5 best Bluehost alternatives 2024: compared and reviewed
Through independent research and testing, our team of experts offers transparent and thorough reviews of web hosting providers. We use the same testing criteria for all providers to offer a fair and unbiased assessment of each hosting service.
Our in-depth articles include feedback about our hands-on hosting experience and other crucial information for potential customers.
Learn moreFor nearly two decades, Bluehost has been a leading choice for web hosting, trusted by countless users. However, the market has evolved significantly, and many new competitors have emerged, offering easier-to-use platforms, better security, more features, and lower prices.
To help you choose the best alternative, the Cybernews team and I have researched 56 web hosts and narrowed them down to my top 5 Bluehost alternatives. In this article, I’ll review each of them and reveal my top pick for the best Bluehost alternative.
Note: The ratings and insights presented in this article reflect our team’s personal experiences and hands-on testing. Keep in mind that the ideal website builder can differ based on individual requirements. It’s important to assess your own website needs to find the best option for you.
5 best Bluehost alternatives in 2024
- Hostinger – best Bluehost alternative overall
- SiteGround – Bluehost alternative for eCommerce
- Wix Hosting – best Bluehost alternative for all-in-one website building
- HostGator – budget-friendly and versatile hosting provider
- Dreamhost – best Bluehost alternative for WordPress
📢 LIMITED OFFER: Get up to 87% OFF Hostinger + free months
Our in-house research team and expert writers work hand in hand to regularly test hosting services and provide accurate and fact-checked information. Discover the ins and outs of how we test and evaluate website hosting providers.
Why not use Bluehost?
Many alternatives to Bluehost might better suit your needs, as some aspects of Bluehost can be disappointing. For instance, it isn't the fastest or most cost-effective option, particularly when you take its pricing into account. Many features come with additional costs. Performance and reliability can be improved, and customer support may not always meet expectations. For those seeking an alternative, Hostinger is a good option. It provides reliable hosting services with good performance, making it an ideal choice for small to medium-sized businesses looking for a solid hosting provider.
Best Bluehost alternatives compared
I tested and compared 5 hosting providers to see how they stack up. Here's how Bluehost performs against its competitors.
Provider | Price | Best for | Hosting types | Uptime guarantee | Control panel | Website migration | Free domain | Free SSL | Money-back guarantee | Customer support | Server locations |
Bluehost | From $1.99/month | Small websites | Shared, WordPress, WooCommerce, VPS, cloud, and dedicated hosting | 99.9% | cPanel | Free WordPress migration (1 site) or paid (up to 5 sites) | Yes | Yes (first year) | 30-day | Yes | The US |
Hostinger | From $1.66/month | Small-to-medium website hosting | Shared, WordPress, VPS, cloud, and email hosting | 99.9% | hPanel | Free Automatic WordPress Website Migration | Yes | Yes | 30-day | Yes | The US, the UK, Netherlands, France, Lithuania, Brazil, Indonesia, and India |
SiteGround | From $2.99/month | Very secure personal or business website hosting | Shared, WordPress, WooCommerce, reseller, and cloud hosting | 99.9% | Custom | Free automated WordPress migration and site transfer | Yes | Yes | 30-day | Yes | The US, the UK, Spain, the Netherlands, Germany, France, Australia, and Singapore |
Wix Hosting | From $14.50/month | Beginners and small businesses | Shared | 99.9% | Custom | Free website migration plugin | Yes | Yes | 14-day | Yes | The US and Europe |
HostGator | From $2.29/month | Blog hosting | Shared, WordPress, VPS, cloud, and dedicated hosting | 99.9% | cPanel | 1 free WordPress/cPanel migration and inter-server migration | Yes (first year) | Yes | 30-day | Yes | The US |
DreamHost | From $2.59/month | Small-to-medium websites | Shared, WordPress, VPS, cloud, and dedicated hosting | 100% | Custom | Free website migration plugin and paid options for website migration | Yes | Yes | 97-day | Yes | The US (Virginia and Oregon) |
A2 Hosting | From $1.75/month | WordPress website and blogs | Shared, managed WordPress, VPS, reseller, and dedicated hosting | 99.9% | cPanel | Free (1 site) and paid option for larger migrations | No | Yes | A 30-day full refund or an anytime refund for unused services | Yes | The US, the Netherlands, and Singapore |
The best Bluehost alternatives – detailed list
After researching 56 hosting services, we've identified the top five alternatives to Bluehost. Below, you'll find a detailed comparison of each, including performance tests, pricing, and features, to help you make an informed choice.
