What is the Cost of Free Web Hosting?
Article by Jan Pascal
You need hosting if you want to have your website under own domain. That’s the fact. There are a lot of cheap offers around. Anybody can afford to pay few dollars per month for some decent hosting plan. But why pay if there are also free offers? Some companies offer free hosting and in exchange a small banner will appear on your pages. But you can also get free account with no additions to your page. You only have to be a member of some forum or some other simple task. But is free web hosting really free?
You should ask yourself why do you need hosting. Do you need it because it is cheap or because it provides some useful service? Can you afford to be off-line for one day? Will you need some support if you will have problems with you web page? The answers are pretty simple. You have a website because you would like to show something to the world. Websites are nothing without visitors. But in order to be able to visit a website, some web server has to deliver web pages.
And the web server is a crucial element in any web hosting. The fact is that there is no free lunch. The same applies to hosting. Every company has to pay for servers, computers, internet access and people. Where do they get money if they offer the service for free? Well, there are many ways to make money. The question is in what relation is this free service to other services. Is this a real service with some (limited) support or just a fancy thing to attract customers?
A good hosting means having a reliable web server, some stuff to support clients, fast connection to the internet, established system for periodic backups, and much more. There are very few websites that can afford to be off-line for a longer period. Therefore, you are looking for a reliable hosting with prompt support and affordable prices. Even if free hosting providers offer some support, this can not be compared to a paid service. It is simply not possible to offer the same level of support and response times.
But for some project a free web solution is just fine. If you are new to the online business or would like to set up your first website then choosing free hosting is not such a bad choice. You will be able to make first steps in configuring a domain account and preparing a simple website without spending any money. And once you are ready for the real thing then you will know what to look for and you will easily find a good and cheap web hosting.
About the Author
The author uses reliable hosting at hostgator for all websites including his latest project http://hydronicfloorheating.org/ which addresses various aspects of hydronic floor heating.