Namecheap vs Interserver: guide for 2024

Final verdict

Looking over InterServer vs. Namecheap, it’s clear why both hosts are so popular. They have both hosted millions of
websites that run on WordPress for decades, building up a loyal customer base.

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  InterServer (Overall grade: 8.1)
  
  
  provides robust and reliable service, making it a preferred choice for users who prioritize consistency. With features like guaranteed 99.99% uptime, advanced security measures through InterShield, and a versatile user management system using industry-standard control panels (cPanel, Plesk, and DirectAdmin), InterServer stands out for its stability and security. Their unlimited storage and transfer features, coupled with SSD Caching Servers and free migration services, make it a strong contender for businesses expecting high traffic and needing scalable solutions. Additionally, the availability of 24/7 phone support provides an extra layer of service that ensures timely and effective problem resolution, which is a significant advantage over competitors.
  
• 
  Namecheap (Overall grade: 7.2)
  
  
  offers a comprehensive range of features suitable for both beginners and advanced users, particularly excelling in WordPress and ecommerce hosting. With a 100% uptime guarantee for specific plans and solid performance metrics, Namecheap ensures reliability. The inclusion of free SSL for the first year, a user-friendly EasyWP dashboard for WordPress management, and a global CDN significantly enhance its ease of use and speed. Although lacking phone support, Namecheap compensates with extensive self-help resources and 24/7 live chat. Its competitive pricing, combined with additional features like a website builder, makes it ideal for small to medium businesses and personal projects. However, shared hosting performance and server response times could be improved to elevate user experience further.
  

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
InterServer: Providing exceptional uptime and advanced performance features.

InterServer guarantees 99.9% uptime and has achieved an impressive 99.99% uptime in long-term monitoring. Features such as route optimization and Cloudflare CDN contribute to its high availability. With a server response time of 662ms and proactive server management, InterServer stands out for its reliability and commitment to maintaining performance.

Namecheap offers a strong uptime guarantee, particularly for shared, business, and dedicated server accounts with a promise of 100% uptime. Their recent average uptime performance stands at 99.96%, which is commendable. Namecheap’s response time is acceptable, though below market averages, with various monitoring tools deployed to ensure performance.

🏆 Winner Namecheap: Balanced performance with solid features across different hosting types.

Both Namecheap and InterServer offer impressive hosting services, but Namecheap stands out due to its comprehensive range of features and consistent performance across various hosting plans. When it comes to general performance, Namecheap utilizes SSD storage across all plans with specific limits on space, ensuring fast data retrieval. Page load times are solid, especially with their WordPress hosting which boasts a fully loaded time of 0.7 seconds. Namecheap offers unmetered bandwidth on most plans and a global CDN for free on its WordPress hosting, further boosting speed and reliability. Data centers are spread across the US, UK, and EU, covering key regions efficiently.

Website Speed

Website speed is a critical factor for both providers. Namecheap’s WordPress hosting offers a time to first byte of 192 milliseconds, showing quick initial server responses. InterServer provides speed optimization through its 10GB Cisco Network and SSD Caching Servers, which accelerates load times effectively. While both guarantee 99.9% uptime, the inclusion of a free CDN in Namecheap’s EasyWP plans ensures faster content delivery across geographic locations, giving it a slight edge in website speed.

Scalability

For scalability, Namecheap and InterServer offer distinct benefits. Namecheap’s VPS hosting allows for significant growth with options ranging from 2 to 8 CPU cores and substantial SSD storage, but exact pricing for scalability isn’t specified. InterServer supports easy scaling to VPS or dedicated servers with no downtime during the upgrade process, and their flexible hosting platform is designed to seamlessly accommodate growing website needs. Both provide effective scaling solutions, but the specific cost advantages of scaling with InterServer remain unknown.

🏆 Winner Namecheap: Offers a robust set of security features and extensive regulatory compliance.

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

Technical security measures:

Namecheap provides a comprehensive array of SSL certificates, including Domain Validation (DV), Organization Validation (OV), and Extended Validation (EV). InterServer also offers free SSL certificates but lacks the variety. Namecheap’s PHP support ranges from PHP 5.X to PHP 8.X, while InterServer supports up to PHP 8.3. InterServer features unique offerings like InterShield Security, which includes machine learning firewall and in-house malware database, whereas Namecheap utilizes eAccelerator and xCache for optimizing the performance of PHP scripts. Both providers offer two-factor authentication (2FA).

