5 Qualities to Look for in a Good Host

You’ve probably read a million of these “how to find a good host” articles, and chances are you’re still unclear about what qualities are truly important to making sure you’ve found your match. Here are the top 5 things to look for when narrowing down your search for a web host:

1. Reliability
   Many hosts brag about impressive uptime rates, which sets a buyer’s expectation of reliability. While some hosts may go the extra mile of providing data, graphs, or reports to back up their uptime claims, sometimes you just have to assume that the host is telling the truth. Some review sites do their own monitoring of various hosting providers and make that information available to their readers.
2. Price
   The cost of hosting is obviously the one of the first considerations. Depending on the type of hosting you’re looking for, you may find that most reputable hosting providers stick within the same price range. What you want to avoid is web hosting that seems extremely under-priced to where you automatically start to wonder what sort of service to expect.
3. Technical support
   Customer service is the most important aspect of choosing a host. Even if you’re a technical person yourself, you’re likely going to need the assistance of your host at one point in time or another. It’s vital to find a host that will be able to quickly service your needs at any hour. The industry standard for hosting technical support availability is now 24/7, so finding a host that meets this requirement will probably not be difficult.
4. Features
   Every host has their own wealth of features that they offer with certain hosting plans. Do keep in mind that it’s unlikely you’ll use all the features that your host offers, so don’t be blinded by the overabundance of offerings for bells and whistles that you probably don’t need.
5. Modernization
   There are web hosts out there that look like their own websites haven’t been updated since the 90′s, which often leaves a negative first impression on potential buyers. Sadly, the impression is not usually far off – there are some small-scale companies that offer web hosting as a hubby, rather than a full-time practice. These companies tend to be insufficiently-staffed and are usually behind on common security practices and technologies. These companies are likely not going to last long in the increasingly competitive hosting industry, and are often avoided by serious consumers.