Top 5 Web Hosts for Beginner Bloggers

Ever since I started getting interested in blogging I’ve tried to find a good reliable host to eventually move my site over to. For now, wordpress (dot com) is fine, but pretty soon I am plan to step up to the next phase of building my own site.

In a constant pursuit for the best web host I have narrowed my search down to five legitimate solutions for web hosting. Hopefully from this list you will be able to make an informed decision as to which host is right for you. Having a blog hosted by a third party can really open a lot of doors. Not only can you create and customize your own individual site, but also there are essentially no rules or guidelines that you have to follow. You can have as many ads as you want, or none at all. You can pick form countless templates, or design your own. In the end, your own website means the freedom to really dive into the world of blogging, which for me is the logical next step.

(Disclosure) the plans that I am reviewing are all the lowest per month plans offered, however, even at those prices they are very decent plans.

So in no particular order:

MidPhase

The Specs
Price: $7.95/mo.
Space: 200 GB
Bandwidth: 3k GB
Free domain name for life
Free “Ad Credits”
Free Setup

I found out about MidPhase from the blog Personified. The author of this blog has a great review here (better than I can do). A couple of things to note about MidPhase. One, it is really easy to get started with these guys. Two, a free domain for life is certainly amazing. Three, if the price is a bit out of your ball park then their sister company AN Hosting has the same plan for a $1 less per month.

DreamHost

The Specs
Price: $7.95/mo
Space: 160 GB
Bandwidth: 1.6 TB
Free domain hosting and registration
Web-based control panel
On-click installations

What I like about DreamHost is the their exceptional customer support and user forums. I was able to browse that particular area for a while when I was researching them as a web host and it seemed as if their customers not only had small issues, but that those issues were taken care of in a concise manner within one or two posts. This host is also featured at wordress.org and you can check out their recommendation here.

ix Web Hosting

The Specs
Price: $4.95/mo
Space: 300 GB
Bandwidth: 3,000 GB
Free domain registration for life
Free Site Builder
Free 24/7 Support

Alright, this web host isn’t the best but for the price it is pretty competitive. Simply, it is hard to beat the $4.95/mo price with any other host, and if you are a beginner at the whole website thing it is probably your best bet. However, and here’s the downside, it does not offer MySQL or phpMyAdmin (two very popular databases) with this plan. If you want to opt for the $7.95/mo plan then you get all those services and more. Although, if you are going to go with the higher price, other web hosts are better.

(mt) MediaTemple

The Specs
Price: $20.00/mo
Space: 100 GB
Bandwidth: 1 TB
Host up to 100 sites
1,000 e-mail accounts
Enhanced MYSQL

This one is for the big boys. MediaTemple’s Grid Server packs a real punch as it rightly should for the price you are paying. However, if you really want to kick your website into high gear then Grid Server is for you. From day one you can have multiple expansive sites which can all run smoothly and efficiently on GS. Also, if you need a customizable plan then MT’s Complex Hosting is available to tweak your plan to meet the needs you might not find anywhere else.

Blue Host

The Specs
Price: $6.95/mo
Space: 300 GB
Bandwidth: 3,000 GB/mo
Host unlimited domains
New Drag and Drop site builder
24/7 Support

Here is another recommended host from wordpress.org. This host seems practical for the price. It will meet all your basic needs, and can handle WordPress from the start. Additionally, if you want to try it out they have a free live demo you can check out. If you want to learn more WordPress has a great synopsis here.

Make It Happen

Hopefully this list helped you out in your journey to making your own site. Soon enough I will choose which one is right for me, and maybe then you can check back and see how it worked out, but with the feature rich hosting in this group I’m sure I won’t experience any buyers remorse.

Know of a great host I failed to mention? Leave me a comment and I would be glad to take a look!

Also, if you liked this review take a look at some others I’ve written.