A2 Hosting Review (2024)
TL;DR: What We Think of A2 Hosting
In the past one of the best hosting providers around, today A2 Hosting has slightly lost its shine. Pricing is above market average and performance is no longer top of its class. Still, reliability is decent and their attention to detail can be seen in prudent plan revisions on occasion.
Suitable for:
Beginners-friendly, Small Business, International Website, Eco-friendly, Developers-friendly, or eCommerce Hosting
Our Evaluation: A2 Hosting Pros and Cons
A2 Hosting Pros
- Server locations in North America, Europe, and Asia
- Free website migration assistance
- Developer-oriented features even on shared hosting
- Custom performance optimizations tools available in higher shared plans
A2 Hosting Cons
- Steep price increase during the renewal
- Free site transfers mainly for cPanel installations
- HTTP/2 only on TURBO plans
- Lowest shared plan does not support automatic backup
Our Detail Findings & Experience with A2 Hosting
About A2 Hosting: Quick Introduction
A2 Hosting’s origins trace back to 2003 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where it was founded by Bryan Muthig. Starting as a hobby project offering web hosting for friends and family, A2 Hosting swiftly transitioned into a professional business focusing on high-performance hosting solutions, particularly for WordPress sites. Responding to customer demands for speed and reliability, A2 Hosting pioneered SSD hosting to boost website loading times and developed the A2 Optimized solution, enhancing WordPress site performance through optimized settings for speed and security.
| Performance |
Is A2 Hosting fast in terms of hosting speed and performance?A2 hosting offers dependable hosting services with a focus on steady website functionality. While all shared hosting plans come with free CDN and pre-optimized WordPress environment, advanced speed features like built-in cache, NVMe SSD, and Litespeed servers are only available in higher plans. |
| Security |
Are websites hosted on A2 Hosting secure with server-side security?Yes, websites hosted at A2 Hosting are safe. A2 Hosting prioritizes security with features such as auto malware scan, advanced web application firewall (WAF), DDoS protection, free SSL certificates, weekly backup, . These measures protect your data and ensure your site is secure from common cyber threats. |
| Supports |
What types of customer support does A2 Hosting offer?A2 Hosting’s customer support is distinguished by its knowledgeable and friendly team, providing personalized assistance to ensure satisfying user experience. Help is avaliable via live chat and email. |
| Value for Money |
Is A2 Hosting worth its pricing in term of value?A2 Hosting is reasonable priced when weighed against its feature offerings and long-term cost. At $2.99 per month (renews at $12.99/mo), basic shared hosting allows you to host 1 website with 24/7 customer support, a free domain name, and 30-days money back guarantee. Higher plans with better features like VPS starts at $2.99/mo, cloud hosting at $/mo and dedicated hosting at $109.99/mo. |
| Overall Users Satisfaction |
What do users say about A2 Hosting?Overall user satisfaction with A2 Hosting appears to be mixed, with several positive aspects and some areas of concern. Many customers appreciate A2 Hosting’s service quality and performance. Feedback often highlights their outstanding server speed performance and helpful customer support. However, there have been a few negative experiences reported, including issues with website hacking, server downtime, and longer wait times for live chat support on certain days. While these issues do not appear to be widespread, improvements in these areas could enhance user satisfaction. For additional insights, please refer to the user reviews section below. |
| Beginners Friendliness |
Is A2 Hosting suitable for beginners?Yes, A2 Hosting is well-suited for beginners. Its user-friendly interface and helpful technical support team are particularly useful those new to web hosting. |
| Small Business Friendliness |
Is A2 Hosting suitable for small businesses?Small business owners will also benefit from similar features as newbies do at A2 Hosting. Additionally, its website builder is a plus for small business owners looking for rapid website building. |
| Web Developers Friendliness |
Is A2 Hosting suitable for web developers?Web developers can benefit from the extended tools A2 Hosting has. Not all web hosts will offer such a wide variety of developer-friendly features that you can get with shared hosting plans including Apache Tomcat server, PHPng, IonCube, Python, and Node.js. The best part is that these come at standard shared hosting price with no additional cost. |
| Host Own Email |
Can you host custom email accounts with A2 Hosting?Yes, you can host your own email accounts with A2 Hosting. This significantly reduces your costs by eliminating the need for expensive third-party email services. |
| Onboarding |
Is A2 Hosting easy for new customers to start with?Signing up with A2 Hosting can be a little bit daunting at first simply because they have so many plans to choose from. There is unfortunately also a bit of in-house jargon which may confuse users, such as “A2 Optimized” and “Turbo Servers” to get used to. Users who are not very familiar with web hosting may have to spend some time delving through their knowledge base to get used to all of this along with their system. If you are familiar though, the experience shouldn’t faze you. At the end of the day though, remember that A2 Hosting offers free site migration, so why should you worry about the move-in process? |
| Free Trial |
Is A2 Hosting available for a free trial?Yes, A2 Hosting offers a 30-day free trial period. If you are not satisfied with their services for any reason, you can cancel within this period and receive a full refund. Try now: Click here to signup at A2 Hosting official website |
A2 Hosting Plans & Pricing
A2 Hosting provides a range of web hosting solutions, including Shared, VPS, Dedicated, and Reseller hosting plans. The company also offers specialty hosting services such as Managed WordPress, Email, and Minecraft hosting.
