Directnic vs Gandi.net: Final verdict
Looking over Directnic vs. Gandinet, both offer distinct strengths and weaknesses that cater to different hosting needs.
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Gandinet (Overall grade: 7.9)
boasts nearly perfect uptime, extensive global data centers, and robust security features, making it a reliable choice for businesses concerned with reliability and compliance. With offerings like cloud hosting, VPS hosting, and scalable plans, Gandinet shines in areas demanding significant resources, like high-traffic and ecommerce websites. Its comprehensive customer support, including multilingual 24/6 assistance, further enhances the appeal, although it comes at a higher price point.
Directnic (Overall grade: 6.8)
offers affordable shared hosting plans and is ideal for smaller websites or those just starting. Its 24/7 support, along with user-friendly features like cPanel and SiteBuilder by Weebly, ensures a smooth experience for less tech-savvy users. However, its 99% uptime guarantee and reports of slow server speeds indicate room for improvement. Despite its competitive pricing and straightforward management tools, the lack of advanced hosting options and certain security measures might be a drawback for users seeking more robust solutions.
 Overall grade:6.8 |
 Overall grade:7.9 |
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|---|---|---|
| Uptime and Availability | 6.3 | 9.4 |
| Hosting Performance | 7.2 | 5.8 |
| Hosting Security | 7.8 | 8.3 |
| Price | 7.8 | 8.5 |
| Hosting Features | 3.6 | 6.2 |
| Ease Of Setup | 7.8 | 7.9 |
| User Management | 6.5 | 8.3 |
| Customer Support | 7.7 | 8.8 |
| User feedback | 2.5/5 | 3.7/5 |
Hosting types offered
Both platforms provide a variety of hosting types, each designed to meet the different needs of users.
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|---|---|---|
| Shared hosting | ||
| Cloud hosting | ||
| WordPress hosting | ||
| Ecommerce hosting | ||
| VPS hosting | ||
| Dedicated hosting |
Although both offer a variety of hosting plans tailored to different needs, in
certain cases, one platform may prove to be more suitable.
Detailed comparison
Uptime and availability
Evaluates the average uptime statistics, uptime guarantee and overall availability of the hosting
provider
Score Components:
- Uptime percentage (30%): evaluates the uptime statistics in given period of time
- Uptime guarantee (20%): Assesses if the platform offers an uptime guarantee and
whether the actual uptime matches the promised guarantee. - General performance (25%): Evaluates how fast is the average response time and overall
it’s stability. - Responsiveness (10%): Adaptability to different devices and screen sizes.
- Availability (25%): Reflects the total downtime and number of outages.
6.3
9.4
🏆 Winner Gandi.net: A near-perfect uptime and extensive global data centers make Gandi.net the winner.
Directnic offers affordable shared hosting plans with a reasonable set of features like 24/7 support and additional services such as free domain registration and SSL certificates. However, their 99% uptime guarantee falls below industry standards, risking downtime. Despite positive customer feedback on stability, they lack advanced hosting options and sometimes face reports of slow servers.
Gandi.net boasts a 99.95% uptime guarantee, effectively translating to near-perfect availability. Coupled with data centers in diverse locations and quick website load times, it emerges as a reliable choice. Their 24/7 multilingual customer support and fair compensation policies further enhance the hosting experience.
Which one has better hosting performance?
Score Components:
- Hosting speed (30%): This includes SSD quality, Load times, PageSpeed score ranges,
additional information on website speed, built-in plugins for performance enhancement, available caching
methods, and CPU/RAM options - CDN (20%): Considers whether CDN is available or not, whether it’s free or paid, and
the quality of the CDN service - Available data centers (30%): Evaluates the number of data centers and their locations
globally. - Scalibility (20%): Looks at whether elastic scaling is available, the process required
to scale (manual upgrade vs. automatic scaling), the presence of dedicated servers, and the costs
associated with scaling.
7.2
5.8
🏆 Winner Directnic Hosting: Offers versatile and cost-effective solutions.
Directnic Hosting provides superior general performance. Both hosts offer 99% uptime, crucial for website availability, but Directnic stands out with its inclusive 24/7 technical support. While Gandi.net restricts support availability to 24/6, Directnic consistently ensures help is always at hand. Directnic’s use of cPanel makes management straightforward, while Gandi.net employs a private Linux container for better resource allocation. Both hosts offer free domain registration and CDN, yet Directnic sweetens the deal by providing unlimited storage in higher-tier plans. Directnic’s data centers’ specific locations aren’t provided, unlike Gandi.net, which details hosting in France and Luxembourg.
