Host1Plus VPS Hosting Review

Host1Plus started its operations in 2008 with one datacenter in London, UK, and today in 2015, it owns a number of datacenters across several countries including Lithuania, Netherlands, Germany, Singapore, Chile, South Africa, Brazil, and USA. Considered one of the cheapest web hosting providers in terms of cost, the company prefers to maintain a low profile, but it has been gaining increasing popularity of late. Apart from shared, VPS and dedicated server hosting, Host1Plus also offers Reseller and SEO hosting packages. Other related services include domain name registration and SSL certificates. This review is specifically about their VPS hosting services.

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Need for VPS Hosting

If you have outgrown your shared hosting account, which is often indicated by things like slow loading website, frequently down website due to exhaustion of resources available, etc. you will have to start considering moving up to the next level of hosting, namely Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting. Sometimes, you may want to move to VPS to improve the performance even though you may not have actually outgrown your sharing hosting. And if you have not bought any hosting at all, then starting right from VPS instead of shared hosting is a good idea if your project requires higher level of security, performance, or resources. You can read more about VPS hosting here.

Host1plus VPS plans look quite affordable and flexible. Since you get root access to the server, you can install any compatible or supported application you want to.

Host1Plus VPS Hosting Plans

VPS offering from Host1Plus is quite flexible starting at as low as $2.5 per month and going up as high as $45 per month. They have 4 different plans – Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. The plans are differentiated in terms of server resources – CPU, RAM, HDD/SSD and bandwidth. Within a given plan, pricing varies depending upon the server location you choose to go with. You can further customize each of the plans depending upon your requirement for resources, applications, operating software, control panel, etc.

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The choice of operating software offered include Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian, Centos, and Suse.

Note that the pricing for all the plans is without a control panel. So, if you are not very comfortable working in a web hosting environment sans a control panel, don’t forget to add it while customizing your plan. They offer cPanel for managing individual hosting and WHMCS for managing multiple users.

VPS Features at a Glance

The important features of Host1Plus VPS hosting include:

  • Root access to the server
  • Good choice of operating software
  • Round the clock customer support
  • Choice of server location
  • Multiple plans to suit your budget
  • Freedom to host unlimited domains
  • SSD for higher performance
  • Application Auto-installer
  • Choose from TUN/TAP, NAT and PPP server modules
  • Additional dedicated IPs

Datacenters and Security

Host1Plus maintains multiple datacenters across the world. So, you get the option to choose the server location from Los Angeles, Chicago, Sao Paulo, Frankfurt and Johannesburg. Choosing a server in or near the locality of your target audience reduces latency and further boosts the performance of your website. Remember, server location has got nothing to do with your (buyer’s) physical address or location.

Their data security features include data encryption and automatic backups.

24×7 Customer Support

Host1Plus offers multi-language support (English, Spanish, Portuguese, etc.) through email and live chat; this is what makes them a truly international brand. Their online knowledgebase is quite extensive and contains answers to most of the doubts and queries you might have in mind. They also have the ticket system if you want to submit a support ticket.

Refund and Money Back Guarantee

If you are not satisfied with their hosting, you can cancel it within the initial trial period of 14 days and you stand to get a full refund of your hosting fees; this however does not include any payment made for third party products like domain name registration, SSL certificate, etc.

The Flipside

Though the company provides the choice of multiple Linux based OS, it does not offer Windows VPS. This may be due to the fact that most users are well served with Linux. If however, you fall within that small group of people who are looking to buy a VPS to run an application that specifically needs Windows, then this VPS is not for you.

We also feel that the 14-day money back guarantee period would be insufficient to try and understand a VPS service. Most of the hosting providers offer a guarantee period of at least 30 days; Host1Plus too should consider giving more time to its users.

Conclusion

Host1Plus is an international, affordable VPS hosting provider that offers good value for money. Though their VPS is suited for all levels of requirements – from personal usage and small businesses to medium and large scale operations – they are highly recommended for individuals and small businesses.

Have a look at our tips on how to choose the right web host.