Another reason I like this option is the high bandwidth allotment. You get an astonishing 10 TB on GreenGeeks’ VPS hosting plans. If you are expecting boatloads or large spikes of traffic, GreenGeeks gives you the bandwidth not to worry.
You can get a VPS set up for a great price, without adding a ton of complexity to your IT maintenance.
As you are gathering a sense of the customer service quality you are likely to get, I encourage you to read online reviews. Take low ratings with a grain of salt, however, because any long-standing, popular host is going to have some one-star reviews among their large number of user reviews.
Many hosts don’t offer Windows hosting. I’ve called out the ones that do in the reviews.
Scala’s fully managed VPS is, understandably, pricier for a similar level of features (four cores, 8 GB RAM, 240 GB SSD) at $86.95 per month when paid annually. However, it allows for a lower monthly cost by committing to longer terms, such as up to a three-year commitment at $76.95 per month.
Another way to think about it is that you get the performance you need for your sites without the loss of customizability.
Once you reach a certain point, shared hosting is not going to be enough to keep your sites fast. Some companies choose managed WordPress hosting, but that can get expensive. Plus you lose a lot of the control over how the server is configured with those plans.
InterServer has some of the best prices in the VPS hosting space.
VPS web hosting occupies something of a middle ground between shared hosting and getting a dedicated server for yourself.
You get a lot of hosting resources for every dollar you spend. It’s not hard to find comparably-priced VPS plans with a fraction of the memory or storage you get with InterServer.
Where do you fall in this spectrum?
If you pay monthly and use coupon code NEIL40, you can get 40% off your first four months. Get started with Liquid Web today.
#5 – Scala Hosting — The Best VPS Hosting for Scaling on the Fly for Free
You have the option of going with a semi-managed plan or a fully-managed plan. The prices you see below are the semi-managed plan:
It’s ready to go out of the box, and perfect for the buyer who wants the performance of VPS without the IT headaches that come with.
Whether you’re a startup looking to get into a cutting-edge field or a mature, enterprise grade operation that has massive demands for data transferring and processing worldwide, you get a great service at a great price from iDrive Compute.
Obviously there’s an acceptable use policy, but you don’t have hard fast limits.
There’s really no way to spend less and get VPS hosting from a reputable provider. The pricing above is for Standard RAM plans.
If you opt for High RAM, the lowest plan becomes $9.99, but you get 2 GB of RAM instead of one. Basically, you double your RAM for any plan and pay a slightly higher price.
Such flexible backup capabilities can easily run $10-20 per month if you purchase them separately (to say nothing of the time it takes). Affordable hosting plans usually cut corners, but HostGator is loaded with cost-saving features:
- Unlimited email
- 2 dedicated IPs
- Unmetered bandwidth
- Softaculous script installer
- Free SSL certificates
- DDoS protection
To make the transition to InMotion easier, the company offers Launch Assist. This is two hours with an IT specialist to help you set everything up right the first time. Avoid costly downtime, frustration, and mistakes down the road.
There are no upsells on the platform. Those don’t bother me a lot, but some people really don’t like being shown more products to buy at every turn while checking out.
But you can’t just pick a vendor with a good reputation. I’ve gotten you to the right dealership. You need to pick the right ride.
Hostinger has six levels with increasing amounts of server firepower. VPS levels 1-4 are shown below:
This is especially true for managed VPS plans, because the OS often comes pre-installed. With unmanaged plans, you just have to make sure the one you want is available for install. There’s usually a pretty wide range of choices, but not always.
The experience of managed hosting is geared towards people that are less familiar with making changes on a server using the command line. With a managed VPS plan, you’ll get a visual control panel that allows you to configure everything with clicks instead of a computer language.
If you are the DIY type, this is more than enough support and assistance to keep your site running smoothly. And when you think about paying $4.99 per month to get started, you can see why GoDaddy is so popular.
For someone who knows their way around a server, GoDaddy VPS is the cheapest option. If you just want to be left to your own devices, this is a great option. Reach out to GoDaddy today and see what kind of a deal you can get.
If you are on the fence about what you need, I suggest going with a managed VPS plan. Better to pay a little more than have your new hosting account compromised because of some basic technical slipup.
