Best Web Hosting Services of 2022

Having a website is a nonnegotiable requirement for any modern business. It’s the first place clients and customers will turn for essential information about your goods or services, and for businesses that engage in any level of e-commerce, it’s where business transactions will take place. Because maintaining a web presence is so critical, having a secure and reliable web host underpinning your site ensures that you can focus more time on actually running your business and less time worrying about whether your clientele can reliably access the information they seek about you.

Websites are a bit like renting internet real estate, and your web hosting service is essentially your landlord. The web hosting service owns the physical servers that will store your content and information, and you pay to rent that space. When your lease is up, that space can be offered to someone else, or you can renew. But many web hosts do far more than simply provide server space. Many also manage domain names, offer website building tools and services, provide top-notch security, conduct automated data backups, and ensure overall stability and reliability that your site will always be up and running.

Of course, not all landlords are created equal, and neither are web hosting services. We’ve researched almost two dozen hosting services to narrow down the Best Web Hosting Services of 2022 so you can determine which host will best suit you and your business’ needs when it comes to pricing, hosting types, technical specifications, and customer support. With this knowledge at hand, you can feel more confident knowing that your web hosting service will meet your individual needs and that your web presence is well cared for and available to those searching for you.

After researching and analyzing dozens of web hosts and professional reviews, we’ve determined our rating of the Best Web Hosting Services of 2022. Companies were evaluated on a wide range of data points, including pricing, website storage and solid-state disk drive (SSD), bandwidth, hosting types, domain services, email services, security, and additional tools and features such as website builders and other professional services. Here’s how the top 10 stack up.

Small businesses have special needs, and this extends to their websites. We’ve compiled our rating of the Best Web Hosting Services for Small Businesses of 2022 with these particular needs in mind. Looking at certain factors, such as pricing, scalability, range of plan options, and customer support and resources, we’ve narrowed down the list to five web hosting services that can best meet small businesses where they’re at when it comes to internet presence, ensuring that there will always be more room to grow.

In modern life, we’ve grown used to having the internet at our fingertips and on our phones. It’s so accessible that we often don’t think about the physical imprint of the web. Websites don’t exist floating out in the atmosphere – their data and supporting files are actually hosted on physical computers, called servers. Servers are required to send web pages to the browsers that users are utilizing. When you have a website of your own, you essentially need to rent space on a server owned by a web hosting service. This is where your site’s information will live.

There are many different types of web hosting, but the most common type is shared hosting, where multiple websites share server space and its resources, like Central Processing Unit (CPU) processors and RAM. Other types of hosting include Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting, dedicated hosting, WordPress hosting, reseller hosting, and cloud hosting. A reputable web hosting service will do far more than just rent out server space. Many also provide domain management, offer a range of security protocols, conduct automatic backups, ensure their server hardware is always updated and maintained, and offer website-building tools and services for customers.

Yes. While it is possible to host your own site, this requires a great deal of technical knowledge and time that for most people and businesses just isn’t worth it. There are also some options that are a bit more DIY but come with some site-building tools, such as free accounts that you can get through sites like Weebly or Wix. Typically these options do not permit your own domain but instead occupy a subdomain (e.g., yourname.weebly.com). For most professionals, this is not ideal, and many of these free services lack the features, security, and reliability of sites maintained by web hosting companies.

From a client perspective, web hosting can be a pretty straightforward process, especially if you work with a reputable service that provides good support. To get a website up and running, you will need to follow a few steps:

Web hosting costs can vary widely based on a number of factors and plan options. The first step will be to determine which type of hosting you want. You can choose from among shared hosting, VPS hosting, WordPress hosting, dedicated hosting, cloud hosting, and more to select a hosting type that will best suit your needs. Shared hosting will almost always be the most affordable option, as you are sharing server resources with other websites. Shared hosting plans can be a great option, sometimes starting as low as only a couple of dollars per month.

The most expensive hosting option will generally be dedicated hosting, in which you lease an entire server and do not have to share any resources. For large or enterprise-level companies or those with complex security needs, dedicated hosting can be optimal, but plans will start at around $45 per month and can rise quickly into the hundreds depending on the necessary amount of storage and technical requirements.

When you are looking for a web hosting plan, pay careful attention to the length of the commitment term. Almost all web hosting services offer sales or introductory pricing that can initially be very attractive. However, when that introductory period is up, renewal costs can see a sharp increase. Also, be aware that add-on costs can pile up. For example, not every plan will include an SSL certificate or domain.

When choosing a plan, think carefully about how long you are willing to commit to the web host. If you know you will be in it for the long haul, some companies have plan options for as long as four years, and the savings can be substantial. Most web hosts will give you a selection of monthly, one-year, two-year, and three-year plan durations.

If you are uncertain about the length of time you want to be with the web host, or if your business is undergoing changes that may impact its website needs, it may be preferable to go with a monthly plan until the situation stabilizes. Know, though, that month-to-month hosting options are almost always going to cost more than longer-term commitments.

Web hosting agreements are generally based on monthly or annual terms. Cancellation policies vary among companies and can depend on the hosting type. If you are not yet ready to commit to a longer-term agreement, consider going with a web hosting service that offers month-to-month hosting options.

The best web hosting service for you will come down to a variety of factors. Some key questions to ask yourself must include:

The more accurately you can answer these questions, the better you can tailor your web hosting selection to your needs.

There are many types of web hosting and each will suit different requirements. Here are the most common types of web hosting available.

Shared Hosting: Shared hosting is one of the most common and affordable types of web hosting. In shared hosting, your website is stored on a server with other websites, so resources like CPU and RAM are split with other businesses. This type of hosting can be a great option for personal websites and small- to medium-sized businesses.

