A2 Hosting vs. Bluehost (2018)

If speed and performance, partnered with support and security, are at all priorities in your web host shopping, A2 Hosting should be a leading contender.

We got to sit down with A2 Hosting's CEO, Bryan Muthig, and Director of Business Development, Andy Melichar. Discussing the technologies behind their products only piqued our interest, and we were very excited to be let loose within the hosting nerd's playground that is A2's interface.

When A2 Hosting first launched in 2003, they were developer-focused. "We were actually one of the first companies to offer PHP 5, and one of the first hosting companies to offer Ruby on Rails in the shared hosting platform," Bryan told us.

As they've grown, a primary focus has been performance, especially after a survey asking customers to rank the features they look for in a host revealed "site load speed and performance" as a top priority, behind support and reliability.

A2 Hosting was also one of the first to offer SSD hosting, and today, they remain one of only a handful of SSD hosts out there. "When we looked at SSDs, we said, 'If we're going to do this, we're going to do it right,'" Andy told us. Many hosting companies that attempt offering SSDs only include them on the file server and not the SQL server; therefore, web files can be uploaded, but performance suffers almost immediately.

A2 includes SSDs across the entire stack, and Bryan told us they found around a 300 percent increase in page load speeds using them. "We really look at things very deeply to be sure that we’re not just doing something because it’s the new, cool catch-word that people are talking about," Andy said. "We actually want it to be useful and to make a difference and not detract from the customer experience."

In the last year, A2 has launched their own Turbo hosting platform, with pre-configured caching options that include OPcache, Memcached, and a custom Turbo Cache product that resembles Varnish, but works with SSL (unlike Varnish). With the Turbo option, A2-optimized caching tools, and A2-optimized software available, sites experience page loads speeds up to 20 times faster than average.

Whether you want a dedicated server, standard shared hosting with cPanel, VPS, or some hybrid hosting solution in between, A2 can offer hosting to meet your needs. With expertly-tuned servers that house fewer accounts, A2 promises uptimes of 99.9% or higher, with "Guru Crew" customer support available all day, everyday.

While A2's Turbo hosting platform is an excellent stepping stone prior to graduating from the shared space, A2 Hosting also offers exceptional hosting solutions once you're ready to migrate to VPS, cloud, or dedicated servers.

Get full root access, SSD speed boost, and your choice of operating system with their Dynamic VPS, Cloud VPS, and Flex Dedicated Server plans. If you prefer a managed dedicated server, their Managed Flex Dedicated Server package comes pre-configured, with cPanel and HostGuard's comprehensive server management.

A2 runs accounts on their own, high-speed SwiftServer platform, with datacenter locations based out of Michigan (USA), Amsterdam (Europe), and Singapore (Asia). They offer a quadruple redundant network with security monitoring established 24/7.

A2's "Perpetual Security" includes their own hack scanning protection software: HackScan, KernelCare for daily, automatic, and rebootless kernel updates, and access to their Server Rewind backup system for database recovery. Their proactive security also includes an A2-optimized plugin for auto-hardening of WordPress sites to prevent hacks, brute-force defense, virus scanning, and dual firewall protection.

Overall, you can't go wrong in choosing A2 Hosting as a web host. Their inventive hosting solutions, impressive performance and security measures, and the constant thought they put into the user experience warrant our high praise for their services.