Website Speed
Directnic Hosting includes a Content Delivery Network (CDN) as part of its package, enhancing website speed. With features like a Cyber Security Operations Center and comprehensive malware protection, they also ensure secure and swift performance. Gandi.net offers Varnish Cache, which speeds load times efficiently. Both hosts support PHP, crucial for dynamic web content, but Directnic’s built-in script installers streamline integrating quick-loading scripts into websites.
Scalability
Directnic’s pricing plans offer an easy upgrade path without automatic scaling, ensuring you only pay for what’s needed. Advanced and Deluxe plans include up to 200GB disk space, ideal for growing websites. Dedicated servers aren’t explicitly mentioned, but the multiple tiers provide scalable options. Gandi.net offers similar scalability with straightforward plan upgrades but includes features like the Hosting Booster to manage traffic spikes temporarily. Dedicated server information for both isn’t provided.
Each hosting service has unique strengths, yet Directnic’s combination of cost-effectiveness, 24/7 support, and user-friendly features makes it the favorable choice.
Which one has better security features?
and regulatory requirements
Score Components:
- Technical security measures (40%): This includes encryption, firewalls, DDoS
protection, secure configurations, server monitoring, access control and availability of security addons
(e.g Sitelock security). - Operational security measures (30%): Encompasses data privacy, backups and data
redundancy. - Compliance and certifications (20%): Adherence to legal and regulatory requirements
(e.g., GDPR, HIPAA) and possession of certifications (e.g., ISO 27001, SOC 2). - Business and reliability (10%): Factors in the provider’s reputation, uptime
guarantees, and customer support.
7.8
8.3
🏆 Winner Gandi.net: Provides comprehensive security measures with free SSL certificates, data hosting in European centers complying with GDPR, and 24/6 expert customer support.
Both Directnic and Gandi.net have notable differences in their approaches to technical and operational security, as well as in their compliance with regulations.
Technical security measures:
Directnic offers a structured and detailed set of SSL certificates, ranging from Basic SSL to Wildcard SSL, catering to varied security needs. PHP versions can be chosen and updated via their hosting console. Directnic also provides extensive malware detection, removal, and protection services. On the other hand, Gandi.net provides free SSL certificates with all hosting plans, covering single address, wildcard, and multiple domains up to 20. They offer PHP 8.2, the latest version, ensuring both security and performance enhancements. Both services have robust infrastructure, but Gandi.net edges out with its up-to-date technical offerings.
Operational security measures:
Directnic employs a comprehensive Cyber Security Operations Center (CSOC) for 24/7/365 surveillance, along with Security Information & Event Management (SIEM). They offer a Secure CDN and a fully-managed Web Application Firewall (WAF). Directnic also has 5-layer DDoS protection. Gandi.net hosts data in European centers, using Anycast DNS with DNSSEC and providing Varnish Cache. Gandi.net supports two-factor authentication and offers a Hosting Booster to manage traffic spikes efficiently. While Directnic has more layers of specific protections, Gandi.net provides robust, reliable services with a focus on secured, scalable infrastructure.
Compliance and certifications:
Directnic does not specify GDPR or PCI compliance explicitly. Gandi.net ensures GDPR compliance by hosting data in their European centers in France or Luxembourg. While PCI compliance is not detailed, their high-level SSL certificates suggest a focus on secure transactions. Gandi.net clearly adheres to European regulations, giving an assurance of data protection and privacy, thus maintaining a higher standard of compliance.
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|---|---|---|
| SSL certificate | Paid (Basic, EV, Wildcard) | Free (Standard, Professional, Business) |
| Additional security features | Extensive including SIEM, WAF, and DDoS protection | Anycast DNS with DNSSEC, Two-factor authentication, Varnish Cache |
| PHP versions | Customizable through console | Latest PHP 8.2 |
| GDPR compliance | Not specified | Yes |
| HIPAA compliance | Not specified | Not specified |
| PCI compliance | Not specified | Implied focus with Professional and Business SSL |
Hosting features
Score Components:
- Domains (20%): Assesses the availability of a free domain, domain purchase options, and
pricing - Email (15%): Considers if the provider offers full email hosting, or is reselling
third-party service, and if the email is only transactional or not - Website builder (15%): Checks if website builder is available, and it’s user
friendliness and overall the level of customization allowed. - Staging environment (20%): Determines if a staging environment is available, allowing
for testing changes before going live. - FTP & SFTP accounts (10%): Evaluates if and how easily users can access FTP and
SFTP accounts - Git and SSH access (20%): Assess whether Git is integrated into the hosting service and
if SSH access is provided
3.6
6.2
🏆 Winner Gandi.net: Gandi.net offers a diverse set of advanced features tailored to web developers and businesses with growing needs.
