Pros and Cons of Using Shared Hosting

Shared hosting is affordable, beginner-friendly, and a great place to start if your website is new. You might have heard that it can pose security risks or be unscalable or slow. These drawbacks do exist, but ultimately, the quality of the service depends on your hosting provider.

Pluses of shared hosting

Shared hosting is sometimes associated with low speed and lack of reliability. Again, it depends on the quality of the web host’s server. The best providers offer clean control panels, good servers, many security features, and optimal user resources.

Affordable

You can pay as little as $4 per month for shared hosting. There are numerous websites on one server, and they share the end price. This is very appealing to a user on a budget. Many hosts offer a free domain name for this low price.

The low cost makes shared hosting perfect for writing a blog, publishing a personal project, and even starting a small business.

User-friendly

Shared hosting providers take care of server administration and technical maintenance. You don’t need a technical background to operate your site. You’re not responsible for setting it up, installing software, or upgrading hardware – all time-consuming activities that can be frustrating at best and impossible at worst. A shared hosting plan frees you up to focus on growing your site.

If you choose WordPress to support your site, you don’t need any coding knowledge to design it. You can set everything up through the control panel.

You might ask: Shouldn’t I get WordPress hosting if I’m using WordPress? It’s a reasonable question. Typically, shared hosting is ideal for a new site or a small one with low traffic. WordPress hosting offers additional security, scalability, and personalization that benefit more prominent websites. You can get more details about the pluses and minuses of shared hosting vs. WordPress hosting here.

Accessible

Shared hosting is a good option for new websites because it comes with many tools to help users get started. Most providers offer one-click WordPress installation, which makes the website setup a piece of cake. Shared hosting packages come with cPanel or custom control panels, making changing necessary server settings easy. Moreover, cPanel hosting is particularly popular due to its user-friendly interface and comprehensive management features.

Multiple domains are possible

You can have more than one domain under the same account. This is a big advantage for people with multiple projects or websites. All domains are managed from the central control panel, saving time and effort and simplifying administration.

Disadvantages of shared hosting

Shared hosting is not the right fit for everyone. Some factors make it less than perfect for certain websites and projects.

Performance issues

Hosting multiple sites on a single server guarantees low prices, but it also means that you’re sharing the resources with every other user. If one website overuses its resources or gets a traffic spike, this can affect every other website on the server.

If you are sharing an email server with a spammy website, your emails might also end up in the recipients’ spam folders.

Quality hosting providers will handle challenges stemming from the shared environment, such as malware and spam.

Technical limitations

Understandably, technical restrictions exist to keep websites on the shared server safe, but they can make specific projects unfeasible. Let’s say you want to use a different operating system, install server software, or modify other technical settings. In this case, switching to a virtual private server (VPS) is recommended as it comes with better control and customization options.

Scalability

Some shared hosting providers offer very high bandwidth and storage limits that a basic website will never exceed. If your website grows, it might make sense to switch to VPS hosting. It can handle more traffic right from the start, accommodating a popular website’s needs.

Low website speed

Websites on the same server share CPU, RAM, and bandwidth. Your site’s loading speed might drop during peak traffic periods, resulting in a less-than-satisfactory user experience.