Bluehost Review 2023: Beginners Guide

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Photo by Kevin Ku

Bluehost is one of the world’s largest web hosting companies and an official WordPress hosting provider. Bluehost provides a wide range of hosting plans for beginners as well as medium- to large businesses, as well as 24/7 customer support. See our complete Bluehost review to determine if Bluehost is the right choice for you. Learn the ins and outs of the Bluehost login system to simplify your online experience and ensure a trouble-free website management journey.

In this article, we will give an in-depth review of Bluehost, discussing its pros and cons, features, pricing plan, customer service and security. 

What is Bluehost?

Bluehost is a hosting company that offers services to website owners who use the self-hosted version of WordPress (WordPress.org) or another open-source platform. It provides a variety of hosting plans, including shared, VPS, and dedicated hosting, to suit a wide range of budgets. WordPress.com is the hosted version of the platform. This full-service solution appeals to users who want to create and publish a site quickly without having to deal with site maintenance or other technical issues. Unleash the full power of your online presence with a step-by-step guide to Bluehost logins for easy website management.

How Does Bluehost Work?

Bluehost shared hosting works similarly to other shared hosting services in that multiple users share the computing resources of a single server, such as bandwidth, file storage, and processing power. Hosting costs are significantly lower than with dedicated or VPS hosting because each user receives a portion of the server’s resources rather than having to support full server resources. Learn the simple Bluehost login process, which ensures secure access to your website’s powerful tools and resources.

Bluehost maintains the server hardware and software and implements security protocols to ensure the safety and reliability of your website. Users build and manage their websites using Bluehost’s simple personal dashboards. You must first register a domain name before you can launch a website. 

You can use your existing domain with your Bluehost hosting plan. If you need a new domain, Bluehost will provide one for free with your hosting plan for the first year. Each year, you must re-register your domain. Also, Bluehost offers auto-renewal, so you never have to worry about your domain expiring. 

Bluehost Hosting Packages and Features

Bluehost has hosting plans to suit all budgets and sizes. Shared hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, cloud hosting, WooCommerce hosting, managed WordPress hosting, and other services are available. Let’s look at Bluehost’s hosting plans and features

#1. Shared Hosting

Shared hosting is an excellent choice for launching a new website with low traffic volume. Your website shares server resources with other websites in a shared hosting environment. Shared hosting costs N2,400 per month and renews for N8,024 per month. Our review revealed that the shared hosting plan is the cheapest plan on Bluehost.

#2. Clouding Hosting

Cloud hosting is a more dependable upgrade to shared hosting. It enables you to use multiple cloud servers, allowing your website to switch to a different server automatically in the event of a hardware failure or high traffic.

#3. WordPress Hosting

Their WordPress plans are tailored to WordPress-powered websites. It is optimised for running WordPress and can even protect your WordPress site from common threats. WordPress shared hosting costs N2,129 per month and renewed for N7,214 per month.

#4. WooCommerce Hosting

WooCommerce is the most popular eCommerce plugin for WordPress, and it enables you to easily launch an online store using WordPress. This WooCommerce hosting package includes all of the necessary features to get your eCommerce store up and running. WooCommerce hosting costs N6,386 per month, with a renewal fee of N20,042 per month.

#5. VPS (Virtual Private Server) Hosting

A step up from shared WordPress hosting, VPS hosting enables you to use virtual dedicated resources in a shared environment. VPS hosting costs N20,047 per month, with a monthly renewal fee of N32,124.

#6. Dedicated Hosting Server

If you use a dedicated hosting server for your website, you will have complete access to all of the server’s resources. The disadvantage is that you will be responsible for managing the server on your own. Dedicated hosting costs N80,322 per month, with a renewal fee of N96,388 per month.

All Bluehost hosting plans include a 1-click WordPress installation. All plans include an easy-to-use hosting control panel from which you can manage your hosting, create databases, and so on. Also, all of the prices listed above are valid when you sign a 36-month contract. There’s no reason to choose the standard option when comparing dedicated plans. The Enhanced plan costs the same as the Basic plan but provides twice the storage and computing power. 

