Best VPS Hosting Providers: Top 6 Virtual Private Servers Compared

For that reason, we’ve reviewed and curated a list of the best VPS hosting providers. Our top picks: Hostinger and A2 Hosting.

Hostinger provides the best Linux-based VPS with unlimited freedom. It helps you create a high-performing website and lets you install various applications to support the site’s growth.

If you’re running an established business website for a global market, A2 Hosting can be an excellent choice as well, as its VPS plans pack ample resources.

Without further ado, let’s take a look at seven different VPS hosting providers. We’ll also cover factors to consider when choosing a VPS service provider.

6 Best VPS Hosting Providers of 2023

• Hostinger – best Linux-based, unmanaged VPS hosting provider.
• A2 Hosting – best for online stores with a global market.
• Bluehost – best for users looking for simplicity.
• HostGator – offers the best VPS hosting plans for established online stores.
• DreamHost – best for users looking for extensive developer tools.
• InMotion Hosting – best for websites operating in the US.

Review of The Top VPS Hosting Providers

In the following section, we will review each of the seven VPS hosting companies featured in our list. 

We'll compare each VPS web hosting service based on several factors to help you find your site’s best web hosting service. These include uptime guarantee, connection speed, virtual server resources, control panel and software, security features, and customer support channels.

#1. Hostinger: Best VPS Hosting Overall

Hostinger, featured as our number one best VPS hosting provider, offers powerful Linux-based VPS hosting. Thanks to its limitless configuration options, you can build any kind of website and install a variety of third-party software to ensure fast and efficient performance.

This VPS host offers eight pricing plans, ranging from $3.99 to $7.99 per month. All of them come with full root access, enabling you to configure the hosting environment to your needs.

Let’s dive deeper into what Hostinger’s VPS plans offer.

Uptime guarantee – Hostinger strives to maintain 99.9% uptime, resulting in high website availability throughout the year.

Speed and performance – This web hosting company offers multiple data centers worldwide, including in the US, to help reduce latency.

Bitcatcha’s speed test results for Hostinger’s servers demonstrate excellent server response time (SRT). The US data centers process visitors’ requests within 21 ms and 55 ms.

On top of everything, Hostinger guarantees an unrestricted 100 Mb/s network for all of its VPS plans. This helps ensure fast page load time, improving user experience on your website.

Virtual private server resources – Hostinger’s VPS 1 plan comes with 1 TB of bandwidth, 20 GB of SSD storage, 1 GB of RAM, and a single-core vCPU. This plan is a great choice for running a simple website with moderate traffic.

The VPS 2 at $5.99 per month is the way to go should you want to host multiple sites or web applications. It doubles all of the VPS 1 plan’s resources, offering 2 TB of bandwidth, 40 GB of SSD storage, 2 GB of RAM, and a dual-core vCPU.

Control panel and software – Hostinger offers Linux-based VPS. Regarding the operating system (OS), the hosting environment supports CentOs, AlmaLinux, Rocky Linux, Ubuntu, and Debian.

If you’re new to this type of hosting, don’t worry, as you can use cPanel and WebHost Manager (WHM) on Hostinger’s VPS environment. Moreover, some OSs come with pre-installed control panels. This enables you to easily keep track of resources and make necessary adjustments for your virtual private server.

On top of all this, Hostinger supports various programming languages and frameworks, including C++, C#, JAVA, Python, Ruby, Ruby on Rails, and Perl. In terms of third-party systems, you can install Node.js, Django, SEER, Tomcat, and ZeroMQ PHP on your virtual private server.

Security – Hostinger provides BitNinja’s full-stack server protection to harden your server security. This integration also comes with advanced DDoS protection and a dedicated IPv6.

On top of that, you get access to your server's automated weekly backups and live snapshots. These preventive security measures ensure easy website recovery if it ever experiences an incident.

Customer support options – Reach out to Hostinger’s 24/7 customer support team through live chat or email ticketing system. You can also explore Hostinger’s comprehensive knowledge base and tutorials to solve any issue.

Hostinger cons

• No automated daily backups. 
• No free domain name.

Click Here to Learn More About Hostinger VPS Hosting

#2. A2 Hosting: Best VPS Hosting Provider for E-Commerce Stores

A2 Hosting is a top provider of green hosting solutions. This web hosting company offers managed and unmanaged VPS services. We’ll focus on the web host’s managed solutions here.

