I’ve used WordPress since 2009 and have tried my fair share of WordPress hosting providers. From Bluehost to SiteGround to WP Engine, I’ve migrated my websites in search of the best one.
The best WordPress hosting providers are built to ensure your WordPress site’s health, speed, reliability, and security are up to par. The only problem? With all the options out there, choosing the best solution is anything but simple.
I’m here to simplify things for you. Based on my personal experience, research, and an interview with a WordPress expert, I've narrowed it down to the nine best WordPress hosting providers.
Table of Contents
- What is “WordPress hosting” anyway?
- What to Look for in the Best WordPress Hosting Provider
- What is the best hosting for WordPress?
- Find the best hosting for your WordPress site.
What is “WordPress hosting” anyway?
Pop onto the sales pages of any web host these days, and you’re likely to see “WordPress hosting” in big letters somewhere. This led me to wonder: Is it just a sales gimmick?
“It's definitely not a gimmick,” says Mike Demopoulos, Head of Partners at Codeable, which works with dozens of WordPress hosts.
“There are hosts that have tuned their servers specifically to WordPress. There are different things you can install on the server level that the host can offer that can help with performance or optimization or security.”
To be clear, the WordPress CMS can run on almost any web host out there (“It can even run on Windows servers, although hardly anyone does that,” adds Demopoulos.). You don’t necessarily have to purchase “WordPress hosting.” However, if you use a host that is actually optimized for WordPress, your WordPress site will run better.
So that begs the question: How do you find the best WordPress hosting?
What to Look for in the Best WordPress Hosting Provider
Customer Support
“The first thing I recommend people look at when they're looking for WordPress hosting is think about their support needs,” says Demopolous, “because that is probably one of the largest differentiators in the WordPress hosting market.”
Do you expect 24/7 customer service? Do you want that over the phone, live chat, or a ticketing system? Some hosting providers offer all of the above, but others are more limited. Figure out what your support needs are.
Shared vs. Managed WordPress Hosting
The next thing to consider is what type of hosting you want. There are many buckets, including shared, managed WordPress, cloud, VPS, and dedicated.
“Managed, theoretically, should be the creme de la creme, top-tier hosting option where they make sure that WordPress is up to date, and the plugins are up to date, and they have people on staff that know WordPress and can answer basic questions,” explains Demopoulos, “where shared is more basic, and they'll just make sure the server is running.”
Security
Next, ask yourself what security measures your potential provider offers. The best WordPress hosting solutions offer protection to safeguard your website from bad actors. Managed WordPress plans often will handle automatic updates, malware scanning, and backups.
Other things to consider
Think about how much money your organization has allocated for hosting services. There are providers available for all different prices, so you‘re sure to find something regardless of how much you are willing to spend. Keep in mind that if you are willing to pay upfront for the year, you’ll most likely spend less than you would if you purchased hosting services monthly.
Next, keep in mind what you are prioritizing. Is around-the-clock support your main focus? What about speed or security? Or, would you rather find a provider that gives you the most bang for your buck, such as a hosting provider that offers a free SSL certification and domain name?
Lastly, consider the size of your website and organization. Some hosting providers are better fits for smaller businesses than larger ones. Therefore, you can confirm with potential providers before you commit that they'll be able to handle the number of visitors your site garners per month (if it garners a lot of them).
Note: Many web hosts advertise a promotional price on their landing pages, but the renewal price is much higher. For all prices below, I’ve listed the actual renewal price based on a 12-month term.
What is the best hosting for WordPress?
- WP Engine
- SiteGround
- Hostinger
- Kinsta
- WordPress.com
- Pressable
- Cloudways
- DreamHost
- A2 Hosting
1. WP Engine
When my travel blog started growing rapidly around 2018, WP Engine was the most coveted WordPress hosting among the high-traffic bloggers in my circle. I couldn’t wait to try it myself.
In 2019, I signed up for WP Engine hosting for one of my newer blogs (it had fewer than 20,000 monthly visits) just for the performance boost and bragging rights. Eventually, I migrated that blog to SiteGround simply because WP Engine’s higher cost wasn’t worth it for such a small website.
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One thing to be aware of is WP Engine does not have your standard cPanel like many other web hosts. Instead, they’ve built a custom user panel that might take some getting used to.
WP Engine offers top hosting for WordPress because it’s optimized for this CMS and handles updates automatically. So, you’ll save time and energy if you choose this provider. WP Engine boasts server upgrades, advanced protection to keep your website secure, performance optimization measures, and troubleshooting.
The WP Engine’s managed WordPress hosting ensures you can contact technical experts who can help you optimize and maintain your WordPress site. Plans start at $25/month.
The Startup, Professional, Growth, and Scale plans are shared hosting, while the Core and Enterprise plans offer isolated resources. Note that WP Engine's 99.99% uptime SLA applies only to its higher-tier hosting plans that are on isolated, not shared, environments.
