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The Top 8 Shared Hosting Providers of 2023

Hostinger Logo

Hostinger

Best shared hosting

4.8 4.8 Stars
  • 1 website
  • 50 GB solid-state drive (SSD) storage
  • Free Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate

Summary

  • Starting price
    • $1.99 per month
  • Support
    24/7 support via email or live chat
  • Uptime
    99.9% uptime guarantee
  • Hostinger is one of the best hosting companies for people starting out with a website and seeking low prices. Its beginner-friendly interface, low hosting rate, and reliable uptime make it the go-to provider for shared hosting.



    Hostinger has one of the most affordable paid plans of all of the providers we’ve reviewed. And since cost is the major reason to look into shared hosting, that factor alone puts it near the top of the heap. Hostinger offers multiple shared hosting plans — from entry-level plans for beginners to small business shared hosting.


    Most plans even qualify for a free domain name for the first year of service, a great addition for those just getting started. All hosting packages at Hostinger also come with a free shared SSL certificate from Let’s Encrypt SSL that will provide your site with significant security. It also ensures your site follows best security practices, which Google confirms is important for proper search engine optimization (SEO).


    Those who pick the Business Shared Hosting package will get free access to the CloudFlare CDN. This process helps speed up your website's loading times by housing key site files in data centers around the world. The CloudFlare CDN boasts 152 separate locations, meaning your site will always be hosted in a location physically close to your visitors.


    No matter the plan you pick, Hostinger is a rock-solid option for hosting your next project at an affordable rate.


    Who is Hostinger best for?


    Hostinger is great for a diversity of people, though business owners may be particularly drawn to it. Small businesses and entrepreneurs will find a service with a high level of polish but affordable, with great options for scaling as your business grows.


    Recent updates to Hostinger


    While Hostinger has been around for over a decade, it is still committed to continuous improvement with new technology and features to meet your needs. It has recently added improved WordPress migration, making it easier to import your site from another service and update WordPress security.


    Hostinger pricing


    You have a good amount of choice when looking for a plan with Hostinger. One option is the Single Web Host plan for only $1.99 per month which grants you one website, 50 GB of storage, 100 GB of bandwidth, and weekly backups. The Premium plan for $2.99 per month offers double the storage, more websites, unlimited bandwidth, and a free domain. And the next tier caters to businesses and runs $3.99 per month, doubling the amount of storage and providing daily backups.

    Pros and cons of Hostinger

    Pros

    • Very popular
    • Affordable hosting options
    • 30-day money-back guarantee
    • Free domain and SSL certificate for Premium subscribers

    Cons

    • No dedicated servers
    • hPanel isn’t as useful as it should be

    What customers are saying about Hostinger

    Customers praise Hostinger’s ease of use, particularly if you’re just getting started, saying that it’s reliable and has a lot of great features. WordPress support was a high point. Some users are critical of the technical support, but those voices are almost always countered by those who have had a great experience with the support team.


    Read our full Hostinger review.

    SIteGround Logo

    SiteGround

    Best shared hosting for security

    4.7 4.7 Stars
    • Automatic WordPress installation
    • Daily backups
    • Easy-to-use, customized cPanel

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $2.99 per month
    • Support
      Professional support 24/7
  • Uptime
    99.9% uptime guarantee
  • If you’re looking for a secure place to build your website, there’s much to love with SiteGround. The company has a reputation for taking security seriously, is General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) compliant, and offers great support to all its customers.



    SiteGround offers top-notch plans that would work well for almost anyone, but note all plans come with managed WordPress services by default. Furthermore, all plans include premium offerings such as enhanced performance due to up-to-date servers and SSD drives. Even shared hosting packages come with a free SSL certificate.


    WordPress users can access a unique bot protection system powered by its effective artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm. When you enable this system, you will notice a considerable decrease in alerts from your WordPress security plug-ins. This system also prevents a variety of brute-force attacks on your WordPress login screen and does a great job of detecting any malicious login attempts.


    SiteGround also offers many other security options, such as the SiteGround Site Scanner, which lets you know if your website is under attack. In addition, it offers antispam tools SpamExperts and Apache SpamAssassin, hotlink protection, as well as internet protocol (IP) address blocklists.


