Best Web Hosting Companies For New Zealand

Finding a web hosting provider optimized to your needs is not an easy task, especially when there are many options to choose from. If you are running a website for an establishment or organization operating in New Zealand, then most of your audience will be from New Zealand. In this case, it is ideal to choose a web host that has servers in New Zealand or close to it (Australia or Singapore).

When choosing a web host, make sure that the servers are located close to most of your readers or visitors to provide them higher speeds and a better experience. For your page to load, their web browser sends a request to your website’s server, and depending on the size of your page, the time taken to download the content will differ.

Before moving on to the top web hosts for New Zealand, we shall briefly overview what web hosting is and the different hosting options available.

Web hosting is an online space for storing all the files that constitute your website. You get a domain name registered, select a hosting plan form a web host, and have your site ready for browsers. Choosing the ideal web host is vital as it can make or break your business.

While free hosting is an option available, it is not recommended as they restrict your website’s growth. We have compiled the cheapest hosting plans and the high-end hosting plans and a breakdown of the features offered to give you a better idea about what each hosting provider offers.

However, different types of hosting are available, such as shared, VPS, Cloud, Reseller, and dedicated server hosting. Before moving onto the top hosting providers, we shall see what each of these hosting options offer.

 

If you want an affordable hosting option in New Zealand, shared hosting is the solution. In shared hosting, you share webspace and assets with other websites operating in the same server as you are. It is up to the hosting company to deciding how many websites share the same server.

Shared hosting is beneficial due to the cheaper rates and easy installation of software scripts. The main disadvantage of using shared hosting is that your website will have a slow loading speed if too many websites share the server. There is also the risk of security as it is dependent on the websites you share your server with.

VPS costs more than shared hosting and requires more technical knowledge than that required for shared hosting. The advantage of using VPS hosting is that you get your operating system and total control over it; it is almost like having your server. You get complete control and better performance.

 

This hosting service provides the best performance, excellent reliability, and stability. They are very expensive and are preferred by big businesses with the resources opt for a server of this strength. It is useful for websites and companies that have resource-draining content.

 

Still having doubts about which type of hosting to choose in New Zealand? Cloud hosting is an excellent option as they come with the latest technology and present excellent growth opportunities. While shared and dedicated hosting uses a single machine, cloud hosting uses several machines and acts as an available system. The benefit here is that if one of the machines goes down, you do not lose data or face downtime as the other machines can take over. With cloud hosting, you can adjust the server space as per requirement.

If you are using WordPress, then this is the perfect option for you. With managed WordPress hosting, you do not have to worry about your site’s maintenance and operation as the web host takes care of that. However, you are handing over the reins to your web host, gradually leading to less control for you. Managed WordPress hosting offers high performance, but it is also expensive. You also have limited plug-ins available with this hosting.

This is mainly used by those seeking to provide services to clients/customers, such as designers or agencies. Web designers are the most common users of reseller hosting. Instead of having their clients sign up for a hosting service, web designers buy hosting in bulk and sell them. The designer has regulatory controls over these websites.

Choosing a web host is not easy, and there are many aspects to look for in a web hosting service. Here are a few features you need to consider before choosing a New Zealand Web Host:

Choosing the ideal server location is not an easy task. The closest server may not always the best option. Take into consideration the power level of the server and the location of the audience. If your target audience is in New Zealand, there may be servers outside New Zealand that provide better performance and quality than New Zealand ones.

Choose a web hosting provider that offers stable servers and excellent uptime, preferably 99.9%. While numerous New Zealand web hosts provide this guarantee, you need to weigh in your options before making a choice. Look for the web hosts that maintain maximum uptime. Customer reviews are an excellent way to get an insight into the quality services provided.

Adequate technical support is necessary for operating and managing a website, especially for beginners. Before choosing a web host, look into their customer support system. Look for a support team that has experienced staff and is more responsive to queries. You do not want to be kept waiting in the event your site goes down, and you’re unable to rectify the problem. The ideal customer support team is available 24/7 throughout the year, with no exceptions for holidays.

Bandwidth is the speed of data transfer, and it is influenced by the traffic and size of your content. Most web hosts have a monthly bandwidth limit, so make sure you consider that before choosing.

When selecting a web hosting service, you need to consider the disk space they offer. While high-end plans may come with unlimited storage, not all hosting providers have this option. The best way is to have an estimate of how much storage you will need and what kind of media you will be uploading on your website.

