Shared Hosting? What Does Shared Hosting Mean – Your Questions Answered

Jonesen TeamIndustry Insights

There are over 1.5 billion websites online right now. The thing that all these websites have in common is a hosting plan. Millions of these websites take advantage of something called shared hosting. But what does shared hosting mean?

Keep reading to learn more below.

What Is Shared Hosting?

Every website needs a host. This is what “stores” your website online. When someone types your domain name into a search engine, like Google, your web host connects their screen to your site.

Shared hosting means multiple websites share the same host. One host can hold thousands of websites at the same time.

Your customers won’t be able to tell the difference. When they search for your website, they still only see your site.

So what does shared hosting do? We take a look at the advantages below.

The Pros and Cons of Shared Hosting

Unfortunately, there are more cons than pros when it comes to shared hosting. Here’s what you need to know.

Pro: It’s Affordable

Because you’re sharing the hosting service with thousands of other websites, shared hosting isn’t very expensive. You can pay as low as $30 a month, which makes it the perfect solution for beginners or small businesses. Depending on what host you use, the costs might even be cheaper.

Con: It’s Slow

Since there are so many people using shared hosting, your website might be on the slow side.

This doesn’t mean it will move at a snail’s pace, but you might have to live with a second or two of lag time. This might not seem terrible, but it’s important to remember that Google penalizes slower sites in search engine results.

Con: Customization Is Limited

If your website needs a lot of customization, shared hosting might not be able to provide that. You’ll have to stick with whatever the hosting plan has. Shared hosting isn’t as capable of growing with your website as a virtual private server is.

Con: You Might Have to Deal with a Lot of Downtime

Because shared hosting plans manage so many websites, you might have to deal with downtime. Anytime you aren’t guaranteed at least 99% uptime, you should walk away.

The problem with downtime is that you lose money now and customers later. If someone visits your website and it’s down, they’re likely not going to wait for it to come back up. Not only will they go somewhere else, but the chances of them coming back to you are slim.

What Should You Get Instead?

Because of these disadvantages, you should do your best to stay away from shared hosting and use a virtual private service (VPS).

With a VPS, your website is the only one on the server, so you don’t have to deal with lag, downtime, or other limitations.

Using a VPS is a little more expensive than a shared hosting plan, but the benefits are well worth the extra cost. It will make your website much easier to manage and customize, and your customers will notice the difference.

What Does Shared Hosting Mean?

So what does shared hosting mean?

Shared hosting means you get an inexpensive plan that comes with a lot of downsides. Because of this, it’s better to invest in a virtual private network for your website instead.

Are you interested in getting VPS? We can help!

Get in touch with us today to find out more about how we can your business.