Plus you get to keep a relatively low-key maintenance schedule, which is something people really love about shared hosting. There’s more to do with VPS, for sure, but much of the backend legwork is handled by Liquid Web if you want.
For people thinking about VPS for a new project, reach out and talk with the sales team at a host which checks your other boxes. They will be more than happy to help you determine a resource amount that makes sense. And even if you don’t go with them, now you know.
There’s a range of options on here. The managed plans will work well for people who don’t have time to handle the technical stuff. Some of the really affordable plans just give you the server resources and let you build from there.
VPS with Liquid Web is still really affordable, especially when you consider what a dedicated server costs. So you are not breaking the bank to get the increased VPS performance and stability you need.
If you fall in this crowd, I recommend an unmanaged VPS hosting plan. You basically just get the server resources and manage everything yourself. You’ll still have some helpful tools and in some cases a control panel, but for the most part you are entirely responsible for the security and configuration.
It’s not like you don’t get support—far from it. Hostinger has customer service agents available 24/7/365. The company promises short wait times for answers whenever you reach out, even though it’s an unmanaged plan.
To get the lowest price, you’ll have to sign up for a four-year deal. This might be a turn off if you are just looking to experiment, but it’s pretty great to be able to lock in 48 months of VPS hosting for just a single outlay starting as low as $143.52
Go with one of the managed VPS plans, and Liquid Web throws in a free migration. This involves a team of specialists moving all of your content and data over to the new hosting. I think that’s a pretty big deal because it saves you money, time, and the cost of screwing something up.
A lot of companies will get there eventually, but a dedicated server is complete overkill where they are today.
And by finely, I mean finely. Just look at the range of resources available to you on both:
You can leverage iDrive Compute for online gaming, streaming video delivery, running cloud-based applications, big data processing, or even patient monitoring.
I prefer the self-managed VPS plans if you’re up for handling the extra administration, because the savings are massive.
You can also create a snapshot of the VPS at that exact moment whenever you want. This is great if you are about to try a major change on your site. Something goes wrong, just restore your site to the way it was before in a couple clicks. No harm, no foul.
Honestly, that is a normal price for shared hosting, and this is way more powerful.
That said, some web hosts have specific plans geared toward people who need more of a certain resource. GoDaddy has High RAM plans for people who need more memory, for example, and InterServer offers Storage Optimized VPS plans that come with an insane amount of disk space at a low price.
Looking at the different vendors, you’ll see a lot of jargon about different resource types. They do matter, but I will say that most top quality VPS hosts use the best technology available.
But if you are in the market for a DIY hosting plan that gives you total control along with the exact resources you need, GoDaddy VPS plans are a great place to start.
All their VPS plans provide your choice of control panel for easy server management, as well as world-class support from IT experts. Chat, tweet, call, or request support any time of day. You get 99.99% uptime guaranteed, with money coming back to you if Media Temple doesn’t live up to it.
All of the tools you need are included. You get:
- cPanel/WHM
- Ecommerce optimization
- Snapshot backups
- Free SSL certificate
- Malware and hack protection
- Free domain name
- 3 dedicated IPs
There’s more to this decision than simply looking at the nuts and bolts, so let’s move on to other factors that can help you decide between similar offerings.
Total Control vs. Shared Responsibility
They rightfully boast of their 4,000 servers spread across every continent. Their 21 (and counting) U.S. data centers alone make it easy for an American company to, for example, troubleshoot a faulty pallet loader in Spokane, adjust smart thermostats in several storage centers across the Midwest, and collect data from wireless inventory trackers in facilities all along the East Coast.
And VPS is way cheaper than dedicated hosting. $1,000 per month is completely acceptable in that space, usually it’s more.
One thing to keep in mind is that Media Temple includes 24/7 support with all plans. Some unmanaged plans from other hosts really skimp on support, but Media Temple does not.
Part of the reason is that they slice up servers into 16 different packages. You can really hone in on the exact set of resources you need. It’s simple: choose between one and 16 CPU cores that come with an increasing amount of memory, storage, and bandwidth.
The fully managed plans are not quite as flexible as the self-managed options. But there’s a lot less work to be done.
Some people choose VPS hosting because they are excited to control every aspect of the server.
