Hostwinds Web Hosting Review (2023)

Web hosting services might not seem like something you have to take seriously.

However, connecting with the right web hosting business is crucial if you are starting a blog, online store or company website.

If you do not select the right web host before launching your website, transferring all your web data over to a different provider is time-consuming and a huge pain.

I have several years of experience managing and launching websites for various industries, and I am familiar with the business hosting plans that Hostwinds provides.

Therefore, I have created this comprehensive Hostwinds review for you, allowing you to determine whether this web hosting provider is right for your following website!

What is Hostwinds?

Hostwinds is one of the top web hosting companies in the industry, providing reliable and affordable shared, cloud, reseller, and VPS Hosting for personal and business websites.

Hostwinds offers excellent customer service and numerous features to help you get your website off the ground.

Hostwinds has an excellent infrastructure that ensures your website will remain stable and secure, so you can focus on growing your business.

Hostwinds also has a wide range of hosting plans, depending on your budget and needs.

HostWinds General Review

The Tweak Your Biz team and I rigorously test Hostwinds and other web hosting services yearly.

Our team reviews each host based on its performance, price, speed, accessible features, and more.

This Hostwinds review is updated as the company evolves its service.

Let’s take a look at everything Hostwinds has to offer!

Performance

Overall, Hostwinds’ servers provide excellent performance, especially considering the speed and uptime performances (see below).

Given the price for each plan, Hostwinds provides excellent performance, whether you build a new website or transfer an existing website.

Further, a CDN can help your website perform even better because your site will have added security.

Speed

Each of the hosting packages that Hostwinds offers has excellent speed.

The time to first byte (TTFB) and loading speeds are consistently faster than other hosting providers.

Still, it is essential to note that countries that are located in somewhere other than Europe or North America typically have slower loading speeds.

Uptime

No matter the hosting service you choose through Hostwinds, the company provides a 99.9% server uptime guarantee.

Therefore, you do not have to worry about your website running slowly or lagging.

Additionally, the fast speeds help ensure your Weebly or WordPress site rank higher on search engines like Google.

Customer Service

Hostwinds has an excellent customer support service that customers can enjoy.

For instance, users can utilize the live chat support available on the Hostwinds website.

Or, Hostwinds support offers numerous tutorials and a blog that answers frequently asked questions if users want to avoid contacting customer support.

Lastly, customers can email Hostwinds or use the phone support line at (888-404-1279) for help with any issues.

Based on current customer reviews, the best way to receive a fast response from customer support is to email or use the chat feature.

Ease of Use

Hostwinds web hosting is intuitive and easy to learn compared to other hosts.

Still, if users have questions or issues setting up or managing their page, Hostwinds provides excellent 24/7 customer support via live chat, email, or phone calls.

Moreover, Hostwinds includes a helpful Weebly site builder.

This web builder tool has drag-and-drop functionality, making it easy to design your website.

Variety of Hosting Options 

Hostwinds has several hosting options available.

For instance, Hostwinds offers the following plans:

• Shared hosting
• Reseller hosting
• White label hosting
• VPS hosting
• Cloud hosting
• Dedicated hosting

Additionally, Hostwinds’ hosting plans include an option exclusively for businesses. 

Regarding the VPS hosting service Hostwinds provides, the company allows users to choose between Linux and Windows servers.

Pros

• Helpful support team
• Numerous hosting packages
• Unlimited databases
• Unlimited email accounts
• Unlimited disk space
• Free SSL certificates
• Free dedicated IP address
• Unlimited domains and subdomains
• No one owns Hostwinds’ servers
• Nightly backups (even in the basic plan)

Cons

• No free domains
• Other web hosts offer basic plans at a lower rate
• No eCommerce hosting
• Some users report their support ticket was never resolved.

Hostwinds Web Hosting Review

If you need clarification on whether Hostwinds has the hosting service you need, it’s helpful to know the provider has several options, each with their strength and weaknesses.

Hosting Types

Shared

Web Hosting Plans 

• Basic: Starting at $5.24 per month
• Advanced: Starting at $6.74 per month
• Ultimate: Starting at $8.24 per month

Plan Features

• Unlimited bandwidth
• Unlimited domains
• Solid state drives
• Up-to-date cPanel
• Instant setup
• Unlimited storage
• Free dedicated IP address
• Free SSL certificates

SSL Included & Activated?

