Choosing the right web hosting provider for your small business is an important part of creating and maintaining your small business website. A good web host should be budget-friendly, feature-rich, and most of all, offer the support you need when you need it. To help you choose the right provider, we examined more than 30 popular web hosts, winnowing the list to the top eight providers. Here’s how they stack up:
Best Web Hosting for Small Businesses at a Glance
- Best unlimited WordPress hosting: DreamHost
- Cheapest introductory plans: IONOS
- Best artificial intelligence (AI) site builder: Hostinger
- Best customer support: InMotion Hosting
- Best VPS hosting: A2 Hosting
- Best fully managed web hosting for small business: KnownHost
- Great add-ons for website beginners: HostGator
- Best WooCommerce webstore hosting: Bluehost
Cost per Month* | Standout Features | ||
|---|---|---|---|
 4.98 out of 5 | From $2.95 |
| or |
 4.78 out of 5 | From $1/month the first 6 months |
| |
 4.49 out of 5 | From $2.99 |
| |
 4.40 out of 5 | From $3.49 |
| |
 4.10 out of 5 | From $1.99 |
| |
 4.10 out of 5 | From $6.71 |
| |
 4.09 out of 5 | From $3.95 |
| |
 4.05 out of 5 | From $2.95 |
|
*Billed annually; may renew at higher rate; monthly rate may be available
**Content delivery network (CDN)
DreamHost: Best for Unlimited WordPress Web Hosting
Pros
- Low-cost Unlimited plan with unlimited websites, traffic, and email addresses
- BoldGrid WordPress website builder included
- Free WordPress site migrations
- Domain privacy free in all plans
- 100% uptime guarantee
- 97-day money back guarantee—longer than any other web hosting service
Cons
- Proprietary interface is somewhat dated, which makes it less intuitive than more visually oriented cPanels
- Subpar user reports regarding customer support
- Some customers report occasional site speed lag
Starter*: $2.95/month; renews at $6.99
- One website, free domain, and SSL
- 50GB storage, unlimited bandwidth
- WordPress pre-installed and BoldGrid website builder included free
- Free WordPress site migration
- Automatic core and security updates to WordPress
- Automatic daily backups
- 24/7 support (ticket, chat, and phone callbacks)
- 97-day money-back guarantee
Unlimited*: $2.95/month – renews at $12.99
- Unlimited websites and email addresses
- Unlimited storage, bandwidth, and subdomains
- Unlimited databases, Unlimited FTP/SFTP user seats
DreamPress/WooCommerce: $16.95/month – renews at $19.99
- Managed WordPress – one website
- Free domain and SSL, plus unlimited emails
- 30GB SSD storage and unlimited bandwidth
- WordPress pre-installed, updates, and Jetpack
- One-click staging, free site migration
- WordPress website builder (BoldGrid)
- Automatic daily backups
*With annual billing; monthly billing is available at a higher cost
DreamHost’s plans are already feature-rich, but there are additional reasons that make it the best web hosting for small business overall:
- Unlimited plan, unlimited value: The 12-month introductory price for the Shared Unlimited web hosting plan is the same as its base plan. This gives startups and small businesses a plan they can use to grow and scale more quickly at a low price during the first year. See why it’s our #1 rated platform for cheap WordPress hosting.
- DreamHost Academy: Features don’t matter if you can’t easily understand and access them. DreamHost Academy is filled with information to help you successfully navigate and explore the system, ensuring you can find and access the benefits you need most. Additional support includes 24/7 ticketing, live chat, and phone callbacks.
- Real-time SEO recommendations: DreamHost’s new WordPress website builder offers real-time search engine optimization (SEO) recommendations to help you attract your audience and grow your brand’s online presence.
DreamHost’s Shared and WordPress Unlimited plans are consistently among our most loved plans. The real magic comes with the second tier, Unlimited plan. At just $2.95 per month, this plan offers unlimited websites, unlimited email addresses, unlimited storage and bandwidth—virtually everything you need for your business to grow in perpetuity. It even renews at a very affordable $12.95 per month after the first year.