    Who is SiteGround best for?


    SiteGround is particularly suited to those running relatively small websites — personal websites, local and regional small businesses, and hobby or enthusiast website builders. It’s still powerful enough to handle hosting your business sites but seems particularly good for those starting out small.


    Recent updates to SiteGround


    SiteGround is always updating and improving its services. This includes adding features, data center facilities, and providing more services including opening a new data center in Madrid, improving the functionality of its site scanning tool, and launching a custom CDN.


    SiteGround pricing


    SiteGround has three main plan options which scale in price. The “StartUp” hosting account begins at $2.99 per month. If you need more than one website and are expecting higher traffic, the “GrowBig” plan may suit you better at $4.99 a month. The top tier “GoGeek” plan runs $7.99 per month and gives you even more storage and site traffic capacity. 

    Pros and cons of SiteGround

    Pros

    • Free domain registration
    • Free website transfer
    • Official partner of WordPress

    Cons

    • No dedicated or virtual private server (VPS) options
    • Higher monthly pricing

    What customers are saying about SiteGround

    SiteGround is a reliable web hosting company with fast speeds, a user-friendly interface, and solid customer service. Some customers are not thrilled with the price increase and back-end support, however.


    Read our full SiteGround review.

    Hostgator

    HostGator

    Best shared hosting with flexible billing options

    4.7 4.7 Stars
    • Free site transfers
    • Unmetered bandwidth
    • Flexible billing

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $2.75 per month
    • Support
      24/7 year-round support via phone, live chat, or Twitter
  • Uptime
    99.9% uptime guarantee
  • HostGator has something to offer everyone with its stellar uptime guarantees, unlimited bandwidth, and a range of reasonably-priced hosting options. It offers one-click installs on shared hosting plans so you can integrate WordPress or other popular apps on your site in no time.



    HostGator offers unmetered bandwidth, one-click WordPress installs, email, and chat support along with a free domain name for one year with all shared hosting plans. It also throws in domain name registration at no cost. This is a great feature, especially for personal websites or smaller businesses that may see the added cost of a domain name as an additional burden when they are starting out.


    Most providers charge either yearly or monthly. HostGator stands out by offering payment plans for one month, three months, six months, or yearly (up to three years in advance).


    Having options is always great, but keep in mind your renewal date — when you’re first starting out you’ll get an excellent introductory rate, but by the time you need to renew your subscription the bill may be higher than you expect.


    Regardless, HostGator is a solid pick, particularly if you’re looking for a more flexible payment schedule.


    Who is HostGator best for?


    Beginners can find a lot of value in HostGator with its easy-to-use tools and website builder, but it can scale with large businesses, too.


    Recent updates to HostGator


    The team at HostGator is constantly adding new features and improving its services. It recently redesigned the customer portal to make it easier to manage bill preferences and change contact information. Also, the provider added a lot of quality-of-life improvements to its website builder.


    HostGator pricing


    A “Hatchling” plan, which includes a single website, unmetered bandwidth, and a free domain for one year costs $2.75 per month. The next step up is the “Baby” plan, which adds up to five websites and four times the storage for only $3.50 per month. And the “Business” plan unlocked unlimited websites and storage for $5.25 each month.

    Pros and cons of HostGator

    Pros

    • Multiple hosting packages
    • Free site transfers
    • 45-day money-back guarantee
    • Unmetered bandwidth

    Cons

    • Upselling features
    • Slow customer support

    What customers are saying about HostGator

    Customers say that HostGator is a great hosting company with lots of features and options, but that you need to be careful to not get suckered into paying for extras you don't need. HostGator is great for hosting standard web pages, but might not be the best option for hosting more advanced websites.


    Read our full HostGator review.

    DreamHost Logo

    DreamHost

    Best shared hosting for growing businesses

    4.6 4.6 Stars
    • Custom control panel
    • Excellent uptime
    • Free domain

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $4.95 per month
    • Support
      24/7 in-house support
  • Uptime
    100% guarantee
  • DreamHost is one of the oldest and most reliable hosting services. Offering top-class hosting packages at bargain prices, it is an excellent choice for everyone from small businesses to large e-commerce websites.



