Namecheap vs Bluehost Review 2021: Which is Better?
In this article, we are going to be taking a look at Namecheap vs Bluehost Hosting to help you decide which one of these popular hosting providers is right for you.If you’re on the search for the best hosting provider for your website or blog, you will have realized by now that there are hundreds of options to choose from, but don’t worry – we’re here to help you make the best decision!
Main Differences Between Namecheap vs Bluehost Hosting
The main differences between Namecheap vs Bluehost Hosting are:
- Namecheap offers free migration from your previous hosting provider with all its hosting plan options, whereas Bluehost doesn’t offer free migrations
- Bluehost doesn’t include automatic backups, whereas Namecheap offers automatic backups twice weekly with its Stellar Plus and Stellar Business plans
- Namecheap is more affordable, with plans starting at just $1.44/month, whereas Bluehost’s cheapest plan starts at $3.95/month
- Bluehost has slightly faster page loading speeds than Namecheap, with an average speed of 420ms for the last 12 months, whereas Namecheap’s average speed was 543ms for the last 12 months
- Bluehost offers 24/7 support by phone, email, and chat, whereas Namecheap only offers support by live chat and tickets
Features
Unlike Bluehost, NameCheap offers Spam Experts for free with all shared hosting plans. NameCheap also offers free site transfer, but Bluehost doesn’t.See more differences between these two providers:
| Bluehost | NameCheap | |
| Hosting Types | Shared, VPS, WordPress hosting, eCommerce hosting, dedicated servers | Shared, VPS, reseller, WordPress hosting, email hosting, dedicated servers |
| Free Domain | ✔ | ✔ |
| Free SSL Certificate | ✔ | ✔ |
| Disk Space | 30 GB – Unlimited | 20 GB – Unlimited |
| Bandwidth | 1 TB – Unlimited | 1000 GB – Unlimited |
| Automatic Backups | ✔ | ✔ |
| Control Panel | cPanel | cPanel |
| Email Accounts | 5 – Unlimited | 30 – Unlimited |
| Free CDN | ✔ | Only with some WordPress hosting plans |
| Free Site Migration | x | ✔ |
| Money-Back Guarantee | 30 days | 30 days |
The winner? While Bluehost offers a bit more storage space than NameCheap, the latter offers more useful and cost-effective features such as free site migration, weekly backups, and Spam Experts for free.
Uptime and Speed
UPTIME: It determines the amount of time your site is available for users. Of course, you won’t want your users to be unable to find your site as, if prolonged, it could bring disastrous consequences.
When searching for a web host, you must look for the one having an average uptime of 99.95% or higher.
BlueHost:
When we carried out several tests on BlueHost to determine its authentic uptime, we found it to be an average of 99.96%. They do not offer an uptime guarantee, so no compensating even if their uptime drops far below.
Namecheap:
Namecheap guarantees a 100% uptime but the reality is that they just made a bold claim without actually proving it. We ran similar tests on NameCheap and its uptime appeared to be at an average of 99.92%.
This is neither too near to 100%, nor it crosses our good average uptime mark.
BlueHost on the other hand provides a good uptime.
SPEED: When the topic of speed comes, you should know that here, every second counts. As a second delay could result in losing a large proportion of potential customers leading to a loss in revenue and trust of users as well.
BlueHost:
To test its speed, we ran several tests on GTmetrix, Pingdom, and Webpagetest. Its average speed was 3.2 seconds.
As you can see, it is not the best of loading speeds and not even lies in the ideal range of 2 to 3 seconds of loading speed.
Namecheap:
When we examined its loading speed through numerous tests, we found out that its average loading speed is 3.04 seconds.
In short, Namecheap outperformed BlueHost here with a better loading speed.
Hosting Options
Which hosting option will suit best for your site’s needs? Which one of these two web hosts will work best for you?
These are some questions that must be raised before you decide on choosing the right hosting option.
Therefore, let’s check out what are the hosting options offered by BlueHost and Namecheap.
BlueHost:
- Shared hosting.
- Shared WordPress hosting.
- Managed WordPress hosting.
- VPS hosting.
- Dedicated hosting.
- WooCommerce hosting.
Namecheap:
- Shared hosting.
- WordPress hosting.
- VPS hosting.
- Dedicated hosting.
- Reseller hosting.
To sum up, BlueHost wins this round. It offers more hosting options and tiers than Namecheap, therefore it’s relatively easier to step-up gradually into more advanced hosting plans.
Bluehost vs Namecheap: Support
Both Bluehost and Namecheap provide good quality support. Each has an extensive knowledge base, containing articles and tutorials to help users troubleshoot any problems they may be having.
Namecheap provides 24/7 ticketed email support and live chat,
Bluehost provides 24/7 phone support and live chat.
So if access to phone support is important to you, Bluehost is the better option because Namecheap doesn’t offer phone support.
Personally, I have used both Bluehost and Namecheap live chat services and was impressed with the answer time and the support given by the pair of them.
Namecheap vs Bluehost Pricing
Bluehost’s cheapest shared WordPress hosting plan, Basic, comes in at just $2.75. However, to benefit from this deal, you will need to sign up for a 36-month payment plan, which is payable in full when you sign up (in total $99). It is also important to note that once your three-year term expires, this plan renews at $7.99 a month.
