The 20 Largest Web Hosting Companies in 2024

If you ever truly think about the way the internet works and how there are more than 1.5 billion websites, it’s kind of insane.¹ This larger-than-life thing we call the internet is (in part) made possible by roughly 330,000 web hosting providers — the companies that rent servers for people to host their websites on…but which one is right for you?

Whether you’re looking to grow an online business, house your portfolio, or power a family blog, knowing which host to trust with your website can be tricky. The promising, young startup may offer appealing hardware configurations and performance at bargain rates — but how will the company’s network hold up to a rapidly increasing customer base and frequently emerging security threats?

Well-established hosting providers have withstood the test of time and continually deliver superb services. With years (and sometimes decades) in the industry, these hosts have grown to become highly respected global powerhouses. Let’s look at the largest hosting providers (as measured by the percentage of the market), along with a few key factors to aid your decision:

Everyone seems to measure a host’s success differently. For some, it’s the number of websites hosted; For others, it’s the number of customers — or the number of domains registered, the amount of traffic handled, or the total revenue generated. Because the internet is a rapidly changing landscape, I sought to paint the most complete picture.

To get the most thorough glimpse of the hosting industry, I sourced my information from a variety of sources, including W3Techs and Statista, to learn which hosts and technologies the world’s 1.5 billion websites use.

1. Amazon Web Services — 5.5% of Websites

It should come as no surprise the company leading the charge in one of the industry’s hottest technologies ranks high on the list of largest hosting providers, with a 5.5% market grip.²

Cloud-hosting behemoth Amazon Web Services extends beyond simple web hosting to power more than 200 services, including cloud computing, storage, networking, database, analytics, application services, deployment, management, mobile, developer tools, and systems for the Internet of Things.⁴

What began as a modest online bookstore has blossomed into one of the biggest tech behemoths in the world, which I’m certain its innovations in cloud computing had a lot to do with. Amazon re-launched in 2006 (around the same time as the cloud movement) after retooling its infrastructure to be more standardized and automated.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: À la carte cloud computing
• Price: Pa-as-you-go
• Domains: $9.00 per year
• Email: Yes (Amazon SES & Amazon WorkMail)
• eCommerce: Yes (Amazon Seller app)
• Website builder: No

Because of the high degree of difficulty associated with AWS, combined with the lack of support commonly found among traditional web hosts, these cloud services are typically reserved for experienced developers and established, larger businesses. In other words, if you’re a newbie, I recommend looking elsewhere for your web hosting.

2. Shopify — 4.5% of Websites

The Canadian eCommerce platform Shopify rounds out our top 10 most popular hosts in the U.S. by covering all the needs of online entrepreneurs.

Shopify is responsible for more than $72 billion in sales, powering more than 600,000 businesses worldwide.

Behind a mission of making business ownership and growth better for everyone, Shopify founders originally built the platform to sell snowboard equipment.

The company has since grown from a team of five people working out of a local coffee shop to more than 3,000 employees working in five offices across North America.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: All-in-one eCommerce hosting
• Price: $1.00 per month
• Domains: FREE subdomain or $14/year
• Email: No
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

The full-service platform includes custom domain names, professional themes, and tools for inventory management, order fulfillment, payment processing, and point-of-sale software.

3. OVHcloud — 3.1% of Websites

OVHcloud may not be a household name like Amazon, but it holds a pretty impressive 3.1% market share.²

HostingAdvice writer Lynn Cadet and I got to speak with the folks at OVHcloud firsthand to learn about its approach to cloud adoption and sustainability a while back.

I learned the company operates 33 data centers across four continents — which is no easy task.

OVH was founded just before the millennium in 1999, building a web hosting empire that now includes cloud, dedicated, shared, and virtual private server options, as well as a popular webmail service.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Cloud hosting
• Price: $29+ per month
• Domains: Not included
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: No
• Website builder: No

OVH’s cloud hosting plans start at just $29 per month, and the company’s data centers run entirely on renewable energy (for me, this is a major perk). OVH has also developed custom hardware — including an exclusive server design — to give you even more power and speed.

4. Hostinger — 3.1% of Websites

Every time I think of Hostinger, it takes me back to my first website-building experience. I, like many of Hostinger’s 2 million-plus customers, gravitated toward the provider for its beginner-friendliness.²⁰

Having personal experience with this web host makes me particularly proud of its impressive market share of 3.1%.²

The company has 10 data centers, and while that may not be the most out of the other largest hosting companies, I think Hostinger makes up for it with variety.