1. Hostinger – best Bluehost alternative for managed WordPress hosting
Features | Free SSL, hPanel, and speed-oriented tools |
Uptime | 100% |
Speed | 511ms |
Best for | Cheap and fast small-to-medium website hosting |
Current deal | Get up to 87% OFF Hostinger + free months |
Hostinger offers a broad range of services at competitive prices, making it an excellent option for those on a budget. Despite its affordability, Hostinger remains reliable and provides user-friendly features, making it suitable for beginners as well.
So what does Hostinger actually include?
- Hostinger has its own hosting and site management panel called hPanel. In terms of ease of use, it’s quite similar to cPanel used by Bluehost. So no matter your level of experience, you'll be able to navigate it easily.
- The provider has a 99.9% uptime guarantee, which Bluehost lacks, so you can be sure that your site won’t go out for days.
- Hostinger offers 8 different server locations to choose from with its shared hosting plans, unlike Bluehost, which offers only one location. You can either go with The US, the UK, Netherlands, France, Lithuania, Brazil, Singapore, or India.
- Additionally, Hostinger is a very performance-oriented provider. It keeps its hardware and software up to date and integrates many advanced features, which make Hostinger able to handle traffic jumps without any trouble.
- Lastly, the prices are some of the lowest in the market, with shared plans starting at only $1.66/month, which is much cheaper when comparing similar value Bluehost plans.
Hostinger makes it easy and affordable for anyone to create a fully functional website. With their low-cost plans and user-friendly tools, you can build a website without spending much money or putting in much effort.
Hostinger performance
Hostinger doesn’t fail to surprise with its performance results. For this part, I’ve tested the provider’s ability to handle heavy traffic on site.
I’ve sent 50 Virtual Users (VUs) onto the site to see if Hostinger can handle it. Just a quick note, 50 new continuous users each minute for a month could come up to ~50 000 monthly visits.
And Hostinger handled the full 50 VUs, unlike Bluehost – 15 VUs.
Even the cheapest Hostinger’s plan can handle pretty intense traffic without any failed request (red line, which is, thankfully, nowhere to be found) or continuous slowdowns (blue line). At the same time, Bluehost’s can’t.
Also, Hostinger has 8 server locations with its shared hosting plans, whereas Bluehost doesn’t let you choose your server’s location at all.
The outline here is that Hostinger delivers reliable performance at low prices. It may have a few tricks up its sleeve, but at least its prices and performance are better than Bluehost.
Hostinger pricing
Hostinger delivers 2 shared and 1 cloud hosting plan, as opposed to Bluehost’s 4 shared ones. The Premium shared hosting ($1.66/month), the Business package ($2.95/month), and the Cloud Startup plan ($6.45/month). On the other hand, Bluehost charges $1.99/month (Basic), $5.45/month (Plus & Choice Plus), and $9.99/month (Pro).
For an entry-level website, the plans above give you what you need. You get free custom domain, at least 100 email accounts, decent bandwidth, and good performance, plus a few other benefits like weekly backups and a free SSL certificate.
- Premium ($1.66/month) – with this plan you receive up to 100 websites, 100GB storage, unlimited bandwidth, and databases. Suitable for a personal blog with more traffic, portfolio, or for a freelancer.
- Business ($2.95/month) – the plan includes everything from Premium plus, daily backup and 4 times the processing power and memory. Recommended for a heavier website.
Lastly, just like Bluehost, Hostinger offers the advertised prices only for the first installment. However, keep in mind, that while the renewal rates are quite higher, they're not as steep as with Bluehost.
To get the best price for a very well-packed plan, go with Premium. If you’re willing to commit for 4 years, the price will be only $1.66/month.
