Many people say that choosing a web host is a rather simple process, but that is only the case if you understand all the different charges. You need to be aware of the fine print and understand the different things that can cause you to pay more money, or in some cases, have your site completely shut down.

This article will show you what to look out for when selecting a hosting company.

The features that hosting companies offer varies widely. You should also make note of availability for each feature you are interested in, especially when you are narrowing down your choices. For instance, you may find that the lowest-priced provider no longer holds a cost advantage and you must choose a higher-priced package for the feature that you need.

Go for Linux hosting unless you need to use certain applications or server-side languages. Linux hosting has a better reputation for uptime, stability, and resource use. Shared hosting that runs on Linux tends to be somewhat cheaper, as well. There are, however, certain applications that need Windows hosting, including Plesk, Microsoft Access, Silverlight, MSSQL, and ASP.net.

Research each potential web host’s customer support before deciding on a host. The easier it is to get in touch with the hosting service, the more likely you are to be satisfied. If you’re having problems with your web hosting account, you’ll need to be able to easily reach customer service by email or phone.

If at all possible, choose a web host that has 24-hour customer service via telephone. The larger hosting services often provide this valuable service. You do not want to be working late at night and find that are experiencing technical difficulties. Call them before you sign up, and test the level of expertise of the agents, and whether or not they can give simple instructions that are easy to understand.

To prepare yourself for the experience of using a free web host, get used to the idea that you will have a lot of downtime. Staying up all the time takes some specialized equipment that free hosts don’t really have the budget for. As a result, your site may be down more than it is up.

Do not be deterred from using a web hosting service that employs customer service agents in a foreign country. Though it may be difficult to understand various accents at times, realize that many countries spend extraordinary amounts of time and energy in making their citizens technologically superior. This is particularly true of India, which is why many companies employ educated technology services overseas.

When choosing a web host, you should ensure that you choose one that has lots of features for you to utilize. Although the features of most hosts will be very similar, they will differ in their bandwidth and disk space. If you are in need of a large amount of these two things, then you should ensure that you select a web host that provides this.

As you are now aware after reading the article above, choosing a web host is not always cut and dry. There are many elements that make up a web hosting service and if you are not aware of these things, you could end up paying a lot more money.

Apply the advice from this article so you are more confident in selecting a host provider.