ScalaHosting vs MonoVM: guide for 2024

ScalaHosting vs MonoVM: Final verdict

Comparing ScalaHosting and MonoVM, ScalaHosting emerges as the superior choice with better performance, features, and value.

• 
  ScalaHosting (Overall grade: 8.8)
  
  stands out with its diversified hosting options including shared, cloud, and specialized WordPress hosting. It delivers an impressive 99.9% uptime, top-notch speed with OpenLiteSpeed and LiteSpeed Enterprise web servers, and versatile data centers across the globe, ensuring optimal performance. ScalaHosting’s SShield Security System offers comprehensive real-time malware protection and other robust security measures, while its flexible on-demand resource scaling allows users to adjust their needs easily. The extensive support, user-friendly SPanel, and competitive price plans make it highly suitable for various user needs, from simple websites to high-traffic platforms.
• 
  MonoVM (Overall grade: 6.9)
  
  , although a reliable and cost-effective option, slightly falls behind in terms of performance and flexibility. It offers a strong selection of services, particularly excelling in dedicated hosting and multimedia website support with enterprise-level hardware. However, its overall uptime at 99.8% and limited cloud hosting options make it less versatile compared to ScalaHosting. MonoVM’s security features, including Imunify 360 and daily backups, are commendable, but its standard cPanel and fewer customization options may not meet the needs of more advanced users. Despite its affordability and solid customer support, MonoVM’s lack of elasticity in scaling, and fewer global data-center locations may be deal-breakers for some users.

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 ScalaHosting: Offering exceptional uptime, top-notch performance, and extensive global coverage, ScalaHosting stands out among hosting providers.

ScalaHosting guarantees 99.9% uptime and compensates users if downtime exceeds 0.1% in a month. During tests, it maintained 100% uptime, indicating reliable performance. Its data centers are strategically placed across the globe, including its own centers and those from Digital Ocean and AWS, ensuring widespread coverage and optimal speeds.

MonoVM offers a slightly higher uptime guarantee at 99.99% but has an overall uptime of 99.8%, lower than ScalaHosting. The lack of a money-back guarantee and the absence of a website builder might be drawbacks for some users. Nevertheless, MonoVM’s enterprise-level hardware, daily backups, and extensive support are significant advantages for users needing reliable hosting solutions.

🏆 Winner: ScalaHosting: Industry-leading speed and extensive security features.

ScalaHosting and MonoVM both offer strong services, but ScalaHosting edges out as the winner. ScalaHosting employs top-tier hardware and software like OpenLiteSpeed and LiteSpeed Enterprise web servers, ensuring superior speed. It guarantees high uptime with custom-built, self-healing cloud servers. MonoVM also guarantees high uptime, uses SSDs in RAID10 configuration for fast load times, and supports control panels like cPanel and WHM. Both offer data centers in multiple locations, but ScalaHosting outpaces MonoVM with more diversified options, including native and AWS-based data centers across various continents.

Website speed

ScalaHosting’s use of OpenLiteSpeed and LiteSpeed Enterprise web servers ensures fast load times and high performance. It also offers instant resource scaling. MonoVM relies on enterprise grade SSDs, but it doesn’t reach the same level of speed optimization as ScalaHosting. This makes ScalaHosting slightly faster in real-world applications, offering a quicker response time for dynamic content.

Scalability

ScalaHosting offers on-demand scalability, allowing users to adjust resources with a single click. This flexibility ensures users only pay for what they need. Dedicated CPU and memory resources for managed VPS further enhance its scalability. MonoVM also offers scaling options, but they require plan upgrades, making it less flexible compared to ScalaHosting’s elastic scaling. Costs for scaling on MonoVM are not explicitly mentioned, while ScalaHosting’s flexible pricing makes it easier to manage expenses.

🏆 Winner ScalaHosting: Offers a robust security suite with a variety of features, while providing compliance with major security standards such as HIPAA and PCI-DSS.

Both ScalaHosting and MonoVM offer comprehensive technical security measures, but ScalaHosting stands out with its SShield Security System.

Technical security measures:

ScalaHosting and MonoVM offer comprehensive technical security measures, but ScalaHosting stands out with its SShield Security System. SShield provides real-time malware protection, on-demand security scans, 24/7 proactive monitoring, and daily backups in an offsite location. MonoVM excels with Imunify 360 for firewall protections and malware scanning, and includes a dedicated firewall for WordPress Web Hosting. ScalaHosting supports a broad range of PHP versions from 5.6 to 8.2, whereas MonoVM supports various PHP versions, though specific versions are not detailed. SSL certificates are material to both, but ScalaHosting provides a wide variety compared to MonoVM, which primarily offers SSL as part of their Managed Hosting service.

