Editor's opinion
Lorienz Galarpe
I am a website designer and developer for over 7 years now, and I worked with several hosting companies in the past for each website project I handle.
First impression
Since its founding in 1998, WestHost has been providing simple yet comprehensive web hosting solutions to all sorts of businesses, helping them “leave their mark in the digital world.” With more than two decades of experience, data centers all over the world and a goal to remain pocket-friendly, it is hardly surprising that they have registered over one million domains so far.
As the name suggests, WestHost’s main office is situated in the West (obviously). It is situated in Providence (the USA), to be more precise. Their data centers are equipped with tier- 3 technology and deployed in a disaster-safe zone near Salt Lake City (the USA), while others are scattered across seven global locations, some of them being the UK, Canada, Brazil and India.
Upon reaching WestHost’s main website we were struck with an eerie feeling we’ve seen all this before and then it dawned upon us. Since both hosts are under the wing of UK2 group (company from the UK) WestHost’s website is almost indistinguishable from Midphase’s site (as well as the one from UK2 itself) and we are sure the similarities are beyond skin-deep.
They also offer a professional Website Builder Tool, everything you need to build the perfect website. Brilliant website templates that are simple to build and configure. All the tools you need to create your vision - no technical experience required and price starts at $4.46 per month which is billed annually.
Trial period
They don't really offer a free trial to any of their services though with a 30 day money back guarantee you have plenty of time to test them out. Whatever the reason there's no need to explain, but they're confident once you start you won't want to stop.
WestHost provides a 30-day money back guarantee for all shared hosting accounts. If for any reason you are not completely satisfied with their services and request cancellation within 30 days of signing up, you will be given a full refund.
Nowhere will you find more value from a web hosting company; there's no risk to find out for yourself.
Billing cycle
Their web hosting packages are very affordable, and they offer a package to suit businesses and projects of all shapes and sizes. What’s more, regardless of the package you choose, the first month is just $1.
Their payment plans are flexible, depending on your requirements. Choose to pay monthly or enjoy a discounted annual fee and enjoy peace of mind that your web hosting is sorted for a whole year. You may also enjoy a discounted price of up to $30 Off plus free domain name if you choose to pay for 24 months at $3.75 per month.
Control panel
WestHost’s user interface is easy-to-use and comes with a fully integrated industry leading Linux-based cPanel, which is always a good thing to see. With this one-click installer and a website builder (with hundreds of rather good-looking templates) your website should be up and running in no time.
cPanel provides the most reliable and intuitive server and site management platform. With a rich feature set and customer-first support, cPanel’s automated and configurable platform enables customers to focus on growing their businesses.
Add greater stability to your shared hosting, host more sites, optimize server performance and provide a more stable, secure environment for your shared hosting account.
Limits
WestHost’s hosting plans are presented in a clear way in which they are easy to compare and contrast with each other. There are plenty of them to choose from for each provided type: shared hosting, email hosting, WordPress-optimized hosting, managed VPS and dedicated servers.
The starter shared hosting plan will cost you mere $3.75 per month, however, after the initial one year the price will rise up to $5.00, which is (evidently) four times more than originally asked for. This plan comes with a number of limited features: ability to host one website, 25GB of disk space, Unmetered bandwidth, 25 Subdomains, free SSL and one database.
And as for the Premier Plan, it comes with Unlimited websites, up to 150GB Storage, Free Domain, Unlimited Subdomains, Unmetered Bandwidth, Free SSL and Unlimited Databases.
Security
Despite your best efforts, sometimes the bad guys find a way in. If your website, applications, or databases have been compromised or infected by malware, they can help clean up and get you back to a secure and stable state. Their Level 3 engineers will review your entire setup, remove any nasties, update your applications and plugins, and close unnecessary access routes to minimize the risk of being compromised again. They will employ recognized best practice for a variety of applications such as WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and more.
Despite your best efforts, sometimes the bad guys find a way in. If your website, applications, or databases have been compromised or infected by malware, they can help clean up and get you back to a secure and stable state. Their Level 3 engineers will review your entire setup, remove any nasties, update your applications and plugins, and close unnecessary access routes to minimize the risk of being compromised again. They will employ recognized best practice for a variety of applications such as WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and more.
WestHost includes SSL certificates in each Business and Unlimited Business hosting package, helping customers to apply and install this valued certificate. Search engines love SSL certificates, and so do consumers – research has suggested only 3% of customers would supply card data to a website without a padlock icon or green address bar (both signifying the presence of a secure HTTPS connection).
OS
At WestHost, all of their servers run Linux in order to provide clients with a cheap, yet secure hosting experience. WestHost uses the most up-to-date version of Linux for its servers. Check out our shared, cloud and dedicated web hosting packages to find the perfect solution for you.
Support
There are quite a few ways to get in touch with WestHost’s support team and they are (like they say) just a click away. The live chat is open 24/7 if you need immediate help. If not, there is an option to submit a ticket or try to reach them via one of several email addresses, each corresponding to a specific department. In addition, there are two telephone numbers: one is international and another is reserved for the UK citizens and is toll-free.
Although at the time we tried to contact them via Live chat support, the service is unavailable and there’s no agent online.
Fortunately, since WestHost’s website is fully equipped with self-help options, users who want to find solutions on their own (or those still waiting for a response from the WestHost’s support team) can browse FAQ section, guides for newcomers, knowledgebase and their official blog.
Conclusion
Pros |
Cons |
- Budget-friendly hosting options;
- Free SSL certificate, but with annual packages only;
- Free website migration, but for cPanel users exclusively;
- Standard 30-day money-back guarantee;
- User-friendly and a solid option for newcomers.
|
- Massive price hike after the start-up period.
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Much like its sister companies, WestHost has been providing all kinds of customers with well-thought-out hosting solutions for more than two decades, which is a testament to the quality of its products. Although WestHost has an abundance of strong points, customer service is not one of them. Hence, if you’re used to finding solutions on your own, check out WestHost, since its do-it-yourself section has much to offer.
All in all, WestHost’s main website, although far from the most visually lackluster websites we’ve seen, would greatly benefit from being polished up a bit.
FAQ:
❇️What is a content management system (CMS)?
A CMS is a software used to manage content on a website. Popular CMS include WordPress, Joomla, Squarespace and Wix.
💠What is shared hosting?
Shared hosting is an affordable option for hosting your website. Unlike dedicated hosting, you share a server with multiple other clients, effectively sharing the maintenance costs and resources. The server provides plenty of bandwidth to distribute amongst clients, so you don’t need to worry about web performance. However, if your website grows considerably, you may prefer to choose a different web hosting solution. Their expert team are on hand to advise on the ideal web hosting solution for your business or project.
✅How does Westhost help clients succeed online?
Westhost has everything you need to get online, manage your brand’s reputation and meet your digital goals. From domains to dedicated servers, their reliable infrastructure will grow with you. Their expert support staff are available day and night to answer questions and lend a hand, and satisfaction is quite literally guaranteed. If you’re unhappy with your hosting services within the first 30 days of purchasing goods and services from Westhost, they will refund your money with no questions asked.
Over the years, they have built long‐standing partnerships with industry‐leading software and platforms. They can bring you acclaimed services like SiteLock, WordPress and StackCP. If you’re looking for reliable web hosting, they’re at your service.