Additionally, all shared hosting plans also include automated daily backups, free WordPress site migration, and automatic management of WordPress core and security updates. Every hosting package also includes the BoldGrid WordPress page builder theme free. This eliminates a great deal of the learning curve needed to build a WordPress site. There are more than 200 industry-specific templates, drag-and-drop editing, content blocks, and a Quick-Start Wizard to streamline the process even more.
DreamHost delivers a wide array of small business website hosting and related services, such as:
- Shared Unlimited and WordPress Unlimited website hosting from $2.95 per month
- Managed WordPress and WooCommerce plans from $16.95
- Cloud hosting from $4.50 per month
- VPS from $10 per month
- Dedicated server hosting from $149 per month
- Email hosting from $1.67 per mailbox
- Professional web design from $1,499
- Search engine optimization (SEO) and social media from $399 per month
- Web development services from $89 per hour
- Website management from $59 per month
In addition, DreamHost offers professional services including full web design, web development by the hour, and site management. You can also purchase SEO and social media marketing services directly from this provider, making it a great option for those needing a one-stop digital marketing solution.
DreamHost offers the best unlimited WordPress web hosting for small businesses. The site builder simplifies building your site with premade templates and content blocks. Wizards guide your way with design inspiration and SEO recommendations, and the DreamHost team takes care of tough stuff, like core updates or migrating your site from another server.
WordPress is a popular content management system (CMS), but it’s not the only one and comes with a hefty learning curve. Check out our article explaining what a web content management system is and how to choose the best one for your small business.
IONOS: Cheapest Introductory Web Hosting Plans
Pros
- Choose from cheap web, WordPress, and site builder plans from $1/month for 6 months with free domain, SSL, and email
- Reliable, secure web hosting with 99.98% uptime and 24/7 support
- Free daily backups included
- Malware, site scan, and distributed denial of service (DDoS) protection
Cons
- Railgun CDN only comes with the most expensive plan
- No month-to-month billing option
- No free trial or demo version to test site builder plans
Shared Plus: $1/month the first 6 months; renews at $12/month
- Unlimited websites, storage, and bandwidth
- Enhanced storage and memory for better site performance
- Free domain and SSL
- Free email
- Daily backups
- 24/7 support and 30-day money-back guarantee
WordPress Grow: $1/month the first 6 months; renews at $10/month
- One website, free domain, and SSL
- 5 free email accounts with anti-phishing and anti-spam
- 50GB SSD storage, unlimited bandwidth
- 10,000 subdomains
- 99.98% uptime, DDoS, and malware protection
- Caching plugin and Jetpack Backup included in all but base tier
- Site Scan, DDoS protection, geo-redundancy (all plans)
- Automatic WordPress updates (Managed WordPress)
- 24/7 support and 30-day money-back guarantee
VPS/Dedicated Hosting:
- Standard VPS hosting: Starting from $2 to $8 per month
- Memory optimized VPS: Starting from $2 to $24 monthly
- CPU optimized VPS: Starting from $4 to $20 per month
- Dedicated SSD hosting: As low as $45 the first 6 months
- Dedicated HDD hosting: As low as $47 per month
If “cheap” didn’t hook you, there are other reasons web hosting for small business works well with IONOS:
- Beginner and customer-friendly: Having 24/7 support means you won’t have to struggle to set up your site or hosting features. This is particularly useful for digital marketing agencies managing multiple client sites, as well as beginners and small businesses wanting to build a strong online presence.
- Site building services: IONOS offers affordable website-building services for those wanting to skip the learning curve. Plans include a one-time and monthly fee for managing your site and making changes on an ongoing basis.
- Online marketing add-ons: Create and manage all your online listings in one place by subscribing to a List Local plan. Choose a Google Ads Management plan for creating, tracking, and optimizing your Google Ad campaigns. Learn search engine optimization (SEO) and improve your site’s Google rankings with an IONOS rankingCoach plan.
- Digital agency solution: IONOS’ partner program has perks like single-dashboard client management and three-month free product trials. It also has a directory listing in the Agency Partner Network for more exposure, a direct line to your personal IONOS Consultant, and professional tools for agencies, freelancers, and the like.
