If you are setting up your own website or blog you will need to sign-up with one of the many web hosting services (if you are in a hurry, our recommendation at present is HostGator)

This will give you space on a web server, with a fast internet link, where you can host your site. There are number of types of web hosting services available and for more information on these see our post on web hosting.

Before signing up with one of the web hosting services you should do some research on domain names. Most web hosting services will register a domain name for you but you need to understand:

• Is the domain name part of the package or an optional extra?
• If it is charged separately is the price competitive (with sites like cheapnames.com and godaddy.com)?
• What happens if you decide to change hosts in the future? Do you have to transfer the domain registration as well?
• What happens if you cancel the hosting? If the domain name is included in the hosting package free there will probably be a charge for it if you cancel – even during a money back guarantee period.

You do not have to get your domain name via your web host, you can register it with any domain registrar and then add the nameservers supplied to you by your hosting company.  Whilst this is not the most convenient option it does give you full control and may make things easier should you decide to change hosts at some point.

When you compare web hosting services you will see lots of special offers, discounts, coupons etc. which give you a good deal when you sign up. Be aware that these deals only apply to your first payment and that renewals will be at the host’s normal rates. It can be a smart move to use these offers to sign-up for several years but check that you can get a refund if you need to cancel.

On the subject of prices you will see that you can get free hosting and wonder if it is worth paying at all. Whilst there are situations where free hosting is an option it has a number of drawbacks in that you cannot expect the level of service you would from a paid service. In particular support will be limited as this is expensive to provide, so you need to know what you are doing. I would always recommend signing with one of the big hosting companies where you will get guaranteed service levels and 24 hour support.

Of course there are a great many companies providing web hosting services and it is not easy to pick the most appropriate one for you. You can check out reviews but there are a lot of these and many are of dubious quality. It is, however, worthwhile looking at independent forums such as hostjury.com and webhostingtalk.com.

The best website host for you will be one that matches your needs at a reasonable cost. It would be a mistake to simply go for one of the lowest priced web hosting services, however there is no reason to go for a pricey service that offers more than you want.

The key factors to think about are:

Speed – It is vital that your web pages load rapidly otherwise visitors will get annoyed and possibly go off elsewhere. Loading speed is now a factor that Google takes into account in ranking a site.

Uptime – Good website hosting services will give an availability guarantee of 99.9%+, any downtime is bad as your website will basically not be available and you will miss visitors – who may not try again.

Technical Support – If you suffer urgent problems you need help without delay. You therefore need support to be obtainable 24/7 by phone, not simply by email.

Resources supplied – Most web hosting services keep it simple by offering “unlimited” resources such as disk space and bandwidth on their shared hosting packages. This is fine for most users but if your site does get busy you will need to upgrade from shared hosting. The different levels of hosting packages are usually determined by how many domains or databases you can have with these becoming “unlimited” in the top packages.

Control Panel – This is the interface supplied by the host which allows you to administer everything like access to your files, email accounts, databases, statistics etc. There are a number of these and cPanel seems to be the most popular but if you are new to hosting any of the popular control panels will do the job.

Easy Installation of popular software – A facility to quickly install software such as WordPress without any technical knowledge.

Some web hosting services specialize in shared hosting whereas other provide a range of services providing an upgrade path as your site grows. Depending on your future plans it may be appropriate to look for an upgrade path to VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting and then to Dedicated Server hosting.

If you need help, our present recommended hosting service is HostGator (with domain name registered at cheapnames.com or godaddy.com).