Choosing the right hosting provider is the most important thing for the success of your site and can be a difficult task, given the number of options to consider. Hostgator and Bluehost are two big leaders and competitors in the web hosting industry. In addition to popularity, they continue to improve and introduce new features for their users.
Hostgator has been in business since 2002 and has been one of the most successful US companies ever since, not only when it comes to web hosting, but generally. They currently own over 7000 servers, host over 2 million domains, and an estimated 1% of all internet traffic goes through them.
What sets them apart from most web hosting companies is their business principles. From the outset, the basic principle was business transparency and top quality. They did not approach the market in a classic way, boasting, making false promises and doing marketing tricks, but broke through with quality. Quite simply, what they say they offer is what you get, with no hidden conditions.
Bluehost was founded by Matt Heaton in 2003, and it is one of the largest companies in the world based in the US. They host over 2 million websites and employ over 750 people. In terms of their popularity, according to Google Trends, Bluehost is more popular than Hostgator. Also, if you read popular blogs or research on Google how to create a blog, you will see a mass of Bluehost advertisements and recommendations. Perhaps this popularity should not be taken for granted, because most large companies, at the expense of large numbers of users, often reduce the efficiency and quality of support. In addition, Bluehost invests heavily in marketing and you will receive the highest commission as their affiliate partner.
Both names are well known in the industry and this may be a reason for the International Endurance Group (EIG) to buy them. Today, both have grown significantly and offered their customers a wide range of web hosting services.
Here is Bluehost vs Hostgator comparison:
Pros : Bluehost
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Solid Server Performance – Hosting uptime> 99.95%
Good Server Speed - TTFB below 500ms
Comprehensive self-help documents and video tutorials
Daily reserve and reconstruction of the entire account Free site migration for new users
Ease of use – Dashboard for new users Comprehensive support documentation
Flexibility – Upgrade to VPS and dedicated hosting
Pros: Hostgator
Solid Server Performance – Hosting uptime> 99.99%
Fast server – TTFB below 50ms for users in the US
Special discount – 45% cheaper for first-time users
Cons: Bluehost
Modest Renewal Fees – 100% Price jump after first deadline
Unlimited hosting service limited by server restrictions and policies
Most server upgrades and additional features are expensive
Cons: Hostgator
Modest Renewal Fees – Price jump 40% after first deadline
Unlimited hosting service limited by different server usage restrictions
Occasionally long waiting times for live support
Server location in the United States only
Operating Cost: BlueHost 1 – 0 Hostgator
If you look at the costs on each of mentioned hosts, BlueHost Shared Hosting offers good purchase prices starting at just $ 2.95 per month if you opt for a 24-month contract. HostGators starts at $ 3.58 a month.
What is different though is the performance and some additional services. Where BlueHost offers cheaper buy-ins for web hosting space, it charges more for some optional services such as a dedicated IP address, which will run you $ 5.99 a year compared to HostGator $ 2 / year.
Although BlueHost has free site booking services, access to its backup service will set you back $ 35.88 per year compared to the HostGator backup you can get for $ 24 per year. Even though, we will award the Bluehost an advantage point regarding this topic.
Server Performance: BlueHost 1 – 1 Hostgator
Performance runs smoothly on both providers, and many users agree on that, while both of these host clocks below the 500ms mark for TTFB, HostGator does excel at its servers in the US that click on openings about less than 50ms TTFB. It is exceptional by all standards. One point for Hostgator.
Support: BlueHost 2 – 1 Hostgator
Bluehost also has an advantage in terms of support, even though Hostgator was voted prime choice host for bloggers in 2014 and 2016.. Unfortunately, where there are ups, there are downs and again we see a similarity between BlueHost and HostGator. Both have expensive renewal fees (over 100% increase after the first contract). Price gaps continue even further in terms of server upgrades that will bring you back a little more than the normal user experience.
HostGator also suffers from customer support that is not reliable. However, there are no big issues in this area for BlueHost, surprisingly.
HostGator also suffers from customer support that is not reliable. However, there are no big issues in this area for BlueHost, surprisingly.
Which Host should we choose?
Both companies offer a money-back guarantee, which is great. Also, both hosts offer a tool that makes it easy to create a site. Within each WordPress hosting package, at Bluehost, you will get the automatic installation of the latest version of WordPress, automatic updates, the ability to create an e-mail address with your domain, and one-year free domain registration.
Bluehost also has special WordPress optimized hosting as part of WordPress Pro. All WordPress Pro packages allow you to run as many WordPress sites as you want on an unlimited number of domains and subdomains, with disk space and site traffic, also without restriction. They also offer site testing before visitors could see anything. I would recommend Bluehost if and when you need the best performance – speed and uptime are great with Bluehost. If you want fast, professional and friendly support, you want more server locations (Europe, USA, Asia) and you don’t need more than 30 GB of server space, or you need advanced hosting options (GIT). Of course, Hostgator is also reliable, has solid performance, it is a bit cheaper and has better security. If you don’t have experience running a site or need someone to do it for you, Bluehost is the solution. In any case, just be prepared to pay more for guidance and additional support, especially if you do not have the time to learn WordPress.