    DreamHost has good overall user ratings, great features, and an overall focus on quality. It offers reliable hosting servers with subscription plans that are perfect for small to midsize businesses (SMBs).


    DreamHost’s ease of use and affordability make it a good option for all entrepreneurs. You can upgrade your plan and avail of more services as your business needs grow. It may not be the least expensive option on this list, but it’s easy to use and has multiple hosting options. While you may be looking for shared hosting right now, you may want to upgrade in the future, and DreamHost has plans that can grow alongside your website.


    It also guarantees 100% uptime, a necessity for e-commerce websites as any time downtime can significantly impact your customer experience. DreamHost’s scalable and flexible services make it a perfect choice for e-commerce businesses. There is also a great money-back guarantee — shared hosting customers have 97 days to figure out if this is the service for them.


    Who is DreamHost best for?


    DreamHost is a good choice for many websites from small businesses to large e-commerce enterprises. It also has hosting plans that fit personal website builders’ needs. It’s particularly good if you’re just dipping your toes in the water with shared hosting, as you’ll have a full 97-day money-back guarantee.


    Recent updates to DreamHost


    DreamHost continuously works on updates and upgrades on all the services it offers, improving the hosting services offered by DreamHost. Many changes were made to the websites section of DreamHost, including a new tech stack, the ability to change domains, WordPress Migrations feature, and DNS Propagation Check to check DNS status. DreamHost also revamped its UI and redesigned the control panel.


    DreamHost pricing


    DreamHost’s lowest price plan is its “Shared” plan, which includes shared hosting for entry-level websites at $4.95 per month. If you outgrow this plan, there are plenty of ways to up your service at a reasonable rate of increase.

    Pros and cons of DreamHost

    Pros

    • Excellent privacy
    • 97-day money-back guarantee
    • 100% uptime guarantee
    • Eco-hosting

    Cons

    • Extra costs for certain features
    • You may pay for some levels of support

    What customers are saying about DreamHost

    Customers find DreamHost to be a reliable and affordable hosting provider, DreamHost offers great customer service and a variety of plans. It is easy to use, though there are some complaints that the speed and webmail could be improved.


    Read our full DreamHost review.

    A2 Hosting Logo

    A2 Hosting

    Best shared hosting customer support

    4.1 4.1 Stars
    • One-click installation for WordPress, WooCommerce, Joomla, and more
    • Free site migration
    • SSL certificate at no cost

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $2.95 per month
    • Support
      24/7 through phone and live chat
  • Uptime
    99.9% uptime guarantee
  • A2 Hosting is a great all-around hosting provider with a good plan for any user. It offers cheap shared hosting plans that cover everything from personal projects to larger businesses. 



    There’s a lot to like about A2 Hosting, from its wide range of subscriptions to its guaranteed uptime of 99.9% or above. However, A2 has a particularly good customer service department that offers 24/7 global support through phone and live chat.


    It’s not ideal to wait for the next business day when something goes wrong with your web host. A2 provides responsive 24/7 customer support to help resolve problems as rapidly as possible. The team is available via phone, live chat, and support tickets, so reach out in whatever way is best for you.


    I resolved many questions without contacting support by simply checking the A2 Knowledge Base. From setup guides to cPanel configurations and information for developers, the Knowledge Base has all the information necessary to work out the most common issues.


    Who is A2 Hosting best for?


    A2 is a capable hosting option for bloggers, e-commerce vendors, startups, and larger businesses. It’s a good choice if you want a cheap hosting arrangement that you can upgrade later if your site needs more resources.


    Recent updates to A2 Hosting


    A2 Hosting has kept its offerings current, implementing some modern features and quality-of-life improvements. It upgraded the PHP support to the latest stable version, which is 8.1. A2 Hosting added new security features for all its managed WordPress plans. These security features include HackScan Protection, Reinforced Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) Protection, and KernelCare. It also began offering Magento support on managed VPS hosting packages in late 2021.


