Managed vs. unmanaged
Most hosting types come with managed and unmanaged options, but the distinction is particularly important in dedicated hosting.
In managed dedicated hosting, your hosting company handles digital server configuration and maintenance for you. This includes installing and updating the operating system, plus handling security tools and other key software -- things that are complicated to manage if you’re not already familiar with system administration and/or working with a system administrator. The host may also manage things like WordPress installation and updates. Managed dedicated hosting typically costs $100 or more per month.
In unmanaged dedicated hosting, you’re responsible for digital server configuration and maintenance. The host may install the operating system, but you’re on the hook for everything else. While this does give you more complete control over the system configuration, it also means a lot more work. Unmanaged dedicated hosting plans can be as little as $50 a month.
I generally recommend managed dedicated hosting because the amount of time and energy you’ll save on server maintenance is worth the extra money. However, you may want unmanaged hosting if you want full server control and you’re able to perform server maintenance yourself or hire someone to do it.
Security
If you’re choosing managed dedicated hosting, your web host should provide the following layers of security:
- Secure Socket Layer -- SSL -- certification: This security protocol encrypts all data sent to or from your website, protecting sensitive information like your customers’ payment details. SSL certification also signals that your site is safe; some browsers and VPNs won’t even open a site without it. Your site may also be penalized by Google if it lacks SSL certification.
- Firewall: This software serves as a filter, scanning all data submitted to your site and blocking malware and other harmful data. A firewall may not be able to catch everything, but it should protect your site from the most common threats.
Many web hosting companies also provide additional layers of security, such as distributed denial of service -- DDoS -- and brute force attack protection.
If you choose unmanaged dedicated hosting, you’ll be responsible for installing and configuring all of these security tools yourself.
Processing power
Processing power determines how many tasks -- such as compiling data into a functional website -- your web server can perform at one time. A server’s processing power is related to two types of hardware: the CPU and the RAM.
The central processing unit or CPU is often called the “brain” of the server because it performs tasks. A CPU consists of several cores. The number and quality of these cores impacts how many tasks -- such as running plugins -- your site can complete at once. A higher number of CPU cores generally means better performance.
Random access memory or RAM is a data storage device connected directly to the CPU. This allows the CPU to pull data from the RAM faster than it can pull data from the traditional memory storage known as read-only memory or ROM. More RAM equals faster processing times, which leads to faster server and site speed.
Storage
How much storage you get dictates how many files -- like images -- and pages your site can host. As a general rule, 1GB gives you enough space to publish 10 large web pages or 100 small web pages. Dedicated hosting plans give you an entire server’s storage, which can range from 25GB to 1TB or even more.
Most hosting companies use solid-state drive -- SSD -- storage for fast and reliable performance. Some use nonvolatile memory express -- NVMe -- for even better server speed and reliability. HDD -- hard drive -- technology is used occasionally and can work for static data, but isn’t fast enough to run complicated applications at a good speed.
Bandwidth/data transfer
Bandwidth is a measure of how fast your server sends data to users. However, most web hosting plans use the term bandwidth to describe how much data your server can send, which determines how many monthly visitors you can have. Some companies use the term data transfer to describe this instead. The bandwidth/data transfer of dedicated hosting plans is typically measured in gigabytes or terabytes.
Figuring out how much bandwidth you need is difficult, as it depends on how large your website pages are and how many pages each visitor views. For example, if your average page size is 5MB and 100 visitors view five of those pages, you’ll need 7.5GB of bandwidth. If your page size is 10MB, you’ll need 15GB of bandwidth to accommodate those same 100 visitors. You can use this math to determine your bandwidth needs if you’re moving an existing site to dedicated hosting.
If you don’t have existing visitor statistics you can use to determine the amount of bandwidth needed, you can use the general rule that 1GB of bandwidth will allow at least 1,000 people to comfortably view your site each month -- or more, if your pages are small. Many dedicated plans offer 1TB or more of bandwidth, letting you accommodate millions of monthly visitors.
Uptime
Uptime is the percentage of time your site spends online. Uptime matters because visitors who can’t access your site may lose trust in your website and go elsewhere. This can result in reduced traffic, audience trust and income.
Most web hosting companies offer a 99.9% uptime guarantee, meaning that server issues and maintenance won’t cause your site to go offline for more than 10 minutes per week. Some hosts may even offer 99.99% uptime, meaning that your site won’t experience more than two minutes of server-related downtime per week.
Site speed
Site speed is the amount of time your site takes to load, measured in seconds. Most experts recommend a site speed of three seconds or less, as bounce rates decrease by 32% when loading time goes from three seconds to one second. The best dedicated hosting companies use top-of-the-line hardware to ensure good server speeds and boost your site speed. They may also offer the following tools to improve site speed:
- Caching: A method of storing data in a specialized storage layer called a cache. This allows browsers to load sites without needing to compile all of the data first. Many dedicated hosting companies use LiteSpeed servers with built-in caching.
- Content Delivery Network or CDN: A group of connected servers that store a website’s data in numerous places around the globe. This lets visitors’ browsers pull information from the data center closest to them, resulting in faster page loading.
Customer support
Your web hosting company should provide 24/7 customer service via live chat, email and phone. Responses should be prompt -- a few minutes if you’re contacting them via live chat/phone, or one to three hours via email -- and customer support agents should be trained to help you with a variety of issues. Many hosts also offer specialized support teams for popular content management systems like WordPress.
Hosting companies often offer priority support to dedicated hosting clients, meaning you’ll receive faster-than-normal response times. You may also get a dedicated support expert to help you with initial server setup.
Unfortunately, the support you’re promised isn’t always the support you’ll receive -- many web hosting companies’ customer service teams are slow to respond and lack the knowledge to help with advanced issues. Read reviews of any hosting company you’re considering to ensure that their customer service team actually provides the level of support you’ll need.
Pricing
There are a few things you’ll need to understand to calculate the longterm costs of your web hosting plan:
- Introductory discounts: Web hosts often offer discounts of 50% or more during your first term. You’ll be charged at the non-discounted rate -- usually displayed as the “regular rate” -- on renewal. For dedicated hosting, this can mean an increase of $100 or more per month.
- Contract length: Web hosting companies list monthly prices on their plan pages but typically require you to sign up -- and pay -- for at least one year upfront. You may need to sign up for two or three years to get the best discount. Multiply the listed price by the appropriate number of months -- 12, 24 or 36 -- to calculate your initial purchase price.
- Additional fees: You may need to pay additional fees for things like your domain, email hosting and advanced security tools. These are often monthly or annual subscriptions.
You’ll also need to consider cost differences between managed and unmanaged hosting, as managed dedicated hosting plans often cost $50 to $100 more per month than unmanaged dedicated hosting plans. However, unmanaged plans require either a significant investment of time or the money to hire a system administrator, so they can actually be more expensive once you factor in additional costs.