For many people, HostGator is going to be the cheapest way possible to get a managed VPS plan–that means high-power servers with low-stress maintenance for a great price.
This isn’t a concern for those of you looking to get into VPS for edge computing or IoT device wrangling. Most options out there right now are fully-managed, thankfully. The providers are the ones offering their data centers to you, so it’s only right that they should be responsible for maintenance and upkeep.
No Issues Running Your Sites or Apps
And compared to some of the unmanaged plans aimed solely at developers, Hostinger is a lot more welcoming. You’re not expected to know everything, and helpful context is always linked or a click away.
Hostinger describes its plan structure as “semi-managed” VPS hosting. It’s good for starting out because you get a mix of support and freedom at a really low cost.
The future is likely to be dominated by smart devices. Believe me, between personal devices like health monitors and smart watches all the way up to fully autonomous vehicles, factories, and production lines, handling all of that data is going to crush many current tech infrastructures.
Most of the plans I’ve reviewed offer free trial periods. Sign up and test the support staff. This is your relatively risk-free way of getting an actual read on the service quality.
There’s basic server maintenance, patching, and updates that need to happen. Otherwise your VPS may get hacked and wind up powering some crypto-mining scheme on the other side of the world. And that’s a benign example of what could happen if your site is compromised due to a server management oversight.
Hostinger has some of the most inexpensive VPS plans and an approachable interface that makes it perfect for new users.
VPS stands for virtual private server. It means you get a private slice of server resources–no more sharing them with other websites–and the ability to customize the server, which you can’t do with shared hosting.
As such, it’s the ideal choice for folks looking to make their first hosting upgrade from what they started out with (and have outgrown).
Getting the domain name free for the first year is another $10-15 saved.If you are thinking about VPS hosting for a new site or app, you should definitely consider Bluehost.
#3 – HostGator — The Lowest Cost for Managed VPS Hosting
You can definitely get a cheaper VPS if you are a DIY type who doesn’t want cPanel taking away from their VPS resources. But for your typical user that just wants a simple interface to manage their VPS, Bluehost is a bargain.
The Standard plan is on the low-end of pricing, especially when you consider that cPanel is included for free. This is normally going to cost you $10-15 per month extra.
The value is really there. As I’ve said, you get very high resource limits at a low price.
CentOS is the default operating system, so there is a little less flexibility than some of the other web hosts on my list. That said, for most people, this is going to be fine.
Get in touch with InterServer today to secure a great price on a VPS hosting plan that meets your exact needs.
#11 – iDrive Compute — The Best for Supporting Networks of Smart Devices
One of the reasons I like InMotion so much for WordPress VPS is the security. WordPress is the most popular content management system in the world, and a favorite target of hackers. InMotion gives you a free SSL certificate, as well as protection from malware, hacks, and DDoS attacks.
InMotion is a phenomenal hosting company that’s beloved by power users and first timers.
The starting price for a single CPU core is $6 per month, where you’ll receive 2 GB memory, 30 GB storage, and 2 TB bandwidth.
Use the buyer’s guide and reviews to work your way to a sensible decision. You’re looking for something that gives you a comfortable level of control and more server resources than you think you’ll need.
I would strongly recommend customer service that provides free migrations or data transfers, like Liquid Web or HostGator. Having them help you set everything up right will be quicker and easier, there’s just nothing else to be said.
InterServer is extremely reliable. They offer a 99.99% uptime guarantee. The company actually uses an artificial intelligence system to scan their network for potential performance issues. Instead of your site taking a hit, the AI detects and solves the problem far faster than any human response.
VPS hosting is the most powerful game in town outside of having your own dedicated servers. Chances are, you’re looking for VPS because you know (or at least hope) that your site is going to need a lot of CPU cores, RAM, and/or storage to give visitors a good experience.
Just pick the level of support that matches your technical confidence and time constraints.
In fact, the only reason I can’t say this is the cheapest managed VPS plan for everyone is that you have to use cPanel for server management. If you use something else, HostGator can’t provide the full-service management that makes this option so attractive.
Not every web host has such a stark pricing difference, but it’s usually significant. And it makes sense. With self-managed plans, you are on the hook for a lot more IT legwork. If that’s not a drama, then don’t pay for it.
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