What are some of the hallmark qualities the best web hosting for small business websites will have? We’re glad you asked — and you’ll be thrilled to learn we have an answer to that question and more. Regardless of the size of your small business’s budget, the answer is that there’s a viable website hosting solution for you, and we’re here to help you find it.
In this post, we’ll review some features you should look for to ensure you have the best web hosting for small business websites. Then, we’ll answer your burning question: “What is the best web hosting site for small business owners to use?”
Free Web Hosting with HubSpot
Host your website on a fully managed and optimized infrastructure that scales with your business.
- Fully managed hosting
- No setup required
- No storage, traffic, or usage hosting fees
- Keep your website secure
The Best Web Hosting for Small Business Sites: Key Features to Look For
So, you’re looking for the best web hosting for small business websites. It’s overwhelming, isn’t it? With so many hosting providers, it takes significant effort to determine the best option for your small business.
We’ve identified some key features your hosting provider should offer. Here are some can’t-miss features to keep a lookout for.
Security
When choosing the best web hosting provider for small business websites, it’s crucial that you take security seriously. For small businesses in particular, having a security breach can lead your credibility to take a major hit. It’s especially important that you prioritize security if you have a WordPress website, as WordPress is notorious for being vulnerable to security issues.
Security is also priority number one if you have an ecommerce website and your site collects private information from users such as credit card numbers and other personal information consumers wouldn’t want leaking.
Uptime
We can’t emphasize enough how crucial it is to prioritize uptime when selecting your hosting provider for your small business’s website. Who cares if you have the most engaging, visually compelling site if your visitors are greeted with an error every time they attempt to access it?
As the name implies, the term ‘uptime’ refers to the amount of time that your website is available online and operational for users attempting to access it. Most of the time, hosting providers have a service level agreement, which includes a guaranteed uptime. This means that your website will remain online for that particular amount of time, or if there’s downtime, they’ll compensate you accordingly. As you probably guessed, the higher the uptime, the better. Your goal is 100% uptime — but if your hosting provider has an uptime of five or more nines (99.999%), that’s considered impressive.
Load Time
People expect your website to be fast — and if it’s not, they will leave your small business’s website and visit your competitor’s site. Check out these website load time statistics to better understand how necessary it is to have a fast-loading site.
Another reason a slow-loading website is not optimal is that it can tank your small business’s search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. Search engines prioritize content that loads quickly, so having a slow-loading website can undermine any SEO strategies you may have implemented.
Price
Last but not least, you need to consider the price when picking a website hosting provider. It doesn’t matter how big or small your budget is — you deserve to have reliable, secure website hosting. The good news? Website hosting is available in all price ranges, so you’re sure to find the one.
Speaking of which…let’s dive into the best web hosting for small business websites.
What is the best web hosting site for small business owners to use?
1. HubSpot Web Hosting
Best for: Website owners on a budget who want reliable, secure hosting — and would like to build and host their website on the same platform
With HubSpot, you get a fully managed hosting experience. The best part is that the infrastructure is designed to scale with your business. HubSpot’s hosting features no setup required, and no secret hosting fees based on the amount of traffic you earn, storage, or usage. Another huge perk is that you don’t need to integrate third-party hosting tools to get your website live on the web — you can build your site with Content Hub (which is also available for free)and also have your site hosted in the same place.
HubSpot hosting also offers 24/7 security to monitor threats, SSL, and a dedicated security team determined to resolve any issues promptly. It also has a 99.95% uptime.
Free Web Hosting with HubSpot
Host your website on a fully managed and optimized infrastructure that scales with your business.
- Fully managed hosting
- No setup required
- No storage, traffic, or usage hosting fees
- Keep your website secure
2. SiteGround
Best for: WordPress websites, small businesses just getting started
SiteGround is an excellent hosting option if you’re building your small business website with WordPress and need a reliable provider. (Psst: You can also use SiteGround for non-WordPress websites, but it stands out to us for that use.) It has many of the same features as WP Engine, another fan favorite, but is less expensive, making it an appealing choice for small business owners just starting out.
SiteGround offers three different tiers for WordPress and traditional hosting: StartUp ($17.99/month), GrowBig ($29.99/month), or GoGeek ($44.99/month). StartUp is optimal for small businesses because it offers hosting for one site, 10 GB of web space, unmetered traffic, and supports ~10,000 visits monthly. If you need more than that, you can simply opt up a plan. We also love that the most basic option (StartUp) offers daily backup and free SSL for your site’s security.
3. Blue Host
Best for: Those who want hosting options
Blue Host offers three types of hosting: Shared, Dedicated, and VPS. Shared is the least expensive option, Dedicated is a solid middle ground, and VPS is for more advanced websites with a lot of traffic. Chances are your small business will be just fine with Shared or Dedicated, but you can opt up to VPS as you scale, which is appealing.
Blue Host’s most popular option is Shared, starting at $4.95/month. Dedicated hosting costs $29.99 per month, and VPS costs $89.98. Blue Host is unique because it offers you 24/7 support, so if you’re ever having issues, you can rest assured you’ll get the help you need in a reasonable amount of time.
Like SiteGround, Blue Host also supports WordPress websites, but you don’t need one to use the platform.
