Server speed
NVMe drives, a recent PHP version and server-side caching. This is what determines how quickly the site starts to respond.
Guides
How to choose the right hosting for your site
Hosting is the invisible foundation of a site: it affects speed, security and reliability. Here's what to really look at — and why it matters more than you think.
In short
Good hosting isn't the cheapest: what counts is server response speed, 99.9% uptime, automatic backups, an SSL certificate and real support when you need it. For most brochure and professional sites a quality shared plan is more than enough; cloud or dedicated hosting only matter for high-traffic projects or specific needs.
Gian Luca Partengo
Web developer since 1995 · bespoke websites · Updated:
You can have the most beautiful site in the world: if the server it lives on is slow or unreliable, the visitor just sees a page that won't load. Hosting is the base everything else rests on, and it's the item people most often save on the wrong way.
Good hosting goes unnoticed: the site is fast, always online and protected. Bad hosting is very noticeable — drops in speed, the site unreachable at the worst moments and nobody answering when you need help.
99,9%the minimum uptime to demand: below it, the site is unreachable too often
<200msa good server responds in under two tenths of a second
24/7support must be there when the site is down, not just office hours
What should you really look at in a host?
Beyond the price and the gigabytes promised, these are the things that make the difference.
Uptime and reliability
The percentage of time the site is online. Demand at least 99.9%: that means a few hours of downtime a year, not a week.
Security included
An application firewall (WAF), account isolation and SSL certificates included. The first line of defence is here, before the site itself.
Automatic backups
Automatic daily copies and one-click restore. If something goes wrong, it's the difference between an hour's work and a disaster.
24/7 support
Competent support, active day and night. It matters more than a thousand features: when the site is down you want someone who answers right away.
Scalability
The ability to grow without redoing everything: more resources when traffic rises, without a rushed migration.
Cheap hosting or quality hosting?
The difference between a few-euro host and a serious one isn't just price: it's what happens when your site really needs to hold up.
On the cheapest plans hundreds of sites share the same overcrowded server: when one has a spike, they all slow down. It's often the real hidden cause of a slow site.
Cheap vs quality
Server response (TTFB)
Cheap~600 ms
Quality~150 ms
Uptime
Cheap~97%
Quality99,9%
Support response
CheapHours/days
QualityMinutes
Indicative values: they vary from provider to provider, but the direction is that one.
Why do I use and recommend SiteGround?
After trying several providers over the years, for the sites I manage I chose SiteGround. It isn't the cheapest, but it's the one that lets me sleep at night — and that I recommend to clients in all honesty.
Speed
Servers on Google Cloud, NVMe drives, optimised PHP (Ultrafast PHP) and proprietary caching. Among the fastest in the managed category.
Security
A constantly updated application firewall, automatic daily backups and account isolation. Serious security as standard.
24/7 support
Competent technical support day and night, in chat and by phone. When you need help they actually answer and know their stuff: it's the main reason I stay.
Clear tools
Site Tools, the proprietary panel: clear and powerful, without the chaos of old cPanel. Manage everything from one place.
Staging environment
A test copy of the site to try updates and changes safely, before publishing them to the live site.
CDN and data centres
CDN included and data centres across several continents: the site stays fast wherever your visitors are.
Transparency: the SiteGround link is an affiliate link. If you sign up for a plan through it I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. I recommend it because I actually use it, not for the commission.
Shared, cloud or dedicated: which one do you need?
You don't need the most expensive plan: you need the right one for your project.
Shared hosting
Multiple sites on the same server. Cheap and more than enough for brochure sites and small projects: the right choice for most.
Cloud / Managed
Dedicated resources managed by the provider, with higher performance and stability. Ideal for e-commerce and sites with serious traffic.
VPS / Dedicated
Maximum control and resources all to yourself. Needed for large projects or special requirements — and it takes sysadmin skills.
Remember: a powerful server doesn't save a badly built site. If it's slow because of how it's made, changing host moves the problem — here's why a site is slow.
Frequently asked questions about hosting
The most common doubts about cost, security, migration and SEO.
What's the best hosting?
There's no absolute «best»: it depends on the project. For most professional sites you need fast, secure, well-supported managed hosting. I use and recommend SiteGround, but the rule always holds: speed, uptime, security and support before price.
How much does good hosting cost?
For a professional site, usually between 10 and 30 euros a month depending on plan and traffic. Be wary of plans costing a few euros a year: they're often overcrowded servers you'll pay for in slowness and downtime.
Is shared hosting secure?
It can be, if the provider isolates accounts well and keeps firewalls and systems updated. On good shared hosting a custom site is perfectly secure; the risk grows on poor providers, where one compromised site can infect others.
Can I change hosting later without losing the site?
Yes. A site can be migrated from one host to another without losing anything: content, email and domain all transfer. Many serious providers, SiteGround included, offer free or assisted migration.
Do I need a host with servers in Italy?
It's not mandatory, but if your audience is Italian a nearby data centre (Italy or Europe) reduces response times. Alternatively, a CDN brings content closer to users wherever they are.
Does hosting affect SEO?
Yes, indirectly but significantly: speed and uptime are factors Google weighs. A slow server worsens Core Web Vitals and a frequently offline site loses rankings. Good hosting is a base that helps SEO.
Next step
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