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    Discover Joomla Hosting: Is It RIght For You?

    Building or migrating a website to a new web hosting provider is a big decision that has an effect on the quality and speed of your users’ experience. This choice is made harder when one has already become reliant on a specific platform like WordPress, Magento, or Joomla to serve up content on their blog or store, but Joomla even more so due to its advanced open source capabilities. It’s tempting to think of WordPress as the best CMS, but Joomla is often preferred by businesses that need customization for their unique blend of services. From restaurants using Joomla for special reservation systems to businesses that rely on it as a catalog for products, the CMS platform’s flexibility has made it a necessary consideration for web hosting providers. With so many Joomla hosting options out there, get a grip on the features that are most necessary to identify and access from the guidance below.

    Best Joomla Hosting
    Features
    • Independently Owned Datacenter
    • Emphasis on Migration
    • Freebies Galore
    • Strong Support Team
    • Compatible with a wide range of databases
    • Over 400 app integrations
    • Boost SEO with SiteLock
    • Carbon Offset Hosting
    • High Value VPS
    • WordPress Support

    What is Joomla Hosting Plan?

    Hosting providers now explicitly provide hosting plans for customers who want to use Joomla or already do on their existing sites and need to migrate them over. A bit different from WordPress, Joomla is useful for creating backend systems, web apps, and intranets as much as a store or blog, so any hosting environment needs appropriate features. These include one-click integration with Joomla, PHP and MySQL for developers seeking to expand its default utility, and the bandwidth and memory required to satisfy estimated traffic.

    Joomla hosting plans are usually offered by providers to match the varying levels of sophistication that is possible with the CMS, from simpler VPS plans to accommodate eCommerce stores and blogs to the robust dedicated CPU plans that represent the backbone of a large corporation’s custom internal system. The most fitting Joomla hosting plans ideally have the support of a customer service team that’s well-versed in the appropriate software as well.

    When Should I Choose Joomla Hosting?

    If you plan on using Joomla for your website or already do, then Joomla hosting plans are better than those that are undefined. Joomla is an enormous open source library with thousands of plugins, modules, languages and more, and the best hosting services will accommodate them all. Joomla hosting ensures that all components that could possibly be installed in any environment will already be in place to make your Joomla site’s launch (or migration) instantaneous. This will also save trouble down the road as your site grows, requires expanded capacity and bandwidth, and begins to explore some of the unique customized applications possible with the Joomla CMS.

    Main Benefits of Joomla Hosting

    Take a close look at the website you plan to build or the one you wish to migrate and determine if the benefits below align with what it ultimately needs on a long-term timeline.

    1-Click Integration

    Joomla hosting is preconfigured to contain websites built on it, so the primary feature of any plan worth its salt is one-click installation. There should be no need to access the cPanel and redownload, reconfigure, or propagate endless fields in the backend. Just point your existing site at the new host and then expect all functionality to work.

    Out-of-the-Box Convenience

    Servers in the right plan will be optimized for Joomla deployment, and support all the protocols necessary for any version of Joomla to quickly get up and running. With the popularity of Joomla rising steadily, more hosting providers are adding the features that Joomla fans need such as CMS experts on the support staff team, access to all 8,000+ Joomla extensions and the popular MVC interface.

    CMS Support

    It’s fair to label Joomla as more involved than WordPress, and that means developers and web admins can get lost in the variety of options. When your team has trouble with any aspect of their new Joomla hosting plan, it’s both appreciated and cost-effective to be able to get an expert on the line instantly. Fast response times to Joomla-related issues and a trained staff make all the difference.

    What to Consider When Shopping for Joomla Hosting

    If you’ve accepted the fact that Joomla hosting suits your website and have begun looking at web hosting providers, it’s crucial to consider the notions laid out below when doing your preliminary comparisons.

    Domains

    With Joomla a top choice for big enterprise-level businesses with many brands, migration to a host with limited domains would be a poor choice. Look for those with support for multiple Joomla domains and ideally subdomains as well as complicated sitemaps require room to expand.

    Reliability

    It doesn’t matter if your site is large or small, complicated or simple. Joomla hosting providers should ideally provide guaranteed uptime above 99.9% and publish their server loading times (SSD storage only), which shows users that they’re committed to making their sites as fast to load as possible worldwide. Also crucial in this regard is CDN caching—a must—and VPS and dedicated server options.

