Types of Web Hosting Services Explained by Housing
Shared Hosting
Like living in an apartment. You share the resources of the entire server.
Who is this for?
Best for beginners and low traffic websites.
Compare Shared Hosting Services
Virtual Private Server (VPS) Hosting
Like owning a condo. You do not share any resources with other tenants and they cannot use yours.
Who is this for?
Small business owners that need to know they always have resources available for incoming traffic. Also when your website demands more resources as a result of more traffic. Online Stores.
Dedicated Hosting
Like living in a house. You own the entire server and it’s more expensive. But if you have a large amount of traffic you need it.
Who is this for?
When your website demands more resources as a result of more traffic. A need for privacy for business owners.
Compare Dedicated Hosting Services
Cloud Hosting
Your website is hosted on many servers in different locations. A redundancy to ensure your website is always accessible.
Who is this for?
When you’re expecting a spike in traffic or launching a new product. And your website crashing is not part of the plan.
Amazon Cloud
Content Delivery Network (CDN)
Your website files are hosted on many servers around the world. Your website content will be delivered from the server that is closest to the person accessing it.
Who is this for?
Websites that want their content delivered as fast as possible. No matter where it is being viewed from around the world.
Try Cloudflare
Green Hosting
Hosting companies that use renewable energy (or eco-friendly infrastructure) to power their datacenters. The price is usually the same as traditional web hosting.
Who is this for?
People that care about the future of the planet that we live on.
Managed Hosting
Hosting companies will “manage” more services such as automated backups, malware scanning and removal, status monitoring, security sweeps, software updates. Most types of hosting are managed unless otherwise noted.
Unmanaged Hosting
The host will maintain the hardware but you get no other support. It’s much cheaper because there are no other services offered. You will have to install software patches and you’re responsible for installing everything (Apache, PHP, etc) but the OS. Many hosts won’t even provide a control panel.
Key Takeaway: If you do not know how to manage a server yourself (I don’t) then consider this. Hosting is a direct expense to your business. You will be able to write-off all of it on your taxes anyways.
Well, that covers the bulk of it. If you have any questions feel free to drop a comment or reach out.
