Bluehost is one of the most popular web hosting services in the market, powering more than two million websites. It offers competitive pricing, impressive WordPress hosting plans, and a user-friendly interface. But is it the best web hosting service for you or your business? In this article, we will review the features, pricing, pros and cons of Bluehost, and help you decide if it suits your needs.
What Is Bluehost?
Bluehost is a web hosting service provider that was founded in 2003. It is one of the three providers recommended by WordPress.org, which means it has a high level of compatibility and integration with WordPress. Bluehost also offers other types of hosting, such as shared hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated hosting, and e-commerce hosting. With Bluehost, you can get a free domain name for the first year, a free SSL certificate, a free CDN, and one-click WordPress installation. You can also access a website builder, a domain manager, and 24/7 phone and chat support.
How Bluehost Works
Bluehost works by providing you with a server space where you can store your website files and data. Depending on the type of hosting plan you choose, you can share the server with other websites (shared hosting), have your own virtual server (VPS hosting), or have your own physical server (dedicated hosting). You can also use Bluehost to create and manage an online store (e-commerce hosting). Bluehost provides you with a control panel where you can manage your website settings, domains, email accounts, backups, security, and more. You can also install various applications and plugins to enhance your website functionality.
What Sets Bluehost Apart
Bluehost stands out from the crowd in several ways. Here are some of the reasons why you might want to choose Bluehost as your web hosting service:
- Value-priced starter plan: Bluehost offers a basic shared hosting plan that starts at $2.95 per month for the first year (paid annually). This plan allows you to host one website with 50 GB of SSD storage and unmetered bandwidth. You also get a free domain name for the first year, a free SSL certificate, a free CDN, and one-click WordPress installation.
- User-friendly interface: Bluehost has an intuitive and easy-to-use interface that makes it simple for beginners to launch and manage a website. You can access everything you need from the control panel, such as domains, email accounts, backups, security, and more. You can also use the website builder to create your website with drag-and-drop functionality.
- One-click WordPress installation: Bluehost is one of the best web hosting services for WordPress users. It offers one-click WordPress installation, which means you can install WordPress on your website in minutes. You can also access thousands of WordPress themes and plugins to customize your website. Bluehost also offers managed WordPress hosting plans that include features such as automatic updates, daily backups, malware removal, staging environment, and more.
- Free CDN: Bluehost includes a free CDN (Content Delivery Network) with all its plans. A CDN is a network of servers that delivers your website content to your visitors faster and more efficiently. A CDN can improve your website speed, performance, security, and SEO.
- Recommended by WordPress.org: Bluehost is one of the only three providers recommended by WordPress.org, which means it has a high level of compatibility and integration with WordPress. WordPress.org is the official website of WordPress, the most popular content management system in the world. Being recommended by WordPress.org means that Bluehost meets the standards of quality, performance, and reliability that WordPress users expect.
Bluehost Features
Bluehost offers a variety of features to help you create and manage your website. Here are some of the main features that Bluehost provides:
- Free domain name: Bluehost gives you a free domain name for the first year when you sign up for any of its plans. You can choose from hundreds of domain extensions, such as .com, .net, .org, .biz, and more. You can also use the domain manager to purchase, transfer, update, and manage all your domains in one place.
- Free SSL certificate: Bluehost provides you with a free SSL certificate for all your websites. An SSL certificate is a digital certificate that encrypts the data between your website and your visitors. It also shows a padlock icon and HTTPS in your website address, which indicates that your website is secure and trustworthy.
- Website builder: Bluehost offers a website builder that allows you to create your website with drag-and-drop functionality. You can choose from hundreds of templates and customize them to suit your needs. You can also add features such as contact forms, galleries, videos, social media icons, and more.
- Email accounts: Bluehost allows you to create unlimited email accounts with your own domain name. You can access your email from any device using webmail or an email client. You can also use features such as spam protection, autoresponders, forwarding, and more.
- Backups: Bluehost offers backups for your website data and files. Depending on the plan you choose, you can get daily, weekly, or monthly backups. You can also use the CodeGuard Backup Basic add-on for $2.99 per month, which provides daily backups and monitoring, as well as notifications of any changes.
- Security: Bluehost has some of the best security measures in the market to protect your website from hackers, malware, and other threats. All plans come with resource protection, which isolates your website from other websites on the same server that are using too much resources or are compromised. You can also use the SiteLock Security add-on for $2.99 per month, which scans your website for malware and removes it automatically.
- Support: Bluehost offers 24/7 phone and chat support for all its customers. You can also access a knowledge base, a help center, and a user forum where you can find answers to common questions and issues.
