1&1 vs. SiteGround (2024)

Alexandra Anderson

By: Alexandra Anderson

Alexandra Anderson

Alexandra is a web marketer, Agile Product Owner, and die-hard wordsmith who's contributed to HostingAdvice, InMotion Hosting, HostGator, and other prominent hosting and technology blogs, as well as Forbes. She has a master's degree in information technology from Virginia Tech and more than 10 years of experience building websites, advising on web and mobile app design, and crafting content that engages and converts. Her primary subject matter expertise spans WordPress, UX design, Agile project management, and, of course, web hosting.

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Editor: Lillian Castro

Lillian Castro

Lillian brings more than 30 years of editing and journalism experience to our team. She has written and edited for major news organizations, including The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the New York Times, and she previously served as an adjunct instructor at the University of Florida. Today, she edits HostingAdvice content for clarity, accuracy, and reader engagement.

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Laura Bernheim Alexandra Anderson Hosting Expert
“We tested SiteGround & 1&1 IONOS — The winner is SiteGround!”

These two hosts are like classic ’90s romantic comedies — as if we can choose just one. SiteGround has earned its reputation as a top host for its range of web hosting features, including a free Cloudflare CDN, cPanel with SSH access, and unlimited MySQL databases and bandwidth. Our second host, 1&1, has been around for decades and has continually proven its dedication to affordable hosting and a user-friendly interface. We’ll dive into the pros and cons of each web host in this comparison.

Overall Rating
5.0/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit SiteGround »
Overall Rating
4.8/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit 1&1 IONOS »

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Overall Hosting Comparison

Best Overall Rating

★★★★★ 5.0/5.0

With an impressive breadth of overall hosting services offered, SiteGround is a leading innovator in the hosting space — from custom software solutions to premier customer support.

The company offers the full range of web hosting features, including a free Cloudflare CDN, cPanel with SSH access, and unlimited MySQL databases and bandwidth — not to mention prize-worthy customer support.

CEO Tenko Nikolov and CTO Ivo Tzenov, SiteGround Co-Founders, gave us the inside scoop on SiteGround's features and took us through the solutions they've engineered to enhance the user experience.

Customer service has long been the company's claim to fame, behind custom solutions built to make the hosting experience as stress-free as possible. SiteGround engineered an in-house chat software that allows users to select and rate thoroughly vetted customer service agents with whom they've worked previously.

The company wrote its own ticketing system, as well, which comprises an algorithm designed to select appropriate technical support representatives for specific tasks.

The end result is instant replies to phone calls and chats, and 10-minute responses to email tickets, all of which contributes to a 99.7% customer satisfaction rate.

For shared hosting, SiteGround conceived a one-of-a-kind server isolation system that prevents vulnerable servers from taking down entire networks.

In place of VPS hosting, the company built its own cloud container platform, featuring thousands of containers and top-notch scalability and security.

All SiteGround hosting service users benefit from a unique downtime prevention mechanism, which has helped SiteGround develop a reputation for stellar uptime rates: 99.996% annually and 99.999% monthly.

  • FREE site transfer or new site setup
  • FREE daily backups, CDN, email, and SSL
  • 24/7 expert support with no wait on phone or chat
  • Recommended by WordPress as a top host
  • Ideal for business email hosting
  • Get started on SiteGround now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB SSD - 40 GB SSD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

Best Overall Rating

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

Born in 1988 — at least a decade before many competitors — 1&1 IONOS has maintained its dedication to making technology easy to understand and use.

The company got its start in Europe but has since expanded to serve more than 8 million global customers and host more than 12 million domain names.

Part of the United Internet Group, 1&1 IONOS relaunched in 2018 after merging with the successful ProfitBricks cloud infrastructure service.

The end result is a web hosting company that's perfectly poised to serve everyone from first-time site owners and small businesses to rapidly scaling corporations in need of powerful virtual and dedicated server options.

Web hosting beginners will especially appreciate the company's dedication to a comprehensive user experience. In addition to affordable shared and WordPress hosting, 1&1 IONOS customers can quickly deploy the company's custom drag-and-drop site builder or eCommerce store creator.

Marketing tools abound to grow your presence, including for a local business listing on online directories, Google Adwords management, email marketing, and search engine optimization.

More experienced customers will find a comfortable hosting home in the various 1&1 IONOS cloud solutions. In addition to somewhat-more-obscure services like S3 object storage, Kubernetes-as-a-Service, or specialized cloud app configurations, the company offers the cloud in managed or unmanaged varieties, plus enterprise-grade Platform-as-a-Service and Infrastructure-as-a-Service options.