A2 provides six managed VPS hosting plans, ranging from $39.99 to $99.99 per month. Let’s see what A2 Hosting’s VPS plans include.

Uptime guarantee – A2 Hosting guarantees 99.9% server uptime throughout the year.

Speed and performance – This web hosting provider has four data centers in Michigan, Arizona, Amsterdam, and Singapore to reduce latency; it integrates with Cloudflare CDN.

The APC and OPcache integration is great for faster PHP processing, improving the site’s performance. You’ll also get access to Memcached and Redis, which are MySQL accelerators.

If you purchase the higher-tiered plans, Mach 8 and above, you can also take advantage of A2 Hosting’s Turbo servers.

Thanks to these performance boosts, A2 Hosting’s servers register excellent response time on Bitcatcha’s speed test. In the US, visitors can expect your website to respond between 21 ms and 58 ms.

Virtual private server resources – A2 Hosting is one of the VPS hosts that offers great resources. Its cheapest plan, Lift 4 at $39.99 per month, comes with 150 GB of SSD storage, 2 Tb of bandwidth, 4 GB of RAM, and a dual-core CPU.

With this VPS plan, you can host multiple websites or an eCommerce store without worrying about performance loss.

Control panel and software – If you’re a beginner, don’t worry, as A2 Hosting grants cPanel and WHM access for all of its VPS plans. It also includes Softaculous, enabling you to install software with one click.

For developers, this web hosting provider offers multiple advanced features, including automated Git repository deployment on cPanel and pre-installed phpMyAdmin. It also supports popular programming languages like Perl, Python, and Ruby.

Security – A2 Hosting provides reinforced DDoS protection and security patches. Regarding the latter, the web host continuously monitors and updates its security system to minimize vulnerabilities.

Other security tools include free SSL, email spam protection, password protection for restricted files, and hardened settings.

Customer support options – A2 Hosting’s 24/7 support crew is ready to help if you have any issues with your website or virtual private server. You can contact them through live chat, phone calls, and an email ticketing system.

Alternatively, you can browse A2 Hosting’s knowledge base and FAQ pages to solve the issues yourself.

A2 Hosting cons:

• High renewal rates.
• Does not offer live snapshots and automated backups – website owners should maintain their own backups.

Click Here to Learn More About A2 Hosting

#3. Bluehost: Great for Unlimited Domains and Websites

Bluehost, a popular WordPress hosting provider, only offers three VPS hosting plans.

Get your website up and running on Bluehost’s virtual private server with the Standard plan at $19.99 per month. If you need more resources and power, you can upgrade to the Enhanced plan at $29.99 per month or Ultimate at $59.99 per month.

Let’s look further into Bluehost’s web hosting services for VPS.

Speed and performance – Bluehost has multiple data centers around the globe, including the USA. Bitcatcha’s speed test result shows that you can expect Bluehost’s servers to respond between 27 ms and 60 ms of SRT across the country.

Virtual private server resources – The Standard plan comes with 30 GB of SSD storage, 1 TB of bandwidth, 2 GB of RAM, and a dual-core vCPU. This enables you to host moderate-traffic websites, such as early-stage online stores.

Control panel and software – Bluehost lets you install cPanel and create up to five accounts. The WHM integration enables you to manage your cPanel accounts individually.

Security – The access management feature strengthens your security by letting you create passwords to restrict access to server administration and confidential information. Bluehost also grants dedicated IP addresses for your websites.

Customer support options – Bluehost provides 24/7 VPS hosting assistance over the phone or live chat support. Its knowledge base is also a great resource for finding solutions.

Bluehost cons:

• No server uptime guarantee.
• High renewal rates.

Click Here to Learn More About Bluehost

#4. Greengeeks: Best Host for Sustainability

GreenGeeks, one of the best providers for sustainability, plants a tree for every purchase of its managed VPS hosting plans. It offers three VPS plans: 2GB, 4GB, and 8GB, with a starting price of $39.95 per month.

Let’s find out more about what GreenGeeks’ VPS hosting packages offer.

Uptime guarantee – Like most VPS providers in this list, GreenGeeks follows the industry benchmark with its 99.9% uptime guarantee.

Speed and performance – This web host has four data centers worldwide—in the US, Canada, the Netherlands, and Singapore. You can choose the nearest one to your target market to reduce latency.