There are ways to save up on storage, and one is to avoid storing non-essential content with the web hosting service. For example, if you require videos on your web page, you can add them from a third-party platform such as Vimeo instead of uploading them onto your page. The same follows for music, which can be embedded from SoundCloud without wasting the one-site storage.

Regular backups ensure that you can restore the content in case your website goes down or gets attacked. Having backed up content ensures that you can operate your website at all times while keeping your content safe. When choosing a web host, select one that offers regular backups and restoration services. While some hosting providers charge you for backup and restoration, others offer it for free.

If you have plans on hosting multiple websites, you need to look for the number of domains your hosting plan/provider allows you to have. While the cheaper plans usually offer only one website, high-end plans may provide more.

The physical distance between the server and the visitors affects the loading speed, so we have compiled the top hosting companies for New Zealand. There are many hosting providers, and each of them provides a variety of hosting plans. This list has been drawn by focusing on four main factors – Performance, Support, Usability, and Value for Price.

SiteGround was established in 2004 and gained popularity for its excellent services and around 2 million satisfied users. They offer various hosting options such as WordPress hosting, Cloud hosting, Dedicated Server hosting, and Shared hosting.

SiteGround provides one of the most reliable services when it comes to uptime. They offer a 99.9% uptime guarantee and reimbursements for the downtime faced. SiteGround also has fast loading speeds in any part of the world. This is made possible by their stable servers that use the latest technology and CloudFlare Content Delivery Network (CDN).

Customer support is an essential factor when it comes to judging a web hosting provider. You need a team of experts available at all times to sort out issues you may face. SiteGround provides just this, with their 24/7 assistance via live chat, phone, and a ticketing system. If you are looking for some simple troubleshooting, you can utilize their knowledge base that provides great help.

Although they do not offer many unlimited features, they have certain robust features that can help your business grow and excel.

The following are the hosting plans available under Shared hosting:

StartUp –

This is the cheapest plan offered by SiteGround at $6.99 per month. As this is an introductory offer, the renewal prices are $14.99 per month. It offers limited features with one domain, 10GB storage, and 10,000 visitors per month.

GrowBig –

GrowBig is the perfect fit for a growing website and is available for $9.99 per month, although the regular price is $24.99 per month. This hosting plan offers premium features such as an unlimited number of domains, 20GB storage, and 25,000 visitors per month.

GoGeek –

This hosting plan is best suited for websites with a need for more premium features, bandwidth, and storage space. Although it costs $39.99 per month, it is currently available for $14.99 per month. This plan differs from the GrowBig plan in terms of features, speed, storage, and visitors. You get 30GB storage, faster speed, more features, and you can have up to 100,000 visitors per month.

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A2 Hosting has been operating since 2001 but is less popular, with only a few thousand websites hosted. Although they do offer excellent services, they haven’t had their share of the limelight, which is why A2 Hosting comes at a strong second position in their review. The main reason why A2 Hosting hasn’t garnered the attention it deserves is that they haven’t got the necessary exposure regarding the features they offer, which will be changed today.

Uptime has always been one of the main priorities of A2 Hosting, and they have stable servers that deliver 99.9% uptime, keeping up with their uptime guarantee.

They also have an excellent refund policy. They offer a money-back guarantee that you can avail of within 30 days. You can get a prorated refund for the remaining term in the subscription if you choose to cancel after the 30 days.

As we already know, customer support is a feature that makes or breaks a web hosting provider. Excellent customer support can make up for so many flaws, but poor customer support is an unforgiving scar that may affect the hosting company’s success. A2 Hosting also provides excellent customer service and technical support to its users. They have an expert support team that offers easy to approach, friendly customer support; you can reach their customer support team by phone, chat, and a ticketing system.

The following are the hosting plans offered under their shared hosting service:

Lite Plan –

This is the cheapest plan offered by A2 Hosting and is priced at just $3.92 per month. You get to host one domain with unlimited bandwidth and storage space, which is excellent for a starter plan.

Swift Plan –

The Swift plan is faster than the Lite Plan and provides almost double the resources offered in the Lite Plan. It is priced at just $4.90 per month and offers an unlimited number of domains, unlimited bandwidth, and storage.

