Bluehost is a popular option backed by glowing reviews online. Hostmonster is a decent pick that offers a similar experience. Without even counting the rest of the web hosting providers, it’s already difficult to choose.

Bluehost was founded in 2003, and it powers more than two million websites. Meanwhile, HostMonster has been catering to thousands of websites since 1996. That about proves how reliable these two are, but there are a few important differences between them in terms of performance, pricing and more. We compare the two to help you decide which web hosting provider you should go with.

Bluehost vs HostMonster Comparison Chart

Features

Of the two, only Bluehost has an official recommendation from WordPress.org.

Right off the bat, Bluehost’s shared web hosting is available in four tiers: Basic, Plus, Choice Plus and Pro. Basic comes with one website, 50 GB of SSD storage and five email accounts, as well as staples like a free SSL certificate, a free domain for one year and unmetered bandwidth. Plus includes unlimited websites, SSD storage and everything else Basic has to offer. Choice Plus adds free domain privacy and automated backup for one year, while Pro also has domain privacy, automated backup for the entire term and dedicated IP.

In the same vein, HostMonster has four plans to choose from: Basic, Plus, Choice Plus and Pro—with the same names to boot. Speaking of similarities, Basic also includes one website, 50 GB of storage and five email accounts, along with the usuals such as a free SSL certificate, a free domain for one year and unmetered bandwidth. Upgrading to the next tier will give you unlimited websites and storage, and if you take it a step further, you’ll get free domain privacy and automated backup. Dedicated IP is on the Pro subscription only.

Bluehost also has shared WordPress hosting that brings additional benefits if you’re decided on using WordPress as your content management system. It’s available in Basic, Plus and Choice Plus with similar limitations as the standard shared hosting plans. The differences are you get $200 worth of marketing offers even on Basic and automatic WordPress installation and updates. That said, it’s worth mentioning that Bluehost is an officially recommended web hosting provider by WordPress.org, which says a lot about its quality.

Performance

Both have uptimes north of 99 percent, but they don’t offer a guarantee.

Bluehost and HostMonster have stable average uptimes above 99 percent. In other words, you won’t be at risk of losing any business for the most part. Just keep in mind that they won’t compensate you in the event that any downtime occurs since neither one has an uptime guarantee.

In terms of speed, Bluehost has the advantage. For starters, it uses SSD storage to deliver faster overall performance. On top of that, it has something it calls Resource Protection. Basically, it’s a measure to make sure other websites on the shared server won’t affect your website’s performance.

Backup

CodeGuard is available only on higher plans or as a paid add-on, and that goes for both web hosting providers.

Bluehost doesn’t include automated backups on its Basic and Choice plans, only on Choice Plus and Pro. That means you can either take care of it yourself or pay the extra cash for CodeGuard as an add-on to your Basic or Choice subscription.

This is where HostMonster outshines Bluehost, but not by much. At any rate, it offers complimentary backups daily, weekly and monthly. However, the company itself says it’s not guaranteed, going so far as to advise users to make their own backups. But hey, it’s better than nothing. If you want more reliable backups, CodeGuard is available on its Choice Plus plan and up or as an add-on to Basic and Choice.

Support

Bluehost and HostMonster provide 24/7 support.

Both Bluehost and HostMonster offer 24/7 assistance, which is a huge plus, especially for beginners. However, they’re not exactly the same. While Bluehost offers round-the-clock help, HostMonster only offers 24/7 support for technical issues. If you have any concerns regarding billing and the like, you’ll have to bring it up to the company between Monday and Saturday. For the record, you can get in touch with them via live chat or phone.

As for the quality itself, neither will win any awards here. The reviews are mostly mixed online, but it should be fine in most cases. At that, you can always turn to Bluehost’s knowledge base or official YouTube channel if you can’t figure something out. HostMonster also has a similar help center, but it isn’t as extensive as Bluehost’s.

Price

Opting for Bluehost’s or HostMonster’s three-year terms will save you a lot of cash in the long run.

Across the board, Bluehost’s plans are more affordable than HostMonster’s. In fact, that’s what makes Bluehost appealing: its prices are easier on the budget than most of its competitors.

Also, take note that Bluehost’s fees are lower during the initial term. You’ll be paying their regular rates after renewal. For instance, Bluehost’s Basic starts at $2.95 a month for the duration of the first term and costs $7.99 afterward. In other words, you’ll save a lot if you commit to three years from the get-go.

On the other hand, the prices HostMonster puts front and center on its registration page are for a three-year commitment, meaning anything shorter than that will have different price points.

The lesson here is it pays to read the fine print. On that note, Bluehost and HostMonster don’t offer a free trial, but they do have a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Verdict

Bluehost has a lot of advantages over HostMonster.

Bluehost and HostMonster share a ton of similarities, which isn’t too surprising, though. After all, Endurance International Group owns the both of them. Still, each one delivers a distinct enough experience to its users.

At the end of the day, our recommendation here is Bluehost. It has cheaper plans, faster speeds because of its SSD storage, WordPress-specific features, a more robust knowledge base and 24/7 support for any kind of issue. Sure, HostMonster is the only one of the two that has complimentary backups, but even the company itself doesn’t say it’s guaranteed, which doesn’t really inspire confidence.

FAQs

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