HostGator vs. Kinsta

HostGator is cheap and will host your website and the users of your email. However, we did run into some issues over the years. They sold us SiteLock, which is supposed to be an extra layer of security. We had it for a while, when our site was hacked. When I called HostGator they said that the SiteLock plan we had wasn't the right one to protect you, so they tried to upsell me on more SiteLock. This was very frustrating, as our site was down due to hacking and we were seen as a sales opportunity instead of clients who needed help. It turned out during this time that the basic backup that was included with HostGator was not going to work to get us back up. The problem is that it backs up once per week, and overwrites whatever was there before. So, it had backed up after the hack. After that we decided to get their premium backup plan. HostGator is good if you only need the most basic of services, unless you are willing to pay for the add-ons, and you might not even be aware of the add-ons until there's a problem.

Incentivized

Kinsta is perfect if you host with WordPress, which means the team there totally understands every aspect of the CMS and they even suggested changes to the way we host subdomains I hadn’t thought of before. As far as I know, they don’t offer hosting for non-Wordpress websites.

• HostGator is a very reputable company. So you know that your website is in good hands.
• They have one of the most affordable cPanel cloud hosting services that you can find.
• The speed of HostGator's hosting is pretty fast. And little to no downtime.

Incentivized

• Developer friendly; WP-CLI; SSH access
• Amazing support - I never have to wait more than a minute or two to get a response!
• Kinsta is also willing to troubleshoot issues that are not their own. They don't just say "It's not our problem" without helping to debug the issue.

Incentivized

• Tech support is responsive and helpful, but not without a special pin code. Since we need tech support infrequently when I do, I can never find that pin. It would be nice to have a quick client verification system.
• Publishing updated pages are quick but could be faster by eliminating a couple of extraneous click.

Incentivized

• The ability to restore database only or files only (selection) from a backup
• Only single staging environments are offered and it would be good to have multiple
• More control over Cloudflare features within the Kinsta control panel

Incentivized

Because we have in house technical support to compensate the lack of quality HostGator tech support, and because the price continues to be affordable the business is likely to continue using HostGator. They provide what the business needs and we have in house support to maintain it.

This is an extremely solid hosting product that I have yet to find clients who use it disappointed. I have had clients move from other competitors several times in search of something more reliable and scalable but not after they moved to Kinsta.

Incentivized

Their dashboard is really well layed out and simple to use for most users. I also really appreciate the fact that our clients are able to collaborate with us by granting us access. Their site migration tool is straightforward and painless to use as well!

Incentivized

We never had any major downtimes with our service, and I believe that's because it's based in a cloud-based network so therefore our system is being shared amongst multiple points.

Incentivized

As mentioned before the performance was amazing and pages were loading quickly. They also provide other tools to help you improve further.

Incentivized

While you will get support from HostGator, it seems to be a different level from 8-10 years ago. It may take 15-20 minutes to get someone on chat, and unless you follow up, I've found followup email support to take a couple of days. If you stick with it, though, you will get support, and I've never had a problem they couldn't help with.

Incentivized

They are quick to respond, very knowledgeable and I don't have to be escalated to get my problems resolved quickly. They have an efficient chat system that allows for support requests to be handled quickly and easily picked up by another specialist if the need arises. They are always there when I need them.

Incentivized

Not really it's a really easy to use system and straightforward!

Incentivized

This is for web design purposes. In versatility, not as good as WordPress, but pretty close to Squarespace and Wix. In ease of use, much easier than WordPress, about the same as Squarespace and Wix. In the choice of design templates, as good as all three. The current client chose HostGator after we poured through hosting, email, and web design comparisons. She wanted all these services through the least number of vendors, and the price was right.

Incentivized

Whilst SiteGround can be cheaper, it uses a lower-tier Google Cloud server infrastructure for hosting compared to Kinsta. SiteGround's support is inferior (it used to be very good) and the new SiteGround UI is not as easy to use or as intuitive as Kinsta. SiteGround also does not offer as many server-side tools.

Incentivized

We worked with clients who have major surges of visitor hits on a Buddhist website, and Kinsta was definitely up to the job. They were able to handle this and still provide excellent performance. As well, it was easy to track down other barriers for Google Ratings using their system to further improve the performance of these clients.

Incentivized

• Usage of resale options easily quadrupled the money I was spending on HostGator
• Trust in the host has to be earned, and HostGator has not retained that for me -- it will be a while before I feel confident in their uptime again
• Overall, HG has been a positive impact on my business as a web developer

Incentivized

• Our website was up and running in less than a day
• Despite not doing a huge advertising drive yet (we're still not ready at the moment), we've noticed a steady increase of organic visitors to the site, at least by 30%, which still isn't a lot in overall numbers at the moment, but that is expected
• Cost is higher, so we've had to separate a budget just for Kinsta

Incentivized