Unlimited web hosting is a term you might hear often when looking for a place to host your website. But what does it actually mean? If you’re curious about what unlimited hosting really offers and want to uncover the truth behind it, keep reading!
There are currently many web hosting providers claiming to offer unlimited disk space and bandwidth to all their customers. Some even include sub-domains, email accounts, databases, and FTP accounts in their unlimited plans.
To the average person, it all sounds great. But do you really think it is practical that for less than $10 a month, you can get all these features without any limits?
Is This Even Possible?
The simple and truthful answer is “No“.
In the physical world we live in, nothing can be unlimited. It is therefore not possible to store an unlimited number of files on a server, transfer unlimited amounts of data each month, or create an unlimited number of SQL databases for your website. We can, therefore, conclude that unlimited resources are just marketing ploys used by web hosting companies to attract more customers.
Overselling
Web hosting companies can offer “unlimited” resources because many users utilize only a small part of their allocated space. Budget plans are not designed for large e-commerce sites; those require dedicated hosting. Instead, budget hosting targets startups, small businesses, personal sites, and home-based stores. Since most sites use minimal resources, providers can sell the leftover bandwidth and storage to thousands of customers, increasing profits. This practice, known as overselling, involves selling unused server capacity.
Unlimited Web Hosting is Limited
If you have looked into web hosting services, you may have noticed that many companies say they offer “unlimited” hosting. However, they usually have a set of rules called a “Usage Policy” in their Terms and Conditions. This policy explains that you can use a lot of server resources as long as you don’t exceed the limit.
If your account uses more resources than allowed, the company might temporarily or permanently close it without notifying you first. To avoid this, you can choose to upgrade your plan to get more resources.
Tip: If you see an advertising company offering unlimited storage hosting packages, always pay attention to the accompanying conditions, such as inodes, number of websites, bandwidth limits, and so on, and then choose a package that fits your project.
Must read: Importance of the Terms and Conditions When Purchasing a Web Host.
Is It Worth To Buy Unlimited Hosting?
Winning over customers by falsely offering unlimited web hosting services is, without a doubt, dishonest. However, this does not mean that the services these companies offer are bad. Several factors determine the quality of service. Therefore, to determine the quality of service offered, you should look beyond the marketing ploys these companies use and scrutinize these criteria. They include page load speed, uptime, cost-effectiveness, technical support, and the company’s industry reputation.
Therefore, if you only want to create a simple website that uses up only a small percentage of server resources, you are better off choosing a reliable web host provider like GoDaddy, ChemiCloud, or EthernetServers. They are a lot more pocket-friendly than many limited web hosting providers with clear restrictions. Additionally, make it a habit to read the Terms of Service and check the Usage Policies before you buy a plan.
How to Select a High-Quality Unlimited Web Hosting Provider
Nearly all web hosting providers offer similar unlimited benefits to their customers. These include unlimited storage, monthly bandwidth, email accounts, and subdomains or parked domains. Therefore, to choose the best one, you could consider the following options.
- Choose a reputable company and give it a try. Check if you’re happy with their price, features, performance, and customer service. If you’re not satisfied, you can cancel before the money-back guarantee expires and get a refund.
- Read reviews from professional sites that focus on testing and comparing hosting services offered by different companies, such as WebHostingTalk. These reviews can help you make the right choice by providing objective and detailed insights.
- Contact your friends who were used to the hosting company that you want to buy, and ask him/her about them.
- Lastly, you can read my article about Considerations to Choose the Best Web Hosting!
Summary
You now know that unlimited hosting plans are just marketing tricks used by companies to increase sales. But if a provider offers a cheap hosting package with good features, is fast, has no downtime, and provides good customer support, then the package is worth buying.
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2 Comments
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