Have you been looking for a new web host provider that’s reliable, offers various hosting options, and is trustworthy? Bluehost and Hostwinds are two popular hosting solutions.
But which host is better? Choosing a web host that doesn’t match your website’s needs can lead to numerous problems down the road.
Trust me; I understand because I have years of experience in the web hosting industry!
So, if you’re building an online presence for your company, starting a blog, or anything in between, you need to understand the differences between web hosts.
Let’s analyze Bluehost and Hostwinds thoroughly so you can select the best web host for your website!
How Did We Test Bluehost & Hostwinds Hosting?
The TYB only uses the most advanced software paired with in-depth data to test web hosting providers.
Rather than rely on our objective viewpoint or the opinions of others, we look at the cold hard facts!
To accurately test Bluehost versus Hostwinds in 2023, the TYB team and I set up two staging sites on each respective host.
After that, we measured the statistics in the following areas:
- Hosting Types & Features
- Performance & Speed
- Ease of Use
- Pricing & Value
- Website Security
- Help & Support
- WordPress Features
- Extras
Bluehost Vs. Hostwinds Winner:
Bluehost or Hostwinds; which host is better?
Overall, Bluehost is the better choice. The web host provides better WordPress hosting, website builder functionality, and uptime performance.
Read our Bluehost review for more information!
However, Hostwinds is good if you want unlimited storage space and bandwidth for a generous monthly rate.
If you want a closer look at Hostwinds, check out our latest Hostwinds review.
What is Bluehost Web Hosting?
Bluehost is a popular web hosting solution that specializes in WordPress hosting but also offers other types of hosting, including shared, VPS, and dedicated server plans.
One primary detail that attracts customers to Bluehost is the low monthly prices, with shared plans starting at less than $3 per month!
Who Uses Bluehost?
Bluehost is an ideal web host for beginners because the company includes several helpful features and tools to help those with little technical knowledge.
For example, Bluehost offers free WordPress migrations, an intuitive website builder, and free security features.
What are the Benefits of Bluehost?
The biggest advantage to using Bluehost is that you’ll save money, as the hosting plans are incredibly affordable.
Also, Bluehost is the leading WordPress host, which is another significant benefit.
And the fast loading speeds aren’t anything to complain about either!
Where Bluehost Falls Short
The main area where Bluehost needs improvement is with the security features.
While some hosts provide advanced security metrics within your package, Bluehost only provides the essentials.
What is Hostwinds Hosting?
Hostwinds is another popular web host that offers various hosting plans, including cloud, VPS, and shared plans.
The web host provides excellent security and customer service with every hosting plan!
Who Uses Hostwinds?
A variety of people use Hostwinds!
For instance, the shared plans are perfect for people running a small business or blog and only need a little storage space.
However, Hostwinds’ VPS and cloud hosting solutions are ideal for larger companies or freelancers managing multiple sites under one account!
What are the Benefits of Hostwinds?
One major benefits of Hostwinds are the included features in every plan that most hosts don’t offer.
For example, Hostwinds gives customers free SSL certificates, dedicated IP addresses, and nightly backups, even with the basic plan!
Where Hostwinds Falls Short
Hostwinds falls short with its pricing; most hosts offer lower monthly rates than Hostwinds.
Also, there isn’t an option for eCommerce hosting, which is a bummer if you’re planning on opening an online store.
Hostwinds Vs. Bluehost: The Details
Hostwinds and Bluehost are two popular web hosts, but which is the better choice for your website? Let’s find out!
What Types of Hosting Does Bluehost Have?
Bluehost is best known for its WordPress hosting plans, but it also offers the following types of hosting:
- Shared
- VPS
- WooCommerce
- Dedicated server
What Types of Hosting Does Hostwinds Have?
Hostwinds has several hosting plans available, including the following:
- Shared
- Reseller
- White label
- VPS
- Cloud
- Dedicated
Winner: Hostwinds!
This host offers more of a variety of hosting plans and includes options Bluehost doesn’t have, like white label and cloud hosting.
Does Bluehost Have Uptime Issues?
Even though Bluehost doesn’t provide an uptime guarantee like most hosts, the provider still delivers excellent, reliable uptime.
For instance, our staging site only experienced a few minutes of downtime, indicating the uptime performed above the industry standard of 99%!
Does Hostwinds Have Uptime Issues?
Hostwinds has a 99.9999% uptime guarantee for all its plans.
However, there are several cases where Hostwinds falls beneath this hefty promise.
The server response times were also slower than we would have expected.
Winner: Bluehost!
Bluehost provides reliable uptime and fewer cases of server issues. Hostwinds has an admirable uptime guarantee, but it doesn’t mean a thing if the company doesn’t deliver on that promise.
How Fast Is Bluehost?
