Web hosting is more than just a foundation to build your Shopify store on. It’s more like a business partner—something that brings certain features to the table, can be flexible, and can either work for you or against you.
And just like choosing the right business partner is a pretty critical decision, choosing the right web hosting for your Shopify store can make or break it from the start. Here’s how to get it right.
What is E-commerce Hosting?
E-commerce hosting is a type of web hosting specifically designed to support online stores. It includes features like secure payment gateways, shopping cart software, and advanced security measures to protect your customers’ data. E-commerce hosting is also designed to keep your website fast, reliable, and secure so your customers can shop easily and without a hitch.
Why Web Hosting Matters for Shopify Stores
Even though Shopify takes care of hosting infrastructure, the way you optimize and interact with it can have a huge impact on your store.
- Customer Experience: Fast loading times are important. A slow store can frustrate visitors and lead to them bouncing off your site before they finish buying. Even with Shopify’s hosting, your theme choice, image sizes, and app selection can affect the speed.
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Site speed is something Google checks out in its search rankings. A well-optimized Shopify store is more likely to rank higher, which means you’ll attract more organic traffic.
- Conversions: A smooth, responsive store makes it much easier for visitors to browse longer, add more stuff to their cart, and actually complete their purchase. Whether you’re hosted by Shopify or someone else, it influences how well your store runs.
- Resource Management: While Shopify does scale well, understanding how your store uses resources (bandwidth, storage) can help you plan for growth and make smart, informed decisions.
Types of Web Hosting Solutions for Shopify
Choosing the right web hosting for your Shopify store starts with picking the right type of hosting. Here are your choices:
Shopify’s Built-In Hosting
Shopify’s built-in hosting is the simplest option. It’s a good choice for small stores with moderate traffic. One of the easiest things about it is that it’s hassle-free, included in your Shopify plan, and fully managed by Shopify. You can expect your store to be secure, fast, and always up-to-date without any extra effort on your part.
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is where multiple websites share the same server resources. It’s cost-effective and can work for small or new online stores with low traffic, but isn’t a great long-term choice. You might have to deal with slower load times and less reliability if other websites on the server experience high traffic.
Virtual Private Server (VPS) Hosting
VPS hosting is a middle ground between shared hosting and dedicated hosting. It involves splitting up a physical server into multiple virtual servers, each with its own resources. VPS hosting gives you more control, better performance, and scalability, so it’s good for growing stores.
Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting gives you an entire server dedicated to just your website. This option gives you the best performance, security, and customization, but it comes at a higher cost. It’s great for large e-commerce stores with high traffic volumes and complex needs.
Cloud Hosting
Cloud hosting uses multiple virtual servers to host websites, which means your store is guaranteed to be almost always available and super easy to scale. It’s a flexible solution that can handle traffic spikes much more easily than others. Cloud hosting is ideal if you’re expecting your store to grow fast.
When to Consider Third-Party Hosting
While Shopify’s built-in hosting is convenient and suitable for many users, in certain cases, third-party hosting might be a better choice.
Advanced Customization
If your store needs special customization, third-party hosting generally offers more flexibility. Dedicated or VPS hosting allows you to access server settings and configurations yourself, so you have full control over the nitty-gritty of custom settings and features.
As an example, a store that needs to run custom scripts or applications (like a unique product recommendation engine or an advanced search algorithm) would benefit from a VPS or dedicated server.
They usually give you the flexibility to set up your environment to support custom scripts without limitations, which are common in shared hosting.
High Traffic and Large Stores
For stores with high traffic or huge product catalogs, dedicated or cloud hosting can help your site perform better and scale more easily. Plus, your store should remain fast and reliable even during traffic spikes.
For example, a large e-commerce store with thousands of products and frequent sales events will probably have big traffic spikes at certain times. Using cloud hosting can help handle these spikes without an issue by automatically allocating more resources during high-traffic periods.
Specific Technical Requirements
If your store has specific technical requirements or needs software that isn’t supported by Shopify’s built-in hosting, a third-party host is probably necessary.
A business that requires a specific database setup, like PostgreSQL with certain extensions, would need the flexibility that third-party hosts bring. If your store needs to integrate with a custom-built backend system or use a specific version of PHP, a VPS or dedicated hosting plan would allow for these, while Shopify wouldn’t.
Enhanced Security Measures
Shopify provides robust security. But it might not be enough for some businesses. Third-party hosting providers often have enhanced security options. Think custom firewalls, advanced DDoS protection, and more frequent security audits.
For instance, a financial services e-commerce site handling sensitive customer data would benefit from enhanced security features provided by a dedicated hosting plan. With sensitive data, the more security, the better.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Shopify Web Host
Choosing the right web hosting for your Shopify store involves considering several factors, like:
Performance and Speed
Website speed isn’t just convenient; it’s a must for user experience and SEO. Slow loading times can lead to higher bounce rates (more people leaving your site quickly) and lower conversion rates (fewer people buying).
Look for hosting providers that offer fast server speeds, use solid-state drives (SSDs), and have data centers close to your target audience.
Using a Content Delivery Network (CDN) can boost your website’s speed a LOT, by spreading your content across many different servers worldwide. This means data is delivered from the server closest to the user, making loading times much faster.
Security
Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificates encrypt data that moves between your website and your visitors. All reputable hosting providers should offer free SSL certificates, which don’t just protect info, but also help to build trust with your customers.