Regarding SRT, GreenGeeks serves excellent speed for audiences in the US (63 ms and 25 ms), Canada (24 ms), and London (92 ms).

Virtual private server resources – The 2GB plan comes with 50 GB of SSD, 10 TB of bandwidth, 2 GB of RAM, and 4 vCPUs, perfect for hosting multiple websites. It also offers free SSL certificates and website migration.

Thanks to the generous server resources and power, this VPS plan is suitable for hosting a moderate-traffic website.

Control panel and software – To ease your web development and setup process, utilize the included cPanel and free Softaculous License.

Security – GreenGeeks equips your virtual private server with custom security rules, DDoS protection, a dedicated IP address, and real-time 24/7 monitoring. Regarding the last, this web host dedicates a team to proactively monitoring your virtual private server and fixing any issues immediately.

Customer support options – GreenGeeks customer support is available through live chat, phone calls, and an email ticketing system. Unfortunately, phone call support is limited, as it’s only available from 9 AM to 12 AM EST.

If you’re comfortable with solving potential issues yourself, take advantage of GreenGeeks’ self-help support, which includes a knowledge base, blog posts, and webinars.

GreenGeeks cons:

• Only available in the USA, Canada, and Europe.
• Doesn’t offer unlimited bandwidth.

#5. HostGator: Popular VPS Server Provider with 30-Day Money Back Guarantee

HostGator, one of the most popular hosting providers, offers three VPS plans: Snappy 2000, Snappy 4000, and Snappy 8000. All of them include unmetered bandwidth, which is great for online stores.

Here are some of the features HostGator’s VPS hosting packages offer.

Uptime guarantee – Your website won’t have availability issues, as HostGator annually guarantees 99.9% server uptime.

Speed and performance – Thanks to its multiple US-based data centers combined with the Cloudflare integration, this hosting provider can deliver smooth performance.

From the table below, you can see that HostGator’s servers respond fast, especially in the US—23 ms in the west and 64 ms in the east.

Virtual private server resources – If you want to host multiple websites, migrate your medium-traffic sites to a VPS platform, or build an eCommerce store, HostGator can be a great option.

The Snappy 2000 plan costs $23.95 per month and has generous resources. You’ll get 120 GB of SSD storage, unmetered bandwidth, 2 GB of RAM, and a dual-core CPU.

Control panel and software – You can install cPanel along with WHM and Softaculous to easily manage your VPS hosting account.

HostGator is also great for developers as it grants unlimited MySQL databases and unlimited SFTP users. It also supports three programming languages: Rails, Python, and Perl. This VPS host uses the CentOS7 operating system.

Security – This VPS host provides centralized DDoS protection. Weekly offsite backups, manual backups, and scheduled backups are also available as preventive measures.

Don’t worry about paying an extra fee for SSL, as HostGator’s VPS plans include Let’s Encrypt SSL certificates.

Customer support options – HostGator has a variety of communication channels to choose from. Contact the customer support team over the phone or live chat for faster response.

Opt for the knowledge base or blog to find solutions on your own. In addition, this VPS hosting provider also offers customer support services via Twitter.

HostGator cons

• High renewal rates.
• Limited security tools.

Click Here to Learn More About HostGator

#6. DreamHost: Best Cloud VPS Provider for Developers

DreamHost is a popular cloud hosting provider. The good news is that it also offers reliable VPS services.

This host provides four monthly plans, ranging from $13.75 to $110.00. Its cheapest plan, VPS Basic, is perfect for new and small websites.

Let’s see what DreamHost’s VPS hosting plans offer.

Uptime guarantee – This web hosting provider strives to provide a 100% uptime guarantee for all its services, including VPS.

Speed and performance – DreamHost enables OPcache by default for websites utilizing PHP. This caching system compiles and stores PHP scripts to improve your site’s performance.

Currently, this provider has two data centers, both in the US. Even with these limited server locations, DreamHost offers reliable speed worldwide.

Based on the Bitcatcha speed test result, the web host’s servers can process users’ requests in less than 100 ms in the US, London, Canada, and Germany.

Virtual private server resources – The VPS Basic plan includes 30 GB of SSD storage, unlimited traffic, and 1 GB of RAM. It allows you to create an unlimited number of websites and domain-based email accounts.

Control panel and software – DreamHost uses a custom control panel to make the setup easier. Moreover, this VPS host offers a wide range of advanced features. For example, Crontab Access helps to automate command-line tasks.