IONOS makes its case as one of the top providers of web hosting for small businesses thanks to its $1 introductory plans for several products, including website and WordPress hosting. In fact, its plans are so attractive, they give DreamHost a run for its money. Plans come with a free domain, SSL, and business email, giving a small business everything needed to get its digital marketing off the ground.
As someone who has hosted several websites and domains with IONOS for more than a decade, I have firsthand experience with the quality, professionalism, and speed of support staff. Usually, it’s something I’ve broken―which they promptly fix. On the exceedingly rare occasion a problem exists with a server or network, downtime has been minimal, with no significant loss of service or revenue.
Plus, no matter which type of web hosting you opt for, your files are backed up every day. So, if your website gets compromised or you make a mistake, you can quickly and easily restore a working version to minimize any potential downtime.
IONOS also offers the broadest range of web hosting types starting at a low introductory cost per month, including:
- Shared web and WordPress hosting from $1
- Web hosting for agencies from 50 cents
- Joomla hosting from $1
- VPS (virtual private server) hosting from $2
- Combined web hosting, design, and editing from $40 per month, inclusive of domain and email
- Dedicated hosting from $45
- One of the best domain registrars—$1 the first year for a .com domain
- Jamstack (Deploy Now) hosting from $4 for three projects
- Ecommerce hosting plans for WooCommerce, Magento, PrestaShop, Shopware, and OpenCart (starting cost varies)
If we were to have one complaint, it’s that IONOS’ Railgun content delivery network (CDN) is locked behind the highest tier for web hosting. If this concerns you, we recommend you consider Bluehost as the best alternative, as Cloudflare CDN comes in all but the base tier.
IONOS is a one-stop digital marketing shop for building a website with a variety of highly affordable web hosting solutions. Its tools and dashboards are user-friendly, and 24/7 expert support is just a click away if you get stuck. Take advantage of the 30-day money-back guarantee to test drive the website hosting option best for your small business.
Hostinger: Best AI Site Building Tools
Pros
- All plans come with both Hostinger’s AI website builder and a WordPress site-building wizard
- Low-cost website hosting plans
- Enhanced security
- Plans come with free SSL certificate
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Cons
- Uptime guarantee is on the lower side
- Single and Starter plans lack free daily backups, CDN, and SSH
- No free domain in the base tier
- No phone support
Premium: $2.99/month* the first year; renews at $11.99/month
- 100 websites and free business email
- 100GB SSD storage and unlimited bandwidth
- Free domain and unlimited free SSL
- Managed WordPress and WooCommerce optimization
- WordPress Acceleration, Autoupdates, and Vulnerability scans
- Weekly backups
- Drag and drop, no code AI website builder, copywriter, and SEO optimizations
Business: $4.99/month* the first year; renews at $15.99/month
- 200GB NVMe storage
- 10x performance
- Free CDN
- Daily backups
- WordPress AI tools (plus new image tool coming soon)
- On-demand backups
- Enhanced security features
- No-code AI site builder comes with ecommerce tools and 0% transaction fees
*With annual billing; monthly billing is available at a higher cost as lower-priced, longer-term contracts
As far as we know, Hostinger was the first web hosting company to offer a proprietary artificial intelligence (AI)-powered website builder as an inclusion in all of its hosting plans. And that’s just one of the reasons why it’s rated so highly by our experts:
- Multiple websites: One thing we know about entrepreneurs is that many of them have more than one project brewing. Hostinger’s low-cost, multi-site plans are great for entrepreneurs.
- AI site design and copy: The option to build your website (and even write copy for web pages and blogs) with artificial intelligence (AI) speeds up site design and building by weeks, if not months. If you need to get a website up today, Hostinger’s AI site builder makes that a breeze. See how easy it is to use the Hostinger website builder.
- The best of both worlds: If you want to build and manage websites using both WordPress and Hostinger’s no-code drag-and-drop website builder, you can do that—all in the same plan.
Like DreamHost, Hostinger provides a low-cost entry point for web hosting. However, while DreamHost includes a WordPress website builder, Hostinger’s plans come with a no-code artificial intelligence (AI) site builder that fully streamlines the process of building a brand presence online.
