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Your small business needs a website, but finding the best web hosting for a small business isn’t a simple task. Every hosting provider offers multiple plans and features, which can get confusing for beginners who don’t understand what they need. We rank the six best small business web hosts.
Best Web Hosting for Small Business
- Namecheap – Best Overall Small Business Web Host
- Bluehost – Best for Beginners
- HostGator – Best for Dedicated Server Hosting
- WP Engine – Best for Dedicated WordPress Hosting
- Weebly – Best for ecommerce businesses
- Ionos – Best for Affordability
Software
Pricing
Storage
Bandwidth
Backups
Hosting Solutions
Customer Support
Starts at $4.98 per month for 1st year, then $9.88 per month
20 GB
Unmetered
Automated backups and cloud storage
Shared hosting, WordPress hosting, VPS hosting, Reseller hosting
24/7 live support
Starts at $2.95 per month on an annual plan
50 GB
Unmetered
No automated backups
Shared hosting, VPS hosting, Dedicated server hosting
24/7 hosting support
Starts at $10.95 per month
Unmetered
Unmetered
Automated backups
Shared, WordPress, VPS, dedicated server, Windows shared, reseller, cloud web hosting
24/7/365 support
Starts at $25.00 per month
10 GB
50 GB
Daily automatic backups
WordPress hosting
24/7 chat support
Starts at $12 per month, billed annually
Unlimited
Unmetered
Manual backups
Weebly free website hosting service
Live support 9 AM – 9 PM EST
Starts at $0.50 per month on an annual plan, then $10 per month
Unlimited
Unmetered
Daily automatic backups
Shared, WordPress hosting, Linux hosting, Windows hosting
24/7 customer service
Although Namecheap is known for its domain name registrar services, it also offers inexpensive web hosting for small businesses. All of Namecheap’s plans offer unmetered bandwidth, access to a free website builder, and domain name and privacy protection. Namecheap also provides entirely free website migrations that are completed in under 24 hours and only cause up to 15 minutes of downtime.
Why we chose it: Namecheap offers everything a small business needs in regards to hosting. The comprehensive set of features, along with its competitive pricing, means that Namecheap is the best overall web hosting for small business. Read our full Namecheap review for an in-depth look.
- 100% uptime score
- Free 24-hour site migration
- Affordable and comprehensive web hosting platform
- Unsophisticated website builder
- High site traffic can impact load speeds
- Unreliable customer support
Pricing:
Namecheap offers three shared hosting plans for small business:
- Stellar ($1.88/month for the first year, then $3.88/month) – 20 GB storage and unmetered bandwidth
- Stellar Plus ($2.98/month for the first year, then $5.88/month) – Unlimited storage and auto backups
- Stellar Business ($4.98/month for the first year, then $9.88/month) – 50 GB storage and cloud storage
Namecheap powers over 1.5 million websites of every budget and size. However, small business web hosting is one of its top priorities. Namecheap offers wallet-friendly shared hosting plans and reseller hosting plans for small businesses that want more premium features.
With 24/7 round-the-clock support, Namecheap is willing to go the extra mile to ensure your small business website is fully optimized. All plans include unlimited bandwidth, a free domain and SSL certificate, and free backups.
Furthermore, Namecheap’s data servers are located in the US, United Kingdom, and across Europe. Namecheap’s shared, business, and dedicated server accounts are backed up with a 100% uptime guarantee. If its servers go down at any time, you’re automatically eligible for an extended plan duration.
In terms of features, value, and pricing, Namecheap is the ultimate winner of today’s list of best web hosting for small business.
As one of the biggest names in the web hosting industry, Bluehost is highly popular among small businesses. The best feature of this small business web host is that it comes with everything you need to get your website up and running. With a free domain and SSL certificate, Bluehost makes it easy to launch your small business website.
Why we chose it: Bluehost is the most beginner-friendly web hosting for small business because everything from the setup process to its intuitive dashboard is simple, even for complete beginners. Read the Bluehost review to learn more about its features and pricing.
- First-term is inexpensive
- Generous storage
- Excellent WordPress Integration
- Constant marketing upsells
- Speed could be improved
- Entry-level plan limitations
Pricing:
BlueHost features four shared hosting plans for small businesses:
- Basic ($2.95/month for the first year, then $9.99/month) – 1 website and 50 GB storage
- Plus ($5.45/month for the first year, then $13.99/month) – Unlimited websites and unlimited storage
- Choice Plus ($5.45/month for the first year, then $19.99/month) – Domain privacy and free automated backups for one year
- Pro ($13.95/month for the first year, then $28.99/month) – Free automated backups in perpetuity and free dedicated IP
Bluehost is a small business favorite for web hosting because of how easy it is to configure and use. It’s the perfect web hosting for small business if you’re on a limited budget and are new to web hosting.
This small business web host is perfect for both small businesses that need simple websites and others that need complex ecommerce integrations. Bluehost also features robust WordPress integrations and excellent customer support services. One-click WordPress installation allows you to launch your small business WordPress website easily.
