Choosing the right hosting option is not an easy task, but we feel this post will lessen that burden. New hosting plans with better features pop up constantly, and 2024 offers a variety of choices for both
shared hosting and
VPS plans.
When you need to choose between Shared Hosting and Virtual Private Server (VPS), there are a few key differences you need to take into consideration.
What We Looking for in Shared Hosting vs VPS Comparison
Resource Allocation:
- Shared Hosting: Shares resources with other sites.
VPS: Provides a private portion of the server with dedicated resources.
Performance:
- Shared Hosting: May experience slowdowns due to shared resources.
VPS: Typically offers better performance with dedicated resources.
Traffic Handling:
- Shared Hosting: Not ideal for high traffic.
VPS: Handles more traffic, suitable for media-rich sites.
Security:
- Shared Hosting: Higher security risk due to shared space.
VPS: Offers better security with customization options.
User Control:
- Shared Hosting: Limited control with fixed packages.
VPS: Provides more control, including root access.
Scalability:
- Shared Hosting: Easily scalable.
VPS: Flexible, allows for adding resources as needed.
Shared Hosting - What Is It?
Shared hosting refers to a web hosting service where a single physical server hosts multiple websites. Since many users utilize the resources of a single server simultaneously, their monthly costs are low in comparison to all other hosting types.
When a website is built using a Shared Hosting plan, its data will be present on a server that keeps the information of a few other websites. So, one and the same server will be responsible for serving up the information of all websites hosted on it. Shared servers can host hundreds of users at the same time.
Every customer of the Shared web hosting server has access to features like large
databases, disk space, more potential monthly traffic,
FTP accounts, e-mail accounts, and more depending on the plan. System resources are allocated on-demand and each customer gets a percentage of the
RAM and the CPU resources of the Shared server.
Benefits of Shared Hosting
Budget-friendly to New Users
Shared web hosting provides a less expensive hosting solution. The hosting company can afford to give a low price due to the fact that all maintenance costs are distributed between many people. Basic plans start at a value of $30 a year and can reach over $100 for premium packages with unlimited
bandwidth, unlimited disk space, and other benefits.
Simply put, you are certainly more likely to pay more for VPS hosting than for Shared Hosting, as the cost of the Shared service is split between all users of the server. Because of that, it is lower in price compared to the slightly more expensive VPS Hosting option.
Simple to Self-Manage
You can manage your website via a user-friendly
control panel. The simplified user interface that is provided by the majority of hosting providers will make the management process simple. That includes the straightforward setup which in turn makes it easy to use for users.
All administrative tasks and monitoring duties associated with the Shared hosting are readily available and could be handled with a few clicks and application installs.
Suitable for Dynamic Websites
Websites that look different depending on the user device are called dynamic websites. This website settlement is especially useful for the creation of mobile-friendly websites. Popular examples of dynamic websites are Facebook, Twitter, Quora. They all generate a different interface that matches the screen dimensions of the device of each visitor.
Popular
content management systems (CMS) including
WordPress and
Joomla support this configuration model. These platforms tend to use various programming languages such as Perl, Python, or PHP, all of which can run on a shared server.
VPS Hosting - What Is It?
Virtual Private Server or
VPS for short is a type of hosting utilizing a virtualized environment that is also shared. VPS hosting gives you the power to host your website, its data and other files on a virtual machine that no one else has access to.
Security and privacy settings are already included with VPS and you need less time configuring them when you are setting up a machine or building up a website in this environment. You can choose who can have access to your data and that adds to the privacy benefit.
In addition, if you buy VPS from a hosting provider you will instantly get your own space on a virtual server. Uploading your website files is all you need to easily begin hosting with no extra time or money spent.
Benefits of VPS Hosting
Easily Scalable
Your new website can be scaled up quickly using different VPS hosting plan. One of the benefits of VPS Hosting is that it enables you to easily scale up your hosting plan to another that will match your website needs.
A good example to know when to scale up and put more resources in your web business is the moment your site generates a significant growth in visitor count. The number of visitors, increasing from hundreds to thousands, can make your homepage to display an error message regarding online traffic. Then you will need a VPS plan that can handle any amount of traffic.
VPS Hosting has features that allow you to scale faster and easier. For small businesses, paying a little higher sum right from the start helps to avoid unpleasant problems with the website as the business grows in the future. VPS is an excellent choice for ambitious companies that want to scale without worrying about crashing their website. Shared web hosting requires different setups and more time to switch plans compared to VPS.
More Resources
VPS hosting offers more resources from the get go. Even with the cheapest VPS plan, you have fewer limitations than Shared Hosting. If you choose a Shared hosting plan, as per the name suggests, you will need to share these resources. Naturally, that could lead to problems with the resources, traffic and security. If a website uses too much bandwidth, any other site on the server will be affected. A larger bandwidth is allocated within VPS plans, and VPS Hosting is overall better equipped to handle your site's growing traffic.
In addition, your website will not be able to use resources beyond what is allowed. However, with VPS Hosting you will have access to more server hardware available to you and significantly more resources output. You will also be granted root access through the server environment. This access allows you to install additional software and freely edit files on the server. The other advantage is that with VPS hosting, you have more space for a private drive. Space will be necessary and quite useful if you aim to expand your business to a high level.