In plans that allow multiple sites, you can build sites with either WordPress or the Hostinger site builder, all in the same plan (I’m actually doing this for some of my personal projects right now). Plus, Hostinger’s Business and Cloud-based plans include WordPress AI tools.
One downside of Hostinger is the lack of professional web design services. Still, you will find plans and monthly pricing (when billed annually) for:
- Web hosting from $2.99
- WordPress plans from $2.99
- Website builder and hosting plans from $2.99
- Agency-friendly multi-site plans starting at $3.99 the first year for up to 100 websites
- VPS from $4.49
- Cloud-hosting from $9.99
- Email hosting plans for Google Workspace and Titan
If the idea of using AI to build your website, write copy, create images, and optimize the performance of your site interests you, Hostinger is our top recommendation. All plans include its beginner-friendly, no-code AI website builder, while higher-tier plans come prestocked with WordPress AI tools as well. At less than $40 for the first year and a money-back guarantee, there’s virtually no risk to try it out today.
InMotion Hosting: Best Customer Support for Small Business Web Hosting
Pros
- 24/7 U.S.-based support
- No-downtime site migration (free)
- DDoS, hack, and malware protection
- Intuitive control panel
- Unlimited emails and storage after base tier
- 90-day money-back guarantee
- BoldGrid WordPress website builder included free (same as DreamHost)
Cons
- Upper-tier plans get pricey on renewal
- Resources included in the base plan may not be enough for growing websites
- Occasional downtime issues
- Free domain not included in lowest-tier shared hosting plan
Core: $3.49/month*; renews at $9.99/month
- Two websites and 10 email addresses
- Free SSL, 100GB SSD storage, and unlimited bandwidth
- 2x speed and performance
- Free backups and site migration
- Hack and malware protection
- BoldGrid site builder for WordPress
- Free ad credits
- 24/7 live chat support
Launch: $6.99/month*; renews at $13.99/month
- Unlimited websites, storage, and email addresses
- 6x UltraStack speed and performance
- Automatic backups
- Jetpack Personal plugin
WP Launch: $8.99/month; renews at $17.99/month on renewal
- Unlimited WordPress websites, storage, and email accounts
- 20x WordPress performance
- DDoS, hack, and malware protection
- Automatic backups
- BoldGrid WordPress site builder
- Jetpack Personal plugin
*With 12-month billing; monthly billing available at a higher cost
InMotion Hosting costs a little more, but as the classic L’Oreal ad slogan says, “You’re worth it.” Here are some of the small business web hosting features that landed it among our top picks:
- Renowned for customer service: Our experience and customer reviews all point to InMotion as offering a high level of customer care.
- Customer satisfaction guarantee: Only DreamHost offers a longer money-back guarantee than InMotion’s 90-day promise.
- Strong security in all plans: Unlike providers that require a higher tier purchase for security features like DDoS and malware protection, this comes in all of InMotion’s hosting plans. Likewise, free backups are included; however, daily backups aren’t automatic in all plans, unlike IONOS.
While all the providers here have self-help resources, InMotion Hosting’s support options are arguably the most robust and user-friendly. In fact, right in the cPanel are at least 90 links to educational and instructional resources, as well as a community forum for InMotion customers. You can also get notified whenever new resources are added, which is great support for beginners and agencies managing multiple sites.
Its in-person support isn’t lacking, either. We put that to the test when evaluating the service, hitting up InMotion Hosting’s live chat team with questions about the Launch and Power plans. We had a live support agent asking to help us within about 10 seconds and had our answers in less than two minutes.
While its WordPress plans (with free BoldGrid page builder) are the best option for most small businesses, like most web hosting companies, InMotion Hosting offers a range of services:
- Shared hosting from $3.49*
- WordPress website hosting plans from $4.49*
- Managed WordPress from $15
- WooCommerce plans from $15
- Reseller hosting from $16.99*
- VPS from $24.99*
- Dedicated website hosting from $89.99*
Starting cost per month with 12-month annual billing is listed above; those marked with an asterisk (*) renew at a higher cost.
