As businesses continue to shift online, the decision on hosting types is now more important than ever. In 2025, shared hosting has a 37.6% share of the global market, which is expected for new sites. While it’s expected that cloud market growth will occur with an 18.3% annual growth rate due to demand for the scalability of the service, with dedicated hosting comprising close to 27.9% for existing sites, or sites with large traffic or compute/component needs.
The purpose of this guide is to discuss the three options, as well as provide a few platforms we think are the best for shared and cloud hosting, and the links to the platforms will be provided via affiliate links through alternateproduct.com.
Why should you care about stats?
This information shows why it is important to take the above into consideration when deciding on hosting based on the size you expect, the growth you intend to pursue, and your technical/learning aptitude.
- Shared hosting represents 37.64% of the market share in 2025
- Cloud hosting is growing with an 18.3% annual growth rate.
- Dedicated hosting accounts for close to 27.9% of the market and will always be relevant for enterprise-grade hosting for websites.s
- The overall web hosting market is expected to increase to $124B in 2024 and to $150B in 2025, resulting in a 21% compound annual growth rate.
Grasping The Fundamentals
Shared Hosting
- Inexpensive: The most cost-effective option for small websites/blogs.
- No time spent on maintaining the server: The host will handle the management of the server.
- Risk of vulnerability: Neighbouring sites could negatively impact your performance and security.
Cloud Hosting
- Can quickly scale: Change your available resources from minute to minute.
- Maximum uptime & reliability: Because of the redundancy in multiple servers, you can expect the highest uptime.
- Pricing based on usage: You’ll pay for how much you use and are not penalised for spikes in traffic.
Dedicated Hosting
- Complete access to a server: Use 100% of the available resources, not shared with others.
- High-performing server: Beneficial when heavy-traffic sites or sites needing multiple resources.
- High cost and technical knowledge needed: More expensive than other hosting types, and it may benefit large businesses.
Shared vs Cloud vs Dedicated
DreamHost
- Features: Shared, VPS, Dedicated, Cloud, WordPress hosting; Unlimited bandwidth, Free SSL, WP Site Builder.
- Details: Beginner-friendly, SSD storage, 97-day money-back guarantee, slow support.
Pricing: Reach out to us to discuss options for hosting fees.
Hostinger
- Features: Shared, VPS, Cloud, WordPress hosting; Free domain, hPanel, Weekly backups.
- Details: Low-cost, Fast loading time, 99.9% uptime, Limited advanced features.
Pricing: Check this out for discounted costs on hosting fees.
SiteGround
- Features: Shared, Cloud, WordPress hosting; Free SSL, Daily backups, CDN.
- Details: Reliable, Optimised for WordPress, Good support, High renewal pricing.
Pricing: Reach out to us to have a discussion and build a customised option for other providers.
Bluehost
- Features: Shared, VPS, Dedicated, WordPress hosting; Free domain, Unmetered bandwidth.
- Details: Beginner-friendly, WordPress endorsed, Average support, Owned by EIG.
Pricing: Check here for exclusive deals on alternative hosting services.
InMotion Hosting
- Features: Shared, VPS, dedicated, WordPress hosting; free domain, SSD storage, 90-day guarantee.
- Details: Reliable, geared toward business, good support, complex layout.
Pricing: Contact us for personalised recommendations on alternative providers.
GoDaddy
- Features: Shared, VPS, dedicated, WordPress hosting; free domain, easy to use, marketing tools included.
- Details: Newbie-friendly, upsells, average performance, large number of users.
Pricing: Check out this link for exclusive deals on alternative hosting solutions.
Cloudways
- Features: Managed cloud hosting, host on DigitalOcean, AWS, Google Cloud, Linode, or Vultr; free SSL, 24/7 support, auto-scaling, CDN.
- Details: Easy to use, fast, pay-as-you-go pricing, good for WordPress and e-commerce hosting, does not register domains or host email.
Pricing: Contact us for recommendations on alternative hosts.
A2 Hosting
- Features: Shared, VPS, dedicated, WordPress hosting; turbo servers, free SSL, anytime refund.
- Details: Super-fast performance, developer-friendly, consistent, support level varies.
