Signing up with a hosting service provider is almost mandatory for anyone who wishes to establish an online presence. While trying to choose a web host, the two main options available are free hosting solutions and paid hosting solutions. Either of these hosting solutions will give you the means and the platform to establish your online presence. However, before you decide whether to go with a paid solution or free virtual private server hosting, you need to evaluate several factors to find out which the best option for you is. Let’s take a look at these factors:
1. Price
The most important consideration for most people is the cost of using a hosting service provider. As the name suggests, users can sign up for free hosting packages at no cost. Paid hosting solutions, on the other hand would require you to pay a nominal fee. The amount would ultimately depend on the exact nature of hosting that you sign up for and the service provider you sign up with.
2. Speed
After price, speed of the server and by extension, speed of the website is the most important factor that you need to consider. Your website is the first interaction most of your customers will have with you or your company and you want that to be a pleasant one. This means that the hosting service should be fast enough to load your website without any significant delays. Free hosts usually limit the bandwidth and processing speed that is available to websites which can often result in slow websites and poor user experience. On the other hand, paid hosting solutions often come with unmetered bandwidth which frees your website from any restrictions.
Disadvantages of Free Virtual Private Server Hosting
Most free web hosts limit the storage space, processor availability and bandwidth that your website can use. As your website grows and attracts more visitors, this can cause a few problems. This is the main reason why most people opt for paid hosting packages, especially since the prices are extremely affordable. One of the major disadvantages of using free hosting services is that they force you to use a sub domain which can prevent you from effectively branding your website.
Not to forget the fact that online companies that offer free hosting packages place their personal ads on user’s website. These ads can be annoying for the users and distracting for the visitors. In some cases, this can also result into decreased revenue for the user. As you can see, paid hosting solutions have a definite edge over free hosting packages.
Overall, free web hosting packages can be considered by beginners who are looking to start their Internet Marketing endeavor without any money. On the other hand, those who can afford to spend some amount towards the hosting service should consider paid hosting solutions to enjoy all the web hosting facilities without encountering any issues.