• Yes, SSL is included in every shared hosting plan.

Our Take 

Hostwinds’ shared hosting plans are a solid choice, given the monthly price and the numerous features included in every plan.

In my experience, shared hosting through Hostwinds is fast, reliable, and easy to use.

After the promotional pricing period ends, the basic plan is still affordable at $8.99 per month.

And the only difference between each shared hosting plan is the number of domains a user can have.

Shared hosting through Hostwinds is perfect for small businesses looking to save money and maintain a professional-looking site.

Business Hosting

Web Hosting Plans 

• Basic: Starting at $8.99 per month
• Advanced: Starting at $10.49 per month
• Ultimate: Starting at $12.74 per month

Plan Features

• Instant setups
• Unlimited FTP accounts
• 24/7 tech support
• Unlimited disk space
• Unlimited bandwidth
• Unlimited email accounts
• Free dedicated IP
• Latest cPanel

SSL Included & Activated?

• Yes, a free SSL certificate is included in every business hosting package.

Our Take 

If you want to manage your own website and operate a growing business, Hostwinds’ business plans are perfect.

Compared to the other plans available through Hostwinds, the business plans operate 500% faster and are suited to handle high-traffic sites.

Also, the plans are available at an affordable price.

It’s important to note that the business plans through Hostwinds still operate on shared servers.

Therefore, a dedicated server plan is better if your company’s site has a lot of data and continually experiences high traffic.

Reseller Hosting

Web Hosting Plans 

• Basic: Starting at $5.25 per month
• Advanced: Starting at $6.74 per month
• Ultimate: Starting at $8.24 per month

Plan Features

• Solid state drives
• Unlimited subdomains
• Unlimited databases
• 24/7 support
• Latest cPanel
• Website monitoring
• Nightly backups

SSL Included & Activated?

• Yes, an SSL certificate is included for free in each one of the reseller hosting options.

Our Take 

The reseller plans that Hostwinds offers are perfect if you run an agency or want to sell hosting plans without managing a server.

The reseller plans are similar to the shared hosting options but have more discounts when you purchase multiple servers or accounts.

Further, when you add the White Label reseller option, users can remove Hostwinds branding from each platform area.

VPS Hosting

Web Hosting Plans 

• Linux Managed
• Linux Unmanaged
• Windows Managed
• Windows Unmanaged

Plan Features

• 1 Gbps port
• 99.9999% uptime guarantee
• Multiple locations
• Enterprise firewall
• Free website transfer (for even one WordPress site)
• Custom ISO’s
• Snapshots
• Nightly backups

SSL Included & Activated?

• No, an SSL is not included in the virtual private server plans.

Our Take 

Hostwinds is ideal if you are looking for a Linux or Windows VPS hosting option with plenty of storage. 

Compared to other providers, Hostwinds gives its users much more storage.

Also, Hostwinds’ VPS hosting imitates dedicated server plans using virtual partitions, allowing users private resources even if the server is shared with someone else. 

Hostwinds’ VPs plans are very flexible.

For example, Hostwinds allows users to choose between managed and unmanaged sites. 

Lastly, users can customize their VPS servers with Hostwinds, further explaining why it is an excellent option!

Cloud Hosting

Web Hosting Plans 

• Cloud Servers
• Load Balancers
• Block Storage
• Object Storage

Plan Features

• 1 Gbps port
• Solid state drives
• Snapshots
• 99.9999% uptime
• Custom ISO’s
• Friendliness guarantee
• Multiple locations
• Enterprise firewall
• Free website transfer

SSL Included & Activated?

• No, an SSL is not included and activated with these plans.

Our Take 

The cloud hosting through Hostwinds is entirely customizable.

These plans make installing WordPress easy because it only demands one click.

Hostwind prices cloud hosting by the hour, and the lowest-tiered plan costs around $5 per month for bare minimum resources.

The detail that differentiates Hostwinds from other plans is that the company can scale according to your needs.

Therefore, you do not need to purchase a lot of resources upfront like you might with dedicated or shared hosting plans.

