Cheapest hosting+domain to start out?

by ckbank
64 replies
Okay, after much time wasted, I'm ready to sell web design. Here's my question? What is the cheapest hosting+domain package I can get to build my own web design website? Sucks that BlueHost, for example is cheap, but you gotta pay yearly.
#cheapest #domain #hosting #start
  • Profile picture of the author BillyParadise
    I'm quoting a guy I know right now to take over hosting for his network of sites. Why? He cheaped out and suffers lots of downtime and consequently several lost sales. No, I won't try to sell you hosting - I only offer it as a value-add for my clients - but the moral of my story is DON'T CHEAP OUT on hosting.
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    • Profile picture of the author PatriciaS
      Originally Posted by BillyParadise View Post

      I'm quoting a guy I know right now to take over hosting for his network of sites. Why? He cheaped out and suffers lots of downtime and consequently several lost sales. No, I won't try to sell you hosting - I only offer it as a value-add for my clients - but the moral of my story is DON'T CHEAP OUT on hosting.
      I'm not paying them yearly, though I think I did at first, when I only had one "add-on" domain. Call their sales office for more info. I personally think BlueHost is far and away the best, at least for us non-technical folks. I know I can rely on their patient, excellent technical help by phone 24/7. I love them to bits.

      Edited to add: Everyone recomends Hostgator, but I tried them and was NOT happy with them, esp. compared to BlueHost. I also didn't like some of their business practices (don't ask me for details because I can't remember them -- just the bad taste in my mouth they left.) As for GoDaddy, you do get support but not at a toll-free number (unless you have free long distance and many people do these days), plus in my experience their support was arrogant. I also despised their whole set-up -- hard to navigate around the place. BlueHost for me.
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  • Profile picture of the author feedthegoats
    Wherever you go, do an internet search for discount codes before you sign up. Sometimes you can get great deals at places you would have used anyway.
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    • Profile picture of the author mojojuju
      Originally Posted by Maui Joe View Post

      From their page:

      Our goal here is simple: offer our customers a quality web hosting plan at an exceptional price. To do this we have removed email, ticketing, & live support.
      They don't even have email support? What is a customer supposed to do when MySQL goes down - just wait a few days for a staff member to notice?
      Signature

      :)

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      • Profile picture of the author Maui Joe
        Originally Posted by mojojuju View Post

        From their page:



        They don't even have email support? What is a customer supposed to do when MySQL goes down - just wait a few days for a staff member to notice?
        you didn't catch that based on the fact the domain is Supportlesshosting?


        if the threadstarter needs handholding to setup and manage the site, or if it's a money site, it's obviously not the right solution.
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        • Profile picture of the author mojojuju
          Originally Posted by Maui Joe View Post

          you didn't catch that based on the fact the domain is Supportlesshosting?
          I caught that the first time around. But thanks for your observant eyes.


          Originally Posted by Maui Joe View Post

          if the threadstarter needs handholding to setup and manage the site, or if it's a money site, it's obviously not the right solution.
          You're missing the point. Whether or not a client needs handholding, there are instances in a shared hosting environment where a customer needs to get help from the company's support team. I'm talking about things beyond the customer's control.

          Wouldn't you agree that shared hosting customers don't have sufficient privileges to restart services (MySQL, httpd, mail) if they crash? Don't you think that in such situations, a customer might need to contact their host by email to get the problem fixed. I wouldn't consider it "handholding" to expect a hosting provider to fix problems on their end.
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          • Profile picture of the author Maui Joe
            Originally Posted by mojojuju View Post

            I caught that the first time around. But thanks for your observant eyes.
            No problem. Let me know if I can help you with anything else bro. I'm here to serve with my observant eyes!!!11..
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          • Profile picture of the author Maui Joe
            Originally Posted by mojojuju View Post

            You're missing the point.
            not really. the threadstarter wanted the cheapest hosting. I posted up the cheapest one I know.

            the threadstarter didn't say anything about needing email access to support. he didn't say anything needing phone access to an admin.

            he said he wanted a cheap solution. i posted one. now your panties are twisted.

            calm down bro
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            • Profile picture of the author mojojuju
              Originally Posted by Maui Joe View Post

              not really. the threadstarter wanted the cheapest hosting. I posted up the cheapest one I know.

              the threadstarter didn't say anything about needing email access to support. he didn't say anything needing phone access to an admin.

              he said he wanted a cheap solution. i posted one. now your panties are twisted.

              calm down bro
              :confused: :confused:
              Signature

              :)

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              • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
                Banned
                You can pay Hostgator monthly. End of story?