    A2 Hosting pricing


    A2’s introductory StartUp plan only costs $2.99 per month, which is a great option to get you started. If you need to upgrade, other plans give you access to unlimited storage, websites, and improved server resources.

    Pros and cons of A2 Hosting

    Pros

    • Good variety of plan opinions
    • 24/7 support
    • 30-day money-back guarantee
    • 99.9% uptime guarantee

    Cons

    • Outdated design elements
    • Long-term contracts

    What customers are saying about A2 Hosting

    Customers say that A2 is a reliable, affordable hosting company that has fast speeds. The customer service is generally responsive but could use more updated tutorials and documentation.


    Read our full A2 Hosting review.

    IONOS Review Logo

    IONOS

    Best shared hosting introductory rate

    4.1 4.1 Stars
    • Automatic daily backups
    • 30-day money-back guarantee
    • Free professional email

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $1 per month
    • Support
      24/7 support via phone, email, or live chat
  • Uptime
    99.95% uptime guarantee
  • IONOS excels in innovation, reliability, and user experience. No matter which IONOS web hosting plan you choose, you will get great features, including a free domain name for one year. But it’s the introductory rate that will probably get you through the door.



    If we’re being completely honest, the best reason to pick IONOS over any of the other options on this list is the eye-catching introductory rate. A Business plan for only $1 a month is unbeatable, giving you a whole calendar year to get your website up and running for only $12. Just keep an eye on your calendar — that rate hikes up to $10 a month after your first year is up.


    No matter which IONOS web hosting plan you choose, you will get great features, including a free WordPress guide and a free domain name for one year. Those just starting out can opt for one of the MyWebsite packages, which comes with free hosting, plenty of templates, and an intuitive editor that’s seamless to operate.


    IONOS has also recently revamped its WordPress hosting service with a new emphasis on providing an isolated environment for increased speed and security.


    Who is IONOS best for?


    After extensive testing I found that IONOS is ideal for fledgling companies, providing a good balance between cost-effectiveness and dependability. Plus, it’s super easy to scale when ready.


    Recent updates to IONOS


    IONOS just revamped its WordPress hosting service with a new emphasis on providing an isolated environment for increased speed and security. It is also currently developing a new feature that will simplify importing pre-existing projects.


    IONOS pricing


    Like most services, IONOS offers a one-year introductory rate at all levels. However, unlike most of the others, the cheapest of those plans is the mid-tier “Business” plan, which is only $1 a month for the first year. You can still opt for the “Essential” plan, though you’ll pay $4 a month for less storage, websites, and hosting resources. 

    Pros and cons of IONOS

    Pros

    • Proven track record
    • Automatic daily backups
    • 30-day money-back guarantee

    Cons

    • Only one free SSL certificate per plan
    • No cPanel or Plesk

    What customers are saying about IONOS

    Customers feel that IONOS is a low-cost and simple web host ideal for SMBs. It offers a lot of customization options and provides top-notch customer support. Its server speed and uptime also receive good marks.


    Read our full IONOS review.

    Bluehost Logo

    BlueHost

    Best shared hosting for WordPress

    4.0 4.0 Stars
    • Free domain name registration or transfer for one year
    • Free shared Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate
    • Official partner of WordPress

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $2.95 per month
    • Support
      24/7 support via phone, email, or live chat
  • Uptime
    99.9% guarantee
  • Bluehost is an extremely reliable hosting provider which offers responsive hosting servers, excellent overall user ratings, competitive pricing, great features, and an overall focus on quality.



    Bluehost, one of the few official WordPress partners, can run just about any type of website you want. Custom-built pages, WordPress sites, WooCommerce sites, and more are available with its shared hosting plans. It also offers excellent VPS and dedicated servers. 


    Newfold Digital, Bluehost’s parent company, has acquired Yoast, a leading SEO WordPress plug-in. Yoast SEO premium is offered on all plans now for an additional $2.99 per month (normally $8.25), and Yoast SEO Free is included on all plans except for the basic plan.


    Bluehost also helps its customers by providing a variety of WordPress site-building tools. Customers who use these tools can be confident their sites are properly made and configured so they will be up and stable and load quickly at all times.


    Who is Bluehost best for?


