Best Web Hosting for Photographers 2022
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Our full photography website hosting comparison
Choosing a web host can feel stressful – after all, hosting is what determines factors like the storage space and speed of your website. That’s why we’ve conducted extensive research into the best photography website hosting providers, paying special attention to factors like storage, backups, and pricing – all of which help determine the success of a photography website.
In this ranking, we discuss how each provider’s shared and VPS plans perform in terms of photography hosting. Many of the providers mentioned here also offer cloud and/or dedicated hosting, which are two different but equally scalable hosting types. We’ve decided to focus on shared and VPS hosting, though, because these types are ideal for most small to midsize photography websites.
Best hosting for photographers
- Bluehost – best all around provider for photography websites.
- HostGator – best for storage space.
- InMotion – best for value for money.
- A2 Hosting – best for those looking to sell online.
- SiteGround – best for reliability.
- DreamHost – best for back ups and recovery.
- Hostinger – best for offering cheap hosting.
- GoDaddy Hosting – best for extra features.
Without further ado, here’s a closer look at each provider.
Bluehost
Best all-around provider for photography websites.
Key Features
Starting Price: $2.95 per month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: 30 days
Uptime: 99.98%
Free backups? Yes
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? Yes
Disk space: 50GB – Unlimited
Bluehost is the best overall photography hosting provider because it delivers on all of the important fronts: Bluehost’s uptime, customer support, and value for money are all excellent. It’s also the number one recommended hosting provider by WordPress, so if your site is (or will be) built on WordPress, Bluehost is as good as it gets. Take a look at how it performed in our research:
Plans and Pricing
Bluehost’s shared plans start at the introductory price of $2.95/month. That’s not the cheapest starting price out there – DreamHost starts at $2.59/month – but those extra 36 cents get you an invaluable amount of features, like:
- Free SSL certificate
- Unmetered bandwidth
- 25 sub domains
If you choose one of Bluehost’s WordPress-specific shared plans, which also start at $2.95/month, then you’ll get:
- Automatic WordPress installation
- Automatic WordPress updates
- WordPress staging environment
A “staging environment” lets you see how changes to your website will look, before you put it live.
Bluehost’s cheapest VPS plan starts at $18.99/month, and provides 30GB SSD storage, 2GB RAM, and 1TB bandwidth – so your site will be well equipped to handle all the traffic that your stunning photos will generate, without sacrificing speed!
Bluehost’s most advanced VPS plan starts at $59.99/month, and comes with 120GB SSD storage, 8GB RAM, and 3TB bandwidth. That’s a lot of power, and we’d recommend starting with a cheaper VPS plan and eventually scaling up to this one as your site grows!
Help and Support
Bluehost scores a perfect 5 out of 5 in our research for help and support, due in large part to its 24/7 phone and live chat support. Having 24/7 help and support is one thing – whether it’s any good is another. When we tested out Bluehost’s live chat ourselves, we found that the support team asked helpful follow-up questions and seemed genuinely invested in the conversation.
Find out more
- Interested in Bluehost? Learn more about this affordable, feature-rich provider from our Bluehost Review
- If you want more detail on Bluehost’s price plans, check out our in-depth Bluehost Pricing Review
HostGator
Best for storage space.
Key Features
Starting Price: $2.75 per month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: 45 days
Uptime: 99.99%
Free backups? No
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? No
Disk space: Unlimited
While not as well-rounded as Bluehost, HostGator excels in a lot of areas. HostGator’s storage capacities in particular earn it a strong second place for photography website hosting. As the owner or soon-to-be owner of a photography website, you’ll want a provider that can handle a large volume of high-quality images. HostGator is up to the task, and you can see how it fares in other areas below:
Plans and Pricing
HostGator’s shared plans start at $2.75/month, and come with:
- Free SSL certificate
- Unmetered storage and bandwidth
- Free WordPress website transfer
HostGator’s free transfer feature is a great option if you already have a WordPress site, and are looking to switch hosting providers. Unmetered storage means you won’t be charged according to the amount of disk space you use, so any reasonably-sized photography website will have more than enough room to grow.
HostGator’s VPS hosting plans range from $29.95-49.95/month, and the most basic VPS plan offers 2GB RAM, 120GB disk space, and 1.5TB bandwidth.