                If that's really too expensive, look at Hostica ($1 per month, but that's for one site)?

                (As a website designer, and someone who's been here over 3 years, you already know never to register a domain-name where you host its site, right? Namecheap is a good registrar).
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              • Profile picture of the author csurv
                GoDaddy currently has a $0.99 .com domain sale. As far as hosting, I would go with the hostgator baby plan. If you Google "hostgator coupons", you can get your first month of hosting for only $0.01.
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      • Profile picture of the author BillyParadise
        Originally Posted by mojojuju View Post

        From their page:



        They don't even have email support? What is a customer supposed to do when MySQL goes down - just wait a few days for a staff member to notice?
        yes. You want cheap, you put up with crap or no support

        actually most hosters have monitoring systems in place and get alerted to problems. Just because you can't cal support in this case doesn't mean they won't catch a problem.


        I'm biased as I run my own servers, but cheap is cheap for a reason. I couldn't in good conscience subject my clients to the lack of proper support I received with large hosting companies so I built my own. It wasn't particularly hard.

        now my cost per domain hosted is under a dollar a month, plus a couple of hours a week from my va server admin. Once you get to even a few dozen clients / domains its something to consider.

        sorry for the off topic ramble
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  • Profile picture of the author mojojuju
    I wouldn't look for the cheapest hosting. Find a host that has a good balance of cheap and reliable. Some of the cheap hosts will make you spit and curse.
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  • Profile picture of the author vijai
    namecheap,hostgator
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    • Profile picture of the author ckbank
      Well, I'm looking for something that's initially cheap. I don't care what I pay in a month, but I want "cheap" today. Some sort of a trial or something that allows me to start out without spending too much.
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      • Profile picture of the author rondo
        Originally Posted by ckbank View Post

        Well, I'm looking for something that's initially cheap. I don't care what I pay in a month, but I want "cheap" today. Some sort of a trial or something that allows me to start out without spending too much.
        Use a Hostgator coupon: Join Hostgator for one cent


        Andrew
        Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author ckbank
    One more thing. I actually have a pretty neatly designed blog. I want to do web design. Can I just incorporate "services offered" into the blog menu? Would this be considered professional? What about using subdomains?
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  • Profile picture of the author faisalmaximus
    Try Hostgator Baby Plan, you can host unlimited number of websites. I am using it personally and very much satisfied at their service.
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    • Profile picture of the author John Rogers
      Originally Posted by faisalmaximus View Post

      Try Hostgator Baby Plan, you can host unlimited number of websites. I am using it personally and very much satisfied at their service.
      This solution makes the most sense to me as you can start cheap then upgrade without having to move. Whatever you do, use a reputable company that has withstood the test of time. Cheap shouldn't be the primary factor in your choice.
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  • Profile picture of the author moneyman2010
    I use bluehost and hostgator..I haven't had any problems with them and they have excellent customer service..Prices are good too..
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  • Profile picture of the author Sue McDonald
    Go with Hostgator baby plan. Their support is great if you need support. Don't buy your domain at the same place. Always look to see if there are any specials or coupons available for bot the hosting company and the domain registrar.
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  • Profile picture of the author ymest
    HI there, I have always used GoDaddy and Hostgator and never had any problems! Hostgator are very effective in fact! I also bought domain from Doster but didn't like the way it was handled! I am not sure what it was but I just didn't like them!

    Yoan
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    • Profile picture of the author Lloyd Buchinski
      Originally Posted by mojojuju View Post

      You're missing the point. Whether or not a client needs handholding, there are instances in a shared hosting environment where a customer needs to get help from the company's support team. I'm talking about things beyond the customer's control.