What I like:
- Managed WordPress hosting
- 60-day money-back guarantee
- Constant updates and server upgrades
- 24/7 expert support
2. SiteGround
SiteGround is another WordPress hosting provider that I’ve used and loved. Their hosting performance and speed were top-notch, and their support reps were always fast and responsive.
SiteGround’s WordPress hosting plans are an excellent option for businesses just getting started. Between the StartUp ($17.99/month), GrowBig ($29.99/month), and GoGeek ($44.99/month) plans, your site is in good hands, no matter your budget.
What I really loved was how SiteGround took care of technical things for me. A team of experts handled my website migration when I transferred from another host, making it super easy to make the switch. At the time of writing, SiteGround is running a promo that offers free professional migration, but it’s unclear if/when that ends.
This host also offers three levels of caching to guarantee your site is as speedy as possible and, therefore, doesn’t lose visitors due to slow load times.
What I like:
- Managed WordPress hosting
- Affordable plans
- Three levels of caching
- 24/7 expert support
3. Hostinger
Up next is Hostinger, which WordPress.org recommends. This managed WordPress hosting solution offers a free domain and around-the-clock support.
If you opt for a managed plan, you'll get excellent SSD storage, automatic WordPress updates, one-click WordPress installation, and free website migration.
This provider also has robust safety measures in place, such as a free SSL certificate and protection from DDoS attacks that could harm your reputation. Plus, with Business hosting packages from this provider, you get automatic daily backups.
I was really impressed with Hostinger’s affordability. For a Premium plan, you‘ll pay $9.99/month. For the Business option, you’ll pay $11.99. For Cloud Startup, you'll pay $23.99/mo for cloud hosting, which is a great deal.
What I like:
- Recommended by WordPress.org
- 24/7 support
- Budget-friendly (especially for cloud hosting)
- In-house CDN on some plans
- Free website migration
4. Kinsta
Kinsta is another popular option if you’re seeking the best WordPress hosting provider. Unlike many other hosts, it does not offer shared hosting because it prioritizes optimal performance.
Another reason Kinsta stands out is because of its dashboard which serves as a control center. With this feature, it’s easy to review all your sites, look at a wide range of analytics, and manage your users with all access levels.
Kinsta has several hosting plans suitable for businesses of all sizes, starting at $30/month.
The host offers free migrations, daily backups, strong security, 24/7 human-only customer support, and additional features tailored to WordPress users’ needs. This makes it among the top hosting for WordPress.
Kinsta provides a 99.9% uptime SLA for all its managed WordPress plans as well as a 30-day money-back guarantee.
What I like:
- Free website migration
User-friendly dashboard to manage your sites, analytics, and users - No shared hosting
5. WordPress.com
Ah, yes, WordPress.com. How could we leave it off of this list? It’s the hosted version of WordPress and is also owned by Automattic. WordPress.com is where I started my first blog in 2009 because, with its website builder and templates, it’s so easy to get started.
Pro tip: Website builders are the reason I’ve been able to scale my online business without technical skills. So if you’re willing to explore outside of the WordPress CMS, give Content Hub a try. Like WordPress.com, it’s a site builder, web host, and CMS all in one — and it’s free.
If you choose to build your website with WordPress.com (not WordPress.org — yes, there’s a difference), the software comes with a hosting service you can use. Whether you choose the Personal or Business plan, you'll have the opportunity to use the hosting service it offers instead of having to find a third-party provider yourself, so this is a highly convenient option.
Using WordPress.com as your provider is ideal if you want to be completely hands-off when it comes to your hosting. That's because WordPress takes care of all aspects of the process for you. And because WordPress.com hosting is highly flexible, it allows you to move to a third-party provider at any point in time if you so choose.
WordPress.com plans include a limited free plan, Personal ($4/month), Premium ($8/month), Business ($20/month), and eCommerce ($45/month).
What I like:
- Website builder, host, and WordPress CMS all in one
- Offers a free plan (with WordPress branding)
- Allows you to move to a third-party hosting provider at any time
6. Bluehost
Bluehost is one of the most popular hosts for WordPress websites. It’s also one of only four web hosts officially recommended by WordPress—and it’s the longest-running recommendation.
Another huge advantage Bluehost has over others in this list (besides Pressable) is that in March 2024, it launched Bluehost Cloud — making it one of the only web hosts built on top of WP Cloud, the cloud platform built by WordPress’ parent company, Automattic.
“It’s really fast, really responsive. It's completely different than their traditional legacy products,” explains Demopoulos. “So, I would definitely recommend [Bluehost Cloud] over any of their other products for sure.”
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- Fully managed hosting
- No setup required
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Bluehost offers over 99.9% uptime for its VPS and dedicated hosting — but for Bluehost Cloud, it boasts 100% uptime. If you’re unsure if Bluehost is a good option for you, don’t sweat it — they have a 30-day money-back guarantee.
