9 Best Cheap Hosting Providers 2022
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Hosting a website doesn’t have to break the bank! We’ve done a ton of research so we can bring you the best cheap web hosting providers out there.
Hostinger and iPage top the list, both offering hosting plans from as little as $1.99. InMotion’s Lite plan, an exclusive plan just for WBE users, is hot on its heels at $2.49.
These prices are discounted first-term prices for three-year contracts*. The price you’re seeing here is the equivalent monthly price, but the total is actually paid upfront.
* Hostinger doesn’t offer three-year contracts, so this is the four-year plan price per month.
In this article, we’ll review the nine cheapest providers, break down their strengths and weaknesses, and compare them all head-to-head. You’ll notice that all of the hosting plans we explore are for shared hosting. This is because shared hosting plans are typically the cheapest.
What Is Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is when your website sits on a server with lots of other sites, and shares resources (like bandwidth and storage space) with them. Sharing server resources makes this the most cost-effective way to host a website.Best Cheap Web Hosting Providers
- Hostinger – Cheapest shared web hosting
- iPage – Simple pricing, unlimited disk space
- InMotion – Best value for money
- DreamHost – Ideal for media-heavy sites
- HostGator – Best for uptime
- Bluehost – Best quality features
- GreenGeeks – Best for green hosting
- A2 Hosting – Best for customer service
- HostPapa – Best for multiple email addresses
Who Are the Best Cheap Hosting Providers?
Cheap Hosting Providers: Head-to-Head Comparison
| Cheapest Plan Price (monthly) | Storage Space | Free Backups / Domains | Uptime | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hostinger | $0.99 | Unspecified | X | 99.90% |
| InMotion | $2.49 | 10GB | ✔ | 99.97% |
| Dreamhost | $2.59 | 50GB | ✔ | 99.95% |
| HostGator | $2.75 | Unlimited | X | 99.99% |
| Bluehost | $2.95 | 50GB | ✔ | 99.98% |
| GreenGeeks | $2.95 | Unlimited | ✔ | 99.98% |
| A2 Hosting | $2.99 | Unlimited | X | 99.95% |
| HostPapa | $3.95 | 100GB | ✔ | 99.97% |
If you’re not clued up on technical hosting terms, don’t worry. Here are some quick explanations of these features:
- Sites Included – How many websites you can host for the price shown.
- Storage Space – How much file space you have for content and media on your website.
- Backups/Domains – The ability to recover a previous version of your website/the URL of your site, e.g. websitebuilderexpert.com
- Uptime – How regularly your website is working online. For example, 99.97% uptime is the equivalent of your site being down for a mere two and a half hours each year.
Below, we’ll take a closer look at these nine options individually. By the end, you’ll have a comprehensive idea of which providers really do offer the best cheap hosting.
Hostinger
Cheapest Shared Web Hosting ($1.99/month)
Hostinger offers one of the cheapest shared hosting plans of all the providers on this list – but it still has some drawbacks.
Hostinger
Cheapest shared web hosting
- Cheap introductory prices
- Good for WordPress users
- Low uptime percentage
Paid Plans: $1.99 - $109.99 / month
Hostinger Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
Hostinger’s shared plans range from $1.99 to $16.99/month, depending on the plan and the time frame. Like most of the providers on this list, Hostinger offers three different shared plans to choose from. Each plan gets cheaper as you commit more time to it. To get the cheapest rate, you’ll need to commit to a four-year plan. Unlike other hosting providers, Hostinger doesn’t offer three-year plans.
Hostinger offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, like most of the hosting platforms on this list. But less common is Hostinger’s student discount, which could save you 10% on your plan if you’re eligible!
Hostinger Shared Hosting Features
Every Hostinger shared plan comes with at least one email account and 100 GB of bandwidth. To get unlimited email accounts and bandwidth, you’ll have to upgrade from the Single Shared plan to either the Premium or Business Shared plans.
On the Premium and Business Shared plans, you also get a free domain and Secure Shell (SSH) access. However, Hostinger lacks a good uptime percentage – at 99.90%, Hostinger’s promise is well behind that of its competitors. And while its existing customer services, from live chat to multilingual options, have been met with rave reviews, Hostinger is behind the times in that it doesn’t currently offer phone support.