Each plan also offers unmetered bandwidth and a free SSL certificate. Bluehost uses cPanel for its site management system. cPanel is a powerful website control panel that’s extremely simple to use with clearly laid out sections for beginners.
With the Basic plan, 50GB of storage is usually more than enough for most small businesses. If you exceed your storage capacity, upgrading to the next plan is inexpensive. You can also upgrade to a VPS or dedicated plan once your business begins to expand rapidly.
If your small business is growing rapidly, you may be looking for other hosting solutions than shared hosting. Although HostGator offers affordable shared hosting plans, it also offers robust VPS and dedicated web hosting. With shared hosting, you share hosting with multiple sites on a single server. This is why shared hosting plans are so inexpensive. Dedicated hosting allows your website to exist on a server alone.
Why we chose it: HostGator provides dedicated servers for both Windows and Linux. If your website experiences a lot of traffic, HostGator provides powerful dedicated server hosting to avoid slow page speeds and latency across your site. Read our full HostGator review for an in-depth look.
- Unlimited storage across all plans
- Unmetered bandwidth across all plans
- Free email marketing tools
- Clunky dashboard
- More expensive than other options
- Disappointing customer support
Pricing:
HostGator offers multiple different pricing plans for each of its hosting options. The longer you subscribe to HostGator, the cheaper the subscription cost.
- Shared Web Hosting ($6.95/month to $16.95/month)
- WordPress Hosting ($9.95/month to $91.95/month)
- VPS Hosting ($19.95/month to $149.95/month)
- Dedicated Server Hosting ($189/month to $289/month)
HostGator is another beginner-friendly, feature-rich web host with an outstanding uptime of 99.99%. Similar to Namecheap, HostGator is another popular domain registrar that also features hosting services.
However, HostGator really shines in its dedicated server hosting services. Although most small businesses won’t need a dedicated web host, the option to upgrade is always available.
HostGator’s standout feature for small businesses is its integration with Constant Contact. Constant Contact is an email marketing software. You will receive three months of access to Constant Contact’s resources for free on any shared hosting plan.
It’s important to note that HostGator is not the best web hosting for small business if most of your customers are outside of the US. HostGator only has servers in the US, which can cause latency issues for international audiences.
For its affordable pricing, HostGator delivers surprisingly good performance. It’s an excellent web host for small businesses that want a valuable compromise between performance and price.
WP Engine: Best WordPress Web Hosting for Small Business
Pricing: $25 per month to $63 per month, with custom options
WP Engine is a robust small business web host that’s dedicated to WordPress websites. This web hosting provider features strong security and maximum reliability among its comprehensive set of tools. WP Engine offers development, staging, and production environments to optimize your website and streamline your workflow for more advanced users.
Why we chose it: If you built your website on WordPress and you’re interested in maximum performance, WP Engine is the best web hosting for your small business. It offers a premium interface and features that set it apart from other WordPress hosts. Want to know more about this hosting company? Read the complete WP Engine review.
- Comprehensive WordPress hosting for small business
- Multiple server locations
- Excellent customer service
- Only hosts on WordPress
- Visitor limits
- Not budget-friendly
Pricing:
WP Engine offers five different pricing plans:
- Startup ($25/month) – 25,000 visits per month, 10 GB storage, and 50 GB bandwidth per month
- Professional ($49/month) – 75,000 visits per month, 15 GB storage, and 125 GB bandwidth per month
- Growth ($96/month) – 100,000 visits per month, 20 GB storage, and 200 GB bandwidth per month
- Scale ($242/month) – 400,000 visits per month, 50 GB storage, and 500 GB bandwidth per month
- Custom (Inquire for pricing) – Custom built package for all your small business hosting needs
WP Engine offers outstanding uptime, reliable customer service support, and dedicated WordPress hosting services for all of your WordPress needs. Since many small businesses create their websites with WordPress, WP Engine makes it easy to start your hosting services.
Each WP Engine plan comes with a content delivery network (CDN) for faster page load times. Furthermore, you get access to staging environments so you can test site changes before you publish them.
You can also select Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud Platform as your website’s backbone. This ensures no downtime scalability and tight security. WP Engine is designed explicitly for WordPress installations, themes, and plug-ins. If you don’t use WordPress, we recommend checking out the other five best web hosting for small business in this guide.
Weebly: Best Web Hosting for Ecommerce Small Businesses
Pricing: $12 to $38 per month when paid annually
Weebly is best known for its browser-based, drag-and-drop website editor for ecommerce businesses. Weebly offers hundreds of responsive website themes that can be customized to your preferences. In essence, Weebly takes a new ecommerce website from start to finish quickly. You’ll receive all the guidance and tools you need to get your small business up.
Why we chose it: What sets Weebly apart from other ecommerce web hosting providers is its direct focus on ecommerce websites. Weebly is an all-inclusive small business web host for online sellers interested in optimizing their stores.