Whichever level of hosting you choose, 1&1 IONOS provides you with a personal consultant — a central point of contact available directly by phone, email, or chat who understands your needs. Be sure to consider 1&1 IONOS for your hosting needs.

  • FREE domain and SSL, plus daily backups
  • Drag-and-drop site builder and starter kit
  • Gain exposure with $100-worth of ad credits
  • Packages cater to businesses & personal use
  • FREE custom SEO and marketing tools
  • Get started on 1&1 IONOS now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB - Unlimited
Domain Name
FREE (1 year)

Cheap Hosting Comparison

Cheap Rating

★★★★★ 4.6/5.0

#8 out of 10 in Cheap Hosting reviews

Providing hosting with the perfect balance of technological innovation and superior customer support, SiteGround offers a range of affordable hosting services to meet your needs.

In addition to the expected cheap web hosting perks — a free website builder and unlimited bandwidth — the company specializes in custom-built tools to deliver strong and positive user experiences.

Although SiteGround prices itself on the high-end of the shared hosting spectrum, the upgraded SSD-powered infrastructure and additional perks make its service well worth the investment. In addition to included SSL certificate, daily backups, and a content delivery network, SiteGround delivers a top-notch blend of speed and security.

SiteGround developed its own ticketing system and custom chat software, allowing you to chat with trusted and capable representatives with whom you've had success in the past.

The software takes in about 1,500 chats on any given day. The website itself receives about 1 million visitors per month, with users coming for both tutorials and knowledgebase articles written and updated by the tech support team.

Once a month, SiteGround tests competitors' and its own support levels with dummy accounts, measuring response times, attitude, and effectiveness. If a competitor is doing something well, SiteGround's team takes note and tries to improve its own services.

  • FREE website transfer service to get started
  • 99.9% uptime guarantee and unlimited traffic
  • User-friendly WordPress installation
  • 24/7 support featuring custom systems
  • 4 caching options plus staging and Git
  • Get started on SiteGround now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB SSD - 40 GB SSD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

Cheap Rating

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

#4 out of 10 in Cheap Hosting reviews

If budget is the main factor on your mind when searching for your next web host, search no more.

1&1 IONOS has an impressive range of robust web hosting and website building packages for what may be the best price we've ever seen in the world of hosting.

Even better, there are no hidden fees or upsells at checkout — finally, a place in the web hosting world where "what you see is what you get" doesn't apply to just site builders.

All 1&1 IONOS plans come with a free domain name registration, or existing site transfer, with permissions to use (essentially) as much storage space and databases as you need.

While some hosting shoppers may view the lack of "truly" unlimited features to be a knock on 1&1 IONOS, we actually prefer that the host is upfront about exactly what resources are available — and, trust us, you'll have plenty of resources to work with.

Starting a 1&1 IONOS website from scratch is simple. With the 1&1 IONOS MyWebsite Builder and eCommerce store creator, you can easily choose a template, drag and drop various elements of your site, and customize it to your brand or personal preference.

For a bit more control, the company gives you more than 70 cloud applications that can be installed with just one click. For cost-conscious customers, whether you're looking for a website builder, WordPress host, or a place to launch your online store, you can't go wrong with one of the 1&1 IONOS budget-friendly plans.

The company includes all of the web hosting essentials and makes it simple to upgrade at any time, with expert support available to help at every step along the way.

  • $1/month for 12 months
  • No hidden fees, pay just $12 at checkout
  • Easy setup and 24/7 expert support
  • FREE domain or transfer, plus FREE SSL certificate
  • Unlimited storage and databases with most plans
  • Get started on 1&1 IONOS now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB - Unlimited
Domain Name
FREE (1 year)

Dedicated Hosting Comparison

Dedicated Rating

N/A

SiteGround does not currently offer this type of hosting. We would not recommend choosing this host for this hosting category.

Dedicated Rating

★★★★★ 4.9/5.0

#2 out of 8 in Dedicated Hosting reviews

If you need blazing-fast speed, optimum uptime, top-notch flexibility, and full control over the fate of your website the dedicated servers from 1&1 IONOS have you covered.

The company offers an assortment of entry-level, performance-focused, and business-class server options. 1&1 IONOS currently operates more than 90,000 servers within 10 geo-redundant datacenters, and the hardware features top-notch Intel Atom and Xeon processors.

