Wordpress shared hosting plans

WordPress hosting is a distinct type of hosting optimized for the needs of a website built with WordPress CMS. The main purpose of using the service is to simplify, secure, and speed up a WordPress install in getting started and ensure effective performance of the site in the future. Due to the fact that this content management system has top popularity (around 42,5% of all websites use it), a number of companies offer WordPress hosting of various kinds: shared, VPS, cloud, managed, along with some specific solutions.

When speaking about the terms themselves, the difference between them comes down to how specific they are: while web hosting is a general term that means any service providing server resources connected to the Internet by hosting provider, WordPress hosting is a web hosting subcategory created for a WordPress website. Regarding the technical aspect, the core difference between these two types of hosting is the server configuration. Due to the fact that WordPress websites use server resources differently in comparison with others, hosting providers can choose everything from the server architecture to a mix of configurations and applications in an attempt to provide a better performance. Furthermore, WordPress hosting plans might include additional services and features helpful when dealing with basic issues that WordPress users usually face. However, bear in mind that the term “WordPress hosting” can be used as an empty upsell, since WordPress CMS is no more than software that can be installed on any Linux server satisfying the requirements and recommendations given below.

Besides having the server pre-configured and the CMS pre-installed, the service comes with a multitude of features and support, leaving all the technical aspects to the host. This includes security, performance, WordPress updates, backups, website uptime, and scalability. The service allows you to focus on running your business without getting distracted by website management duties and eliminates the need to keep an administrator on staff. But for simple websites there is no need to pay for this extra support and using regular web hosting is recommended.

According to the information posted on the official WordPress CMS website, the following should be supported by the hosting provider:
  • PHP 7.4+
  • MySQL 5.7+ or MariaDB 10.3+
  • HTTPS
  • Apache or Nginx (recommended)

WordPress is a free open-source platform, so most of the costs are for hosting. Providers’ offers (hosting plans) can vary greatly even within the same hosting type, that’s why giving at least an approximate price range is quite problematic. The cost of web hosting for WordPress usually depends on the following parameters:
  • Hosting type - shared / VPS / cloud / dedicated, managed / unmanaged.
  • Hosting plan - number of resources provided, technologies available, period, accompanying services included.
  • Company (hosting provider)

In their advertisements, web hosting companies claim to provide the best hosting solutions. In order to choose the WordPress web hosting that best meets your demands, you need to approach the choice comprehensively and take into account different parameters. When studying hosting reviews, we recommend paying attention to the following criteria.

Speed and Performance

Page speed plays a significant role both in user experience and search engine rankings. For example, if you want to build a high-traffic multi-page blog with WordPress, it shouldn’t take too much time for a page to be loaded, because otherwise it will result in traffic loss. To evaluate the expected performance, look out for the type of storage used, memory allocated to each website, and bandwidth available for traffic. Nevertheless, when speaking about websites built with WordPress, it’s hard to list all the parameters affecting the speed and performance.

Developer Tools

Many hosting providers offer a range of developer tools and bundled software to simplify the administration of your website. The list may include integrated local environments, WordPress plugins and update management, premium themes, easy access to site administration tools. Top web hosting companies may even offer SDN subscriptions and SSL certificates.

Security

WordPress is inherently secure. However, it allows to install any plugin software that can result in vulnerabilities. WordPress hosting plans ensure predictability, so providers can protect their servers against WordPress-specific threats. Key security features to pay attention to are dedicated hosting environments, firewalls, automated backups, and monitoring for malicious plugins.