Operational security measures:

Operationally, ScalaHosting offers granular control with features like inbound/outbound anti-spam tools, daily automated backups, and brute-force protection. The inclusion of a free CDN through CloudFlare and SSH access fosters a secure environment. MonoVM, on the other hand, focuses on ease of use with automatic backups daily, weekly, and monthly, alongside data encryption for email hosting, and two-factor authentication for an added layer of security. While both hosts ensure efficient, operational security, ScalaHosting’s SShield Security System and advanced security suite in SPanel provide more comprehensive controls.

Compliance and certifications:

For compliance, ScalaHosting leads with certifications including NIST, HIPAA, PCI-DSS, GLBA, SOC 1, and SOC 2. It is also ITAR and EU-US Privacy Shield registered. MonoVM is less explicit about its compliance credentials but emphasizes robust security measures with SSL certificates, data encryption, and automatic backups which suggest adherence to high security standards. ScalaHosting’s explicit compliance with several regulatory requirements provides a clearer guarantee of meeting varied compliance needs.

🏆 Winner: ScalaHosting offers robust and comprehensive features suitable for a wide range of user needs.

Comparing the functionalities of ScalaHosting and MonoVM, both providers bring unique elements to the table. ScalaHosting provides a detailed array of features that cater to developers with needs for complex customization such as custom PHP.ini editing, specific PHP version management, and SSH access, making it an ideal choice for power users and developers. The admin interface capabilities, such as managing and modifying accounts or restarting servers, make ScalaHosting a versatile choice for users who need full control over their hosting environment. Additionally, ScalaHosting offers a variety of user-friendly options like adding/removing email accounts and extensive FTP/SFTP capabilities, which enhance the overall user experience. Notably, ScalaHosting includes support for WordPress cloning and staging, which although limited to certain contexts, still adds a significant value for users focusing on WordPress sites.

On the other hand, MonoVM stands out with its enterprise-grade hardware and robust security measures, including SSL certificates and a powerful firewall. Its free domain registration and unlimited traffic without additional fees highlight a customer-friendly approach, beneficial for businesses aiming to manage costs efficiently. MonoVM’s automation features for server maintenance, backups, and database updates save time, appealing to users who prefer a hands-off approach. The 99.99% uptime guarantee and 24/7 VIP support ensure reliability and assistance whenever needed. MonoVM does not explicitly state FTP/SFTP access, which might necessitate further inquiries for users with specific remote access needs. However, given the way SSH is managed, it’s reasonable to infer FTP/SFTP functionalities may be present but not detailed in their documentation.

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 ScalaHosting and MonoVM 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:

Both providers offer email hosting services allowing users to manage email accounts linked to their domains. ScalaHosting provides extensive email management features, including adding/removing accounts, setting up forwarders and autoresponders. MonoVM also offers mailbox management and includes transactional email capabilities as part of their service. However, details on reselling third-party email services like Google Workspace or Zoho were not specified for either provider, which would be a consideration for businesses needing more advanced email solutions.

Winner ScalaHosting: ScalaHosting offers varied hosting plans rich with features and value-for-money, making it a preferred choice for diverse hosting 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.

ScalaHosting provides a variety of hosting options across different categories at competitive prices. For shared hosting, ScalaHosting’s entry-level plan “Mini” comes at $2.95/month featuring one website, 10GB storage, and unmetered bandwidth. Conversely, MonoVM’s “Linux Web Hosting Eco” at $2.09/month provides similar offerings for a lower price but lacks some features like unlimited bandwidth. In WordPress hosting, ScalaHosting’s “WP Start” offers great value at $5.95/month with unlimited websites and 50GB storage. MonoVM provides comparable WordPress hosting plans, though its more premium plans like “Elite Managed Hosting” at $31.99/month include advanced features like email setting and IP migration. For cloud hosting, ScalaHosting stands out with guaranteed resources and high security in its “Entry Cloud” plan at $14.95/month, offering features such as dedicated IP and scalable storage. MonoVM does not offer cloud-hosting specific prices, making it limited in this aspect.

Enterprise plans

ScalaHosting’s “Build #4” at $94.95/month offers full 24/7 management, SPanel control, and SShield security protection, making it an excellent enterprise solution. MonoVM lacks a directly comparable cloud-hosting plan but provides extensive managed WordPress options. MonoVM’s “Elite Managed Hosting” at $31.99/month includes detailed features like IP migration and DNS setting, which may appeal to some enterprise users needing dedicated WordPress management.

🏆 Winner
ScalaHosting: A user-friendly hosting provider with excellent support and features.