The company's hands-on approach to perfecting datacenters ensures high levels of uptime and supremely reliable server networks, boasting up to 1 Gbit/s connectivity, unlimited traffic, and HTTP/2 support.

Although experienced dedicated server customers might prefer a large cloud environment with root access enabled, rookies and busy entrepreneurs who would prefer to spend their time elsewhere will appreciate the intuitive 1&1 IONOS control panel included with each machine; no server admin is required, meaning you can focus on your projects instead of monotonous maintenance.

Users can monitor their dedicated server performance through a web browser, but we also love how 1&1 IONOS offers mobile access to the control panel via apps for both iOS and Android.

Unlike many other dedicated server providers, 1&1 IONOS gives customers per-minute billing options.

Offering a wealth of dedicated server options to meet any budget or performance needs, 1&1 IONOS customers benefit from easy system management, and top-notch security, and personalized support — basically everything you can hope to get from a dedicated server provider.

  • Explore server deals to find the best rates
  • High powered modern AMD and Intel processors
  • Unlimited traffic and 1 Gbit/s network connectivity
  • 8-minute deployment with full API control
  • Auto backups, DDoS protection, and RAID-1 storage
  • Get started on 1&1 IONOS now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
480 GB SSD - 2 TB HDD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

VPS Hosting Comparison

VPS Rating

★★★★ 4.2/5.0

When it comes to VPS hosting, SiteGround does things a little differently. Instead of managing a typical virtual private server network, the company created its very own cloud platform built from the ground up.

Although the services are similar to a VPS, with shell access included, it's much more scalable. The hefty price tag certainly jumps out at potential customers, however, making SiteGround's cloud product a major investment.

The company's top-tier infrastructure and customer support certainly back up the cost, but the platform may not be the right step for first-time VPS customers looking to take a small step beyond shared hosting.

That said, SiteGround's managed cloud hosting includes thousands of containers and is much faster than most products you'll find on the market.

A single cloud instance can be provisioned, up, and running in seconds. The container platform behind the cloud hosting isn't the only in-house technology the company has up its hosting sleeve.

Instead of using third-party programs, SiteGround developers write almost all of the platform's software themselves. Among SiteGround's many custom solutions is a unique server isolation system that shields servers from falling victim to the vulnerability of single, corrupted accounts.

SiteGround was the first to develop such a mechanism. The company also created its own backup system, which runs daily backups in about an hour; a downtime prevention mechanism that has yielded stellar uptime rates; and its proprietary SuperCacher, which offers four caching options for optimum load times.

With each custom innovation that SiteGround has engineered, customers have reported being pleasantly surprised by how much the technology simplifies their hosting experience.

SiteGround's cloud hosting service is no different.

The company offers all the hit features they're known for, plus the added scalability and security that surpasses most VPS hosting providers. If you're ready to move beyond shared hosting, and want to do so with a king of customer service and tech solutions, look no further than SiteGround's cloud hosting.

  • Fully managed cloud hosting with ultra-fast performance and scalability
  • FREE Cloudflare CDN and daily backups
  • SuperCacher, Git, and 1-click CMS installs
  • cPanel, SSH access, and private DNS setup
  • Dedicated IP address and iptables firewall
  • Get started on SiteGround now.
Money Back Guarantee
14 days
Disk Space
40 GB SSD - 160 GB SSD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

VPS Rating

★★★★★ 4.7/5.0

#5 out of 9 in VPS Hosting reviews

For an all-star player in the game of web hosting flexibility, look no further than the low-cost options from 1&1 IONOS.

The company's vServers are a powerful VPS option that includes dedicated resources and unlimited traffic. Customers will receive generous allotments of memory, computing cores, and high-speed SSD storage for rates much lower than many competitors.

We appreciate the company's flexibility in offering a wide range of Linux and Windows operating systems, along with the root access to completely control applications and other configurations. Users can use the Plesk Onyx control panel to manage server operations securely and efficiently.

The 1&1 IONOS VPS network is powered by VMware virtualization and redundant SAN storage, backed by Intel Xeon E5 processors and SSDs.

For those looking for other virtualized hosting options, 1&1 IONOS boasts numerous managed and unmanaged cloud services. Ranging from object storage to container orchestration, we especially appreciate the pre-configured environments that are optimized to specific application performance needs.

