What is website hosting and do I need it?

Hosting is one of those words that gets thrown around as if everyone already knows what it means. Here is the plain version.

The simple explanation

Your website is a set of files. Those files have to live on a computer that is switched on all the time and connected to the internet, so that when somebody types in your address the files can be sent to them. Hosting is renting space on that computer.

Think of the domain as your address and the hosting as the actual building. The address on its own does not give anyone anywhere to visit.

Domain, hosting and email are three different things

• Domain: your web address, for example bennydunks.uk. Roughly £10 to £20 a year.
• Hosting: where the site files live. Free to about £180 a year for a small business site.
• Email: mailboxes on your own domain, such as hi@yourbusiness.co.uk. Around £5 to £12 per mailbox per month.

They are often sold together in one bundle, which is fine, but it means people assume they are one thing. They are not, and you can move each of them separately if you need to. Sorting out domains and business email is usually an afternoon of work, and it is worth doing properly once.

Do you need to buy hosting?

You need hosting. You may not need to buy it separately.

If you use a builder like Squarespace or Wix, hosting is baked into the monthly fee. If someone builds you a modern static site, it can often sit on a platform with a genuinely free tier that is faster than most paid shared hosting. If you have a WordPress site with plugins and a database, you will need proper hosting and you should not go for the cheapest option.

What good hosting gives you

• Speed. Slow hosting makes even a well built site feel sluggish, and speed affects both rankings and enquiries.
• Uptime. The site is up when people look for it.
• An SSL certificate, so your address shows as secure with https. This should be free and automatic in 2026.
• Backups, so a mistake is not a disaster.
• Someone to ring when something breaks.

Where people overpay

The classic trap is the cheap first year. You sign up at £2.99 a month, then it renews at £14.99 a month and you never notice. Check the renewal price, not the intro price.

The other one is paying £30 a month for a hosting package built for a busy shop when you have a five page brochure site getting two hundred visits a month. You are buying capacity you will never touch.

Who should own the account?

You should. Always. If your designer registers the domain and hosting in their own name, you are not in control of your own business. It is fine for someone to manage it for you, but the account should be in your name with your card and your email on it.

I set clients up so they own everything. I can look after it, but if you ever want to walk away you take the lot with you. That is how it should work. Most of my clients are local firms who found me through the web design in Rugby page, so if anything ever needs sorting in person I am twenty minutes away.

If you are not sure what you are currently paying for, forward me your renewal emails and I will tell you straight whether it is good value. If you would rather never think about any of it again, that is what the managed service is for.