When Should You Upgrade To Managed WordPress Hosting?
Every website owner should have an professional WordPress support team to perform important maintenance and IT functions. This includes website / database updates, cleaning up clutter, protecting the site from malware, and consistent performance optimization. If hiring your own support team isn’t possible at the moment but you still eed those services, you should consider upgrading to a managed WordPress hosting account. When you upgrade to a managed WordPress hosting, you benefit from IT and maintenance support that’s similar to hiring our own team. Here’s a breakdown of the services you should expect, in addition to their pros and cons that can help you determine whether managed hosting is something you should consider for your online business.
By the way, if you’re concerned about cost, take a look at my article how to build a website for free on a hosting provider like hostgator, that charges only $2.75 per month and comes with a free domain. You can always upgrade your site to a managed WordPress hosting later on if you need it.
Advantages of a Managed WordPress Hosting
- Enhanced load time and performance
- Security
- Backup automation
- Support
- Staging options
- Scalability features
- Premium Domain Name System (DNS)
Enhanced Load Time and Performance
Generally speaking, you’re guaranteed faster loading times with managed hosting accounts and that alone can impact your business in a positive manner. Managed WordPress hosting accounts allow your websites to perform better because their server environments are specifically optimized for WordPress websites and meant to compliment them. This means your site will perform better and load quicker, decreasing your site’s bounce rate and helping you retain clients. Managed hosting providers are competitive and come with different features and pricing plans, so that you can choose the one that is most suitable for your type of business and your website.
Security
When you choose the right managed host, you’re able to benefit from premium security features like malware and spam removal, site hack attempts, and protection from vulnerabilities. Some providers use software to identify and remove pre-existing security issues on your site at no additional cost, so they basically take care of the clean-up part for you. Some services are already included in your pricing options, but others you may need to pay extra for so always make sure that you know what your options are and what the provider is offering.
Backup Automation
Having a consistently updated and saved backup file of your website is invaluable, because even the most secure websites can experience vulnerabilities or errors that can cause it to go down. To always make sure that your data is safe, you need to backup your site constantly and often, manually. Save time and protect your site when you sign up for a managed hosting account through backup automation. Managed hosting providers usually offer automated backup services for free, which is invaluable if anything happens to your site and which takes the job off of your shoulders.
Support
Managed WordPress hosting accounts come with support teams. Depending on the team, you might be able to communicate with them through e-mail, chat boxes or over the phone. Try to choose a company that goes the extra mile when it comes to their process and knowledgeability. Support teams in this domain usually pride themselves on their award-winning service and those are the types of teams that can really help get things moving you when you encounter an issue that can’t wait.
Staging Options
If you’re trying something new on your site and don’t want it to be published just yet, you can benefit from staging options that come with managed hosting accounts. Staging sites can be built from scratch, or can be copies of your live, published site. Staging allows developers to conduct tests and see how the website or page will look before it becomes public, and is a very useful tool when you’re making adjustments or changes.
Scalability Features
Scalability means that your WordPress website is able to tackle changes in volume of traffic and its response to resource use. With a managed WordPress hosting, your website will be able to adapt to changes in traffic and this limits issues like your website crashing and / or freezing due to an unexpected traffic surge. A website with a moderate to heavy amount of traffic needs to be scalable, because it allows for better performance and analysis of analytics.
Premium Domain Name System
With a Premium DNS, managed hosting providers put your DNS information on their (unique) premium network and distributes it to servers around the world. When international users visit your site, they access it from the closest server to them. This increases load time and speed for international users, and enhances their experience. Some managed hosting providers also allow you to choose your own DNS zones. A Premium DNS also means enhanced security for your site, but we do recommend relying on more than one just in case something happens.
Disadvantages Of Managed WordPress Hosting
- Limited plugin accessibility and control
- Higher price tag
Limited Plugin Accessibility and Control
Not all plugins are supported by Managed WordPress hosting providers and some are blacklisted altogether. You may have a specific preference for using certain plugins, so this may be a limitation that you should take into consideration. Another thing to consider is that you have overall, less control over the back-end features simply because they are being managed for you. This isn;t necessarily something negative, but should be mentioned in case you have specific preferences.
Higher Price Tag
Managed WordPress hosting accounts range in price from $30.00 to the thousands, so it ultimately depends on your business, the amount of traffic to your site, and what you’re looking for in terms of features. If you’re looking to grow your business and are an established professional, then making the investment is certainly worth it.
Top Managed WordPress Hosting Providers
| Hosting | Cost | Free Domain | Free SSL | Staging |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Godaddy | $14.50/mo | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Metropolitan Host | $11.95/mo | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bluehost | $19.99/mo | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| A2 Hosting | $22/mo | No | Yes | Yes |
| 1&1 Hosting | 14.95/mo | No | Yes | No |
Is managed WordPress hosting worth it?
If you are a small business owner or startup, you can still manage your site manually with a basic shared hosting plan for the time being. Keep in mind that with basic hosting plans, you have to be comfortable managing your own WordPress website. When you’re looking to go pro and your business is growing, we definitely recommend investing in a managed WordPress hosting. It’s the right choice for large businesses with growing websites, influencers, online directories and e-commerce sites. Finding the right hosting provider is key, one which focuses on the features that are most important to you such as speed, security, and support.