2. SiteGround – speedy Bluehost alternative focused on businesses
Features | WordPress staging, caching, Ultrafast PHP, backups |
Uptime | 99.99% |
Speed | 217ms |
Best for | Small and medium business websites |
Current deal | Get up to 83% OFF SiteGround + FREE TRANSFER |
If you’re on the lookout for more Bluehost alternatives, SiteGround is a good option too. Its whole hosting platform is focused on the content management system and offers great security and speed tools to power it up even more.
Let’s look at what SiteGround offers in more detail:
- SiteGround provides a native hosting control panel, which is easy to use, and provides everything for a smooth start in setting up a website. You can reach the Site Tools panel from the management area of each separate website.
- SiteGround for WordPress is also simple and straightforward. If you want to set up WordPress on SiteGround, the host will provide you with all the required steps and even has a WP Migrator plugin, and WordPress Started Sites plugin, similar to Bluehost.
- The hosting provider has 3 shared hosting plans that come with free SSL certificates, email accounts, a native CDN, unlimited bandwidth, and built-in caching.
SiteGround is a versatile option that caters to both beginners and more advanced users that want scale.
SiteGround performance
SiteGround is regarded as one of the fastest providers we’ve tested. It showed impeccable results during our testing with a fully built WordPress site. We performed a stress test by sending 50 Virtual Users (VUs) to the site. As a result, it remained as fast as with 0 visitors.
In addition to this, SiteGround has multiple data center locations across 4 continents, which is more than what Bluehost offers. The server versatility also adds up to an exceptional SiteGround performance making it a great alternative.
All in all, SiteGround is a functional, reliable, and fast alternative option to Bluehost. It caters to all kinds of users, comes with blazing-fast speeds and performance, and is easy to use.
SiteGround pricing
SiteGround offers 3 hosting plans, as opposed to Bluehost’s 4. For starters, all 3 shared hosting plans come with free SSL certificates, email accounts, a native CDN, automatic daily backups, unlimited bandwidth, and more perks. Let’s dissect the most popular plans:
- StartUp (starts at $2.99/month) – you can host 1 website, get 10GB SSD storage space, and up to 10,000 monthly visitors.
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GrowBig (starts at $4.99/month) – can host unlimited websites, get 20GB SSD storage, on demand backups, staging, Ultrafast PHP, and a collaboration tool.
If you’re looking for a starter plan for personal use, consider the StartUp plan. It will let you do a test run to get the hang of it. If you’re planning to scale, you can opt for a GrowBig plan and get the extra additions.
3. Wix Hosting – Bluehost alternative for all-in-one website building
Features | Website builder, free domain, shared hosting, 24/7 customer support |
Uptime | 99.9% |
Speed | 217ms |
Best for | Beginners and small businesses |
Current deal | Get Wix and save 50% |
If you’re considering hosting providers for your website, Wix Hosting is a user-friendly alternative to Bluehost. While Wix is known for its all-in-one website building and hosting solution, it doesn’t cater specifically to WordPress users but instead offers a seamless drag-and-drop interface ideal for beginners and small businesses. Let’s break down how Wix Hosting compares to SiteGround, focusing on ease of use, performance, and pricing.
- Provider offers a fully integrated website builder with built-in hosting. There’s no need to install or manage a content management system like WordPress—everything is done directly through the Wix dashboard.
- You get a free custom domain for one year on Premium plans, unlimited bandwidth on higher-tier plans, and up to 100GB of storage.
- Wix offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee, which keeps most small sites running smoothly. However, it lacks the server variety of SiteGround, which has data centers across 4 continents.
- Wix provides 24/7 support through a ticketing system and has a rich knowledge base for self-help.
Wix Hosting performance
Since we don’t have direct access to Wix’s hosting servers, our testing focused on key aspects like uptime, page loading speed, and stress-handling capabilities.
Wix promises a 99.9% uptime guarantee, which is on par with industry standards. So far, though, no significant outages have been observed, and Wix seems reliable for everyday use.
Our site didn’t experience significant performance issues while testing was underway. The 217ms response time remained the same throughout, with only a few short-lived spikes.
