The honest answer to "which web host is best?" is: the best one for what you're building. A host that's perfect for a busy online store is overkill for a new blog, and the cheapest blog host can't handle a store at checkout time.
So here's our pick for each kind of site. Every host is scored on the same five criteria, and we judge value on the price you'll pay after the first term, not the intro deal.
The short answer
| If you're building… | Our pick | Why | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| A business site that has to be fast | Kinsta | Top speed and support, same price at renewal | From $30/mo |
| A fast site without visit limits | Rocket.net | Enterprise CDN and firewall included, no visit caps | From $25/mo |
| A store or business on a budget | Liquid Web | Managed WordPress with unlimited visits and phone support | From $5/mo |
| A blog with great support | SiteGround | Excellent 24/7 support, but renews at $17.99/mo | From $2.99/mo |
| A new site on the lowest budget | Hostinger | Most features for the money | From $2.49/mo |
| Several sites, or a growing store | Cloudways | Cloud server, unlimited sites, billed hourly | From $14/mo |
| A hobby site that stays cheap | Namecheap | Renews at only about $4.66/mo | From $2.28/mo |
Best overall: Kinsta
Kinsta runs every site on Google Cloud's premium network with Cloudflare in front, and it's consistently one of the fastest hosts in independent tests. Its dashboard is widely rated the best in hosting, migrations are free and unlimited, and malware removal is included. You pay the same price when your plan renews.
Kinsta9.0/10
Businesses, stores and agencies that want top speed and support and are happy to pay for it
The catch: it's expensive for one small site, and entry plans count visits, with overage fees past 35,000 a month.
Best for speed without visit limits: Rocket.net
Rocket.net puts every site behind Cloudflare's Enterprise network and includes a firewall that some rivals charge extra for. It doesn't count visits; limits are on storage and bandwidth instead. Like Kinsta, it doesn't raise prices at renewal.
Rocket.net9.0/10
Site owners who want very fast global load times and no visit counting
Choosing between the premium hosts? Read Kinsta vs WP Engine vs Rocket.net.
Best managed hosting on a budget: Liquid Web
Liquid Web's Spark plans start around $5 a month and include a staging site, daily backups, unlimited visits and 24/7 phone support. That's managed WordPress for close to shared-hosting money. The cheapest plan keeps backups for only seven days.
Liquid Web8.5/10
Small businesses and WooCommerce stores that want managed hosting, unlimited visits and phone support on a budget
Best support for a blog or small business: SiteGround
SiteGround's support is some of the best in shared hosting, and its own caching and security plugins make WordPress fast out of the box. Plan for the renewal, though: the StartUp plan goes from $2.99 to $17.99 a month after year one. See what SiteGround costs after the first year.
SiteGround8.4/10
Bloggers and small businesses who want WordPress looked after and great support
Best value on a tight budget: Hostinger
Hostinger packs hosting for three sites, a free domain for a year, email and a CDN into a very low price, with one of the easiest dashboards for beginners. The headline price needs a 48-month prepay ($119.52 up front), and it renews at $10.99 a month.
Hostinger8.3/10
Beginners and small businesses who want the most features for the least money
Best for growing sites and agencies: Cloudways
Cloudways gives you your own cloud server on DigitalOcean, AWS, Google Cloud and others, managed for you, with as many sites as it can handle. You pay by the hour with no contract. It suits people comfortable with a little more setup.
Cloudways8.3/10
Developers, agencies and growing stores that want cloud power without running servers
Cheapest to keep: Namecheap
Most budget hosts triple or quadruple their price at renewal. Namecheap's Stellar plan goes from about $2.28 to $4.66 a month, so it's the cheapest host to stay on long term. Speed is average, so it's best for hobby sites and side projects.
Namecheap7.3/10
Hobby sites and side projects, especially if your domain is already at Namecheap
How to choose in five minutes
- Decide what you're building. A blog, a business site, a store or client sites. This rules out half the list.
- Estimate your traffic. Under 10,000 visits a month, almost any host works. Above 100,000, look at managed or cloud hosting.
- Compare renewal prices. Our Hosting Renewal Price Index shows how much each host rises.
- Check backups and support. Daily backups and 24/7 support matter more than any feature list.
- Use the money-back window. Move your site, test it for two weeks, and leave if it's slow.
Want the full rankings? See best WordPress hosting, or compare any two hosts side by side.