A Small Orange Review: The Hosting Brand Revisited
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A Small Orange is a web hosting provider owned by Endurance International Group. They offer different hosting plans and support many third-party apps, but their storage and bandwidth are limited. It’s a service with both strengths and drawbacks. This review was written prior to the company's merger with Network Solutions.
Pros
Cons
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Quick Stats
Quick Stats
A Small Orange launched in 2003. They offer shared, VPS, reseller, and dedicated hosting plans and belong to the same parent company behind HostGator and Bluehost.
A Small Orange Hosting plans
- While shared hosting is their most common option, their options are broader and fit different needs.
- Shared hosting: A good choice for small to medium businesses that want an easy, low-cost way to get online, starting at $7.16/month
- Dedicated hosting: Best for larger businesses that need more control and faster performance, with plans starting at $89.98/month
- Reseller hosting: Ideal if you want to offer hosting to others without managing servers, with pricing ranging from $24.20 to $48.40/month
- Cloud VPS hosting: A flexible option for growing sites that need more power than shared hosting, starting at $26.62/month
Each plan targets a different level of growth and technical need.
Shared Hosting Plans
- Tiny plan: Billed annually at $7.16/month, this plan includes 1 website, 500 MB storage, and 5 GB bandwidth. No domain name or backups are included. SSL must be purchased separately. Weebly is available as a website builder, and email accounts are included
- Small plan: Priced at $9.68/month, this plan comes with unlimited websites, 5 GB storage, and 50 GB bandwidth. A domain name is included, but backups and SSL are not. Weebly is the website builder, and email accounts are included
- Medium plan: At $18.15/month, this plan offers unlimited websites, 15 GB storage, and 150 GB bandwidth. A domain name is included, but backups and SSL are not. Weebly is the website builder, and email accounts are included
- Large plan: For $30.25/month, this plan includes unlimited websites, 30 GB storage, and 500 GB bandwidth. A domain name is included, but backups and SSL are not. Weebly is the website builder, and email accounts are included
- All shared hosting plans come with a 90-day money-back guarantee, which is longer than what most hosting companies offer.
Payment Methods
If you're wondering how you can pay for your A Small Orange plan, you can do so using the usual credit card or PayPal. Unfortunately, A Small Orange doesn't accept cryptocurrencies or other payment methods popular in some countries.
A Small Orange Ease of Use
A Small Orange’s sign-up process isn’t the smoothest. You start by choosing your plan, selecting a domain name, making the payment, and receiving a verification email. It sounds simple, but some users have reported issues after verification, including duplicate payment reminders.
On the bright side, the cPanel is very easy to navigate. You’ll find popular auto-installed apps like Drupal, WordPress, and Weebly to help you build your website quickly. Weebly, in particular, stands out for their drag-and-drop editor, making website creation simple even for beginners.
Customer Support
Friendly customer support plays a big role in hosting services, especially for beginners who may need guidance as they set up their sites. A Small Orange offers 24/7 support through live chat and email, and in many cases, you can connect with an agent within minutes. They also provide a knowledge base with helpful articles if you prefer to troubleshoot on your own.
The downside is the lack of phone support. Over the years, some customers have reported brief or unhelpful responses, which can lead to extra time spent searching for solutions elsewhere.
A Small Orange Security
A Small Orange packages come with solid security features. Every plan includes password-protected directories, IP blocking, and hotlink/leech protection.
Password-Protected Directories
You can easily restrict access to specific parts of your website by setting passwords through your cPanel. This adds an extra layer of protection to sensitive areas.
Spam Assassin Protection
Emails are secured with built-in spam filtering. With Spam Assassin, incoming messages are automatically scanned, helping block spam and potential threats before they reach your inbox.
Hotlink Protection
You can prevent other websites from linking directly to your files or content by enabling hotlink protection in the cPanel. This helps safeguard your bandwidth and site resources.
Site Backup
Your website is backed up daily to keep your data safe. If something goes wrong, you can restore your site quickly and minimize downtime.
Extra Add-on Security Features
SSL certificates are not included with the plans but can be purchased separately for $39.95/year. SiteLock is also available starting at $20/year and offers extra protection through malware scans, file change monitoring, and more.
Load Times, Reliability, & Features
The big question is whether A Small Orange is reliable and what their plans actually offer. The answer depends on your needs, but here’s a closer look at their key features.
Uptime
A Small Orange offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee, which is crucial for keeping your website accessible at all times. Based on tests, they’ve consistently delivered on this promise, ensuring minimal downtime for users.
Features
Let’s take a closer look at the main features included with A Small Orange’s plans:
cPanel: A user-friendly control panel that makes it easy to manage your website, domains, files, and emails in one place.
WordPress optimized Servers: One-click installations, SSD storage, and NGINX support help ensure your site runs smoothly and loads quickly.
Unlimited Emails: Every plan includes unlimited email accounts with POP3, IMAP, and webmail access. You also get mailing lists, forwarding, auto-responders, filtering, and virus scanning.
SSD Storage: Faster loading speeds and better performance thanks to SSD technology.
Free Domain: All shared hosting plans include a free domain except for the Tiny plan.
Large App Market: Access to many apps, including Magento and Weebly, to help build and expand your website. Keep in mind, though, that you’ll need to purchase an SSL certificate for secure transactions.
While these features are solid, the pricing is on the higher side compared to what other hosts offer. Competitors like Hostinger provide similar or better features at lower rates.
For Advanced Users
If you’re more experienced, A Small Orange also offers several developer-friendly tools. You’ll have access to MySQL databases and support for multiple coding languages, including JavaScript, Python, Ruby on Rails, and PHP5.
Custom Error Page: You can customize your error page with a bit of coding. This lets you create a more polished user experience by guiding visitors when something goes wrong.
Server Location: Their servers are based in the United States, with data centers in Texas and Michigan.
Website Builder: Weebly is available with all plans and offers a simple drag-and-drop interface. They’re beginner-friendly but also flexible enough to build more advanced websites without needing to code.
E-Commerce Features: To secure your online store, you’ll need to purchase an SSL certificate. Weebly makes it easy to build and manage your store with product listings, payment tools, and built-in SEO features to help improve visibility in search engines.
Conclusion
A Small Orange gives users a mix of strengths and weaknesses. Their hosting plans cover a wide range of needs, from simple shared hosting for beginners to dedicated and VPS options for growing businesses. Features like cPanel, SSD storage, unlimited emails, and Weebly’s website builder make setup and management straightforward, even for first-time users. Their 99.9% uptime guarantee, basic security protections, and developer tools add value, but there are clear trade-offs. The plans offer limited storage and bandwidth, SSL certificates come at an extra cost, and support lacks phone service. Pricing is also higher than that of some competitors that provide similar or better options.
If you’re exploring alternatives now that A Small Orange is no longer active, we’ve got you covered. Check out our updated list of top hosting providers to find options that fit your needs and budget. You can also use our comparison tool and browse our blog for detailed reviews and expert insights.
