Hetzner vs Web.com: guide for 2024

Final verdict

Looking over Hetzner vs. Web.com, both hosting providers offer unique advantages tailored to different user needs, with Hetzner providing a high-performance solution for technically inclined users and Web.com focusing on simplicity and comprehensive features for beginners.

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  Hetzner (Overall grade: 7.9)
  
  
  delivers impressive uptime and performance, leveraging NVMe SSDs and cutting-edge server hardware to ensure speedy website load times. With extensive security measures including free SSL certificates, DDoS protection, and ISO 27001 certified data centers, Hetzner is a reliable choice for high-traffic and multimedia websites. However, the lack of included domain registration and the more technical nature of its administrative interface might not suit absolute beginners or budget-conscious users.
  
• 
  Web.com (Overall grade: 7.3)
  
  
  excels in user-friendliness, providing free domains, SSL certificates, and a drag-and-drop website builder, making it ideal for new users or small to mid-sized businesses. The 24/7 customer support via multiple channels ensures users can always receive help when needed. However, limitations like lack of VPS and cloud hosting options, as well as steeper renewal rates, might not appeal to more advanced users or those needing scalable solutions. Despite these drawbacks, Web.com remains a solid choice for those seeking a straightforward, hassle-free hosting experience.
  

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

SECTION 1: Winner Hetzner Online: Reliable uptime with robust security measures.

SECTION 2: Hetzner Online offers a consistent and impressive uptime guarantee of 99.9%, reaching 100% on occasion. With multiple data centers in Germany, Finland, and the USA, Hetzner ensures high availability and reliability for its services. The 24/7 monitoring and free DDoS protection further enhance its commitment to keeping services online and secure, making it a trustworthy option for hosting needs.

Web.com also guarantees 99.9% uptime, but third-party tests reveal an actual uptime of 99.83%. They provide unmetered bandwidth, SSL security, and automatic backups, which appeals to users looking for comprehensive features. While the support system is extensive, renewal rates jump significantly after the first year, and actual uptimes don’t consistently meet the guarantee, which may pose concerns for some users.

🏆 Winner Hetzner Online: Hetzner Online offers a consistent and impressive uptime guarantee of 99.9%, reaching 100% on occasion. With multiple data centers in Germany, Finland, and the USA, Hetzner ensures high availability and reliability for its services. The 24/7 monitoring and free DDoS protection further enhance its commitment to keeping services online and secure, making it a trustworthy option for hosting needs.

🏆 Winner Hetzner: Reliable performance and versatile features for a global audience.

Comparing general performance, Hetzner stands out in multiple areas. Hetzner utilizes NVMe SSDs, known for their higher read and write speeds, which enhances overall website performance. Additionally, Hetzner supports various programming languages and includes built-in plugins like the PHP Configurator and a WordPress installer for seamless setup. It also offers DDoS protection and 24/7 monitoring across multiple data centers in Germany, Finland, and the USA. In contrast, Web.com focuses heavily on optimizing speed with upgrades like PHP 8.0, OPcache, and MySQL 8, but it lacks multiple data center locations, which Hetzner provides.

Website Speed

Hetzner’s use of high-performance hardware, including vCPU options with Intel® Xeon® Gold and AMD EPYC™ processors, guarantees impressive speeds. The NVMe SSDs ensure quicker read and write times, further boosting load speeds. Meanwhile, Web.com emphasizes faster server response times and includes features like OPcache to store webpage content in server memory. Both hosts offer 99.9% uptime, but Hetzner’s extensive infrastructure and hardware provide a more consistent speed profile, placing it ahead.

Scalability

When it comes to scalability, Hetzner offers advanced solutions like load balancers, private networks, and REST APIs, making it highly adaptable to varying demands. Hetzner users can leverage managed servers without a minimum contract period and benefit from a 30-day cancellation policy, making scaling flexible. On the other hand, Web.com supports more than 99.5% of customers’ bandwidth needs but lacks detailed information about elastic scaling or dedicated server options. The cost details for scaling remain unclear for both services.

