Shared Hosting vs Reseller Hosting

Shared hosting and reseller hosting represent two opposite ends of the hosting spectrum. Shared hosting if perfect for novice webmaster s that need minimal server resources and control. Reseller hosting is geared towards advanced webmasters that need the control to create their own hosting plans that can be resold to their clients. Both hosting plans provide an acceptable quality for their price, and each one is suitable for specific web hosting needs.

Pricing

Shared hosting plans usually cost about $5-$10 month, with the average plan in the $7 range. The cost is low because the price of the web server is split amongst many users. Shared hosting makes the most profit for a web hosting company for this reason, and is therefore the most prevalent kind of basic hosting package. Reseller hosting costs $20-$40, with the average basic reseller plan being about $20. Reseller plans can cost up to $50 or more however, depending upon the allocated server resources.

Support and Security

The support offered for reseller hosting is far superior to that offered for shared hosting, regardless of the hosting provider. Web hosting service providers realize the importance of their resellers when it comes to soliciting new clients, and therefore strive to provide support that will keep the reseller’s client base happy. Reseller hosting also requires much stricter security provisions, since the server will most likely be used for eCommerce sites as well. Shared hosting accounts are seen as having the lowest security in the web hosting industry because the server is shared by hundreds of unrelated sites simultaneously. Nonetheless, it is considered safe to have a personal site or blog hosted on a shared hosting account with a reputable company.

Web Hosting Features

Shared hosting accounts are known for coming with free domain names and the ability to host unlimited domain names. Many of them also allow for unlimited email and FTP accounts as well. The features of reseller hosting far surpass that of a shared hosting account however, as a reseller hosting account is specifically designed to accommodate the needs of many business owners while keeping the reseller in good standing with their clients. Reseller hosting packages give the reseller complete freedom over their server resources, and include tools that help the reseller break down the server resources into packages that can be sold in customizable plans. The plans can be named, priced and sold as the reseller sees fit. Many reseller hosting accounts come with multiple free domains, and even multiple IP addresses.

Reliability

Although the reliability of the hosting plan will ultimately depend upon the hosting provider themselves, it should be noted that shared hosting requires more server maintenance, and therefore presents with more downtime and slower server performance. Since hundreds of different sites will be using the server simultaneously, it has to be reset and administrative tasks must be performed more often to keep the server operating smoothly. Reseller hosting comes with enough server resources to accommodate dozens, or even hundreds of people if needed without the same pitfalls as shared hosting.

Recommendations

Ultimately your decision should be based entirely upon your needs as a webmaster, If you have no desire to resell hosting packages then shared hosting would be a more suitable solution. However, if you would like to have access to a powerful server that can be used in a variety of ways, as well as the power to create your own hosting plans, then reseller hosting would be perfect for you.

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