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Linux is a well-known and widely-supported operating system sought-after by shared hosting customers (We've reviewed the best Linux VPS services too —... (read more)
Advertiser Disclosure
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Linux Hosting Plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | Unlimited | FREE (1 year) | www.ipage.com/linux |
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Linux Hosting Plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | Unlimited | FREE (1 year) | www.bluehost.com/linux |
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Linux Hosting Plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 10 GB - 30 GB | New or Transfer | www.siteground.com/linux |
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Linux Hosting Plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 days | Unlimited | FREE (1 year) | www.inmotionhosting.com/linux |
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Linux Hosting Plans |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 100 GB - Unlimited | FREE for life! | www.hostpapa.com/linux |
Our Linux web hosting reviews reveal the top plans in this market tout Linux operating systems, compatible software, and easy installations for that software, as well as the scripting languages Linux hosting customers prefer. To help you make a decision quickly, our experts pooled our research on the best Linux hosting providers and their plans and now present the following summary table. Remember, these are the shared Linux server hosting options, but we've reviewed the top VPS plans for Linux, too.
| Rank | Web Host | Price | Storage | Expert Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | iPage | $1.99 | Unlimited | ★★★★★ 4.9 |
| 2 | Bluehost | $2.95 | Unlimited | ★★★★★ 4.9 |
| 3 | SiteGround | $3.95 | 10 GB - 30 GB | ★★★★★ 4.9 |
| 4 | InMotion | $2.95 | Unlimited | ★★★★★ 4.8 |
| 5 | HostPapa | $3.95 | 100 GB - Unlimited | ★★★★★ 4.7 |
If pricing is a primary concern for your hosting needs, we've got you covered. Check out our reviews of the cheapest web hosts, complete with pricing and analysis for their current hosting plans. see all reviews »
Looking for a dedicated server to host your website? Choosing the right host can make all the difference. See what our team discovered when comparing the various dedicated hosting options. see all reviews »
While not a good solution for beginners, virtual private servers offer ideal computing resources and scalability for those who are comfortable managing advanced settings. Check out our reviews of the top VPS options. see all reviews »
If WordPress is your platform of choice, you'll want to read about our experiences installing and maintaining WP with various hosts before deciding on a hosting plan. See which one has our highest recommendation. see all reviews »
Want your own website but don't know where to start? These services enable you to build your own site, without any coding or programming knowledge required. Be on the web in no time — and at a super-low price! see all reviews »
Back when web design and development was just an intriguing interest to me, I used local servers on my university’s campus. I knew nothing about web hosting, just that my student ID gave me a website to subject to my awful HTML table-based designs.
When it came time to leave the nest and forge my own hosting path, I blindly signed up for a Windows shared hosting plan because I recognized the operating system name. By that point, I was looking to figure out this whole WordPress platform I’d been hearing about — but not having much success. Within a few minutes, the support agent (who was probably annoyed with my cluelessness) switched me to a Linux hosting plan and the rest is history.
Although novice hosting customers might not notice much of a difference between Windows and Linux hosting nowadays, the two types of servers have different performance, security, pricing, and database features that will influence how your website performs. Read on to learn more about Linux hosting and where to find the best deals.
When shopping for shared hosting, you might notice a choice between Windows and Linux hosting. These different types of shared hosting allude to the operating system installed on the server holding your website.
Because Linux and many of its supporting software and server technologies are open-source programs, the hosting packages are sometimes cheaper. You won’t notice much of a difference between the two operating systems, but Linux typically fits most customers’ needs the best.
The platform you select depends on which languages you’re using to produce your website. Most notably, sites using PHP and MySQL — the scripting language and database system behind WordPress — should be on a Linux hosting plan. If you make your site using ASP.net, ASP, or SQL, you’re better off with Windows. Static sites using HTML and CSS can be hosted on either.
Unlike Windows — and for that matter, macOS — the Linux operating system can appear on your web hosting server in several different ways. Open-source developers have customized Linux into various distributions to meet differing needs of users. The most popular Linux distributions are:
The distribution used on your shared hosting account shouldn’t make much of a difference — the provider makes that selection based on ease of use, cost, support, and reliability. Larger businesses or more experienced developers might install different distributions on VPS or dedicated plans.
Linux hosting comes in a variety of formats and handles the hosting needs of everyone from individual people to enterprise organizations. We’ve broken out our favorite hosts at each level, from shared to dedicated servers.
Shared hosting servers house multiple websites at once. With a price tag of less than $3, you’d be surprised how many features iPage packs into their shared plans. The high-value host offers 24/7 network monitoring and enhanced security, along with support through phone, email, and chat.
Their servers run CentOS in an Apache-friendly environment and include the wildly popular control panel, cPanel. Linux’s ease-of-use pairs perfectly with the affordability of iPage.
A virtual private server, or VPS, gives website owners more control over the computing resources and environment allotted to their accounts. InMotion also runs CentOS and includes free security patches and updates for the operating system.
In addition to unlimited MySQL databases, InMotion boasts power and flexibility with SSH access, SSD speed, and more than 310 easy installations of Linux-friendly apps. If you want to read about more VPS Linux hosting options, we’ve tested out and rated the best providers.
The utmost in hosting, dedicated servers are completely devoted to your website or application. With no one else competing for CPU energy, dedicated hosting is a powerful option for companies looking for speed and scalability for their site(s). Liquid Web excels at hosting powerful, customizable environments.
Liquid Web customers have their choice of operating system and custom configurations with SSDs and instant provisioning, in addition to object storage and load balancer add-ons.
Because Linux supports the programming languages behind the world’s most popular blogging platforms and eCommerce tools, 1-click installations are a must-have when it comes to hosting plans. Although you can usually find beginner-friendly tools like this with most hosts, you’ll also want to look for features like this:
For more technical website owners, keep an eye out for which version(s) of PHP is/are supported, along with any limitations on MySQL databases. Some hosting packages will even give you the option of choosing your Linux distribution.
Understandably, getting Linux hosting for free sounds appealing. The options do exist, but trust us — they’re not worth it. Companies offering free hosting can disappear in a flash or introduce severely limiting restrictions on your account.
With such narrow margins for profit, free hosting providers don’t usually offer the most modern infrastructure or security measures. The servers and Linux distributions might not be updated frequently with free hosting plans, so you’re much better off with a reputable hosting provider and the additional resources included with a nominal fee.
Spending a few bucks on a Linux shared hosting plan with a trustworthy provider will make a world of difference in terms of features like support, ease of use, and reliability. You’ll want to sign up with a host who guarantees at least 99.9% uptime, which is the industry standard.
Uptime is critical to running a healthy and successful website, especially if you’re running a business. If your website isn’t available, you’re missing out on valuable potential visitors or customers. We give an edge to hosting companies who offer around-the-clock monitoring, free and automatic backups, and DDoS protection.