Overview of Dashboard

The welcome/home page will be displayed once you login to the Bluehost Portal. This Bluehost page contains the WordPress login button as well as the most important steps that you may or may not have completed. If you missed any important steps while building your site, they will be listed here, and the system will walk you through the rest of the process. Take your time and examine all of the steps you’ve taken and those you haven’t.

#1. Section of My Websites

The tabs on the left-hand side of the menu allow you to manage your sites. There is a large “Manage Site” button here that allows you to take control of your site. People who have multiple sites can easily click on the “Add Site” button next to it, which reveals two new options: one for creating a new site and another for migrating an existing site to Bluehost. No matter how many sites you have, this is the place to manage them all on this hosting account.

#2. The Section Dedicated to the Marketplace

The Marketplace tab displays hundreds of options for improving your website and hosting plan. If you use WordPress, this is where you should look for themes and plugins. The Marketplace is designed for newcomers and allows everyone to find exactly what they’re looking for.

#3. Bluehost Email and the Office Section

The Bluehost  Email & Office tab is ideal for setting up and managing your professional email addresses. You can have your email domain in the Bluehost tab instead of using Gmail or another free service. This tab displays information and allows you to choose between Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. Please keep in mind that both email options are charged separately in Bluehost but are well worth it.

#4. Section on Domains 

Whether you want to manage a single domain or a group of them, you can do so quickly with the Bluehost Domains tab. This is where you can manage settings, verify domains, control DNS, redirects, and transfers, among other things.

#5. The Section on Marketing Tools

Once your website is complete, you will most likely want to market it. This is why Bluehost provides marketing tools that connect you to Google My Business, Bluehost SEO, Google Ads, and other marketing options as quickly as possible.

#6. Section for Advanced Students

If you select Advanced Settings, you will be taken to cPanel, a popular control panel that allows you to do almost anything with your hosting account. You can manage email using the Bluehost email tab, files, databases, check metrics, configure security settings, and much more. Beginners are unlikely to need to use cPanel because it is used to manage more complex site features, but it is useful to know that you are only a click away from expanding your options.

Pros and Cons of Bluehost

Here we’ll look at some of Bluehost’s advantages and shortcomings. Some of these cons may not have a significant impact on your hosting provider selection, but others may find one or more of these flaws to be a deal-breaker.

Bluehost Advantages

  • WordPress Integration is Seamless: Setting up a WordPress site with Bluehost couldn’t be easier.
  • Pricing at the Entry Level: Bluehost has a value score of 4.7 out of 5 based on the fact that prices remain competitive even after the first year, and a variety of tiered pricing plans ensures that there is an affordable option for every site.
  • Features That Can Be Relied On: Bluehost’s plans include unmetered bandwidth, a free domain name, and cPanel access.

Drawbacks of Bluehost 

#1. No Free Migrations 

Bluehost does not provide free site migration, which may be an issue for users switching from another web hosting provider. Even though this Bluehost service includes 24/7 support, a thorough review, and a seamless transition, it is still quite expensive for most users, especially when many other web hosting services will transfer your website for free. 

What’s more, this migration service excludes high-performance hosting options like VPS and dedicated. Downtime can be quite costly for website owners, as it can result in the loss of potential customers. 

#2. No Uptime Guarantee

Bluehost, unlike most other web hosting companies, does not provide an uptime guarantee on any of its plans. An uptime guarantee provides users with additional peace of mind by demonstrating that the provider will keep your website up and running in the most efficient manner possible and that they are serious about meeting the needs of their customers. Even though this may be an issue for some, many users have praised Bluehost for its uptime, despite the lack of a guarantee. 

#3. Constant Upsells

Once you choose a Bluehost pricing plan, you’ll be reminded of additional features that you can purchase during the checkout process. It doesn’t stop there, with popups and other marketing communications attempting to persuade you to upgrade to a more expensive package. It’s a little annoying, but these pitches do not affect the overall quality of hosting and service.

