Bluehost Review: Good Performance, Solid UX, Up-to-Date Security
Bluehost is one of the most popular hosting providers on the planet, and there’s a good reason for it. This article dives into Bluehost’s offerings and performance, providing an in-depth look at what it’s like using the service.
Bluehost offers a range of plans including:
- Shared hosting starting at $2.95 per month
- Online store hosting starting at $12.95 per month
- Managed WordPress hosting starting at $9.95 per month
- Virtual private server (VPS) hosting starting at $18.99 per month
- Dedicated server hosting starting at $79.99 per month
However, it’s important to note that the published pricing can be somewhat misleading. The $2.95 per month rate is only available if you prepay for three full years, which means you’re actually paying $106.20 upfront. If you want only one year, you’re charged $59.40, which is $4.95 per month. Moreover, when you renew, you’re going to pay more, often three times more.
The Basic plan includes 50GB website space, five email accounts, 100MB of email storage, one free domain registration (for a year), 25 subdomains, a basic SSL certificate, and what they describe as unmetered bandwidth.
Bluehost’s dashboard is user-friendly, offering access to Bluehost services on the left. The company also provides 24/7 chat and phone support, and a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Bluehost’s security measures are commendable. They offer multifactor authentication (MFA), a free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate, and up-to-date system components necessary for safe WordPress operation.
Performance testing showed that Bluehost’s most inexpensive platform starts with a secure foundation. The site performed well under load, indicating that if you get some traffic, your site won’t come to a halt.
let’s delve deeper into each section of the Bluehost hosting offering.
1. Introduction and Pricing: Bluehost is a popular hosting provider that offers a range of plans. The most basic account, called the Basic plan, is put through a series of tests in this review. The pricing for this plan starts at $2.95 per month, but this rate is only applicable if you prepay for three years, amounting to $106.20. If you opt for a one-year plan, the cost is $59.40, which equates to $4.95 per month. However, it’s important to note that the price increases significantly upon renewal. This practice is common among hosting providers, but it can lead to unexpected costs.
2. Basic Plan Features: The Basic plan is designed for one website and includes 50GB website space, five email accounts, 100MB of email storage, up to 500 emails sent per hour, one free domain registration for a year, 25 subdomains, a basic SSL certificate, and what Bluehost describes as unmetered bandwidth. However, if you push your account near the limits or use an excessive amount of bandwidth, the service may throttle you back.
3. Getting Started: Bluehost offers a user-friendly interface with a helpful wizard for beginners. The wizard guides you through the setup process, offering choices and FAQs for those unsure of what to do next. Once you’ve navigated through the wizard, you’ll have access to the cPanel.
4. Dashboard Access: Bluehost’s dashboard is a blend of the standard cPanel interface and Bluehost’s own services. The dashboard provides access to various features and settings, making it easy to manage your website.
5. WordPress Access: Bluehost provides easy access to WordPress, with the option to use a staging site even on the base plan. This is a significant advantage as it allows you to test changes to your site before making them live. The WordPress dashboard is filled with various features, but some plugins, like Jetpack, can be a bit intrusive with their banners and upsells.
6. Security Checks: Bluehost performs well in terms of security. It offers multifactor authentication (MFA), a free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate, and up-to-date system components necessary for safe WordPress operation. However, it’s important to note that while Bluehost’s MySQL build is out of date, it’s still a supported build for WordPress.
7. Performance Testing: Performance tests show that Bluehost’s Basic plan offers decent speed and responsiveness, even under increased load. This suggests that your site is unlikely to slow down significantly even if traffic increases.
8. Support Responsiveness: Bluehost offers 24/7 chat and phone support. The support staff are responsive and try to be helpful, although the accuracy of their answers can sometimes be questionable.
9. Overall Conclusion: Overall, Bluehost’s Basic plan is a solid choice for those seeking a basic hosting service. It offers a range of features, up-to-date security, decent performance, and responsive support. While the pricing can be a bit misleading, the quality of the service makes it a worthy contender among other base-level plans.