You can park your website on one of four continents: Europe, Asia, North America, and South America.²¹ That makes your potential website more well-traveled than most people.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Affordable shared hosting
• Price: $2.69+ per month
• Domains: Free for one year ($9.99 renewal)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: AI website builder

I review and test a lot of web hosting providers, and AI features are all the rage right now. Hostinger is no exception. As if drag-and-drop website builders weren’t already simple enough, Hostinger is now using the power of artificial intelligence to create websites in a snap. If you’re cool with answering a few questions about your website, Hostinger’s AI Website Builder can do all the dirty work for you.

5. Wix — 2.9% of Websites

Considering that Wix is primarily marketed as a website builder, I’m pretty impressed that it holds an almost 3% market share in the web hosting industry.²

I suppose if you build a website with Wix, you might as well host it there too! At least, that’s what Wix’s 200 million (yes, million) customers think.²²

Okay, not to brag, but we’re pretty close with the folks over at Wix and regularly get the inside scoop on what they’re up to.

In recent years alone, Wix has released Wix Proposals, Wix Donations, an AI-powered chatbot, and an AI-powered mobile app builder. It’s no wonder the company has climbed its way to the top.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Website building
• Price: $0.00+ per month
• Domains: Free for one year ($14.95 renewal)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: AI website builder

Perhaps what’s most impressive about Wix is that customers make more than 85,000 websites on its platform daily.²⁴

6. GoDaddy — 2.6% of Websites

The grand poobah of web hosting companies, GoDaddy has dominated the industry for nearly 30 years and backs 2.6% of all websites.²

Seemingly everyone’s first web host and domain registrar, GoDaddy boasts more than 84 million domain names under management and has 21 million customers around the world.³

GoDaddy is a household name at this point thanks to its hilarious (and sometimes notorious) commercials from the early 2000s.

Great marketing aside, if you’re looking for affordable and user-friendly shared hosting and domain registrations, GoDaddy may be for you.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Low-cost domains and hosting
• Price: $6.99–$159.99 per month
• Domains: FREE first year (then $21.99)
• Email: FREE for the first year
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

You can find specialized options that cater to website builders, eCommerce stores, WordPress, and site owners needing more a powerful virtualized server. When you add in the vast array of SSL certificates, web security, online marketing, and email tools, GoDaddy surely has something for everyone.

7. Hetzner Online — 2.6% of Websites

Hetzner Online is a highly sought hosting provider in Europe. Until recently, it didn’t offer its services in the U.S. Now, it has a couple of data center locations in Virginia and Oregon.⁷

The company runs state-of-the-art and environmentally friendly data center parks in Finland and near its headquarters in Germany.

Hetzner Online specializes in affordable but powerful dedicated servers, with prices ranging from €46 to €250 per month. The company also holds server auctions to sell its gently used — but fully operational — servers to customers for a bargain.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Dedicated hosting
• Price: €2.09+per month plus VAT
• Domains: FREE with hosting plan (otherwise €11.90)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: No
• Website builder: No

With added attention to its cloud and shared hosting options, Hetzner Online serves a wide range of European customers.

8. Squarespace — 2.2% of Websites

Departing once again from our traditional web and cloud hosting companies, the Squarespace site builder and included hosting packages make the cut by not offering a free plan or licensing its platform to third-party partners, which keeps paying customers in-house.

The lean company employs only about 1,700 people and prioritizes drag-and-drop features and premium templates in favor of a coding-driven backend.²³

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Premium website builder
• Price: $12-$40 per month
• Domains: FREE first year (then $20)
• Email: Yes (G Suite)
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

Since its founding in 2003, Squarespace has added robust eCommerce tools, domain name services, and analytics to help website and business owners grow their online presence — and to help the company compete with the biggest in the business.

9. SiteGround — 2.1% of Websites

SiteGround’s name makes it sound like it’s part of some exclusive, underground web hosting club, where only VIP customers get access to state-of-the-art servers and premium service.

However, with its low introductory rates, I’d say it’s quite the opposite.