Hostinger Gallery
Further Reading
Hostinger Review – Learn more about Hostinger’s overall ranking.
Hostinger Pricing – Get acquainted with the ins and outs of the market’s cheapest host.
Best Managed WordPress Providers – The top platforms for easy WordPress hosting.
iPage
Simple Pricing, Unlimited Disk Space ($1.99/month)
iPage only offers one shared hosting plan, which is suitable for hosting one site. However, it provides scalable bandwidth, which means there’s no set bandwidth limit. If your site does become too big, though, you’ll need to ugrade to a VPS plan at least.
iPage
Simple pricing, unlimited disk space
- Helps short-term growth
- Low introductory prices
- One data center location
Paid Plans: $1.99 / month
iPage Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
iPage only offers one shared hosting plan, which starts at $1.99 per month.
- 12-month contract: $2.99/month ($35.88 total)
- 24-month contract: $2.49 per month ($59.76 total)
- 36-month contract: $1.99 per month ($71.64 total)
If you outgrow iPage’s one shared hosting option, the next step up is a VPS plan. These start at $19.99/month.
iPage Shared Hosting Features
iPage’s shared hosting plan is really great value, offering:
- Unlimited disk space
- Unlimited email accounts
- Unlimited subdomains
- A free domain name
- A free SSL certificate
- Scalable bandwidth
iPage also has great help and support, with 24/7 live chat and phone options, as well as email.
There are just a couple of places where iPage is a bit lacking, one of which is its uptime guarantee. At 99.94%, it’s not the lowest on this list, but it is pretty mediocre – so you’re more likely to experience increased hours of downtime than you would with the majority of other providers. iPage’s percentage translates to about six hours of downtime per year.
iPage Gallery
Further Reading
iPage Review – Dive deeper into what iPage can offer.
InMotion
Best Value for Money ($2.29/month)
InMotion takes the crown as the best website hosting provider for shared hosting, thanks to the awesome features you get with its cheapest Core plan.
InMotion
Best Value for Money
- Great for shared hosting
- Free backups available
- Excellent support team
Paid Plans: $2.29 - $739.99 / month
InMotion Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
InMotion kicks things off with an exclusive plan for WBE users, the $2.29 per month Core plan.
WBE users can also choose from three exclusively discounted shared hosting plans – Launch, Power, and Pro – the most expensive of which retails at $12.99/month when you commit to a three-year term. It’s no wonder our research shows that InMotion provides excellent value for money – it really is as good as it gets for shared web hosting!
However, as with most hosting providers, it’s always a good idea to check the renewal prices once your term is up. For example, InMotion’s most expensive shared plan can renew at as much as $27.99, depending on the length of the term you choose.
InMotion Shared Hosting Features
Firstly, InMotion is one of only a handful of providers that allows you to host multiple websites on its most basic shared hosting plan. Not only that, it pretty much covers all the bases when it comes to features, too.
Free backups, domains, and SSL security are provided as standard, as are 10 email accounts, although upgrading to the Launch plan will give you an unlimited number if 10 doesn’t quite cut it. You’ll also have access to a website builder service and 24/7 dedicated support. There is a limit on monthly visitors (360,000), although it’s highly unlikely you’ll exceed the limit. In short, InMotion is hands down the best shared hosting provider, and well worth the extra buck or two a month if you can stretch.
InMotion Gallery
Further Reading
InMotion Review – Take a closer look at InMotion.
InMotion vs Bluehost – How do they compare?
Best Node.js Hosting Providers – Find out who takes the cake for this niche type of hosting.
DreamHost
Ideal for Media-Heavy Sites ($2.95/month)
DreamHost’s high storage levels and unlimited traffic allowance is the perfect combination for a bigger, media-heavy project on a budget.
DreamHost
Ideal for media-heavy sites
- Quality shared plans
- Free daily backups
- Not good for scalability
Paid Plans: $2.59 - $279 / month
DreamHost Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
DreamHost’s Shared Starter plan starts at just $2.95/month, although you will need to commit to a 12-month term to get that price. This is much less than other providers, though, and if you really want to, you can even opt to pay month-by-month.