Turbo Plan –

The Turbo Plan is the fastest hosting plan offered by A2 Hosting, and it comes with an accelerator. Apart from the unlimited storage and unlimited bandwidth, you can host an unlimited number of websites, all for just $9.31 per month.  

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GreenGeeks is known for their eco-friendly, green hosting services wherein they use renewable energy to power all their websites. When hosting with GreenGeeks, you can display their badge on your web page to give your visitors an insight into the environmental problems we currently face.

GreenGeeks is known for their reliable uptime and their efforts in maintaining the 99.9% uptime guarantee they offer. This is made possible by their reliable servers that use state-of-the-art technology. Their excellent server system ensures faster-loading speed for your sites. They use SSD hard drives that provide a much faster experience and more reliable performance than HDD (hard disk drives). GreenGeeks also utilizes CloudFlare CDN to make your content accessible to any person in any part of the world.

GreenGeeks offers excellent customer support through its team of experienced professionals. You can reach their customer service via phone, chat, or email. You can also find tutorials and articles in their knowledge base that can help you better understand the operation of their services and features.

They offer WordPress hosting, Shared Hosting, VPS Hosting, and Reseller hosting. Shared hosting is their most popular hosting option, and the following are the hosting plans offered under shared hosting:

Ecosite Lite Package –

The Ecosite Lite package is suitable for new websites as they come with limited features. They offer unlimited bandwidth and storage, and you can host one domain. This plan comes at a price of $9.95 per month, although it is currently available for just $2.95 per month. It is great for new websites and small businesses.

Ecosite Pro Package –

This is a more expensive plan and offers twice the power and features of the Ecosite Lite package. It is preferred for growing sites as the lite package may not be enough for an expanding website. With the Ecosite Pro Package, you get unlimited storage, bandwidth, and unlimited domains.

Ecosite Premium Package –

This is the most expensive plan offered by GreenGeeks and is priced at $24.95 per month. It is currently available at a discounted rate of $11.95 per month. It offers far more features and power than the two other plans under shared hosting. While the Pro plan provides twice the Lite package’s power and features, the Premium package is two times better than the Ecosite Pro Package.

They provide super-fast performance and the ability to host an unlimited number of domains. You get the usual unlimited storage and bandwidth as well. The extra features and better understanding make it suited for hosting online shopping platforms or stores.

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Panthur provides domain name registration services as well as web hosting services. Based in Australia, they were acquired by Hostopia Australia. Panthur has various hosting plans to choose from and also maintain a considerably good uptime. They have faced criticisms for their customer service from users. You can reach their customer support team via phone or email, and it is a commonly reported problem that they provide slow responses.

Panthur offers shared hosting and reseller hosting. Their shared hosting plans are discussed in detail below with the prices in Australian dollars.

• ECONOMY

The Shared Economy Plan by Panthur offers three hosting packages:

Mini –

This is the cheapest plan offered by Panthur for just $5 per month. It is limited in storage and bandwidth, with just 2GB storage and 100MB bandwidth. You get an unlimited number of email accounts and SQL databases with this plan.

Advanced –

This plan is three times more powerful than the Mini package and comes at $10 per month. You get more storage and bandwidth than the Mini package, with 6GB storage and 250MB bandwidth. This plan also offers unlimited email accounts and SQL databases.

Professional –

The Professional package offers almost double the storage and bandwidth provided in the Advanced package at $15/month. You get 10Bg storage and 500MB bandwidth, unlimited SQL databases, and email accounts.

• BUSINESS

The Business Shared Plans by Panthur offer the following packages:

Bronze –

The Bronze Business package comes with 20GB storage space, unlimited bandwidth, SQL databases, and email accounts. It is priced at $20 per month.

Silver –

The Silver package offers 60GB storage and unlimited SQL databases and email accounts and no bandwidth restrictions. It is priced at $30 per month.

Gold –

The Gold package offers the highest storage space among all hosting plans. The disk space provided is 100GB, along with unlimited SQL databases, email accounts, and bandwidth.

• STEALTH

The Stealth plans by Panthur focus on better speed and high performance. They provide speeds faster than that available when you use the Economy or Business Plans. The following packages are available in the Stealth Plan:

Puma –

This plan offers 400% more CPU speed, which is the main priority of all packages under the Stealth plan. Other features are 25GB storage space and unlimited bandwidth. This is faster than the services provided by both Economy and Business plans.

