When you enter the hosting world, you will be bombarded with plenty of options. The ultimate goal is to establish a robust online presence and attract customer attention.
Many people do not know the difference between shared hosting and WordPress hosting. These are the two most popular hosting alternatives. The average price for a shared hosting plan is between $3 & $10. It is the fastest-growing segment in the hosting industry after cloud hosting.
On the other hand, WordPress powers more than 39.6% of the internet, and 64.1% of all CMS websites are WordPress-based – a 4% jump from 2020. That’s not all; WordPress offers 50,000 plus plug-ins and over 3,500 GSL licensed themes. Both shared hosting and WordPress have their fair share of loyalty.
ALSO READ: 5 Things Small Business Should Know About Web Hosting
This blog will touch on the following topics while discussing the differences between shared hosting and WordPress hosting.
- What is shared hosting?
- What is WordPress hosting?
- What are the key differences between WordPress hosting and shared hosting?
- What is managed WordPress hosting?
- What type of hosting is ideal for WordPress websites?
- Is managed WordPress hosting the best option for your website?
Let’s get into it straight away.
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What is shared hosting?
In layman’s language, it is like renting an apartment. Let me explain. In a building, there are many apartments, and each family or individual lives in each apartment. They have been allocated a share of resources like electricity, space, water, gym membership, laundry, playground in return for a specific amount called rent. The same is the case with shared hosting.
Shared hosting is a low-priced solution where your website shares server space and resources like bandwidth, CPU, storage space, etc.
In short, a single server is split into numerous parts to cater to different websites. In comparison, a dedicated server’s space and resources belong solely to the website that has paid for its exclusive services.
For growing businesses and startups, shared hosting is the ideal solution. Most small businesses and new websites won’t require extensive resources, and shared hosting will do the trick. (there are exceptions, though). Shared hosting is cheap and comes with a built-in cPanel that facilitates easy site management, plus the provider will handle the maintenance aspect.
However, you may not enjoy optimal performance when your site receives higher traffic or other sites hog the resources. On the downside, shared hosting does not provide much scope for customization, and neither is it very secure.
What is WordPress hosting?
Let’s not make it very complex to understand. WordPress hosting is nothing but web hosting that is optimized for WordPress websites. Depending on the WordPress hosting plan you choose, you will get certain additional features to help you exceed business goals.
For the most part, a WordPress setup will come along with features like a one-click install, allowing you to create a WordPress-powered website or automatic updates to the WordPress core. Also, WordPress’s support staff is better enabled to handle technical issues related to WordPress than regular hosting providers.
Understand that WordPress hosting is not mandatory to run WordPress. You can run WordPress on any kind of hosting because its demands are few. Technically, you have very few requirements to run WordPress. What are these requirements? – MySQL 5.0.15 or higher and PHP 5.2.4 or higher.
You can run WordPress on any host, but does that mean you should? To get optimal performance and the best out of your website, you should use a WordPress host. Within WordPress hosting, you have three types of hosting: shared WordPress hosting, unmanaged WordPress hosting, and managed WordPress hosting, which brings to the million-dollar question?
Why is managed WordPress hosting so special, and why should you shell out extra money for it? A managed WordPress hosting provider will oversee the following aspects of your plan:
- Server uptime
- Administrator functionality
- WordPress installation and updates
- Performance optimization
- Regular backups
- Malware scan & removal
- Periodic security checks
- Site migrations
- Flawless WordPress support
With managed WordPress hosting, you can concentrate on sales, operations, and other management aspects while your hosting provider will manage the technical side of things. If you intend to opt for unmanaged hosting, you need to ask yourself the following questions.
- Are you familiar with hosting-related terminology?
- Do you have the resources & the manpower required to manage it yourself?
- What level of support do you require from the hosting team, if any?
- Can you manage unanticipated problems?
- How soon can you rectify technical issues?
- Do you have a backup plan in case things go south?
- What is your budget?
Based on the answers to the above questions, you can choose shared hosting, unmanaged hosting, or managed hosting. Now that you know quite a bit about shared hosting and WordPress, how should you go about choosing the best type of hosting for your business? Let’s dig deeper into the differences between shared hosting and WordPress hosting.
Shared Hosting vs. WordPress hosting – An in-depth analysis.
When you need to choose between shared hosting and WordPress hosting, you need to understand the minute differences. Once you know the vital differences between the two, choosing the best among them will become easier.
1. Server Resources
Be it WordPress or regular hosting, you need to understand that any hosting can be shared, dedicated, managed, or unmanaged hosting. With traditional shared hosting and shared WordPress hosting, you will have to share the resources with other websites.
The only difference is that the other websites can be WordPress-based or may use some other platform in regular shared hosting. However, with shared WordPress hosting, every site sharing server resource will surely be a WordPress-powered website.
