Hetzner vs Leaseweb: guide for 2024

Hetzner vs Leaseweb: Final verdict

Looking over Hetzner vs. Leaseweb, both hosting providers deliver solid services, but there are distinct differences in their offerings and performance.

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  Leaseweb (Overall grade: 8.0)
  
  
  presents a robust hosting solution with expansive global reach, high-performance bandwidth options, and advanced features catering to enterprise and small businesses alike. Their broad service portfolio includes specialized WordPress and ecommerce hosting, VPS, and dedicated servers. The strength of Leaseweb lies in its global data center coverage, advanced performance capabilities, and comprehensive support options, including 24/7 live chat and priority support. Despite some minor limitations in pricing clarity and occasional high excess charges, Leaseweb remains a reliable choice for businesses needing scalable and high-performance hosting solutions.
  
• 
  Hetzner (Overall grade: 7.9)
  
  
  offers competitive and cost-effective hosting plans, excelling in cloud hosting and providing a user-friendly administrative interface. Hetzner stands out with its excellent uptime, robust security measures, and flexible billing policies. Their detailed documentation and migration tools further simplify the user experience. Hetzner also provides extensive email solutions and developer-friendly features like advanced PHP configurations and unlimited NVMe SSD storage. While the absence of specialized WordPress and ecommerce hosting options and limited support channels might be setbacks, Hetzner’s reliability and comprehensive feature set make it a strong contender for those seeking efficient, secure, and affordable hosting services.
  

Hosting types offered

Both platforms provide a variety of hosting types, each designed to meet the different needs of users.

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

🏆 Winner Hetzner Online: Delivers a reliable 99.9% uptime with multiple data centers.

Hetzner Online guarantees a 99.9% uptime, ensuring consistent availability across its data centers in Germany, Finland, and the USA. It maintains this uptime with 24/7 monitoring and gigabit-scale network redundancy using Juniper backbone technology. With added DDoS protection, Hetzner Online packs a lot of security into its offerings for no extra cost.

Leaseweb, despite promising an impressive 99.999% core uptime, falls slightly short in its shared hosting uptime guarantee. Their extensive network capacity and global data center presence do offer notable performance and reliability. Round-the-clock monitoring, configuration backups, and various support options bolster their service credibility, making Leaseweb a strong contender in hosting solutions.

🏆 Winner
Leaseweb: Premium hosting with advanced features and global reach.

When looking at the general performance of both Hetzner and Leaseweb, Leaseweb slightly edges out Hetzner with its broader global network and higher performance benchmarks. Hetzner offers high-speed NVMe SSD storage and robust NVMe SSD disk space, but Leaseweb’s high-bandwidth options with ports up to 100Gbps provide a competitive advantage in raw data transfer rates. Both providers have data centers globally, but Leaseweb’s 43 points of presence offer more extensive global network coverage compared to Hetzner’s locations across Germany, Finland, and select areas in the USA.

Website Speed

When it comes to website speed, both hosting providers perform admirably, but Leaseweb stands out due to its high-core CPUs and extensive memory capacity to provide higher IOPS. Hetzner’s NVMe SSD disk space boosts read and write speeds significantly, and both offer redundancy and DDoS protection, ensuring minimal downtime. However, Leaseweb’s promise of “no noisy neighbors” and its focus on single-tenant physical servers provide an edge in maintaining consistently high speed and reliability.

Scalability

Regarding scalability, Hetzner provides flexible options for both shared and dedicated resources, including managed servers and no minimum contract period for hardware exchanges, which offers easier and economical scaling. Leaseweb also delivers flexibility with servers configurable for specific needs and GPU support, but it does not explicitly mention automatic scaling options. Both hosts maintain competitive pricing for scaling, though exact cost details for scaling remain unclear for Leaseweb.

In summary, Leaseweb’s global reach, high-performance bandwidth options, and flexible configuration make it the preferred choice for those seeking top-tier hosting capabilities.

🏆 Winner
Hetzner Online: Offers a more comprehensive suite of security features suitable for various web hosting needs.

Both Hetzner and Leaseweb, have notable differences in their approaches to technical and operational
security, as well as in their compliance with regulations.