For those of you who can’t afford a big payment all in one go, this month-to-month option definitely makes DreamHost more appealing! Bear in mind, however, this isn’t necessarily the most cost-effective option. Your first month will only cost $1.99, but every month thereafter will be $7.99.
You can also upgrade to DreamHost’s Shared Unlimited plan, which costs $3.95 per month for the first three-year term.
DreamHost Shared Hosting Features
DreamHost’s most enticing feature is perhaps that it doesn’t put a limit on how many people can visit your site each month. Although most small websites won’t attract hundreds of thousands of visitors, it’s nice to know you don’t have to worry either way.
The downsides are its modest uptime and lack of 24/7 support. That said, customers can still access DreamHost’s help center and submit support tickets.
Free backups and domains are another two big selling points, while an SSL certificate and a website builder are nice touches. The main difference between DreamHost and its competitors is that DreamHost doesn’t use cPanel, an industry standard dashboard. It does have its own bespoke dashboard, however, which is pretty easy to get to grips with.
DreamHost Gallery
Further Reading
DreamHost Review – Learn all there is to know about this top money-saving provider.
DreamHost Pricing Review – Our in-depth look at DreamHost’s costs.
Best Web Hosting For Students – Check out the budget-friendly, student-oriented hosting providers.
HostGator
Best for Uptime ($2.65/month)
With an overall score of 4.7 out of 5, HostGator is one of our favorite hosting providers. It’s a solid option, providing cheap but reliable hosting, and boasting the highest uptime out of the bunch.
HostGator
Best for uptime
- Very reliable
- Feature-rich shared plans
- Slightly expensive
Paid Plans: $2.75 - $139.99 / month
HostGator Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
HostGator has been snapping at the heels of its competition for years, and is now near the top of the web hosting food chain. Unlike other providers, HostGator’s 12-month plan is its cheapest option, costing $2.65 per month. Usually, the three-year plans are the best value, but HostGator’s 36-month term will actually cost you $3.85 per month.
There are three shared hosting plans in total, each offering up to a 70% discount for long-term sign-ups. HostGator is generally famed for dedicated hosting, but its shared hosting service is still one of the very best on the market.
HostGator Shared Hosting Features
HostGator’s offerings rival just about anyone’s. Having unlimited email accounts is a big plus, as is 24/7 dedicated support. HostGator also comes with a free domain and automatic backups, although these only happen once a week. The real draw, though, is HostGator’s uptime – at 99.99%, it’s the best out there.
You may only be able to host one site on HostGator’s Hatchling plan, but upgrade to the Baby or Business shared hosting packages and the world is your oyster, with unlimited website hosting. There’s also a very generous 45-day money-back guarantee on offer, so you’ve got nothing to lose by giving HostGator a try.
HostGator Gallery
Further Reading
HostGator Review – A closer look at this popular provider.
HostGator Pricing Review – How much does HostGator cost? We’ve analyzed all the factors.
HostGator vs Bluehost – Compare these top providers from all angles, including affordability.
Bluehost
Best Quality Features ($2.95/month)
Bluehost is our top overall host. It comes with a whole host of top-quality features, making it our most recommended builder.
Bluehost
Best quality features
- Very affordable
- Strong features
- Free migration
Paid Plans: $2.95 - $209.99 / month
Bluehost Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
Similar to HostGator, Bluehost offers a 12-month plan as its cheapest option, costing $2.95 per month. Its 36-month plan, on the other hand, costs $4.95 per month.
There are four shared hosting plans to choose from overall, the most expensive of which retails at $18.95 per month on a 36-month term.
Bluehost Shared Hosting Features
Bluehost is better known for WordPress hosting, and there are cheaper hosting providers out there. That said, the company really does put a premium on quality. Aside from its brilliant uptime and offering of free backups/domains, there’s also 24/7 support, plus an SSL security certificate.
Bluehost’s Help and Support Performance
One of Bluehost’s best features is its customer support. We tested it out ourselves, and were very impressed by the speed and quality of the team’s live chat responses.
In fact, due to its quick live chat and extensive knowledge center, Bluehost exceeded our customer service expectations by 9% – beating both HostGator and InMotion!