For our tests, we built a minimalistic website and used webpagetest.org to assess how quickly it loaded. The site was quick to connect and deliver initial code, with decent layout stability. However, it took a bit longer for the site to become fully interactive, though this may not impact smaller or less complex websites as much.
Wix Hosting pricing
Wix offers several pricing plans to cater to different needs, starting with the Core plan at $14.50/month, which is ideal for personal websites or small businesses. This plan includes essential features like a free custom domain for one year, unlimited bandwidth, and up to 50GB of storage, providing a solid foundation for a basic website.
For those who need a bit more, the Light plan is priced at $17.00/month. It offers everything in the Core plan but adds more advanced SEO tools and some initial eCommerce functionalities, making it a good option for users looking to start selling online.
If your focus is eCommerce, the Business plan at $18.00/month includes more robust tools, such as payment processing, product catalog management, and customer loyalty programs. It also comes with up to 100GB of storage, making it suitable for businesses that need to manage online stores. It's important to note that each Wix premium plan is for one website only.
If you want to host multiple sites, you’ll need to purchase separate plans for each one. Additionally, all plans come with a 14-day money-back guarantee, allowing you to try the service without commitment.
Check out our full Wix hosting review to see whether it would be the best option for you.
The Business Plan at 18.00/month offers the best value for most users, especially if you're looking to sell online. It strikes a good balance between price and features, providing everything needed for a small to medium-sized business.
4. HostGator – excellent budget-friendly and versatile alternative to Bluehost
Features | Free website builder, free domain, WordPress hosting, unlimited emails, 24/7 customer support |
Uptime | >99.99% |
Speed | 525ms |
Best for | Cost-effective portfolio or blog hosting |
Current deal | Get up to 81% OFF HostGator |
Consider HostGator as another worthwhile and affordable Bluehost alternative if Hostinger didn’t catch your eye. This provider offers a wide range of pricing options for various hosting needs. Additionally, the appealing price tag doesn’t come at the cost of feature abundance or quality. Here’s a glance at what HostGator offers:
- You’ll easily utilize this service due to its approachable customized dashboard combined with the familiar cPanel, much like Bluehost.
- The starter plans include all the essentials to kick-start your web hosting journey. You’ll have free SSL, unlimited email accounts, a server-side firewall, WordPress support, and a free domain.
- Although HostGator is easy to use, it offers 24/7 customer support via live chat and a phone line in case you ever encounter issues, similar to Bluehost.
- Subscription options cover shared, WordPress, VPS, reseller, and dedicated hosting, thus accommodating various customer needs.
- HostGator provides excellent price-to-performance results. During our tests, we experienced >99.99% uptime and an average response time of 525ms.
While reviewing HostGator, we concluded it’s a balanced option for price-conscious users looking for a well-performing alternative to Bluehost.
HostGator performance
Let’s dive into the details regarding HostGator’s performance. Our evaluation process involved sending 50 virtual users to put some pressure on the site for an extended period to test its mettle. Overall, we were more than happy with the outcome.
Our site didn’t experience significant performance issues while testing was underway. Response time remained the same throughout, with only a few short-lived spikes.
Besides that, we also used HostGator to host a website for around two months to monitor long-term performance. During this time, the webpage experienced 3 outages, resulting in 5 minutes of downtime. This hiccup is insignificant in the long term and allows us to confidently say that HostGator offers >99.99% uptime. Finally, the average response time during this time was around 525ms, which is quite good compared to the hosting market average.
HostGator pricing
Before you can start with HostGator, you must choose a hosting plan best suited for your needs. The five available options are shared, WordPress, VPS, reseller, and dedicated hosting. For now, we’ll focus on the most versatile and budget-friendly shared hosting option, which begins at only $2.29/month.
Furthermore, this plan is split into three subsequent tiers. Your choice will depend on the scale of your online presence.
- Hatchling. The first tier costs only $2.29/month and permits hosting one website.
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Baby. The second option asks for $3.09/month and unlocks the ability to host unlimited websites.
It’s also worth noting that some optional security features are available as paid extras. For example, automatic backups cost $23.95/year, which many consider a crucial component of any hosting endeavor. Another unlockable feature is SiteLock Essentials, which costs $23.88/year.