Leopard –

The leopard plan offers 600% CPU speed, 50GB storage, and unlimited bandwidth. It is priced at $100 per month.

Panthur –

This is the most expensive among all shared hosting plans and is priced at $150 per month. It comes with 800% CPU speed, 75GB storage, and unlimited bandwidth.

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CloudWays is the best hosting option if you are looking for specific cloud hosting services. CloudWays brings you closer to significant cloud hosting companies, giving you a chance to select the cloud platform to host your website. Amazon (AWS), Google Cloud, Linode, DigitalOcean, and Vultr are all major cloud hosting platforms you can choose from by hosting with CloudWays.

Cloud hosting is preferred as they offer more scalability than other hosting options. They also have excellent uptime rates and high speed. CloudWays provides a 3-day trial period for you to try out their features before deciding to make the final call. They also have a 24/7 customer support team that you can reach via chat, phone, and email (ticketing).

Below, we have a brief overview of the details of the major cloud hosting companies’ starter plan.

1. DigitalOcean Startup –

DigitalOcean has the cheapest introductory rates currently, priced at $10 per month. Although it is the most affordable hosting plan offered by CloudWays, it does come with enough essential features to support a growing website rather than being limited to supporting a brand new website.

Their key features include 25GB storage, 1GB bandwidth, 1GB RAM, and a 1-core processor.

2. Linode StartUp –

This is the second cheapest plan by CloudWays and is priced at $22 per month. Linode offers almost two times the features provided by DigitalOcean, and you can upgrade to Linode if you find the features of DigitalOcean to be limiting.

The key features offered include 50GB storage, 2TB bandwidth, 2GB RAM, and a 1-core processor.

3. Vultr StartUp –

If your website requires more features than that offered in the Linode plan, you can proceed for the Vultr package. This is two times as powerful as the Linode package and is priced at $42 per month.

This package’s key specifications include 80GB Storage space, 4TB bandwidth, 4GB RAM, and a 2-core processor.

4. AWS StartUp –

Amazon’s startup plan offers exactly the same features as the Linode package: a 2-core processor, bandwidth of 4TB, storage space of 80GB, and a RAM of 4GB. If these are the specifications you are looking for; you can choose from AWS and Linode, both offered at the same price of $42 per month.

5. Google Cloud StartUp –

The Google Cloud is the most expensive hosting offered by CloudWays and provides almost the same security and speed as Google. It comes at a monthly rate of $80.

This plan’s key features and specifications include a bandwidth of 5TB, storage of 160GB, RAM of 8GB, and a 4-core processor.

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BlueHost operates as a domain registrar and web hosting provider and offers various hosting options such as WordPress hosting, VPS hosting, shared hosting, and dedicated server hosting.

BlueHost offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee and is an official recommendation of WordPress. All of their plans include free SSL certificates and free CloudFlare Content Delivery Network (CDN). The prices offered currently are cheap, but they do charge higher at the time of renewal. They also provide better speed in more expensive plans.

You can contact their customer service via email, phone, or live chat for any queries or help. You can also go through the easy tutorial and guides they have provided in their help center that is simple to follow.

The following are the hosting plans available under their shared hosting option:

1. Basic Shared Hosting

The basic plan has an introductory rate of $3.95 per month and a regular rate of $7.99 per month, which you will be paying once you renew your subscription. This plan is recommended for new websites with limited visitors and needs as it has limited features.

The specifications of the basic shared hosting plan include storage of 50GB and unlimited bandwidth. You can have one website, one domain, and five parked domains.

2. Plus Shared Hosting

This is the second cheapest plan offered by BlueHost and has an introductory price of $5.85 per month and regular pricing of $10.99 per month. The plan comes with unlimited websites, unlimited domains and parked domains, unlimited storage, and unlimited bandwidth. This plan has more value for the amount charged than the basic plan.

3. Choice Plus Shared Hosting

The Choice Plus plan is available for $5.95 per month with a discount for new users, but its regular price stands at $14.99 per month. It comes with unlimited websites, unlimited domains, and unlimited parked domains. Unlimited storage and bandwidth are also offered, just like the Plus plan.

The Choice Plus plan includes site backups (CodeGuard Basic) and domain privacy, two features not available in the Plus plan.

