Hostmonster Review: Services Before the Bluehost Merger

Quick Stats

Are you considering a hosting provider for your online store? If affordability is a priority, both Hostmonster and Bluehost offer nearly identical plans with only slight variations. Their core features are very similar across most plans, though pricing can fluctuate throughout the year. There are also some distinctions in their offerings, particularly in reseller hosting and WordPress solutions. While both services provide comparable features, WordPress officially recommends Bluehost as a preferred hosting partner.

Hostmonster's Hosting Plans & Pricing

Hostmonster provides several types of hosting to match different business needs and growth stages. Each option offers a different level of performance, control, and pricing.

• Shared hosting: This is a good choice for startups, personal projects, or small businesses. Your website shares server resources with other users, which keeps costs low. It’s simple to set up and manage, making it ideal if you’re just getting started. As your traffic grows, you can upgrade to a more powerful plan
• VPS hosting: Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting gives you more flexibility and control than shared hosting. It’s a solid option for growing businesses that need better performance without committing to a dedicated server. Prices typically range from $19.99 to $59.99 per month. You get dedicated resources within a shared environment, which means faster load times and greater stability
• Dedicated hosting: If you’re running a high-traffic website or want full control over your server, dedicated hosting is the top tier. At $79.99 per month, you get an entire server to yourself. This gives you maximum performance, security, and customization options

Shared hosting plans

• Basic plan: Designed for individuals or small projects. You can host one website with 50 GB of storage, five email accounts, one domain, and five parked domains. Performance is standard, and backups are basic. It supports up to 200,000 files and 20 databases with a maximum database size of 5 GB each
• Plus plan: A better fit for growing websites. You can host unlimited websites and get unlimited storage, email accounts, domains, and parked domains. Performance remains standard, and backups are basic. File and database limits are the same as the Basic plan, but the flexibility to manage multiple sites gives it an edge
• Choice Plus plan (recommended): Ideal for users who want extra features without moving to a higher tier. It includes everything in the Plus plan but adds advanced backup options for better security and peace of mind. Storage, domains, and email accounts are unlimited, with the same file and database capacity as the previous plans
• Pro plan: Aimed at larger businesses or high-traffic websites. It offers unlimited websites, storage, email accounts, and domains with high performance for better speed and reliability. You can store up to 300,000 files and enjoy advanced backups. This plan is the most powerful option under shared hosting and comes at a higher price

VPS hosting

• Standard plan: Best suited for small businesses or websites that need more control and speed than shared hosting. It comes with dual-core CPUs, 2 GB of RAM, 30 GB of SSD storage, and 1 TB of monthly bandwidth. You get one IP address and a free domain name for the first year
• Enhanced plan: A good choice for growing websites with increasing traffic. It offers dual-core CPUs with 4 GB of RAM, 60 GB of SSD storage, and 2 TB of monthly bandwidth. You also get two IP addresses and a free domain for one year
• Premium plan: Ideal for websites or applications that need extra power and performance. It includes triple-core CPUs, 6 GB of RAM, 90 GB of SSD storage, and 2 TB of bandwidth each month. Two IP addresses and a free domain for one year are also included
• Ultimate plan: The highest VPS tier, designed for high-traffic websites and resource-heavy applications. It features quad-core CPUs, 8 GB of RAM, 120 GB of SSD storage, and 3 TB of monthly bandwidth. Like the other VPS plans, it includes two IP addresses and a free domain for the first year

Dedicated hosting

• Standard plan: A strong starting point for businesses that need dedicated resources without going over budget. It features a 4-core, 8-thread Intel® Xeon processor, 3 MB cache memory, 4 GB of RAM, and 500 GB of RAID 1 storage. You get 5 TB of monthly bandwidth, three IP addresses, and a free domain name for one year. This plan works well for medium to large websites with steady traffic
• Enhanced plan: A more powerful option for sites that demand faster speeds and more capacity. It includes the same processor as the Standard plan but upgrades to 8 MB of cache memory, 8 GB of RAM, and 1,000 GB of RAID 1 storage. You get 10 TB of bandwidth each month, four IP addresses, and a free domain name for the first year
• Premium plan: The top-tier dedicated hosting option for high-traffic and resource-heavy websites. It has the same processor but with 8 MB cache memory, 16 GB of RAM, and 1,000 GB of RAID 1 storage. This plan provides 15 TB of monthly bandwidth, five IP addresses, and a free domain for one year. It’s built to deliver maximum performance and reliability

Things to keep in mind

• Shared hosting is only available with yearly plans, not monthly
• Prepaying for two or three years lowers the average monthly cost
• Renewal prices are higher, so long-term plans can save money over time
• A free domain is included for the first year and renews at $17.99 after that
• Starting with shared hosting is often enough, and you can upgrade as your site grows
• VPS users can upgrade temporarily during high-traffic seasons, like Black Friday, then return to their original plan
• All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, but the cost of the free domain will be deducted from the refund

Payment Methods

Hostmonster offers flexible payment options, including credit cards, PayPal, and checks or money orders. Accepted credit cards are Visa, Mastercard, Discover, and American Express. To complete the transaction, you simply enter your card number, CVV2 code, and expiration date.

If you prefer PayPal, you can use it for online payments and set it as your default method for future auto-renewals, making the renewal process more convenient.

