HostGator Review 2024: Features, Pricing, Pros & Cons

HostGator is a popular website hosting provider that offers curated plans for Indian professionals and businesses. It provides all types of hosting packages and tools for developers to build new WordPress websites or to register domain names for email hosting and marketing.

It manages the websites of a vast number of users worldwide to match their speed, performance, and security needs. Plus, its plans are designed to accommodate your budget. Read our comprehensive HostGator review to decide if it’s right for you.

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HostGator

3.9

Our ratings take into account a product's cost, features, ease of use, customer service and other category-specific attributes. All ratings are determined solely by our editorial team.

Introductory price

INR ($4.95) p/m (annual billing)

Renews at INR ($111.99) p/m per year

Storage

Starts with 10GB SSD

Extras and inclusions

Free domain name for the first year, forever free SSL certificate, pre-installed WordPress, malware scanner, 30-day money-back guarantee

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On HostGator’s secure website

Introductory price

INR ($4.95) p/m (annual billing)

Renews at INR ($111.99) p/m per year

Storage

Starts with 10GB SSD

Extras and inclusions

Free domain name for the first year, forever free SSL certificate, pre-installed WordPress, malware scanner, 30-day money-back guarantee

Pros & Cons

• Affordable hosting plans
• Free SSL certificates
• Data centers in India
• All plans include a 45-day money-back guarantee
• VPS and dedicated hosting are available

• Plans get pricier upon renewal
• Lots of upselling
• E-commerce capabilities not available on all plans

• What is HostGator?
• How HostGator Works
• HostGator Core Features
• HostGator Pricing and Plans
• HostGator Alternatives and How They Compare
• Is HostGator Right for You or Your Business?
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

HostGator has been a reliable website hosting provider since 2002, with data centers in India and in the U.S. headquartered in Houston, Texas, the web hosting company has offices in Mumbai with local talents to support Indian customers 24*7.

• Hostgator’s beginner-friendly interface and easy navigation tools make it easier to build a new WordPress website.
• Subscriptions are available for various types of website hosting (shared, cloud, VPS, dedicated server), and plans vary according to the number of websites required for hosting, storage, bandwidth, domain name, email accounts, etc.
• Even a beginner can get hands-on experience in developing a new SEO-friendly e-commerce website, though they may require tips from dedicated project managers.
• Hostgator has carefully curated its plans according to need, such as Linux or Windows Shared hosting or self-managed or fully managed VPS.
• The HostGator domain manager simplifies purchasing, transferring, updating, and managing all your domains in one location.
• Hostgator’s Shared hosting servers come with a 99.9% uptime guarantee, while dedicated servers, VPS, and cloud servers are covered under a network guarantee.
• HostGator’s yearly plan costs as low as INR 339 per month and comes equipped with an SSL certificate, site migration service, one-click WordPress installation, free domain name, and many more.

Hostgator provides shared hosting for websites built on a WordPress platform, e-commerce, dedicated VPS, and email hosting plans. Even the lowest tier plan includes a hosting plan for 10 websites, 10GB SSD storage, unmetered bandwidth, a pre-installed malware scanner, a free domain name for a year, and a free SSL certificate. Plans can be upgraded as per requirement for hosting more websites, storage, and heightened security, such as Cloudflare CDN or content delivery network to boost speed and performance.

Users must register a domain name with HostGator to build a new website. Existing domain name holders can transfer their domain name to HostGator to start using its hosting plan. Nonetheless, every HostGator plan comes with a new domain for the first year, which can be renewed annually. HostGator provides domain names at a cost between INR 417.82 ($4.99) and INR 2,343.65 ($27.99) per year, depending on the availability of extensions, such as .com, .net, .org, .site, .tech, etc. You can pay an extra INR 1,251.79 ($14.95) per year for domain privacy, an add-on service that shields your personal information like the registrar’s name, location, etc.