The most cost-effective HostGator choice is the shared hosting baby plan. Opting for the three-year plan gives you $3.09/month prices for all the hosting essentials you may need, such as unlimited website support with top-tier performance and 24/7 customer service.
5. DreamHost – best Bluehost alternative for affordable hosting
Features | Free SSL, domain, native control panel |
Uptime | >99.99% |
Speed | 231ms |
Best for | WordPress-focused business websites or blogs |
Current deal | Get DreamHost now, 72% OFF! |
DreamHost is a pretty straightforward alternative to Bluehost. The provider is highly WordPress-oriented and offers only 2 shared hosting plans, which are very affordable. Additionally, the provider puts ease of use at the forefront of its services with its native user management panel.
Here are the main features that make DreamHost a good Bluehost alternative:
- DreamHost comes with its own custom control panel, and the user interface is very easy to use. You will be able to navigate it without getting lost, which is a plus for beginners. Managing all essential aspects of your website takes just a few minutes, similar to Bluehost.
- To make website creation that much easier, DreamHost includes a free WordPress-focused website builder. What this means is that the DreamHost’s builder is integrated as a plugin in your WordPress website.
- While it’s pretty rare to have a 100% uptime guarantee for shared hosting plans, DreamHost offers exactly that. So while this is a little ambitious, you can be sure that your site will remain live longer than the average shared hosting website, unlike Bluehost.
- Lastly, compared to Bluehost’s pricing, DreamHost offers good monthly prices regardless of the billing period’s length. Plans start at $2.59/month with a 3-year billing option, $2.95/month for an annual plan, and $4.95/month for a monthly plan.
Basically, DreamHost is affordable, reliable, easy to use, and it seems to have a solution for virtually everyone.
DreamHost performance
Just like many other Bluehost alternatives on this list, DreamHost’s ability to perform under stress was just as impressive. I’ve examined the provider’s limits by sending 50 Virtual Users (VUs) onto the site.
Being able to handle 50 VUs is a pretty good achievement as such traffic could easily crash the server and leave your site to sink. Well, that’s not the case with DreamHost. The host handled 50 VUs with no signs of struggle. Clearly, that’s not the limit here.
The response time (blue line) did have a few jumps, but overall it had little impact on the performance as a whole. Much better results than with Bluehost.
And if it weren’t enough, DreamHost actually offers a 100% uptime guarantee. Plus, for each hour of downtime, DreamHost credits 1 day of hosting.
Lastly, I should point out that the provider does have data centers in the US alone. This means that the best performance results can be expected in North America too.
Overall, DreamHost is a reliable and affordable web hosting platform that offers inclusive plans, good prices, and simplicity above all. In my opinion, it’s a good alternative to Bluehost.
DreamHost pricing
DreamHost offers only 2 shared hosting plans. You have the Shared Starter ($2.59/month) and Shared Unlimited ($3.95/month). Bluehost has 4 plans and noticeably less reasonable prices.
Both plans come with a free domain and its privacy, unlimited traffic, and a pre-installed WordPress. Not to mention that you can use a WP website builder, enjoy fast SSD storage, and a free SSL certificate. However, there are a few differences between the two.
- Starter ($2.59/month) – allows connecting only 1 website and if you want an email account, you have to pay $1.67/month for it. But it’s ideal if you want a simple personal website.
- Unlimited ($3.95/month) – allows connecting unlimited websites, and includes unlimited email accounts. You can use this plan to create a small business website.
To secure the best value for money, give Unlimited a look. With a 3 year subscription, this plan will round up to only $142.20 in total.
6. A2 Hosting – best Bluehost alternative for fast and secure hosting
Features | Free SSL, caching, DDoS protection, cPanel |
Uptime | 99.99% |
Speed | 597ms |
Best for | Fast and highly secure personal or business sites |
Current deal | Get A2 Hosting now, 86% OFF! |
A2 Hosting is a highly secure and performance-focused alternative to Bluehost. As for site management, the host also includes the audience’s favored cPanel for a very straightforward and simplistic process. Best of all, the pricing is pretty affordable with prices starting at just $1.75/month.