With Bluehost, the shared hosting and WordPress hosting plans are the same thing (they both use shared servers). They start at $2.95/month. For the managed Bluehost Cloud, plans start at $79.99/month.
What I like:
- Of the four web hosts that WordPress officially recommends, Bluehost has been recommended for the longest time.
- One of the only web hosts built atop WP Cloud (infrastructure built by WordPress parent company Automattic)
- 100% network uptime on its Bluehost Cloud offering
7. Pressable
Pressable is a managed hosting provider owned by Automattic, the company behind the WordPress CMS. With this host, you’ll work with a company that cares more about WordPress than anyone. As mentioned above, Pressable is built on WP Cloud infrastructure.
Pressable has nine different plans ranging from $25/month to $675/month and beyond. Of course, how much you’ll pay depends on your visits, number of sites included, and site migrations.
No matter which Pressable plan you choose, you‘ll have access to free migrations, so there’s no hassle or worry about moving onto the provider. Additionally, each plan comes with a Content Delivery Network (CDN) — geographically distributed servers — which makes your site speedy and reliable.
What I like:
- Managed hosting from the creators of WordPress
- One of few hosts built on Automattic’s WP Cloud
- 100% uptime guarantee
- Free website migrations
8. Cloudways
Cloudways offers managed cloud hosting that gives your website a speed and performance boost. Because it comes with premium hosting features like Cloudflare's enterprise CDN, advanced cache, and NVMe-based servers, it’s an excellent option.
Something unique about Cloudways is it lets you choose from five different leading cloud providers, including AWS and Google Cloud.
Cloudways’ WordPress hosting plans range from $11/month for 1 GB of RAM and one core all the way to over $3,500/mo for 384 GB of RAM and 96 cores. That just goes to show you how much you could scale with this host.
And all of Cloudways’ plans come with free SSL, SSH, and SFTP access, staging environment, CDN, and free website migration.
What I like:
- Powerful cloud hosting
- 3-day free trial (no credit card required)
- Ability to choose your cloud provider
9. ScalaHosting
ScalaHosting is a VPS-oriented hosting provider with a long history in WordPress website management. The company strongly relies on in-house developments, and each user can benefit from SPanel (web hosting control panel), SShield (security monitoring), and WordPress Manager (WP management) at no added cost.
New clients can either enjoy an easy one-click WordPress installation or a free site migration. All plans come with SSL certificates, daily offsite backups, and professional 24/7 support from trained professionals. The VPS options add even more free extras into the mix, such as a dedicated IP, blacklist monitoring, real-time malware protection, and scalable SSD disk space.
As for the pricing, you can opt-in for one of the shared WordPress plans - WP Mini ($2.95/mo), WP Start ($5.95/mo), or WP Advanced ($9.95/mo). Still, for best performance and security, ScalaHosting recommends the virtual server environment, with VPS plans starting from $14.95/mo.
Key takeaways:
- Free migration for new websites
- 24/7 customer service and assistance
- In-house developments for SPanel, SShield, WordPress Manager
10. DreamHost
DreamHost is another one of the four web hosts recommended by WordPress.org itself. It’s ideal for websites seeking simple, relatively cheap site hosting with all essentials included.
DreamHost offers two types of WordPress hosting: shared (starting at $5.99/month) and managed (starting at $19.99/month). DreamHost’s managed WordPress hosting, DreamPress, offers perks that its shared hosting does not have, including pre-installed Jetpack WordPress plugin, backups, WordPress-specialized support, and isolated resources in a cloud server environment.
If you’re just getting started, shared will likely be sufficient, as it includes a free SSL certificate and fast SSD storage. For those looking for a more advanced plan, DreamPress may be a better fit. This is awesome if you have around 100k monthly visits.
What I like:
- Managed WordPress hosting in a cloud server environment
- Daily backups
- Recommended by WordPress.org
11. A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting offers both regular shared and managed WordPress shared hosting for your website. Regular shared hosting is suitable for smaller websites and typically comes at a lower cost in exchange for less reliable performance and less support. Still, it’s tough to beat the low price of $11.99/month.
A2’s managed WordPress hosting offers these perks over shared: Jetpack license, NVMe storage, Turbo servers that are up to 20x faster, and automatic core WordPress updates. Managed hosting starts at $24.99/month.
What I like:
- A2’s focus on speed and WordPress optimization on its managed plans
- 24/7 customer support on multiple channels
Find the best hosting for your WordPress site.
If you’re looking for top hosting for WordPress, the right solution is somewhere in the above list.
I’ve been thrilled with my websites’ performance on more affordable providers, such as SiteGround, as well as on the more pricey ones, such as WP Engine. It really depends on how much traffic your site gets and how much resources you’ll require.
Whether you’re looking for speedy load times, 24/7 support, managed or shared hosting, or daily backups, there is a WordPress hosting provider that will fit your needs.
Editor's note: This post was originally published in November 2018 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.
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- Fully managed hosting
- No setup required
- No storage, traffic, or usage hosting fees
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