If you are looking for a Bluehost alternative, the solution is definitely not SiteGround. I can confidently say this because I used to use SiteGround before switching to Cloudways.
I don't recommend SiteGround as a Bluehost replacement for several reasons. But the most primary one is the support. They use AI-first chatbot for customer support.
I know that today, most hosting companies also use AI chatbot for support. But the AI support of SiteGround the worst from other hosting companies I have used. Human support is available but barely accessible.
As a comparison, you can bypass the AI bot in Cloudways support chat box by simply typing "pass me to human" or a similar sentence and you will be served by a human within minutes.
Here are the best alternatives which I hand-picked if you want to switch away from Bluehost.
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A Brief Guide on How to Choose a Bluehost Alternative
Bluehost is one of the biggest hosting companies widely used by bloggers and small business owners. One of the main reasons why they use Bluehost is that Bluehost is relatively easy to use.
In Bluehost, you don't need to connect your domain manually since its service includes a domain registration. Meaning that you don't need to configure DNS records to connect a domain to a website.
But as your website grows, you may need to switch to a hosting service that is more capable of handling higher traffic and higher load.
Bluehost actually has some hosting service types, other than shared hosting, which you can use if you need higher hosting resources for growing websites. But if you prefer to switch away from it, then here are some things you need to consider.
Hosting Types and Specs
The main hosting service that Bluehost offers is shared hosting. If you use this hosting type, you can install CMS platforms other than WordPress. Such as Drupal and Joomla.
If your website is powered by WordPress and you are looking for a Bluehost alternative with better performance, my suggestion is to use a managed hosting service or VPS.
Managed Hosting
A managed hosting is the type of hosting in which the hosting resources and environment is designed specifically to run a certain platform.
In the context of WordPress, a managed hosting means that the hosting resources and environment is designed specifically to run WordPress websites.
A managed WordPress hosting usually also offers built-in features for easier site management. Such as automatic updates (core and plugins) and daily backup for easier site restoration.
A managed hosting service usually adopts a virtualization technology to create an isolated resources per website.
VPS
VPS (Virtual Private Server) is a hosting type where users are provided with a virtual server to run their websites. With VPS, you can install and run multiple websites on your virtual server.
On a VPS, hosting resources are not shared with other users like traditional shared hosting. Thus, you can expect a better performance.
The biggest challenge with VPS is that you need to have basic knowledge in system administration and Linux to manage your VPS since most VPS providers use Linux as the operating system of the VPS they offer.
Support (Beware of AI-First Support)
Many hosting companies leverage AI to power their customer support. Unfortunately, some of them don't really care whether its AI support is useful enough to solve customers' issues.
Since customer support is crucial, I strongly recommend you to pick a hosting service with at least a hybrid support if you can't find a hosting service in which the customer support is fully handled by humans.
Make Sure All Crucial Features are Included as Core Features
There are many hosting companies that offer advanced features to attract potential customers. You need to be skeptical if you find a hosting company that promises advanced features (e.g., CDN) with a low price. Because chances are, they offer the features as add-ons instead of core features.
There are many hosting companies that generate more money by selling add-ons. This is not a bad practice, actually. You just need to be careful picking a hosting company with this type of business model.
Make sure all crucial features you need are included as the core features instead of add-ons.
Here are some crucial features you need to make sure they are available as the core features:
- Backup. Make sure both automatic and on-demand backup are available. Also, make sure you can download the backup files to your computer
- Security. Consider using a hosting service with server-level security feature
- SSL
The Best Bluehost Alternatives at a Glance
| Key highlights | Pricing | |
|---|---|---|
| Cloudways | A great hosting service to host multiple sites at a lower price. | Starts from $11/mo |
| Elementor Hosting | A great solution to host Elementor-powered WordPress sites. | Starts from $15/mo |
| Pressable | A managed WordPress hosting with excellent performance. | Starts from $25/mo |
| Kinsta | A managed WordPress hosting with a super clean panel. | Starts from $35/mo |
The Best Bluehost Alternatives
1. Cloudways - The Best Bluehost Alternative for Affordability
Cloudways is the hosting service that I personally use for my WordPress projects. Including this website. I use Cloudways for one main reason: I can install as many WordPress websites as I want at a more affordable price.
Currently, I am on the Medium plan and have 9 websites on one server. I only need to pay $54 per month for those sites. If I use Kinsta or Pressable, I need to pay at least $155 per month to run 9 WordPress sites.
To be honest, Cloudways is not the best Bluehost alternative in terms of performance. You can go to Pressable or Kinsta for performance. At least, Cloudways is better than Bluehost and SiteGround in this area.
Cloudways itself is a managed cloud VPS.
Unlike traditional VPS, you don't need to manage the VPS yourself. You don't need to install OS and other applications like web server, database server and PHP server yourself. Everything is handled by Cloudways.
You can focus on managing your websites. If you want it, you can even use the site management feature that Cloudways offers (not available as a core feature).
Cloudways offers server-level security features powered by Imunify360, which acts as a firewall to protect your websites from malware and cyber attacks.
