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Our studies cover a range of trending topics and deliver original, reliable data you can't get anywhere else on the web.
By: Alexandra Anderson
Editor: Lillian Castro
Reviewer: Cristian Lopez
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★★★★★
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.
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★★★★★
You've heard all the buzzwords: VPS, the cloud, clustered architecture — it all started here! If site performance and reliability matter to you, look no further than Media Temple's Grid hosting service. Considered the first public cloud host, Media Temple is the benchmark by which all other hosts are measured. Interested in what makes Media Temple's Grid so exceptional? How about its exclusive cluster of redundant, blazing-fast SSDs. That means your database will never slow down your site, regardless of the amount of traffic you take in. Other features that make your site scream are pre-installed PHP with FastCGI and the TrueSpeed CDN by SiteLock. For the novice users, please don't let the jargon scare you. The best part about all those features is they are there automatically, allowing you to focus on the other details that make your website great. Automatic data backups and security mean that your data is always safe. All of that is wrapped up nicely in an extremely easy-to-use interface built by the experts at Media Temple. The company provides award-winning 24/7/365 live support via phone, chat, email tickets, and Twitter. If you are ready to take your website to the next level, there is no better host to consider than Media Temple.
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★★★★★
#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.
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★★★★★
If site performance and reliability matter to you, look no further than Media Temple's unique Grid hosting service. Ranked lower on our list of cheap hosts because of the high price tag, the performance value of Media Temple’s service is hard to fully appreciate when compared with the crowd of bargain-basement hosting providers. The company's forward-thinking shared hosting platform is built with cloud-grade scalability and redundancy — this is not an average shared hosting plan. Media Temple clusters servers with blazing-fast SSDs to provide top-notch reliability and room to grow. Despite the complicated, high-priced services, Media Temple excels at providing a positive, streamlined user experience. The custom-built control panel seamlessly directs you to the adjustable resources and tools you need to succeed, all while the company's team of support agents is constantly on standby to help. Media Temple's award-winning service is available 24/7/365 via phone, chat, email tickets, and even Twitter. If you are ready to take your website to the next level, no matter the cost, there is no better host to consider than Media Temple.
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★★★★★
Are limitless server resources and a clean neighborhood invaluable to your business? If you answered "yes," look no further than Media Temple’s dedicated hosting. While not for everyone because of the higher-than-average pricing, there is no arguing the impressiveness of this enterprise-level server. Offering self-, semi-, or fully-managed options, Media Temple’s dedicated servers have boundless flexibility to go with their power. First, start with your choice of Linux operating systems pre-installed for you. Then, if you are on the self-managed plan, the sky is the limit with full root access (the stuff geeks dream about). If you opt for the semi- or fully-managed solutions, you get to choose between the always-familiar cPanel or Plesk control panels, or even receive the assistance of one of the company's system administrators. Those customers enjoy performance monitoring, daily backups, operating system and application updates, constant security, and regular malware scanning. All of that comes with a pretty hefty price tag, but the next-level services and computing power goes a long way toward justifying the investment. If you already use the company's VPS options and are in need of something more, you’ll be pleased to hear that it is a seamless, zero-downtime transition to a dedicated server. Finally, Media Temple offers a 99.99% service uptime guarantee on the company's dedicated products. If the company falls short, you get 20% of your monthly hosting fee back for each 20 minutes of downtime that month.
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★★★★★
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.
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★★★★★
Although Media Temple is more expensive than most hosts, the company's managed VPS hosting is second to none from a performance perspective. With an incredible amount of hardware for the price and fully-managed virtualized servers, Media Temple offers serious VPS hosting for serious people. In today’s online world, speed matters. Whether it’s website conversions or search engine exposure, how fast your site loads dictates a lot. That is where Media Temple’s VPS shines. The company's all-SSD servers, guaranteed resources, and instant scalability mean you are ready for anything. Beyond straight speed, what you are truly paying for with Media Temple is reliability. The company boasts a ridiculous SLA that guarantees a 99.99% uptime, or less than an hour of downtime for the entire year. We love ourselves some awesome modern hardware, but our favorite part about Media Temple has always been the team's support and luxurious managed services. At a fraction of a dedicated IT team, offering assistance by phone, chat, email, or Twitter, the company's award-winning support staff is standing by no matter the issue.
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★★★★★
#4 out of 9 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.
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★★★★★
Media Temple has long been one of our favorite web hosts for luxury managed hosting, and the company's WordPress offerings are no exception. If you value cutting-edge technology, do not overlook Media Temple. Having helped pioneer cloud technology, the company has taken its knowledge and applied it to an exceptional WordPress-focused plan. Web developers will love Media Temple's fully integrated tools, such as one-click staging, site cloning, and standard Git integration. SSH, SFTP, and phpMyAdmin access are also appreciated additions. Everyone can appreciate the company's modern load-balanced, all-SSD hardware. Media Temple’s interface is incredibly approachable and easy to use, and the company's support is truly second to none. A quick setup wizard gets you going and automated daily backups, core updates, and 24/7 uptime monitoring remove the stress of any maintenance. Starting at $20.00 per month for two sites, Media Temple is a moderately priced managed WordPress host. With features comparable to other WordPress-specific packages elsewhere, the company's modern hardware and exception support make Media Temple a strong consideration for anyone serious about their website’s performance.
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★★★★★
#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.
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