If you’re looking for a great deal on your first web hosting plan, SiteGround may just be the one for you. It has 11 data centers distributed across eight countries.²⁵

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Customer support
• Price: $2.99+ per month
• Domains: Free for one year ($19.99 renewal)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

If you’re wondering whether SiteGround has a lot of hosting options to choose from, the answer is a resounding “yes.” Its 11 data centers house all kinds of servers, including shared, VPS, and dedicated options.

10. WP Engine — 1.8% of Websites

WP Engine goes against the grain by specializing in WordPress hosting. The WordPress hosting provider has a portfolio of managed WordPress hosting plans that deliver a fully managed solution for users, complete with automatic updates, 24/7 customer support, and security.

While WP Engine doesn’t host as many websites as some of the other companies on this list, the brand still has a global footprint with servers in 35 countries and more than 1.5 million customers in 150 countries — that’s enough to get my attention.¹³

Here’s a fun fact: WP Engine hosts all of its shared hosting plans on Google’s servers; it uses AWS and Microsoft Azure for the premium plans.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Premium WordPress hosting
• Price: Starting at $13.00 per month
• Domains: Not included
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes (WooCommerce)
• Website builder: Yes

With plans starting at $13.00 per month, WP Engine is one of the more expensive WordPress hosts. However, I believe the company delivers on its promise of exceptional speed, security, and customer support.

11. Google Cloud Platform — 1.8% of Websites

Similar to Amazon, Google made the internal infrastructure known for powering some of the internet’s most highly trafficked sites publicly available to the world.

Google Cloud comprises the public cloud infrastructure as well as Google Workspace and enterprise versions of Android, Chrome OS, and APIs for machine learning and mapping services.

Roughly 1.8% of all websites in the world take advantage of Google Cloud.²

With Google Cloud Platform, developers and website owners can experience more than 100 on-demand services, including cloud computing, analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning, storage, and mapping.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Scalable cloud services
• Price: Pay as you go
• Domains: $12.00 per year
• Email: Yes (Google Workspace)
• eCommerce: No
• Website builder: Yes (Google Sites)

The platform launched in 2008 and became generally available in late 2011, putting it a few years behind AWS, but the craze behind cloud computing launched Google to the forefront of the world’s biggest hosting providers.

12. 1&1 IONOS — 1.5% of Websites

IONOS shows up to the battle of the biggest hosts with 1.5% of the world’s websites.⁵ The Germany-based host carries global appeal for its well-rounded suite of services, affordable prices, and customer support.

The company serves more than 6 million customers worldwide, which is more than the population of Washington D.C.!

With roots dating all the way back to 1988, IONOS’s legacy has expanded to cover more than 22 million domain names and 100,000 servers worldwide.⁶

A 2017 merger between 1&1 and RedBricks led to the birth of 1&1 IONOS, which, starting in 2020, became known as simply IONOS.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Full-service web hosting
• Price: $1.00–$32.00 per month
• Domains: FREE first year (then $17.00)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

In addition to the expected portfolio of shared, VPS, dedicated, and cloud hosting, IONOS offers domain name registrations, and a website builder, plus tools for eCommerce, email, online marketing, and security.

13. DigitalOcean — 1.3% of Websites

Despite DigitalOcean’s name implying it serves the hosting needs of marine life, it actually caters to those up in the cloud.

The company boasts more than 600,000 customers worldwide and has 15 data centers distributed across the globe. — all that to say it has a market share of 1.3%.^11,12

Founded in 2011, DigitalOcean quickly launched its “simple cloud hosting” platform to give developers more control over their hosting options.

The company carries a strong appeal for its low-cost and user-friendly services, as well as its wide range of integrations with popular hosting tools and applications.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Cloud computing
• Price: Droplets start at $4.00 per month
• Domains: Not included
• Email: No
• eCommerce: No
• Website builder: No

In a major win in 2022, the company acquired Cloudways to give small businesses more options for cloud hosting. Our very own HostingAdvice expert Lynn Cadet covered its acquisition here.

14. XServer — 1.3% of all Websites

I’ll admit that while I’ve reviewed a lot of web hosting companies, I had never heard of XServer before.

Through my research, I learned it’s probably because it primarily serves customers in Japan — and a lot of them.