Pricing: See here for discounts on alternative hosting.
InterServer.net
- Features: Shared, VPS, dedicated, and cloud hosting; unlimited storage & bandwidth, cPanel, free SSL, guaranteed price lock.
- Details: Fairly cheap, reliable uptime, okay for small sites, mixed reviews on support, strong for users on a budget.
Pricing: Click here to receive discounted rates for alternative hosting options.
MochaHost
- Features: Shared, VPS, Dedicated; Free SSL, Unlimited space, Lifetime discount.
- Details: Cheap, Mixed reviews, Good for small sites.
Costs: Check here for coupons for alternative hosting.
Products At Glance
| Feature | Shared Hosting | Cloud Hosting | Dedicated Hosting |
| Cost | $3–$30/month | $5–$500/month | $40–$500+/month |
| Performance | Variable | Scalable | Consistently high |
| Scalability | Low | Excellent | High, but static |
| Control | Limited | Moderate (managed) | Full root access |
| Uptime | 99%–99.9% | 99.9%+ | 99.9 %+, with SLAs |
| Best For | Blogs, startups | Scaling apps, medium sites | High-traffic enterprise |
Choosing A Hosting Type
Tight budget?
- Select shared hosting. It is cost-effective and the easiest for a beginner.
Expecting to scale soon or spikes in traffic?
- Select cloud hosting. The pay-for-use pricing allows you to scale quickly as needed for traffic spikes.
Want maximum control and security?
- Select dedicated hosting, but make sure you have some technical skills or support.
Our Recommended Shared & Cloud providers
Below are our top cloud provider picks – you can compare plans and find affiliate offers at alternateproduct.com:
- DreamHost – Shared & Cloud (DreamCompute): scalable, SSD, WordPress-ready
- GoDaddy – Shared & Cloud: clean UI, domain bundle incentives
- SiteGround – Cloud: Google-built infrastructure, free CDN, backups
- Cloudways – Managed Cloud: deploy on AWS/GCP/DigitalOcean without drama
- Hostinger – Shared & Cloud: super affordable, NVMe storage
- A2 Hosting – Shared & Cloud: incredible Turbo performance servers
- Bluehost – Shared & Cloud: cPanel with WordPress integration
- InterServer.net – Shared & Cloud: transparent pricing, no hidden fees
- Liquid Web – Cloud: proactive support, enterprise-grade hosting reliability
- MochaHost – Shared & Cloud: flexible resource bundles, long refund policy
Take the time to compare features, pricing and promo offerings at alternateproduct.com.
Conclusion
All four types of hosting serve different purposes:
If you want to be a simple, cost-conscious beginner, shared hosting will serve you well.
When you scale and grow, one of the benefits of cloud hosting is that you won’t switch your hosting plans.
If you have a large, complex website, dedicated hosting will provide the best performance and control, but requires technical knowledge.
For the majority of growing sites in 2025, cloud hosting provides the best balance of all the factors. Research shared and cloud hosting plans, and consider the quality of hosting related to your growth, before deciding on a provider on alternateproduct.com.
FAQs
What is the greatest advantage of cloud hosting over shared hosting?
Cloud hosting allows for dynamic resource scaling and less downtime that comes with traffic surges, something shared hosting is not be capable of.
When should a site transfer from shared or upgrade to cloud hosting?
When you feel you are experiencing internal slowdowns, when you expect traffic surges, when you need it continually up and dynamic scaling to resources, or simply want more flexible resources, feel free to transition.
Is having dedicated hosting for my server worth it?
If you want total control of your server, have urgency for higher security measures, require higher quantities of resources and have a real need for them at times, sure, however cloud hosting is usually more cost-effective and still a powerful option overall.
What type of hosting is most suitable for E-commerce sites?
If your sales will either fluctuate between products and/or will scale up periodically, cloud hosting is typically, still a safer choice to go with. If you sell a lot of products daily however, dedicated hosting may be a better option.
Where can I compare these hosting types side by side?
Feature breakdowns, pricing, and current promotional deals can be seen at alternateproduct.com, and it will assist you in determining what type of hosting fits your needs best.
