Bluehost and HostMonster are two of the best hosting providers in the market.
Bluehost is definitely a contender for the most popular hosting service available, while HostMonster promises full functionality for businesses and individuals for a very affordable price.
If you are trying to find the right hosting service and need an in-depth look at what each one offers, this article can provide you with all the know-how to make an informed decision that best suits your needs.
The following is a complete comparison of Bluehost Vs HostMonster.
Table of Contents
About the Companies
HostMonster was founded in 1996 and has been around for a long time. It is one of the oldest web hosting companies in the business today.
It is highly skillful and focuses more on small businesses. Larger companies often tend to find other options because of their higher budget, as HostMonster tries to focus more on budget shared hosting. Thus, it is an excellent option for websites that are starting out.
Bluehost is relatively younger and was founded in 2003. It hosts a staggering 2 million websites globally.
Vast improvements through time have helped Bluehost perfect its service by providing various options for hosting at extremely reasonable rates.
Bluehost is one of the most popular hosting companies today.
Hosting Features
| Features | Bluehost | HostMonster |
|---|---|---|
| SSD Storage | Yes | No |
| Support Ratings | 3.5/5 | 2.5/5 |
| WordPress Support | 4/5 | 2.5/5 |
| Free Backups | Yes | No |
| Free SSL | Yes | No |
| Free Malware Scanning | No | No |
| Site Migration | $149 | $149.99 |
| CDN | CloudFlare | CloudFlare |
| Control Panel | cPanel | cPanel |
| Free Website Builder | Yes | Yes |
| Cron Jobs | Yes | Yes |
| Recommended by WordPress.Org | Yes | No |
| Pricing from | $3.95/mo | $4.95/mo |
SSD Storage
SSD storage is usually provided by most hosting companies. It provides great performance, fast disks and stability.
This is why SSD storage is essential for the hosting needs of today.
Both Bluehost and HostMonster provide SSD storage instead of the outdated standard storage.
The SSD storage is a constant in all plans.
Free SSL Certificate
Bluehost provides SSL certificates for free as compared to HostMonster.
It has been very reliable in terms of providing SSL on its domains free of cost.
On the other hand, HostMonster does not provide free SSL certificates in its cheaper plans, so you will have to spend more to get this feature.
WordPress Support
WordPress is essential for most businesses in the world today.
It is one of the biggest CMSs. With WordPress, creating a website becomes an easy task. It is also widely used in order to manage and formulate blogs.
People using Bluehost find it very easy to use WordPress for their website.
As soon as a user signs up on Bluehost, they are asked to start using WordPress. Various themes are present, and the whole process is made easier for the user.
HostMonster also provides this service to its customers and helps them set up the entire site.
Website Builder
Website builder is a unique feature that helps users make websites easily. You can use a drag-and-drop option for this purpose.
For new users, this feature is incredibly important. These website builders are usually for those who do not want to use WordPress to create a website.
Both HostMonster and Bluehost have different website builders that can help their customers.
Bluehost uses the Weebly website builder, while HostMonster offers a custom website builder.
Both website builders make creating websites an easy experience.
Money-Back Guarantee
Money-back guarantees are provided by both Bluehost and HostMonster.
These guarantees are very reliable but are only applicable on the first 30 days.
This feature is important for those who are not satisfied with the services provided by the companies.
Control Panel
As far as control panels are concerned, both Bluehost and HostMonster use cPanel.
cPanel makes it easier to install various apps. It is also beneficial when starting MySQL databases and FTP accounts.
They are also very efficient for adding email accounts and subdomains. These are particularly helpful for beginners as it makes various tasks easier.
Both Bluehost and HostMonster provide excellent control panels for their users.
However, the cPanel offered by Bluehost has been improved to provide a better experience for users. These improvements make access easier with better implementation of features.
Uptime
Bluehost offers an uptime of 99.9%, while HostMonster’s is 99.96%. Thus, both are great in this area.
However, HostMonster is a bit inconsistent in terms of uptime. Various months face more downtimes than the standard. Furthermore, various users face frequent issues in this regard.
Bluehost also has problems from time to time, but users of Bluehost do not face too many problems.
Backups
Bluehost offers free backups, but HostMonster does not offer free backups and charges $1.99 per month if the user needs them.
Most web hosting platforms do not charge for backups.
Hidden Costs
Bluehost does not feature as many hidden costs. On the other hand, promotional rates for HostMonster are only for the newer plans, and the promotions end once a user reactivates their plans.
Furthermore, domain names are not provided for free on HostMonster and canceling your subscription results in another charge.
Customer support
Both Bluehost and HostMonster provide 24-hour customer support.
While Bluehost has a capable staff that can easily deal with its clients’ issues, HostMonster is often inconsistent in terms of customer support.
Many subscribers have claimed they have to wait for long periods to get an adequate response.
Only hosts better at support than Bluehost are SiteGround and WPX Hosting. But they are expensive than Bluehost.
Bluehost Vs HostMonster: Loading Speeds
Loading speeds are an essential part of a hosting service. A website that loads slowly makes it harder for any business to flourish.
Thus, loading times are often the best indicator for the quality of service provided by the company.
Speed test of a website hosted on Bluehost:
Speed test of a website hosted on HostMonster:
Pricing Comparison
Both Bluehost and HostMonster offer competitive pricing. Bluehost plans are the most flexible while HostMonster doesn’t offer as varied plans.
| Plans | Bluehost | HostMonster |
|---|---|---|
| Starter Plan (First Invoice) | $3.95/mo | $4.95/mo |
| Middle Plan (First Invoice) | $5.95/mo | $6.95/mo |
| Top Plan (First Invoice) | $5.95/mo | $6.95/mo |
| Starter Plan (Renewal) | $7.99/mo | $9.49/mo |
| Middle Plan (Renewal) | $10.99/mo | $12.49/mo |
| Top Plan (Renewal) | $14.99/mo | $14.99/mo |
Bluehost or HostMonster?
HostMonster performs well in terms of providing cheap plans along with various features, but it is largely inconsistent in terms of customer support and speed.
These are very important factors for any website to thrive.
In comparison, Bluehost is consistent throughout.
Another key factor which makes Bluehost a better option is the lack of various hidden costs, which are present with HostMonster.
Thus, while HostMonster might be cheaper, in terms of performance and support, Bluehost is the clear winner.