DreamHost’s VPS also supports various programming languages and frameworks, including PHP 7, Python, Perl, and Node.js. If you need to use more than one version of Ruby, you can install Ruby Version Manager to handle them.

To help you save time, DreamHost provides automatic software updates for Ubuntu, PHP, and WordPress.

Security – DreamHost has password protection to keep your sensitive content safe. Also, this hosting provider offers free SSL certificates.

Customer support options – If you have an issue with your site or virtual private server, DreamHost’s support team will help 24/7. You can also take advantage of its knowledge base and discussion forums.

DreamHost cons:

• No information about CPU power. 
• DreamHost’s starter plan may not provide the best hosting environment for customers with multiple websites, due to its limited resources.

Click Here to Learn More About DreamHost

#7. InMotion Hosting: Powerful, Fast, and Secure VPS Servers

InMotion Hosting is another managed VPS hosting provider offering ample resources at a considerably affordable rate. This provider has four VPS plans, ranging from $19.99 to $59.99 per month.

Let’s review InMotion Hosting’s VPS plans.

Uptime guarantee – InMotion Hosting commits to providing an excellent VPS hosting service with 99.9% uptime.

Speed and performance – This web hosting provider features various performance boosts to ensure a fast browsing experience for your site visitors. 

Brotli Compression ensures your files don’t take up much of your server resources, and UltraStack’s multi-layered caching improves your site speed. If you want to use MySQL, Redis is available for object caching.

Bitcatcha’s speed test results show that InMotion Hosting’s SRT is excellent in the US and Canada. On the US west coast, your site visitors can enjoy an 8 ms connection.

Regarding data centers, you can choose between two locations – Los Angeles, California, and Ashburn, Virginia.

Virtual private server resources – InMotion Hosting’s starter plan is VPS 4GB RAM, costing $24.99 per month. The plan comes with 90 GB of SSD storage, 2 TB of bandwidth, 4 GB of RAM, and a dual-core vCPU. 

If you’re looking for a reliable VPS hosting service to migrate your websites, InMotion Hosting can be a good choice as it comes with a free migration service.

Control panel and software – All plans come with five cPanel licenses. You also get a free WHM license, making it easier to manage multiple cPanel accounts. 

Security – In addition to a free SSL certificate and dedicated IP addresses, InMotion Hosting includes Corero DDoS Attack Protection on all VPS plans. Regarding security features, you can schedule server snapshots to help restore your website restoration after an incident.

Customer support options – InMotion Hosting’s customer support is available through emails, the ticket system, live chat, and phone calls.

For self-help, go to the provider’s knowledge base, blog, or YouTube channel. It also has a community support forum, enabling you to connect with other users.

InMotion Hosting cons:

• Data centers are only in the US.
• Does not offer a free CDN integration.

Click Here to Learn More About InMotion Hosting

How to Choose the Best VPS Host for Your Project

Here are several factors to consider when researching the best VPS hosting service.

Uptime Guarantee

Server uptime shows the time a server fully functions, indicating its reliability. Generally, server uptime is expressed in percentages and should be as close to 100% as possible to ensure high website availability. 

However, as every server needs maintenance, a 100% uptime can be ambitious. 

Web hosting companies compete to serve the highest uptime. While 99.999% is often the goal, the industry benchmark is 99.9%. It equals a period of downtime of 8 hours, 41 minutes, and 38 seconds per year. 

Before setting on a provider, check its system status to determine how well it can maintain its uptime guarantee. More often than not, you can find the information on the provider’s footer under the System Status or Server Status submenu.

Speed and Performance

Aside from uptime, the server response time (SRT) is another factor determining the reliability of VPS web hosting services.

Expressed in milliseconds, SRT measures the time to first byte (TTFB)—that is, from when users request their browsers to when the web server responds to it. In other words, SRT calculates the time a server takes to respond to a request.

Site speed influences user experience and your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts. Therefore, choosing a provider with an SRT faster than 200 ms should be your priority.

Check your provider’s connection using speed test sites such as Bitcatcha, Pingdom, and Google PageSpeed Insights. These tests will also give you comprehensive information about Core Web Vitals.

Check if your chosen provider offers performance boosts to speed up your website. Two popular options include integrating a content delivery network (CDN) and caching plugins. 

