Capital Hosting

Shared web hosting is big money. The United States alone contains tens and thousands of shared web hosting providers. It's an extremely lucrative business, because almost everybody seeks to set up a website sometime in their life. And the majority of them opt for shared hosting because it's cheap and easy. Many later upgrade to VPS or dedicated, however, because they become disappointed with their shared services, which is why you should be familiar with both the pros of cons of shared web hosting before you pay a single dollar for it.

Pro: Cheap Prices

What makes shared web hosting so appealing is its outrageously cheap price. Anybody can set up shop online for as little as $3 per month, or approximately $36 per year, not including domain registration prices and taxes, of course. Other hosting options, such as VPS and dedicated hosting, cost more than $36 per month, let alone a year.

Con: Limited Space/Bandwidth

You get what you pay for in the web hosting world. If you pay for a cheap shared hosting service, you're likely going to find yourself with extremely limited storage space and bandwidth. Mind you, if your site will be relatively small, this shouldn't cause you any problems. But if you intend for it to grow, the shared server could become a problem.

Pro: Easy To Use

With shared web hosting, the provider handles all management responsibilities, including the installation and maintenance of the operating system, security software, databases and server modules (Apache). The limited functions available to you can be accessed through an extremely easy-to-use graphical Control Panel.

Con: Limited Management Options

Not having to worry about server management can also be a bad thing, especially if being able to choose a particular operating system and server software is essential for your business needs. Furthermore, you cannot install custom security software, meaning the security of your website lies solely in the provider's hands.

Pro: Quality Support

Shared hosting providers typically provide 24/7 technical support by email, phone, chat or all of the above. This means anytime you encounter a problem, you need only create a ticket and the provider will resolve it for you. This is especially useful for individuals with limited technical expertise.

Con: Poor Support

Not all hosts are equal. It's wise to check up on a host's customer and technical support reputation before signing up, because some providers offer atrocious support. To make matters worse, some providers refuse to support issues not directly related to hosting, such as problems with third-party applications like Wordpress.

Conclusion

Shared web hosting can be extremely beneficial to business owners and individual entrepreneurs who are on a very limited budget. Before jumping into a plan, however, take the time to conduct proper research. Read reviews. Call the provider and ask questions. And most importantly, choose quality over price. The best shared hosting plans cost a bit more money, but the benefits far outweigh the loss of a few extra bucks.

Vivek Saxena operates IPreferQualityWebHosting, an online resource that focuses on empowering Web entrepreneurs regarding the best shared hosting plans in the industry.