Compare hosting companies in more than 30 check points and choose the one that best fits your list in the following table. Also, see how we rate a web host (bottom) and Best Web Hosting Picks of the Year (new tab).
Methodology: How Do We Rate Web Hosting Services?
Our hosting reviews and web host recommendation are written based on our own usage experience, objective analysis, and actual server data. Over the years we have covered well-known web host companies like BlueHost, DreamHost, GoDaddy, and Hostgator; as well as those that have a regional / niche focus such as AltusHost, InterServer, ScalaHosting, HostPapa, and so on.
We use third-party applications and software to test sites set up on the host in review, including Uptime Robot, Bitcatcha, WebPage Test, Google PageSpeed Insights, and Freshping.
We also rarely use user’s input unless their identity and account ownership are proven. This is to avoid getting stuck in a war between two hosting companies.
Examples of our test sites can be found here, here, here, and here.
Aspects We Evaluate
There are six main aspects we look into when we assess a web host:
- Server Reliability & Speed
- Essential Features
- Customers Support
- User Friendliness
- Company Reputation
- Price / Value for money
We set up test sites at different web hosts and ask questions from a user’s point of view:
Service Reliability & Performance
- How often does the server go down?
- What is the average time-to-first-byte (TTFB)?
Essential Hosting Features
- Is the hosting package scalable?
- Does the web host provide a free SSL Certificate?
Customer Support
- Does the company provide Live Chat support?
- Does the company provide a comprehensive knowledge base?
- Is the support staff friendly and knowledgeable?
User Friendliness
- Is the user control panel easy to use?
- What are the account limitations?
- Are there sufficient server resources allocated to each customer?
Pricing
- Is the hosting packages reasonably priced? (Too expensive or too cheap is not a good sign)
- Does the hosting package come with a clear refund policy?
- Is the web host value for money in *the long term*?
Company Reputation
- How long has the company been in business?
- What other users are saying about the company?
How Does Our Star Rating Work?
At WHSR, hosting companies are rated based on a 10-step, five-star rating system – with the highest mark at 5-star and the lowest 0.5-star.
The star-rating can be seen in every hosting review article we published and in the large table, we built in our review index page.
To determine this score, we use an 80-point rating checklist to rate a web host and benchmark it against their long-term (we use four years span) cost.
The idea is to compare hosting providers with different price ranges on a leveled ground.
The simple mathematics behind this:
X = Hosting score at 80-point check list Y = (monthly signup price x 24 + monthly renewal price x 24) / 48 For Y < $5/mo, Z = Z1 For Y = $5.01/mo - $25/mo, Z = Z2 For Y > $25.01, Z = Z3 Final star-rating = X * Z
