HostGator review: prices, renewals and who it suits

HostGator gives you lots of site slots and cPanel for a low first-term price. Its renewal prices are among the steepest in budget hosting.

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HostGator plans and prices

Shared plans include a free domain for the first year, free SSL, unmetered bandwidth, one-click WordPress and a 30-day money-back guarantee. The Baby plan adds Cloudflare CDN.

The renewal jump

HostGator's intro rates are low, but the percentage jump at renewal is large: about 193% on Hatchling, 266% on Baby and 252% on Business on 3-year terms. A Hatchling account paid for 3 years costs about $135 up front, then about $396 for the next 3 years.

That puts HostGator's renewals above Bluehost's on every matching tier. HostGator's edge is more site slots and storage per dollar on the lower plans, which matters if you run several small sites.

• Choose the longest term you're comfortable paying for; it locks the intro rate longest.
• Decline paid add-ons at checkout unless you need them. You can add backups or security later.
• Set a reminder a month before renewal to compare prices or move hosts.

Pros and cons

Who HostGator suits

HostGator suits someone with several low-traffic sites (a few local business sites, a blog and a portfolio) who wants them in one cPanel account. Paid for 3 years up front, it's inexpensive per site.

It's a weaker choice for a single site you plan to keep for years, because the renewal costs more than rivals. For an online store or a site that has to stay fast at busy times, look at Cloudways instead.

HostGator vs the alternatives

See Bluehost vs HostGator for a full side-by-side, or how to start a small business website if you're still choosing between a builder and hosting.

What reviewers and customers say

Reviewers agree that HostGator is easy to start with and cheap for the first term. The common complaints are steep renewals, upsells during checkout and in the dashboard, and domain prices: Reddit users point out that HostGator charges for domain privacy, which Namecheap includes free.

Support and ease of use

HostGator offers 24/7 live chat and phone support, and reviewers rate live chat as quick for standard questions. Shared plans use cPanel, which many developers already know, plus a simpler HostGator dashboard and a WordPress setup wizard for beginners.

Backups, domains and add-ons

• Backups: sold as an add-on, according to All About Cookies. Budget for it, or use a WordPress backup plugin that saves to cloud storage.
• Domains: the first year is free on longer terms, but renewals and domain privacy cost extra. Registering the domain at Namecheap gives you free privacy and keeps it separate from your host.
• Upsells: SEO tools, security scanners and email add-ons are offered at checkout. Skip them unless you need them now.

Other HostGator plans

HostGator also sells managed WordPress hosting, VPS and dedicated servers. Those plans cost far more than shared hosting, and reviewers note they're pricier than similar plans from other hosts. If you need more power than shared hosting, managed cloud hosting from Cloudways or ScalaHosting is usually better value.

HostGator vs Hostinger

Hostinger is the host most often compared with HostGator in searches. Its entry plan is $2.99/mo on a 48-month prepay and renews at $10.99, close to HostGator's $10.99 Hatchling renewal. Hostinger requires a longer prepay for its lowest price; HostGator gives you cPanel and more sites on the entry plan.

How to cancel HostGator

Turn off auto-renew in your billing settings first. To cancel with a refund inside the money-back window, contact HostGator support; domain fees aren't refunded. Before you cancel, download a full backup of your site and move your domain if it's registered at HostGator.

Questions