Don’t downplay the value of getting great support with your website hosting service. It can make all the difference when something goes wrong or you just need help to get the most value for your dollar. Choose InMotion Hosting if customer care and support are top priorities when choosing web hosting for your small business.
A2 Hosting: Best VPS Web Hosting for Small Business
Pros
- Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting from $4.99 per month
- Generous storage on all plans, starting at 100GB
- Easy site staging and site cloning
- Website migration assistance included
Cons
- No free domain, unlike IONOS and DreamHost
- No CDN offered in any tier; must purchase from third-party vendor
- Automatic backups on higher tiers only
Startup: $1.99/month for first year; renews at $11.99*
- 1 website
- 100GB storage
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Free SSL certificate
- Free site migration
- Unlimited email addresses
- 24/7/365 support and 99.9% uptime guarantee
- Security features include virus scan, hack scan, firewall, and more
Drive: $3.99/month for 1st year; renews at $14.99*
Includes everything in Startup, plus:
- Unlimited websites
- Unlimited storage
- Automated backups via JetBackup
Runway 1 VPS: $4.99/month on annual plan*
Includes customer-managed virtual private server (VPS) with the following features:
- 1GB RAM
- 20GB SSD storage
- Up to 500GB transfer
- 1 CPU core
- Money-back guarantee
- cPanel and other maintenance tools available as add-ons
Lift 4 VPS: $24.99/month on annual plan*
Includes a fully managed VPS with the following features:
- 4GB RAM
- 150GB SSD storage
- Up to 2TB transfer
- 2 CPU cores
- Free SSL certificate
- Security suite
- Linux OS
- cPanel included
*Billed annually
If you think your website is going to be resource-intense―streaming loads of video, hosting online games, or managing a large amount of traffic—A2 Hosting has you covered, with VPS starting at just $4.99 a month. That’s not the only reason to consider A2 Hosting:
- Feature-rich shared hosting: If you’re building a WordPress website, A2 will host it for $1.99 a month, which includes 100GB of storage space, unlimited email, and more.
- Advanced security features: Keeping your website secure is one of A2’s specialties. Every hosting account, whether it’s the intro Shared account or Lift 4 VPS, includes advanced security tools like virus and malware protection, SPAM blocking, and a firewall.
- Customer support when you need it: When something goes wrong, you can reach out to A2 Hosting’s highly rated customer support team, which is available via phone, chat, or email 24/7/365.
Whereas services like DreamHost and IONOS are geared toward shared hosting, A2 Hosting takes a different approach. One of its primary offerings is a VPS, offering customers dedicated server resources like RAM and a CPU to ensure your site loads fast and performs at its top potential. With a self-managed VPS starting at just $4.99 a month―the cheapest we’ve reviewed (ever)―even the smallest businesses can take advantage of their own server.
That’s not to say A2 Hosting shorts shared hosting plans, though. The company provides a robust shared hosting experience, beginning with its Startup plan at just $1.99 per month for the first year. This plan includes 100GB of storage, unlimited bandwidth, and unlimited email addresses. That’s pretty much everything you’ll need to build your small business website.
Additionally, A2 Hosting leads the pack on security. All plans include the basics―two-factor authentication (2FA), protection against Distributed Denial of Service (DDos) attacks, and the like. But A2 Hosting also includes advanced, perpetual security scanning. It runs hyper-secure, rebootless kernel updates daily, in addition to a virus scanner, protection against brute-force attacks, and a firewall to keep hackers out.
A2 Hosting’s web hosting services rival those of IONOS and DreamHost almost across the board by delivering the following:
- Shared web hosting for both WordPress and other sites from $1.99
- Reseller accounts for agencies and consultants
- VPS hosting from $4.99
- Advanced security features
- Four server sites around the world to speed site delivery
If you’re looking for bang-for-the-buck, it’s hard to beat A2 Hosting’s $4.99 VPS. With shared hosting plans starting at just $1.99, you’ll have access to ample storage and bandwidth, unlimited emails, and almost unrivaled advanced security features. With more than a dozen plans ranging from shared hosting to dedicated servers (starting at just $79.99), there’s definitely an A2 Hosting plan for you.
