How to Choose a Domain Registration and Hosting Company That Works with WordPress
WordPress is the most popular content management system. It is used by over 80 million websites worldwide. It was originally designed to be flexible and work with very little technical knowledge, which makes it ideal for users looking to build a website for the first time. Since its inception in 2007, the plugin and its ecosystem have continued to expand, with thousands of new themes and plugins being added each year.
But despite all this functionality, it remains a fact that WordPress can be difficult to understand and use for beginners. There are just so many moving parts, and finding the right guide can be challenging. That’s why we’ve gone ahead and curated this list, which we think will help you choose a WordPress host and domain registration company that works well with your existing needs.
Features You Should Look For In A WordPress Host
When choosing a host for your WordPress site, you will want to consider what features they offer. Although many hosts offer the same basic functionalities, some focus more on certain areas and provide additional features that you might want for your site. Here are some of the most important features to look out for.
Scalability
Scalability is a feature that most hosts offer, which allows you to increase or decrease the number of resources (ie, memory, disk space, etc.) for your account. This way, you can adjust how your site functions depending on how much traffic you are getting. When choosing a WordPress host, make sure that they offer the proper scalability for the type of site you are building. If you are looking for a simple and basic hosting company that offers shared hosting with just a few resources, you might want to consider Linode. This type of hosting offers solid performance and simple installation, but it doesn’t offer the advanced features that some providers offer.
Security
Security is one of the major issues on the internet these days. Hackers constantly try to break into websites to steal information or use the site for extortion or blackmail. But since WordPress sites are typically more accessible to the public, these hackers are breaking into websites to steal information or use them for illicit activities. Keeping your site secure is a major priority. When choosing a hosting company, make sure that they offer the proper security for your needs. There are several things that you can do to make sure that your site is secure, from using a strong password to keeping your software up to date. When it comes to keeping your site secure, many hosts offer the same basic functionality, but some focus more on providing a safer environment for your WordPress site. For example, the Hetzner Cloud provides a dedicated firewall around your VPS (Virtual Private Server), ensuring that only authorized devices can access your site. This can help protect your business from cyberattacks and financial fraud.
Support
The level of support that a host provides is typically measured by the size of their customer base and the number of forums or social media platforms that they operate on. The more customers that they have, the more hands on deck they can provide to help you solve any issue that you might encounter. The more social media platforms that they engage with their customers on, the more likely it is that you will get assistance when needed. When choosing a WordPress host, make sure that they offer the proper support for the type of site you are building. Think about what you will need help with, from setting up the site to fixing a technical issue. Most hosts provide excellent basic support, but if you are looking for something more, you might want to consider one of the Tier 1 providers that offer 24/7/365 support.
Backup And Restore
Backup and restore are important features of a WordPress host. Having a back-up can be critical in case something happens to your site. If you are the type of person that is always backing up their work, you will be pleased to know that many hosts offer automatic daily backups, so if anything does happen, they will have all of your data preserved. In case something does happen to your site, you can easily restore it, meaning that your site will be available again in no time. This is an important feature to consider because if you are the type of person that gets easily discouraged by server down-time, having a backup and restore feature can greatly encourage you to keep building your site.
Managed WordPress Hosting
Some hosts offer managed WordPress hosting, which is essentially hosting plus security and maintenance included for all customers. This can be a cheaper option for people that are looking to deploy a WordPress site and don’t want to deal with the hassles of keeping the site up to date and secure on their own. If you decide to go this route, make sure that you are aware of what you are getting into. This is not cheap hosting and does come with some heavy responsibilities. You will need someone to help you if you get stuck or if you want to make some changes to the site.
Additional Features
Not all hosts offer all of the same features, so it is important to do some research before choosing a host. Some hosts offer free domain privacy, while many more offer discounted Google Cloud Services, allowing you to run your site on the Google Cloud Platform. Some hosts offer advanced features like free backups, while others offer cheaper alternative solutions like Cloudflare’s free tier. If you want to use a feature that some hosts don’t offer, it’s important to do some research before choosing a host. Don’t just go with the first provider that you find, do your research and read about the different features that they offer, as well as the pricing structures. With so many different hosts out there, all with various features, it can be tricky to know where to start. But if you follow these simple guidelines, you will be able to make a smart decision about where to host your WordPress site.