When WordPress began in 2003, many people didn’t realize how big it would become. However, according to data collected by the web technology survey company W3Techs, WordPress currently supports 29.3 percent of all websites, or almost 60 percent of the market share.
For comparison purposes, the next site in line is Joomla, a system with only 3.2 percent of the websites worldwide, or 6.5 percent of the market share. This highlights just how big WordPress is on a global level.
But how do you know which WordPress webhost will help you effectively run your site? Before you answer that question, there are three factors to consider.
-
Your Budget
While cost should not be the only factor to think about when choosing a WordPress hosting site, it is definitely worth consideration. After all, if a particular hosting plan doesn’t fit into your budget, it doesn’t matter whether it meets your needs or not. If you can’t afford it, you’re not going to buy it anyway.
Unfortunately, there is no one-size-fits-all way to calculate how much you should spend on a WordPress webhosting plan. So, the key is to shop around and find a plan that offers as many of the features you need at a price you’re willing and able to pay.
-
Your Bandwidth Needs
In their WordPress Hosting Guide, HostAdvice explains that your bandwidth needs rely on a number of factors. These include the number of people who visit your site, how much media (videos, pictures, etc.) you plan to use, and whether you offer downloadable materials.
Basically, the more content you plan to put on your site, the more interactive you expect it to be, and the more users you hope to create, the more bandwidth you’re going to need. Therefore, it helps to decide as much of this up front as you can so you choose a WordPress webhosting site that can fit your current and future needs.
-
Your Desired Hosting Type
There are many different types of WordPress hosting sites. Tech Reviews Online shares that three of the top options include:
- Shared Hosting – This hosting option involves other users sharing the same server as you through that particular host. Advantages include lower maintenance, easier implementation, and lower costs, making this a preferred choice by many new business owners working with a smaller budget and engaging a smaller amount of web traffic.
- Virtual Private Server, or VPS – You still share the server with others with VPS, but you’re given your own pre-allotted amount of memory and power so other users’ configurations and website traffic don’t negatively impact your site’s performance. This option is a little more expensive than shared hosting, but not as costly as dedicated hosting, while also providing a bit more security along the way.
- Dedicated Hosting – With dedicated hosting, you get your own physical server, one that is dedicated solely to your business and your business only so you can use it any way you’d like. This option tends to be more costly and requires more knowledge to create and use, which makes it more appealing to larger companies or individuals who are website savvy.
As you can see, each hosting type has its own advantages based on the particular situation. So, it’s all about choosing the one that best suits your site’s individual needs, as well as your business’s budget.
When choosing a WordPress hosting site, it helps to consider your budget, your bandwidth needs, and which hosting type is best for your situation. Do that and you’re well on your way to choosing the WordPress hosting site best suited to you.