Operational security measures:

Namecheap incorporates multi-layer email protection including Jellyfish Spam Protection and BoxTrapper, while InterServer uses automatic email encryption and brute-force attack prevention features. InterServer’s data centers offer strong physical security, with 24/7 surveillance and strict access controls. InterServer also provides self-healing hardware technology that redirects issues automatically. Namecheap does not specify such measures but includes IP Deny Manager and Leech Protect to prevent unauthorized access. Both companies offer round-the-clock customer support and extensive documentation.

Compliance and certifications:

Namecheap is GDPR compliant and provides extensive rights under GDPR, such as Right of Access, Right to be Forgotten, and Right to Object. PCI compliance is not explicitly mentioned for Namecheap. InterServer emphasizes privacy and security but does not specify details on GDPR or PCI compliance. No information is available about HIPAA compliance for either provider.

🏆 Winner
Namecheap: Namecheap offers a well-rounded hosting package with an array of features that cater to both beginners and more advanced users. It stands out for its comprehensive set of tools, including a website builder that enables easy setup and complex customization without additional costs.

Both Namecheap and InterServer provide robust hosting solutions, but there are notable differences that may influence your choice. Namecheap’s shared hosting plans come with a website builder, making it user-friendly for those new to hosting or website creation. Namecheap offers free SSL certificates for the first year, and some plans include automatic backups and cloud storage, ensuring data security and ease of recovery. With a 30-day money-back guarantee, Namecheap gives users a risk-free introduction to its services. InterServer, on the other hand, provides unlimited storage space, data transfer, and FTP accounts, suitable for users who anticipate high data needs. It also uses SSD caching servers for speed optimization, though it lacks explicit mention of SSH access. Both providers offer cloud apps and ultra-fast servers, but Namecheap’s specific user-friendly and additional free services give it an edge.

Additionally, Namecheap offers personalized email services with high levels of spam protection and an array of customizable options. Its plans include unlimited email mailboxes for higher tiers, which can be beneficial for businesses needing extensive email management. InterServer, while providing unlimited data features and weekly backups, does not highlight these email-centric features as prominently. Depending on the specific needs — whether it’s creating a user-friendly website with dedicated support or leveraging unlimited data and backup capabilities — each provider has its charm.

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 Namecheap and InterServer 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:

Email services at Namecheap excel with its extensive email features, offering unlimited email hosting on higher-tier plans, robust anti-spam measures, and various email protocols like SMTP, POP3, and IMAP. Users can set up their own email campaigns efficiently with tools like mailing lists and autoresponders. InterServer, while offering unlimited FTP accounts and weekly backups, does not emphasize email hosting as part of its core services. For those valuing email capabilities as part of their hosting package, Namecheap provides more detailed and extensive options.

🏆 Winner Namecheap: Affordable pricing and a comprehensive range of hosting plans for 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. Additionally, although some providers offer identical plans for WordPress and shared hosting, we have created separate tables for each to enhance clarity.

When comparing the pricing plans of Namecheap and InterServer, distinct differences and similarities can be noted. Namecheap provides a variety of hosting options, including shared, reseller, dedicated, and managed WordPress hosting plans, with introductory pricing that is typically lower than InterServer’s but higher renewal costs. InterServer, on the other hand, offers unlimited storage and transfer across most plans and has fixed monthly pricing, which might appeal to those who prefer to avoid fluctuating costs. Both providers include SSL certificates and website migration services at no additional charge, but Namecheap offers more features like free domain registration and Supersonic CDN.

Enterprise plans

When it comes to enterprise hosting, Namecheap offers advanced dedicated server plans with customizable configurations to meet high-traffic and specialized needs such as content streaming, big data, and gaming servers. Prices for advanced servers vary based on configuration. Namecheap also includes full root access and various OS options. InterServer’s enterprise solutions include a range of VPS hosting plans, with flexible core and RAM options, ensuring high performance and easy scalability. With prices starting at $6.00/month, InterServer provides affordable yet powerful options for enterprises needing versatile hosting solutions.