Hosting providers should offer robust features aimed at protecting your site from malware and DDoS attacks. Look for features like daily malware scans, firewalls, and DDoS protection.
Scalability
As your business grows, your hosting needs will change. Choose a hosting provider from the start that offers scalable hosting packages, so you can easily upgrade your plan as your traffic and resource needs increase.
Some hosting providers offer auto-scaling features, which automatically give you extra resources when there’s a traffic spike. You won’t have to worry about your site going down during busy times, but be aware that not all hosts have this feature.
Uptime Guarantee
Uptime is basically the amount of time your website is “open for business”. Downtime means nobody can access your store, which can lead to lost sales and damage your store’s reputation. Look for providers that promise at least a 99.9% uptime guarantee, but do deeper research first. Don’t just take their word for it!
Also, check that your hosting provider offers regular backups and easy restore options in case of data loss or site issues. Regular backups help protect your data, and easy restore options mean you can quickly recover your site if something goes wrong.
Customer Support
Reliable customer support is a must. Choose a hosting provider that has 24/7 support through various channels (live chat, email, and phone). Immediate assistance could be the thing that makes all the difference in addressing problems that could affect your store’s operations.
As well as live support, access to documentation, tutorials, and forums can be incredibly helpful. Look for providers that offer a wealth of resources to help you troubleshoot and optimize your site. These resources can save you time and provide solutions without the need to contact support.
Cost
While cost shouldn’t be the only factor, you do need to choose a hosting solution that fits your budget. Be aware… New customer pricing is often lower than renewal rates.
Some providers offer attractive newbie prices, but bump it up when it comes to renewing. Always check for this, as well as any hidden fees such as extra charges for backups, SSL certificates, or bandwidth overages.
The Top 5 Web Hosting Providers for Shopify
1. SiteGround
SiteGround is renowned for its excellent performance, robust security features, and top-notch customer support. It offers a range of hosting plans covering shared, VPS, and cloud hosting. Key features include:
- Performance and Speed: SiteGround uses Google Cloud for its hosting, which means it has high reliability and speed. It also offers SuperCacher technology, which makes a huge difference to loading speeds.
- Security: Comprehensive features including free SSL certificates, daily backups, and proactive security updates.
- Support: 24/7 customer support through phone, chat, and tickets, with advanced priority support on higher-tier plans.
- Other Features: Free daily backups, free CDN, unlimited databases, and email accounts. It also includes tools like SG Optimizer and SiteGround Migrator for easy site management and migration.
SiteGround’s plans can be more expensive after the introductory period, but they provide great value for the features offered.
2. Bluehost
Bluehost is a versatile hosting provider that integrates well with various e-commerce platforms, including WordPress and WooCommerce. Key features include:
- Performance: Layered caching and auto-scalability options to manage traffic surges effectively.
- Security: SSL certificates, SFTP, and SSH access, with options for additional external security solutions.
- Support: 24/7 customer support with various channels, including phone, chat, and email.
- Other Features: Unlimited products, payment processing, free domain for the first year, and 30 GB SSD storage. Some advanced features like domain privacy and unmetered bandwidth are available in premium packages.
Bluehost’s packages can get expensive after introductory offers expire, but it remains a strong choice for beginners and growing businesses.
3. A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting is known for its excellent speed and commitment to sustainability. They have various hosting plans, including shared, VPS, and dedicated hosting. Key features include:
- Performance: Turbo servers provide up to 20 times faster loading speeds!
- Security: Free SSL certificates, daily backups, and advanced security measures like DDoS protection and malware scanning.
- Support: 24/7 customer support through phone, chat, and tickets.
- Other Features: Green hosting initiative, free site migrations, unlimited email accounts, and a user-friendly interface.
A2 Hosting’s turbo servers make it an excellent choice for e-commerce stores that need great speed and performance.
4. HostGator
HostGator has a wide range of hosting options, including shared, VPS, and dedicated hosting. It’s known for its affordability and user-friendly interface. Key features include:
- Performance: 99.9% uptime guarantee and free weekly off-site backups.
- Security: Free SSL certificates and a variety of security tools.
- Support: 24/7 customer support through phone, chat, and tickets.
- Other Features: Free website builder, unlimited email accounts, and a user-friendly control panel.
HostGator is a reliable option for beginners, though potential customers should be aware of high renewal fees after the initial period. For its features, it’s worth it, though.
5. WP Hosting
WP Hosting is ideal for those who’ve built their Shopify site on a WordPress foundation. Key features include:
- Performance: Global CDN, fast loading speeds.
- Security: Daily malware checks, free SSL certificates, daily backups, 1-click site recovery, security webinars.
- Support: 24/7 customer support with fast responses.
- Other Features: Automatic migration feature, 1-click staging, custom plans available.
InMotion Hosting has a good balance of performance, security, and customer support, making it suitable for growing e-commerce businesses.
Conclusion
Choosing the right web hosting for your Shopify store might seem like a tough task, but it’s a step-by-step thing. Research is essential, but if you stick to the hosts who are well-known and have an excellent reputation, you should find your perfect match.
About the Author
Paul Wheeler runs a web design agency that helps small businesses optimize their websites for business success. He aims to educate business owners on all things website-related at his own website, Reviews for Website Hosting.