Which UK web hosting is the best ?

[Akzham]

Hi everybody,

I am currently hosting my domain names on iPage but their servers are located in US so it's not the best thing for SEO, I want to transfer my domains here in UK but I have no idea about which company to choose.
What is the best quality/price here ?

 

[Jolt.co.uk]

There's a lot of hosting companies that operate in the UK.

There's the big ones, remaining nameless, who you'll find in cover to index in .net magazine and spending millions on expensive TV campaigns. There's the one man bands who try to make a little bit of extra income with no longevity or sustainable business plan, and will often disappear overnight. Then there's the middle of the road providers like us, and some other reputable providers that frequent this forum.

Make sure you do your due diligence on whoever you choose

- reputation/reviews
- length of time in business
- services to meet your needs

Matt

 

[webhostuk]

The definition for Best web hosting provider will differ from customer to customer.. Some might compare it with price , while other might like support.
It completely depends on what's your requirement and what you are looking for.

As Matt suggested check for reviews , try contacting the web hosting providers look how they respond to your questions ,shortlist them and then decide.

 

[Merchant UK]

Every one is different offering a wide variety of products, its like saying what car is best.

You need to write down what you want from a host and then see which one meets your expectations

 

[Leo-InstallingIT]

As others have said, there is no hard and fast rule. But make sure you pick someone who can offer decent support.

Do you know how much disk space & bandwidth you need?

I know iPages offer Unlimited, however as everyone will tell you, you are much better going with a host that will provide you with what you need. (Unlimited doesn't exist).

 

[sunnywang]

We have had good experiences with United Hosting in UK. I would recommend them.

 

[SetupaCompany]

Just a thought but moving to UK hosting may not make much of a difference to your SEO - the likely benefit is minimal.

That said it could just make the difference between you and a competitor in terms of who is listed above who but the impact will not be drastic so keep that in mind when weighing the costs and time needed to move server.

 

[astutiumRob]

Just a thought but moving to UK hosting may not make much of a difference to your SEO - the likely benefit is minimal.

Distance to google, location of server(s) and page-load-time all have _some_ impact, and all would improve by moving from iPage to a decent UK host.

Far more important than any actual or perceived benefit in SEO should be the benefits to the end user ...

 

[iKam]

Check out Vidahost, we used to be with 1&1 and the difference is like from driving a rover to a Bentley. Without a major price increase. I don't say that Vidahost is as cheap as 1&1 but for a few for quid you get to talk to a proper human being giving proper support than the robots at 1&1 and they have always gone the extra mile with us. Such as installing software on our dedicated server which they didn't have to!

 

[SetupaCompany]

Distance to google, location of server(s) and page-load-time all have _some_ impact, and all would improve by moving from iPage to a decent UK host.

Far more important than any actual or perceived benefit in SEO should be the benefits to the end user ...

Abosolutely - moving to a UK host may have some impact and even a small benefit can be a good enough reason to move but people do tend to over-estimate the importance of their hosting location for SEO.

 

[Alan]

It is easy to test transatlantic impact on web page load times, there are plenty of tools out there.

The tests I have performed show a fairly consistent 4 seconds extra on page load times. Regardless of SEO, thats enough to convince me that a site should be located near its users.

 

[ITsoldUK]

It is easy to test transatlantic impact on web page load times, there are plenty of tools out there.

The tests I have performed show a fairly consistent 4 seconds extra on page load times. Regardless of SEO, thats enough to convince me that a site should be located near its users.

Yup and to extend, choose 3 and take the average load time.

Many of these 'tool' providers show skewed results to plug a service they are affiliated with.

OR you could do worse than use Mozilla's FIREBUG

 

[[devnull]]

As with most services support is key, test out any potential host by getting in touch with them and asking a few questions, the feedback can be an easy decision maker.

 

[ITsoldUK]

As with most services support is key, test out any potential host by getting in touch with them and asking a few questions, the feedback can be an easy decision maker.

Aye, wrote an article here saying just that.

