Cloud hosting basically refers to remote storage. One of the most common examples of cloud hosting is Google Drive where you can store documents, photos and more to access from anywhere on any device.
You can build your entire network on cloud hosting servers or choose specific services to host on those servers, such as your website or digital products you sell.
Cloud hosting can be a small aspect of your IT resources or the backbone of your technology plan. Find the best cloud hosting in 2021 now.
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What is Cloud Hosting?
You’ve probably used a thumb drive or external hard drive. These resources are considered on-premises resources. Before the cloud was readily available, many companies had entire server rooms that housed what were basically giant external hard drives.
But with those server rooms came huge risks. If your company location suffered a power outage, flooding or other disaster, your entire company went down. Your employees couldn’t work and customers couldn’t access digital assets like your website or digital products.
Cloud hosting means your data and information are housed remotely on cloud-based servers. These servers often have redundancies, so your data is backed up in another location and server errors have little to no impact on the availability of your data.
Why Do You Need Cloud Hosting?
Cloud hosting limits the threat of downtime and outages because your data is hosted on a network of servers instead of a single server. Because your data isn’t stored locally, you can access it from anywhere, on any device. This allows for seamless remote work for your entire team.
Plus cloud hosting is generally less expensive than managing maintenance on locally-housed servers. Purchasing the hardware for local storage is expensive, and then that hardware needs to be replaced regularly.
The greatest benefits of cloud hosting include:
- Scalability
- Speed
- Reliability
- Affordability
- Access from anywhere
What to Look for in a Cloud Hosting?
With so many services to choose from, it can be challenging to know what to look for in a cloud hosting service. Here are 5 important aspects to consider when reviewing a cloud hosting service:
Hardware specs: Review the cloud hosting partner’s processor, memory and storage capabilities. This will affect the speed of your service and its ability to grow with your organization.
Infrastructure: The location of the cloud hosting service’s servers matters. If you’re located too far away from the servers, load times will be sluggish for you and your customers. For example, if your website is hosted on servers located overseas from your customers, your load times and SEO will be negatively impacted.
Bundles: Take some time to consider what services your business needs. Some cloud hosting services include bundled features that can help you in getting started, configuring the service or even developing your software as a service product.
Customer support: Depending on the size and availability of your IT team, you might need additional customer support resources. Weigh the benefits of such service with the expense. But if you’re a beginner with limited technical resources, it’s a good idea to opt for customer support.
Affordability: Price isn’t everything when evaluating cloud hosting expenses. For example, an inexpensive cloud hosting service with no local servers could be quite costly in productivity losses. Consider the total cost of ownership for your cloud hosting services. Moving services later due to dissatisfaction could also be extremely costly.
The Top Cloud Server Hosting
As you look for the right cloud hosting for your business, here’s a look at the top 6 cloud server hosting services.
1. Best for Enterprises: Microsoft Azure
It’s no surprise that Microsoft makes the list for outstanding enterprise solutions. Companies favor Microsoft products to operate their business from computers to Office 365.
Azure connects Microsoft tools seamlessly to provide cloud storage directly from Microsoft 365 tools and services like Marketing Cloud. For companies that offer software as a service (SaaS), Azure is a popular web cloud hosting platform.
Pricing: Prices start at $13 per month but vary based on your organization’s unique needs and storage requirements. Be sure you know your traffic and storage requirements before reaching out to Microsoft for a quote.
Bundles: As a Microsoft product, it’s no surprise that Microsoft Azure cloud hosting comes with many options and add-ons. Consider other Microsoft product needs when requesting a quote for this service, such as virtual desktops and Office 365 capabilities.
2. Best for SaaS Providers: AWS
In 2008, AWS was the first company on the scene to offer cloud computing infrastructure. Since then, it’s been innovating and adding services like AI and machine learning. Many experts regard AWS as the best cloud server hosting.
Pricing: Prices start at $14 per month but vary based on your organization’s computing needs and storage requirements.
Bundles: AWS offers pay-as-you-go services or you can reserve server space based on your expected capacity. Reserving space enables you to take advantage of cost savings.
3. Best for: Global Companies: Google Cloud
Google’s cloud-based storage is nothing new to the average person, so it’s no surprise that the company branched out to provide infrastructure-as-a-service. One of the greatest benefits of this service offering is that Google has servers throughout the world, making it ideal for global companies looking for solid speed and responsiveness from anywhere.
Pricing: Google bills on a per-second basis. Plans start around $65.89 a month, depending on your needs.
Bundles: Bundle your Google business services when requesting a quote for cloud hosting. For the most part, Google Cloud works best when integrated fully with other Google products.
4. Best for Advanced Development using IBM Watson: IBM Cloud
By far, IBM Cloud is one of the most challenging to set up and configure. But part of the reason that’s the case is because it’s such a robust cloud hosting service with plenty of add ons and options to meet your needs. The more advanced your development needs are, the better suited you’ll be for IBM Cloud.
Pricing: IBM Cloud pricing is quite complicated and will require some technical know-how to get a quote. You’ll need a good idea of what you’re looking for in cloud hosting services to get an accurate quote.
Bundles: You choose your services with IBM Cloud from total storage capacity to integrations like IBM Watson. The service is customizable and pricing will be based on your needs.
5. Best for Developers on a Budget: DigitalOcean
With 12 data centers, DigitalOcean has the cloud hosting capabilities most developers are looking for. And it comes with outstanding support.
Getting started is simpler than with the bigger names like AWS and Microsoft, so it’s great for busy small businesses or freelancers trying to get things off the ground quickly.
Pricing: Prices start at $1 per month.
Bundles: Because DigitalOcean is designed for developers, it’s no big surprise that it also sells an easy-to-use app platform. The starter package allows you to deploy 3 basic sites for free.
6. Best for Beginners: Rackspace
Rackspace makes cloud hosting as simple and easy-to-understand as possible. You’ll get a reliable and easy-to-use service at a good price. It’s the perfect balance between fancy cloud hosting services and cheap web hosting.
With only 6 data centers, you’ll find that Rackspace pales a bit in comparison to its main competitors for speed in some areas.
Pricing: Prices start at $50 per month for managed infrastructure services. You have to reach out to Rackspace to get an accurate quote based on your needs.
Bundles: You can configure your account with Rackspace as needed with additional services to meet your business needs, which is why it’s so great for beginners.
Which Cloud Hosting Services Should You Avoid?
You get what you pay for in cloud hosting services. There are plenty of cheap domain registrars to host your website on the cloud, but they are often unreliable and face far greater downtimes than the options listed above.
Watch out for these cloud hosting services.
- Network SolutionsRelated Link:
- Web.com
- Register.com
- 1and1
- Name.com
- Domain.com
- Enom Central
- Dotster
- Dynadot
Find Your Cloud Hosting Today
Reach out to our recommended cloud server hosting services to learn more about prices and information based on your needs and traffic expectations. Once you have pricing information, you can move forward with a cloud hosting decision.
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