There have never been so many options for hosting a website or WordPress hosting. And GoDaddy is possibly the most well-known brand in the website services industry. Although they began as a domain registrar, they have used their brand recognition and massive ad spend to become one of the largest hosting companies & website builder companies in the world.
But what if you want an alternative to GoDaddy hosting? Just because you might have your domains there does not mean you have to use their hosting or website builder services. After all – you own your domain and can “point” it to whatever hosting or website builder service most fits your project.
In my career as a marketing consultant, I’ve been able to use and consult on a full range of website builders, software & platforms for both my in-house projects and client projects. While GoDaddy’s web hosting is fine for some projects, I also thought it would be useful to have a list of GoDaddy hosting alternatives along with what they do well & who they focus on. I’ve included a mix of pure hosting services (where you purchase the hosting and then install your website software of choice) along with hosted platforms (where hosting services are bundled with builder software).
Here’s a brief summary along with an extended explanation below.
Best GoDaddy Alternatives
| Review | Best For | Plans |
|---|---|---|
| InMotion Hosting | independent, high-performance hosting w/ great support | Learn More |
| SiteGround | independent w/ great developer features & global data centers | Learn More |
| Bluehost | excellent pricing w/ unmetered features & good support | Learn More |
| GreenGeeks | a starter-friendly host focused on shared hosting & support | Learn More |
Guide to GoDaddy Alternatives
Here’s an extended guide to each, along with other GoDaddy hosting alternatives for specific use cases.
InMotion Hosting
InMotion Hosting provides a full range of hosting services. They are a fast-growing independent hosting company (ie, not owned by a major, publicly-traded corporation like GoDaddy). I use them for most of my projects (including this site). They have excellent performance and a real focus on customer support.
Go check out InMotion’s Plans.
SiteGround
SiteGround is another fast-growing, independently owned company. They have excellent support, high performance, and developer-friendly features like one-click SSL and integrated staging environments
Go check out SiteGround’s plans.
Bluehost
Bluehost is the other big brand in the web hosting industry. However, unlike GoDaddy, they were founded & still focus almost exclusively on hosting services. They have very affordable price plans and a setup suited to smaller websites. If you want a name-brand with very affordable pricing – then Bluehost makes a good alternative.
I reviewed Bluehost & compared Bluehost directly to GoDaddy hosting here.
Learn more about Bluehost’s plans.
GreenGeeks
GreenGeeks is a smaller, but the independent-owned host that focuses on simplicity, support, and sustainability.
Go check out GreenGeeks’ plans.
Other GoDaddy Alternatives
There are, of course, tons of other alternatives including options that either have a specific use case, I haven’t used enough to fully judge, or don’t quite have features/benefits that the alternatives listed above already cover.
That said, I’ve had managers compiling a list for internal evaluation. Here’s the list that I usually provide.
- HostGator – a sister hosting brand to Bluehost. Read up on them with my HostGator review. I use them for many of my smaller projects due to their very affordable pricing, and unmetered feature set. Check out their plans.
- HostPapa – a rapidly growing independent hosting company. They have excellent service with a focus on global hosting & useful developer features. Check out their plans.
- Web Hosting Hub – a sister brand to InMotion focused on starter sites. They have excellent support, and are focused exclusively on shared hosting. Check out their plans.
- BoldGrid – software offered by some hosting companies that installs with WordPress so that you get all the benefits of self-hosted WordPress in addition to drag & drop design and simplified setup. Check it out here.
- Namecheap – a competing domain registrar that also offers email and simple “one-page” software. Excellent long-term pricing with user-friendly dashboards. Check out their services here.
Related Articles
I’ve written a lot about website builders – and have been able to consult with a variety of clients, from small shops to household brands. Here are the related resources that I’ve written.
Reviews
- All my hosting reviews
- GoDaddy vs. 1&1 Hosting
- GoDaddy vs. Namecheap
- GoDaddy vs. Bluehost
- GoDaddy Website Builder Review
- InMotion Hosting vs. GoDaddy
