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WordPress Hosting: Where to Host Your Site – Our Recommendation After 15 Years of Web Development Experience

There are countless ways to create websites today. This article focuses on WordPress, specifically where you can host a WordPress site. We’ve been building websites for over 15 years, and everything we write below reflects the insights and experiences we’ve gathered during that time.

General Overview

We categorize WordPress hosting solutions into three types:

  1. Local Solutions – a local provider.
  2. Global Solutions – a provider capable of delivering your site through a global CDN network, such as Kinsta.
  3. Integrated Providers – like Elementor Hosting.

All three options are excellent, but depending on your site’s specifics and target audience, one may be more suitable than the others.

Building a Site for People in a Specific Country

In this case, we believe a local hosting solution is all you need. It’s more affordable, offers support in your language, and provides sufficient speed. There are exceptions, however: in large countries where the distance between the server and users can be significant, you’ll need a CDN.

For example, if your WordPress site is hosted on a server in the US (say, in Dallas, New York, or Los Angeles), performance depends on the server’s location relative to your users. The US is vast – over 9 million square kilometers – and the distance between the East Coast (e.g., New York) and the West Coast (e.g., Los Angeles) is about 4,000 km. This means latency can vary significantly across different regions.

Example: If your server is in Chicago (a geographic center), a user in Chicago will enjoy a fast experience (latency under 20 ms). However, a user in Seattle or Miami might experience latency of 50-80 ms or more due to the distance. Without additional optimizations, a WordPress site hosted in a single US location may load quickly for users near the server but slower for those in distant areas (e.g., Alaska or Hawaii).

For a European country like Romania, or any other country, such a solution is sufficient. It’s helpful to enable a CDN, not just for speed but also for security. There are free CDN options with decent performance, such as Cloudflare.

Building a Site Targeting Multiple Countries

In this scenario, you’ll need a CDN. You can activate one even for a locally hosted site, or, more simply, choose a hosting provider with an integrated CDN, like Kinsta. We’ve been using Kinsta for several sites for over 5 years, and the results have always been excellent. There are other highly rated hosting providers with impressive speeds as well. A quick search for “The best web hosting” will yield plenty of articles on the topic. We admit, we’re biased toward Kinsta. Here’s a list of the top reasons we love Kinsta:

  • Wonderful Support – they respond promptly and are incredibly friendly.
  • WordPress-Dedicated – everything runs flawlessly.
  • Website Cloning and Staging – you can test anything quickly and easily on a clone.
  • Alerts – email notifications about security issues with plugins or WordPress.
  • Integrated CDN – no separate configuration required.

We strive to be as objective as possible, though, as mentioned, we have a soft spot for this hosting provider. We’ve also compiled a top 5 list of things we don’t like about Kinsta:

  • Slightly Expensive – but quality comes at a cost, right?
  • No Email Hosting – not a big deal for large organizations.
  • Transition from cPanel to Kinsta is Tricky – though you adapt quickly; it’s all straightforward.
  • Resource Limits Can Be Exceeded – leading to additional costs.
  • Migration from cPanel is More Complex – however, they offer free support and migration on all plans.

What Can I Do with Elementor Hosting?

We haven’t tested it yet, but it seems like a solid alternative to global solutions. Out of curiosity, we generated an AI-powered comparison between Kinsta and Elementor Hosting based on 5 key criteria:

  1. Performance and Speed
    • Kinsta: Premium managed hosting on Google Cloud Platform (GCP) with C2 servers, server-level caching, free Cloudflare CDN (300+ locations), and WordPress optimizations. Fast load times anywhere.
    • Elementor Hosting: Uses GCP with C2 servers, NVMe SSD, and Cloudflare Enterprise CDN (310+ locations). Optimized for Elementor-built sites, excellent for complex pages.
    • Verdict: Both are fast, but Kinsta has a slight edge for global traffic due to its extensive experience.
  2. Ease of Use
    • Kinsta: MyKinsta dashboard is intuitive but geared toward users with some experience. Includes one-click staging, daily backups, and APM monitoring.
    • Elementor Hosting: Comes with WordPress and Elementor Pro pre-installed, ideal for beginners. Simple dashboard integrated with Elementor.
    • Verdict: Elementor Hosting wins for accessibility to beginners, while Kinsta suits technical users.
  3. Security
    • Kinsta: Cloudflare firewall, DDoS protection, malware scans, free hack fixes, free SSL. Uptime checks every 2 minutes.
    • Elementor Hosting: Cloudflare Enterprise, DDoS protection, premium SSL, WordPress-optimized security. Advanced features less highlighted.
    • Verdict: Kinsta excels with proactive security, while Elementor is adequate for simpler sites.
  4. Scalability and Resources
    • Kinsta: Flexible plans (e.g., Starter: 25,000 visits/month, 10 GB storage), dedicated resources, supports high traffic.
    • Elementor Hosting: More rigid plans (e.g., Basic: 25,000 visits/month, 20 GB storage), includes Elementor Pro, ideal for small to medium sites.
    • Verdict: Kinsta is better for scalability, Elementor for smaller projects.
  5. Price and Value
    • Kinsta: Starts at $35/month (Starter), hosting only. Premium quality with 24/7 expert support and advanced infrastructure.
    • Elementor Hosting: Starts at $9.99/month (Basic), includes Elementor Pro. Great for beginners, limited resources.
    • Verdict: Elementor is cheaper and valuable for simple sites, Kinsta is worth it for professionals.

Conclusion

  • Kinsta: Ideal for high-traffic sites, technical needs, or premium support. Perfect for professionals and agencies.
  • Elementor Hosting: Great for small to medium Elementor sites, beginners, or affordable all-in-one solutions.

What We Recommend to Our Clients

  • If targeting a Romanian audience, we suggest a local hosting provider. We have three preferred local options.
  • If the site targets both local and international audiences – or if the organization is part of a global group with international traffic – we recommend Kinsta.

Choosing the right hosting is crucial based on your site’s complexity, required resources, and target audience. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution, but a proper analysis can pinpoint the best fit.

The comparison section was generated with AI.