Magento is a popular platform for those looking to sell products online. However, as is the case with any sort of website or online store, you are going to need a hosting solution.
When choosing a hosting provider, you need to consider the compatibility with the e-commerce solution you’re using. For example, the ideal Shopify host may not be the same as the best Magento host.
It can be a bit overwhelming but don’t worry, as that is where I come in. Read on to discover my thoughts about Magento hosting and the best providers out there at the moment.
What is Magento?
Before I delve into the different hosting options that are available for Magento, I’ll provide you with a bit of background information about this platform so you can get a better understanding.
Magento is an open-source, e-commerce platform, which means it is available free of charge. It is written in PHP, and it was first released back in March of 2008.
A US private business headquartered in California, Varien Inc, originally developed it.
The code for Magento has been downloaded over 2.5 million times. Plus, there are over 100,000 stores online today that have been created using Magento. In fact, some of the famous companies that have used Magento to build their websites are as follows:
- Nestle Nespresso
- Landrover
- Monin
- Ford
- Sigma Beauty
In short, Magento provides online merchants with a shopping cart system that is highly flexible and customizable, enabling you to fully control the functionality, content, and look of your e-store. There are also tools to assist with catalog management, search engine optimization, and powerful marketing.
What are the benefits of Magento?
Magento may not be as popular as Shopify, WooCommerce, or WordPress, but that doesn’t mean it’s not an incredible system for building an e-store.
A lot of developers and business owners prefer Magento because it triumphs in terms of speed and flexibility especially.
You can use Magento to create a site with high conversion rates, SEO optimization, and full customization. At the moment, the platform holds around 12 percent of the market share of ecommerce websites.
Do you need to pay for hosting for your Magento store?
Yes; you will need to pay for hosting if you decide to use Magento to build an online store.
As touched upon, Magento is an open-source platform, which means it is free to install and use. However, it comes at the cost of you needing to pay for the extras that are required to get your site up and running. This includes your domain name, security tools, and of course, your web host.
Therefore, you will not be able to set up a Magento store without choosing a web hosting provider. This is why it is imperative to consider your options carefully, as your choice of host will impact the performance and security levels of your e-store.
What do you need to consider when choosing a Magento host?
Now you know why a Magento host is important, let’s take a look at the different factors you need to consider when choosing a hosting provider.
Magento compatibility is the obvious place to start. There are some key areas you can assess to determine the compatibility with Magento:
- PHP 7.0 and higher
- Apache 2.x/ NGINX/ Litespeed
- MySQL 5.6 and higher
- PCI compliance
Some of the general factors you need to consider are as follows:
- The speed and the performance of the web host
- Security levels
- Value for money
- Whether there are any extra Magento tools or features
- Ease of use and set-up
- Customer support
- Scalability
You also need to consider whether you’re going to choose a VPS Server, a Dedicated Server, or a Shared Server. The latter involves renting a certain part of a server, meaning there will be a limit in terms of email accounts, database, and disk space. With a dedicated server, you get a server all to yourself. Finally, a VPS is essentially the middle-ground between the two.
The best Magento hosting providers of 2023
If you do a quick search online for Magento web host providers, you may be a bit overwhelmed by all of the options available. Where to begin? Well, don’t panic; I’ve extensively used all of the main hosting providers out there, and the lesser-known ones too.
Nexcess
The first host to consider when using Magento is Nexcess. This is a hosting business that is headquartered in Michigan, yet has data centers and offices across the globe.
Nexcess has proven to be one of the most popular Magento hosting solutions, and it is not hard to see why. Performance really is the name of the game here! The company is well known for its flexible and high performing servers, which deliver outstanding speed.
Earlier, I said PCI compatibility is important, and Nexcess ticks this box, keeping your website safe from threats and loopholes.
As an official partner of Magento, you can have complete peace of mind that this hosting service has been created with the Magento platform at the forefront.
What are the main features of Nexcess?
- Fully managed servers with monitoring
- Free migrations
- Web firewalls
- Redis
- Email hosting is included
- Memcached
- Intel Zeon processors
- Dedicated IPs
- 24/7 support
- One-click support
How much does Nexcess cost?
