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Does my choice of web host affect SEO?

by dave830
12 replies
  • SEO
    • |
A friend was recently told by his webmaster that his SEO rankings (which this webmaster is responsible for) took a hit because of a recent move of some sites to BlueHost. (used to host on this webmaster's own servers, I think)

Have you ever heard of this? Does the host have anything to do with it... especially a reputable one (IMHO) like bluehost?

Thanks for any thoughts.

Dave
#affect #choice #host #seo #web
  • Profile picture of the author Daniel Molano
    Originally Posted by dave830 View Post

    A friend was recently told by his webmaster that his SEO rankings (which this webmaster is responsible for) took a hit because of a recent move of some sites to BlueHost. (used to host on this webmaster's own servers, I think)

    Have you ever heard of this? Does the host have anything to do with it... especially a reputable one (IMHO) like bluehost?

    Thanks for any thoughts.

    Dave
    Only in two aspects.

    1. Load Speed.

    If the hosting is slow it will most likely affect spiders, crawlers and robots.

    Making it hard for all the automated processes to go through the site, and hence affecting rankings.

    It could also increase bounce rate (people despise slow sites), and lower the amount of pages per visit.

    Which are both variables counted in the Google algorithm.

    2. Class C IP Addresses.

    Bluehost, being shared hosting, also shares IP addresses.

    And your site will never be seen as unique or stand alone by Google unless it has it's own IP address.

    Meaning that all internal links within that same IP would not count as unique backlinks.

    This is an algorithm variable that does not count as much, but it still counts.

    I hope that helps,

    - Dan
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    • Profile picture of the author patJ
      Originally Posted by Daniel Molano View Post

      2. Class C IP Addresses.

      Bluehost, being shared hosting, also shares IP addresses.

      And your site will never be seen as unique or stand alone by Google unless it has it's own IP address.

      Meaning that all internal links within that same IP would not count as unique backlinks.

      This is an algorithm variable that does not count as much, but it still counts.

      I hope that helps,
      This is not true at all. Your site will be seen as unique even if it shares IP with other sites. And links coming from the same IP will still count...
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      • Profile picture of the author Daniel Molano
        Originally Posted by patJ View Post

        This is not true at all. Your site will be seen as unique even if it shares IP with other sites. And links coming from the same IP will still count...
        Would you mind backing up your statement?

        It is well known by all SEO experts that Class C IP Addresses do indeed affect SEO, it is a measure taken by the search engine algorithms to prevent automated link spam from sources like link farms or other types of "bad neighborhoods", which happen to share the same IP.

        Backlinks coming from the same IP source are given less weight, just to mention one reason.

        Read this post please: Bruceclay.com - Which Is Better For SEO: Shared or Dedicated IPs
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        • Profile picture of the author bgmacaw
          The Class C IP devaluing appears to be based on the particular host.

          If your sites are on a large shared hosting operation like HostGator, GoDaddy, Bluehost or the like where there can be 1000's of different domains on the same Class C IP there does not appear to be any significant devaluing or filtering of links without some other factors present.

          If you're on a dedicated IP where there is no sharing, then it can become a factor although this doesn't seem to be as big a deal as it once was as long as the intent isn't obviously spammy.

          Overall, the Class C situation will decline in importance as more and more domains have to share the same Class C due to the shortage of IP addresses.
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      • Profile picture of the author nettech
        I'd probably disagree with that statement. This means that in theory I can host 300 websites on the same shared server and interlink like crazy! Surely this shouldn't count shoudl it? Google should def know somethings up....

        Originally Posted by patJ View Post

        This is not true at all. Your site will be seen as unique even if it shares IP with other sites. And links coming from the same IP will still count...
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        • Profile picture of the author altos
          This is a really timely thread. I have been contemplating changing hosting companies because of this exact issue. I have been having backlinks built to my website which is on shared hosting at hostgator. I bought a service from a fellow warrior a month ago and have only seen a few links show up of the supposed hundreds that I was supposed to be getting.

          I realize that it takes time for all the links to be crawled and show up (and that some might never show up) but only getting 10 links show up out of hundreds over the course of one month seemed a little ridiculous. I don't believe I have been scammed as I got a report showing where my links were placed and I checked.

          However, I have been reading threads on other boards saying that shared IPs and certain hosts (Hostgator, Godaddy and one other I can't remember) get penalized somehow or other because of the amount of sites on the IP.

          Should I just ask Hostgator for a dedicated IP for my site or go ahead and change hosts (the thought sends a shiver down my relatively non-techie spine!)?

          Thanks for any insights!
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          • Profile picture of the author bgmacaw
            Originally Posted by altos View Post

            However, I have been reading threads on other boards saying that shared IPs and certain hosts (Hostgator, Godaddy and one other I can't remember) get penalized somehow or other because of the amount of sites on the IP.
            Total BS, cargo cult SEO at it's best.
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            • Profile picture of the author RevSEO
              Originally Posted by bgmacaw View Post

              Total BS, cargo cult SEO at it's best.
              You must be kidding? You are telling us that interlinking from the same shared host from one domain to the next passes the same amount of linkjuice as if it were from a different class C, or even A IP address? A link or two from sites on your same host is no problem, but when you start looking bigger this info can't be farther from the truth.

              How do you think Google identifies, and thus discounts link networks? Why do you think SEO hosting exists in the first place?
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  • Profile picture of the author InternetMarketingIQ
    Absolutely! A poorly configured host is a problem. There are many reasons why a poor host can effect your SEO.

    From a "Bad Neighborhood" perspective Google's Matt Cutts has commented that it "shouldn't"... but shouldn't and doesn't are not the same thing.

    The hosts I use for my critical sites own their own equipment and are tied directly to nearly ALL the Major network Pipelines in Los Angeles, Dallas, and the UK.

    There is a whole lot more to selecting a host than price and supposed features.
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  • Profile picture of the author dburk
    Hi Dave,

    You should be able to move your website to a new host without any impact on your SEO rankings. Simply changing hosts has no direct effect on search engine placement. If there is any negative impact, then the likely cause is due to technical problems at the new host.

    The most likely scenario would be errant scripts causing server slow downs or crashes, caused by one or more of the websites sharing your server. This is a problem that requires the involvement of the hosting company to monitor and take offline any website that is causing trouble for others sharing the same server.

    Many hosts will do nothing until they receive a complaint. I would advise you to invest in some server monitoring service to get to the bottom of it, or switch to a better host.
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  • Profile picture of the author eltara
    Hi Everyone

    I am currently having a domain abc.com hosted by Bluehost.
    This abc.com is also purchased and registered through Bluehost.

    Now I would like to transfer this domain abc.com to Namecheap and also I would like this domain to be hosted by Justhost instead of Bluehost. Eventually I plan to renew my domain abc.com with Namecheap instead of originally bought from Bluehost.

    Will such move affect the SEO for my abc.com backlinks that I had built over several months?

    Also being new to transferring domain & transferring webhosting, how do I go about step by step?

    Hope someone can advise me, thank you .

    Regards
    Eltara
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  • Profile picture of the author flyngryter711
    I was also wondering about this. My websites have shared hosting so it makes no sense to link all my websites the same ip as I won't receive any Google juice.
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