Want your WordPress or Magento site to fly? Look into 1&1 IONOS cloud hosting. Experienced developers comfortable with root access will enjoy hourly-billed IONOS Cloud environments, while cloud hosting newbies will prefer the managed, Platform-as-a-Service option.

Large companies can build customized, future-proofed environments via the 1&1 IONOS Infrastructure-as-a-Service package. No matter your selection, 1&1 IONOS smooths the on-ramp for cloud services adoption, promising that servers will launch in just 55 seconds.

In addition to the ridiculously low introductory prices, keep an eye out for additional discounts for your first month that enable you to sample upgraded tools without a long-term commitment.

  • Affordable VPS hosting with no hidden fees
  • Try it FREE via 30-day money-back guarantee
  • Full root access and API
  • 10GB to 240GB SSD, Linux or Windows
  • No throttling or traffic restrictions, ever
  • Get started on 1&1 IONOS now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB NVMe - 640 GB NVMe
Domain Name
New or Transfer

WordPress Hosting Comparison

WordPress Rating

★★★★★ 4.9/5.0

#2 out of 8 in WordPress Hosting reviews

Want a hassle-free, WordPress-optimized hosting service? SiteGround has thought of everything you need to get your site up and running.

Starting with the essentials, users get free email accounts, site transfer, Cloudflare CDN, and cPanel license. Then the company makes it simple for you to start rolling out content by offering an easy, automated WordPress installation and a unique and powerful WordPress Starter program that walks site owners through site setup.

The custom tool helps customers choose from professionally designed themes and add key functionalities likee a contact form, online store, portfolio, or other content. Selections are automatically installed on the site, delivering a fully-functional website in minutes — without any tech expertise required.

SiteGround's WordPress hosting also features automatic updates to the core and plugins, with built-in, multi-layer WordPress caching built-in, as well. Users can easily test and deploy changes to their site with single-click staging, and Git is available for version control.

SiteGround's unique downtime prevention software monitors servers' statuses in real-time and resolves more than 90% of server issues instantly and automatically.

Many competitors can take an average of five to 20 minutes to detect an issue, plus up to 20 minutes to react and resolve the exploit.

From in-house solutions on the technical side to warm and unwavering support from a customer service angle, SiteGround has crafted a complete package for any hosting need.

For WordPress-specific hosting, the company offers popular perks you wouldn't get with other shared hosting providers. Get started with all of the awesome freebies and prepare to be blown away by SiteGround's commitment to building hosting solutions intended to make your WordPress experience easier than ever.

  • Officially endorsed by WordPress.org
  • FREE migration plugin or automated installation
  • Pre-installed Git, 3 caching levels, and FREE CDN
  • FREE WP setup wizard, staging, and auto-updates
  • Fast, 24/7 support via custom chat system
  • Get started on SiteGround now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB SSD - 40 GB SSD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

WordPress Rating

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

You're not alone if you're looking for fine-tuned optimizations and security enhancements specifically tailored around WordPress.

Hundreds of hosts are clamoring to offer the best services for the world's most popular content management system, and 1&1 IONOS is among the select group leading the way.

The company offers all the essentials you would expect from a provider that emphasizes shared hosting simplicity, while still including the features that particularly resonate with more technical WordPress users.

First, a setup assistant gets you started with just a few clicks, offering countless options to customize and grow your WordPress site through theme and plugin suggestions.

From there, the company's powerful infrastructure — boasting NGINX web server, SSD storage, modern PHP, and 2GB of guaranteed memory — delivers your site with speed.

1&1 IONOS secures WordPress sites by automatically updating the CMS for you, along with providing DDoS protection and optional SiteLock security.

The managed platform takes care of all tedious management tasks, and site owners will appreciate the personal consultant that is on standby to answer any WordPress questions via phone, email, or chat.

All in all, starting and sustaining a WordPress site with 1&1 IONOS couldn't be easier. From a free domain and simple startup to the company's robust support systems, the company offers everything you need to launch a WordPress website with ease.

  • Just $1/month for 12 months
  • Free domain registration and up to 500 email accounts
  • Setup wizard helps with installation, suggests themes, and installs plugins
  • FREE automatic WP updates and DDoS protection
  • SSD drives, NGINX, and guaranteed RAM for page load speed
  • Get started on 1&1 IONOS now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
25 GB SSD - 75 GB SSD
Domain Name
FREE (1 year)

Site Builder Hosting Comparison

Website Builder Rating

★★★★ 4.4/5.0

#6 out of 9 in Website Builder Hosting reviews

Do you know you need to build a website but don't know where to begin? Well, SiteGround will give you not one, but two extremely popular and user-friendly options to create the online presence of your dream.

