{"id":3758,"date":"2023-02-20T14:18:15","date_gmt":"2023-02-20T14:18:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hostitsmart.com\/blog\/?p=3758"},"modified":"2024-07-08T17:12:36","modified_gmt":"2024-07-08T11:42:36","slug":"best-web-hosting-control-panels","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hostitsmart.com\/blog\/best-web-hosting-control-panels\/","title":{"rendered":"11 Best Web Hosting Control Panels (Paid+Free)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

First, let\u2019s start with the basic question: What is a Control Panel? <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Control Panel is what the name suggests; it is a tool used to control or manage a website. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s understand with an easy example; you have a computer, right? So where do you go when you want to change some settings, see the hardware devices connected to your PC, troubleshoot something you are having a problem with, or change, modify, or update any of the settings of your Windows? You go to the Control Panel of your Windows. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just like a control panel in your windows, a Web Hosting Control Panel helps you control and manage your website. It is a graphical user interface (or sometimes a web-based interface) that provides various tools for managing a website, the web hosting account, and sometimes the server. You can access this control panel online, mostly via a web browser.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every web hosting company<\/strong><\/a> offers you a control panel; some of these companies also provide various control panels you can choose from. Your web hosting experience is directly proportional to the number of great features and functionality of the control panel you use. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Either you can fall for a bad web hosting control panel that can single-handedly make your internet journey a nightmare, or you can compare different control panels and choose the best web hosting control panel so your journey is easy and comfortable.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s move on to a fundamental question:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>What is a Control Panel Used For in Web Hosting? <\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You can use a Hosting control panel for various purposes: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Domain Management – <\/strong>Tasks like Domain Renewal, DNS editing, Domain Forwarding, IP addresses, registering new domains, MX records, Subdomain management, etc., are done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Application Installation <\/strong>– You can easily install Web applications or Content Management Systems<\/strong><\/a> (CMS) like WordPress, Drupal, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Account Administration<\/strong> \u2013 Plan Renewal, Altering billing profile, updating the password, etc. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Email Management – <\/strong>Setting Up mail accounts, email forwarders, and spam filters. Managing and deleting Email accounts can be done. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 File Transfer Protocol\/FTP – <\/strong>Accessing files and folders on the server. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Backups – <\/strong>Create Backups regularly<\/strong><\/a> via cPanel, so you don\u2019t lose your data.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Website Setup – <\/strong>You can easily setup up your website through cPanel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Website data transfer – <\/strong>You can easily transfer data using FTP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Website Analytics – <\/strong>Analytical tools to constantly monitor the growth of your website. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 File and Database Management – <\/strong>Easy file and database management. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Support – <\/strong>Live chat support and other support features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also Read: <\/strong>How To Host A Website In Simple Steps<\/strong><\/a><\/p>

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can also do all of this directly by logging into the server, but you\u2019ll have to have web development knowledge. One wrong step and all of your hard work go to waste. Moreover, web panels are fun; they are intuitive and simple. Would you like to watch a Movie or read its script? Of course, you\u2019d like to watch it; it\u2019s more fun and simpler.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now that we have tackled some fundamental questions, it will be \u2018fun\u2019 to move on to the article’s main topic. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also Read: <\/strong>5 Things Small Business Should Know About Web Hosting<\/strong><\/a><\/p>

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>11 Best Web Hosting Control Panels <\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>1. cPanel<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

cPanel<\/strong><\/a> is one of the most popular Control Panels based on Linux. It was initially released in 1996 and is the oldest hosting control panel software. It beautifully incorporates a graphical and server management interface through Web Host Manager (WHM). It is easy to navigate and is suitable for both beginners and developers.  <\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Cpanel\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Some of the features of cPanel include:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Email Creation and Management. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Spam filters, autoresponders, and email forwarders. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Visitor and Error Logs. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Domain name Settings, registration, and transfer. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Database management.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Great Security features like IP blocker, leech protection, and password-protected directories.  <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Performance Monitoring, Analytical tools.  <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> Automatic Backups.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> File management and FTP.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 <\/strong> There are lots of compatible third-party apps and tools that can be used to extend its functionality. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also Read: <\/strong>Everything You Need To Know About Cpanel \u2013 Beginner\u2019s Guide<\/strong><\/a><\/p>

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>2. Plesk<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Plesk<\/strong><\/a> is also one of the most popular hosting control panels. While cPanel\u2019s interface is based on Linux, Plesk\u2019s interface is heavily influenced by Windows. While few control panels are offered for windows, Plesk is available for Windows and Linux. It has a lot of great automation tools, which makes server maintenance very easy. <\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Plesk\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

It has 4 different Login Levels with additional permissions and responsibilities:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Administrator –<\/strong> It is the highest level of the four and can manage multiple servers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Client\/Reseller –<\/strong> This level requires permission from the administrator and can create and manage multiple domain names.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u27a2 Domain Owner –<\/strong> As the name suggests, this can manage only one domain name. 
\u27a2 Mail User –<\/strong> It is the lowest level of the four levels and can manage mail-related options like spam filters, passwords, webmail interface, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the features of Plesk include: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Have an Application vault for Installing a variety of Applications<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Includes WordPress Toolkit<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Includes eCommerce Integration<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Simple File Management<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Consists Database Support<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Consists of Web Framework Support<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Consists of Free & Premium Extensions<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Includes Self-Repair Tools<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also Read: <\/strong>7 Best CMS For Building An ECommerce Website<\/strong><\/a><\/p>

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>3. Direct Admin<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Direct Admin<\/strong><\/a> was initially released in 2003 and has been updated continuously to overcome limitations. That\u2019s why it is a very stable control panel. It is available for Linux and BSD  Systems. It has a Multilingual Interface.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Direct-Admin\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Some of the features of Direct Admin include: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Multiple Access Levels –<\/strong> Administrator, User, and Reseller for better security.  <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Built-in anti-spam tools. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 DNS management. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Backup creation <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Database Creation and management.  <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Reseller account creation and management.  <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 File Management. <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Analytical tools <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Simple to use <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>4. H-Sphere<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

First things first, H-Sphere<\/strong><\/a> is a complex tool. You\u2019ll have to learn it well, but once you know the ways of H-Sphere, you\u2019ll not regret it, as it is a more advanced hosting control panel. And it has solid documentation and robust community support. So, if you get lost in the functions, there is a community to help you out of them. <\/p>\n\n\n

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\"H-Sphere\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Some of the features of H-Sphere include:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Site Building tools <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 SSL Support <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Multilingual Support <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Scalable clustering <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 E-commerce functions <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2605 Email System, etc.  <\/p><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you learn to control the force, the force will make you powerful. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also Read: <\/strong>How To Set A Budget For Your Business Website Development<\/strong><\/a><\/p>

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/span>5. FlyWP<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

FlyWP<\/strong><\/a> is a complete, cloud-based server manager focused on the keys, logs, clocks and plugins of your WordPress sites. Features include automatic updates to core, plugins and themes, advanced caching and leading edge security including Docker-isolated sites and automatic SSL. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FlyWP also provides destinations for backups with sites in the cloud, developer tools including WP-CLI support and Git, and the ability to easily create and manage staging sites for testing.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Flywp<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Key Features Of FlyWP<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n