What is web hosting, and does your small business need managed hosting? A plain-English guide to hosting types, costs, and when managed is worth paying for.
Web hosting is the service that stores your website's files on a server so anyone can reach your site online. Every website needs hosting of some kind. Managed hosting costs a little more but bundles in speed, security, backups and support, which is worth it for most small businesses that depend on their site for enquiries.
Think of hosting as renting the land your website sits on. The quality of that land decides how fast your site loads, how reliably it stays online, and how well it stands up to threats.
What is web hosting, in plain English?
Web hosting is a computer, called a server, that is always on and connected to the internet, storing your site so visitors can load it any time. When someone types your address, their browser fetches the files from that server. If the server is slow or overloaded, your site is slow for everyone.
Note: Hosting quality sets a ceiling on your site speed, so even a well-built site will feel sluggish on a slow or overloaded server.
What are the main types of hosting?
The common options range from cheap and shared to dedicated and managed, trading price for performance and control. Here is how they compare.
- Shared hosting: cheapest, your site shares a server with many others, fine for simple sites.
- VPS or cloud hosting: more power and reliability, scales with traffic.
- Dedicated hosting: a whole server to yourself, for large or demanding sites.
- Managed hosting: any of the above, but someone else handles speed, security, updates and backups.
What is managed hosting?
Managed hosting means a provider takes care of the technical side of keeping your site fast, secure and online, rather than leaving it to you. That includes security patching, daily backups, performance tuning and a person to call when something breaks. You get the outcome without needing to become a server administrator.
Best practice: If your site brings in enquiries, treat managed hosting as buying an outcome, uptime, backups and someone to call, rather than a server you have to babysit.
Do you need managed hosting?
You need managed hosting if your website is a genuine source of leads and you do not have the time or skills to maintain a server yourself, which describes most small businesses. If your site is a simple placeholder and downtime costs you nothing, basic shared hosting is fine. Security and backups are the deciding factor: the Australian Cyber Security Centre lists regular backups as a core protection, and managed hosting builds that in.
Tip: Ask a prospective host what their uptime guarantee and backup schedule are, because those two answers tell you more about quality than the headline monthly price.
How much does hosting cost?
| Type | Rough cost per year | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Shared | $50 to $200 | Simple brochure sites |
| VPS or cloud | $200 to $1,000 | Growing, busier sites |
| Managed | $300 to $2,000 | Lead-generating business sites |
Slow hosting is a common cause of a sluggish site, which we cover in why your website is slow. We manage hosting as part of managed technology, backed by our technical support team.
The short version
Hosting stores your site so people can reach it, and every site needs it. Pay for managed hosting when your website matters to the business; basic shared hosting is fine when it does not.
Frequently asked questions
Is web hosting the same as a domain name?
No; hosting is where your website's files live, while a domain name is the address people type to find it, such as yourbusiness.com.au. You need both, and they are often bought separately, though many providers bundle them.
Can I change hosting without rebuilding my website?
Yes; your website can usually be moved to better hosting without rebuilding it, a process called migration. It should be done carefully to avoid downtime, but the site itself stays the same.
Does hosting affect my website speed?
Yes, significantly; a slow or overloaded server makes every page slow no matter how well the site is built. Good hosting is one of the simplest ways to improve load times and reliability.
Who is responsible for backing up my website?
On basic hosting, usually you are, which catches many owners out after a crash. Managed hosting typically includes regular automated backups, so your site can be restored quickly if something goes wrong.
Not sure what your site runs on or whether it is backed up? Start with the small business website guide or take the free business health check.