    Bluehost is a capable hosting option for individuals, small businesses, bloggers, and others who need a reliable website. Using Bluehost, it’s simple to create and manage a site with its diverse tools, templates, and WooCommerce options, so it’s easy for those new to running websites. 


    Recent updates to Bluehost


    Bluehost is constantly innovating and upgrading its systems. For example, Bluehost started offering an advanced new site migration tool for WordPress sites and a full marketplace for great site templates. 


    Bluehost pricing


    Bluehost has options at many price points. The basic shared hosting account starts at $2.95 per month. If you need a dedicated server, on the other hand, you can pay up to $119.99 per month for the top-end option. 

    Pros and cons of Bluehost

    Pros

    • Hugely popular
    • Variety of hosting options
    • 30-day money-back guarantee
    • Official partner of WordPress

    Cons

    • No automatic daily backup
    • No monthly billing on shared hosting

    What customers are saying about Bluehost

    Customers praise Bluehost's uptime and features, though some say that the shared hosting options don't have the fastest speeds and they wish they didn't have to pay for some extras. People also say the support staff is friendly and helpful and that the user interface (UI) is easy to navigate.


    Read our full BlueHost review.

    InMotion Hosting Logo

    InMotion

    Best shared hosting add-ons

    4.0 4.0 Stars
    • 90-day money-back guarantee
    • Free domain name
    • Dedication to being open source

    Summary

    • Starting price
      • $2.99 per month
    • Support
      24/7 support via phone, email, or live chat
  • Uptime
    99.99% guarantee
  • InMotion Hosting is a popular hosting provider for those who want servers in the U.S. It offers reliable and fast hosting options for almost any type of website. Its premium, a-la-carte add-ons are just icing on top of an already impressive offering.



    InMotion Hosting is similar to the other companies listed in this section as it offers a full range of web hosting options. But what makes the company stand out are its managed hosting and premium support add-ons. These professional services can be useful, especially if you want to outsource the maintenance and management involved.


    If you’re starting a web store, a shipment tracking add-on can automate the process of sending your customers tracking info. And if you’re starting a blog, there are add-ons that can send subscribers a notification every time you post an update. Those running a business can use the add-ons to help manage clients and create invoices. No matter what kind of website you’re building, InMotion has a whole host of useful tools.


    Who is InMotion best for?


    InMotion Hosting is best for small to large businesses, with most of their traffic coming from North America. It is also an ideal choice for entrepreneurs, e-commerce websites, social media influencers, bloggers, and more.


    Recent updates to InMotion


    InMotion has a news page that is used to chronicle its updates over time, and it’s clear the provider is dedicated to slow but steady incremental upgrades. An InMotion data center is being built in Amsterdam. This is a massive boon to folks interested in InMotion hosting but unwilling to use a provider lacking a presence outside of the U.S.


    InMotion pricing


    The starting rate for shared hosting with InMotion is $3.29 per month, and comes with two websites, 100GB of SSD storage, 10 email addresses, and a free SSL. Your options increase as you jump up the paid tiers, with the “Pro” plan giving you unlimited websites, storage, and bandwidth.

    Pros and cons of InMotion

    Pros

    • Full lineup of hosting options
    • 90-day money-back guarantee
    • Free domain name

    Cons

    • Facilities only in the U.S. (for now)
    • Automatic backups aren’t free

    What customers are saying about InMotion

    Customers like InMotion Hosting’s high-performance hosting, support team, features, and customer service. However, they note that prices (while fair) can fluctuate more than expected.


    Read our full InMotion review.

    Compare the Best Shared Hosting Providers

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    Web hostStarting priceBest features
    Hostinger (4.8)

    Hostinger Logo

    Best shared hosting

    Why it’s best overall: Hostinger offers competitive pricing, industry-leading features, quality security, notable support, and easy and excellent integration of WordPress.

