Learn about the different types of web hosting services and the differences between them in this article. We will explain shared hosting, WordPress hosting, cloud hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated servers, shared site hosting or local hosting, Colocation Hosting, and the differences between them in detail.

If you don’t know, there is more than one type of web hosting, not just one type. The basics of web hosting that you should be aware of are these types.
The reason behind this is that hosting types vary depending on each type’s usage, strength, price, management difficulty, and structure.

In this lesson on the basics of hosting. We will explain in detail each type of hosting in so that you have a clear idea and vision of hosting types, and thus. You will be able to determine and choose the type of hosting you need for your website or project.
After this, you will also have a good knowledge of web hosting in general after reading this article.

Types of hosting

Shared Hosting

One of the most commonly used types of web hosting services is Shared Web Hosting, also known as Shared Hosting.

The principle of shared web hosting relies on the sharing of hosting resources and costs among multiple users.

Shared hosting is characterized by its low prices, but it is not the most robust type of hosting and may not be the most secure due to multiple users sharing the same hosting environment, which can impact each other.

One of the advantages of shared hosting is its ease of management and control, especially for beginners. Shared hosting often comes with the well-known cPanel control panel, which allows you to control hosting, email, and more. This is one of the main reasons why hosting experts recommend using good cPanel hosting.

Therefore, shared hosting is considered the most suitable type of hosting for beginners and new websites. Shared hosting services typically come in various packages with different specifications and prices to suit the needs of most users.

Many hosting companies offer shared hosting services, such as Bluehost, InMotion Hosting, iPage, and Hostinger, among others. When you purchase hosting from them, you often get hosting and a domain included for free without additional charges.

There are also other companies like HostMonster, A2 Hosting, and others that offer shared hosting services.

Cloud Hosting

Cloud Hosting, one of the latest types of web hosting, differs from traditional hosting in that it does not rely on a single server to host the website and its files.

Instead, Cloud Hosting utilizes hosting across multiple interconnected servers in what resembles a cloud. Providing increased power and stability for hosting and the website itself.

Since your website is hosted on multiple servers simultaneously, there is increased security in terms of website uptime. If one server goes down, another server will automatically take its place.

Cloud Hosting also offers flexibility, allowing you to add additional hosting resources such as CPU, RAM, and storage space easily from within the control panel.

One of the best Cloud Hosting companies offering high-quality service is HostGator. They provide Cloud Hosting with three different packages, all featuring a cPanel control panel along with another control panel for monitoring resource consumption.

Read about: Revealing the Best WordPress Hosting Solutions: A Comprehensive Guide for 2024

WordPress Hosting

WordPress is the most popular Content Management System (CMS), powering over 30% of all websites on the internet.

it is completely free, but it requires hosting to operate.

Although WordPress can run on almost all types of hosting. The large user base has prompted web hosting companies to offer specialized hosting services for WordPress with enhancements and tools tailored for WordPress to increase hosting speed and performance.

Some of the features and tools that come with WordPress hosting include an automatic caching system, easy WordPress installation on hosting, backup of hosting, as well as specialized technical support to solve WordPress issues, and other features.

Virtual Private Server (VPS)

The Virtual Private Server, often abbreviated as VPS, is a type of hosting that sits in the middle ground between shared hosting and dedicated servers.

Similar in structure to shared hosting, in VPS hosting, the entire server is shared among multiple users, but the number of users is significantly fewer compared to shared hosting.

As the name suggests, in virtual servers, the full server is divided into smaller virtual servers using software.

These virtual servers are isolated from each other, with each virtual server allocated a dedicated portion of the full server’s resources that is not shared with other users. Virtual servers can also be divided into shared hosting accounts.

VPS hosting is known for being more powerful, secure, and better performing than shared hosting, but it is still less powerful than a dedicated server. Therefore, VPS is less costly than a dedicated server.

Related: What is a Virtual Private Server (VPS)?

Dedicated Server

The Dedicated Server is the most powerful and largest type of web hosting. When you acquire a dedicated server, you get the entire server machine to yourself, and no one else shares it with you. Therefore, it is the most secure and powerful hosting service.

However, managing and controlling a dedicated server is difficult and requires someone with experience in server management.

Since you get the entire server machine to yourself, dedicated server hosting is more expensive. However, many good dedicated server hosting companies offer this type of hosting service. Colohouse Hosting is one of the prominent providers of this type of hosting.

Colocation Hosting

Some companies and organizations rely on establishing and managing their own Datacenter. A practice that was widespread in the past and continues to be prevalent in many companies and organizations today, especially those possessing highly sensitive data that cannot be entrusted to another entity, even with a legal contract between the two parties.

Some companies cannot store their data or their customers’ data with another entity. Examples include governmental institutions and companies operating in regulated industries such as financial institutions, banks, and healthcare service providers like hospitals and government agencies.

Shared hosting or Colocation Hosting provides a solution for such companies, allowing them to manage and own their servers while significantly reducing both initial and operational expenses.

In Colocation Hosting, these companies can rent space in a data center to house their servers. The data center provider or the company owning the data center offering this type of web hosting service will provide logistical support such as electricity, cooling, internet connectivity, IP addresses, security, and insurance, as well as monitoring and maintaining server performance.

This type of web hosting offers users or clients the same level of service they would receive if they were to create and own their own data center but at significantly lower costs in exchange for agreed-upon fees with the hosting company owning the data center.

Colocation Hosting is primarily aimed at medium and large enterprises that own multiple servers. Despite this, users still need to manage server software and configurations themselves and may require dedicated staff to do so, although the service provider will handle hardware monitoring and maintenance on-site.