Now let’s explore A2 Hosting’s offerings in more detail:
- Talking about ease of use, the provider offers a standard cPanel for all site management tasks. The panel is very functional and intuitive, although slightly outdated. Regardless, both beginners and advanced users will have no issues using it.
- When it comes to security, A2 Hosting is one of the most secure hosting providers. Even the cheapest entry plan comes with tools like an SSL certificate, server-level firewall, DDoS protection, automatic updates, Patchman enhanced security package, and more.
- A2 Hosting pays a lot of attention to the site’s speed. The host even has 2 plans that are hosted on Turbo servers and offer enhanced performance. Features like LiteSpeed web servers and cache, HTTP/3, and more are included with both plans, free of charge. On top of that, you can choose from 4 server locations, unlike Bluehost, which offers only one.
In short, A2 Hosting is a performance-focused provider that brings good ease of use, as well as impressive speed and server power.
A2 Hosting performance
When it comes to performance, A2 Hosting is far from disappointing. Especially when performing under stress.
To test the provider's abilities in handling intense traffic, I’ve set 50 Virtual Users (VUs) to the website. Keep in mind that 50 VUs continuously roaming around the site could result in 50 000 monthly views. And that’s a lot!
Yet it seems that A2 Hosting had no issues. The provider handled the full 50 VUs without breaking a sweat. For comparison, Bluehost can handle only 15 VUs.
The graph shows that A2 Hosting managed to keep a stable response time (blue line) with no failures (red line) in sight. This suggests that the cheapest provider’s plan is capable of even more.
Lastly, while Bluehost has its data centers in the US alone, A2 Hosting
allows you to choose from 4 locations – 2 in the US, 1 in Europe, and 1 in Asia.
As a whole, A2 Hosting is one of the best Bluehost alternatives if you wish to run a fast and secure site. Small business, an online store, or large blog site – A2 Hosting got you.
A2 Hosting pricing
Just like Bluehost, A2 Hosting offers 4 shared hosting plans, with prices starting at $1.75/month and going up to $13.75/month. Alternatively, Bluehost’s prices range from $1.99/month to $9.99/month.
Now talking about offerings, all A2 Hosting plans are well-equipped. No matter which plan you’ll choose, it will include a free SSL, unlimited email accounts, an extensive set of security tools, as well as cloning and staging tools. Although Bluehost includes a free domain with all its plans, A2 Hosting charges extra for a custom domain.
Here’s what each plan has to offer:
- StartUp ($1.75/month) – allows hosting 1 site and comes with 100GB SSD storage for it. This plan is best suited for a personal or a small business website.
- Drive ($3.95/month) – comes with unlimited websites, SSD storage, and free automatic backups. The plan will best suit a small business website that requires more server resources.
If you’re looking for the best plan for a large personal or a small business site, consider Drive. With a 36-month billing, the plan will cost you only $3.95/month or $142.20 as a whole.
Bluehost alternatives testing methodology
At Cybernews, we take extra care in evaluating web hosting providers. To learn more about our diligent testing process, visit our how we test web hosting page.
In our search for the best Bluehost alternatives, we began with 56 providers, focusing on those offering faster speeds and more affordable pricing. From this initial group, we selected 5 providers for in-depth testing. Here’s what we assessed during our evaluation:
- Performance. We used the k6 tool to conduct stress tests, sending 50 virtual users to each provider’s site to evaluate how well they managed increased traffic.
- Control panels and security. We examined the usability of each provider's control panel and the security features they offer.
- Server locations. We considered whether each provider offers multiple server locations, especially those outside the US.
- Price. We closely reviewed the pricing of each provider, including the features included at that price and their renewal rates.
We ranked these providers from 1 to 5 based on their performance, pricing, and server locations, ensuring you find the best value in web hosting.
Best Bluehost alternatives: final recommendations
Choosing the right hosting provider can be a daunting task, especially with so many options available today. While Bluehost remains one of the top hosting providers in 2024, you may be looking for alternatives that better align with your specific needs. Whether you're after lower prices, more resources, or enhanced performance, understanding Bluehost's limitations can help you make a more informed decision.
