Liquid Web 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 & Liquid Web — The winner is SiteGround!”

You probably had a favorite ride if you visited your state’s fair as a kid. Maybe it was the dizzying Scrambler, or perhaps you preferred a more traditional roller coaster. Regardless, your favorite ride was unique because it was what you liked — not necessarily what your friends did. Finding a web hosting provider is similar to choosing a favorite ride at the fair. Each company has its unique ups and downs. This comparison will look into Liquid Web and SiteGround to see which host gives customers the best thrill.

Overall Rating
5.0/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit SiteGround »
Overall Rating
4.8/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit Liquid Web »

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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

We've gotten to know a few key members of the Liquid Web team personally, and let us tell you: The passion they put into talking about their products hints that this is a company worth checking out.

Liquid Web boasts supreme uptime, always-there-for-you support, and a constant commitment to building out more functionality for the customer. Liquid Web has a redundantly built, multi-tiered network with four datacenters in the United States, plus one more in Amsterdam.

The company takes advantage of all the latest technologies on the market and owns all of its hardware, giving Liquid Web more control over the options it can offer clients.

Liquid Web has three main tracks for managed hosting, not including managed WordPress and WooCommerce solutions. You pay a small monthly premium for managed hosting, but the peace of mind you get in exchange is priceless.

With Liquid Web taking over the infrastructure management, you're free to focus on what really matters: your content and/or your customers. Customers can easily install popular blogging software and eCommerce tools through the ever-popular and easy-to-use cPanel.

Users get unlimited email accounts, secure access with SSH, and really fast page loads thanks to SSD storage. Should disaster strike or questions come up, you are never alone.

Within minutes, you can be on the line with a highly trained technician who will be well-equipped to walk you through any hosting dilemma. Liquid Web's best-effort support policy means the company will try to help any way possible, even if it requires work outside of traditional services.

The bottom line: If you're ready for the real deal in web hosting — high-powered hardware and a team you can count on — you should consider Liquid Web. Based on our experience, it's really no surprise customers consistently vouch for Liquid Web managed hosting.

  • Heroic Support® and fully managed hosting
  • Linux or Windows options with cPanel, InterWorx, or Plesk
  • Industry leader in customer loyalty and NPS score
  • Servers proven faster than AWS and Rackspace
  • 100% uptime guarantee plus built-in backups
  • Get started on Liquid Web now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
40 GB SSD - 200 GB SSD
Domain Name
New or Transfer

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

N/A

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

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

★★★★★ 4.8/5.0

#3 out of 8 in Dedicated Hosting reviews

Liquid Web's strong suit is managed dedicated server hosting. The company owns and operates five state-of-the-art datacenters in the US and Europe works tirelessly to build and maintain custom solutions for added performance and security.

Liquid Web offers single- and dual-processor servers with fully, core-, or self-managed plans. Each machine comes with at least 250 GB of high-performance solid-state drive storage and a 1TB SATA drive for backup.

The company's allocated RAM and bandwidth outpace competitors and give customers luxurious environments primed for speed. Site owners can further upgrade RAM and disk size, as well as capitalize on add-ons for a cPanel Premier 100 control panel, advanced DDoS protection, and enhanced security.

Featuring top-of-the-line Cisco equipment, the Liquid Web n+1 network is redundantly built to allow routing devices to quickly self-heal. They're designed to bounce back and correct system failures without interrupting the customer's connection.

With the integration of premier providers, Level 3, Verizon, Comcast, Cogent, and Equinix, the Liquid Web network is optimized for rapid and fault-resistant performance.

If you want feature-rich dedicated resources and relentlessly reliable technical support, Liquid Web should be on your shortlist.

The company is known for strong managed service offerings, but the drawback to managed hosting is usually the cost, but Liquid Web's monthly rate for managed services is quoted as low as $20, which is a steal. Plus, a 24/7 support team and in-house solutions keep the cloud-level flexibility and performance up and the cost down.