There are a number of different plans for you to choose from if you decide that Nexcess is right for you. The six main packages are as follows:
- XS – Prices start from $49 per month with the XS plan. You can expect 1 TB of bandwidth, 10 domains, 50 GB of disk space, and 20 concurrent users.
- S – Prices start from $99 per month with the S plan. You can expect 2 TB of bandwidth, 15 domains, 75 GB of disk space, and 40 concurrent users.
- M – Prices start from $179 per month with the M plan. You can expect 3 TB of bandwidth, 20 domains, 125 GB of disk space, and 60 concurrent users.
- L – Prices start from $299 per month with the M plan. You can expect 5 TB of bandwidth, 30 domains, 400 GB of disk space, and 80 concurrent users.
- XL – Prices start from $549 per month with the M plan. You can expect 8 TB of bandwidth, 40 domains, 600 GB of disk space, and 100 concurrent users.
- XXL – Prices start from $849 per month with the M plan. You can expect 10 TB of bandwidth, 50 domains, 800 GB of disk space, and 120 concurrent users.
What are some of the pros of choosing Nexcess?
- Very high uptime
- Fast and stable hosting
- PCI compliance for each hosting plan
- Official hosting partner of Magento
What are some of the cons of choosing Nexcess?
- One of the more expensive hosting providers
- No live chat support
- Bandwidth is limited, as are some other resources
Cloudways
Another Magento hosting solution that is worth considering is Cloudways. Cloudways provides Magento hosting for all types of users. Not only is it suitable for start-ups, but it has separate products for developers, merchants, and agencies as well.
Fast speeds are assured, as the company uses its own rapid content delivery network. Fast loading times are also facilitated by the fact that Cloudways use the ThunderStack caching formula.
What are some of the main features of Cloudways?
- Managed migrations
- Pay-as-you-go pricing model
- Auto-healing servers
- One-click SSL installation
- Free Magento full page cache
- Dedicated SSD-based cloud hosting
- PHP 5 ready servers
How much does Cloudways hosting cost?
I was pleased to see that there is a free trial available at Cloudways, meaning you can test the product before you commit any of your money.
What makes Cloudways different from a lot of other models is that they have a pay-as-you-go system. This means that you have the option of paying for hourly use. If you would rather go for a monthly package, you can still do this. This means you are able to select a plan and payment structure that best fits your situation.
In terms of monthly packages, the cheapest package is $10 per month, and it comes with 1GB, 1 Core Processor, 25 GB of storage, and 1 TB of bandwidth. If you would prefer to go for the hourly plan, this one would cost $0.0139 per hour.
The most expensive plan is $80 per month. This includes 5 TB of bandwidth, 160 GB of storage, a 4 Core Processor, and 8 GB of RAM. If you were to choose this package on an hourly basis, it would cost $0.1111 per hour.
What are some of the pros of choosing Cloudways?
- Free trial without a credit card
- Over 60 data centers across the world
- A built-in full-page cache of Magento, ensuring rapid speed
- One-click server cloning and advanced server management
- No restriction on the number of sites you can install
- Regular, automated backups
- Free migration service
What are some of the cons of choosing Cloudways?
- No CPanel and technical knowledge required
- Lack of some basic services, including domain registration and email accounts
- Bandwidth is on a pay-as-you-go basis
- The free trial is not available for GCE and AWS. You will need to upgrade your account, and then launch and access these servers.
A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting has a long history in the industry, as it has been hosting for Magento since it was released back in 2008. With reliable, secure, and fast hosting available, it is not hard to see why A2 Hosting has become a popular choice.
One of the things that make A2 Hosting suitable for Magento is that it comes with Magento pre-installed, and it has been optimized for outstanding security and performance.
Some of the main features that you can expect from A2 Hosting are as follows:
- Free DDoS protection
- Free HackScan protection
- 99.99% uptime
- Anytime money-back guarantee if you are not satisfied
- Free account migration
- 24/7 customer support
How much does hosting from A2 Hosting cost?
A2 Hosting is a good option to consider if you are looking for one of the more affordable plans out there. Shared Hosting plans start from as low as $2.99 per month, yet they are optimized for Joomla, Drupal, and WordPress, so I wouldn’t recommend going down this route when looking for hosting for Magento specifically.