KnownHost: Best Fully Managed Web Hosting for Small Business
Pros
- 100% fully managed web and WordPress hosting services
- Highly reliable: 99.995+% uptime
- Free setup, migration, and backups
- 100% satisfaction guarantee
- Change your plan at any time
- 24/7 support
Cons
- Much lower storage in base hosting plans vs other providers
- IONOS managed plans are cheaper (though less robust)
- Free domain and CDN aren’t included
Basic: $6.71/month*; renews at $8.50
- One website, 5GB cloud storage, unlimited bandwidth
- Five emails, free SSL, free backups
- Free migrations, automatic updates, and security patches
- Brute force and DDoS protection
- 24/7 support
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- White label
Professional: $14.96/month*; renews at $18.95
- Unlimited websites and cloud storage
- Unlimited email accounts
WP Entry: $11.95/month*; 100% fully managed WordPress and web hosting for small business:
- One website, 50GB storage, unlimited bandwidth, free SSL
- Unlimited emails
- WordPress install, setup, management, and migrations
- Manage and upload plugins and themes
- Debug management, WordPress staging and cloning
- WordPress integrity check and hardening
- Security rollbacks and manual updates
- WP toolkit
- Redundancy
- Free backups
WP Corporate: $39.95/month*
- Five websites, 150GB storage, unlimited bandwidth
*With annual billing
Take the pain out of managing WordPress web hosting with KnownHost, which offers:
- Cheap fully managed services: Save time and skip the learning curve altogether with fully managed services at an affordable cost.
- Plans for every budget: While memory and storage might push you to a higher-plan tier, any sized business can have the luxury of fully managed web hosting with KnownHost’s range of plans, pricing, and payment terms.
- High uptimes: Apart from DreamHost’s boast of 100%, KnownHost offers the highest uptimes for ensuring your site is online and available to prospects and customers 24/7.
Technical site issues that arise from outdated or incorrectly configured CMS and plugins can make your site lag or even break it altogether. Managed web and WordPress hosting is the best for small businesses that want to ensure installation, setup, and maintenance are done right. This can be especially important for beginners. And KnownHost is well known for its fully managed services and great customer support.
Most web hosting for small businesses comes with basic WordPress management, like auto-installation and core updates, but KnownHost’s managed WP plans come with much more. From help getting your plugins installed, configured, and updated to integrity and security hardening, you’ll save time and headaches with this web host.
KnownHost customers enjoy 99.99% plus uptimes for their websites with an array of web hosting services, including first-year monthly pricing (with annually billed plans) for:
- Fully managed web hosting from $6.71
- Managed WordPress plans from $11.95
- Reseller plans from $10.46
- Semi-dedicated hosting from $28
- VPS plans from $17
- Cloud-hosting from $25.50
- Dedicated servers from $49
Like InMotion and HostGator, with KnownHost you get a range of payment term options. This allows you to choose the best terms for your business’ budget month to month or sign up for the long term to get the most savings.
We first learned of KnownHost while sifting through review sites and forums like Reddit, where we discovered this provider is a go-to for techies. Now that we’ve taken a peek under the hood ourselves, we confidently recommend KnownHost as a time and money-saving web hosting provider for small businesses, especially those wanting managed WordPress sites to ensure peace of mind.
HostGator: Great Add-ons for Website Beginners
Pros
- Easy to understand plans with all you need to get online
- Free domain, SSL, and unlimited emails
- $600 in Google and Bing ad credits after base tier
Cons
- Many features locked behind the highest plan, including CDN and SEO tools
- Plans only allow from one to three websites
- Migration services only included in the highest-tier plan
Hatchling: $3.95/month*; renews at $9.99/month
- 1 website, 10GB storage, unlimited bandwidth
- Free domain, SSL, and unlimited free business email
- 1-click WordPress installation
- Chat support
Baby: $5/month*; renews at $14.99/month
- 2 websites, 20GB storage
- Free Google Ads promo code for $500 in Google Ads spend match credits
- $100 in Bing Ads spend match credits
- Phone and chat support
Business: $7.25/month*; renews at $18.99/month
- 3 websites, 40GB storage, unlimited bandwidth
- Site migration services
- Cloudflare CDN
- Dedicated IP
- SEO tools
- SSL upgrade
*With annual billing; save more with a three-year contract or pay month to month at a higher rate
Features and tools that are startup and beginner-friendly from top to bottom landed HostGator on our list of the best web hosting for small business:
- How-to articles and webinars: Just because you can self-serve with web hosting and site building doesn’t mean it’s easy. HostGator has a great blog with how-to articles and a webinar library to help you with all the basics.