  • Linux or Windows with choice of 3 control panels
  • 100% network and power uptime guarantees
  • Custom configurations and instant provisioning
  • Auto-migrations, backups, and real-time monitoring
  • Block/object storage and load balancer add-ons
  • Get started on Liquid Web now.
Money Back Guarantee
N/A
Disk Space
480 GB SSD - 960 GB SSD (+ 2 TB SATA)
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

★★★★★ 4.5/5.0

#9 out of 9 in VPS Hosting reviews

It's no secret by now that Liquid Web is known for best-in-class technology and reliability that exceeds expectations. The company's cloud VPS environments embody that reputation to its fullest — including managed WordPress and WooCommerce products.

Liquid Web offers a high-powered cloud VPS solution backed by the company's popular SLAs promising high uptime rates and highly reliable help from the Heroic Support® experts.

With high-powered SSDs and, of course, the Heroic Support® team, the VPS platform shines among the managed services offered at Liquid Web.

You'll pay a bit of a premium for managed hosting, but there's a reason customers rave about Liquid Web's hands-free management, incredible SLAs, and excellent uptime rates.

RAID-protected SSD storage, which decreases latency and keeps your page loads fast and secure, comes standard for Liquid Web VPS users. The company offers a range of management plans, as well as the choice of popular control panels and API access, so you get the perfect level of infrastructural management support for you and your site.

The Liquid Web VPS infrastructure was engineered with customer priorities in mind. These solutions are ideal for users who want cloud-like flexibility. Customers can instantly provision and deploy their virtual server, then easily upgrade, downgrade, clone, or resize.

If you want easy scaling, screaming-fast speed, custom functionalities, and unparalleled support, look no further than Liquid Web for your VPS. The company owns all the hardware and boasts large development team, so the technological possibilities are pretty much limitless.

  • High-speed hosting that's faster than AWS, Rackspace, and Digital Ocean
  • FREE backups, CDN, and DDoS protection
  • Up to 16 processors with all-SSD storage
  • Choice between cPanel, Plesk, or InterWorx
  • Real-time monitoring and 100% uptime guarantee
  • Get started on Liquid Web now.
Money Back Guarantee
N/A
Disk Space
40 GB SSD - 200 GB SSD
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

★★★★★ 4.6/5.0

Among the latest additions to the company's product portfolio, Liquid Web's managed WordPress and WooCommerce hosting solutions is delivered by the WordPress specialists at Nexcess.

The fully managed support rids site owners of the responsibility of maintaining core installs and updates, as well as monitoring the server infrastructure. You run your WordPress blog or business, Liquid Web and Nexcess will run the rest.

Unlike other premium WordPress hosts like WP Engine or Flywheel, Liquid Web does not build packages around bandwidth usage or monthly visitors. Each package is allocated ample SSD storage and bandwidth to more than power the number of sites allowed.

There are no upcharges for increases in traffic, and site owners can quickly add resources with just a call. Instead of WP MultiSite, Liquid Web partnered with iThemes to provide site owners with iThemes Sync Pro.

Site administrators can oversee multiple sites from one intuitive dashboard, gaining insights from uptime and downtime, Google Analytics, and SEO performance. WordPress is a favorite recommendation of ours for both personal and professional websites.

When you combine the flexibility and intuitiveness of WordPress with the best-in-class infrastructure and support of Liquid Web and Nexcess, you've got a match made in hosting heaven. The company's managed WordPress and WooCommerce hosting plans are going to give you all the performance and customization you want without the frustration.

If you're thinking of building a WordPress site, you should consider letting Liquid Web and Nexcess help you do it.

  • Speedy WP-optimized hosting delivered by Nexcess
  • FREE Object Cache Pro, image compression, and CDN
  • Unlimited page views and no overage charges
  • Automatic plugin updates and performance monitoring
  • FREE premium plugins and advanced PHP support
  • Get started on Liquid Web now.
Money Back Guarantee
30 days
Disk Space
15 GB - 800 GB
Domain Name
New or Transfer

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

N/A

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

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SiteGround vs. Liquid Web - Our Conclusion

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

That’s all for this comparison. Both these providers offer some of the most user-friendly customer support we’ve seen, but we acknowledge that budget may be the top priority when making your choice. Whether you’re a thrill seeker, who’s excited by Liquid Web’s high-powered dedicated and VPS plans or a laid-back adventurer more suited to SiteGround’s beginner-friendly shared hosting, one of these plans will fill your needs.

Overall Rating
5.0/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit SiteGround »
Overall Rating
4.8/5.0 ★★★★★
Visit Liquid Web »

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