The web hosting company powers more than 1.5 million sites, representing 1.3% of the web hosting industry.^2,26

Given that XServer primarily caters to a Japanese customer base, I wasn’t surprised to learn you can only find its data centers in Japan. Given its limited data center locations, I was even more impressed by its global market share.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Hosting for businesses
• Price: $8.22+ per month
• Domains: $5.33 per year
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

You can check out XServer’s site here, but be warned it only offers options for Japanese and English speakers.

15. Microsoft — 1.1% of all Websites

Everybody’s heard of Microsoft. Maybe you have Microsoft software installed on your computer, or you use Microsoft Office at work to create documents and spreadsheets.

While the tech giant wears many hats in the industry as a whole, you should know it also holds a 1.1% share in the web hosting market.²

However, it’s not like your typical shared hosting provider. Microsoft Azure caters to larger, more technically complex customers — think of LinkedIn, Bing, and Adobe (all these companies use Microsoft).

Because of this, it doesn’t come with all the user-friendly features, like web builders and free domain names, that you get with web hosts like Hostinger and IONOS.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Cloud hosting for enterprises
• Price: $14.60+ per month
• Domains: No
• Email: No
• eCommerce: No
• Website builder: No

Get ready to have your mind blown: Microsoft has more than 165,000 miles of optic fiber connected to its incredible 200 data centers in 34 countries. These optic fiber cables run through land, cities, and even underwater.²⁷

16. HostGator — 1% of Websites

Just one of the many web hosts part of the Newfold Digital Group, HostGator holds 1% of the web hosting market share.

Now, before you say, “That sure doesn’t sound like much,” this “measly” 1% quite literally represents millions of sites.²

The company provides the full slate of powerful web hosting products, from shared to dedicated server hosting.

In 2019, HostGator launched a proprietary drag-and-drop site builder, which we reviewed, that includes a free hosting plan, a domain name, customizable templates, and analytics.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Beginner-friendly web hosting
• Price: $2.64–$89.98 per month
• Domains: $22.99 per year
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

Although HostGator promises the relatively standard 99.9% uptime guarantee, you have an extended 45-day window to test services and request a refund, if needed. The company supplies around-the-clock support through phone calls and live chat to assist you with your website or online business.

17. Webflow — 0.7% of Websites

Webflow is another web builder that makes my list of the biggest web hosting companies, and I have to say it’s a pretty stellar product.

Our team chatted with Webflow CTO Allan Leinwand, and he told us the company serves more than 200,000 customers, including Dell.

At first glance, Webflow seemed just like another website builder to me, but our interview with Allan revealed the company lets you do more than drag-and-drop design elements to build your site.

Instead of having fixed site templates, you can manipulate the CSS and HTML to your liking. You can even import designs from other platforms like Figma.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Custom website building
• Price: Free – $39.00+ per month
• Domains: Free for one year
• Email: No
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

Webflow’s unprecedented flexibility makes it clear why it has a 0.7% market share.²

18. Bluehost — 0.7% of Websites

If GoDaddy is the typical first web hosting provider for new site owners, Bluehost is the second.

One of the flagship brands of parent company Newfold Digital Group, Bluehost has a 0.7% market share and oversees more than 2 million domains as part of its varied collection of services.²

The company offers a full slate of shared, cloud, VPS, and dedicated hosting options, as well as platforms specifically tailored to WordPress and eCommerce.

Founded in 2003 — the same year as WordPress — Bluehost is one of only four hosts endorsed by the ultra-popular content management system.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Cheap web hosting for WordPress
• Price: $1.99–$91.98 per month
• Domains: FREE first year (then $21.99)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes (WooCommerce)
• Website builder: Yes (AI site builder)

The company’s optimized WordPress hosting introduces high-performance solid-state drives, NGINX web servers, a custom PHP-FPM configuration, a content delivery network, and a web application firewall for ultimate speed and security.

19. Namecheap — 0.6% of Websites

I know GoDaddy is the leader in domain names, but Namecheap has carved out a pretty decent chunk for itself. If we’re talking about web hosting market share, Namecheap has earned 0.6% of it.²

But if you want to focus specifically on domain registrations, the company holds a market share of 2.85% — not too shabby.²⁸

Namecheap has more than 17 million domains under its belt.²⁹ That’s more than the population of New York City! If I were to guess why the company is so popular, it’s probably because it has such a diverse product offering.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Cheap domain names and hosting
• Price: $1.98+ per month
• Domains: $5.98 first year (then $13.98)
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes
• Website builder: Yes

It regularly releases new products and solutions for individuals, businesses, and enterprises. A quick look at its site shows it provides a full range of server types, integration with CMSes, email solutions, design tools, and of course, domain names.