The main limitation with Bluehost is storage. You’ll be capped at 50 GB on Bluehost’s Basic plan, so it’s not recommended for media-heavy websites. Upgrade to any other shared hosting plan, though, and you’ll get unlimited storage space. There’s even a full web design and marketing service, although you’ll need to book a consultation and get a quote for that.
Bluehost Gallery
Further Reading
Bluehost Review – Find out more about this feature-rich provider.
Bluehost Pricing Review – Find out how to get the most bang for your buck.
Bluehost vs DreamHost – See how these top providers compare.
GreenGeeks
Best for Green Hosting ($2.95/month)
GreenGeeks is not only an affordable hosting provider, but an eco-conscious one, too.
GreenGeeks
Best for green hosting
- Most eco-friendly host
- Good features
- Free migration
Paid Plans: $2.95 - $109.95 / month
GreenGeeks Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
GreenGeeks’ shared hosting prices starts out very competitive, with its cheapest plan costing $2.95 if you select a three-year plan. However, if you want to pay monthly, or you’re renewing your term, this price jumps up to $10.95.
Upgrading to the Pro or Premium plan will boost this cost even further. Both plans offer reasonable introductory prices of $5.95 and $10.95, but once you strip back these initial discounts, you’re left with a price range of between $15.95 – $24.95/month, which is a little steep.
GreenGeeks also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so if you decide it’s not for you, you can get your money back within the month.
GreenGeeks Shared Hosting Features
GreenGeeks offsets its carbon footprint by 300% by investing in eco-friendly energy sources, making it the most eco-friendly hosting provider. It also offers entirely free site migration, with no exceptions, and carries out nightly backups that are included in the cost of your plan.
You can only host one website on the cheapest plan, but upgrading means you can host an unlimited number. You’ll also get 50 email accounts, a free SSL certificate, a free domain, and multi-user access.
GreenGeeks is a good, reliable hosting provider, with features that match those of the providers higher in this ranking.
GreenGeeks Gallery
Further Reading
GreenGeeks Review – We’ve covered this unique provider inside and out.
A2 Hosting
Best for Customer Service ($2.99/month)
While not the cheapest, A2 Hosting holds its own among elite company with a shared hosting score of 4.4. Plus, its customer service sets it apart from the competition.
A2 Hosting
Best for customer service
- Not the cheapest
- Very secure servers
- Free migration
Paid Plans: $2.99 - $349.99 / month
A2 Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
A2 Hosting offers four different shared hosting plans: Startup, Drive, Turbo Boost, and Turbo Max. The cheapest plan, Startup, has an introductory price of $2.99 when you choose a 36-month term. If you opt for a 12-month term, or month-to-month, you’ll pay up to $10.99. The most expensive shared hosting plan, Turbo Max, will cost you anywhere between $12.99 and $25.99.
A2 Shared Hosting Features
One thing you’ll notice immediately with A2 is the level of knowledge its support staff have. Having undertaken lengthy training, A2’s support team is the best we’ve come across. There are free backups (on the Drive plan and up), but there’s no free domain.
A2’s uptime isn’t fantastic, and neither is the Startup plan’s limited 100 GB of storage space, but you do get 25 email accounts and an SSL security certificate with this host. And, if you’re not totally won over by A2’s service after trying it, you can make use of its any time money-back guarantee.
A2 Hosting Gallery
Further Reading
A2 Hosting Review – Everything you need to know about this supportive provider.
Best Hosting for Nonprofits – Which hosts are the most feature-rich and affordable?
HostPapa
Best for Multiple Email Addresses ($3.95/month)
Hostinger is an independently owned hosting company that offers three shared hosting plans. It provides a good set of features for its entry prices, but in the long term, it’s better suited to smaller businesses.
HostPapa
Best for multiple email addresses
- Independent host provider
- Good for small businesses
- Limiting for bigger sites
Paid Plans: $3.95 - $249.99 / month
HostPapa Shared Hosting Pricing Breakdown
HostPapa offers three different shared hosting plans, ranging from $3.95 to $12.95 per month. The Starter plan is the cheapest, costing $3.95 per month, but you’ll need to commit to a 36-month term in order to secure this low price.
HostPapa also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, just in case you change your mind within the first month.