HostGator is a reliable website hosting provider established in 2002, making it a well-known player in the market. The web host offers in-demand features to match the latest technology and upgrades to match speed, performance, and security needs. However, plans vary according to requirements.

Types of Hosting Available

• Shared hosting: Disk space, bandwidth, and resources are shared among users as the server hosts multiple websites. It is best suited for users who expect their website to attract low traffic.
• WordPress hosting: This plan best suits bloggers or small businesses that have built a website using WordPress and are looking to go online.
• Cloud hosting: Helpful for growing businesses’ websites that need to maintain fast load times when traffic spikes.
• VPS hosting: Unlike shared hosting, VPS offers a separate hosting environment where users don’t have to share resources with other websites. This hosting plan is designed for businesses whose websites attract a lot of traffic.
• Dedicated Hosting: A dedicated server offers users an entire server, along with all of its resources, to businesses that have a heavy traffic influx or are viral sites.
• Email Hosting: HostGator’s email plan can also be purchased separately, starting at INR 348 for a year. It has 5GB space per email ID, built-in virus protection, spam filters, and a 99.99% uptime guarantee.

Uptime Guarantee

HostGator’s hosting plans have an uptime guarantee of 99.9%. This means that web hosting for your website is available 99.9% of the time, which equates to around 8.76 hours of downtime per year. There can be several reasons for your website’s downtime, including server overload, hardware and software issues, etc.

As per HostGator’s terms of service, users may receive one month of credit on their account if a shared or reseller server has a physical downtime that falls short of the 99.9% uptime guarantee. However, this uptime guarantee does not apply to planned maintenance. Dedicated and a network guarantee covers VPS servers of HostGator.

Nonetheless, basic knowledge can help users resolve issues that cause website downtime.

Speed and Performance

Many factors can slow your website, including network congestion, bandwidth throttling, and restrictions. Overall, HostGator’s speed and performance are rated highly among users. However, you are advised to make plans according to the traffic expected on your website.

For instance, a multipage or e-commerce website with high traffic may take time if hosted on a shared hosting server. Such a website may require unmetered storage and bandwidth, VPS hosting, or Dedicated hosting servers, as mentioned below.

HostGator Security

HostGator’s servers are protected from DDoS attacks, as per the hosting provider. However, users can purchase a SiteLock Security add-on at an extra monthly cost of INR 669.02 ($7.99). This add-on provides an additional layer of security, including daily malware scans, malware removal, site lock seal, automated bot attacks, database scans, and weekly scan reports.

Storage and Bandwidth

HostGator plans start with a 10GB SSD, which can be upgraded as required. As mentioned below, almost all plans provide unmetered bandwidth.

HostGator Ease of Use

Users don’t need to be tech-savvy to use HostGator, as its web hosting features offer easy navigation. The company regularly updates its tutorials and frequently asked questions (FAQs) to walk users through installation or using the hosting tools. Moreover, customer support is available 24/7 via phone calls and live chat to help users optimize their web hosting needs at every step.

Customer Support

HostGator offers 24*7 live chat and email support to both existing and new customers to get resolution to queries. The company also has tutorials, a knowledge base, and blogs, including extensive FAQs.

HostGator offers four website hosting plans for Indian users to choose from servers located in India and in the U.S. These plans are further categorized, and prices and features vary accordingly.

HostGator Shared Hosting

In this type of hosting, a user shares space on the server with other websites. This means a single server hosts multiple websites and resources and bandwidth are also shared. HostGator offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee on shared hosting server plans.

The company provides both Windows and Linux shared hosting services. Windows-shared hosting is recommended for websites built on ASP, ASP.NET, IIS, or MSSQL. Linux-shared hosting is helpful for sites built in HTML or CSS, PHP, and regular WordPress websites.

HostGator’s shared hosting comes with an option: starter, hatchling, baby, or business plans. The prices of each plan become cheaper when users select plans having a billing cycle of higher tenure. We paid attention to features of three sub-categories of this plan with servers located in India.