Technical security measures:

Hetzner provides free SSL certificates from both Symantec Basic and Let’s Encrypt, while Leaseweb offers SSL certificates without specific details on providers. Hetzner supports multiple PHP versions including PHP5, PHP7, and PHP8, whereas Leaseweb’s PHP support details are not specified. Hetzner’s extensive list of PHP extensions, such as APCu and ImageMagick, adds flexibility for developers, an aspect not detailed for Leaseweb. Both providers offer DDoS protection; Hetzner uses hardware appliances, Leaseweb employs global scrubbing centers.

Operational security measures:

Hetzner’s data centers in Nuremberg, Falkenstein/Vogtland, and Helsinki are ISO 27001 certified, ensuring high standards in information security management. Leaseweb relies on a managed cyber security approach with a 24/7 Security Operations Center (SOC) and periodic penetration testing in collaboration with Northwave. Both providers utilize comprehensive monitoring systems; Hetzner has internal system integrity checks and escalation procedures, while Leaseweb leverages customizable security profiles and dashboards for threat mitigation.

Compliance and certifications:

Hetzner complies with GDPR through a Data Processing Agreement and strict data protection measures. Leaseweb also adheres to GDPR and additionally meets PCI DSS standards for secure handling of credit card information. HIPAA compliance is not specified for either provider, indicating potential gaps in health-related data security protocols.

🏆 Winner
Hetzner: A versatile hosting provider offering extensive features for various needs.

When comparing Hetzner and Leaseweb, there are several aspects to consider that can influence a customer’s choice. Hetzner boasts a broad range of features, including unlimited traffic, NVMe SSD storage ranging up to 300 GB, and robust email hosting options. For users interested in website building, Hetzner supports popular CMS platforms like WordPress, Typo3, and Joomla, making it user-friendly for both beginners and advanced web developers. Moreover, with daily backups, DDoS protection, and a minimum 99.9% network availability, Hetzner offers a reliable and secure hosting environment with flexible billing and cancellation policies.

Leaseweb, on the other hand, also provides competitive features with its Small, Medium, and Large Linux web hosting plans. Their services come with SSD storage, MYSQL databases, and several mailbox options, catering to different user requirements based on a tiered pricing structure. For those needing VPS hosting, Leaseweb promises high performance, scalability, and an always-on network with firewall protection. While both platforms support FTP/SFTP and SSH access, Hetzner shines with advanced PHP configurations, interactive SSH logins, and additional ports, whereas Leaseweb includes a functional control panel and VPS root access. Both providers allow for domain registration, yet Hetzner has more extensive options and add-on domains.

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 Hetzner and Leaseweb 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:

Hetzner offers extensive email hosting with up to unlimited mailboxes, email forwarding, and synchronization via popular protocols, including Exchange ActiveSync, CalDAV, CardDAV, and iCal. They provide secured SMTP with TLS/SSL and webmail access. Compared to Leaseweb, that offers a capped number of mailboxes depending on the plan, Hetzner provides more comprehensive and scalable email solutions, making it suitable for businesses with high email demands. Neither provider mentions reselling third-party services like Google Workspace, indicating primary reliance on their native email hosting capabilities.

🏆 Winner Leaseweb: Leaseweb provides comprehensive hosting plans catering to various 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.

Hetzner offers a variety of hosting plans, including shared hosting and cloud hosting, with competitive prices and diverse features. Their plans are based on various levels, ranging from €2.09 to €21.90 per month, offering unlimited traffic and NVMe SSD storage. Leaseweb, on the other hand, provides web hosting, domain registration, dedicated servers, VPS, and cloud solutions with prices starting at €5.99 per month. Both providers have unique offerings, but Leaseweb has a broader range of services and more extensive features, particularly in high-bandwidth and enterprise solutions.

Enterprise plans

Hetzner’s top enterprise offering is the Webhosting Level 19 plan at €21.90 per month, providing features like 300 GB NVMe SSD, unlimited sub-domains, and bandwidth. Lease

🏆 Winner Hetzner: Efficient managed server setup with comprehensive account management tools.

Hetzner offers the konsoleH administration interface for managing accounts, which includes setting up domains, emails, and websites. This custom interface is designed for both technical and non-technical users, ensuring straightforward navigation through a user-friendly layout. The ease of creating and managing accounts, as well as other tasks such as domain registration and email setup, underscores the versatile functionality of the konsoleH interface. On the other hand, Leaseweb provides a Customer Portal and API for account creation and management. This portal also caters to users of varying technical proficiencies, offering clear instructions on logging in, resetting passwords, and accessing different services. While both platforms provide intuitive administrative tools, Hetzner’s konsoleH interface has an edge in terms of its specialized design for comprehensive server management.

