Hostinger is a reliable web hosting service known for its low costs and speedy loading times.
The company is newer when compared to other web hosting providers. Since they began in 2004, Hostinger has made a name for itself for its low-cost web hosting.
In fact, the platform boasts 29 million users across 178 different countries. Hostinger ranked first for the best cheap web hosting plans
Hostinger Web Hosting Review
Decent Uptime
Cheap web hosting services might seem appealing on the surface. But it’s not worth going this route if your uptime rates are going to be insufficient.
Hostinger doesn’t have the best uptimes rates in the industry, but they aren’t the lowest either.
Usually, we like to see web hosting services deliver an average of 99.9% uptime over the course of a year. Hostinger has some months in the 99.8% range, and even as low as 99.04%, which definitely brought their average down. But some months of 100% uptime saved their average.
You need to weigh the cost against your needs. If you have a small personal website with minimal traffic, 10-14 hours of downtime in a year isn’t going to kill you. However, if you have a business website, you’ll want slightly better rates.
Overall, Hostinger’s uptime rates are good enough for most small websites.
FAST AND SECURE WEB HOSTING
Fast Loading Times
Hostinger delivers fast speeds for how cheap it is.
On their website, Hostinger states that their server response time is 43 milliseconds, which is very good. Honestly, you probably would need to have a top-tier plan using very little resources to achieve those speeds.
Either way, you can expect to have loading times somewhere in the 300-400 ms range on average. Again, this still pretty good for the price.
The industry average for page loading speed is closer to 900 ms, so Hostinger pretty much cuts that number in half.
Money-back Guarantee
If you’re unhappy with your Hostinger web hosting services, you can get your money refunded within 30 days of signing up.
This should be a good enough reason for you to sign up if you are on the fence about how your site will perform using Hostinger. You’re essentially getting 30 days of free hosting. 30 days is basically the industry standard for web hosting promises. Most providers will offer you this period, at a minimum, to change your mind and get your money back.
Hostinger’s money-back guarantee is good, but it doesn’t go above and beyond compared to some other web hosts out there.
Live Support
Customer support can make or break one’s decision to use a web hosting provider. If you have any questions or problems, you need to know that you can contact my web host immediately.
However, this may not be as important for some of you. Again, if you’re using Hostinger to host a small personal blog, then getting in touch with a customer service representative in an instant may not be at the top of your priority list.
Regardless of your situation, it’s nice to know that Hostinger’s live chat is easy and fast.
To test it out, we sent them a message asking for help regarding a refund and got a response in less than a minute. We were happy with the language and terminology used by the customer service representative as well. Their instructions were simple and easy to follow.
Furthermore, Hostinger has knowledge base articles on their website that offer guidance for self-help. I’d recommend using those as a resource if you end up choosing Hostinger.
FAST AND SECURE WEB HOSTING
Free Domain and Website Builder
All Hostinger plans come with a free domain and website builder. So for those of you who are building a new website from scratch, you can take advantage of Hostinger’s easy to use drag and drop builder.
They have lots of great templates for you to use as a starting point as well.
Hostinger Templates
Honestly, Hostinger’s website builder isn’t the best on the market. But it’s good enough for a simple website.
I wouldn’t let this feature make or break your decision. But it’s a nice added benefit for those of you who are just looking for a cheap web hosting offering an all in one solution. Hostinger has the ability to be your one-stop shop for hosting, domains, and site builders.
Simple Interface
The Hostinger administrative dashboard is super easy to use. It’s very straightforward, even if you don’t have much experience with web hosting or managing a website.
It has large icons segmented into different categories, making it quick and easy to find exactly what you need.
You’ll have access to any installed apps, like WordPress, from here as well.
Hostinger makes it easy for you to change your usage, upgrade your plan, change your domain, and manage your email settings. You can even access your usage statistics to see if the plan you’re currently signed up for meets the needs of your website.
“Unlimited”
Hostinger has some great unlimited options available for specific plans.
For example, both the Premium and Business shared hosting plans come with unlimited bandwidth, unlimited MySQL databases, and unlimited email accounts.
So choosing a higher-tiered plan over the entry-level pricing. The unlimiteds and freebies are worth the few extra bucks per month.
Price
Hostinger is cheap. So if you want a low-cost web host, this is a logical place for you to start. But keep in mind that like most web hosts, Hostinger has some tricks and ploys when it comes to their pricing.
Keep in mind that your rates will go up when it’s time to renew your contract. Again, this is a pretty standard practice in the web hosting world.
Other Considerations
Anything cheap usually comes with some trade-offs. Hostinger is no exception to this rule. There are a few drawbacks that you should keep in mind when you’re reviewing their plans.
Must be Logged in to Access Support
You can only access the live chat feature if you’re logged into your account.
This can be a problem if you’re locked out of your account or forget your password. It also presents a challenge for prospective Hostinger customers.
For example, if you’re not currently using Hostinger, you can’t live chat with a representative if you have questions about migrating your site to their platform. Instead, you’d have to just submit a general inquiry ticket through their website and someone will contact you via email.
This is not ideal. But again, it’s a tradeoff for the price.
Exceptions to Payment Terms
Hostinger has a 30-day money-back guarantee. But there are some exceptions to these terms that are worth mentioning. You won’t necessarily get a “no questions asked” full refund for all of their services.
The following products are not available for refunds under this policy:
- Redemption feeds
- Domain name renewals
- Privacy protection
- SEO toolkit
- G Suite
- Domain name registrations and transfers can be refunded if they are cancelled in the first 96 hours of the purchase, not 30 days.
Additional Domains Aren’t Free
Premium, Business, Cloud, and VPS plans come with a free domain name. But if you’re planning to use Hostinger to host more than one website, you’ll need to pay for additional registrations.
With that said, the prices are pretty affordable. You can get a .xyz or .tech domain for just $0.99 per year. But .com domains start at $8.99 per year.
For those of you who are registering a new domain, I’d recommend getting it somewhere else. You can check out my list of the best domain registrars for alternative options.
Conclusion
Hostinger is a trusted name in the industry, offering cheap web hosting solutions for small websites. So if you’re looking to cut costs on web hosting, then you can consider Hostinger.
Even though Hostinger offers cloud and VPS hosting plans, I’d personally stick to their shared options. This is what they are best known for.
The Premium and Business shared plans will be more than enough to meet the needs of a small website or a personal blog.