The difference between cheap and good hosting is a few euros per month. One day of downtime costs more.
Choose hosting on tested backups, a server within the EU, accessible support and the option to take your data with you. Price is rarely decisive: the difference between cheap and good is a few euros per month, while one day of downtime costs many times that.
STEP BY STEP
This is how you approach it
- Ask about backups and whether they have been testedDaily, multiple versions saved, and someone who has ever performed a restore. A backup that has never been restored is an assumption.
- Check where the server is locatedWithin the EU it is faster for Dutch visitors and saves a legal detour around data transfer.
- Ask how you're leavingCan you download your files and database? Hosting that you cannot get out of is not hosting but a trap.
- Test the support before you become a customerSend a question and see how quickly and how substantive the answer is. When your site is down, that's all that matters.
- Check if SSL is includedThat should be standard, with automatic renewal. A surcharge for this is a sign of an outdated offer.
- Look at the cancellation conditionsMonthly cancellation is normal. An annual contract with a notice period is a reason to look further.
PITFALLS
What you should not select for
Unlimited storage and unlimited traffic do not exist. The conditions always contain a limit; it's a sales term, not a feature.
And the lowest price. The difference between cheap and good is a few euros per month, and you pay that difference back at the first failure.
- Not 'unlimited' — that doesn't exist.
- Not the lowest price — the difference is small, the risk is not.
- Tested backups — ask for it, explicitly.
- EU server — faster and legally simpler.
- Exportable — you have to be able to leave.
- Accessible support — test it beforehand.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
More about hosting
Should I host with my website builder?
It is not necessary, but it saves you from pointing fingers in the event of a malfunction: one party is responsible instead of two pointing fingers at each other. If you want to host elsewhere, that's fine: your site runs on standard technology.
How much does good hosting cost?
For a business website, this starts around twenty euros per month, including backups and monitoring. Much cheaper usually means shared resources without support.
How do I move without downtime?
By making the new environment working before you change DNS, and lowering the TTL a day in advance. Then there is never a moment when nothing works.
CONTINUE READING
Of course, continue reading about this subject.
Hosting that just works?
We look at your current hosting: backups, speed and whether you can get out.