Consider Renewal Prices When Choosing
When evaluating hosting options, it is important to note that many hosting companies offer substantial discounts during the initial signup period, but prices often increase significantly upon renewal. Be sure to research and compare the renewal prices and not just the introductory rates to understand the true cost of hosting over time.
To help you in making an informed decision, we have prepared two tables below that compare the initial signup costs and renewal costs of A2 Hosting services with several other providers we monitor.
Compare A2 Hosting’s Signup Cost Against Competitors
| Web Host | Shared | VPS | Dedicated | Cloud | Managed WP | Windows |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A2 Hosting | $2.99 – 14.99/mo | $2.99 – 99.99/mo | $109.99 – 529.99/mo | $ – /mo | $11.99 – 41.99/mo | $ – /mo |
| Servers.com | $ – /mo | $5.37 – 692.04/mo | $104.9 – 712.64/mo | $5.37 – 692.04/mo | $ – /mo | $ – /mo |
| BlueHost | $2.95 – 13.95/mo | $29.99 – 69.99/mo | $89.98 – 139.99/mo | $ – /mo | $2.95 – 13.95/mo | $ – /mo |
| Hostens | $2.00 – 8.00/mo | $5.25 – 21.00/mo | $49.99 – 89.99/mo | $ – /mo | $ – /mo | $13.13 – 52.50/mo |
| Hostinger | $2.99 – 9.99/mo | $4.49 – 19.99/mo | $ – /mo | $9.99 – 29.99/mo | $2.49 – 8.99/mo | $ – /mo |
| N6 Cloud | $2.24 – 9.74/mo | $2.96 – 91.84/mo | $104.25 – 374.25/mo | $3.82 – 63.72/mo | $9.74 – 49.49/mo | $ – /mo |
Compare A2 Hosting’s Renewal Cost Against Competitors
| Web Host | Shared | VPS | Dedicated | Cloud | Managed WP | Windows |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A2 Hosting | $12.99 – 29.99/mo | $8.99 – 239.99/mo | $199.99 – 749.99/mo | $ – /mo | $25.99 – 61.99/mo | $ – /mo |
| Servers.com | $ – /mo | $5.37 – 692.04/mo | $104.9 – 712.64/mo | $5.37 – 692.04/mo | $ – /mo | $ – /mo |
| BlueHost | $11.99 – 28.99/mo | $79.99 – 142.99/mo | $179.99 – 259.99/mo | $ – /mo | $11.99 – 28.99/mo | $ – /mo |
| Hostens | $4.00 – 16.00/mo | $7.50 – 30.00/mo | $49.99 – 89.99/mo | $ – /mo | $ – /mo | $18.75 – 75.00/mo |
| Hostinger | $7.99 – 24.99/mo | $13.99 – 59.99/mo | $ – /mo | $24.99 – 64.99/mo | $11.99 – 24.99/mo | $ – /mo |
| N6 Cloud | $5.99 – 17.24/mo | $5.14 – 153.75/mo | $126.75 – 468.75/mo | $3.82 – 63.72/mo | $9.74 – 49.49/mo | $ – /mo |
Caution: Prices May Vary Web hosting prices can change frequently. For the most accurate and up-to-date pricing information, please visit the official A2 Hosting website.
Is A2 Hosting the Right Choice for You?
A2 Hosting: A developer-friendly choice with a cost consideration. A2 Hosting stands out for its broad selection of server locations and its unique offerings for developers, such as affordable Node.js and Django hosting options in a shared environment—a feature not commonly found with other providers.
However, the journey with A2 Hosting comes with its challenges. Users are met with significant renewal price increases, a factor that can’t be overlooked. Moreover, its once-praised hosting performance has seen better days, leaving it trailing behind its former glory. For those drawn to its developer-centric benefits and initial affordability, A2 Hosting remains an attractive option. Yet, you must weigh these against the realities of rising renewals and a performance plateau.
Summary of A2 Hosting Pros and Cons
A2 Hosting Pros
- Server locations in North America, Europe, and Asia
- Free website migration assistance
- Developer-oriented features even on shared hosting
- Custom performance optimizations tools available in higher shared plans
A2 Hosting Cons
- Steep price increase during the renewal
- Free site transfers mainly for cPanel installations
- HTTP/2 only on TURBO plans
- Lowest shared plan does not support automatic backup
A2 Hosting Alternatives to Consider
In case A2 Hosting is not right for you, below are some alternatives to consider. You can also find more options in our hosting reviews page (full list).