Directnic Hosting and Gandi.net both offer a range of valuable features, but each caters to different needs and priorities. Directnic Hosting is user-friendly and provides a free domain registration, making it an excellent choice for users looking to start a website without initial costs. It offers easy script installations, and cPanel hosting ensures a smoother management experience for less tech-savvy users. The availability of different hosting plans allows flexibility for small to medium websites. However, the lack of explicit SSH access may be a downside for some.
Gandi.net stands out with its robust security features, including unlimited free and auto-renewed SSL certificates and Anycast DNS with DNSSEC. This makes it highly attractive for businesses seeking enhanced security. Users can benefit from automatic installations of popular platforms like WordPress and Prestashop, which simplifies the deployment process. The ability to choose data hosting locations in France and Luxembourg can also appeal to users concerned with data sovereignty. Though it may come at a higher price point, Gandi.net’s additional features, such as snapshots and auto-renewed SSL certificates, offer significant value.
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Free domain |
Yes |
No |
Free SSL |
No |
Yes |
Email hosting |
Yes |
Yes |
Website builder |
Yes |
No |
Staging environment |
No |
No |
FTP & SFTP account |
Yes |
Yes |
Git and SSH access |
No |
No (Git only) |
Free backup |
No |
Yes |
Money back guarantee |
Yes |
No |
a location.
As a result in rare cases the features mentioned here can differ from the ones you see on their websites.
Both providers support a range of users from beginners to experts with user-friendly website builders and WordPress staging areas. However, in terms of developer tools, both Example hosting one and Example hosting two offer robust options including SSH access, support for multiple programming languages, and Git for version control, thus appealing to developers looking for advanced capabilities.
Email services:
Directnic Hosting provides comprehensive email hosting with various POP3 accounts included in each plan. This is ideal for users who need to manage their correspondence directly from their hosting service. Gandi.net, while not specifying detailed transactional email capabilities, supports creating email aliases and forwarding, and integrates well with third-party solutions such as Google Workspace and Outlook, which can be a great benefit for users looking to manage their emails on more robust external platforms.
Price
Score Components:
- Plan value (40%): What each pricing tier offers.
- Transparency and clarity (30%): Clearness of pricing structures.
- Flexibility of plans (20%): Range of options to suit different budgets.
- Hidden costs (10%): Additional expenses not included in the plan.
7.8
8.5
🏆 Winner Gandi.net: Offering flexible features and robust support for a range of website needs.
Evaluating the pricing of plans among various hosting providers can be complex due to their differing pricing and renewal strategies. Additionally, certain plans require annual commitments, which adds to the difficulty of making comparisons. The prices listed are based on monthly commitments; plans requiring annual commitments are indicated. Although some providers offer identical plans for WordPress and shared hosting, we have created separate tables for each to enhance clarity.
Directnic provides three straightforward hosting plans—Lite, Pro, and Deluxe—each with affordable monthly prices starting as low as $2.48. These plans offer varying levels of disk space, bandwidth, email accounts, and hosted domains. Gandi.net, on the other hand, features a range of plans with prices starting at $10.00 per month, which include domain names, significant storage, and various automated installations like WordPress. Gandi.net’s plans scale to include more websites, higher storage capacities, and enhanced CPU and RAM resources. Both providers offer unique features, but Gandi.net’s plans seem to provide more versatile hosting solutions, making it a more comprehensive choice.
