Below are my preferred web hosts for WordPress CMS sites.
Hosting for small to medium database-driven sites:
- SiteGround
Quality, performance-optimized shared hosting plans for smaller WordPress sites starting at $14.99 – $39.99/month. Managed and Cloud hosting options available for larger clients. My all-time favorite web host. Provides 24×7 support via chat and phone. Modern server infrastructure running PHP 7.4 on HTTP/2 performance-optimized platform. Free open source Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates included with every plan. I’ve been managing client sites on SiteGround since 2015. Enough said. - A2 Hosting
Reasonably fast shared hosting plans starting at $10.99/month. VPS and Dedicated Hosting options available for larger clients. - BlueHost
Shared WordPress-approved web hosting plans starting at $9.99/month.
Hosting for larger CMS sites:
- WPEngine
Superior WordPress-only managed hosting for larger, high traffic websites starting at $25/month. - Pantheon
Fast and reliable hosting for enterprise-level clients starting at $50/month.
5 Web Host Features to Look For
- Security
Your web host is your first line of defense to protect a database-driven CMS, like WordPress. Look for features like brute force protection, IP blocking, open source (free) Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates, quarantine protocols, and servers running the most recent version of PHP. - Performance
Despite having a reputation as a commodity service – not all web hosts perform the same. Reputable hosts provide modern server architecture, caching, CDN options, HTTP/2 enabled servers, at least 256 Mb of PHP memory for WordPress, and the latest version of PHP. Avoid online web hosting ‘review’ sites, which are often just paid to hype high-paying hosting affiliates. Instead, look to data-driven web hosting comparisons like these by codeinwp and WP Site Care - Support
I prefer only hosts who provide support via chat, email and phone. 24×7. Without delays. - Administration
Larger-scale providers – like WPEngine, Pantheon and many others – develop proprietary hosting interfaces. While these platforms can provide robust tools, they are often overkill for smaller organizations. Instead, I typically recommend web hosts with a more standardized CPanel (Linux only) or Plesk (Linux and Windows) because you’ll have a much better chance of finding someone familiar with those server control panels. - Transparent Domain Registration
If you insist on paying your annual domain registration and monthly hosting fees to the same company – confirm that your hosting and registration are not tied together. That way, you can choose to move your hosting in the future easily.
My hosting recommendations come from over 15 years of experience working with dozens of web hosting companies.