[highlight box] Did you know? For web hosting purposes, disk space and storage refer to the same thing: the amount of space on a server that’s allocated to your site!
HostGator’s VPS plans also offer full root access, which gives you administrator-level control over your server. HostGator also uses several bandwidth providers to ensure maximum server reliability.
Help and Support
HostGator offers 24/7 live chat and phone support, but we were most impressed by its extensive Knowledge Base.
HostGator’s searchable Knowledge Base gives you instant access to tons of helpful information, on every topic from website security to Windows hosting.
Find out more
- Find a full breakdown of HostGator’s features and services in our HostGator Review
- If you want to know more about your pricing options, check out our in-depth HostGator Pricing Review
InMotion
Best value for money.
Key Features
Starting Price: $2.49 per month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: 90 days
Uptime: 99.97%
Free backups? Yes
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? Yes
Disk space: Unlimited
InMotion’s shared and hosting prices are competitively low, and it still manages to score a perfect 5/5 for features, so you won’t be sacrificing any quality here! Its 90-day money-back guarantee is also a lot longer than the industry standard of one month. Check out our quick summary of InMotion below:
Plans and Pricing
InMotion’s shared plans start at $2.49/month, and come with unlimited disk space and bandwidth, unlimited email, and a free SSL certificate. That’s a lot of value packed into $2.49!
The next price plans starts at just $4.99/month,which comes with two websites, as opposed to the standard singular site you get with most providers’ basic plans.
Most people think of VPS hosting as an expensive next step growing their website. You’re right to assume that VPS hosting is more expensive than shared, but with InMotion’s VPS plans, you can rest assured that the extra money is worth it.
InMotion’s VPS plans range from $22.59-54.99/month, and the most basic plan includes 75GBstorage, 4TB bandwidth, and 4GB RAM. For your money, you also get root access and free site migrations.
Help and Support
Like Bluehost and HostGator, InMotion offers 24/7 phone and live chat support, so you won’t have to worry about being left in the dark if your site ever has an issue.
In addition, InMotion’s Support Center provides tons of helpful articles, all written by InMotion employees, so you can access in-depth information on your own terms.
Find out more
- Weigh up this provider’s strengths and weaknesses with our InMotion Hosting Review
- Check out the 41 best free photography website templates
A2 Hosting
Best for those looking to sell online.
Key Features
Starting Price: $3.92 per month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: anytime
Uptime: 99.95%
Free backups? Yes – on certain plans
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? No
Disk space: Unlimited
A2 Hosting’s robust security measures make it the perfect option if you’re looking to sell your photos online, because customers will feel safe sharing their payment information on your site. In addition to the standard free SSL certificate, A2 also has an in-house Perpetual Security initiative, which includes free HackScan protection, server hardening, and and reinforced Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack protection.
You can see how A2 Hosting performs in other areas below:
Plans and Pricing
A2 Hosting offers three shared hosting plans, which range from $3.92-9.31/month and include:
- Unlimited SSD storage
- Free site migration
- 25 email accounts
Every A2 Hosting plan also comes with an anytime money-back guarantee, so you can try out this provider risk-free.
If you’re looking to sell online, a VPS plan is worth considering for its power and scalability. A2’s managed VPS plans range from $25.00-50.00/month, and the cheapest plan comes with 4GB RAM, 75GB storage, and 2TB transfer.
VPS plans are a lot more powerful than shared server plans, and you can see that reflected in the considerable price jump between shared and VPS plans. You can always start with a shared hosting plan, and know that the supercharged features of a VPS plan are standing by for when your site needs to grow!
Help and Support
The Guru Crew, as A2 Hosting’s customer support team like to be called, are available 24/7 via phone and live chat. A2 also offers a searchable knowledge base and email tickets, so you’ll have plenty of options for help and support.
Find out more
If you’re wondering about A2’s pros and cons, learn more with our A2 Hosting Review
SiteGround
Best for reliability.
Key Features
Starting Price: $6.99 per month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: 30 days
Uptime: 99.98%
Free backups? Yes
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? No
Disk space: 10GB – 30GB
SiteGround is great for photography website hosting because it’s reliable and easy to use. Free, automatic daily backups and automatic WordPress updates are just a few of the many ways in which SiteGround has your back. That being said, this provider isn’t the most scalable out there. If you’re looking to host a large site or need a lot of storage, you’re better off looking elsewhere.