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N/A
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Starter Plan$10.00
1 website, 20 GB storage, ~300,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included, SSL, PHP, 1 CPU/512 MB Value for price:8.5
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N/A
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Advanced Plan$15.00
5 websites, 50 GB storage, ~600,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included, SSL, PHP/Python/Node, up to 2 CPU/1 GB Value for price:8.7
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N/A
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Pro Plan$20.00
10 websites, 100 GB storage, ~1,200,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included, SSL, PHP/Python/Node, up to 3 CPU/2 GB Value for price:9.0
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N/A
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Business Plan$25.00
15 websites, 200 GB storage (upgradable), ~5,000,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included, SSL, PHP/Python/Node, up to 4 CPU/4 GB Value for price:9.2
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Lite Plan$2.48
3 websites, 10 GB storage, 100 GB bandwidth, up to 50 emails, up to 10 MySQL databases, domain not included Value for price:7.0
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Starter Plan$10.00
1 website, 20 GB storage, ~300,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included Value for price:8.5
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Pro Plan$4.48
15 websites, 100 GB storage, 1000 GB bandwidth, up to 100 emails, up to 50 MySQL databases, domain not included Value for price:7.5
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Advanced Plan$15.00
5 websites, 50 GB storage, ~600,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included Value for price:8.7
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Deluxe Plan$7.98
30 websites, 200 GB storage, 2000 GB bandwidth, up to 250 emails, up to 100 MySQL databases, domain not included Value for price:8.0
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Pro Plan$20.00
10 websites, 100 GB storage, ~1,200,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included Value for price:9.0
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N/A
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Business Plan$25.00
15 websites, 200 GB storage (upgradable), ~5,000,000 visits/month, 2 emails, domain name included Value for price:9.2
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N/A
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N/A
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Enterprise plans
Gandi.net offers the Business Hosting Plan at $25 per month, supporting up to 15 websites or more, and providing 200 GB of storage (upgradable) with up to 4 CPUs and 4 GB RAM. This plan includes unlimited free SSL certificates and extensive automated installations suitable for large-scale operations. Directnic’s highest-level offering is the Deluxe Plan at $7.98 per month, featuring 30 hosted domains but considerably lower storage at 200 GB. While both providers include multiple domains and extensive storage, Gandi.net’s comprehensive features and scalability make it a superior choice for enterprises seeking robust and versatile hosting solutions.
Directnic vs Gandi.net: Ease of setup
platform.
Score Components:
- Site migration (25%): Assesses whether the provider offers tools for site migration,
either automated or manual, and whether these services are free or require a fee. - Admin panel usability (35%): Evaluates the type of admin panel provided, such as the
standard cPanel or a custom solution, focusing on its accessibility and user-friendliness for both
technical and non-technical users. - Setup features (20%): Examines the availability and ease of use of various setup
features, including FTP accounts, file managers, email account setup, PHPMyAdmin, and easy CDN
configuration. - Help center quality (20%): Measures the quality and accessibility of the provider’s
help center resources, including articles and tutorials.
7.8
7.9
🏆 Winner
Gandi.net: An efficient and streamlined hosting solution providing a seamless website setup and integrated management tools.
Directnic Hosting uses the familiar cPanel for its admin panel, well-known for its accessible and user-friendly interface. This makes it suitable for users of all skill levels, as it offers a straightforward way to manage website files, databases, and email accounts. The inclusion of a drag-and-drop builder, SiteBuilder by Weebly, further eases the website creation process for non-technical users, helping them design sites without needing coding skills.
Gandi.net, on the other hand, employs an automatic installation system for setting up various applications including WordPress. This provides a significant ease of use, requiring minimal interaction from the user apart from confirming a security email. The centralized interface also allows for managing domain names, hosting, and installed applications from one location, which can simplify administration for those who prefer having all their resources in a single dashboard.
When comparing migration tools, Directnic Hosting provides features that simplify the process of adding functionalities to your website, which can assist with migrations; however, specific tools for automated site migration are not highlighted. Gandi.net excels in this area by offering automated installations and the ability to manage various applications, hinting at a streamlined migration process, although specific migration tools are also not distinctly mentioned.
Directnic Hosting’s help center offers a comprehensive knowledge base filled with articles on various topics and a Trouble Ticket System for personalized assistance, ensuring users have ample resources for resolving issues. Gandi.net provides documentation with step-by-step guides, while the availability of email and chat support in multiple languages ensures accessibility. Both providers have detailed help centers, making it easy for users to find the support they need.
User management
accessibility.
Score Components:
- Role customization (40%): Flexibility in creating and defining user roles and
permissions. - Ease of management (30%): User interface and tools for managing users.
- Access control (20%): Effectiveness of access control measures for different user
levels. - Scalability (10%): Ability to manage a growing number of users efficiently.
6.5
8.3
🏆 Winner
Gandi.net: Superior user management features and extensive tools for administrators.
Gandi.net offers a comprehensive suite of user management tools, allowing administrators to have full control over their data and delegate permissions efficiently. With this platform, administrators can assign different user roles and define permissions in a detailed manner, offering flexibility for various organizational needs. On the other hand, no specific information about user roles or permissions delegation is available for Directnic, which limits the comparison. Gandi.net’s administrator role gives users significant control, while the absence of such details for Directnic makes it difficult to assess its capabilities in this area.
Gandi.net provides a user-friendly interface equipped with numerous tools for managing user accounts and permissions. The ability to delegate permissions through the user management tools or shared links enhances usability. This platform also supports unlimited aliases and auto-renewed SSL certificates, adding to the convenience for administrators. In contrast, there is no available information regarding the interface and tools provided by Directnic for user management, making it challenging to rate its interface and tools.
