Best web hosting for small business in 2024
Published 7:13 a.m. UTC Feb. 26, 2024
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When you launch a website for your small business, it has to be hosted somewhere. In some cases, you can host it through a website builder. All other times, you’ll need to subscribe to a web hosting plan from a trusted web host provider. This company will handle everything from uptime to security to storage to keep your site up and running and as securely as possible.
Small businesses have different needs than large ones. We compared 56 plans from 17 popular web hosting services to find the best-fit solutions for small businesses, reviewing factors like price, usability, flexibility, customer service and reviews.
Featured web hosting offers
Best web hosting for small business
- DreamHost: Best WordPress host.
- MochaHost: Best for eco-conscious businesses.
- Namecheap: Best value.
- InMotion: Best for developers.
- A2 Hosting: Outstanding customer service.
- HostWinds: Most hosting plans.
- TMDHosting: Most robust base plan.
- HostGator: Best for security.
- GoDaddy: Best performance options.
- Interserver: Simplest plan offerings.
Why trust our small business experts
Our team of experts evaluates hundreds of business products and analyzes thousands of data points to help you find the best product for your situation. We use a data-driven methodology to determine each rating. Advertisers do not influence our editorial content. You can read more about our methodology below.
- 17 companies reviewed.
- 15 hours of product testing.
- 1,568 data points analyzed.
Featured web hosting offers
Best web hosting for small businesses comparison
PLANS MONTHLY | PRICING UPTIME | GUARANTEE 24/7 | CUSTOMER SERVICE | STORAGE MAXIMUM | ||||||||
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![]() | Shared Starter, Shared Unlimited | Starting at $7.99 | 100% | Yes | Unlimited | |||||||
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![]() | Soho, Business, Mocha, Ultimate | Starting at $6.35 | 99% | Yes | Unlimited | |||||||
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![]() | Stellar, Stellar Plus, Stellar Business | Starting at $4.48 | None | Yes, chat and ticket only | 50 GB | |||||||
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![]() | Core, Launch, Power, Pro | Starting at $9.99 (annual only unless Pro) | 99.99% | Yes | Unlimited | |||||||
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![]() | Startup, Drive, TurboBoost, TurboMax | Starting at $12.99 | 99.9% | Yes | Unlimited | |||||||
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![]() | Basic, Advanced, Ultimate | Starting at $6.99 | 99.9999% | Yes, chat and ticket only | Unlimited | |||||||
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![]() | Starter, Business, Enterprise | Starting at $10.99 | 99.9% | Yes, chat and ticket only | Unlimited | |||||||
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![]() | Hatchling, Baby, Business | Starting at $15.99 | 99.9% | Yes | 40 GB | |||||||
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![]() | Economy, Deluxe, Ultimate, Maximum, Plus Launch | Starting at $11.99 | 99.9% | Yes | 100 GB | |||||||
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![]() | Standard | Starting at $7.00 | 99.9% | Yes | Unlimited | |||||||
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Methodology
We extensively research the key competitors within an industry to determine the best products and services for your business. Our experts identify the factors that matter most to business owners, including pricing, features and customer support, to ensure that our recommendations offer well-rounded products that will meet the needs of various small businesses.
We collect extensive data to narrow our best list to reputable, easy-to-use products with stand-out features at a reasonable price point. And we look at user reviews to ensure that business owners like you are satisfied with our top picks’ services. We use the same rubric to assess companies within a particular space so you can confidently follow our blueprint to the best website hosting for small business in 2024.
When evaluating website hosting services for small businesses, our team based that evaluation on the inclusion of unlimited storage and bandwidth, a free domain name and SSL certificate, a free business email and automatic backups. The best website hosting services will also have higher storage limits, CPanel, an uptime guarantee, a website builder and free domain name privacy.
Our team also evaluated each company’s pricing, plans, customer support options and individual reviews.
What is web hosting and how does it work?