Regarding loading times, Bluehost’s performance is average.
Considering the monthly rates, we didn’t expect Bluehost to be the fastest.
Still, Bluehost can provide speeds fast enough to secure a good Google ranking.
How Fast Is Hostwinds?
Hostwinds isn’t the fastest web host out there either, but the provider still delivers above-average speeds.
Also, Hostwinds has three data centers, two of which are in the US, so loading speeds are faster if your audience lives in the States.
Winner: It’s a tie!
Hostwinds and Bluehost each provide above-average loading times faster than the industry average. Still, other providers deliver fast loading times.
Bluehost Stress Test
Our Bluehost staging site experienced slower loading speeds and page unresponsiveness when we sent thousands of fake website visitors to the platform.
These results indicate Bluehost struggles when met with a sudden influx of website visitors.
Hostwinds Stress Test
Hostwinds’ basic shared hosting plan also struggled when we sent thousands of visitors to the platform.
The number of failed requests during this time was significant.
Hostwinds could improve its performance in terms of server responsiveness, although the loading speeds are adequate!
Winner: Bluehost!
Although both hosts struggled with an influx of visitors, Bluehost performed a little better.
How Easy Is Bluehost to Use?
Bluehost markets its services are easy to use, and they are!
Also, Bluehost provides numerous tools that make web hosting easier for beginners.
People without technical skills can create beautiful, professional-looking websites with Bluehost’s website builder!
How Easy Is Hostwinds to Use?
Hostwinds’ custom dashboard and cPanel are well-organized, beginner-friendly, and include all the tools you need.
The user experience with Hostwinds is excellent, credited to the custom dashboard-advanced cPanel combo!
Winner: Bluehost!
Hostwinds is easy to use, don’t get us wrong, but Bluehost goes further and incorporates more tools and features for beginners to create a high-functioning, modern website!
Bluehost Pricing & Value
As previously mentioned, Bluehost’s prices are incredibly low, with shared and WordPress plans starting at $2.95 monthly.
You get several features for less than $5 per month, making Bluehost a valuable web hosting solution.
Some features include free domain name registration, managed WordPress capability, and security tools!
Hostwinds Pricing & Value
Hostwinds’ basic shared hosting plan costs $5.24 per month and renews at $6.99.
For this price, you receive a generous amount of storage and bandwidth, a dedicated IP address, and numerous security features!
Winner: Bluehost!
Bluehost’s low prices are hard to beat. Still, Hostwinds offers valuable plans with generous features for only a few dollars more per month.
How Secure Is Bluehost?
Bluehost provides good security features, considering the monthly rates.
Some of the free security features include:
- CDNs
- SSL certificates
- Automatic malware scanning
These features aren’t advanced, but they protect your website from hackers and bots!
How Secure Is Hostwinds?
Hostwinds provides several free security features with its plans, including the following:
- SSL certificates
- Malware scanning
- Nightly backups
- Website monitoring
- 24/7 managed support
Winner: Hostwinds!
Hostwinds offers numerous free security features that Bluehost doesn’t, including 24/7 managed support and nightly backups!
Can We Trust Bluehost?
We can trust Bluehost.
WordPress.org recommends the web host, and millions of websites live on Bluehost’s servers, proving it is a reliable, trustworthy hosting provider!
Can We Trust Hostwinds?
Hostwinds is another trustworthy web hosting solution.
Again, several websites live on Hostwinds’ servers, and the company has security features to protect your website and customers’ data.
Winner: It’s a tie!
Hostwinds and Bluehost are two web hosts you can trust! Each company has several websites on its platform, including some big-name companies!
Is Bluehost Customer Support Good?
Bluehost allows customers to contact customer support via 24/7 live chat and telephone.
The response times could improve, but Bluehost’s agents are knowledgeable about all things related to web hosting.
Is Hostwinds Customer Support Good?
Hostwinds’ customer support staff is available via live chat, ticketing, and email.
Agents respond to inquiries through the live chat almost immediately and are very helpful in answering your questions!
Winner: Hostwinds!
The customer support at Hostwinds beats Bluehost, as the response times are shorter and agents are available through one more outlet.
Does Bluehost Offer WordPress Hosting?
Bluehost has excellent WordPress hosting plans that come with numerous WordPress-optimized features.
For instance, Bluehost gives you everything you need (and more) to build a customized WordPress site, including WordPress themes, templates, and customized plugins!
Does Hostwinds Offer WordPress Hosting?
Hostwinds’ WordPress hosting solutions start at $5.25 monthly and include several WordPress-related features.
For instance, Hostwinds has a one-click WordPress installation and optimized performance.
Winner: Bluehost!
Although Hostwinds’ WordPress plans are good, Bluehost provides more features and tools to make managing a WordPress site easy!