4. Hostinger
Best for: Those with pre-existing websites looking for site migration
If you need to migrate your pre-existing small business website from one provider to another, Hostinger could be a good fit for you. Using Hostinger, you’ll get a free domain, website migration, and around-the-clock customer support. There are three levels of website hosting so regardless of where your business is at, you can find a solution that suits your needs and budget.
Let’s go through the different levels of the website: Web Hosting for small or medium sites, VPS hosting, and cloud hosting for larger-scale projects. Here’s the breakdown for how much hosting costs: Premium is $11.99/month, Business $13.99/month, and Cloud Startup is $24.99/month. Even when you get the most basic plan, you’ll get weekly backups, an email account included (which will make your website appear more credible), unlimited free SSL, and automatic site migration.
5. GoDaddy
Best for: Those looking for reasonably priced hosting
GoDaddy offers web hosting with a 99.9% uptime guarantee, optimized servers to make your website 40% faster, and a free SSL certificate for your website to boost your security. There are four different options for hosting, so you can pick the one that works the best for your budget and website needs.
GoDaddy’s plans are as follows: Economy for $5.99/month, Deluxe for $7.99/month, Ultimate for $12.99/month, or Maximum for $17.99/month.
Even with the most basic version, you get unmetered bandwidth and daily backups. When you start with the most basic plan, you also get a free domain for a year and a free SSL certificate, two additional perks.
6. DreamHost
Best for: Small business owners that want hosting options
Next up is DreamHost. This hosting provider can help you host your WordPress website or a site through a different platform. If you’re looking for a WordPress site hosted through DreamHost, expect to pay $2.59/month for Basic, $16.95/month for DreamPress, a more advanced option, and WooCommerce hosting for $16.95/month. Or, if you’re looking for traditional hosting, you can opt for Shared Website Hosting for $2.59/month, VPS for $10/month, Managed WordPress for $16.95/month, Dedicated for $149/month, and Cloud for $4.50/month. As you can tell, there are plenty of hosting options available with DreamHost, which is why it’s a popular choice.
With DreamHost, you get 24/7 support, an impressive 100% uptime guarantee, and several security features like multi-factor authentication and free secure hosting with Let’s Encrypt.
7. Squarespace
Best for: Well-established small businesses with a larger budget
Squarespace is another option for small businesses seeking reliable hosting. For starters, Squarespace is an appealing choice because, similar to Content Hub, you can build your website and host it all in one place. However, it’s a more costly choice, and there isn’t a free option, so you’ll need to allocate money for it in your budget.
Regardless of your Squarespace plan, you will not need to source another hosting provider. This is because all plans come with fully managed cloud hosting. Pricing starts at $23/month for Personal, $33/month for Business, $36/month for Commerce Basic, and $65 for Commerce Advanced.
8. HostGator
Best for: Those looking to transfer a pre-existing site to a new hosting provider
Some of HostGator’s key features include plenty of hosting options, free SSL certificates, a free domain for a year, and even a 99.9% uptime guarantee. Shared hosting is $3.75/month, WordPress site-specific hosting is $5.95/month, VPS hosting is $23.95/month, and Dedicated hosting is $89.98. For your small business’s website, shared or WordPress hosting (if you’re building a WordPress website, that is) should suffice.
Other hallmarks of HostGator include free website transfers, one-click installs, and unmetered bandwidth, so your site won’t experience delays or downtime even if you have a lot of traffic. You can also get support from the HostGator team all day, every day.
9. Wix
Best for: Those looking to build a small business website on a budget
Similar to Squarespace, if you build your website on Wix, you can get hosting directly through the platform. Unlike Squarespace, you can use Wix for free for your small business. However, if you do so, you’ll have Wix branding on your site — which could harm your site’s credibility.
Wix offers four different plans: Light for $16/month, Core for $27/month, Business for $32/month, and Business Elite for $159/month. Wix has a 99.9% uptime, advanced security monitoring options to ensure your site is protected, and an automatic setup when you create your website.
10. A2 Hosting
Best for: Those who want to try a new hosting provider risk-free
A2 hosting offers free site migration, top-notch security, and quick hosting speeds. The team is available to support you around the clock; the hosting provider offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee, and will even give you your money back if you try the platform and are not satisfied.
A2 Hosting’s plans are as follows: Shared for $2.99/month, WordPress for $11.99/month, VPS for $39.99/month, and Dedicated hosting for $155.99/month.
11. InMotion Hosting
Best for: Small business owners that want to try a hosting provider with a money-back guarantee
Inmotion offers hosting for WordPress websites and those built on alternative platforms. There are four different options: Shared ($2.99/month), Reseller hosting ($14.99/month), VPS ($19.99/month), and Dedicated ($89.99/month).
This hosting provider offers 99.99% uptime, security monitoring, a 90-day money-back guarantee, and a robust support team to assist you with any questions.
12. Ionos
Best for: Websites just starting out on a budget
Ionos is one of the most cost-effective small business website hosting providers. It has a 99.9% uptime, boasts a full page load time of 1.23 seconds, and each plan comes with several plugins you can use to enhance your site. There are four different plans to pick from: Essential ($4/month for the first six months), Starters ($6/month for the first six months), Plus ($1/month for the first six months), and Ultimate ($10/month for the first six months). Keep in mind that these are just introductory offers and you’ll pay more at the end of the six months.
Find the best web hosting for small business sites.
Now that you're in the know about the best web hosting for small business websites, you can pick one that works best for you. Happy hosting!