 

[Jolt.co.uk]

Aye, wrote an article here saying just that.

I like the idea behind your article but the problem that plagues are industry is that so many 1 man bands start a host, offer great support for the initial 5 clients they get (as that isn't a huge load) and then disappear overnight when they've run out of money/interest/time.

We see this happen time and time again. I'm compelled to comment, as it taints our industry.

I'd suggest that you do contact the hosting company and see what type of a response you get. Then look up some current clients and seek their opinions. Use social media (Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn) so you know the client is real and not just a fake review. And build your opinions based on that.

Just to close, I'm definitely not against the 1 man bands building a good hosting company when it is a business and not a hobby. I was there myself when starting out. But make sure it is a viable business. Write that business plan. Create those forecasts. Predict where you will be in 1, 3 and 5 years.

 

[ITsoldUK]

I like the idea behind your article but the problem that plagues are industry is that so many 1 man bands start a host, offer great support for the initial 5 clients they get (as that isn't a huge load) and then disappear overnight when they've run out of money/interest/time.

We see this happen time and time again. I'm compelled to comment, as it taints our industry.

I'd suggest that you do contact the hosting company and see what type of a response you get. Then look up some current clients and seek their opinions. Use social media (Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn) so you know the client is real and not just a fake review. And build your opinions based on that.

Just to close, I'm definitely not against the 1 man bands building a good hosting company when it is a business and not a hobby. I was there myself when starting out. But make sure it is a viable business. Write that business plan. Create those forecasts. Predict where you will be in 1, 3 and 5 years.

Spot on, and I have been around long enough to know of many 'hosts' who fall into your criteria. Fortunately I chose my SP through 'inside knowledge' as I came from a branch of this industry.

Just to clarify that a 1 man band CAN run an efficient reseller hosting services as long as the technical/support infrastructure is in place as stated above.

I feel I should point out that I offer hosting to my clients ONLY and have done for many years. But I must point out, I DO NOT sell hosting openly as it is a VAS to my clients ONLY.

I may well add your well stated point, check out their clients...as this is pretty much a no brainer these days and is extremely pertinent.

 

[Jolt.co.uk]

I may well add your well stated point, check out their clients...as this is pretty much a no brainer these days and is extremely pertinent.

Yep. And someone on social media is much more likely to be a real person than just another artificial revue.

 

[altwebdesign]

I use heartinternet.co.uk

best customer service I have ever experienced.

Prices are a little high but I feel its worth it for the customer service.

 

[FIZIX Agency]

I've heard the opposite with heart to be honest. They used to be good, a lot of designers who I know and trust used to recommend them, now less so; which is a shame.


For the best, depends on what you're looking for, your needs and what your budgetary requirements are.

In theory, someone like Rackspace are "the best" but then not exactly relevant to x% of people looking for hosting.

 

[Mike_Scott]

On the lookout for new hosting too - watching this thread

 

[That Guy]

As a couple of members have suggested above I recommend Vidahost.

UK Based Servers, Great Support (via Phone, Email or Forums) Very Reliable Hosting in my experience too!

I have been with them for more than 3 years and host a number of sites with them including My Blog.

By far the best hosting company I have used.

The main thing to remember though is whatever hosting company you go with google them first to check out reviews

Good Luck!

 

[Tim Mayo]

My vote also goes to Vidahost.

Their servers are UK based, their prices are hard to beat, and their support is truly first class.

I've been with them for about 2 years now, and I don't plan on changing any time soon.

 

[altwebdesign]

I've heard the opposite with heart to be honest. They used to be good, a lot of designers who I know and trust used to recommend them, now less so; which is a shame.


For the best, depends on what you're looking for, your needs and what your budgetary requirements are.

In theory, someone like Rackspace are "the best" but then not exactly relevant to x% of people looking for hosting.

oh right.... havent got a bad word to say about them.... yet

 

[iKam]

If Vidahost keeps doing what they do, they'll never be a reason to leave.