#4. No Managed WordPress Hosting

WordPress has recommended Bluehost since 2005, and they do provide WordPress hosting plans. They no longer provide managed hosting plans, however. Aside from one-click WordPress installations and optimised servers, the best-managed WordPress hosting providers provide additional services. Bluehost’s WordPress plans are essentially enhanced shared packages with WordPress-specific features. However, it does not include the additional service enhancements that a fully managed host provides.

Bluehost Security

An SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate is the best indicator of a secure website. In Bluehost, the padlock icon and the “https” at the beginning of a web address are indicators of SSL certificates, which reassure users that any information they share on your site is secure. Every Bluehost plan includes a free SSL certificate, so visitors will never receive a warning that your site is insecure.

A premium SSL certificate costs N40,000  per year and provides more advanced security. This is a worthwhile investment for e-commerce sites or any site where users will be logging in with a username and password and/or providing sensitive information (such as credit card information).

Spam Assassin protection, hotlink protection, and Secure Shell access are among the other free Bluehost security features. Essentially, Bluehost includes more than enough security measures to get a basic site up and running, but if you plan to scale your site or sell online, you may want to invest in a few extras.

Bluehost provides a plethora of additional security measures to choose from, but they can quickly add up and raise your bill, so it’s critical to make an informed decision. For example, SiteLock Find (advanced e-commerce security) is only N1,600/month, but it must be purchased annually at a cost of N19,200/year. That’s still not much to ensure your online customers’ safety, but it can be difficult not to feel surprised at the checkout.

Customer Service and Assistance

Bluehost provides 24/7 phone and chat support for all plan levels, which is unusual for hosting providers. In addition, the company has an extensive online resource centre and an active blog. Telephone support is slow to respond but more helpful in answering specific questions. 

There are hundreds of online reviews from actual Bluehost customers who discovered mixed feelings about Bluehost customer service. Many people said that support agents are helpful and courteous and that they can effectively troubleshoot problems and answer questions from those who were dissatisfied and complained about long support wait times, pushy upselling, excessive website downtime, and fatal website errors with insufficient support to resolve the issues.

Is Bluehost Simple to Use for Inexperienced Users?

Bluehost has grown its business by focusing on assisting bloggers and small businesses in quickly getting their websites up and running. It’s a simple platform that’s ideal for beginners and nontechnical do-it-yourselfers who want to build simple websites.

Is It Possible to Make Money Using Bluehost?

Bluehost affiliates can earn up to N52,300 for each qualified hosting plan purchase. The best part is that there is no earning limit. Bluehost affiliates are permitted to refer as many new customers as possible to the hosting company.

With Bluehost, How Many Websites Can I Create?

A successful website begins with the appropriate domain name. Domain names are your online address; they are how people find your website when it is stored on a server. Bluehost allows you to host an unlimited number of domains on your account, allowing you to manage as many websites as you want from a single location.

Bluehost Pays How Much Per Click?

The average commission rate per sale is between N52,300 and N100,500. This makes it one of the most lucrative web hosting affiliate programs available. Furthermore, you won’t have to worry about minimum payouts because Bluehost pays its affiliates every month.

Is GoDaddy superior to Bluehost?

Bluehost is a slightly better option than GoDaddy in general. It received more wins than the competitor, which is significant because it is more functional and provides better security for a lower overall cost. Bluehost is an excellent choice for launching a website, whether it’s a portfolio or a small business website.

Conclusion 

Finally, in this review article, Bluehost is a dependable and reputable web hosting provider offering a wide range of hosting solutions. Bluehost is certainly worth considering if you’re looking for a hosting provider that combines dependability, scalability, and ease of use. Before making a decision, evaluate your specific needs and budget to ensure it aligns with your long-term goals. Manage your website with ease using Bluehost’s secure login system, which gives you quick access to your hosting tools and resources.

Bluehost has hosting options that can meet your needs, whether you’re starting a personal blog, an e-commerce store, or a corporate website. After you choose a Bluehost web hosting package, you can claim your free domain. It only takes a few seconds more, and you’ll have everything you need to proceed and go live. It’s fine if you haven’t decided on a domain name yet. You can still sign up for a hosting plan with Bluehost, and you can always claim your free domain later.

References 

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