      Wouldn't you agree that shared hosting customers don't have sufficient privileges to restart services (MySQL, httpd, mail) if they crash? Don't you think that in such situations, a customer might need to contact their host by email to get the problem fixed. I wouldn't consider it "handholding" to expect a hosting provider to fix problems on their end.
      Seemed like a good point to me.
      Signature

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  • Profile picture of the author onegoodman
    You don't want to ask for the cheapest, you can get hosting for free but no support = waste time
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  • Profile picture of the author BarberShop
    LovingHosting.com - $2/mo
    Domains - Godaddy (find coupons online) but Namecheap is better IMO
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  • Profile picture of the author Boga Dhami
    try hostpapa
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  • Profile picture of the author northwish
    Godaddy has offers for both domain and hosting. Hosting around $5/month.
    Signature
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  • Profile picture of the author footbag_man
    Originally Posted by ckbank View Post

    Okay, after much time wasted, I'm ready to sell web design. Here's my question? What is the cheapest hosting+domain package I can get to build my own web design website? Sucks that BlueHost, for example is cheap, but you gotta pay yearly.

    I use bluehost.. Very easy integration with WordPress.

    I believe you have to pay yearly with all hosting companies.. no?
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    • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
      Banned
      Originally Posted by footbag_man View Post

      I believe you have to pay yearly with all hosting companies.. no?
      No ... many well-known and very good hosts (like Hostgator) will let you pay monthly, but they do tend to charge something like 20% more, over the course of the year, for that arrangement.
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      • Profile picture of the author micksss
        Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post

        No ... many well-known and very good hosts (like Hostgator) will let you pay monthly, but they do tend to charge something like 20% more, over the course of the year, for that arrangement.
        Yes it costs more to pay monthly. Hostgator, bluehost, webhostinghub, and a lot of other web hosting companies will provide you with a pro-rated refund if you cancel your plan. So if you go for the one, two, or even three year plan to save money when the company will do a pro-rated refund if you cancel then you might as well save the $ IMO.
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        Web Hosting Reviews ► www.CastironHosting.com ◄ Read or Submit Feedback on Web Hosts.
        Web Hosting Coupons, Deals & Promos!

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  • Profile picture of the author mojojuju
    ckbank, I got this in my email today. $1 for one year of hosting Let Us Win Back Your Business!
    Signature

    :)

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  • Profile picture of the author Dino Aiello
    I use Fatcow for my hosting. So far, their customer service is great, and I haven't had any downtime...knock on wood. I would definitely stay away from Brainhost. Their customer service is really bad.
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  • Profile picture of the author mojojuju
    I found another decent hosting promotion on Slickdeals today.

    Get a Year of hosting and a domain name for $20 from Dreamhost.

    At the top of that page, it says the deal expires 1/25/2013, but it looks like it's still going through today.
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    :)

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  • Profile picture of the author tomerep
    Go for hostgator as they are saying. It's the leader for providing web hosting. And the quality is good
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  • Profile picture of the author BarberShop
    Hostgator's dominance is scary. Support
    equally good hosts so they all innovate
    and compete.

    I'm not a fan of Hostgator.

    LovingHosting for me. Thanks.
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  • Profile picture of the author Kingfish85
    Here's the thing with web hosting - when you pay peanuts you can expect monkeys. If you're looking to host your customers websites, I would not skimp on quality just to save a buck. When your customers websites are loading slow, they will point the finger at you, not "your" web host.

    If you're looking to sell quality services, don't run it on a sub-par platform. I would highly advise staying away from any "unlimited" services as they tend to have jam packed servers & SQL servers.

    The age old "continuous loading of the Wordpress dashboard" is a tell tale sign.
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  • Profile picture of the author oplaopla
    I strongly recommend HostWinds, it's $5.50 a month with unlimited domains, bandwidth, storage, databases, etc ... and you can get the first month for just $1 if you use the coupon code "ONEDOLLAR"
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  • Profile picture of the author Summer1
    HostGator is good, but what I like is ability to choose monthly plan which is very useful if you want to test it.

    Other thing I notice after using them many years, apart of good customer support is you can run many websites on them up to 5 they are still fine, not slowing the whole things down.
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  • Profile picture of the author reneesbertrand
    Godaddy is quite cheap starting from just 3-4$ a month...!! I think anyone would be able to pay up for that
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  • Profile picture of the author Grazina
    I think marblehost company can be helpful for your needs.
    Servers are stable and prices are not high.
    They have provided free bonuses for their customers.
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  • Profile picture of the author S E O
    ZERO addon domain.

