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Web Hosting Companies go Head to Head!
There are a lot of web hosting companies to choose from, and there is a lot of good information on the web to help you chose one that is right for your needs. We have selected a few criteria on which to review a number of the leading hosting companies. Speaking from a lot of hard-earned experience, the hosting platform, the availability of instant support, and backup systems are some of the most important criteria on which to base your choice of host.
Because the hosting industry competes heavily on price, the difference in cost between each host is usually only a matter of a few dollars. This means you don't have to worry about the cost as much as a good infrastructure. Read our article called "Nut hosting in a web shell" for more information about finding the right host.
Side-by-side Comparison:
DreamHost
Price Range: $7.95 - $99.00
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| DreamHost |
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DreamHost is a big new player in web hosting
industry, with a good number of awards. Along with 1&1 and GoDaddy, they are
pushing the boundries of competition to bring huge bandwidth and a full range of
services at minimal prices. So far, customers seem to be pretty happy with them, I have not
found many complaints (which is unusual).
At $8 for a full TerraByte of bandwidth and unlimited domains, these guys are really
raising the bar for everyone else.
Earthlink
Price Range: $19.95 - $89.85
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| Earthlink |
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Over the years I have heard several positive
reviews of Earthlink's dial-up ISP service. In their effort to expand the
company, they have recently started offering hosting packages. While the
feedback on their customer support has been rather good, their hosting plans
are stripped down and a little pricey.
When I visited their web site, I connected with a representative right away for
a live chat. They answered my questions quickly, and let me get on with
the business of looking around on the site. Their two major shortcomings
(not including price) are their lack of database support and the non-existence
of a backup system. It seems like they are still new on the block and not
quite focused enough on offering a well-rounded and affordable package.
IPower Web
Price Range: $7.95 - $9.95
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| IPower Web |
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IPowerWeb is supposedly a big player in web hosting
industry, with a good number of highbrow awards. There's a lot to be said
for having a big company backing your hosting. However, there are a lot
of ex-customers out there that aren't too happy about their services. A
lot of downtime and bad spamming problems seem to be the most common
complaints.
A look, feel and usability of a web site can do wonders for consumer
confidence, and in this area IPowerWeb could use a helping hand.
Their support site is fairly good, with some decent tutorials for their
customers and a range of subjects.
IX Webhosting
Price Range: $4.95 - $67.99
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| IX Webhosting |
|
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IX Webhosting is the only hosting company I've found that
offers a Control Panel demo, which is nice. If you want to get your hands
on the steering wheel of a nice car before driving it off the lot, this is the
place to do it. They also offer a 100% money-back guarantee, anytime,
which is a standard I wish more hosts would adhere to instead of the picky
30-day nonsense.
However, the critics don't have many good things to say about IX Webhosting's
actual service. Problems with support services and e-mail seem to be the
typical issues, and there doesn't seem to be any representative out there
putting out the fires. Not to contradict the critics, but when visiting
their web site I did connect with a representative via live chat, which has
been a rarity among the web host companies I have researched.
Lunarpages
Price Range: $7.95 - $22.95
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| Lunarpages |
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One thing you can say about LunarPages is that
their home page is good eye candy, if a little busy.
LunarPages goes against the bronze, silver, gold and platinum trend and offers
only two plans. This keeps it simple, which I like. They also have
well-developed community forums, which is also a good sign that implies an
active community of customers.
I found a number of reviews on LunarPages online, some good and some less than
satisfied. Representatives from the company have done an eloquent job of
refuting some of the more negative reviews, which means to me that they at
least have a conscientious staff.
OnSmart
Price Range: $7.50 - $14.50
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| OnSmart |
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OnSmart Network is a relatively new company, so
there isn't a lot of information or reviews out there about their services. The
ones I found looked pretty positive. I appreciate that they have kept
their web site simple and to the point. It's a sign that they may cater
to the everyday user, and not to the web elite.
I like their collection of video support documents, built to teach the
customers how to complete some of the more common, and less-than-common tasks
of an end user. Moreover, they offer these videos on the public section
of their site, so anyone can use them as a resource. Very useful!
ValueWeb
Price Range: $24.95 - $99.95
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| ValueWeb |
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ValueWeb has some unique features that are worth noting
right off the bat. Firstly, they offer 24-hour toll free phone
support. You don't see that very often. Secondly, they have
integrated several tools for e-commerce and site promotion into their
plans. For instance, they offer Google Ad credit with their mid- and
higher-end plans, as well as merchant accounts and gateways. All
these things wrapped into a single package sounds like a good deal to me.
The single negative is that while the price game has driven the prices of most
hosts to dirt cheap, ValueWeb has actually increased their prices! A gutsy
move, but with all the features they offer, it might be well worth your while
to check out.
Yahoo
Price Range: $11.95 - $39.95
| Company |
Platforms |
Support |
Uptime |
Backup |
Database Support |
| Yahoo |
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One very good feature of Yahoo! hosting is the
backup system. Not only are the servers backed up daily and weekly, but
hourly as well! For actively developed web sites, this is a very nice
feature.
On the whole, Yahoo! hosting seems to be a service mostly for die-hard Yahoo!
fans. For basic web sites, the host provides plenty of good tools for
getting your site built and out the door. But for more advanced users,
such as those building e-commerce sites, the Yahoo! tools seem to be more
of a barrier to productivity than anything.
As a large company with multiple feet in several doors, Yahoo! seems to
still have its work cut out for them to really be a quality host.
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