- Free unlimited email: HostGator is the only web hosting company offering unlimited emails with all website hosting plans (although DreamHost and Bluehost offer this in all but the base tier).
- All-in-one website builder: HostGator is partnered with Web.com, which is on our list of the best website builders because it’s packed with a ton of built-in marketing features. If you click on Website Builder plans, you’ll be redirected to the Web.com site builder (just so you’re not surprised).
HostGator isn’t the cheapest option, but it does offer reliable web hosting for small businesses in plans you won’t need a degree in computer science to understand. It also offers round-the-clock support and add-ons that are perfect for website newbies just starting to build brand presence online.
For one thing, its blog is packed with beginner-friendly articles and webinars for those who need help learning the ins and outs of web hosting and how to build a small business website. HostGator also offers expert services, including web design and development, search engine optimization (SEO), and advertising on Google and Bing with pay-per-click (PPC) ads.
Like other popular web hosting providers, HostGator is known for its range of shared hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated servers, and WordPress hosting plans:
- Shared hosting from $3.95*
- WordPress plans from $7.95*
- VPS plans from $23.95*
- Dedicated website hosting from $109.97*
- Reseller plans from $24.95*
- Domain registration from $12.95 per year for a .com domain
*Monthly cost with 12-month annual billing; month to month, six months, and 36 months plans are also available. Plans renew at a higher cost after the introductory period.
Of the 2 million plus websites hosted on HostGator, only 30% are managed by web pros. That means 70% of HostGator users are amateurs, and many of them are completely new to web hosting. Add-ons could drive up your pricing with HostGator, but this could be well worth the cost for beginners. Find out for yourself by taking advantage of its 30-day money-back guarantee and low-priced introductory plans.
Bluehost: Best WooCommerce Web Hosting for Small Business
Pros
- Affordable WooCommerce-ready online store hosting packages
- Free Cloudflare CDN for fast site loading from anywhere
- Free domain, SSL, CDN, and from five to unlimited emails
Cons
- Limited email addresses and email support
- Free domain and backups aren’t included in the base plan
- No WordPress page builder, unlike DreamHost and InMotion
- No monthly billing option
Basic: $2.95/month*; renews at $10.99/month
- 1 website
- 10GB storage
- Custom WordPress themes
- Free SSL
Choice Plus: $5.45/month*; renews at $19.99/month
- 3 websites
- 40GB storage
- Free domain, SSL, and CDN
- Daily backups free for 1 year
- Domain privacy
- Malware scanning
Online Store: $9.95/month*; renews at $24.95/month
- 3 WooCommerce ecommerce websites
- Exclusive WordPress store theme
- Store analytics
- Unlimited products and secure online payments
- Bookings and appointments
- Shipping labels
- Product search
- Gift cards
- Wishlists
- Customer accounts
*Billed annually
Bluehost streamlines the process of creating your online store or appointment-based business website on WordPress:
- Online store setup services: Bluehost promises 24/7 support to customers who choose WordPress online store web hosting, including help setting up your store, adding products, installing and using plugins, and customizing your online store’s features.
- Online marketing services: Bluehost offers full-service web design, website marketing, and content management services as well as search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) ad management, and site migration services. (However, DreamHost and InMotion also provide free site migration.)
- Free CDN: Most Bluehost web hosting packages include free Cloudflare CDN. It distributes your site’s content to servers across the globe so that it can be loaded from a nearby server to the site visitor. This improves site and page load times, which, in turn, benefits your site’s SEO and site visitor experience. (Enable this in your account to activate it.)