For those who prefer not to use credit cards or PayPal, there’s also the option to pay by check or money order. This option comes with two conditions: payments must be made in U.S. dollars, and it’s only available for hosting terms of 12 months or longer.

Ease of Use

If you’re building your first website, ease of use is likely your top priority. Hostmonster is designed to be beginner-friendly, offering an adaptable platform with simple tools to get started. You can use the Weebly drag-and-drop builder to create a site without any coding knowledge. This makes the setup process straightforward, even for complete beginners. A free domain and SSL certificate for the first year adds extra value, helping you launch and maintain your website with fewer upfront costs.

Customer Service

Hostmonster provides customer support to help users navigate any technical issues or setup challenges. If you prefer solving problems on your own, their blog offers a wide range of articles, step-by-step guides, and video tutorials that cover common hosting questions and troubleshooting steps.

If you can’t find the answer you need, you can contact their support team directly through live chat, email, or phone. They also encourage users to reach out through social media for quick responses.

One drawback is the lack of a ticket-based support system, which can be important for handling more complex issues that require follow-up and detailed tracking.

Security

When managing a website, security isn’t just about protecting your data—it’s about earning users’ trust. Hostmonster includes several security tools that help create a safer browsing experience, which can build credibility and support higher traffic.

SSL certificate: Every plan comes with a free SSL certificate that uses TLS encryption to secure data between your site and visitors. This is shown by the small lock icon in browsers. It’s essential for protecting online transactions and is also a key factor in search engine rankings.

SpamAssassin protection: Email hosting includes built-in SpamAssassin protection to detect and filter spam messages. This helps keep your inbox clean and secure without extra cost.

Hotlink protection: This feature prevents other sites from linking directly to your images or files, protecting your bandwidth and content. It’s especially helpful in guarding against negative SEO tactics from competitors.

Site backup: Daily automatic backups give you peace of mind, ensuring you can recover your site quickly if something goes wrong.

Free CDN: Through a partnership with Cloudflare, users get free CDN service. A content delivery network improves site speed, enhances security, and ensures reliable performance for visitors worldwide.

While these features provide a solid security foundation, eCommerce sites may benefit from adding a premium SSL certificate for $49.99 per year. This added layer of protection helps secure sensitive user data such as credit card information, which is crucial for online transactions.

Features

TLS encryption: SSL certificates use TLS encryption to secure data transferred between your site and users. This helps protect personal information and payment details during transactions.

SpamAssassin integration: This email security tool identifies and filters spam before it reaches your inbox, reducing phishing risks and improving communication reliability.

Hotlink protection: By blocking external domains from using your hosted files, this feature protects both your content and bandwidth while maintaining better site performance.

Automatic site backups: Daily backups give you a simple way to restore your website if something goes wrong, whether due to hacking, plugin conflicts, or accidental deletions.

Content delivery network: Through Cloudflare, your site benefits from faster load times and improved global reach. The CDN also enhances security by absorbing malicious traffic before it reaches your server.

Pros

Free SSL certificate

All hosting plans include an SSL certificate, which adds TLS encryption to your website. This builds trust with visitors, protects sensitive data during transactions, and improves your ranking potential on search engines.

Free CDN through Cloudflare

The included CDN improves loading speeds for visitors around the world by caching content and delivering it from the nearest server. It also adds an extra layer of protection against DDoS attacks and other threats.

Hotlink protection

This feature stops other websites from directly linking to your images or files, protecting your bandwidth and keeping your content secure. It also helps safeguard your backlink profile from harmful SEO tactics.

Daily automated backups

Your website is backed up every day, making it easier to recover data in case of errors, security incidents, or accidental deletions. This ensures minimal downtime and a faster return to normal operation.

Built-in spam filtering

Email accounts come with SpamAssassin protection, which automatically scans and filters spam messages. This improves email security and saves time by reducing unwanted inbox clutter.

Cons

Constant upsells

One of the biggest drawbacks of Hostmonster is the frequent upsell pitches during the sign-up process. While you can uncheck add-ons you don’t need, the experience can feel pushy.

The Basic plan also comes with strict limitations. To access additional security features or host multiple websites, you’ll need to upgrade to a higher-tier plan, which costs nearly twice as much.

These kinds of restrictions are common on entry-level hosting plans, but they can be frustrating if you’re working with a tight budget or want flexibility from the start.

Conclusion

Hostmonster is a solid choice for beginners, small businesses, and growing websites looking for affordable hosting with straightforward setup options. They offer a clear range of hosting tiers, shared, VPS, and dedicated, allowing users to scale as their needs grow. Shared hosting provides an easy entry point, while VPS and dedicated hosting deliver stronger performance and control for higher-traffic sites.

The platform is beginner-friendly, thanks to its drag-and-drop site builder, free domain and SSL for the first year, and flexible payment options. Security features such as TLS encryption, spam filtering, daily backups, and a free CDN through Cloudflare provide a reliable foundation for building and maintaining a website.

If you’re still looking for a hosting provider that fits your needs, take a look at our list of top hosting services for detailed comparisons of leading providers. You can also use our hosting comparison tool to see how they stack up in pricing, features, and performance. For more insights, visit our blog, where we cover helpful guides and the latest hosting trends.