- Great site speeds
- Responsive and customizable themes
- Affordable ecommerce hosting
- Slow-responding customer support
- Moving to a new platform is difficult
- Only suitable for ecommerce businesses
Pricing:
Weebly offers three pricing packages for ecommerce websites:
- Pro ($12/month when paid annually) – Unlimited storage and free SSL security
- Business ($25/month when paid annually) – Advanced ecommerce statistics and item badges
- Business Plus ($38/month when paid annually) – Abandoned cart emails and real-time shipping updates
Weebly’s server infrastructure powers millions of websites and pageviews per day. As such, you expect comprehensive reliability and performance once you host your ecommerce website with Weebly.
Each of Weebly’s ecommerce hosting plans offers free SSL security, unlimited storage, and a customizable shopping cart. It’s important to note that Weebly wants to be your comprehensive ecommerce provider.
If you want to learn how to start an online store, Weebly offers a drag-and-drop website builder as well as an integrated ecommerce platform with responsive themes.
Weebly also offers a mobile app that allows you to build, edit, and manage your website all through your mobile device. In addition, Weebly makes it easy to create a blog, custom forms, and uses powerful SEO tools to bring in traffic from search engines.
Ionos offers shared hosting at an astounding price of $0.50 per month for the first 12 months if you subscribe to an annual plan. Although the price increases to $10 per month after your first year, it’s still extremely inexpensive. This plan also offers unlimited storage, so you don’t have to worry about upgrading your storage capacity later on.
Why we chose it: Ionos is the best affordable web hosting for small business with a total price of $6 for your first year’s subscription. With a price this low, it’s basically negligible and allows you to focus on growing your small business. Read the Ionos review to learn more.
- Personal success consultant
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Affordable, all-in-one website builder and hosting plans
- No free trial to test the site builders
- Most expensive plan offers fastest load times
- Not very beginner-friendly
Pricing:
Ionos carries three different packages for small business:
- Essential ($4/month for 12 months then $6/month) – 1 website and 10 GB storage
- Business ($0.50/month for 12 months then $10/month) – Unlimited websites and unlimited storage
- Expert ($8/month for 12 months then $16/month) – Maximum CPU and MEM resources and SiteAnalytics Plus
Ionos is the best web host for small businesses needing low-cost hosting right from the beginning. Each small business plan features 99.9% uptime, PHP 8.1 with JIT compiler, SSL and DDoS protection as well as backups.
Speed is also a priority with Ionos. Claiming itself as one of the fastest web hosting providers in the US, Ionos ensures your visitors have the best user experience possible. Additional features include a drag and drop website builder, WordPress hosting integration, and online marketing add-ons.
If your small business is looking for a simple and affordable web hosting provider that’s easy to use and provides hands-on technical support, Ionos is right for you.
Methodology for the Best Web Hosting for Small Business
Choosing ideal web hosting is a core component of building your small business website. The best web hosting for small businesses offer similar features, so we understand how it can be difficult to differentiate them. There are a few key factors to consider before picking your small business web host.
Speed
A small business web host determines how fast your website loads. Page load times are essential because they affect user experience and SEO rankings. Fast loading websites are critical because slow websites cause users to leave very quickly. You need a web hosting plan that can handle the amount of traffic your website receives.
Budget
As a small business owner, you constantly face budget restrictions and cost-cutting measures to optimize your dollars. Fortunately, each small business web host offers shared hosting, which dramatically reduces your hosting cost. You won’t receive advanced features and the fastest speeds, but shared hosting is good enough to sustain your business as it continues to grow.
Ease of Use
Depending on your experience with web hosting, you may need a service provider that’s beginner-friendly. Furthermore, you may want a web host that offers guidance and 24/7 support. If your website doesn’t work properly or is down, you won’t be able to take care of your customers and acquire new ones.
Storage and Backups
Some small businesses need to store a lot of data and assets on their website. For this reason, you need to use a small business web host that offers enough storage for your company. Backups are also crucial to keep your website safe in times of emergency or disaster. A simple backup can save you from a world of pain if something goes wrong on your website.
Reliability
It’s important to find a small business web host with a good track record of staying online. Web hosts with unreliable uptimes should be avoided at all costs. If your web host ever goes down, your website will go down too. This means you’ll be losing business, revenue, and customer satisfaction.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Best Web Hosting Companies for Small Business
Below are some of the most popular questions surrounding small business web hosting.
Conclusion: Best Web Hosting Companies for Small Business
The best web hosting for small businesses offers quick load times, is easy to use, and is within your budget. You can’t go wrong choosing any of the six options in this list, but some web hosts are more suited for certain small businesses, depending on your needs.
Larry is a finance graduate and entrepreneur who loves educating others on various business software through his own experiences. Larry loves to write about all topics, from fashion editorials to tax advice. On his days off, you can find him at a basketball court or gym working up a sweat.