Plans and Pricing
SiteGround’s shared plans range from $6.99-14.99/month, and come with unmetered traffic, free SSL certificates, and free email accounts. SiteGround also offers a 100% renewable energy match on all of its shared plans, so you can feel good about the environmental impact of your web hosting. SiteGround’s most basic shared plan provides 10GB web space and can accommodate about 10,000 monthly visits, while its most advanced shared plan offers 30GB web space and about 100,000 monthly visits.
Uh-oh! This is where SiteGround lacks in scalability. It doesn’t offer VPS hosting, so if you plan on your photography site experiencing a lot of growth, you’ll want to look elsewhere!
Help and Support
SiteGround offers an organized knowledge base, plus dedicated tutorials for different tools like WordPress and Magento. In addition to the knowledge base, you can also contact the SiteGround team via 24/7 phone and live chat support.
Find out more
- Read our SiteGround Review for more information
DreamHost
Best for backups and recovery.
Key Features
Starting Price: $2.59 per month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: 97 days
Uptime: 99.95%
Free backups? Yes
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? Yes
Disk space: 50GB – Unlimited
If you decide to host your site with DreamHost, you can rest assured that your fabulous photos will be in good hands. DreamHost provides free daily backups on all of its plans, so whether you need shared or VPS hosting, your files will be safe. Take a look at the rest of DreamHost’s features below:
Plans and Pricing
DreamHost’s shared plans start at $2.59/month, and include SSD storage, a free SSL certificate, and unlimited traffic. Conveniently, WordPress also comes preinstalled on DreamHost’s shared plans.
DreamHost’s more advanced shared plan, which starts at $4.95/month, also includes unlimited email @ your domain. This feature will benefit slightly larger, more commercial websites, because domain-specific email addresses give your site an extra air of professionalism!
DreamHost’s VPS plans range from $10.00-80.00/month, and the cheapest plan offers:
- 1GB RAM
- 30GB SSD storage
- Unlimited traffic
- Unlimited email @ your domain
With four different VPS plans to choose from, DreamHost offers more flexibility than most providers when it comes to how much RAM and storage you’d like to pay for.
Help and Support
DreamHost is reliable, meaning you’ll probably never need to contact the support team at 3am over an unexpected issue. That being said, this provider’s help and support just can’t compete with the other top providers. While DreamHost’s support team offers callbacks in response to queries, you can’t contact DreamHost directly over the phone, which is a major drawback.
If you don’t mind the lack of 24/7 availability, then the rest of DreamHost’s support features will definitely compensate. Live chat is available from 5:30a.m. to 9:30p.m. PST, although wait times can be long at peak hours. The knowledge base offers a world of information at your fingertips. You can also submit email support tickets at any time.
Find out more
- Want to learn more about DreamHost before you make a decision? Check out our DreamHost Review for more information
- You can also read our in-depth DreamHost Pricing Review for a breakdown of DreamHost’s affordability
Hostinger
Best for offering cheap hosting.
Key Features
Starting Price: $0.99/month
Money-back Guarantee? Yes: 30 days
Uptime: 99.90%
Free backups? Yes: weekly
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? No
Disk space: 10GB – 160GB
You may have noticed that Hostinger’s shared plans start at the unusually low introductory price of $0.99/month, and it’s no joke! There’s a lot to like about this cheap hosting provider, but keep in mind that you won’t get the same volume of features as you would with other, more expensive providers. Take a look at our snapshot of Hostinger below:
Plans and Pricing
Yes, it’s true: Hostinger’s shared plans start at $0.99/month on the Single Shared Hosting plan. For this price, you get:
- Limited bandwidth (100GB)
- Free SSL certificate
- One email
These limited features could be worth the price for a brand-new site, but at $2.89/month, the second-cheapest Premium Shared Hosting plan will probably give you more bang for your buck with:
- Unlimited bandwidth
- Free SSL certificate
- Unlimited email accounts
- Weekly backups
Hostinger offers six different VPS plans, which are categorized by the amount of Central Processing Unit (CPU) power given to the server. Plans vary in price from $3.95-29.95/month, and all of the standard features also increase with the prices. Below are the ranges for each VPS feature:
- 1-8GB memory
- 20-160GB storage
- 1000-8000GB bandwidth
For the purposes of photography website hosting, you probably won’t need the volume of resources that Hostinger’s pricier VPS plans offer. Instead, its two cheapest VPS plans – 1 CPU at $3.95/month and 2 CPU at $8.95/month – are well worth considering!
