А decade ago, building a website required advanced technical know-how or the help of a skilled developer. Not to mention how costly the whole experience was.

Today, practically anyone can build their own online project with zero previous experience, and millions of people are already taking advantage.

The reason? Web hosting.

Every website is powered by a web server, and today, renting some resources with a reliable provider is easier than ever. Companies like Scala Hosting are even developing innovative custom tools for easier hosting management and enhanced security to elevate the whole industry to new heights.

The best thing is, thousands of providers are fighting for a place on the hosting market, which inevitably affects the prices in a positive way. A tight budget is no longer a setback because you can find a solution that fits every pocket.

Let’s check out the most popular offerings on the hosting market.

Types of Web Hosting

Depending on the scope of your project, its extent, and the limit of your finances, there are a few distinct types of hosting, which can house your website.

• Free Hosting — Not all online projects need a solid hosting base. Sometimes you just want a server for testing purposes — be it a school project, a small personal page, or a challenge for your site-building skills. You are not paying a dime, but you have to be prepared for low resource allocation, little to no support, and pesky ads. The business model of free hosts is to nudge you to upgrade to a premium plan so you can expect a very limited initial offering. Suitable for complete beginners, students, and small-time freelancers.

• Shared Hosting — The most popular type of web hosting. The provider splits its server to multiple instances, allowing many people to utilize the system resources at the same time. The majority of online websites today utilize shared hosting, including real-estate projects, forums, blogs, community portals, even low-traffic online shops. As many people are using the same hardware, this allows the provider to cut its production costs and offer the service at very affordable prices. You are also getting professional support from the host in case of any technical difficulties, cyber attacks, or service downtimes. Shared services are perfect for individuals and businesses who are looking for easy entry in the hosting world.

• WordPress Hosting — There are generally two types of WordPress services you can find. One is simply shared hosting, which has more than enough to host a project created with the most popular CMS. The other solutions are custom-tailored specifically for WordPress, carrying all kinds of specific server optimization and useful features like a staging area, automatic installations, core and plugin updates, expert support. Any reliable provider is aware of WP’s distinct benefits and risks, so you can expect such hosts to ensure the optimal hardware environment for its smooth running. Still, growing and high-traffic WordPress projects get the most solid hosting base from a VPS platform.

• VPS Hosting — Similar to shared hosting, multiple people operate on the same server if they are on a VPS service. But there are significantly fewer clients on the same machine, and their accounts are caged in an isolated environment. Virtual servers run faster, perform better, and benefit from enterprise-grade security. Scalability is one of the most notable benefits, allowing the customer to add or remove resources like CPU, RAM, and disk space on-the-go. Generally, there are two types of virtual server solutions — managed VPS and unmanaged VPS. Clients of the former take more advantage of the trained host support, while the latter service gives you full server control and customization freedom.

• Dedicated Servers — The last step into the web hosting business. Getting a dedicated machine means the entire server and its operations are now up to you. The provider can help with the initial setup and some basic technical questions. Still, you have full freedom with the rest — what software you install, the security measures you apply, or the allocation of system resources. As you can imagine, you would need a trained server admin or advanced technical competence to get the best of dedicated hosting services. Ideal for big ecommerce stores, large enterprises, and projects that require a very specific configuration.

• Reseller Hosting — This is a specific type of service, where you can become a hosting provider yourself. You are still renting server space and bandwidth from a supplier, but you can then resell the resources to other people at prices you see fit. Hosting resellers are often utilizing white-label services, allowing them to mask any connections to the main provider and establish a brand of their own. Ideal for freelance developers, designers, and webmasters, who have a growing customer base and want to run their own operations.

How to Choose a Reliable Hosting Provider

Finding the right host is no rocket science as long as you’re aware of your needs and keep in mind a few essential factors. All of the below can be tested one way or another, even without any financial investments.

• Performance — Speed and Uptime are the two factors that will very much determine the success or failure of your website. Testing those metrics would be hard without becoming a customer, but luckily, many hosting providers offer a free trial or money back guarantee. Use the time to put up a simple page and do some performance tests with third-party tools like GTMetrix and Pingdom.

• Ease of Use — Ensure you can smoothly navigate around your account and control panel. Try to install a software or put up a page through a site builder. Your hosting environment is vital for managing your online project, so you have to feel comfortable using it.

• Features — A rich feature variety means your hosting partner is looking for the future and considering your website growth. Look at the offerings of each candidate and see what you can get apart from the basics. SSL certificates, CDN, daily backups, one-click installers, and isolated system resources are just some of the benefits you can get with a reliable hosting provider.

• Customer Support — Great hosts breed great support. You have to be able to reach your provider for live assistance at any time. You can easily spot a trained operator by the swift and clear responses, friendly behavior, and on-point reactions. This is especially important in times of unexpected errors and service downtimes. Test your potential hosts with some questions before you sign up and realize they are not reliable enough.

• Price — Many startups and SMBs don’t have a big hosting budget, but there are plenty of solutions that come at extremely affordable prices, especially for first-time users. Make sure to check the conditions for getting the advertised discounts and what prepayments are tied to the deal. Consider any paid extras that you might want to add.

Having all those factors in mind, Scala Hosting has established itself as an all-round hosting provider for both personal and business needs. The company specializes in cloud VPS solutions and combines ultra-fast server performance with unique tools like SPanel (hosting management), SShield (website security), and SWordPressManager (WP operation).

Final Takes

See how easy it is to get yourself online today? You just need a solid hosting base, and thousands of hosting providers are fighting to become your next host. By following a very simple testing process, you can easily determine which ones are best at serving your needs and have everything necessary for your project to flourish.