; however, they do provide PAAS (Platform As A Service), known as GAE (Google App Engine).
How to reduce hosting cost?
To reduce the cost of hosting, you need to have a clear strategy for your website. You should optimize and consolidate your database, consult a professional, classify your data, and revisit your server and strategy requirements from time to time.
I've been navigating the web hosting waters for years now. As the Chief Editor at Verpex, I team up with some awesome writers to dish out the good stuff on hosting. Got a Master's in Journalism, so I always have an eye out for quality. Whether you're just dipping your toes or you're a seasoned surfer, I'm here to make everything web hosting feel like a breeze
View all posts by Julia Lozanov