So you want to start a website? It’s never been easier. If you’re curious what the best Wordpress hosting in 2019 is, read on. We will walk you through the easiest way to build a website for your own personal blog, small business, large business, startup, and more.
Wordpress is an industry standard for creating a website – it’s fast, easy to use, has amazing flexibility and functionality, and is easy to set up for search engine optimization. Not only that, but it’s also easy for non-techie people to set up high level security with the use of plugins. This user-friendliness combined with excellent security measures make it a very easy recommendation for most website creators.
Don’t let the minor learning curve of Wordpress fool you. It’s truly the best decision to start your website on Wordpress rather than other site builders such as Wix or Createspace.
A Note From Bill
There are affiliate links included in this article, however I have used ALL of these hosting services both personally and professionally, and I know them inside and out. I don’t recommend anything on this website I haven’t purchased with my own money and used. 🙂
Jump To:
The Most User Friendly Wordpress Host
Easiest to get started with for beginners.
Best For Speed And Value
Best speed and highest quality hosting but slightly more advanced.
Cheapest Hosting Solution
Best price for lowest commitment.
The Most User Friendly Wordpress Host:
Bluehost is one of the easiest hosts to use. They market themselves as a cheap and easy solution for those looking to start a website or blog without needing extensive options or a complicated interface. They have reduced the steps associated with setting up a website and made a very streamlined process that beginners will find easy to get started with.
Not only that, but they also market themselves as having great customer service – which I found to be true after having to call them to resolve a billing dispute (more on that further down).
Ease of Signup
Signing up with Bluehost is a breeze. I actually shot a video of myself signing up in about 10 minutes, which I have included below. They make the process incredibly easy and take a lot of guesswork out that might confuse people who have never done this before.
You can also buy your domain name with them (which most hosts offer anyway), which I suggest doing for those new to setting up websites. The domain is included in their introductory package, which is a nice savings.
Wordpress Features
Bluehost makes it very, very easy to set up a Wordpress blog. In fact, they use Wordpress blog setup as a main selling point for their services. They offer true 1-click Wordpress installation that really couldn’t be easier. If the process of setting up a Wordpress blog intimidates you, Bluehost is the way to go.
Pricing
You can’t go wrong with Bluehost’s pricing. They may not boast the blazingest fastest speeds (you’ll hardly notice anyway, the differences can be in milliseconds) for their introductory hosting, but for decent shared hosting service you can’t go wrong with the $3.95 per month intro price.
You can get higher priced plans if you want more space, speed, dedicated hosting, or other bells and whistles. However if you’re just starting out I would stick to the basic plan – you can always upgrade your services later on.
Interface
In keeping with their beginner friendly marketing, Bluehost has a very clean and easy to understand interface. This is head and shoulders above a lot of hosts that have confusing back-end interfaces to deal with.
Their bare-bones icon based navigation makes it easy to find what you’re looking for.
(Note – this is about the host’s website interface when dealing with your account and server settings, NOT the Wordpress interface.)
Customer Service
Bluehost likes to sell themselves on great customer service for those who might be worried about needing help. I actually had to call Bluehost for a billing dispute (I forgot to cancel the test hosting plan I purchased for that setup video I made) and they answered right away, and I was treated to a very nice customer service representative who reversed the charge and helped me cancel the account in record time. For something I expected to be painful, this was incredibly easy and I was left feeling very impressed. This alone makes Bluehost one of the best hosts for Wordpress in 2019.
Bluehost For Wordpress Review
Ease Of Signup
5
Pricing
4
Interface
4.5
Customer Service
5
Wordpress Setup
4.5
Site Speed
4
Bluehost Hosting For Wordpress
Bluehost is a very easy to use hosting platform designed to make it easy to set up a website. Perfect for both first-timers and experienced web designers alike, it’s one of the most cost-effective and easiest ways to get set up quickly.
4.5Excellent!
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Bluehost Strengths
- Free Domain Included
- Free SSL
- Great Price
- Easy To Set Up For Beginners
- Excellent Customer Support
- One Click Wordpress Installation
Best Wordpress Host For Speed And Value:
A2 Hosting is quickly becoming a household name in terms of high quality hosting that is fast and won’t break the bank. Although it’s not as streamlined through the setup and backend as Bluehost, A2 is still easy to get started with and they boast an even lower introductory starting price that Bluehost at $3.92 per month (however, they do not include a domain name in signup).
I use A2 hosting for a few of my websites because I wanted to sign up for their Turbo hosting, which offers a speed boost for those looking to get an edge on site speed for high traffic sites and SEO purposes. However, for beginners this turbo speed won’t be necessary unless you’re anticipating a large influx of traffic right away.
I also like A2 because it’s located in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where I went to college at the University of Michigan. But that’s my own bias 😊
Ease Of Signup
Signing up with A2 is a bit more traditional than Bluehost – there are a few more options and things to select on your way through the setup, however it’s not overly complicated and I think anyone could get through it (and of course, you can always call A2 to ask them to help you through the signup).
There are some more options you can select with A2, including boosted speeds like Swift and Turbo for Wordpress as well as hosting location, however these are rather self explanatory. For those just starting out with Wordpress I recommend just getting the basics (you can always upgrade later).
Wordpress Features
A2 has no shortage of Wordpress features that enable quick and easy setup. They have 1-click installation as well as an assortment of features such as a custom Wordpress installation that offers speed boosts such as caching (although you can install caching plugins later if you don’t do this on initial setup).
A2 also offers fully managed Wordpress hosting – meaning they take care of all the updates, backups, plugin version upgrades, and more.
