What shared hosting is and when it suits you.

Every website needs a computer that's on around the clock, connected to the Internet, holding its files. That's the server, and the service you rent it through is called hosting or web hosting. Shared hosting means you share that server with other websites, and its cost is split between all of them. That's why it's the cheapest type of web hosting and, for most company websites, blogs and small stores, also the best fit.

How shared hosting works, in short

A shared hosting server holds many separate accounts. Each account has its own disk space, mailboxes and databases, and nobody can see what's in someone else's account. What's shared is the server's processor and memory: when one site gets many visitors at once, it uses more of them.

The good part is that you have nothing to manage. The operating system, web server, security updates and monitoring are the hosting provider's job. You get a control panel where you install your site, create email addresses and see your files.

What you should get with cheap hosting

A low price shouldn't mean missing pieces. A good shared hosting plan includes, from the start:

• SSD storage, not conventional disks: pages load noticeably faster, especially for database-driven sites like WordPress.
• Unmetered traffic, so you don't pay extra in a month with lots of visitors.
• Mailboxes on your own domain (office@yourcompany.com looks different from a Gmail address).
• An SSL certificate, without which the browser shows “Not secure" next to the site's address. We explain the differences in detail on the SSL certificates page.
• Backups, so a failed update or a file deleted by mistake doesn't cost you the site.
• Hosting with cPanel or another easy-to-use panel, where you do everything without server knowledge.
• One-click installation for WordPress and other platforms, through Softaculous.
• DDoS protection and a firewall, active on the server, without you configuring them.

With our shared web hosting plans all of this is included from the smallest plan, at €0.50 a month, and you choose the control panel: cPanel or VirtualMin.

The limits of shared hosting

Shared hosting also has a hidden cost in the way it works: if another site on the same server has a very busy day, you may feel it too. Serious providers limit how much a single account can use, so no site can smother the others. With us, from the Business plan up, CloudLinux handles that by giving each account its own resources, while LiteSpeed and Imunify360 add extra speed and protection.

There are a few more situations where shared hosting is no longer the right choice:

1. You need root access or software that can't be installed from a hosting panel.
2. The site has high traffic all the time, not just a few days a year.
3. You run an online store with many products and orders, where the allocated processor matters, not disk space. That's what e-commerce hosting is for, with processor and memory reserved for your store.

When you get there, the next step is a VPS server: a virtual machine that's yours alone, with guaranteed resources and root access.

How to choose the right hosting plan

Start from what you have, not from what you might have in two years. A few simple questions lead you to the right plan:

• How many websites do you want to host? A single company website fits easily in the Economy plan; for three or five domains look at Entry or Premium.
• How many email addresses do you need? Count today's and add a few for colleagues who'll join.
• Looking for WordPress hosting with lots of plugins? Then acceleration matters: LiteSpeed and CloudLinux come in from the Business plan.
• Do you need a database for each site? Every plan has as many MySQL databases as the domains it hosts.

One important thing: with a good provider, you move to the next plan without moving anything. There's no need to guess at the start — choose what suits you now and grow when the site needs it.

What to check with any hosting company

The monthly price is easy to compare. The rest only shows when you have a problem, so it's worth asking beforehand:

1. Where are the servers? Hosting in Romania means lower response times for visitors in the country and support in Romanian.
2. Is uptime written into the contract? A percentage only promised on the website doesn't help you at all. We've shown how a 99.80% uptime guarantee is calculated and what it means in minutes per month.
3. Is backup included or paid separately? And, just as important, how quickly you can restore your site from it.
4. Is moving from your current provider free? A rushed site move is where databases and emails get lost most often.

With us the servers sit in our own data center in Romania, with 99.80% uptime in the contract, backups are included in every plan, and our technicians move your site from another provider for free. For WordPress sites and WooCommerce stores we also have a dedicated WordPress migration service.

Frequently asked questions about hosting

What's the difference between a domain and hosting?

The domain is the site's address, for example yourcompany.com. Hosting is where its files live. You need both: the domain points to the hosting server, and that's where your site responds.

Shared hosting or VPS?

For a site just starting out, shared hosting is enough and costs less. Move to a VPS when you need guaranteed resources or root access.

Is cheap hosting slower?

Not necessarily. Speed depends on the disks (SSD or NVMe), how loaded the server is and how well the site is built, not just on the price.

In short

Shared hosting is the right choice for most websites starting out: it costs little, needs no server knowledge and comes with everything a site needs to be fast and secure. Choose the plan by the number of websites and email addresses, check the backup, the SSL certificate and the uptime in the contract, and only move to a VPS when the site really needs it.

Not sure where to start? Write to us about the site you have or want to build and we'll tell you which hosting plan suits you.