I have published a blog if you want to learn more about Cloudways features.
Why I Recommend Cloudways
As I mentioned, the main reason I use Cloudways is that I can run many websites at a lower price. And I recommend Cloudways to you for the same reason.
However, I don't recommend Cloudways (unless you subscribe to an Autonomous plan) to run a website that requires heavy activities in the WordPress dashboard like an LMS website or a membership website.
I only recommend Cloudways to run blogs and websites that don't involve many user activities.
Two other reasons why I recommend Cloudways is that it has great support and vertical scaling where you can easily scale up and scale down your server.
Interested in trying Cloudways? You can hit the button below to get a 10% discount for 3 months.
2. Elementor Hosting - The Best Bluehost Alternative for Elementor
If your website is powered by Elementor and it's growing and you need a better hosting than Bluehost, you can try Elementor Hosting.
As the name suggests, it is a hosting service from the same company that maintains the Elementor plugin so the people behind it truly understand the needs of a hosting service to run Elementor-powered websites.
Elementor Hosting itself is powered by Google Cloud for its main hosting infrastructure and Cloudflare for its CDN so that you can expect more on performance.
Also, each website hosted on Elementor Hosting has unlimited PHP workers, which is great to make sure your website remains accessible on traffic spike.
When you add a new website on Elementor Hosting, it will be pre-installed with Elementor. Unfortunately, extra purchase is required for Elementor Pro.
Here are some key features offered by Elementor Hosting:
- Cloudflare Enterprise
- Object cache (powered by Redis)
- Unlimited PHP workers
- Daily backups
- Automatic WordPress core updates
Why I Recommend Elementor Hosting
I don't personally use Elementor Hosting on my projects but I recommend it because it is offered by the same company behind the Elementor page builder. Thus, they truly understand what a website needs to run Elementor smoothly.
Also, the hosting service is powered by Cloudflare Enterprise which is available as a core feature instead of an add-on.
3. Pressable - The Best Bluehost Alternative for Performance
Pressable can be an ideal solution if you are looking for a Bluehost alternative with a better performance. In Pressable, every website has 5 virtual CPUs. That's why the performance is excellent.
I once tried Pressable and it's indeed a great hosting in terms of performance.
Pressable itself is a hosting service from Automattic, the company behind WordPress.com. And it uses the same hosting infrastructure as WordPress.com.
In Pressable, your website is hosted on WP Cloud.
One of the notable features that Pressable offers is hourly backup. Also, it offers a feature to customize automatic updates for WordPress plugins. These features, as well as other features, are available as core features.
Email hosting feature is available but it is available as a paid add-on.
Why I Recommend Pressable
Same as Elementor Hosting, Pressable is also better than Cloudways in terms of performance. Unlike Elementor Hosting which requires a yearly billing cycle, you can subscribe to a Pressable hosting plan with a monthly billing cycle like most hosting services.
The lowest plan that Pressable offers is $25 per month, which is more affordable than Kinsta.
Another reason I recommend Pressable is that it is backed by people who understand the ins and outs of WordPress.
Kinsta - The Best Bluehost Alternative for Simplicity
Kinsta is a managed hosting service that plays in the same area as Pressable and Elementor Hosting. I once tried Kinsta and got impressed by its control panel.
When I tried Kinsta, the control panel was super clean and extremely easy to use. At the time, it had no built-in file manager but it now has one.
Kinsta has at least two things in common as Elementor Hosting. First, it uses Google Cloud as the main hosting infrastructure. Second, it relies on Cloudflare to offer a CDN feature.
If you have multiple websites on Bluehost and want to migrate all of them without hassle, Kinsta can be a great solution as it offers unlimited free migration.
Kinsta can also be a great solution if you have a malware-infected website and want to remove it for free as it comes with a free malware removal feature.
All of the mentioned features are available as core features.
One thing I don't like about Kinsta is that it stores the backup files to the same storage as your site files. External backup location is available, but you need to pay an add-on to use it.
As a comparison, Cloudways stores your backup files to a different location from your website files. I have published a post which you can read to learn more about the differences between Cloudways and Kinsta.
Why I Recommend Kinsta
Kinsta is a pricey hosting service. Pricier than Pressable and Elementor Hosting. But what you will get is worth the money.
The performance is great.
Also, most of its useful features like unlimited free migration, free malware removal and Cloudflare CDN are available as core features. Not add-ons.
Summary - Which Bluehost Alternative Should You Use?
There are a bunch of web hosting services that you can use if you want to switch away from Bluehost but I personally only recommend 4 hosting services on the above list.
Each hosting service on the above list is a standout in a specific area.
You can switch to Cloudways if you are looking for an affordable hosting service to host multiple websites as you can install unlimited websites on your server.
Elementor Hosting is a great Bluehost alternative if you have an Elementor-powered website and need a hosting with better performance.
Pressable is a great solution if you are looking for a hosting service with a solid backup feature.
If you are looking for a hosting service with a free malware removal feature, you can go to Kinsta.