Rating System: Explained

How does my rating system work? What factors do I consider? Read on

You will notice that I make it a point to give web hosting providers a rating. For this, I try to gather all the information first hand, from the provider. However,  I work under a few constraints, cost and time being the chief among others. As a result, this limits my analysis on certain parameters (explained later). Consequently, I have to rely on information I can find elsewhere.

The Rating System

The system is a very simplistic and scientific one. Yet, it is comprehensive because it covers various parameters. Firstly the scale, the provider is rated on a scale of 1 to 5. Here I must mention , as a matter of practice, I will not rate a provider as 5. This is so because a 5 rating would mean that the provider is perfect. Further, I like to believe that there is always scope for improvement. So let us get to it. 

The key parameter which I consider for the rating system are:

  1. Services offered
  2. Price Points
  3. Support offered
  4. Speed and Uptime
  5. Features

Let us take it one parameter at a time.

Services Offered

Providers must offer Shared, VPS and Dedicated Servers

According to me, a good web host is one who will partner with me. This means that if I start small, my web host must provide me solutions for all future requirements as and when my requirement grows. Therefore, I look for 3 essentials which a web hosting provider must have. These are, Shared hosting, VPS and Dedicated Servers. 

I give one point if they have all, otherwise I deduct 0.5 point. You will be surprised how many providers lose a rating point for this basic parameter. For instance, web hosting giant Hostinger does not offer dedicated servers and basis this they loose 0.5 points on this count.

Price Points

Cost plays an important factor in selecting the right plan

It is logical to think that all web hosting providers would have similar prices for their products. However, this is far from ground reality. There are plenty of plans on offer which essentially offer the same set of features but price points vary drastically.

Hence, I have set a benchmark price for each type of hosting.

  • Shared Hosting Plans – $2 per month (for min. 3 year term)
  • VPS Plans (Unmanaged. 2 vCPU 2 RAM) – $10-$12 per month (for min. 3 year term)
  • Dedicated Servers (Bare Metal. 4 Core 8 Thread, 8 GB RAM) – $89 per month (for min. 2 years)

Likewise with services offered, I give one point if all three benchmarks are beaten. Otherwise, 0.5 if at least one benchmark is beaten. Full rating points in this parameter comparison are hard to earn.

Support Offered

It is important to have 24/7 support in case things go wrong

As a website owner you will have need for support from the web host. Fortunately, there are many means by which this is provided. While there are some web hosting providers who have 24/7 helplines others offer helplines which work during certain hours of the day. Then there are some who offer support via live chats or email/tickets. 

A good web hosting provider will have all the following:

  • 24/7 Phone Helpline
  • Live Chat or Email/ticket based support
  • Knowledge Base
  • Community
  • Blogs/Tutorials

I give one point if they have the first three i.e. 24/7 phone, Knowledge Base and Live Chat/email/ticked based system. I deduct 0.5 if even one is missing. The community and blog/tutorials are added bonuses and so I do not give it special treatment.

One can gauge the quality of articles in the knowledge base easily. However, to examine live support, phone or chat, I am constrained. 

Speed and Uptime

A slow website can make the difference between sale or no sale.

This is where I have further constraints. Ideally, one should try these services and then be able to judge. I cannot do that right now. Hence, I rely on reports I find on the web hosting provider. As a result, I give every web host one point unless I find something drastically wrong in server response times or uptime of the website.

Features

Getting the right set of features can make all the difference

For this parameter I allow for plenty of opportunities for a web hosting provider to redeem itself. I do it is by having a list of essential features and a list of desirable features. As the name suggests if an essential feature (one or more) is missing, I deduct 0.5 point. However, the web host can recover if they provide a feature from the desirable list. The lists are:

Essentials ListDesirables List
SSD StorageDaily Backups
1-Click Apps (WordPress, WooCommerce etc)Free CDN
Free SSLDDoS Malware Protection
Free DomainGoogle ads Credit
cPanel Windows Based hosting
30 days Money Back GuaranteeChoice of Datacenters
Multiple languages/versions
Weekly Backups
Email account
Database
Lost rating points can be regained if a feature from the desired list are offered

The Final Word

This is a decent framework to evaluate a web hosting provider. It has its own set of advantages and disadvantages. Hence, what I say should not be construed as gospel truth under any circumstances. However, I can assure you that you would not have reason to complain if you refer to it.

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