Say you have found who is hosting a particular website. It would be best to double-check; is this web host going to work for you as well? Should you get this service or browse for another one?
While there are many considerations you should make, here are the most important ones:
While there are many considerations you should make, here are the most important ones:
- Server Uptime: Uptime refers to the proportion of time your server is up and running. While 100% uptime is a bit unrealistic due to server maintenance, you should opt for 99.95% and above. “Three and a half nines” refers to 43s daily downtime, or approximately 4.38 hours per year, which is high availability. Also, the web host should provide an uptime guarantee to compensate you for any losses due to outages.
- Loading Speed: If your website is down, you can potentially lose customers and profits. However, the same can happen due to slow-loading speeds. The web hosting provider should deliver fast-loading speeds. Ideally, you’ll want a page load time under two seconds, as recommended by Google. Keep in mind that the faster, the better.
- Customer Support: The web hosting provider should offer 24/7 customer assistance over several channels, such as live chat, phone, email, or ticketing system. Also, it would be best to select a web host with comprehensive self-help databases, including tutorials, videos, etc. Whether you are a beginner or a pro, you should receive fast and helpful responses if you encounter any issues.
- Pricing: You’ll find web hosting plans in all shapes and sizes, with wildly varying prices. While you can get free web hosting services, you’ll usually have to pay for those in other ways (unsatisfactory website performance, ads, and bad SEO). So, instead, it would be best to opt for discounted, cheap web hosting plans that deliver an excellent price to value ratio.