If you're seeking top performance, Hostinger stands out a great option. With multiple data centers to choose from, Hostinger can efficiently handle heavy traffic, and its renewal prices are more reasonable. SiteGround is another excellent choice, particularly if speed is your priority. It boasts more data center locations than Bluehost, ensuring faster load times. HostGator is also a solid option, offering robust performance suitable for running various types of websites.
Ultimately, the best alternative to Bluehost will depend on your budget and specific needs. Each of these hosting providers has its strengths, so take the time to evaluate your options and select the one that best fits your requirements.
What’s wrong with Bluehost?
Saying that something’s wrong with Bluehost is a little far-fetched. The provider can satisfy a relatively wide range of needs. The problem is that it can do that up to a point. A point that may not be enough for some people.
There’s even an expression saying that good is only good enough until something better comes along. And that applies beautifully in Bluehost’s case. So, what’s wrong with Bluehost?
High renewal fees
The notable increase Bluehost makes from the initial purchase price to the renewal fee is inconvenient, to say the least. The first time you buy a shared hosting plan, prices start at $1.99/month for Basic, $5.45/month for Plus and Choice Plus, and $9.99/month for Pro.
If such price increases seems unreasonable, there are Bluehost alternatives that have cheaper renewal fees.
Bluehost’s server location
While the host performs pretty well in the United States, that’s where its area of expertise ends. Bluehost’s data centers are located in the US alone. While this is no point of worry for anyone whose audiences reside in the US too, others might give this a second thought.
If your audience is far away from the server, where your website is located, the data to and from the server has to travel a long distance. The long distance equals a long wait time, and that means high bounce rates. So, if your audience is from Europe, Asia, Africa, or Australia (haven’t seen server locations in Antarctica yet), you should opt for a different host.
However, if you have visitors from the US as well as somewhere else, you can enable Bluehost’s free Cloudflare CDN integration. If you choose to use it, your content can be cached on over 200 servers worldwide. While this does not change the actual server, it still helps to perform faster in other regions of the world.
Bluehost’s customer support
When it comes to customer support, you may face some issues. One notably good thing is that you can expect to reach support agents 24/7 via live chat, phone calls, ticketing, or email. However, while some agents are very well trained, knowledgeable, and eager to help, others might not be so helpful.
In general Bluehost's support is easy to reach and fairly quick to reply to. Yet the biggest drawback is that if you want a guarantee that you'll get only the highest quality services, you have to purchase one of its Blue Sky plans. And those are not cheap, with prices starting at $24.00/month.
In short, Bluehost's customer support, like most things where a human factor is involved, could be a hit or miss. At the same time, to make sure that you can receive useful help and support, you have to pay extra.
Overall, I have to say that all the drawbacks above are not significant enough to not use Bluehost altogether. It can be the right choice for beginners or small websites. However, if you want to take it up a notch, the provider’s alternatives above should be a better fit.
Final thoughts
While a popular host, Bluehost might not be for everyone, and some users may be looking for alternatives. Its competitors offer may offer more in terms of performance, resources, and security features at a cheaper prices, in some cases.
My top Bluehost alternative is Hostinger. Its prices start from just $1.66/month, and you get a free domain, 100 email accounts, and an SSL certificate with each plan. Plus, our tests revealed great performance results, and you get to choose from 8 global data centers.
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Best Bluehost alternatives FAQs
Can I migrate my website from Bluehost to another hosting provider?
Yes, you can migrate your website from Bluehost to another hosting provider. It is your right to do so. Some providers, like Hostinger, DreamHost, and InterServer, even offer free migration.
What can I use instead of Bluehost for hosting an online store?
If you're looking for a powerful and resource rich solution for a small-to-medium-sized online store, Liquid Web is the best for the job. A budget, yet still performance-oriented version of this would be Hostinger.
Which Bluehost alternative is better for WordPress?
There are a lot of great WordPress web hosting providers. However, due to its affordable price range and good performance, the best Bluehost alternative for WordPress hosting is Hostinger.
What is the cheapest alternative to Bluehost?
The cheapest alternative to Bluehost is A2 Hosting. Of course, you have to commit to long-term subscriptions to enjoy the lower fees.
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