The Secrets of Cheap Web Hosting

Cheap Web Hosting May Provide The Solution You Need

    Cheap web hosting packages provide everything that a small business or an individual needs to get started with a successful website on the internet.  However, if you are new to web hosting and you are shopping around for the best deal, signing up for a cheap web hosting service can be confusing.  

     

   Like any other purchase, you have to understand what you are getting before you sign up.  This means thoroughly understanding what cheap web hosting companies offer so that you know what you need in order get your website to work right.  It also means reading the fine print to understand what is really included in a cheap web hosting service.

First of all, most cheap web hosting falls into the category of ‘shared’ web hosting. 

     Shared web hosting means that each server at the data center has many different web sites on it, and they are all running at the same time.  Even though you have your own space on the server (computer), shared hosting can present some security risks and coding errors with so many different people having access to the same server.  If you are putting together an informational site or a personal site, a shared hosting plan is perfect.  

   However, if you are a small business that accepts credit cards or has a high-traffic site with sensitive information, you may want to look into virtual hosting or dedicated hosting.  These kinds of cheap web hosting services are still affordable; they just provide more security for you and your customers.

Another thing to look out for is cheap web hosting companies that promise unlimited disk space and bandwidth.   

     Disk space and bandwidth refer to how much information you can store and access on the server per month.  So when you sign up for a cheap web hosting package, you will have to order a service based on how big your website is and the amount of traffic you will have.  By offering unlimited disk space and bandwidth, a cheap web hosting company makes it sound like you can put any size web site on the server that you want and then be able to direct an infinite amount of traffic to access that site.

     Nevertheless, when a cheap web hosting company offers unlimited disk space and bandwidth, they really mean that you can have about 1,500 gigabytes of disk storage and 15,000 gigabytes of bandwidth per month.   It’s not a scam.  This is just a number based on the capacity that the average user will probably never exceed.   So, before you get greedy with ‘unlimited’ space, do the math and see if that amount of space is enough for your mammoth website before you sign up for a contract.  Another place to check for storage space is in your email account.  Again, if you expect high traffic, don’t short yourself there either because you only get so many emails per month, even if it says unlimited.

Cheap web hosting companies also offer free domain names when you sign up for an account.  

     This is a great deal; just remember that the domain name is only yours as long as you have an account with that web hosting company.  If you switch to another web hosting company, you have to buy the name if you want to take it with you.  Make sure you find out what it costs before you sign a contract.  Cheap web hosting companies also offer packages that host unlimited domains.  Again, before you get excited, remember that this is for domain names that you already own, which will become subdomains of your main site.  As well, all of your sites go under the same account, so you still only get the base amount of disk space and bandwidth that the original package offers.  All of your domains that you host with that account will all have to share that space.

     Also, look out for phrases like ‘additional fee,’ ‘included for the first 3 months only,’ and ‘with 36 month contract.’  Otherwise, you may wind up with additional fees charged to your debit or credit card that you weren’t expecting.  This is mainly for software that looks like it is included in the package. Remember, there is a big difference between phrases like ‘WordPress Included’ and ‘WordPress Supported.’

But don’t let any of this turn you off from cheap web hosting.  

     Overall, cheap web hosting is a great deal.  Especially with so much competition and General Public License software out there, the cost of web hosting has significantly dropped.   You just have to be an informed consumer when you compare rates, features, and contract lengths.  

See also: writeyourselfrich.net