Dedicated Hosting

Web Hosting Plans 

• 13 dedicated servers to choose from
• Seven server drives to choose from
• 7 Bay #2 options
• 3 RAM storage options (8, 16, and 32 GB)
• CentOS or no RAID
• Five operating systems to choose from
• Seven outbound bandwidth limits (unlimited storage is available)
• 5 IPs to choose from (8, 16, 32, 64, and 128)

Plan Features

• Customizable RAID
• Dedicated resources
• Customizable RAM and the type of CPUs
• Server monitoring
• Automated backup service
• Full management
• Multiple data center locations for users to choose from
• High-quality networking

SSL Included & Activated?

• No, an SSL is not included or activated with the dedicated hosting provided by Hostwinds.

Our Take 

Hostwinds delivers fully managed dedicated hosting, meaning users can choose between a pre-configured server or a customized setup.

Also, users can choose between Linux or Windows servers.

The dedicated plans are more expensive than the shared hosting plans through Hostwinds, starting at around $100 a month.

Further, Hostwinds allows users to customize various aspects of their dedicated plan, including the following:

• RAM
• RAID
• IP addresses
• The operating system

This customization is perfect for small businesses that are growing quickly.

Additionally, dedicated plans are ideal for users who want more flexibility over the details and features included in their plans.

Alternatives to Hostwinds

Hostinger

Hostinger is a more affordable hosting resort, with plans starting at $1.99 per month.

Also, Hostinger allows users to scale their plans as their website grows.

Some of the features included in Hostinger plans include the following:

• A free domain name
• Reliable uptime
• Regular backups
• Excellent customer service
• High bandwidth
• Business-grade email addresses
• DDoS monitoring
• Unlimited SSL certificates

Hostinger’s array of plans is perfect for people with various needs.

For instance, Hostinger has plans that are shared hosting, which is ideal for beginners who are setting up a website.

Further, if someone needs unlimited storage and flexibility in their plan, Hostinger has cloud hosting deals that start at $9.99 a month.

Some of the downsides to Hostinger include the following:

• No cPanel
• No telephone support
• Nonstandard refund terms
• Users can only have one email account on the single shared hosting.

Despite these downsides, Hostinger is an excellent host provider with some of the most affordable rates.

A2 Hosting

A2 Hosting is pricier than other providers.

However, the company makes up for the more expensive plans by offering incredible speeds and industry-leading customer service.

Also, customers can save a lot of money when choosing a long-term plan.

One detail that allows A2 to stand out from others is the Turbo Boost feature.

With Turbo Boost, users experience website loading speeds up to 20 times faster than the basic plans at A2 Hosting.

A2 has various hosting options, including WordPress hosting and eCommerce hosting.

Further, A2’s eCommerce plans are compatible with various eCommerce software and solutions, making it easy to set up an online store.

Some of the downsides to selecting A2 Hosting include the following:

• The short-term plans are expensive
• The Turbo Boost feature costs extra
• Windows hosting is not yet available

Given the excellent speeds and the option for WordPress hosting, A2 Hosting is consistently a fan-favorite.

And if customers do not like their plan, the company provides a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Bluehost

Bluehost is home to over one million websites, proving Bluehost is a reliable company.

Also, Bluehost is very affordable, and plans start at $2.95 per month.

Some of the features that are included in Bluehost plans include the following:

• A free domain name
• Plenty of SSD storage
• One website (in the lowest-tiered plan)
• Dedicated IP address
• One-click to install WordPress
• Helpful community forums

Bluehost provides a lot of hosting options. 

Therefore, users can find exactly what they need and pick a solution that best matches their needs.

And if customers do not know what plan would be best for their website, Bluehsot has professionals ready to help.

Further, Bluehost has professionals who will build a website for customers if they wish.

These professional services include the following:

• Professional design
• Website migration
• Marketing
• Weekly SEO reports
• Keyword optimization

Some content management systems only provide some of the features previously mentioned.

Given all the benefits that come with a plan from Bluehost, customers cannot go wrong with this provider.

Conclusion

Hostwinds offers enterprise-grade hosting services that are ideal for those who want more control and flexibility over the features included in their plans.

Hostwinds provides excellent shared, VPS, cloud, and dedicated hosting options with solid-state drives, snapshots, customizable RAIDs, custom ISO’s, automated backup services, and more.

Hostwinds is worth a try for anyone who wants to maximize their VPS servers and experience excellent hosting speeds!

Do you think you’ll give Hostwinds a try for yourself? Let us know in the comments below!

Hostwinds FAQ