Namecheap’s entry-level package costs $2.88 a month. However, if you sign up for a year’s contract, you will pay just $1.44 for that initial term (the plan will then renew at $2.88).
One unique thing is that, with Namecheap, you can opt to pay month-to-month. So if you don’t want to pay the full amount upfront, then Namecheap is a good option for you.
Both Namecheap and Bluehost offer initial terms that are similar in price. However, Namecheap provides more flexible payment options, as well as much lower renewal prices.
Both hosting providers also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Security
BlueHost:
- Bluehost has taken several measures to ensure that your site is always secure. It currently uses Spam Experts, Spam Hammer, and Apache Spam Assassin to protect your websites, and you can also add additional free or paid security features to your websites, depending on your needs. Bluehost also provides a free SSL certificate with all hosting plans which will add ‘https’ to your website, and encrypt your customers’ data. This also helps with sites your SEO.
Namecheap:
- Namecheap takes security very seriously, and offers two main security services to its customers to protect them from identity thieves and other security threats:
- WhoisGuard – Completely free for Namecheap domain owners. This keeps domain owners’ contact information such as their name, email, and phone number, out of the public Whois database. Having this information hidden protects you from spammers and marketing firms, as well as fraudsters.
- SSL Certificates – Namecheap offers a variety of different SSL certificates based on your needs. This works as a third party verification for your website’s security, to ensure that your customers’ data is always secure.
Namecheap VS Bluehost Comparison
Bluehost is the clear winner between these two web hosting providers. Find out more about Namecheap vs Bluehost in the below comparison table:
| Namecheap | Bluehost | |
| About: | Namecheap is one of the market leaders in domain name registrars with them offering highly affordable ad dependable web hosting. | Bluehost provides hosting services with unlimited bandwidth, hosting space, and email accounts. It has a reputation of robust performance, excellent customer support and competitive pricing. |
| Founded in: | 2000 | 1996 |
| BBB Rating: | F | A+ |
| Address: | 11400 W. Olympic Blvd Suite 200, Los Angeles, CA 90302, United States | Bluehost Inc. 560 Timpanogos Pkwy Orem, UT 84097 |
| Phone Number: | (661) 310-2107 | (888) 401-4678 |
| Email Address: | support@namecheap.com | Not Listed |
| Types of Support: | Live Support, Chat, Ticket | Phone, Live Support, Chat, Ticket |
| Data Center / Server Location: | USA and United Kingdom | Provo, Utah |
| Monthly Price: | From $3.24 per month | From $2.95 per month |
| Unlimited Data Transfer: | Yes | Yes |
| Unlimited Data Storage: | Yes (Ultimate Plan only) | Yes |
| Unlimited Emails: | Yes (Ultimate Plan only) | Yes |
| Host Multiple Domains: | Yes | Yes |
| Hosting Controlpanel / Interface: | cPanel | cPanel |
| Server Uptime Guarantee: | 99.90% | No |
| Money-Back Guarantee: | 14 Days | 30 Days |
| Dedicated Hosting Available: | Yes | Yes |
| Bonuses & Extras: | Attracta SEO Tools, plus loads more. | Search Engine Submission Tools. $100 Google Advertising Credit. $50 Facebook Ad Credit. Free Yellowpages Listing. |
| The Good: | Easy To Use Interface: Unlike other web hosts interface, this one is uncluttered and organized, with all of your options neatly tucked away in the sidebar. How-To Videos: They have tutorial videos that guide you through completing or managing task in the back end- a godsend for any beginner. Cheap Prices: Not only can you enjoy a whole boatload of package, but you can avail of them for dirt-cheap prices. |
Variety of Hosting Plans: Bluehost offers shared, VPS, dedicated and cloud hosting as well as options like managed WordPress hosting, giving you the flexibility to easily scale your site to your changing hosting needs. 24/7 Support: In addition to some of the best self-help resources of any host, Bluehost has a veritable army of fast-acting experts ready to assist you 24/7 via support ticket, hotline, or live chat. Good Refund Policy: Bluehost will give you a full refund if you cancel within 30 days, and pro-rated refunds if you cancel beyond that period. Bluehost pricing starts at $2.95 per month. |
| The Bad: | No Phone Support: Although NameCheap does not offer phone support for their customers, they do have a live chat option for urgent matters. | No Uptime Guarantee: Bluehost doesn’t offer you compensation for any prolonged or unexpected downtime. Website Migration Fees: Unlike some of its competitors, Bluehost charges additional fees if you want to migrate pre-existing websites or cPanel accounts. For more options, consider these Bluehost alternatives. |
| Summary: | Namecheap aims at making registering, hosting, and managing domains a relatively easy and painless process, as the internet requires people just as the converse that is true. Featuress such as Domain name search, transfer, New TLDs and more are responsible to provide users with a hassle free use of their products. Among hosting there is Shared Hosting, WordPress Hosting, Reseller Hosting, and a whole lot more. | Bluehost (review here) is also known for its proprietary resource protection solution set up for the protection of shared hosting users from other probable abusive users on the same server. Clients and users can install application using SimpleScripts 1 click installs. Also available are VPS and Dedicated Hosting. |
Final Thoughts
If you’re still not sure whether to choose Namecheap or Bluehost, our overall recommendation for most WordPress users is Bluehost. Its combination of ease of use, adequate performance, and support options make it a great starting point for most people looking to get online.
