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GoDaddy Website Hosting Alternatives

There has never been so many options for hosting a website or blog. And GoDaddy is possibly the most well-known brand in the website services industry. Although they began as a domain registrar, they have used their brand recognition and massive ad spend to become one of the largest hosting companies & website builder companies in the world.

But what if you want an alternative to GoDaddy hosting? Just because you might have your domains there does not mean you have to use their hosting or website builder services. After all – you own your domain and can “point” it do whatever hosting / builder service most fits your project.

In my career as a marketing consultant, I’ve been able to use and consult on a full range of website builders, software & platforms for both my in-house projects and client projects. While GoDaddy’s hosting is a fine for some projects, I also thought it would be useful to have a list of GoDaddy hosting alternatives along with what they do well & who they focus on. I’ve included a mix of pure hosting services (where you purchase the hosting and then install your website software of choice) along with hosted platforms (where hosting services are bundled with builder software).

Here’s a brief summary along with an extended explanation below.

Summary of Best GoDaddy Hosting Alternatives

Name Best if you want… Visit!
Weebly …a hosted builder w/ drag & drop features & integrated features. See Features.
InMotion …independent-owned, high-performance hosting w/ great support. See Features.
Bluehost …name-brand web hosting w/ good support, pricing & clean interface. See Features.
Shopify …full-featured, hosted ecommerce platform for building an online store. See Features.

Disclosure – I receive customer referral fees from companies listed on this website. All data & opinion is based on my professional experience as a customer or consultant to a customer. Read my full reviews of various website hosts here.

Guide to GoDaddy Website Hosting Alternatives

Here’s an extended guide to each, along with other GoDaddy hosting alternatives for specific use cases.

Weebly

Weebly is known as a drag and drop website builder. They have a flexible setup, and simpler “onboarding” than if you buy hosting & install website software separately. They compete directly with GoDaddy’s website builder product. They have a full range of features bundled with hosting.

I wrote a full Weebly review here.

Go check out Weebly’s Plans here.

InMotion Hosting

InMotion Hosting provides a full range of hosting services. They are a fast-growing independent hosting company (ie, not owned by a major, publicly traded corporation like Endurance or GoDaddy). I use them for most of my projects (including this site). They have excellent performance and a real focus on customer support.

I reviewed InMotion hosting here & compared InMotion directly to GoDaddy here.

Go check out InMotion’s Plans here.

Bluehost

Bluehost is the other big brand in the web hosting industry. However, unlike GoDaddy, they were founded & still focus almost exclusively on hosting services. They have very affordable price plans and a setup suited to smaller websites. If you want a name-brand with very affordable pricing – then Bluehost makes a good alternative.

I reviewed Bluehost here & compared Bluehost directly to GoDaddy hosting here.

Go check out Bluehost’s plans here..

Shopify

Shopify is a name-brand ecommerce platform. Like Weebly, they bundle their hosting service with their ecommerce software. They specifically serve online storeowners and make a great alternative to GoDaddy’s limited ecommerce builder features.

I wrote a review of Shopify here.

Go check out Shopify’s plans here.

Other GoDaddy Hosting Alternatives

There are, of course, tons of other alternatives including options that either have a specific use case, I haven’t used enough to fully judge or don’t quite have features/benefits that the alternatives listed above already cover.

That said, I’ve had managers compiling a list for internal evaluation. Here’s the list that I usually provide.

  • HostGator – a sister hosting brand to Bluehost. I use them for many of my smaller projects due to their very affordable pricing, and unmetered feature set. Check out their plans here.
  • SiteGround Hosting – a rapidly growing independent hosting company. They have excellent service with a focus on global hosting & useful developer features. Check out their plans here.
  • Web Hosting Hub – a sister brand to InMotion focused on starter sites. They have excellent support, and are focused exclusively on shared hosting. Check out their plans here.
  • BoldGrid – software offered by some hosting companies that installs with WordPress so that you get all the benefits of self-hosted WordPress in addition to drag & drop design and simplified setup.
  • NameCheap – a competing domain registrar that also offers email and simple “one-page” software. Excellent long-term pricing with user-friendly dashboards. Check out their services here.

Related Resources

I’ve written a lot about website builders – and have been able to consult with a variety of clients from small shops to household brands. Here’s related resources that I’ve written.

Related Reviews

Related Guides

All the best on your project!