    Database Support

    With the extreme level of detail and complexity inherent in many custom Joomla installations, database tools should be as robust as possible. The lowest-hanging fruit for any potential hosting provider is generous storage space, but those who provide unlimited space and have explicit support for MySQL and PHP stand above the rest, especially for Joomla experts.

    Best Joomla Hosting

    • Build your own dedicated server
    • Raid-6-array technology
    • Unlimited traffic bonus
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    • Versatile Hosting
    • High Uptime Guarantee
    • Unlimited Bandwidth
    • Expansive Customer Suppo
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    • Fast Loading Times
    • Intuitive Custom Dashboard
    • PHP7 Enabled
    • Free Domain on Sign Up
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    How to Choose the Best Joomla Hosting

    If you’ve narrowed down a handful of Joomla hosting options available that all encompass the features listed above, go through the shortlist below to eliminate those options that don’t satisfy all requirements to determine the number one best Joomla hosting provider for you. We like to evaluate providers based on the following:

    1. Look for providers that make migration easy, first of all. You may want to migrate your site to another host in the future and want to make sure this is easy and possible.
    2. Ensure that there’s 24/7 support for Joomla specifically, so that you can be confident that even before issues occur, you’ll have help navigating them quickly.
    3. Manual backups and daily backups should be out of favor versus automatic hourly backups, so look for web hosting providers that provide this safety net.
    4. Security options that come with these hosting providers must be robust enough for Joomla, with firewalls, SSL on all sites, 24/7 monitoring, segregated customer account storage (if necessary) and more.
    5. Finally, though most Joomla-specific hosts support them, double-check to ensure that languages like AJAX, MySQL, and PHP are included.

    How to Install Joomla Hosting

    It’s easy to install Joomla on a new web host by using the automatic 1-click installer that comes with most Joomla hosting providers. The installer requires you to run a setup wizard from Softaculous, and then simply to create your new username and password. Moving an existing site to a new host is another matter, and should look something like this:

    1. Install Joomla on your new hosted server.
    2. Backup and export the MySQL databases and site files from your old host to your new one via FTP. Do the same with site files, and then point your DNS to the new host’s IP address.
    3. Change the configuration settings in the Joomla panel to match those of your old host and do some tests on the site to ensure it functions properly.

    Top 3 Joomla Hosting Providers and Plans

    SiteGround

    A purpose-built hosting platform for Joomla specifically, when signing up for a demo Joomla account it comes with a free version of SiteGround, though its paid packages are more impressive. For just $3.95 per month you’ll gain essential Joomla features like a free 1-click migration, unlimited MySQL databases and traffic, 24/7 support for Joomla, and 10GB of web space.

    BlueHost

    At a competitively priced $3.95 per month, BlueHost offers unlimited data and storage to Joomla-based websites, plus a free domain name and migration. With basic shared plans and VPS plans as well, larger Joomla sites may prefer BlueHost for this and other perks such as a Joomla-proficient support team on call 24/7, which resides in the private on-site datacenter.

    InMotion

    Joomla comes pre installed and ready for a free migration with InMotion, which starts at $3.99 per month for SSD storage, unlimited bandwidth, daily free backups and monitoring, SSH access and free suPHP security, and a longer 90-day money back guarantee than other plans. For developers and larger businesses, the provider’s $13.99 Pro Plan delivers unlimited websites, subdomains, and priority support.

    Joomla Hosting for Free

    Free hosting for Joomla-based websites is available for those who look hard enough, but I find that these providers often don’t have the perks and features necessary to scale with the sites they host. For example, you may find a free Joomla hosting suite with overcrowded shared servers and a tiny storage allotment, which could be fine if you’re hosting a small blog. Otherwise, the lack of a price tag doesn’t justify the accompanying lack of support, security tools, and space.

    My Conclusion About Joomla Hosting

    Joomla hosting providers recognize that this famous open source CMS platform has unique requirements, but they aren’t difficult to satisfy. Most admins seeking to migrate their Joomla site will find a suitable host without difficulty simply by purchasing a Joomla-specific hosting plan, but it’s still very worthwhile to differentiate the Joomla hosting providers available based on benchmarks for speed, storage, security, and support. Joomla sites have the potential to be extremely complex and therefore require equally comprehensive utility from their hosting platforms, and I can only hope that those spearheading the decision to switch providers come across this valuable guide.