Greater Customization
There is also a difference between the two types of hosting in terms of customization. At some point, you may want to have more control over the software you can install to optimize the performance of your website. With a Virtual Private Server, you have fewer restrictions on this. Compared, Shared hosting has limitations that cannot be exceeded in any way.
VPS hosting allows you to customize your plan and change limits even every month, if necessary. It is also more flexible as you can tweak the server more. The potential for configuring the software is limitless, but that doesn't mean you need all those tweaks. Overdoing things without backing up, can lead to accidental deletion of files or programs. Make only the changes deemed truly necessary for your site.
Do Both Shared and VPS Plans Include a Managed Service?
Both Shared Hosting and VPS Hosting have an optional but helpful Managed option. That is the biggest benefit - having a team of professionals tech experts handle the monitoring of your server and maintaining it.
In case you choose a Hosting plan that is managed, the management team will take care of basic server administrative tasks which will definitely guarantee relatively low maintenance from you yourself. With Managed Hosting, you can have the technical assistance for hardware upgrades, maintenance, software updates, DDoS protection, and every intricate detail related to security and patching.
Managed Service - Shared Hosting VS VPS Hosting
In Managed VPS Hosting the hardware, network and the whole server configuration could be fully managed. With Shared Hosting you will have fewer options to be configured, meaning less money spent for management.
Note that while some providers do not have a managed option, it is less common to see Unmanaged VPS, rather than Shared Hosting. This means that VPS hosting is more likely to have a Support Team working for you and monitoring your server.
If your website deals with a lot of personal user data, VPS hosting is best. The variety of protection features is excellent. The bottom line is that security can be entirely customizable by you with VPS hosting compared to Shared Hosting.
However, if you are a small business and do not need to tweak security enhancements that much, the Managed Shared Hosting option is the right one for you.
Conclusion on Shared Hosting VS VPS Hosting
To say that one hosting option is greater than the other will be a lie. Both VPS and Shared hosting have their benefits and specific uses to a different array of business clients. From small to large, from carefree to frantic, from budget to limitless, there are hosting plans for all online businesses and websites.
We hope that this post from HTH.guide has been diligent enough to highlight the most crucial advantages and differences of both types of hosting. That should be plentiful in helping you choose the right hosting plan for you.
Shared Hosting vs VPS - FAQ
What Is Shared Web Hosting?
Shared hosting, just like its name suggests, allows you to share one server with other customers of the same web hosting company, in other words other users of this server.
This means that all of your different websites data is on the same server, which maintains other clients as well. When using shared web hosting, bear in mind that the amount of your resources are only limited, due to this same exact reason.
This means that every time your website exceeds a certain resource, like bandwidth or drive space, you may be charged extra, depending on the web hosting company.
What is VPS Hosting Used For?
VPS hosting can is used for a lot of services, also required from a traditional hosting service. Compared to other standard services, like Shared Hosting, VPS is easier to set up, and can be used for the same purposes - creating a database, hosting a website and having a dedicated server space only for you, just like you would with Dedicated hosting.
What Is Web Hosting Comparison?
Web hosting comparison is designed to put two or more hosting companies together and evaluate what do they have to offer to the user in terms of various different parameters and criteria.
The main purpose of this form of comparison is to help evaluate and choose which is the right hosting company, since this is a service that is often used for long-term, making it an important choice for website publishers, administrators and businesses.
How To Compare Web Hosting Plans?
To carry out a comparison, evaluate the following criteria:
By analysing these details or using HTH.guide's
hosting finder tool, you can decide which company is best for your needs. Of course, the evaluation depends on the type of customer, ranging from small and medium-sized businesses, to larger enterprises.
Which Is Most Important When Comparing Web Hosting Plans?
When comparing web hosting plans, the most important factor to consider is the features and services offered by the hosting provider.
This includes the type of hosting environment, such as shared hosting, VPS hosting, or dedicated server as well as the storage space, bandwidth, and other features like SSL certificates and website building tools.
It is also important to review the customer service and support provided by the hosting provider, as well as the uptime guarantee and pricing plans.
How to Choose The Right Web Hosting Company?
Choosing the right web hosting company depends on how the customer has formed their decision.
Usually, smaller businesses go for cheaper web hosting services, that offer less operating power (RAM, CPU, storage, bandwidth, etc.), while larger companies go for globally oriented and bigger-scale plans with customised plans to fit their complex needs.
To choose one has to look at the criteria (location, speed, security, uptime, customer support, customer reviews, features, budget, user experience) and make an informed decision.
How to Find The Best Web Hosting Deals?
Finding and comparing the best web hosting deals can be exhausting. This is why the best and fastest way to find the most recent deals and see which one is better is to use the professional Hosting Finder tool by HTH.guide.
What to Do If You Have Chosen a Hosting Company?
In case you have chosen a web hosting company and wish to use it for your project, you need to follow the after-mentioned steps to get you started with it:
- Clarify the idea of your project.
- Research all of the necessary information for your project.
- Choose your domain name and domain extension(.com, .io, .net, etc.).
- Choose your web hosting type (shared, cloud, dedicated, VPS, collocation and plan).
- Choose if you will have a custom website or you will use a CMS platform (WordPress, Joomla, Drupal etc.)
- Choose the theme and plugins for your CMS platform to make your project more interactive.
- Choose categories for your project.
Shared Hosting 