Instead, their VPS hosting plan is probably going to be more suitable. Prices start from as low as $4.99. With this plan, you are able to choose your management level. You will also get free migration, and security is enhanced too.
What are some of the pros of choosing A2 Hosting?
- Free DDoS protection
- Free HackScan protection
- 99.99% uptime
- 24/7 customer support
- Free site migration to A2 Hosting
What are some of the cons of choosing A2 Hosting?
- Limited advertising and marketing credits
- You have to pay more for the faster servers
Kamatera
Kamatera is a host that has a long reputation in the industry, as the company was first developed back in 1996. They deployed their first VPS six years later in 2002. This makes the companies one of the pioneers in the VPS hosting sector. At present, they have 13 data centers, which cover four continents.
One of my favorite things about Kamatera is the level of support offered by the team. They are available all-around the clock to make sure you’re getting all of the assistance you need.
What are some of the main features offered by Kamatera?
- A user-friendly cloud management console
- Dedicated resources
- Up to 256 GB of RAM and 64 vCPUs per servers
- SSD storage
- 40 Gbit private and public networking
- Fast Intel Platinum 8270 processor
How much does Kamatera cost?
Kamatera operates in a different manner when it comes to the other hosts mentioned because you build your own plan. You can choose from various options, such as the Data Center location, operating system, level of RAM, SSD storage, and more. With every decision that you make, you will see the price change in the top right-hand corner. This enables you to get the right balance between the server you need and the budget you have available.
Some of the factors do not have much of an impact on cost. For example, if I choose a data center in the Middle East, and then I change this selection to the United States, the price does not change. However, some factors will have a big influence on the cost. For example, if you were to change the storage from 20 GB to 300 GB per month, this would have a $24 increase on the monthly cost.
What are some of the pros of choosing Kamatera?
- Plenty of different configuration options
- Skilled support staff
- High availability
- Easy-to-scale Cloud VPS
What are some of the cons of choosing Kamatera?
- Expensive Cloud resources
- No shared hosting
Magento Clusters
Magento Clusters is a group of system administrators and seasoned developers that have come together to ensure that Magento users have an enhanced cloud hosting experience. You can expect cutting-edge technologies and exceptional support. Clearly, this is a solution that is very much tailored to Magento, so you don’t have to worry about suitability.
For small-to-medium businesses, Magento Clusters proves to be a tempting solution, especially thanks to the level of support that is offered.
What are some of the main features of Magento Clusters?
- Free package upgrades
- 24-hour monitoring
- Free trial
- SSL connection for Magento on Kubernetes
- Optimization platform for Magento hosting
- Magento migration assistance
- Backup download assistance for Magento hosting
How much does Magento Clusters cost?
There are three different plans for you to choose from if you are interested in Magento Clusters. Let’s take a look at each:
- Basic Magento – This plan starts from $8.99 per month. It is designed for one website. You also get 100 GB SATA Backup Storage, 100 GB SSD Disk, 4 GB Memory, and 3 CPU Cores.
- Professional Magento – This plan starts from $15.99 per month. It is designed for one website. You also get 160 GB SATA Backup Storage, 160 GB SSD Disk, 8 GB Memory, and 4 CPU Cores.
- Advanced Magento – This plan starts from $31.99 per month. It is designed for one website. You also get 240 GB SATA Backup Storage, 240 GB SSD Disk, 16 GB Memory, and 6 CPU Cores.
No matter which plan you choose, it is cheaper per month the longer you sign-up. For example, the Basic Magento plan will cost $12.99 if you sign-up monthly, yet the biennial plan is $8.99 per month, but you will need to pay for everything upfront.
What are some of the pros of choosing Magento Clusters?
- Non-charged package upgrades
- Free trial
- Created by a team of Magento experts
- Great customer support
What are some of the cons of choosing Magento Clusters?
- Limited range of services
FastComet
If you are looking for a good choice of servers at a reasonable price, FastComet may be the option for you. Not only do FastComet have servers in the United States, but also in Germany, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and the Netherlands.
The company has been in operation for over seven years now, and they have dedicated Magento hosting services in place.