Simply put, web hosting is what makes a website viewable online. Like renting a commercial office building, a web hosting subscription provides a “physical” space online to access, store and share site files and data.
You will rent this space from a web host provider, like Dreamhost or MochaHost, whose job it is to ensure your site stays online, secure and accessible to your customers. Depending on the complexity of your site and what it’s used for (for example, if it’s an e-commerce site or a simple blog site), there are different services you should look for from a provider.
Types of web hosting
There are a few types of web hosting, including:
- Shared hosting: Shared hosting helps businesses save money by sharing server resources with other websites. It’s usually only reserved for small businesses or websites that don’t have an abundance of traffic or complex needs.
- VPS hosting: While still sharing a network with other sites, Virtual Private Server hosting also includes a partitioned private server with dedicated resources. This is best for medium-sized businesses.
- Dedicated hosting: Dedicated hosting reserves an entire server for one website, meaning no sharing of resources. It’s the most expensive and only reserved for the largest businesses.
- Managed WordPress hosting: If you’re one of the 43% of sites that utilize WordPress, you can benefit from a dedicated, specialized WordPress hosting service. DreamHost is an example of a managed WordPress host.
For small businesses, shared or managed WordPress hosting services are the best choice for the services and the price.
How to choose the best web hosting for small business
The best web hosting for small businesses depends on a few factors, including the business type, expected online visitors and experience with web technology. Keep reading to get a better understanding of what factors to consider when comparing hosting platforms.
Key features to look for
While all web hosting providers will offer the same foundational service, some features differentiate them from one another. Here are just a few to consider:
- Server resources: By resources, we mean features like bandwidth, storage and control panel functionality. In general, small businesses should aim for at least 10 GB of storage and 15 GB of bandwidth, although upwards of 50 GB will give you more peace of mind.
- Uptime guarantee: Nearly every provider will offer some level of uptime guarantee as part of their Service Level Agreement (SLA). Look for one as close to 100% as possible. Also, make sure the SLA outlines page load speeds and response times.
- Monitoring: The most significant benefit of using a web host rather than hosting through a builder is that you often have a dedicated team monitoring your website. Features like daily backups, 24/7 monitoring and automatic security updates are tremendous benefits if offered.
- SSL certificate: An SSL certificate authenticates your website’s identity, making it a critical component for security and search engine ranking. Make sure the provider you choose includes an SSL certificate for free.
- Growth potential: While your small business may be, well, small, for now, there’s no way of knowing what the future may hold. Look for a provider that offers multiple packages and tiers and can support your website’s growth.
- Custom domain name: Unless you already have a domain purchased, you’ll need one. Some providers offer this for free, while others charge a small monthly fee.
Add-ons and extras
Many hosting providers or third-party sites offer add-ons and plug-ins to optimize your website. For example, you may want a web hosting provider that offers business email services. Or, if security is a priority, you may want to increase your security measures with DDoS protection and added firewalls.
Whatever the case may be, consider expanding your site features with add-ons like:
- Marketing tools
- SEO services
- Website backups
- Spam services
- Site builders
- Expanded storage
UX and ease of use
You’ll access your web hosting services through a “control panel.” This panel is where you’ll manage your domain names, install or uninstall applications, manage your email accounts, upload and organize website files and view security alerts.
Unless you or someone on your team is pretty adept at technology, make sure the control panel is intuitive and easy to use. This will help ensure you get the most out of your hosting services rather than just uptime and site visibility.
Customer service
Again, unless you know your way around postscript and HTML, a web host’s customer service department will be an extension of your small business. This team will help you overcome any technical or performance issues to ensure the best possible service for your customers.
Because of this, it’s essential that a provider is available 24/7 to help troubleshoot any problems as they arise. Check to see what past customers say about the service; are they reliable? Communicative? Ideally, they have a good track record for fast and accurate responses. Even better if they’re available by phone, although many companies today mostly offer ticket and chat options.
