Web hosting is a service that allows institutions and individuals to host their website on the internet.
However, there are a plethora of web hosts out there for us to choose from and it can be a daunting task to find the one that fits our needs.
While buying Best web hosting, an inexperienced customer who is obviously new to these technologies probably has no idea of what to look for in a good web hosting plan, thus, here is a quick guide on the important web hosting features that make a web host good and reliable.
However, before we move forward, let’s first take a look at what Shared Hosting is.
#What Is Shared Web Hosting?
A popular hosting plan, Shared web hosting is basically a type of hosting where the service provider provides services to multiple websites, wherein each one of them can host their own domain name under a single web server.
Since managing individual web servers is a costly affair, many businesses outsource to get their websites hosted which is convenient as well as inexpensive. However, choosing the right web hosting service provider is very important, as it is only then that you would be able to keep all your data safe and ensure that the website does not experience any downtime.
Bluehost’s Shared hosting plans are reasonable and ideal for not only individual and small business owners who are about to launch a blog or a website but also large businesses. To know more about Bluehost’s web hosting features, read this comprehensive Bluehost review.
Now, to get a broader knowledge of the kind of characteristics that you should be looking for, check out this web hosting features list below.
Top 10 Web Hosting Features To Look For When Choosing The Right Host
1. Pay Attention To The Storage Amount Provided
Primarily, what you need to consider while choosing a web host is the amount of disk/storage space that will be required to store databases, different files and media. The smaller your website is, the lesser is the disk space that you need and vice versa.
A few gigabytes of storage space is enough for small to medium websites and thus, the size of your website decides the importance of this feature. So, make sure that you have more than the space that your website needs when choosing a web host.
2. Know What Your Web Hosting Bandwidth Limit Is
For those of you who don’t know, the amount of data that your web host provider will let you and your customers upload and download in a particular month is bandwidth.
So, once you have hosted your files and converted them to a website, that is when bandwidth comes into the picture.
Numerous hosts offer unlimited bandwidth but if this feature is not managed well by the hosting provider, it can limit your traffic speed which will affect the performance of your website.
On the other hand, if you have a limited bandwidth, once your limit is over, either your hosting provider will not allow any more viewers or charge you extra per megabyte. Therefore, before going in for any package, pay close attention to the bandwidth limit that you will be provided.
3. Check If The Web Hosting Provider Offers Add-on Domain
In case you have to run multiple websites, it will be difficult to manage a hosting account for every website that is yours. Thus, make sure that your service provider lets you host a number of domains.
Often, there is a limit on the number of domains that you can own for a single account. However, even then make sure that the number of add-on domains provided by the hosting provider is enough and meet your business requirements.
4. Check The Uptime Provided by the Web Hosting Company
Uptime is the span of time the servers are in use and is measured in percentage. While choosing a plan, it would be advisable not to believe in what companies have to say about their uptime. If you want to know the actual rate, then you should use independent online tools such as Pingdom, Host Tracker or UptimeRobot to measure this rate for yourself.
At the same time, do not forget to be cautious about the security features included in the plan. Usually, most web host companies do not include expensive security features in cheap plans. So, go through carefully what a plan has to offer, as your entire data could become vulnerable if your website does not have a good security.
5. Is The Tech Support Offered by the Web Hosting Company Reliable?
24×7 customer assistance is one of the most vital web hosting features to look for, especially, if you are new to web hosting, as support plays the role of the oxygen.
For this, it is important that you read reviews on forums and other platforms and get a first-hand knowledge before actually purchasing a web hosting plan.
One of the best examples of reliable tech and customer support is Bluehost. It also provides brilliant customer support when it comes to any query related to web hosting. Plus, be it live chat, email or direct phone call, someone is always on the line to listen to your problems and come up with a quick solution.
In the initial web hosting period, you are going to have numerous doubts, and it is the customer support that will come to your immediate rescue. Thus, this is an extremely crucial feature that you need to carefully look into.
6. Does Your Web Hosting Provider Offer Pre-Installed Apps?
Web host companies provide so many features in shared plans that it becomes a huge mess. However, pay attention to their pre-installed apps feature. These are special widget features that let you quickly build a website. Due to this, everything is managed efficiently.
The control panel is the most basic app, which enables you to control even the most complex server processes easily on a user-friendly interface.
Zpanel, Virtualmin, and cPanel are some of the most used and well-known control panels. Some control panels have pre-installed apps and add-ons of eCommerce tools.
However, even though these come handy, most of these add-ons are only useful if you need them.
Bluehost, for instance, has an enhanced, easy to use cPanel (control panel.) So, you will have everything that you need to manage your site.
It also offers 1-click installation of WordPress, Joomla, and other CMS. Plus, it provides you with SimpleScripts installer with which you can easily install various add-ons and apps according to your needs.
7. What Kind of Database Support Does Your Web Hosting Provider Offer?
Irrespective of whether your business is small or large, you are going to need database support at the back end for integration of new technology. So, you need to be sure regarding the kind of database management support that you will be comfortable with.
There are numerous DBMSes to choose from, with the most frequently offered being MySQL.
However, you can choose from Oracle, PostgreSQL, SQL Server and others, depending on your convenience.
Bluehost supports both MySQL and PostgreSQL and with both of these in your casket, you have a wider range of applications that you can choose to install on your site.
8. Types of Programming Language Supported by the Web Hosting Company
It goes without saying that you should make sure that your web host offers support for server-side languages according to your preferences.
If you decide to shift from one language to another, make sure that these are listed in the list of supported frameworks.
Do not restrict your options to PHP unless you are absolutely sure that you will never need any other programming language. Bluehost provides a huge list of languages so that you have multiple options to choose from.
Read here to know more about languages and frameworks web hosting.
9. Regular Backup of Your Website
Your web host provider is equally vulnerable to data loss as your computer is and so even at your end, you will need to backup both, the files of your website and their databases. However, while choosing a hosting provider go with one that offers automatic regular website backup service.
Having a host that enables backup for your files is really great, as this will not only reduce your stresses but also ensure that you will not have to start building your website from the very beginning in the case something terrible happens.
To know more about how to backup your website, read this comprehensive backup guide.
10. Providing Free Bonuses
The web hosting market is huge, thus most host providers offer free bonuses to attract more and more customers.
For instance, Bluehost provides free domain transfer, unlimited bandwidth and Bluehost coupon which is definitely a winning deal.
The same way, many other providers either offer a free domain name or site-building tools and various other deals. More the number of deals the more is the client attracted towards it. Besides, that’s no harm to the client as well.
However, even freebies like these come with restrictions. Not all offers are for a lifetime. So, read the user agreement very carefully before narrowing down on a provider.
#Bottom Line
So, here you have the various features of web hosting explained in detail. Before deciding a website host provider, make sure to do an extensive research on different service providers.
Whichever provider you choose, ensure that they specially provide regular backup services, good customer service, and a 24-hour instant support. You will particularly need these features while getting started with your online venture.
Bluehost provides very useful and extensive features along with a lot of free bonuses. Besides having a convenient and easy to use interface, you have the liberty to choose from a pool of choices in Bluehost – be it language change or instant customer support, Bluehost proves to be very useful.
Lastly, before finalizing a particular host for your website, go through their user agreement very cautiously to avoid getting into trouble later.
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