You know that you are in for a zippy experience if you choose FastComet thanks to Memcache, Varnish, and Nginx at the back of your host.
What are some of the main features of FastComet?
- Free CloudFare CDN
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Free Magento transfer
- Free domain forever
- Weekly and daily backups
- Magento SSD cloud
- NGINX, Memcache, and Varnish Cache
- cPanel/WHM/Softaculous
- Fixed prices, meaning no surprises
- Fully managed
How much does FastComet cost?
There are three different hosting plans for you to choose from if you are interested in FastComet: FastCloud, FastCloud Plus, and FastCloud Extra. Let’s take a look at the differences between these three plans:
- FastCloud – This is typically priced at $9.95 per month, yet you can get it for as low as $2.95 per month when signing up to one of the longer accounts. This includes 15 GB SSD Space, as well as cPanel and Softaculous, free domain transfer, and free website transfer. This is designed for a single website.
- FastCloud Plus – This is typically priced at $14.95 per month, yet you can get it for as low as $4.45 per month when signing up to one of the longer accounts. This includes 25 GB SSD Space, all of the benefits in the former plan, and it is designed for multiple websites. You also get advanced features as well.
- FastCloud Extra – This is typically priced at $19.95 per month, yet you can get it for as low as $5.95 per month when signing up to one of the longer accounts. This plan includes everything in the former package, as well as RocketBooster and 35 GB SSD Space.
What are some of the pros of choosing FastComet?
- 350+ themes
- 40+ in-built widgets
- Advanced server technology
- Easy-to-use control panel
- First-time users are not charged for site migration
- Free one-year renewal for domains
- 45-day refund policy
- Data centers are based around the world
- Solid server uptime results
What are some of the cons of choosing FastComet?
- For VPS Cloud users, the free trial is reduced to seven days
- Shared hosting users do not get a dedicated IP address
Final words on the best Magento hosting providers
So there you have it: an insight into the different options that are available today if you are looking for the best Magento hosting provider. It is important to consider your options carefully; choose a platform that aligns with your goals and needs. After all, there is no one best provider; it is all about figuring out what is right for you. For example, is security the most important element? Perhaps it is performance and speed? Once you figure out what matters to you the most, you will then be able to determine what Magento hosting provider is going to be right for you.
FAQ about Magento
I often get a lot of people who email me to ask questions about Magento, including what hosting provider is best, as well as other general queries. I’ll answer some of the most frequently asked questions below:
What is the difference between Shopify and Magento?
Shopify and Magento are both popular platforms when it comes to creating an e-store. However, they work in different ways. The main difference is that Magento is self-hosted, whereas Shopify is a hosted platform. This means that Shopify takes care of hosting for you. Magento, on the other hand, is free to install, but this comes at the benefit of you needing to pay for extras yourself, including your domain, extensions, security, and web hosting.
What is the difference between Magento 1 and Magento 2?
There are a number of key differences between Magento 1 and Magento 2, and you are always recommended to download the most up-to-date package when using any sort of system. Some of the main advantages that are associated with Magento 2 is that it is a lot easier to use, it is SEO friendly, and it is quicker as well. Many users have noticed that the overall speed of their website has increased considerably by making the switch to Magento 2.
Who owns Magento now?
Magento is now owned by Adobe. Adobe announced the acquisition of the company back in 2018. The purchase cost $1.68 billion.
Is Magento difficult to use?
Magento is an extensive platform. In fact, it comes with more than 5,000 files! Because of this, it can be quite difficult to get to grips with. If you do not have a lot of experience with website creation, you may find Magento to be a bit of a steep learning curve. There are Magento learning courses available if you’re interested or you can opt to have a Magento expert build your store for you.
Is Magento free or do you need to pay for it?
You can download Magento free of charge, as it is an open-source platform. This means that you can configure it and extend it in any way you like. However, if you want a Magento developer to create your store, you are obviously going to need to pay for their expertise.
Is Magento a framework or a CMS?
Magento is a type of e-commerce solution that is written in PHP atop the Zend framework. You can use Magento under both commercial and open-source licenses. It is written in an advanced object-oriented idiom, which utilizes XML configuration and MVC pattern files, aiming for extensibility and flexibility.