Server Location

If you’re targeting a specific audience, you need to consider network latency. It measures the amount of time to transfer requested data. The farther the data travels, the higher the latency.

Latency is measured between a user’s device and a data center, so one of the easiest ways to reduce it is to choose the server closest to your target audience. 

Thankfully, many VPS providers offer multiple data centers worldwide. One example is Hostinger, which has six data centers for its Linux VPS plans. They’re in the Netherlands, Lithuania, the United Kingdom, Singapore, the USA, and Brazil.

Bandwidth and Storage

Bandwidth and storage are crucial when choosing a VPS hosting plan. They determine how much data and how many visitors your website can handle.

Bandwidth is the maximum data load that can be transmitted over a given time. Think of it as a pipe and the data as a stream of water. The larger the bandwidth, the more data it can transfer simultaneously.

In web hosting, two of the most commonly used storage devices are hard disk drives (HDD) and solid-state drives (SSD).

• HDD storage – This device uses a spinning disk to read and write data. The drawback of a hard disk is that it’s slower and more prone to damage than SSD and NVMe.
• SSD storage – SSD uses flash memory to process data, resulting in faster performance than HDD. Moreover, this storage device technology consumes less energy and guarantees more durability.

Some providers have also introduced a new storage access and transfer protocol called NVMe, for PCIe-based SSD. This integration enables SSDs to accelerate the data reading and writing processes.

CPU and RAM

Let’s dive deeper into data processing by finding out what CPU power and RAM are and how they work.

The central processing unit (CPU) is where websites process tasks. The number of cores determines the number of tasks a CPU can perform simultaneously.

For a low-traffic website hosted on an optimized Linux OS, a single-core vCPU is sufficient. You can upgrade to another plan with more CPU power as the website grows.

Short for random access memory, RAM is responsible for temporarily storing data for faster retrieval. As a result, your site can load faster when requests are running concurrently.

Generally, the higher the RAM, the faster the processing speed. That said, RAM requirements vary from one site to another. They depend on how much traffic the site generates and what type of content the website has.

CPU and RAM work together to ensure smoother task execution. RAM stores the most frequently requested tasks, such as opening a web page or playing a product video, for faster retrieval. The CPU will then process those instructions and deliver them to users.

Control Panel and Software

Not all VPS plans come with a control panel. However, you can install the control panel of your choice if you have root access.

For VPS plans with a control panel, cPanel with WHM and Softaculous licenses are the most popular options. That said, several VPS hosts offer their own custom-built control panels, which are often more beginner-friendly. The DreamHost panel is a good example.

Security and Backup Measures

While you can always install security plugins to safeguard your site, you should also consider server-side security. Here are some of the most important security features a VPS host should offer:

• Free SSL certificates. Short for secure sockets layer, this certificate enables your website to move from HTTP to HTTPS. 
• DDoS protection. This prevents a site from being attacked by a flood of malicious traffic.
• Dedicated IPv6. The best VPS provides an exclusive IP address for each website and has IPSec to help with data privacy and routing efficiency. 
• Malware scanning. This includes monitoring, detecting, and removing potentially malicious software from your site. 
• Security patch management. Check if the provider’s security team continuously monitors its system for potential security loopholes and works towards improving it. Also, be sure that your provider keeps its operating system updated.
• Backup. Creating backups is a great precaution to ease website restoration after an incident. Check if your provider offers scheduled or automated backups.
• VPS snapshots. Some of the best VPS hosting companies provide a live snapshot feature, enabling you to register and save your running system configuration. This makes it possible to restore the system if any changes lead to unforeseen consequences.

Customer Support Options

Regarding customer support, each VPS host grants different types of service. While most web hosting companies provide 24/7 specialist assistance, self-help support, and social media, customer service is also a popular option.

Typically, you can reach out to a web host’s support team through live chat, phone calls, and emails. We recommend going with a VPS web host offering live chat support for immediate response.

Regarding self-help services, some popular choices are a knowledge base, blog posts, video tutorials, and a community forum. For social media customer service, HostGator is one of the few web hosts offering Twitter support.

Managed vs. Unmanaged VPS Hosting

When it comes to VPS, you may have two options – managed and unmanaged hosting. Let’s take a look at their differences. 

Managed VPS

Managed VPS is a hands-free approach to VPS hosting services, perfect for beginners. With a managed VPS plan, your provider will take care of your virtual private server, performing regular maintenance, software installation, and troubleshooting.