 

[ChrisLBC]

I have used fasthosts in the past they seem to be pretty good! Also heard good things about Vidahost

 

[Akzham]

Thank you all for your answer, I was away for couple days sorry I didn't reply earlier.

I see that a lot of people seems to like Vidahost, i'm going to have a look at what they offer.

It completely depends on what's your requirement and what you are looking for.

Hosting a e-commerce, I need it to be working fine and fast, and I want the company to have a nice assistance in case of a problem or anything like that.

As a couple of members have suggested above I recommend Vidahost.

UK Based Servers, Great Support (via Phone, Email or Forums) Very Reliable Hosting in my experience too!

I have been with them for more than 3 years and host a number of sites with them including My Blog.

By far the best hosting company I have used.

The main thing to remember though is whatever hosting company you go with google them first to check out reviews

Good Luck!

Of course i'm always checking the reviews when i'm interested in a company !

 

[nelioneil]

Used TSOhost for a hobby website for past few years, no problems. Fantastic rep, great support

 

[DesignerNick]

34sp.com have been great for me for about 10 years

 

[Deleted member 62716]

Arnaud - You had asked:

''I am currently hosting my domain names on iPage but their servers are located in US so it's not the best thing for SEO, I want to transfer my domains here in UK but I have no idea about which company to choose.
What is the best quality/price here?''

I agree with most of the other ocmments here regarding quality, reputation and service. Unfortunately almost all hosting companies will claim great service and support on their website regardless of what they actually deliver.

For UK businesses Google.co.uk is currently using reviewcentre.com as a quality indicator for UK hosting providers. You can see this by search Google.co.uk for 'UK hosting' and look for the 'Star Ratings'. If you click on the stars you can see that Google is displaying the average star rating from reviewcentre.com as an indication of customer satisfaction. These are reviews from customers who have used the particular webhost.

That being said - I would suggest making a list of the hosting providers you are considering and then go to reviewcentre.com and see what current customers have to say about them.

Alternatively another great source of independent evaluations from actual customers is Twitter. Make a short list of your chosen hosting providers and then use the Twitter search feature to see what their customers are saying about them. It is quite revealing. Some providers even create lists of Tweets on their websites or under Twitter favorites.

To dramatise this process I searched for a few UK providers on Twitter. Since you are using iPage currently I assume you need shared hosting. Take a look at these Twitter searches from actual customers - I think it's pretty obvious which ones provide truly great service and support. There are 2 companies with great Twitter feedback and 2 with poor feedback. (Remember to ignore tweets by the company themselves and read the customer's comments).

Try these 4 - 2 are poutstanding and 2 are not - according to Twitter.

Fasthosts

Vidahost

Easyspace

34SP.com

I hope that this advice helps you narrow down your list to some companies that customers really love. Good luck with your website!

 

[Akzham]

Arnaud - You had asked:

''I am currently hosting my domain names on iPage but their servers are located in US so it's not the best thing for SEO, I want to transfer my domains here in UK but I have no idea about which company to choose.
What is the best quality/price here?''

I agree with most of the other ocmments here regarding quality, reputation and service. Unfortunately almost all hosting companies will claim great service and support on their website regardless of what they actually deliver.

For UK businesses Google.co.uk is currently using reviewcentre.com as a quality indicator for UK hosting providers. You can see this by search Google.co.uk for 'UK hosting' and look for the 'Star Ratings'. If you click on the stars you can see that Google is displaying the average star rating from reviewcentre.com as an indication of customer satisfaction. These are reviews from customers who have used the particular webhost.

That being said - I would suggest making a list of the hosting providers you are considering and then go to reviewcentre.com and see what current customers have to say about them.

Alternatively another great source of independent evaluations from actual customers is Twitter. Make a short list of your chosen hosting providers and then use the Twitter search feature to see what their customers are saying about them. It is quite revealing. Some providers even create lists of Tweets on their websites or under Twitter favorites.