4. Pro Shared Hosting

The Pro Shared hosting is the most expensive plan offered by BlueHost. When compared with the other plans, it offers the best performance and speeds. It is priced at $23.99 per month but is available for $9.95 for new users.

The plan includes basic features such as unlimited storage, unlimited websites, unlimited domains, parked domains, and bandwidth. It also has a dedicated IP for your website, regular site backups (CodeGuard Basic), and domain privacy.

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DreamHost has been operating since 1996 and hosts almost 1.5 million sites as of today. They offer various hosting options such as Shared hosting, Cloud Hosting, Dedicated Server Hosting, WordPress Hosting, and VPS hosting.  They offer affordable hosting with monthly, yearly, and triennial payment options available. You can save the most when you pay upfront for three years.

DreamHost comes with a 100% uptime guarantee, excluding the downtime scheduled for maintenance and other activities. They offer compensation for the downtime you face other than scheduled maintenance, which is part of their agreement terms. To claim your reimbursement, you can use the ticketing system and report your site’s downtime via email. DreamHost provides one free day of hosting for downtime of one hour.

They also offer a satisfactory customer service that you can reach via live chat, social media, forums, and email. They do not provide phone support, but they provide a callback feature added to your package by paying an additional fee.

Here, we shall see the hosting plans under their shared hosting option. While other web hosting companies offer three hosting plans, DreamHost has simplified their service and categorized it into two hosting plans, and these are as follows:

1. Shared Starter

This is the cheapest plan offered by DreamHost and is priced at $2.59 per month, and this price is available when you pay for three years upfront. If you are planning to pay annually, the price will be $3.95 per month. For monthly payments, the plan is priced at $4.95 per month. All modes of payment include the free SSL certificate.

The Shared Starter plan lets you host one website and comes with one free domain. This domain remains free for one year in the one year and three-year plans. The plans offer unlimited traffic, unlimited storage, and unlimited bandwidth, among other features.

2. Shared Unlimited

Just as the name suggests, the plans offer unlimited features and no restrictions. This plan is priced at $6.95 per month if you pay annually and will cost $5.95 per month if you pay for three years upfront. Monthly payments will cost you $10.95 per month.

For yearly and 3-year payments, you get to keep a free domain name for 1 year. You get unlimited websites, unlimited traffic, unlimited storage, and unlimited bandwidth, among other features. The plan also includes a free SSL certificate.

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InMotion Hosting has been operating since 2001, and currently powers around 300,000 websites. They offer various hosting options such as WordPress hosting, VPS hosting, Reseller hosting, dedicated server hosting, and shared hosting. All their plans also come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, meaning you can try out their service and test out your satisfaction.

InMotion Hosting is very reliable for uptime, as they provide an uptime guarantee of 99.95%, which is great. They also offer one of the fastest speeds when compared to other web hosts. This can aid search engine optimization and provide a fast loading experience for your visitors.

They stand out from the other web hosting services in the list as they provide unlimited storage and bandwidth in their least expensive plans as well, which is not available with other hosting providers.

Customer service is another aspect that needs to be considered before choosing a web host. InMotion Hosting has received mixed reviews regarding the quality of their customer support. Their support team can be contacted via email, phone, chat, and Skype, and has received both good and bad remarks.

Here, we have the different hosting plans offered under their popular shared hosting package:

1. Launch Shared Plan

This is the cheapest plan offered by InMotion Hosting and comes with a price tag of $7.99 per month. New users can get it for just $3.99 per month. This plan includes a free SSL certificate, two websites, unlimited email accounts, unlimited bandwidth, and unlimited storage.

2. Power Shared Plan

The Power Shared plan is priced at $9.99 per month, the price and features being more than that offered by the Launch Shared plan but less than the Pro Shared Plan. For beginners, this plan is offered at $5.99 per month and provides twice the Launch plan’s performance.

The Power plan comes with six websites, free SSL certificates, unlimited storage, bandwidth, and email accounts.

3. Pro Shared Plan

This is the most expensive plan offered by InMotion Hosting and is priced at $15.99 per month. It is available to new users at a discounted rate of $13.99 per month and provides a four times better performance than the Launch plan.

The Pro plan offers unlimited websites, bandwidth, storage, email accounts, and free SSL certificates. One particular benefit of choosing the Pro plan is that you receive priority for customer support.

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