HostGator WordPress Hosting

HostGator offers Indian users managed WordPress hosting service with servers located in the U.S. Under this plan, HostGator offers features tailored to users’ needs.

HostGator Cloud Hosting

Built on cloud technology, HostGator’s cloud hosting is ideal for websites that need to maintain fast load times when traffic spikes. Indian users can choose to host their website on cloud servers located within the country India or in the U.S. Pricing and features under this hosting plan with servers located in India are as follows:

HostGator VPS Hosting

HostGator’s virtual private server (VPS) offers users more control over their website’s performance. Each user is provided with a separate hosting environment, and unlike shared hosting, users don’t have to share resources such as RAM or CPU with other websites.

It comes equipped with an integrated cPanel, full root access, guaranteed CPU, RAM, SSD storage, and network, and management actions like stopping, restarting, and rebuilding for complete server autonomy. HostGator offers four VPS plans for Indian users to choose from servers located in India and the U.S., as per their needs for storage, bandwidth, and a dedicated IP option.

HostGator Dedicated Hosting

Dedicated hosting is suitable for large businesses with heavy traffic or viral sites. It offers the option of Linux or Shared Dedicated hosting and the choice of SSD or HDD hard drives with or without cPanel. A dedicated server offers users an entire server and all of its resources.

HostGator Email Hosting

While HostGator offers basic email with all plans, users can also purchase an email plan separately. Here’s what users get when they sign up with HostGator’s email hosting plan.

HostGator Website Builder

HostGator offers affordable website builder plans for WordPress and helpful tools as per the requirements of pages, payment, shipping integration, mobile-optimized templates, etc. Users must submit their name, email, and phone number to get a call back on the quotation from a dedicated project manager.

HostGator Domain Name Service

A domain name is the online name users use to create a website. Although HostGator is primarily a web hosting company, it facilitates users’ registration and search for domain name availability. It offers top-level domains (TLDs) such as .com, .store, biz, org, .net, and .site, to name a few. However, it can be pricier.

HostGator Domain Name features include:

• Up to two 100 MB email accounts
• Anti-spam and virus protection
• DNS management
• Email forwarding
• Domain theft protection

HostGator is a reliable web hosting provider for Indian users with data centers located within the country and in the U.S. There are many areas in which HostGator excels over its peers. Below is how HostGator stacks up with A2 Hosting and GoDaddy in areas such as pricing, storage, migration, bandwidth, customer service, and other features.

HostGator vs. A2 Hosting

Both HostGator and A2 Hosting offer reliable hosting plans to Indian users. HostGator’s shared hosting plan starts at INR 239 per month for one year, and comes with 10GB storage. The yearly plan of A2 Hosting costs INR 414.47 ($4.95) per month for 10 GB SSD storage. Both web hosting providers offer a 99.9% uptime guarantee, website builder, SSL certificate, and site migration service. However, a one-click WordPress installation and a free domain name are not included in A2 Hosting.

Related: A2 Hosting Review

HostGator vs. GoDaddy

HostGator and GoDaddy offer competitive pricing options for their shared hosting plans to Indian users. GoDaddy’s shared hosting starts at INR 149 per month for annual billing. In terms of storage, GoDaddy offers up to 10 GB SSD storage. Both hosting providers offer a 99.9% uptime guarantee, website builder, SSL certificate, site migration, one-click WordPress installation, and a free domain to users.

Related: GoDaddy Hosting Review

HostGator works best for bloggers and small and large businesses that want visitors to experience a smooth browsing experience. You can register a domain name, build a website, and host it on servers according to your business’s online presence needs. With unlimited storage and bandwidth, HostGator will help scale your website beautifully as your business grows.

HostGator Is Best For:

• Basic WordPress website
• Bloggers
• Businesses on a tight budget
• Website builders with minimal designing skills

HostGator Is Not Recommended For:

• Multi-resource websites that require considerable storage and processing speed