WebSouls.com review

First impression

WebSouls has been a major player in the web hosting game since they opened their doors in Lahore back in 2002. As part of the Future Souls Group - a tech-focused company known for creating cutting-edge IT solutions worldwide - they've grown from a local Pakistani business to an international operation with offices stretching from Punjab all the way to the UK. Over the years, they've built up a solid lineup of services that cover all the hosting essentials, whether you're looking for basic shared hosting, more powerful VPS options, full dedicated servers, or just need domain names and SSL certificates to secure your site. They've also got specialized email hosting solutions for businesses that need reliable communication tools.

Trial Period

Want to try before you buy? WebSouls lets you test drive their shared hosting for a full 7 days - no credit card required. That's right, you can get hands-on with their services completely free before making any commitment. And if you do sign up but change your mind later, no worries - they stand behind their service with a 30-day money-back guarantee. This gives you a full month to decide if they're the right hosting partner for your needs.

Billing Cycle

One size doesn't fit all when it comes to billing, and WebSouls gets that. For shared hosting, you can choose payment plans that range from 1 to 3 years (annual, biennial, or triennial). If you're looking at their VPS solutions, you'll enjoy even more flexibility with monthly, quarterly, bi-annual, or yearly payment options. This variety makes it easier to find a plan that fits both your budget and your project timeline.

They currently accept all major Credit Cards, PayPal, Bank Transfers, Cash or Cheque payments at their offices, or Mobile payments via Easy Paisa, Mobi Cash, Warid Paisa, U-Paisa, Time Pay, UBL Omni, or HBL Express.

Control Panel

WebSouls makes website management easy with different control panel choices depending on your hosting type. If you're using their shared hosting, you'll get cPanel - the industry standard that most beginners find super easy to use with its point-and-click interface. But if you upgrade to VPS hosting, they give you more powerful options. You can still use cPanel, but they also include WHM (Web Host Manager) which is perfect if you're managing lots of websites or running a reseller business. Another great choice is Plesk - it's clean, user-friendly, and works equally well whether you're hosting on Linux or Windows. This variety means whether you're just starting your first blog or running a web development agency, WebSouls has the right tools for you.

Limits

WebSouls offers shared hosting plans to match different needs and budgets. Their starter Basic plan gives you enough power for a personal website or blog - 1 CPU core, 512MB RAM, 10GB of speedy SSD storage, one MySQL database, and email accounts (though with a 1GB total limit). At the other end, their Business plan is built to handle serious traffic - 4 CPU cores, 8GB RAM, and a massive 250GB of ultra-fast NVMe storage with unlimited databases and emails. No matter which plan you choose, you'll get some nice freebies including a domain name, Let's Encrypt SSL certificate, and unmetered bandwidth. The Business plan in particular is fantastic for online stores or company websites that need reliable performance.

WebSouls offers four exemplary choices when it comes to VPS hosting. For smaller projects, their entry-level VPS-1 plan should do the trick as it comes with a single CPU core, 2GB of RAM, 40GB of storage, and 200GB of monthly data transfer. If you need more power, their top-tier VPS-4 plan really steps things up with 4 CPU cores, 16GB of RAM, 400GB of storage, and a whopping 2000GB of bandwidth allowance. 

One nice perk that all of their VPS plans share is the fact that a free, dedicated IP address is included - especially useful if you are an e-commerce business or require a specific setup. Just keep in mind that while these servers are adequate for what you might need, they're not the quickest when it comes to storing data, as these servers are running on traditional HDD storage instead of SSDs, meaning for some, they may load slower than expected.

Website Builder

They provide the SiteJet website builder in all of its Shared Hosting plans, except the Basic, Startup, and Grow. This website builder, created and offered through cPanel, is an extensive website builder for experienced and inexperienced people alike, who seek an adaptable platform to build websites. It is famous for its easy drag-and-drop feature, and due to this feature, even non-technical people can easily use it.

The builder is full of customizable templates and AI-based content creation tools. While perhaps missing some of the frills found in specialized website builders, SiteJet still strikes an overall balance of features and ease of use, making it an ideal choice for freelancers and small- to medium-sized companies.

Security

Security is paramount to WebSouls - they've got layers of protection wrapped around their servers. They've got eyes monitoring the network 24/7, ready to spring into action at the slightest hint of suspicious activity. They've got robust defenses against those annoying DDoS attacks, those that take down websites. All websites also include a complimentary Let's Encrypt SSL certificate, which keeps data transmitted back and forth between your website and viewers safe and encrypted.

Sleep well knowing they automatically back everything up every day so if something does go wrong, they can get you back in business in seconds. They have malware scanners running all day, every day, secure FTP for safe transfers, and software checks for security vulnerabilities all day. Need an extra layer of security? They have premium SSL certificates such as Comodo Positive SSL (with Wildcard option) for those needing an extra level of verification - an extra cost per year, but one which gives an extra level of security. 

OS

In terms of OS, WebSouls keeps matters straightforward yet functional for their shared hosting customers. They run CentOS - an older Linux distribution which has become the de facto standard among hundreds of web hosts. And for a good reason: CentOS offers rock-solid stability, and tight security, and works beautifully with cPanel (which, unsurprisingly, is part of all of its shared hosting services).

But if you opt for their VPS services, you enjoy more flexibility in choosing your OS of preference. Linux enthusiasts can choose rock-solid CentOS (7 or 8), easy-to-use Ubuntu (18.04 or 20.04 LTS releases), or super-reliable Debian (versions 9 or 10). Windows your preference? No problem - they have Windows Server 2016 and 2019 available. Such variety ensures that as an experienced Linux user or Windows aficionado, WebSouls has your solution for your project.

Support

WebSouls support can be accessed through various channels such as 24/7 Live Chat, Email, WhatsApp, and Phone so that customers can get support at any time. Mostly, customers have positive feedback for their support, although, in my own experience, it was not so. I have waited for as long as 2 hours for answers on Live Chat, in which officials replied in really generic terms and didn't fix anything. Email support was even worse, as days went by between responses.  Maybe I was just unlucky, but the support level I got was a disappointment. If you want to debug problems yourself, there's an extensive knowledge base in the form of articles and tutorials available on their website.

Conclusion

WebSouls really delivers where it counts - I've been impressed with their consistent uptime, robust security measures, and their use of top-tier SSD/NVMe storage across all shared hosting plans. That said, their VPS offerings could use some modernization, as they're still running on traditional HDDs rather than faster solid-state drives. Another area where they fall a bit short is OS options - you won't find as much variety here compared to some competitors.

Now, I did have one frustrating experience with their support team, though to be fair, most customers seem to have great things to say about their helpfulness. Maybe I just caught them on an off day?

At the end of the day, WebSouls is definitely a contender worth considering for your hosting needs. But if I'm being honest, it wouldn't hurt to check out a few other providers before making your final decision - especially if VPS performance or OS flexibility are priorities for you.