Managed VPS pros:

• Great for beginners.
• Let website owners focus on core tasks like content creation and optimization.
• Less prone to human error, as experts do server configuration.

Managed VPS cons:

• Higher cost than unmanaged VPS plans.
• Limited control and flexibility.

Unmanaged VPS

Opting for unmanaged VPS hosting means you take full responsibility for your virtual private server.

As the webmaster, you’ll take care of the server maintenance, as unmanaged VPS usually doesn’t come with a control panel. On the other hand, your hosting provider will focus on managing the physical server and maintaining excellent uptime. 

Unmanaged VPS hosting pros

• Lower cost than managed VPS hosting plans.
• Unlimited server configuration options, great for web applications.
• More flexibility regarding software and OS installation.

Unmanaged VPS hosting cons

• Needs round-the-clock monitoring.
• Requires high-level technical expertise for server configuration – you can do it yourself or have dedicated experts in-house.
• Limited support from the hosting provider.

Consider these factors when choosing between an unmanaged and managed VPS plan. They include your website size, how much flexibility it requires, budgeting, and technical expertise.

Alternatives to Virtual Private Server Hosting

Before purchasing a VPS hosting plan, consider whether virtual private server hosting is the perfect solution for your project.

Typically, VPS services grant full root access, which may require technical knowledge. This may become an issue if you’re a beginner in web development. So let’s take a look at other types of web hosting services.

Dedicated Server Hosting

Dedicated web hosting is the most powerful solution. This service lets you use one physical server entirely for your site. Renting a dedicated server is a good option if you’re running a high-traffic website, such as a video streaming site, game server, and large eCommerce store. 

Dedicated server pros

• Reliable performance. As your site gets dedicated resources and power, it can deliver faster loading speed and maintain higher uptime. 
• Flexibility. When choosing dedicated web hosting, the server you rent is yours to configure. You can install software, tools, and programs to cater to your site’s needs. 
• Improved security. Since you have complete control over the dedicated server, you can take all security measures necessary to maintain your site’s health. Also, being separated from other websites minimizes external security threats.

Dedicated server cons

• Technicality. Like VPS services, dedicated servers require technical knowledge of server administration and management. 
• Cost. Unsurprisingly, renting a dedicated server can be expensive. Its price ranges between $100.00 and $200.00 per month, which may not be feasible for small and medium-sized businesses.

Cloud Hosting

Cloud hosting, like virtual private server hosting, uses virtualization technology to store your site’s files. The difference is that it pulls its cloud servers’ computing resources from a network of physical servers. 

Some of the best use cases for this type of web hosting service are eCommerce stores, news publications, and social networks.

Cloud hosting pros:

• High server uptime. The network of virtual servers will back up each other if one of them fails.
• Enhanced performance. Using a load-balancing system, the cloud infrastructure distributes your site’s traffic across the entire network of cloud servers. This helps maintain excellent site speed during peak traffic times.
• Cost-effectiveness. Some cloud hosting providers offer a pay-as-you-go pricing model. This payment system enables you to pay for the hosting service based on the resources your site consumes.

Cloud hosting cons:

• Limited control. Unlike VPS and dedicated servers, cloud hosting doesn’t have root access. Therefore, you may have minimal control over your server. 
• Security vulnerabilities. As your website is in the cloud, data leakage due to insecure APIs may become a risk.

Shared Hosting

Shared hosting is similar to virtual private server hosting in that it uses a physical server to host multiple websites. However, the shared hosting infrastructure doesn’t use virtualization technology to ensure fixed allocated server resources for each hosted site.

Shared hosting pros:

• Ease of use. Shared web hosting often comes with a user-friendly control panel, making setting up and managing your hosting account easier. Also, your web host will handle the technical aspects, so you won’t need to worry about server maintenance.
• Affordability. This hosting type is the most cost-effective solution. As your site shares resources with other websites, providers can lower the prices of shared web hosting plans.

Shared hosting cons:

• Lack of control. Shared hosting doesn’t come with root access, hence the limited access to your server.
• Performance issues. Keep in mind that your site shares resources with tens, if not hundreds, of other websites in a shared hosting environment. Thus, it may experience performance issues if there is a traffic spike in other websites.
• No dedicated IP. Besides resources, your website will share an IP address with its neighboring websites. This may create a security loophole, as the degree of web security awareness may differ from one webmaster to another.