Bluehost is our top pick for web hosting if you want to build a WooCommerce-powered WordPress site. Beginning with the Online Store plan, you’ll get a custom WooCommerce store theme, online payments, and a web store with unlimited products.
In addition to WordPress hosting, Bluehost offers the following services (cost per month with annual billing):
- Shared web hosting from $2.95
- Shared WordPress hosting from $2.95
- Managed WordPress hosting from $29.99
- WooCommerce online store hosting from $9.95 the first year
- VPS hosting from $39.99
- Professional web design, SEO, and marketing services (request a quote)
- Dedicated hosting from $125.99
Building a website on WordPress is challenging. Building a full-scale online store on WordPress is doubly so—but Bluehost can make all that pain go away. The WordPress-recommended web hosting company has ecommerce-ready plans to streamline the process of getting your online store, well, online.
How We Evaluated the Best Website Hosting for Small Business
Foundational to building a successful website is to have web hosting that is tailored to your business’ needs and budget. Our team has decades of collective experience with web hosting and website development. We compared more than a dozen web hosting companies against 31 separate data points as well as our own firsthand experience with each of the providers.
Click on any of the tabs for details about the criteria we used to determine the best web hosting services.
20% of Overall Score
For small businesses, cost is often a deciding factor for selecting any vendor, including website hosting. We gave a higher score to web hosts offering low intro pricing and affordable renewal rates, especially where low cost doesn’t equate to a low value for the customer.
30% of Overall Score
General features include everything from storage and bandwidth to inclusions like a free domain, SSL, and business email, which are essential for building an online brand presence. In addition, we looked for plans that allow you to build multiple websites, content delivery networks (CDN) to ensure fast site loading worldwide, uptime guarantees, and whether free backups were included to protect your site.
15% of Overall Score
Niche features pack added value to web hosting plans. Some of the extras we looked for here included whether the web hosting company was agency and reseller-friendly, as well as if it has a user-friendly cPanel for easy administration. Plus, we checked if WordPress plans came with a free WordPress page builder and if you could create unlimited subdomains or get dedicated hosting as your website needs scale.
10% of Overall Score
Web hosting is complex and entails highly technical expertise. For this reason, we favored hosting companies offering 24/7 customer support on various channels. We also looked at customer reviews that indicated a provider would go above and beyond. In addition, we tapped our team’s firsthand experience with providers to see which provided the best customer care and support.
25% of Overall Score
Our expert score is primarily based on firsthand experience with each provider and our expertise in what to look for in a web hosting company. In addition, we considered aggregate and individual customer reviews and comments as to the expert score for overall features, value, ease of use, and popularity.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Web hosting varies by environment and cost. The most common (and cheapest) type of web hosting is shared web hosting. Managed hosting adds things like installation, updates, and maintenance to your plan. Other types to consider are virtual private servers or networks (aka VPS or VPN), cloud-based, and dedicated hosting. These more expensive options come with increased security and speed, making them ideal for large and growing websites.
DreamHost and IONOS are great choices for hosting a business website. Plans come with a domain, SSL, email, and everything needed to build a strong brand presence. DreamHost is a WordPress-recommended hosting company, and all plans come with a no-code WordPress site builder. The budget-friendly and reliable IONOS has web hosting plans where you can host your site starting for as little as $1 per month.
The best hosting for beginners is with an all-in-one site builder like Wix, where hosting, a domain, SSL security, and an intuitive, no-code site builder are all included. When considering hosting alone, look for a small business-friendly web host like DreamHost with affordable intro pricing, all-inclusive plans, and a free drag-and-drop WordPress page builder.
Bottom Line
The best web hosting companies for small businesses offer generous plans with valuable freebies and ample storage and bandwidth—all for small business, budget-friendly pricing. Based on our comparison, DreamHost scored the highest, meeting nearly all of our criteria. Get started risk-free with Shared Unlimited or WordPress Unlimited plans with all you need for web hosting, business email, and more—all backed by a 97-day money-back guarantee.
