| Launched in 2002, Host Gator has slowly grown into a strong competitor in the web hosting industry. They remain a favorite with customers and offer a number of hosting options. They also provide a tool unique to their service: access to the SiteStudio website designer, an easy program that is especially suitable for the neophyte user. They offer both dedicated and shared server hosting.
Value & Price
HostGator.com's prices are reasonable, fair and competitive. They offer a number of packages, and these features are all included in even the most basic Hatchling Package:
- Reseller service plans ranging in price from about $25 to $100/month;
- Dedicated hosting for $174.00 to $374.00 per month;
- A basic shared hosting plan that provides 50 GB space, 200 GB transfer rate @ $6.95/month up to a semi-dedicated plan that offers 25GB disk space, 500GB transfer data and costs $74.95/month.
- 24/7 support;
- Instant backup;
- No contract;
- 99% uptime guarantee;
- 30 day money back guarantee and free setup;
- Perl, Python, SSI, Cron;
- FrontPage;
- Curl, GD, Image Magick;
- Streaming audio/video;
- Free Module Installation;
- Webmail, e-mail alias, auto responders, mailing lists, catch alls, Spam Assassin, forwarding, IMAP Support;
- SMTP, Fantastico, Soholaunch, Hotlink Protection, IP Deny Manager, Custom Error; Pages
- Blogs, Portals, PHPnuke;
- Forums, guestbook, counter;
- FormMail, Redirect URL, Web Based File Manager, PW Protected Directories, phpMyAdmin;
- AWStats (real time updates),Webalizer;
- Raw Log Manage, Referrer Logs, Error Logs;
- Shared SSL, Agora Cart, osCommerce, ZenCart, Cube Cart
Reliability
HostGator is considered one of the most reliable web hosting companies and they focus heavily on this aspect of their hosting service. Reliability is of the utmost importance in web hosting, and their 35,000 square feet of space encompasses a state-of-the-art data center that is outfitted with DataTrax monitoring software for the whole data center infrastructure, 4800 volts of input power, multiple TXU electrical grids, and a completely certified, redundant Cisco Network with ten backbone providers.
Control Panel
HostGator control panel is the industry standard "Cpanel." Reliable and easily navigable for everyone from advanced to beginning g users, the Cpanel is easy to explore and efficient to use. An icon-based layout offers great visuals that help reinforce the myriad features and admin functions. The help icons are easy to see and are accessible throughout the control panel next to the icons.
Customer Support
HostGator is one of the best companies for quick response times and courteous, professional service. They offer 24/7, 365 day phone support, fax, peer support forums, online chats and a number of helpful instructional videos. |