Finally, if renting a whole dedicated server is too expensive, you can go with VPS hosting and enjoy similar features. 

VPS comes with root access—a feature that cloud and shared hosting environments generally don’t provide. Also, it ensures smoother performance, as the virtualization technology gives you allocated resources.

Cloud and shared hosting solutions are better options for a beginner. Both hosting types are easy to use and cost-effective. However, consider your website size, as shared hosting may not be a good choice for media-heavy, high-traffic sites.

Summary of the Top VPS Hosting Services

Knowing what to look for in a host is a great starting point for getting the best VPS hosting for your websites. Factors such as server reliability, resources, security, and customer support are important to consider. 

Furthermore, you may also want to learn about the provider’s control panel and software support. Some VPS hosts offer cPanel, while others have their custom control panels. In terms of software, you can check whether or not it supports your preferred OS.

Based on those factors, our recommendations for the best VPS hosting providers are Hostinger and A2 Hosting. 

Hostinger offers the best Linux-based, unmanaged VPS hosting. The environment supports various Linux OSs, including Debian, Ubuntu, and CentOS. Don’t worry about the control panel; you can install cPanel with WHM on Hostiger’s virtual private servers. 

A2 Hosting offers reliable virtual private servers with generous resources, even in its starter plan. Offering managed and unmanaged VPS plans, A2 Hosting is great for beginners and more experienced users. 

Don’t forget to check alternative web hosting services, such as dedicated servers, cloud, and shared web hosting. This can help you make better-informed decisions. Good luck!

Frequently Asked Questions about VPS Hosting

What Is VPS Hosting?

VPS, short for a virtual private server, is a hosting type that uses virtualization technology to divide a physical server’s resources into multiple isolated virtual servers.

Why Is VPS More Expensive than Shared Hosting?

A VPS is pricier than shared hosting as it offers more control over the server, thanks to full root access. The virtualization technology also ensures a fixed amount of server resources for each user, resulting in improved performance and security.

How Can I Tell If I Need VPS hosting?

If you’re already at your current hosting’s highest-tiered package – especially if it’s a shared hosting plan – consider migrating to a VPS hosting plan. 

In addition, it’s time to move to a virtual private server environment if your site experiences slow loading time, frequent 503 service unavailable errors, and frequent downtime. 

As your website generates more traffic, it may need more resources than your current plan can provide. This can lead to overloaded requests and overwhelmed servers. Hence, the 503 service unavailable error.

In the long run, this may result in frequent freezes, crashes, or downtime – issues that can potentially be solved by moving to a VPS. 

How Many Websites Can I Host with a Virtual Private Server?

It depends on your VPS plan. Some providers allow you to host multiple websites on your virtual private server, while others may only let you host one site, especially if you choose a starter VPS plan.

What’s the Difference between Cloud and VPS Hosting?

Cloud hosting stores your website files on a cluster of cloud servers. On the other hand, VPS uses virtualization technology to create an isolated virtual environment within a physical server.

Can I Upgrade from a VPS to Dedicated Hosting?

Yes. If your site has overpowered VPS hosting plans, renting a dedicated server is an option. If you decide to do it, create a site backup beforehand to prevent data loss. 

What Are the Benefits of VPS Hosting?

Some of the benefits of VPS hosting are

• Full root access control. As the highest level of server access, this lets you choose your preferred operating system and server-wide applications. 
• Dedicated server space. While your site will share one physical server with others, you won’t have to worry about one site dominating the server resources. 
• Scalability. As a VPS is easy to scale, your virtual server provider can ensure zero to minimal performance issues.
• Security and self-healing environment. As this hosting type separates each user from the others, problems in one website will not affect yours. Also, many VPS providers offer an automatic fail-over.

How Much Does VPS Hosting Cost?

VPS hosting generally ranges from $5.00 to $100.00 per month.

However, a more expensive VPS plan doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better. When choosing one, consider your site’s needs so that you can provide the best possible environment for its growth. 

Summary of Top Recommended VPS Hosts

• Hostinger – best Linux-based, unmanaged VPS hosting provider.
• A2 Hosting – best for online stores with a global market.
• Bluehost – best for users looking for simplicity.
• Hostgator – best for established online stores.
• DreamHost – best for users looking for extensive developer tools.
• InMotion Hosting – best for websites operating in the US.