When your WordPress website receives large amounts of traffic on a regular basis, having the right platform is essential. Without an appropriate hosting platform, your site will fail when traffic spikes unexpectedly. The site may also load slowly, which may frustrate users and drive them away. Fortunately, site owners have several options when it comes to choosing a hosting platform.
WordPress Hosting Options
WordPress sites are server neutral, which means they can run on virtually any server, and here we’ll examine the basic hosting options available.
In-house Server
In-house servers run on hardware and software the website owner has purchased and installed. These servers are often expensive to initiate, but they provide you with more control over your WordPress site. Because these servers are not managed by a third party, however, your in-house IT team will be responsible for managing them, adding more resources when necessary and fixing any problems that occur.
Cloud Server
Unlike in-house servers, cloud servers run your site from a remote location via the Internet. Cloud servers are typically scalable, which means that they can grow with your site. They’re also cost effective, since you pay for only the resources you need. Furthermore, with the right cloud provider, you won’t have to worry about server failures or security problems.
Dedicated Server
When your website runs on a dedicated server, no other websites will share your resources. This means no other website’s activity will affect your site’s availability or load times. Because they tend to be more expensive than other options, dedicated servers are most appropriate for large websites that receive significant amounts of traffic on a daily basis.
Shared Server
A shared server is a server that your WordPress site shares with other sites. When other sites on the server experience high-traffic volumes, your site may load slowly or malfunction. Thus, this option is often inappropriate for websites with frequent traffic spikes. Nonetheless, some website owners choose shared hosting options because they’re less expensive than many other options.
VPS
A virtual private server, or VPS, is a blend between a shared and dedicated server. Like a shared server, a VPS requires your website share a server with other sites. However, unlike a shared server, a VPS allocates certain resources to each individual site on the server. This means that another website’s activity won’t impact your site’s ability to function. VPS hosting options are ideal for websites that need guaranteed access to a certain amount of resources without paying for a dedicated server.
Choosing a Platform
Regardless of the type of platform you choose for your WordPress site, you need to know that it will be able to grow as needed to handle your site’s traffic and content. Nothing’s more frustrating to users than a site that malfunctions frequently or loads slowly when traffic volume is high. When choosing a WordPress hosting platform, look for an option that can adapt quickly and easily when traffic increases or additional content is added to the site.
All hosting options have advantages and disadvantages. For high-traffic sites, however, the ability to accommodate sudden growth is one of the most important considerations, so website owners should opt for scalable hosting platforms with plenty of available resources whenever possible.