How We Test Hosting
Every review on Host Fanatics follows the same method. We use it so that scores are comparable from one host to the next, and so you can judge for yourself how much weight to give them. This page sets out exactly what we do.
We buy like you do
We buy hosting plans as a normal customer, on the public website, with our own money. We don’t ask hosts for free accounts or special test servers, and we don’t tell them in advance that we’re reviewing them. That way we see the same checkout, the same upsells and the same onboarding you will.
Where a host offers several tiers, we test the plan most readers are likely to buy, and we note which plan the data comes from.
The same test site everywhere
On every host we install the same WordPress test site: the same theme, the same plugins, the same images and the same set of posts. We use the host’s default settings, including any caching it turns on automatically, because that’s what most people run. Keeping the site identical means differences in our results come from the host, not the website.
Speed testing
We measure time to first byte (TTFB): how long it takes the server to start sending a page after a browser asks for it. It’s the part of page speed a host controls most directly. We measure it every hour from several regions across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, so a host can’t look good just because its data center happens to be near our test location.
The speed charts in our reviews show these measurements. Lower is better.
Uptime monitoring
We check whether each test site is online every minute. The uptime meter in each review shows what our monitor recorded, which is often more useful than the uptime guarantee on a host’s sales page — a guarantee tells you what compensation you’ll get, not how often the site is down.
Support testing
We contact each host’s support with the same set of questions, over every channel it offers: live chat, tickets or email, and phone where available. The questions range from simple account tasks to WordPress and server problems. We judge how quickly we reach a person, whether the answer is correct and complete, and whether the agent actually solves the problem or just sends a help article.
Prices and renewals
Prices change often, so we re-check them regularly, including renewal prices, which matter more than intro prices over the life of a site. Every price table on the site shows a “prices checked” date so you know how current it is. Always confirm the final price at checkout before you pay.
How scores work
Each host gets a score out of 10 in five areas. The overall score is a weighted average:
- Speed — 25%: based on our TTFB measurements across regions.
- Uptime — 20%: based on our minute-by-minute monitoring.
- Support — 20%: based on our standard support questions across channels.
- Value — 20%: what you get for the money over several years, including renewal prices, not just the intro rate.
- Features — 15%: backups, staging, SSL, email, migrations, control panel quality and developer tools.
What the score words mean
- Exceptional: 9.3 and above.
- Superb: 8.8 to 9.2.
- Great: 8.0 to 8.7.
- Good: 7.0 to 7.9.
- Fair: below 7.0.
A score is a summary, not a verdict on your situation. A host with a lower overall score can still be the right choice for you — for example, if you need phone support or a specific control panel. That’s why every review also says who the host suits and who should look elsewhere.
How rankings work
Our best-of lists, like the best WordPress hosting, rank hosts by how well they fit that specific use. We start from the overall score, then look more closely at what matters for that type of hosting: speed and staging for WordPress, server resources for VPS, renewal prices for budget hosting.
We earn affiliate commissions from some of the hosts we review. Commissions never change a score or a ranking. A host can’t pay to move up a list, and we include hosts we don’t earn from when they deserve it. Our affiliate disclosure has more detail.
Updates and corrections
Hosting doesn’t stand still. When a host changes its plans, prices, panel or support, we update the review, and when the change is big enough we re-test and re-score. Speed and uptime data update continuously from our monitors.
If we get something wrong, we correct it as soon as we’ve confirmed the fix. If you notice an error or something out of date, please contact us — reader reports are one of the ways we keep pages accurate.