20. Liquid Web — 0.5% of Websites

The first luxury hosting brand on my list, Liquid Web somehow skips right past the crowded and high-demand shared hosting market to reach more than 180,000 customers in more than 130 countries around the world with a market share of 0.5%.^8,9

The company focuses on stellar managed services for its intriguing array of dedicated, cloud, and VPS arrangements.

Liquid Web’s portfolio lists dedicated servers, cloud VPS, cloud dedicated, private cloud, and the Cloud Sites platform acquired from Rackspace.

Quick Facts:

• Known for: Premium managed hosting
• Price: $14.70–$75.00 per month
• Domains: $15.00 per year
• Email: Yes
• eCommerce: Yes (WooCommerce)
• Website builder: No

More than 18 global data centers handle a whopping 180,000 of Liquid Web’s customers.¹⁰ In addition to some of the best customer support in the industry, Liquid Web promises 100% network and power uptime, along with replacement hardware and help desk responses in less than 30 minutes — see what I meant when I said “luxury?”

Hosting customers and site owners frequently turn to the industry’s biggest brands when it comes to sourcing the technology to power their online dreams.

Name recognition and reputation drive a lot of business, and the established brands detailed above have — in most cases — withstood a decade or more of growing pains and industry shifts. That experience and expertise translate into hosting knowledge and customer support built for mass-market appeal.

Although these hosts are all safe bets to help you accomplish your website goals, I understand if you want to keep your eyes open and see what else is out there. Just because the companies above serve the most customers and host the most websites doesn’t mean there aren’t dozens of other fish in the sea.

Smaller companies sometimes offer unique services custom-built to serve a specific niche in the wider web hosting industry, and they can be more nimble and able to capitalize on emerging trends.

Plus, fewer customers might mean less strain on the company’s support staff, hopefully resulting in shorter wait times and more personal assistance.

Popular companies like InMotion Hosting, WordPress.com, and Media Temple narrowly missed the cut as some of the largest hosting companies but still bring top-notch services to all levels of site owners and developers.

Even smaller, boutique hosts often can offer more personalized support systems and flexible infrastructure options because they have fewer customer demands and more time to spend on optimizing their services.

Be sure to check out some of our other frequently recommended hosts to ensure you’re getting the full scope of available services, prices, and options. Happy hosting!

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2. https://w3techs.com/technologies/overview/web_hosting
3. https://www.godaddy.com/
4. https://www.aboutamazon.com/what-we-do/amazon-web-services
5. https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/ho-1and1
6. https://www.ionos.com/about
7. https://www.hetzner.com/unternehmen/rechenzentrum/
8. https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/ho-liquidweb
9. https://www.liquidweb.com/about-us
10. https://www.liquidweb.com/data-centers/
11. https://w3techs.com/technologies/details/ho-digitalocean
12. https://www.digitalocean.com/solutions/global-infrastructure
13. https://wpengine.com/blog/celebrating-wordpress-excellence-agency-partner-awards-launch
14. https://www.statista.com/statistics/227082/countries-with-the-highest-internet-penetration-rate
15. https://www.wpbeginner.com/research/ultimate-web-hosting-statistics-and-market-share-report
16. https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/godaddy-has-exited-29-data-centers-since-2019/
17. https://techjury.net/blog/how-many-websites-run-on-aws
18. https://www.rebootonline.com/website-statistics
19. https://trends.builtwith.com/cms/GoDaddy-Website-Builder
20. https://www.hostinger.com/blog/two-million-customers
21. https://support.hostinger.com/en/articles/1583267-where-are-hostinger-servers-located
22. https://support.wix.com/en/article/wix-offices-around-the-world
23. https://www.linkedin.com/company/squarespace
24. https://www.wix.com/about/us
25. https://www.siteground.com/datacenters
26. https://www.websiteplanet.com/web-hosting/xserver
27. https://news.microsoft.com/source/features/innovation/microsofts-virtual-datacenter-grounds-the-cloud-in-reality/
28. https://domainnamestat.com/statistics/registrar/others
29. https://www.namecheap.com/about/