2. Performance
The server speed, performance, and quality depend on multiple factors like your choice of hosting provider, time of the day, number of websites sharing the resources, plan chosen, etc. If you opt for regular shared hosting, there is no guarantee that you will get the desired resources when you need them the most.
Heavy traffic or other websites can hamper your website’s performance for a certain period, leading to heavy losses, both financial and productivity-wise.
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3. Security Concerns
Security is a vital aspect of hosting. With a conventional shared hosting server, you can only expect the bare minimum security measures against DDoS attacks, brute force attacks, hacking attempts, ransomware, virus attacks, etc. Needless to say, you are not a top priority for the hosting provider because countless others are using the same server.
Viruses and hackers who target WordPress websites specifically need expert protection. Regular shared hosting providers can’t match the security features provided by a WordPress hosting server.
WordPress websites are usual targets because of their immense popularity and extensive usage. To counter and nullify such threats, WordPress has exclusive security features in place. Understand that all websites are on a shared WordPress hosting plan; releasing bulk upgrades, bugs, and security patches are relatively more manageable and cost-effective.
Most importantly, WordPress has a research and development team and a support team. These teams identify the chinks in the armor and suggest solutions/improvements.
ALSO READ: Best Practices To Secure Your Website
4. Customer Support
No matter how good a hosting plan is, all the features/add-ons are of no use without a helpful customer support team. Conventional shared hosting plans come with decent customer support that is competent enough to handle CMS and site builder-related issues. Are they capable of handling WordPress-related issues and fixing them within a stipulated time? The answer is no, or maybe because they are not WordPress experts. In business, there is no room for no and maybe.
When we talk about WordPress hosting, their team consists of experts and dedicated customer service associates who regularly deal with such problems. Not only do you get support for queries, performance issues but also for setup and other services.
5. Cost Analysis
Shared hosting is more cost-effective as compared to dedicated hosting or managed hosting. The same applies to shared WordPress hosting, but the only difference is that WordPress shared hosting is considerably more expensive because of its WordPress-specific features.
As you upgrade further, the costs will rise. Managed WordPress Hosting and Dedicated Hosting costs more than shared WordPress hosting.
6. Add-on Features
Opting for shared WordPress hosting will get you wonderful features like one-click installation, auto-updates, daily malware scanning, etc., but you can’t expect the same from traditional non-WordPress hosting. Remember that you don’t require WordPress hosting to run a WordPress website, but you get the best results when a WordPress website runs on WordPress hosting.
Common FAQs on Shared Hosting vs. WordPress Hosting.
Most people have the following questions about choosing between regular shared hosting and WordPress shared hosting. These questions and their answers may provide you with some valuable insights.
1. Is WordPress the same as shared hosting?
You need to know that WordPress is a platform like Windows, IOS, Linux, etc. Like others, WordPress has shared, dedicated, managed, and unmanaged hosting plans. WordPress is a hosting solution created mainly for the WordPress platform.
2. Is the cost of managed WordPress hosting worth it?
As a business owner, managed WordPress hosting is your best option if you don’t have the time or resources to get into server management and the complications surrounding it. You can divert the time, money, and effort saved on server management towards other activities.
3. Do I need managed WordPress hosting?
WordPress hosting solutions are designed to provide optimal performance, security, and functionality. These qualities make it easier for you to get things started and remain stress-free.
4. Will I have access to the control panel?
No, you won’t get access to the control panel. While the entire responsibility of server maintenance and management is that of the WordPress hosting provider, you don’t need to worry about such issues. Their commitment is to ensure the smooth functioning of your website.
If you require any additional support, plugins, upgrades, updates, or replies to queries, you can contact the service provider’s helpdesk.
5. What kind of websites can benefit from managed WordPress hosting?
WordPress hosting is built specifically for WordPress websites. If you want to migrate your site to WordPress, the hosting provider can help you with that, but he will charge you a specific sum. WordPress has many plugins and features to customize your experience: blogging websites, eCommerce, or business websites.
ALSO READ: Guide For Non-Techies To Build A WordPress Website
Final Thoughts
As a business owner, if you want to get a foothold in the online world and expand your business gradually, shared WordPress hosting is an excellent option. You can upgrade to better plans as you climb up the corporate ladder, depending on your requirements. With each upgrade, you get access to more advanced features and excellent add-ons. The only constant is unrelenting customer support. In short, WordPress provides you with all the necessary tools to take your business to the next level.
Consider all factors carefully before taking a plunge. These factors include your budget, business requirements, degree of support required, amount of resources, long-term goals, vision, etc. Based on a detailed SWOT analysis, future business goals, and your understanding of hosting, you can choose the hosting plan of your choice.