Plus, customers start off with unlimited email accounts, site traffic, and database storage options — all for free.

Whether you're transferring a domain or want a relatively hands-off experience starting your very first site, you'll find helpful support at every turn.

SiteGround hosting includes easy installations for your choice of content management system, including WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and Magento. The company's WordPress experts will even migrate your site for you — a seamless transition with zero downtime — or first-timers can benefit from their in-house setup wizard.

Alternatively, SiteGround gives each customer access to the ultra-popular Weebly drag-and-drop site builder and hundreds of professional templates.

Once you're up and running, custom ticketing and chat systems have been engineered and implemented to provide you with pleasant and tech-savvy customer support 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.

SiteGround also conducts daily site backups, using an in-house system that can run backups in about an hour, compared to rival technologies that can take up to half a day to operate.

Whether you're a hosting newbie or a site-building savant, you can trust SiteGround to provide you with a hosting and website-building combo that is simple to manage and pleasant to troubleshoot.

  • FREE Weebly site builder or WordPress setup
  • Worry-free, automated webiste migrations
  • User-friendly cPanel interface and staging area
  • Custom ticket and chat systems for 24/7 support
  • SuperCacher with static and dynamic caching
  • Get started on SiteGround now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB SSD - 40 GB SSD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

Website Builder Rating

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

#2 out of 9 in Website Builder Hosting reviews

If you're in need of a one-stop shop for designing and launching a website, you should be pleased to hear that 1&1 IONOS offers its own custom website building tools for both desktop and mobile devices.

In addition to a free domain and email address, along with unlimited storage space, the 1&1 IONOS MyWebsite platform includes all the essentials for starting a site from scratch.

With MyWebsite packages, you can quickly and easily create a custom website — without any coding or programming knowledge.

As if the low introductory rate wasn't impressive enough, 1&1 IONOS MyWebsite packages come with a free 30-day trial period so you can be certain that this easy-to-use solution is the right one for you.

The company's drag-and-drop site editor features tons of high-quality, customizable templates. Your site will automatically be optimized for smartphones and tablets, and 1&1 IONOS offers apps to integrate interactive, professional elements into your site, including photo galleries, online scheduling, customer reviews, social media widgets, and maps.

For those who are more pressed for time, you can quickly spin up a one-page website or employ 1&1 IONOS design experts to create up to five custom pages with images and SEO-optimized text.

Somewhat interestingly, 1&1 IONOS redirects customers to a separate website builder if they're looking to sell products online. The company's eCommerce builder easily integrates with Amazon, eBay, and Google, covering a wide range of integrated payment and shipping methods.

That being said, we are quite enamored with the comprehensive features included in these plans.

  • No coding skills necessary with MyWebsite Creator
  • Free domain name or transfer your existing site
  • FREE social media and marketing widgets
  • Pro templates with pre-filled text and images
  • Multilingual support and tools for SEO
  • Get started on 1&1 IONOS now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
10 GB - Unlimited
Domain Name
FREE (1 year)
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SiteGround vs. 1&1 IONOS - Our Conclusion

Laura Bernheim Alexandra Anderson Hosting Expert
“We tested SiteGround & 1&1 IONOS — The winner is SiteGround!”

Regarding ’90s rom-coms, the jury is still out on which is the best. But as for hosting providers, we think we have put this debate to rest. We hope this comparison gave you some insight into each provider. Whether you’re looking for a strictly budget-friendly host with simple offerings or for something a little more robust for a higher price, you’ll be satisfied with either provider. There’s no need to feel dazed and confused as you make your decision.

Overall Rating
5.0/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit SiteGround »
Overall Rating
4.8/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit 1&1 IONOS »

About The Author

Alexandra Anderson’s interest in website administration was sparked in her teens, priming her for a fast-paced career in managing, building, and contributing to online brands, including HostingAdvice, Forbes, and the blogs of prominent hosting providers. She brings firsthand experience reviewing web hosts, perfecting website design, optimizing content, and walking site owners through the steps that add up to a successful online presence. With a master's degree in information technology from Virginia Tech, she combines her extensive writing experience and technical understanding to unpack some of the most complex topics that daunt novice website owners, as well as the subjects that excite veteran technologists within the HostingAdvice readership.
Laura Bernheim