For access control, Gandi.net excels with its features, such as unlimited aliases, auto-renewed SSL certificates, and Anycast DNS with DNSSEC. These features contribute to secure and efficient management of data and user access. Gandi.net also provides snapshots and has a hosting booster for some plans, ensuring that it can handle a growing number of users seamlessly. Without specific details on Directnic’s capabilities in this context, it is not possible to assess its efficiency and scalability in managing access control and an expanding user base.
Gandi.net user roles table:
| Role | Description | Access highlights |
|---|---|---|
| Administrator | Full control over data and management settings. | Can manage data, assign roles, delegate user permissions, and configure settings. |
Customer support
hosting provider.
Score Components:
- Support communication channels (30%): Measures the variety of customer support types
provided (live chat, chatbot, email, phone, etc.) - Availability (20%): Assesses the availability hours for each channel, including 24/7
support options. - Technical support quality (30%): Assesses whether the provider offers comprehensive
technical support, including hardware upgrades (e.g., HDD to SSD), software installations, and web
server configuration changes. - Enterprise support (20%): Checks if there are dedicated or priority support services
for enterprise-level customers.
7.7
8.8
🏆 Winner
Gandi.net: Offers superior flexibility and reliability for both individual and corporate needs.
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Phone support |
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Live chat support |
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Chatbot |
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Email/ticket support |
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Enterprise support (dedicated agent, priority support) |
Both Directnic and Gandi.net offer extensive customer support, but Gandi.net has a more tailored approach for different types of customers. Directnic provides 24/7 technical support via multiple channels like phone, email, live chat, and a ticket system, and also has a comprehensive knowledge base and video tutorials for self-help.
Gandi.net also offers extensive support via email, phone, live chat, and a dedicated account manager. Gandi.net stands out with specialized support for resellers and corporate clients, providing multilingual assistance, and advanced features like API integration and special reseller benefits. This makes it a more versatile choice for businesses and professionals requiring higher levels of support and customization.
Directnic vs Gandi.net: User feedback
The hosting provider has a long-standing history, with stable domain registration services that some users have relied upon for over 20 years. However, notable security issues, including breaches and leaked domain access, have been reported, with slow response times for resolutions. Additionally, users have criticized the provider for its slow server speeds and inadequate customer support, despite appreciating the simplicity of its user interface. Overall, the feedback points towards significant areas for improvement, leading to generally low ratings and recommendations against the service.
User feedback for this hosting provider is generally positive, with users appreciating the easy and straightforward domain registration process, a user-friendly interface, and competitive pricing on unique domain extensions. Customers value the company’s focus on privacy protection and steady performance without pushy upselling tactics. However, some users have experienced significant issues, such as paying for already-owned domains without receiving refunds, instances of confusing billing processes, and a lack of sufficient customer support. While some find the user interface to be intuitive, others criticize it for being cluttered and difficult to navigate, especially on mobile devices.
Directnic vs Gandi.net: FAQ
Which platform is better suited for hosting WordPress websites?
Both Directnic and Gandinet are well-suited for hosting WordPress websites, offering automated installations and management tools. The choice between them comes down to specific needs; however, both platforms are effectively tied in this category, providing viable options for WordPress hosting.
Are both platforms suitable for beginners?
Yes, both platforms provide user-friendly features that make them suitable for beginners. Directnic’s use of cPanel and SiteBuilder by Weebly simplifies the user experience for less tech-savvy users, making website setup and management straightforward. Gandinet, while more robust, offers comprehensive support and an intuitive interface, making it a good option for beginners with higher demands.
Which platform offers better customer support?
Directnic provides 24/7 technical support via phone, email, live chat, and ticketing systems, whereas Gandinet offers multilingual 24/6 support. While Directnic has round-the-clock support, Gandinet’s tailored approach for different customer types, including dedicated account managers, might offer a more customized support experience.
Which service is more suitable for hosting a high-traffic website?
Gandinet is more suitable for hosting a high-traffic website, offering scalable CPUs and RAM options to handle significant traffic. Its comprehensive security features and extensive global data centers ensure reliable performance and uptime, making it ideal for high-traffic and ecommerce websites.
What are the major differences in pricing and value between directnic and gandinet?
Directnic offers more affordable plans starting as low as $2.48 per month with a focus on basic features suitable for smaller websites. Gandinet’s plans start at $10.00 per month but include more advanced features like scalable resources, free SSL certificates, and higher storage capacities, providing more value for businesses requiring robust solutions.
The making of this blog
We followed a clear, step-by-step process to write and research this article.
