Hosting comparison sheet

How to use this

Use this sheet to compare hosting options before you choose a default for your client sites. Copy the tables into a spreadsheet, add a column for each host you are considering, and fill in every cell from the host's current pricing and terms pages, not from memory or old blog posts. Terms change often, including free tiers, so write the date you checked next to each host and check again before you sign up a new client. There are no numbers filled in here on purpose: the only numbers that matter are the ones on the host's site today.

This is not legal advice. Hosting terms, data location and privacy rules can matter for some clients, so read each host's terms yourself and ask a qualified professional if a client has specific requirements.

A simple setup that works for a small agency is one main host for simple static sites and one for anything that needs a server or a database. Fewer hosts means fewer dashboards and fewer things to forget.

Your needs first

Fill this in before you look at any host. It stops you choosing on features you will never use.

Question	Your answer
What kind of sites do you mostly build?	[Static brochure sites / sites with a CMS / sites with a database]
How many client sites will you host in the next year?	[Estimate]
Do clients edit content themselves?	[Yes / no / some]
Do any sites need server code or a database?	[ ]
Who pays for hosting?	[Client account / your account, billed on]
How much traffic do your typical clients get?	[Low / medium / unsure]
Do you need preview links for client review?	[ ]
Your budget per site per year for hosting	[$amount]

Comparison table

Factor	[Host A]	[Host B]	[Host C]	Notes
Date checked	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Type (static host, managed host, server)	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Has a free tier	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Read what it allows and whether commercial use is permitted
Free tier terms that matter to you	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Copy the exact wording or link
Paid plan you would actually use	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Price of that plan, as listed today	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Monthly or yearly
What happens if a site goes over its limits	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Paused, billed or throttled?
Custom domains supported	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Free HTTPS certificates, renewed automatically	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Deploys from a code repository	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Preview links for each change	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
One click rollback to an earlier version	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Form handling built in	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Server functions or database available	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
CDN included	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Can transfer a site to a client's own account	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Team or client access roles	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Backups, and how restores work	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Uptime or status page	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Support channels and response	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Data location options	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Matters for some clients' privacy rules
Terms on commercial or client use	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
How easy it is to leave	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	Can you export everything?

Test drive

Before choosing a default, deploy the same small test site to each finalist and record what happened.

Test	[Host A]	[Host B]	[Host C]
Time from signup to live preview	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Connected a custom domain without trouble	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
HTTPS worked without manual steps	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Rolled back to a previous version	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Form submission arrived	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Page speed test result on the homepage	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Anything confusing	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]

Scoring

Give each factor a weight from 1 (nice to have) to 3 (must have), then score each host from 0 to 3. Multiply and add up.

Factor	Weight (1 to 3)	[Host A] score	[Host B] score	[Host C] score
Cost over a year	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Ease of deploy and rollback	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Custom domain and HTTPS	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Client account transfer	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Speed	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Support	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
How easy it is to leave	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]	[ ]
Weighted total		[ ]	[ ]	[ ]

Decision

• Default host for static client sites: [Host]
• Default host for sites that need a server or database: [Host]
• Reason: [One or two sentences]
• Recheck terms on: [Date, for example every six months]

Before you rely on it

• I read the current terms and pricing pages myself
• I confirmed the plan allows commercial and client sites
• I know what happens if a site goes over the plan's limits
• I know how to move a site to a client's own account, or away from the host entirely
• I put a reminder in my calendar to recheck the terms