Help and Support
Hostinger offers 24/7 live chat, a knowledge base, email support, and submittable tickets.
Hostinger also provides a library of tutorials on tons of topics, from purchasing a domain name to starting a blog. The one weakness of Hostinger’s customer service is that there is no phone support. Hostinger plans to roll out phone support in 2020, but as of now, its 24/7 live chat is the next best thing.
Find out more
- Curious about Hostinger? Learn more about this European provider with our Hostinger Review
GoDaddy Hosting
Best for extra features.
Key Features
Starting Price: $5.99 per month
Money-back Guarantee? No
Uptime: 99.97%
Free backups? Yes
One-click WordPress install? Yes
Free domain? Yes
Disk space: 100GB – Unlimited
GoDaddy Hosting is a little more expensive than its top competitors, but those few extra bucks get you some fantastic hosting features. Even its most basic shared plan comes better-equipped than those of its competitors.
Plans and Pricing
GoDaddy Hosting’s cheapest shared plan starts at $5.99/month, and includes:
- 100GB storage
- Unmetered bandwidth
- Free domain
- Free Microsoft Office 365 email for 1 year
When you upgrade to the second-cheapest shared plan, at $7.99/month, those features expand to include:
- Unlimited websites
- Unlimited storage
- Unlimited subdomains
…Sounds like unlimited potential to us!
GoDaddy Hosting’s VPS plans are even more feature-rich than its shared plans. They range in price from $4.99-69.99/month, with features increasing accordingly. The cheapest plan includes 1GB RAM and 20GB SSD storage, while the priciest plan offers 16GB RAM and 400GB SSD storage.
Help and Support
GoDaddy Hosting’s knowledge center and 24/7 phone support are great resources, and its live chat function is available Monday-Friday from 5am-6pm MST.
If you have a problem when live chat is unavailable, you could always call phone support. But don’t write off the benefits of the searchable knowledge base, either! Chances are, it can help you find a detailed answer to most problems with just a few clicks.
Find out more
- Our comprehensive GoDaddy Hosting Review will tell you everything you need to know about this provider
- If you want more info on cost, we’ve broken it down in our GoDaddy Hosting Pricing Review
Best Photographer Website Hosting: Summary
With the overviews in this ranking, you’ll be able to make an informed decision about the best web hosting provider for your photography site. To recap, these are the top providers in order:
Best Hosting for Photographers
- Bluehost – best all around provider for photography websites, from $2.95/month.
- HostGator – best for storage space, from $2.75/month.
- InMotion – best for value for money, from $2.95/month.
- A2 Hosting – best for those looking to sell online, from $3.92/month.
- SiteGround – best for reliability, from $6.99/month.
- DreamHost – best for back ups and recovery, from $2.59/month.
- Hostinger – best for offering cheap hosting, from $0.99/month.
- GoDaddy Hosting – best for extra features, from $5.99/month.
It’s best to choose based on the factors you value most. If you want the most bang for your buck, InMotion’s low prices and robust features will get the job done. If you want maximum storage for your high-quality photos, then HostGator is sure to impress.
Can’t decide what you value most? Bluehost is the all-around, can’t-go-wrong photography hosting solution. Its unmetered bandwidth, great customer support, and affordable pricing are just a few of the factors that push it to the top of our list.
Best Photographer Website Hosting: FAQs
Choosing a powerful hosting provider matters for any site, because your hosting determines your website’s uptime, load speed, and other factors that contribute to a positive user experience. But good hosting is important for photography sites in particular, because loading high-quality, large-sized photos as quickly and efficiently as possible is vital!
Storage and bandwidth are particularly important for photography websites, and most providers offer similar amounts of these resources on their shared plans. After that, it really does come down to what you personally care about the most, whether that be saving money or having a great uptime percentage.
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