HostPapa Shared Hosting Features
All of HostPapa’s shared hosting plans come with free domain registration, a free SSL certificate, and unmetered bandwidth.
The Business and Business Pro plans both allow you to host unlimited websites, but if you opt for the Starter plan, you’ll be limited to one.
Similarly, the Starter plan is restricted to 100 GB of SSD web space and 100 email addresses, while both of these features are unlimited on the two more expensive plans.
The Starter plan also comes with what HostPapa calls the ‘essential features’. These include free website transfer, a WordPress installer and updates, CloudLinux servers, 99.9% uptime, and a cPanel control panel.
HostPapa Gallery
Further Reading
HostPapa Review – We’ll take a closer look at HostPapa’s overall performance.Further Reading
HostPapa Review – We’ll take a closer look at HostPapa’s overall performance.
What Other Types of Cheap Web Hosting Are There?
In this article, we’ve taken a close look at shared hosting, because it’s the cheapest type available. Sharing a server’s resources with other websites is cost-effective and great for smaller websites, like personal portfolios and blogs.
But if you find that your website is outgrowing a shared server – if you’re starting to upload more content or receive more monthly traffic, for example – then it’s probably time to upgrade to a hosting type with more resources. Fortunately, you don’t have to dive straight off the deep end! There are a few different tiers of web hosting to choose from:
- VPS, or Virtual Private Server, hosting is the next step up from shared hosting. You’ll be given your own “virtual” server within a shared server, with more resources specifically allocated to your website. Prices typically range from $10–$90/month. Learn more with our guide to Cheap VPS Hosting.
- Dedicated hosting is pricier and more powerful than VPS, because it provides an entire web server solely dedicated to your website and its needs. You’ll have more control over your hosting experience this way, but we don’t recommend starting with a dedicated plan unless you’re running a website that needs a lot of power and security, like a large online store. Prices typically range from $79–$520/month. Learn more with our guide to Cheap Dedicated Hosting.
- Cloud hosting is slightly different from the other options. It’s a lot like shared hosting, except your site is stored on multiple servers – which means this is a more flexible option should anything ever go wrong (like if one server were to go down). Because Cloud plans are so flexible, prices typically range all the way from $4–$80/month. Cloud hosting is already a pretty cheap option, and you can learn more about it with our guide to the Best Cloud Hosting.
What about WordPress-specific hosting?
We’re glad you asked! If you’re running a WordPress site, then you have two more options to consider. Shared WordPress hosting is essentially the same as shared hosting, just tailored to WordPress websites in particular. This means you’ll get tools like one-click WordPress installation and automated updates. Cheap WordPress hosting options range from $0.99–$6/month.
Managed WordPress hosting is WordPress-specific hosting for larger sites. It usually comes with higher storage and traffic allowances, plus handy features like staging environments for testing website changes. If you’re stuck between VPS and dedicated hosting, and your site is built on WordPress, then this could be a great option. Prices typically range from $9–$35/month.
Best Cheap Hosting Providers: Summary
There you have it – an in-depth look at our top-rated cheap hosting providers. All of the prices we’ve discussed have been based on shared hosting plans, because, as we mentioned, these are usually the cheapest plans hosts offer. There are others out there who offer hosting at similar rates, but they didn’t stack up to this bunch when put through their paces.
To recap, here’s the cream of the shared hosting crop:
Best Cheap Web Hosting Providers
- Hostinger – Cheapest shared web hosting
- iPage – Simple pricing, unlimited disk space
- InMotion – Best value for money
- DreamHost – Ideal for media-heavy sites
- HostGator – Best for uptime
- Bluehost – Best quality features
- GreenGeeks – Best for green hosting
- A2 Hosting – Best for customer service
- HostPapa – Best for multiple email addresses
While Hostinger is the cheapest provider, and iPage is also a very budget-friendly option, it’s InMotion that offers the best value for money. DreamHost is a cost-effective option for media-heavy websites, or those expecting high traffic.
There’s only one way to know for sure if a provider is best for your site, however, and that’s by trying it out. All nine of these providers offer a minimum 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can always give one a whirl to see what you make of it.
And now it’s over to you! Get out there, and find the right host to help you share your website with the world.
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