Will Hostwinds Help With Website Migration?
Hostwinds offers free, managed website migrations, ensuring your website transfers to Hostwinds’ platform safely and securely.
Also, Hostwinds allows you to choose between cloud, VPS, or shared website transfers.
Will Bluehost Help With Website Migration?
Bluehost provides free WordPress migrations within 30 days of purchasing a plan.
However, for other CMSs, you must pay $149.99 to migrate your website to Bluehost.
Winner: Hostwinds!
Bluehost charges a significant amount to transfer websites that aren’t WordPress, while Hostwinds completes this job for free!
Does Bluehost Offer Email Hosting?
Bluehost has email hosting plans for $3 monthly on top of your hosting plan.
For $3, you receive several features, including generous storage space, Google app integration, and an intuitive control panel.
Does Hostwinds Offer Email Hosting?
Hostwinds allows you to add email accounts to your website via the control panel.
The host describes the step-by-step process in detail in its collection of tutorials.
The shared and business hosting plans have certain limitations regarding the email accounts and messages sent per month.
Winner: Bluehost!
Bluehost has a designated service for email hosting, while Hostwinds does not. Therefore, Bluehost has more email-centric features, making managing emails and accounts easier.
Does Bluehost Have a Website Builder?
Bluehost has one of the most popular website builders in the hosting industry.
This intuitive tool uses drag-and-drop functionality and modern templates to ensure users of all backgrounds can create a clean-looking site.
Also, Bluehost allows users to customize numerous aspects of their website with the builder tool, ensuring the site is 100% unique to your company!
Does Hostwinds Have a Website Builder?
Hostwinds offers the Weebly website builder tool on its platform.
Weebly offers several templates and pre-made designs so you can start building your website quickly.
Also, the Weebly website builder uses drag-and-drop functionality, making the process even easier!
Winner: Bluehost!
Although Hostwinds has an excellent website builder, Bluehost’s is slightly better and offers more avenues for customization. Also, Bluehost’s website builder has modern, mobile-friendly templates to choose from!
Bluehost Alternatives
Some Bluehost alternatives include the following:
- A2 Hosting
- DreamHost
A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting is a popular Bluehost alternative because the prices are comparable (A2 Hosting is slightly more expensive), and the speeds are faster.
Compared to Bluehost, A2 Hosting provides faster loading times and better security.
Also, A2 Hosting has Turbo Boost, a unique feature that provides speeds 20 times faster than standard shared hosting.
DreamHost
DreamHost is another popular alternative because its prices are slightly lower than Bluehost’s.
Although DreamHost doesn’t offer as many types of hosting plans, its shared, WordPress, and cloud hosting services perform well.
Also, DreamHost has better security features than Bluehost.
Hostwinds Alternatives
Here are some other options to Hostwinds:
- GoDaddy
- Liquid Web Hosting
GoDaddy
GoDaddy is an excellent Hostwinds alternative because the web host provides excellent security, reliable performance, and fast speeds.
GoDaddy’s prices are comparable to Hostwinds, providing better, more reliable performance.
Also, GoDaddy offers similar types of hosting plans as Hostwinds, making it ideal for professionals needing more storage space.
Liquid Web Hosting
Liquid Web is another alternative to Hostwinds.
The managed WordPress plans start at $13.30 monthly, a comparable price point to Hostwinds.
Also, Liquid Web has more hosting options, including Magento, server cluster, cloud-dedicated resources, and more!
Regarding scalability, Liquid Web is better than Hostwinds!
Now You Decide
We’ve laid out all the information you need to choose between Bluehost and Hostwinds; now it’s your turn to decide.
Bluehost is certainly the more popular choice, but Hostwinds has its strengths that are worth considering.
Let us know in the comments section if this comparison helped you make your web host decision!
Bluehost Vs. Hostwinds FAQ
Bluehost is cheap because most of its plans (shared, WordPress, and WooCommerce) operate on shared servers, meaning each account doesn’t pay for its own server. Rather, a large group shares one server.
It really depends on what you’re looking for in a web host. Bluehost offers excellent services, but GoDaddy can provide slightly faster speeds and better security. Ultimately, the choice is yours!
You can buy a domain through Bluehost, and the web host offers a free domain name for the first year of service.
If you cancel Bluehost, your domain name is still yours. However, Bluehost will no longer be the registrar, and Bluehost’s name servers won’t be associated with it. You’ll need to find another web hosting provider to host your website or transfer the domain to a different registrar.
Google domains start at $12 per year, and Bluehost’s prices are comparable. Plus, Buehost offers. a free domain name if you pay for a hosting plan for a year. So, while Google domains are better regarding security and email hosting features, having your domain and hosting plan in one place is convenient.
