How to Choose the Right Hosting Platform for WordPress
WordPress is a popular content management system (CMS) that powers more than 28 million websites across the world. Originally conceived as a blogging platform, WordPress can be used to build completely custom websites.
It’s fair to say that WordPress has taken the internet by storm and has been touted as one of the top content management systems available today. It’s a popular choice amongst both new businesses and established brands who want to keep up with the latest trends whilst maintaining a professional appearance.
Leveraging the power of the open-source community, WordPress provides web developers with a robust framework that can be extended to meet the needs of individual customers. Because it’s such a versatile tool, it can be used to build everything from small blogs to massive multi-branded hubs.
But, like all other CMSs, WordPress is not perfect. Indeed, it has its own share of pitfalls that can trip up even the most experienced of website owners. In this article, we will run down the essential points you need to keep in mind when selecting a WordPress hosting platform. Specifically, we will cover the following topics:
Features
Choosing the right hosting platform is all about choosing the right features. In the following sections, we’ll explore the most vital aspects of a WordPress hosting package such as disk space, storage, speed, and reliability.
Disk Space
One of the primary factors that you need to consider when choosing a WordPress hosting package is the storage space available for your websites. How much space do you need to store all your sites’ content? What are your site’s maximum file sizes? Are you planning to utilize any WordPress plugins that might eat up additional space?
The answer to these questions is different for everyone. Some individuals and businesses might choose to store a few gigabytes of content on a single site. However, if you run a blog that focuses on video or if you have a complex multisite network, you might want to consider paying for more storage than what is included in the free version. Even then, you should still monitor your storage usage closely as too much space can cause major performance issues.
Storage
Apart from the size of your disk space, you need to consider the storage space for your WordPress databases. How much space do you need to store all your sites’ content? What are your site’s maximum file sizes? Are you planning to utilize any WordPress plugins that might eat up additional space?
Once again, the answer to these questions is different for everyone. Some individuals and businesses might choose to store a few gigabytes of content on a single site. However, if you run a blog that focuses on video or if you have a complex multisite network, you might want to consider paying for more storage than what is included in the free version. Even then, you should still monitor your storage usage closely as too much space can cause major performance issues.
Speed
Another vital factor that you need to consider when choosing a hosting platform is the speed. How fast can the service respond to your requests? What are your minimum acceptable speeds? Is this a critical point for your business or organization?
The speed at which a website loads has a significant impact on a customer’s experience. If website load times are too slow, customers might leave before they’ve even had the chance to fully explore your website. To prevent this, you need to ensure that your hosting company can deliver your content fast.
Reliability
Choosing a reliable hosting platform is no easy task. A lot of thought goes into ensuring that your web host is up and running 24/7. What’s more, you want your web host to provide you with uptime guarantees. A solid reliability record is a definite plus.
When selecting a web host, it’s important to look for signs of unreliability. Will the service respond promptly to problems or issues that you might face? Can they provide you with support in case you have any questions about using the service?
The above questions are important because, ultimately, you’re choosing a web host to power your website or online store. If you’re worried about downtime, how can you be sure that your content will load as expected?
To learn more, check out our guide to the best web hosting services or download our free guide which will help you choose the right hosting plan for your needs.
Once you have your hosting plan, feel free to launch your WordPress blog or website and begin building your audience. In the meantime, we hope this article proves useful to you in your quest to find the best hosting plan for your needs.