🏆 Winner
Hetzner: Hetzner Online offers superior security features and compliance standards for a secure hosting experience.

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

Technical security measures:

Hetzner provides robust SSL certificate options, including free Symantec Basic and Let’s Encrypt certificates, ensuring secure communication. Web.com, on the other hand, offers a variety of SSL certificates such as Essential, Premium, and Extended Validation, catering to different security needs. While both hosting providers support modern PHP versions, Hetzner goes a step further by offering several PHP extensions for enhanced functionality. Hetzner also excels in secure connections with their HTTPS administration interface and encrypted access to email and FTP, compared to Web.com’s basic encryption protocols.

Operational security measures:

Hetzner stands out with ISO 27001 certified data centers and DDoS protection, offering a higher level of security resilience. Both providers ensure uptime and reliable performance, with Hetzner providing 24/7 monitoring and rapid response to any issues. Hetzner’s comprehensive mail security features, such as DKIM and SPF, enhance email security, which surpasses Web.com’s basic malware scanning and removal services. Additionally, Hetzner provides daily backups and automatic recovery options, while Web.com offers CodeGuard for website backup and recovery, which relies on third-party storage.

Compliance and certifications:

Hetzner ensures GDPR compliance through a Data Processing Agreement and operates all data centers according to stringent EU data protection regulations. Web.com is also GDPR compliant, providing adherence to privacy regulations. Regarding PCI compliance, Web.com includes PCI scanning through SiteLock, whereas Hetzner does not specify PCI compliance. Neither hosting service mentions HIPAA compliance.

🏆 Winner
Hetzner Online GmbH: A versatile hosting provider with a focus on performance and extensive features.

When comparing Hetzner Online GmbH and Web.com, several key differences emerge that cater to various user preferences. Hetzner offers a robust set of features ideal for more technically inclined users who seek detailed control over their hosting environment. It includes unlimited traffic, extensive email hosting options, an impressive range of PHP and Python support, and the ability to manage databases efficiently. It also provides key services like free phone and email support, DDoS protection, and advanced FTP/SFTP access. However, Hetzner’s domain registration comes with additional fees which may deter budget-conscious users.

Web.com is designed for user-friendliness and simplicity, making it an attractive option for beginners. It includes a drag-and-drop website builder, free domains, and SSL certificates for the first year, which helps in quick and easy website setup. The hosting options target different user needs, such as bandwidth and storage variations depending on the plan. However, advanced users may find the lack of explicit SFTP/SSH support and additional control features limiting. Furthermore, Web.com offers business email services with 24/7 customer support, which is beneficial for continuous assistance but may come with fewer technical customization options compared to Hetzner.

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 Online GmbH and Web.com 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 provides comprehensive email hosting with options for 100 to unlimited mailboxes, email forwarding, webmail access, and secured SMTP. It supports email synchronization via Exchange Active Sync, CalDAV, CardDAV, and iCal. Web.com offers business email services included with their plans, catering to small to mid-sized needs. While Hetzner’s email service includes extensive support for various protocols, Web.com focuses more on ease of use and integration within their all-in-one hosting plans but lacks advanced transactional email capabilities and third-party integrations.

🏆 Winner webcom: Offers comprehensive features and a competitive pricing strategy for shared hosting and WordPress hosting, making it a preferred choice.

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. Additionally, although some providers offer identical plans for WordPress and shared hosting, we have created separate tables for each to enhance clarity.

When comparing Hetzner and Web.com, Hetzner’s pricing across its Webhosting and cloud hosting plans ranges from budget-friendly to higher-end options, whereas Web.com’s plans vary in introductory and renewal pricing structures. Hetzner focuses on providing a blend of resources like NVMe SSD disk space, unlimited traffic, and robust DDoS protection in its Webhosting plans. In contrast, Web.com stands out with unmetered bandwidth and simpler pricing plans, particularly attractive for WordPress hosting. Both providers offer free domains and a set range of support options, ensuring users have the backing they need.