Below is our review for Bluehost.com. It is
based on our ten plus years of experience reviewing Web Hosts and Host
Finders. It is based on our
proven test procedures,
and on our
reader's reviews. This review is also based on the feedback we get
from our reader's comments, and emails as well as from the our
interaction with the business and Web developer/design communities in
the numerous online forums. Much of this review was conducted by a
non-paid independent panel of experienced Web developers that are very
good at what they do. We know that all of that combined makes our review
process different from anyone else's in this industry, but to top it off
it is important for you to know that unlike other review sites, we
Purchase the Web Hosting services we review. That's right. The
absolute BEST way to review Web Host services is by actually using those
services and comparing them to other Web Host services that have been
similarly tested with the same testing criteria. We do these tests
using an anonymous account so the Web Hosts will not treat us any
differently than any other customer. Our process is expensive, but it is
what we do because we want to be the best, and we want you to have the
best information possible.
Whether you agree with this review or not, if you have some experience
with Bluehost.com please let us know what your thoughts
are in the comments below, and by doing your own
your own review of Bluehost.com.
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Here's a Tip for you: We have never accepted money to give a
company a better rating. Our reputation is more important than that.
However, even though the vast majority of the "top
10" review type sites you see in the search engines appear to be genuine, they
actually base their lists of "Top Hosting Companies" on the affiliate
rates (or other advertising revenue) they
receive from the companies they list. The Web Hosts they list may be
good but the rating method used is faulty.
In our opinion, you should NEVER trust those types of review and rating
sites.
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Editor's Note: Our Independent Panel gave Bluehost an Editor’ Choice Award in July. Here is what they said…
“Short and sweet, BlueHost's one plan provides tons of monthly data transfer, disk storage and a well-rounded feature list. BlueHost utilizes the cPanel control panel for customer site administration. Offering toll free phone support, BlueHost has a technically proficient staff. Quality hardware and connectivity round out BlueHost's Budget Hosting solutions.
In Terms of PHP Hosting, their features speak for themselves. Our Independent Review Panel on second glance noticed that not many can stack up to all the options given in Bluehost plans or swiftness on how transactions are convient instead of sluggish affairs waiting for the green light to build or migrate your existing site.
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Web Host Review:
Bluehost.com
 This Review covers PHP Hosting services
| Our Review Rating for Bluehost.com:
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Review Rating |
90 |
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| Individual Score Breakdown |
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| Support |
(0-20) |
14 |
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| Reliability |
(0-20) |
18 |
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| Features |
(0-15) |
15 |
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| Value |
(0-15) |
15 |
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| Network |
(0-15) |
14 |
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| Industry |
(0-15) |
14 |
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Overview:
Bluehost has been around since 1996. And has consistently been run a similar plan since their establishment. It is good to know, with many web hosts raising the prices after they get a enough subscribers Bluehost has been consistent
BlueHost offers high quality with a low price tag. The plan includes free registration of one domain name, 10GB of hosting space, and 250GB / month of bandwidth. With this plan you also get many added features like 2500 POP3 web based emails, 5 add-on domains, FTP, PHP 4.4 with 5.0.4 on request, CGI, PHP Nuke, cPanel and a lot more features that provide you with the highest level of value for your money. Do a little search and comparison and you’ll find that only BlueHost offers so much for such a low price of $6.95.
This quality plan goes for only $6.95 a month and is hosted on high performance Xeon servers, which are some of the best in the industry. The $6.95 price locks you in a 2 year contract, and Bluehost can go as low as $9.95 with a 3 month contract, but they don't do 1 month contracts.
Bluehost does offer a 30-day guarantee. Cancel within 30 days for a full refund. Cancel after 30 days for a pro-rated refund. They do not carry an uptime guarantee though during our review period they faired better than 99% uptime. Their network backbone consists of the OC-48 backbone connection for their servers, which are some of the fastest fiber optic data connections used today. Bluehost's hours are from 6am to 10pm (MST) M-F with limited supported on Sat 8am - 5pm. They do not outsource their support. Our Independent Review Panel wish they had better hours for support and stated that they have had problems with their customer service. Customers have had support problems in the past, but have noted that doesn't seem to be an issue anymore.
Verdict:
Bluehost is good for the money, provide a lot for less, and they have a solid network. Our Independent Review panel has seen better support from other companies in it's class, but for the value, Bluehost PHP solutions are very good.
Pros:
Lots of Features • Lots of Monthly Data Transfer • High-Grade Hardware • email support • more for the money
Cons:
No Monthly Billing Options • No 24/7 Toll-Free Phone • No uptime guarantee
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Comments From Customers & Forums:
Sitepoint's forums
From InterSQ
"I have used BlueHost as part of a review scheme we had going last year.
I wasn't too impressed with their prices but hell, I placed an order. I was shocked when I found my domain had been fully registered and propagated within 2 minutes. I didn't even know this was possible :O
Overall its very good and gets a 9 / 10 rating from me.
Go for it !"
WebHostingTalk.com :From nsumner
"A while ago I went searching for a new host (I had been with Lunar pages). I needed to host 3 different domains so I was looking for a host that allowed at least 3 domains in the basic cost.
I finally found bluehost.com, the price seemed good etc etc. So I decided to sign up with them.
Firstly: A minor complaint but a really stupid system on their part. You can't create a add-on domain until you configure the nameservers for that domain to point to bluehost. This means that if you are transferrring a domain from an old host you can not have everything set up before you actually change the NS. I suspect you could call and bypass this however.
I have found the website to be reliable, and e-mail to be reliable. More reliable then lunarpages (where on a weekly basis I would have to reactive my yahoogroups e-mail address because it would bounce).
The only "problem" I had was intresting. They require every account to be verified. Fine I had called in and verified the account. A couple days later I found I couldn't get my e-mail and trying to log into the account reported that it didn't exist. I called up and it turned out that they saw I signed up from Israe, and used a Canadian address. The fraud department deleted the account (without really paying attention to the fact it has already been verified). They were appologetic and fixed the problem, as well they restored backups so that I didn't loose data (my E-mail is all IMAP and I didn't have a backup (I have learnt my lesson)). The truth is I understand and commend the fraud department for being so diligent, and I don't blame them for flagging the account. My only complaint is they could have and should have gotten in touch with me.
All in all I have been with them for a month (not long), and I am very happy. The price (especially since I am hosting 3 domains) is excellent, and the support is first class. Reliability is a solid 9.5/10.
Sitepoint Forums:atomicnuke
""That is who I use, haven't had a problem yet. You get alot for a cheap price and good service. Never had any downtime to my site and they answer my questions and don't make you feel like an idiot. My only problem with them is, if you develop a question over the weekend, you won't get an answer until Monday, since they aren't there on the weekends. But that is my only complaint. I also like that if you register a domain through them, which is free with the package, you can opt to have bluehost privacy. So if someone uses whois, it'll show bluehosts address and contact information, instead of yours, but it is still your domain to use and transfer anytime you want."
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