Pricing
A2 has become very competitive in terms of entry-level pricing, at 3 cents lower than Bluehost at 3.92 per month for the introductory price. There are other tiers and addons you can get (I got Turbo for another website of mine and I am happy with the speed).
Many third party websites have indicated that A2’s entry level hosting is faster than most competitors, so sticking with the entry-level pricing is more than adequate unless you KNOW you want the higher tiers (as I did when I signed up).
Interface
A2’s back end website interface where you manage your account is a bit busier than the bare-bones style of Bluehost, and beginner’s and novices might find it slightly confusing at first. However, this might be good news to more advanced users who want easy and familiar access to all the controls that they need.
Although more busy than Bluehost, the A2 back end is easy to navigate compared to a few other hosts that I find more confusing, like Hostgator and 1and1 (although 1and1 has recently improved their backend).
Customer Service
I had a website issue on A2 with a plugin that was hogging resources that caused the site to stop loading. My call to support was friendly and helpful, although the wait time to get on the phone was a bit long (around 15-20 minutes). A2 offers 24/7 support through live chat, phone, and tickets.
Having a reliable way to contact your hosting company is key, and A2 passes this test very well.
A2 Hosting For Wordpress Review
Ease Of Signup
4
Pricing
4
Interface
4
Customer Service
5
Wordpress Setup
4.5
Site Speed
5
A2 Hosting For Wordpress
A2 Hosting offers the fastest Wordpress hosting for the price and has an array of different upgrades to make any power user happy. Although slightly more complex than Bluehost in terms of signup, anyone should be able to get started with A2
4.42Excellent!
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A2 Hosting Strengths
- Fastest Wordpress Hosting
- Cheapest Intro Price
- Excellent 24/7 Customer Service
- Lots Of Features And Upgrades
- Provides Managed Wordpress Hosting
- Better For Intermediate and Advanced Users
Cheapest Hosting For Wordpress:
For those looking for the best introductory deal to get started with a Wordpress website, 1 and 1 Ionos has one of the best deals on the internet. I have been using 1 and 1 for a very long time (over 10 years) and I’ve found them to be very stable overall. They may not be the “best” in any category when ranked by other websites, however I’ve found them to be reliable with a bare minimum of issues across the board. In fact, this very website is currently hosted on 1 and 1 and I haven’t had much of a reason to move it to A2.
1 and 1 Ionos is currently offering a $1 a month introductory price (after which it reverts to the industry standard $8 per month for plain hosting (no special Wordpress extras) or Managed Wordpress hosting for $1 for 12 months then $9 per month after. That is really cheap for managed hosting for Wordpress. They have also updated their interface to make it much simpler and streamlined (there was a time there for a bit when 1and1 had the slowest and worst web interface I’d ever seen, but it has since been improved quite a bit).
Ease Of Signup
Signing up with 1 and 1 is fairly straightforward. They have trimmed down their website to remove all the extra text that made things a bit confusing and have simplified the process. You choose a hosting plan, pick a domain name (unless you already have one), add it to the cart, choose from a couple special offers (I recommend declining them) and you’re off to the payment screen.
If you need help, 1 and 1 offers a 24/7 toll free number to guide you through the process or if you have any questions about their services.
Wordpress Features
1 and 1 offers managed Wordpress hosting as well as one-click Wordpress setup, making it very easy to get started with your Wordpress site right out of the gate.
I heartily recommend 1 and 1 for Wordpress – like I said, I’ve been hosting plain HTML and Wordpress sites on 1 and 1 for over a decade and I’m still using it!
Pricing
1 and 1 offers a great $1 a month price for a year before the price moves to $8 per month. However, the great part about this is that you aren’t locked into 3 years of service just to get a low price. To get the $1 per month price for the first year you only have to sign up for a year’s worth of hosting. That’s fairly palatable to most people.
1 and 1 Ionos also offers a $1 domain for the first year which is pretty decent in my opinion.
For those just starting out that don’t want to drop a lot of money on hosting right away just to lock in a low priced offer, 1 and 1 is the best option.
They also offer FREE private domain registration. This should be universal, but some domain name registrars make you pay $2-3 per year extra to have your WHOIS domain information private. Trust me, you want private information on your website because otherwise you’ll be getting a LOT of spam calls and emails. There are a lot of companies that scan for new domain registrations and then send those people a lot of offers.
Interface
As I said above, the interface of 1 and 1 has greatly improved recently. It’s almost as streamlined as Bluehost now, which is a strong selling point for 1 and 1. Those new to running a Wordpress site shouldn’t have much trouble navigating the backend of 1 and 1’s new site.
Customer Service
Customer service has not historically been my favorite aspect of 1 and 1, but I’ve always managed to get my issues resolved when they have cropped up. Usually contacting customer service is easy, however sometimes it feels like it’s hard to communicate with the person on the other end, either because they’re not a native English speaker or they have a heavy accent.
Get Started With 1and1 Ionos Hosting
1and1 Ionos Hosting For Wordpress Review
Ease Of Signup
4
Pricing
5
Interface
4
Customer Service
3.5
Wordpress Setup
4.5
Site Speed
4
1and1 Ionos Hosting For Wordpress
1and1 Ionos is one of the cheaper hosting options around. Although it may not be the absolute best in many other categories, it is perfectly good hosting that I can personally recommend after using them for 10 years.
4.17Great!
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1and1 Ionos Hosting Strengths
- Cheapest Host For Least Commitment
- Stable and fast servers
- Streamlined interface
- 24/7 Customer Support
- Provides Cheap Managed Wordpress Hosting
- $1 Domain For First Year
- Best For Those Looking For The Cheapest Best Wordpress Hosting in 2019
