How Slow is Godaddy’s Basic WordPress Hosting?
You want to buy a domain name and set up a word press site but you’re on a tight budget. You’ve heard that you can get a free domain with hosting purchased from a web host company like Godaddy.com, so you decide to go that way. You’ve also heard that Godaddy’s basic hosting is “good enough” for your needs. You order the cheapest plan available that comes with a free domain and you’re done. Unfortunately, is it really good enough? Let’s take a closer look.
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is when multiple websites share the same host computer. Each website on the shared hosting plan has it’s own login, database, and files. The drawback of shared hosting is the lack of control you have over the technical infrastructure. You don’t have direct access to the computer, so any issues that arise must be addressed by the web host company.
It’s also quite limited in terms of the hosting features available to you. For example, you can’t install custom scripts or applications on the host computer. You can, however, install WordPress to create a blog. Apart from that, you’re pretty much limited to what the developer of WordPress offers out of the box.
VPS (Virtual Private Server)
A Virtual Private Server (VPS) provides you with the technical means to easily run your own web server. A VPS pulls security, infrastructure, and control over your hosted websites away from the web host company, giving you full control and the ability to shape the environment to your needs. This essentially makes a VPS a dedicated server which is hosted by a web host company on a virtual machine.
VPS hosting is extremely economical in comparison to traditional hosting. You get the benefit of a dedicated server with all of the features you need, including full control over all aspects of the server’s configuration. What’s more, you can deploy a distributed web server that can host multiple websites with ease. VPS hosting is quite popular among small businesses and bloggers who want to maximize the performance of their websites.
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting gives you a fully loaded, standalone server which is entirely dedicated to hosting your website. A dedicated server is hosted by a web host company on a physical computer or a virtual machine separate from the shared hosting environment. In a nutshell, it’s a dedicated server that isn’t shared with any other websites.
Dedicated hosting has become quite popular among businesses and power users who want to host multiple websites or blogs from one location. A single, fully loaded dedicated server can serve hundreds of small and large websites with ease. What’s more, you can take advantage of all the advanced features that a web host company provides, like load balancing, security, and backup. One of the significant benefits of dedicated hosting is the ability to fully customize the environment to your needs. You can install any software or script you want, including WordPress, to create a custom blog or website.
Cloud Hosting
Cloud hosting is when you have your website hosted on a remote machine, commonly referred to as a “server,” that is managed by a web host company. The downside to cloud hosting is that you don’t actually own the server, so you’re not entirely in control of your website’s content. You can also experience downtime due to technical issues or server malfunctions. For small businesses that want to take advantage of the cloud, it’s quite a viable option since you can scale your resources up or down as needed without having to worry about maintenance or unexpected expenses.
WordPress Hosting
WordPress is a free and open source CMS (Content Management System) that powers more than 28.6 million websites around the world. A content management system (CMS) allows you to easily manage the content of your website, like posts, pages, and comments, from a single location. You can use WordPress to create a blog or a corporate website and even integrate it with other systems, like email marketing and social media platforms, to take advantage of all the features WordPress has to offer.
What sets WordPress apart from other CMSes is that it was designed to be modular, which means you can essentially install and activate different plugins to enhance its functionality. WordPress hosting is commonly referred to as “WordPress.com” since it’s built on the WordPress.com platform, but it can also be used with a self-hosted WordPress installation. In fact, you can use either one of these two platforms to create a WordPress website.
WordPress hosting is quite economical, even compared to the previously mentioned shared hosting, and it’s quite popular among bloggers and smaller businesses who want to create a simple blog with no coding experience. What’s more, with a word press website, you don’t necessarily need a database to be accessed by users, so if you’re looking for a cheap and easy solution, wordpress is probably the best choice since there’s no need to worry about database storage and management.
The bottom line is this: there’s no one-size-fits-all approach when it comes to choosing a web host for your WordPress site. It depends on your needs. If you have an existing site that you need a way to update, then shared hosting is probably your best option. If you’re looking to create a simple blog using WordPress, then go with the cheapest shared hosting plan you can find. If you have a specific need for security, performance, or storage, then consider VPS or dedicated hosting. And last but not least, if you’re on a tight budget, then WordPress is always a safe choice since you have the option to use a free domain name with any hosting plan you choose. So, if you’re looking for a free solution, there’s no question that you can’t go wrong with WordPress.