    For 1 cent more, you can get 4 at LovingHosting.
    Sorry this is thread has gone a bit old but I noticed something wrong written and could not hold back -

    Please check the fact BarberShop it has unlimited domains for $1.99 - (you can visit the link and verify it yourself)

    I have been using Leapswitch since a couple of years now and I must vouch for their services - not to mention their support!! tickets are answered within a very very short time much faster then any other hosting services I have tried, I am surprised everytime.

    I simply enjoy their hosting and could not see injustice in something wrong written - once again pardon me for posting in an old thread.
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  • Profile picture of the author Igor Fridrihs
    Look at iPage. They are cheap.
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  • Profile picture of the author maz1207
    Namecheap special offer just for today allows you to buy .com, .net or .org domain at $0.98. Their web hosting is pretty good too but i think there's no offer for that right now.
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    • Profile picture of the author Dburn
      I know that GoDaddy offers a hosting plan where you don't have to pay yearly. That's the only place I know that really does that.
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      • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
        Banned
        Originally Posted by Dburn View Post

        That's the only place I know that really does that.
        Most well-known hosting companies really do that.
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        • Profile picture of the author Italiajin
          Hostgator + GoDaddy ?
          Signature
          JUST DO IT
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          • Profile picture of the author cooler1
            Originally Posted by Italiajin View Post

            Hostgator + GoDaddy ?
            HostGator isn't the cheapest. Not sure what gave you that idea.
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            • Profile picture of the author Kingfish85
              Originally Posted by cooler1 View Post

              HostGator isn't the cheapest. Not sure what gave you that idea.
              It's monkey see-monkey do. Most of the replies in this thread probably haven't even used another provider.
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  • Profile picture of the author Moneymaker2012
    You can easily get cheap hosting and domain at namecheap, godaddy or hostgator. But I suggest you godaddy it helps beginners easily set up their site.
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  • Profile picture of the author Gavan
    Originally Posted by ckbank View Post

    Okay, after much time wasted, I'm ready to sell web design. Here's my question? What is the cheapest hosting+domain package I can get to build my own web design website? Sucks that BlueHost, for example is cheap, but you gotta pay yearly.
    I like Web Hosting & Domain Names - Doteasy.com. Their basic hosting package is only $25 a year (including domain name). You don't get a lot of features or storage space, but for simple sites this is more than enough.
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  • Profile picture of the author rossm
    1 and 1, cheapest I can find
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  • Profile picture of the author Gary Ning Lo
    You finally decided to start building a business..

    Why are you afraid to invest? Hosting is crucial and you need quality.

    So don't buy cheap stuff.

    Cheers,

    Gary
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  • Profile picture of the author Smith18
    HostGator might not be the cheapest out there, but it's probably one of the best. If the hosting you get is REALLY cheap, chances are it's not going to be that good. UZRHosting is a good alternative.
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  • Profile picture of the author carrera57
    I use Netfirms for all my Domains and my Hosting. You can search for coupons online and buy Domains for about $5. There is also a coupon for hosting. They are not the cheapest but pretty reliable with only little downtime.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dragone
    stablehost and namecheap seem to be a good affordable package.
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  • Profile picture of the author Lena Williams
    I would suggest you to use Crazydomains.com to register domain. They provides really very very cheap domain registration service. For hosting you can go for hostgator baby plan.
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  • Profile picture of the author artistic
    you can go for free hosting instead one site I know is highmarkhosting.com but never used it.
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    • Profile picture of the author Kingfish85
      Originally Posted by artistic View Post

      you can go for free hosting instead one site I know is highmarkhosting.com but never used it.
      LOL - clicked "order now" on that site and was shown this:

      Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Vestibulum fringilla tincidunt enim ac ullamcorper. Integer in ipsum ac nisl hendrerit semper malesuada quis elit. Mauris ac tincidunt velit. Aliquam laoreet est et enim ultrices vitae feugiat purus rutrum. Suspendisse ac dignissim lectus. Aenean faucibus purus at risus vulputate tincidunt. Fusce suscipit cursus ante vel lacinia. Vestibulum nec nulla lorem, ac porta sapien. Curabitur eget interdum sem. Vivamus a varius erat. Mauris malesuada gravida egestas.
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      • Profile picture of the author talking
        Obhosting provides cheap and reliable hosting services.
        I'd recommend to use them if you need a quality hosting.
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