To dramatise this process I searched for a few UK providers on Twitter. Since you are using iPage currently I assume you need shared hosting. Take a look at these Twitter searches from actual customers - I think it's pretty obvious which ones provide truly great service and support. There are 2 companies with great Twitter feedback and 2 with poor feedback. (Remember to ignore tweets by the company themselves and read the customer's comments).

Try these 4 - 2 are poutstanding and 2 are not - according to Twitter.

Fasthosts

Vidahost

Easyspace

34SP.com

I hope that this advice helps you narrow down your list to some companies that customers really love. Good luck with your website!

Thank you very much for this, it helps a lot. I can see one more time that Vidahost is apparently great ! Gonna check again online and see what I can find as reviews for this.

 

[Alan]

I love the twiiter test. I hadn't really though of using it for that purpose but thanks for the tip.

 

[MDJCM]

I go with TSOhost.co.uk

Cheap enough but more importantly, they work almost round the clock and I can call them any time for help with virtually any web problems.

So lots of points the for great customer service.

 

[Balticgardens]

Please avoid the Company Warehouse and their hosting service, absolute nightmare, unreasonably expensive and very poor service (no evening or weekend support). My website was down nearly a month and despite a number of tickets and phone calls (I had a chance to discuss the matter only with the receptionists who advised me that I was not allowed to discuss the issue with the technical team over the phone). Their ticketing system may take up to 7 days before you get any response and the issue was ignored by the technical team and they repeatedly diverted their responsibility blaming me for the problems. Finally I did not have any other options left and had to change the host service provider and everything works perfectly. I paid two years in advance and they claim that I am not eligible for refund?! Therefore avoid the Company Warehouse!!!
regards
Balticgardens

 

[PDC]

Interesting thread this, good point, can beat personal opionion and checking twitter and to a lesser degree facebook is great for unbiased opinion as you can spot the spammy/paid for coments easily.

I've been using names.co.uk for years and while not the cheapest they used to be great. The last two or three years though things have got quite poor, customer service has dropped off completely, they've suffered security breeches and my sites uptime has been dissapointing so I've been looking to move too.

 

[PDC]

Oh, and seeing a recomendation earlier for heartinternet.co.uk. We bought a competitors site along with the hosting, which we kept and that was on heart internet. Found answers to technical questions, not that technical either, were taking over a day and their admin area was very buggy and would often crash. They've at least updated this part now and I've no complaints for reliability but still find the new look admin area my least favorite to use.

 

[ITsoldUK]

Oh, and seeing a recomendation earlier for heartinternet.co.uk. We bought a competitors site along with the hosting, which we kept and that was on heart internet. Found answers to technical questions, not that technical either, were taking over a day and their admin area was very buggy and would often crash. They've at least updated this part now and I've no complaints for reliability but still find the new look admin area my least favorite to use.

Used the same company since we began many moons ago and have gradually increased our VPS spec to suit.

The name of this company is host-it.

Great all round performers and I won't be moving anywhere else until I activate my exit route

 

[lunarmachine]

Having experienced similar problems with US hosting and a number of UK based sites I have been really quite impressed with TSO HOST. They are extremely helpful great support and their servers are fast - really surprised by the difference compared to US hosting especially with large Wordpress coded sites. If you do go with them for your hosting you can get 10% off with this voucher code TSOHOST10DISC.

 

[sswats]

No experience with any other company, but Vidahost have not given me a reason to ever try another company.

The support is ridiculously good. I don't know how it compares to other hosting services, but it's better than from any other industry I've experienced.

I have had a couple issues in the 2 years I have been with them but all very quickly resolved.

Their ordering system can be made a bit clearer up a bit though.

 

[iKam]

Hi everybody,

I am currently hosting my domain names on iPage but their servers are located in US so it's not the best thing for SEO, I want to transfer my domains here in UK but I have no idea about which company to choose.
What is the best quality/price here ?

So Akzham who did you end up going for?

 

[sjkslskkjd487]

You will get many website or company who sell the website hosting in online. But have to choose the right company to get your right hosting. I also take hosting from this company. You can try it. Name of company is South Technolog in Jessore