ScalaHosting utilizes SPanel, an all-in-one control panel that simplifies the management of hosting accounts. SPanel is designed to be accessible and user-friendly, whether you have technical expertise or are a complete beginner. It covers all essential aspects like managing websites, domains, emails, files, and databases, without requiring additional licensing fees. MonoVM, on the other hand, uses the standard cPanel, which is a familiar tool for many users. cPanel is widely recognized for its simplicity and efficiency in site management, offering features for CMS installation, subdomain setup, and theme installation. Both control panels make it easy for users to handle administrative tasks, but SPanel’s no-cost approach for extra features could provide more value for some users.

ScalaHosting provides free website migration, where trained technicians manage the entire process. This ensures that even users with minimal technical know-how can move their sites without hassle. MonoVM also offers website transfer assistance handled by their experts; however, it is not explicitly mentioned whether this service is free or not. Both hosting providers aim to make site migration as smooth as possible, but the specific absence of a cost for migration services can make ScalaHosting more appealing for budget-conscious users.

ScalaHosting’s help center includes a comprehensive knowledge base with getting-started guides, SPanel tutorials, and sections covering various hosting types and services. The help center also offers 24/7 support through live chat and a ticket system with a quick response time. MonoVM’s knowledge base provides tech updates, tutorials, and relevant news, supplemented by 24/7 support and VIP personalized assistance. Both providers ensure that users have access to helpful resources and continuous support, making it easier to manage and troubleshoot hosting issues.

The platforms provide extensive knowledge bases filled with guides, how-to articles, and instructional content. ScalaHosting offers a wide range of resources alongside 24/7 chat and phone support. MonoVM 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 ScalaHosting: ScalaHosting excels in user role management by offering a comprehensive set of features that allow for granular control over user permissions and accessibility. With the ability to create new user accounts, set limits on resources, and modify account details, ScalaHosting provides exceptional flexibility. Users can change usernames, passwords, and even main domains effortlessly. By contrast, MonoVM lacks specific details on their user role and management capabilities, making it difficult to evaluate its performance in this area without additional information.

ScalaHosting boasts a user-friendly interface with a rich array of tools dedicated to managing users. Users have access to functionalities such as adding/removing email accounts, editing DNS settings, managing FTP accounts, and more. The platform’s SPanel allows administrative control with features like account creation, service restarts, and real-time server status monitoring. Due to the absence of detailed information on MonoVM’s interface and tools, ScalaHosting stands out as the more capable provider for user management tasks.

When it comes to access control and scalability, ScalaHosting proves to be effective. The platform supports two-factor authentication and CAPTCHA for enhanced security. Admins can monitor server health and allocation of resources, ensuring the system remains efficient even as the number of users grows. Additionally, resellers can leverage the Branding and Packages sections to expand their hosting services. MonoVM’s ability to manage access control and scalability remains unclear, while ScalaHosting offers clear and efficient solutions for growing enterprises.

ScalaHosting user roles table:

🏆 Winner
ScalaHosting: ScalaHosting offers extensive customer service options and higher customer satisfaction ratings.

ScalaHosting and MonoVM both provide 24/7 support, including email and live chat options, ensuring that customers can reach service representatives anytime. ScalaHosting offers a dedicated technical support email, billing support email, and pre-sales phone line, while MonoVM focuses more on email and chat-based assistance. ScalaHosting enhances customer satisfaction with quick response times through live chat and a 15-minute initial response via support tickets.

MonoVM’s support includes VIP options for managed hosting and WordPress web hosting, adding an extra layer of service for those willing to invest in premium support. MonoVM also provides extensive security and maintenance assistance, including website transfer, SSL certificate installation, and regular error checks. While ScalaHosting has extensive global data centers and high customer ratings, MonoVM’s specialized support services cater to specific customer needs for premium hosting plans.

ScalaHosting vs MonoVM: User feedback

ScalaHosting has earned high praise from users for its exceptional customer support, reliable uptime, and innovative SPanel technology. Many reviews highlight the company’s fast and knowledgeable technical support team, which ensures a smooth and efficient experience for users. While some users feel the pricing could be more competitive, the overall sentiment is that the services offered justify the cost. Users appreciate the platform’s ease of use, robust security features, and the flexibility of hosting solutions, making ScalaHosting a top choice for web hosting needs.

MonoVM is recognized for offering an affordable array of services, including VPS hosting, web hosting, domain registration, and SSL certificates. Users appreciate its reliability and the user-friendly interfaces that ease account management and support access. However, some customers note that MonoVM lacks certain advanced features and customization options, particularly in higher-tier plans, and may experience limitations in resource scaling and upgrading. Additionally, there are mentions of compromised customer support quality.

ScalaHosting vs MonoVM: FAQ