How much does web hosting cost?
MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE | BASE PLAN (MONTHLY) | HIGHEST TIER (MONTHLY) | FREE DOMAIN? | |||||||
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![]() | 30+ days | $7.99 | $13.99 | With annual plan | ||||||
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![]() | 30 days | $6.35 | $23.90 | With Business, Mocha and Ultimate plans | ||||||
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![]() | No | $4.48 | $9.48 | All plans | ||||||
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![]() | 90 days | $9.49 (annual only) | $27.99 | With Launch, Power and Pro plans | ||||||
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![]() | 30 days | $12.99 | $24.99 | No | ||||||
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![]() | No | $6.99 | $10.99 | No | ||||||
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![]() | 30 days | $10.99 | $19.99 | Yes | ||||||
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![]() | 30 days | $15.99 | $27.99 | Yes | ||||||
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![]() | 30 days | $11.99 | $36.99 | Yes | ||||||
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![]() | 30 days | $7.00 | N/A | No | ||||||
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A base plan costs between $4.48 and $12.99 per month, or $9.42 on average. Most companies offer multiple plans, depending on the services you want included.
The higher tiers start at $9.48 per month (although they can range up to $36.99) but often include additional features that can offset that increase, like free email, free domain, website builders and enhanced customer service.
Ultimately, for small businesses who want to centralize all their website details in one place, the higher tiers can save them a lot of headaches.
Featured web hosting offers
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
The best web hosting site depends on your small business’ needs. Each company on this list offers some sort of benefit that another doesn’t that could make it a better fit for your business.
For example, if you want a budget-friendly solution that packs a punch, we recommend TMDHosting. But if you want more options and expect your business to grow substantially in the future, GoDaddy or HostWinds are both good options.
Based on our research, we believe DreamHost is the best web hosting service for beginners, especially if you’re using a WordPress site. It offers an easy-to-use interface that’s robust but not complicated, and its pricing model is very affordable compared to some. Plus, it has a 100% uptime guarantee, which no other company on this list offers, so you can trust that your site is working every second of every day.
You should expect to spend at least $2.50 monthly for web hosting, although the price can reach as high as $36.99 for very robust plans. The average base price is $9.42, but it may have some limitations on essential factors like security, bandwidth, customer support and storage that make it not the best option for your needs.
The main ways to host a website are to purchase a hosting subscription through a hosting provider or host your site through a website builder. Using a provider is better if you want more hands-on assistance with things like security and uptime, whereas hosting through a website builder will be simpler and more streamlined because you don’t have to manage two providers. It’s also usually free through a builder, although not always.
You have two options when switching web hosts: Doing it manually or working with the new web host. Doing it yourself is decently complicated and usually reserved for the more tech-savvy individuals. Some companies, like TMDHosting, offer transfer services that do the work for you without the headache.
If you have a WordPress site, you could also install a plugin, like All-in-One Migration, to handle the heavy lifting.
Many website builders offer free hosting as part of their services, including Wix and HubSpot. If you use one of these builders that bundles hosting into its services, you likely don’t need to pay another company for hosting. However, website builders often don’t offer as many dedicated services as a true web host provider.
That being said, most small businesses can likely get away with the free hosting services included with a builder.
You can host a website for free — but those savings come at a cost, like slower speeds, limited storage and decreased security. Considering that hosting starts at just $4.48 per month, it’s usually worth the small cost to ensure a better experience, both for your internal team and your customers.
Blueprint is an independent publisher and comparison service, not an investment advisor. The information provided is for educational purposes only and we encourage you to seek personalized advice from qualified professionals regarding specific financial decisions. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
Blueprint has an advertiser disclosure policy. The opinions, analyses, reviews or recommendations expressed in this article are those of the Blueprint editorial staff alone. Blueprint adheres to strict editorial integrity standards. The information is accurate as of the publish date, but always check the provider’s website for the most current information.
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