Regarding migration tools, Hetzner supplies detailed guides and tutorials for common tasks like domain transfer and website migration, ensuring users can handle migrations with confidence. Their extensive documentation supports both manual and automated processes, and these resources are available at no extra cost. Leaseweb also offers onboarding support and a variety of migration-related guidelines within its Customer Portal. The migration tools provided are well-documented but appear to be more manual and less specialized compared to Hetzner’s more detailed, straightforward guides.

Both hosting providers excel in the quality and accessibility of their help center resources. Hetzner offers comprehensive documentation, 24/7 support, and community-contributed tutorials, incentivized by credits. Additionally, their meticulously detailed guides cover a wide range of topics, supporting users throughout their hosting experience. Leaseweb also provides a rich help center, with diverse sections like support, billing, compliance, and networking, ensuring all user concerns are addressed effectively. Their live chat, email support, and comprehensive FAQ sections illustrate a commitment to accessibility and user assistance.

The platforms provide extensive knowledge bases filled with guides, how-to articles, and instructional content. Hetzner offers a wide range of resources alongside 24/7 chat and phone support. Leaseweb also boasts a detailed help center with an intuitive search function and around-the-clock support via live chat, phone, and ticketing, ensuring comprehensive user support.

🏆 Winner: Hetzner: Provides detailed user management options and customizations.

Hetzner and Leaseweb both offer user management features, but Hetzner provides more explicit details on managing user roles, permissions, and accessibility. At Hetzner, administrators can create and assign users to specific groups, designate group administrators, and allocate storage quotas. In contrast, Leaseweb offers user management through control panels like Plesk, cPanel, and Vesta, which are not as detailed in this context. This makes Hetzner more transparent and customizable in managing user permissions.

Hetzner offers a straightforward interface for managing users, accessible through the user settings. Users can be added, assigned to groups, and given storage quotas directly within the interface. Leaseweb, although using popular control panels, does not provide explicit guidelines on their direct user management tools. The reliance on external control panels may require navigating additional layers, making Hetzner’s approach more user-friendly for administrators who need direct and immediate control.

Effectiveness in managing access control and user growth is crucial, and Hetzner demonstrates robust systems like setting unlimited storage quotas (within overall limits), an overview of user activities, and detailed user setting configurations. Leaseweb, with its control panels and Customer Portal, likely supports large-scale user management but lacks detailed, explicit features in its user management offerings, making Hetzner’s approach clearer and more scalable for administrators.

Hetzner user roles table:

🏆 Winner Leaseweb: Superior customer support with extensive contact options and faster response times.

Hetzner Online offers a variety of support channels including email, tickets, and phone support within limited hours. Support is generally good through tickets but lacks live chat and priority support, leading to occasional slow responses. Despite extensive documentation, some users experience unresolved issues with account management and billing.

Leaseweb surpasses Hetzner with 24/7 live chat, phone, and email support, featuring fast response times varying by SLA levels. Additional advanced support options cater to diverse needs, including incident monitoring, configuration changes, and software updates. Leaseweb’s comprehensive self-help resources and active social media presence provide an all-encompassing support experience.

Hetzner vs Leaseweb: User feedback

Users generally find the hosting provider to be cost-effective with robust performance capabilities, able to handle demanding tasks reliably. Many reviewers appreciate the competitive pricing, ease of use, and the fast, reliable infrastructure. While customer support is often praised for its availability and helpfulness, some users believe it could still see improvements. The platform’s dashboard and additional features could benefit from enhancements, but overall, users are satisfied with the value and quality of service provided.

The hosting provider excels in offering comprehensive services with impressive billing and contract flexibility, making it easier for businesses to manage their finances. Users appreciate the choice between “Volume” and “Premium” network options, which cater to different performance needs, and find the support and user interface to be intuitive and straightforward. However, customers have raised concerns about high charges for excess traffic, restrictive password policies, inconvenient login procedures, limited payment gateways, and a lack of variety in available system distributions. Overall, while the service is robust and user-friendly, there are areas in need of improvement to enhance the customer experience.

Hetzner vs Leaseweb: FAQ