After choosing WordPress for your website, what next? There are lots of other important decisions to be made at this point, and so many technical and business decisions awaiting your approval. This is where WordPress website hosting comes in.
What is WordPress hosting and why you should get one
If you’re familiar with web hosting services, you shouldn’t have any difficulty working with WordPress because they pretty much work the same way. However, WordPress hosting has one noticeable difference, which is the fact that it can help optimize your server and all associated files for the platform.
WordPress has become so popular in recent years that, lots of web hosting services are now offering WordPress-centric packages in addition to their usual hosting offerings, while some have decided to stick to WordPress only hosting in a bid to provide efficient service for their users. If you will pick the best web hosting for WordPress, the speed and the optimization of it will be incredible.
In simple terms, WordPress web hosting is any hosting that has been fully optimized to meet security needs and enhance WordPress performance. It usually comes with a one-click WordPress install that makes it easier to use WordPress. There are actually WordPress hosts that update their user’s WordPress software as required.
WordPress site hosting services are mainly of two types – there’s managed WordPress hosting and shared WordPress hosting. The two types of hosting will be discussed as the article progresses and we will try to assist you with picking the best WordPress hosting for your need.
Is WordPress hosting a prerequisite for running WordPress?
No, it is not. There is nothing significant about the minimum requirement for WordPress. To run WordPress, all you need is a PHP version 5.2.4 host or something higher and some MySQL 5.0.15 or anything higher. The implication of this is that “technically”, every host can handle WordPress.
However, this cannot detract from the fact that some hosts are better than others when it comes to WordPress. The fact that an object is capable of providing you with all you need does not necessarily mean it is what will make you happy!
So, if you really want to enjoy the best of WordPress and the website hosting providers out there, you might want to get good quality WordPress hosting.
In our quest to understand the nitty-gritty of WordPress hosting, we organized a survey involving different WordPress site owners. In the cause of our survey, we discovered that the site owners who chose to host with those optimized WordPress hosts were more satisfied with their hosting choices.
Our personal recommendation is the SSD based WordPress website hosting by DreamHost. Read our DreamHost review.
As mentioned earlier, WordPress hosting comes in two categories. They include:
- Shared WordPress hosting (usually called “WordPress web hosting”)
- Managed WordPress hosting
Shared WordPress is actually the more inexpensive of the two hosting options and eventually a cheap WordPress hosting, but, with a reliable and known WordPress hosting company, it still will be an affordable and reliable hosting solution.
When using shared WordPress hosting, your site shares a server with other websites. Although your server remains WordPress performance-optimized, the difference is that you’ll have to share it.
Apart from the great performance tweaks that you’re entitled to, you will also be allowed to access some form of one-click WordPress installer. This is not necessarily a huge deal since cPanel, which can be found on most hosts, comes with its own one-click WordPress installer. Its advantage over others is that some shared WordPress hosts actually take it a step further by giving users the option to pre-install WordPress.
The implication of this is that there are WordPress hosts that automatically offer you a WordPress software upgrade! Some of them even upgrade themes and plugins! Updating your WordPress site is an important security measure, which is part of what makes this feature so important. It’s what you get when you understand what is WordPress hosting and the benefits of it.
There are shared WordPress hosts that even offer more WordPress features, but the ones listed above are the standard offerings available.
Another perk of using a shared WordPress host is that it offers amazing discounts on your first billing cycle, after which the prices automatically return to normal. You might pay as little as $3-4 monthly during the first billing cycle. And then you’ll be paying about $7-10 after that first cycle. One thing you should note is that these prices are just the starting prices because those higher shared WordPress plans are actually pricier.
For reliable shared WordPress hosting, we love the one by the non EIG hosting provider DreamHost.
What is Managed WordPress hosting
WordPress managed hosting is the advanced version of shared WordPress hosting.
Managed hosting also offers the following in addition to the perks associated with shared hosting:
- Faster speed rate: The hardware specs for managed WordPress hosting is far better than any other one out there, so you can be sure of a faster WordPress site. It’s the fastest WordPress hosting solution you can go with.
- Server-side caching: If you want a speedy WordPress site, then catching is the best course of action. You will typically need a plugin for handling it, but with managed WordPress host, you’ll get better caching without having to do anything from your own end. With the best WordPress hosting pick, this one will speed up your site performance tremendously.
- Efficient security: You’ll get access to WordPress-specific firewalls, intrusion detection, and regular malware scans. The implication of all these is significantly more efficient security for your WordPress site.
- Staging sites: A lot of managed hosts provide staging sites where you can easily test any change you make to your site before going live with it.
So what makes this one special? Apart from a few exceptions such as DreamHost, managed WordPress is actually pricier. If you decide to go with the other options, you’ll be paying about $25 monthly if you want a well-managed WordPress hosting.
The general opinion is that it is better for beginners to go with the inexpensive shared WordPress hosting, while the high-traffic sites stick to managed WordPress hosting. But, this analysis has one major flaw:
Time factor.
It is easy for a beginner who is just starting out to become overwhelmed with all the things that need to be done like, keeping up with updates and configuring coaching. With managed WordPress hosting, you won’t have to concern yourself with such issues.
You may be spending more money, but it will definitely be worth it because you won’t have to spend so much time managing your website performance. If you ask me, paying an extra $15 monthly to save yourself from the stress of trying to figure out your caching plugin is definitely worth it.
So, if you’re concerned about budget, you might want to go with shared WordPress hosting especially if you’re still a beginner. Just have it at the back of your mind that you’ll be missing out on some premium services from managed WordPress host if you do.
I hope that you have understood what is WordPress hosting and the subject is clear to you know. If you have any other questions on WordPress hosting, don’t hesitate to post them in the comments section!
Recommended WordPress hostings
DreamHost
DreamHost is PCMag’s “Editors’ Choice” winner 4 years in a row, SSD based and privately owned web hosting service highly recommended by us as one of the best hosting for WordPress available.
Some noteworthy features of DreamHost hosting:
- All WordPress hosting plans include a free domain name.
- 24/7 US-based support that will help you with any need.
DreamHost offers the cheapest solution for a basic WordPress hosting plan from the ones know, so it’s a very budget-friendly option. Also, with the Instant WordPress Setup option, you can be up in a zippy. One of the best WordPress hosting services out there.
Check out DreamHost hosting offering >>>
Summary
Now that you understood what is WordPress hosting, remember that picking a specific webhosting service does not mean you have to use it forever. Your website will change, technologies evolve, your needs and requirements will be different, but you must know – you can change your WordPress hosting service later.
Now that you have the information, go and create your site! If something is still unclear, feel free to write in the comments.
My website is hosted on DreamHost which I really like due to its stability and helpful support. Furthermore, their servers are extremely reliable, secure and fast, I don't remember when the last time we had a server downtime. If you sourcing for a great hosting service, go grab it.
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Happy to help.
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