    $2.99 per month

    See pricing

    • 1 website
    • 50GB storage
    • 100GB bandwidth
    • Unlimited free SSL
    • Weekly backups
    • 1 email account
    • Website builder
    SiteGround (4.7)

    SiteGround Logo

    Best shared hosting for security

    $2.99 per month

    See pricing

    • 1 website
    • 10GB storage
    • Unlimited bandwidth
    • Free SSL certificate
    • Email at no cost
    HostGator (4.7)

    HostGator Logo

    Best shared hosting with flexible billing options

    $3.95 per month

    See pricing

    • 1 website
    • Unlimited bandwidth
    • Free SSL certificate
    • No cost for a domain
    DreamHost (4.6)

    DreamHost Logo

    Best shared hosting for growing businesses

    $4.95 per month

    See pricing

    • 1 website
    • SSD storage
    • Unlimited traffic
    • Free domain for 1 year
    • No cost SSL certificate
    A2 Hosting (3.8)

    A2 Hosting Logo

    Best shared hosting customer support

    $2.99 per month

    See pricing

    • Free SSL certificate
    • No charge for site migration
    • Unlimited email addresses
    • WordPress site management tools
    • One-click installation for WordPress, WooCommerce, Joomla, and more
    • cPanel control panel
    • 99.9% uptime guarantee
    IONOS (4.1)

    IONOS Logo

    Best shared hosting introductory rate

    $4 per month

    See pricing

    • One website
    • 10 GB storage
    • Free 24/7 support
    Bluehost (4.0)

    Bluehost Logo

    Best shared hosting for WordPress

    $2.95 per month

    See pricing

    • 1 website
    • 50 GB SSD storage
    • Custom themes
    • Free domain for 1 year
    • No cost for SSL certificate
    InMotion (4.0)

    InMotion Logo

    Best shared hosting add-ons

    $3.29 per month

    See pricing

    • Unlimited bandwidth
    • 90-day guarantee
    • Automatic backups
    • Zero downtime migrations

    What You Need To Know About Shared Hosting

    What is shared hosting?

    Shared hosting entails a single server hosting multiple websites which share the server’s resources, such as storage, random access memory (RAM), and central processing units (CPU). Shared hosting is also known as virtual hosting. It is a common and cost-effective option for small websites that need few resources.

    Will shared hosting be fast enough?

    That depends on your needs. For many small websites with moderate traffic, shared hosting will probably be more than enough. However, as traffic increases, you may notice speeds slowing down — at this point, it may be wise to look into dedicated hosting.

    Does shared hosting offer support?

    Almost every provider offers support, but the level tends to increase as your paid tier does. Remember the provider’s support hours — not all are open 24/7. If it’s in a different time zone, it may not be available when you need help the most.

    Can you easily migrate your data with shared hosting?

    Site migration shouldn’t be any harder with shared hosting than with dedicated hosting. However, you may find that the site editing process differs from provider to provider, so there may be a bit of a learning curve when migrating.

    What other types of hosting are there?

    Other types include VPS, dedicated, WordPress, and cloud hosting.

    How does shared hosting benefit hosting companies?

    Shared hosting offers a massive economy of scale for a web hosting provider because it’s a very efficient model. The host can place hundreds of customers on the same server with the same IP address, so there is no need for lots of servers to get those customers online.

    How I Rated the Best Shared Hosting Providers

    I rated web hosts on specific plans and prices, what features are offered, the performance of a hosting company, what type of security is included, and whether the hosting provider is engaging in ongoing improvements.

    I signed up for a plan with each provider to test:

    • Plan value: What plans are available, and do they offer a good value?
    • Ease of use: Is the dashboard easy to navigate?
    • Support: How fast can you get help when needed, and is support genuinely helpful?
    • Features: What features does the host offer, and how do they compare to similar competitors?
    • Security: Does the host offer SSL certificates, DDoS, attack protection, backup services, and scans for viruses and malware?
    • Speed and uptime: Does the provider offer a fast, stable environment for your website? How does it perform in tests, and what kind of servers does the hosting company use?
    • Recent improvements: What has the host done lately to update its technology and services?

    I uploaded a basic static site to my web space, including HTML and CSS files and images, and configured Uptime.com to check my site’s availability and server response time at five-minute intervals. This test gave me a general indication of the speed and uptime you will likely experience when you decide on the best web hosting provider for you.

    Learn more about our review methodology.

    Browse Web Hosting Provider Reviews