🏆 Winner: Namecheap: User-friendly setup and extensive support.

Namecheap offers users a customized dashboard called EasyWP, designed explicitly for managing WordPress websites without traditional cPanel. This dashboard provides all essential tools within easy reach, making it simple for both technical and non-technical users to manage their websites. On the other hand, standard plans still include cPanel, offering features like one-click installations for over 200 scripts.

InterServer relies on standard control panels like cPanel and DirectAdmin, known for their usability. With 461 scripts available for one-click installation, InterServer caters to users who prefer more traditional admin panels. This approach suits both experienced administrators and beginners who find cPanel straightforward and intuitive.

Both hosting providers offer free migration services, ensuring a smooth transition from your current host. Namecheap performs migration using the All-in-One WP Migration plugin, accommodating websites from various hosts like GoDaddy and Bluehost. Similarly, InterServer provides free migration for standard shared hosting accounts, but requires a cPanel backup.

Namecheap provides accessible support through a 24/7 live chat, a support ticket system, and a comprehensive knowledge base filled with setup guides, troubleshooting steps, and FAQs. InterServer also offers 24/7 support via phone, live chat, and a ticket system, complemented by helpful articles and training tools. Both hostings maintain easily navigable libraries of resources for all types of users.

🏆 Winner: InterServer: A versatile hosting provider with comprehensive user management capabilities.

User management is an essential feature for hosting providers, and both Namecheap and InterServer offer unique capabilities in this area. However, InterServer provides more detailed and versatile options for managing user roles and permissions. Through cPanel, Plesk, and DirectAdmin, InterServer allows for detailed user role creation and permission settings. While the specific details about Namecheap’s user management are unavailable, the diversity of control panels used by InterServer ensures a flexible approach to user management that’s likely more robust than what Namecheap can offer.

InterServer excels in user interfaces and tools provided for managing users, thanks to its use of industry-standard control panels like cPanel, Plesk, and DirectAdmin. These tools are known for their user-friendly interfaces and wide range of functionalities, including dedicated file managers and client management systems for resellers. Although there’s no detailed information on Namecheap’s user interfaces, it’s clear that InterServer’s use of standard control panels makes it a strong contender in terms of ease of management.

Effective access control is another crucial aspect, and InterServer seems to have this well-covered. Its control panels are designed to manage growing numbers of users efficiently, with features like dedicated file managers and private email hosting that include robust access control measures. This makes InterServer particularly adept at handling user scaling, a feature that’s essential for businesses looking to expand. In contrast, the lack of specific details about Namecheap’s access control measures makes it harder to gauge its effectiveness in this area.

InterServer user roles table:

🏆 Winner InterServer: InterServer offers reliable support through multiple channels, including phone support, which gives it an edge over Namecheap.

Namecheap provides 24/7 customer support through live chat and a ticketing system. The comprehensive Help Center features an extensive knowledge base, Guru Guides, blog, and how-to videos, which aim to allow users to resolve issues independently. However, Namecheap lacks phone support, which may be a drawback for customers who prefer verbal communication over online messaging.

InterServer excels in customer support by offering 24/7 assistance via phone, live chat, and an efficient ticket system. The addition of phone support and varied control panels make it user-friendly for diverse technical needs. InterServer’s proactive and daily backup systems further enhance data security, while their knowledgeable on-site support team ensures timely issue resolution.

User feedback

Namecheap is widely appreciated for its affordability, reliability, and high-quality customer support. Users commend the availability of free SSL certificates, user-friendly cPanel, and outstanding hosting speed. However, shared hosting speed and the occasional slow response from support are noted concerns. Despite these minor drawbacks, Namecheap remains a popular choice for beginners and small to medium businesses due to its competitive pricing and satisfactory service quality.

User feedback on the hosting provider paints a mixed picture. Many users commend the provider for its affordable, straightforward pricing and extensive features like unlimited storage and bandwidth, free SSL certificates, and a user-friendly control panel. The customer support, while generally prompt and effective, has garnered both praise and criticism, especially due to the lack of a dedicated phone support line and sometimes long live chat wait times. However, performance issues such as inconsistent server speed, downtime, and occasional loss of data have been frequent points of frustration for users.

FAQ