Cloud Hosting: Unlike other hosting types, cloud hosting is not deployed on a single server, but rather on a network of connected virtual and physical servers. This makes cloud hosting very scalable and more powerful than shared hosting, while still being generally more affordable than dedicated hosting.

WooCommerce Hosting: WooCommerce is an open-source, highly customizable e-commerce platform that is built on WordPress. It has gained popularity to the point that some web hosts tailor specific plans to it and its capabilities. If you run an online shop or sell any type of products or services via your website, this type of hosting can be a good option to consider.

Dedicated Hosting: Dedicated hosting is when a customer leases their own server and does not have to share resources with anyone else. Dedicated hosting plans are typically the most expensive that a web host will offer, but you’ll also have more privacy and control without the risk of service interruptions due to throttling or issues with other sites. Dedicated hosting is ideal for high-traffic websites or those that require special security measures.

VPS Hosting: Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting is a middle ground between shared and dedicated hosting. You will still share some resources with customers on the same server, but you’ll also have your own dedicated resources that are not shared with anyone else. This can give you more control over your server environment and can help improve the performance of your website.

WordPress Hosting: WordPress Hosting is tailored to WordPress websites. It tends to be more expensive than traditional shared web hosting, but it comes with features built specifically for WordPress websites, such as themes, one-click installs, automatic updates, and plug-ins.

Reseller Hosting: Reseller hosting is when a customer uses their hard drive space and data to host third-party websites. Typically, the reseller buys the host’s services wholesale and then sells them to customers at retail prices. For web hosting entrepreneurs or developers and designers looking to expand their services, this type of hosting can provide a unique business opportunity.

While some services like Wix and Weebly offer the option to have a free website, these plans do not come with your own unique domain, but rather a subdomain of the host you are using (e.g., accountname.wixsite.com/siteaddress). For casual bloggers, students making websites for educational purposes, and other reasons, this may be a perfectly sufficient option, though features can be extremely limited.

If you are a business or a professional, however, you will typically want to own your domain name. These will include what are called top-level domains (TLDs), such as .org or .com domains. When you buy a domain either through your web host or a separate registrar, you are registering your ownership of that name with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which maintains a registry of who owns which domain.

Domain names are typically registered for at least one year when you purchase them, and you can continue to renew indefinitely. As soon as your registration expires or if you miss a renewal payment, your domain name will become available again for purchase by anyone.

Many web hosts also manage domain registration, and some even include domains in the cost of their plans or offer a one-year free registration. It is generally the simplest option to have your domain registered with your host, but this may not always be possible, especially when changing web hosting services.

If you have an existing domain and are preparing to move to a new web hosting service, you have a few options. You can keep your domain name with your current registrar and point it to your new host’s servers. This process is common but does come with some potential technical complications.

Your other option is to fully transfer your domain to your new host. This can simplify your billing and help prevent any technical glitches down the road, but the process can be more complicated. Many web hosting services provide in-depth instructions for completing domain transfers and can provide assistance. This process is sometimes included with certain plans, but if you are unable to complete the transfer on your own, you may have to pay an additional fee for the service.

Yes. Most web hosting services offer some form of web builder or provide web-building tools. Sometimes these tools will come with an additional fee, but it is rare for a service not to provide at least some basic features to help users get started. These tools generally don’t require any coding or extensive web design knowledge and can be as simple as drag-and-drop functionality or pre-installed templates so that you can hit the ground running when designing your website. If you are a business that utilizes a point-of-sale system (POS), your POS may also come with tools and functionality to help build your website.

If you are looking to build an online shop, a web host that offers e-commerce functionality can also help get you online and selling quickly. WooCommerce, one of the most commonly-supported e-commerce platforms by the web hosting companies in our ratings, is an open-source e-commerce platform designed for WordPress, though it is only one of many, as there are plenty of other options that can be tailored to your needs.

If you need a little extra help with your web design and management, or if you just don’t want to deal with it, many web hosts have associated professional services for web design and other related business needs like marketing, search engine opptimization (SEO), and pay-per-click (PPC).

Be aware, however, that these services often do not come cheap, and many companies do not publish their pricing for them because they require a good amount of customization. You will have to contact them directly for pricing information. Having the help of a professional team of designers and marketers can certainly be a relief, especially if you are able to allot the funds. Companies in our rating that offer professional design services include Bluehost, HostGator, and Ionos.

Yes. Most web hosting services support e-commerce functionality. If you are looking to sell products or services on your website, you will need fast, reliable, and secure hosting to ensure that your product catalog is always up-to-date and available, that payment transactions are completed efficiently, and that the security of your customers’ data is protected.

One of the most popular e-commerce platforms is WooCommerce, as it is open-source and can be added as a plug-in to any WordPress site. Some web hosts, like Bluehost, offer WooCommerce-specific plans that come with an online store and other features like payment processing, unlimited products, and email marketing. Other web hosts offer a range of e-commerce and software platforms. A2 Hosting, for example, offers popular e-commerce platform deployments, including WooCommerce, Magento, OpenCart, and PrestaShop.

Because e-commerce options are so widely offered by so many different hosts, it may be wise to narrow down your choices first based on other options or features that are important to you, such as pricing and customer support.

Security may not be something you want to think about, but for any business owner or leader, it needs to be top of mind, especially if your website involves any sensitive data like customer payment information. The United States Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) explains that when it comes to website security, it is critical to have safeguards in place to help prevent any type of attack or security breach that could compromise sensitive data.

Quality web hosting services take security very seriously and work hard to ensure the implementation of the most up-to-date security guidelines and practices. Security measures to look for as you shop for a web hosting service include SSL certificates, secure file transfer protocols, DDoS protection, automated backups, and web application firewalls.

For more information about web hosting services, see the following guides:

In addition to our ratings of web hosting services, you may be interested in these guides to other products: