IX Web Hosting Review: Lots of Features, Cheap Price
Location: Hopkinsville, KY
Year in Business: 10
It's simple to sum up IX Web Hosting: plenty of features, very affordable, and 24/7 customer service that is based in the United States. In addition to providing unlimited disk space and bandwidth, its plans also support multiple domains, a variety of free scripts and much more. And, at only $3.95/month for the Expert plan, IX Web Hosting definitely delivers a good bang for your buck.
The Expert plan also includes 2,500 e-mail accounts, a variety of programming languages like PHP, Perl and Ruby on Rails, plus free website templates and advertising credits. This makes it fast and easy for you to get a professional looking website online and start getting visitors.
IX Web Hosting's 10 year track record and fully-owned data center are also points of distinction. Many low cost web hosts don't have the resources to successfully operate a web hosting facility. Instead, they lease servers and services from a third party. Combined with the 10 year history, this illustrates IX Web Hosting's solid financial position and commitment to the industry and its customers for the long term.
IX Web Hosting is a great choice if you are looking for a solid value with plenty of features from a company whose service is really "made in the USA."
Price & Plans
IX Web Hosting offers three types of hosting plans: Expert, Business Plus and Unlimited Pro. The Expert plan is comparable to other low cost hosting packages and the best choice for most customers. Pricing and contract length options for this plan are as follows:
3 Months - $7.95/month
6 Months - $6.95/month
12 Months - $4.95/month
24 Months - $3.95/month
36 Months - $3.95/month
There is a $30.00 set-up fee and $10.00 domain registration cost which are both waived if you choose a 12, 24 or 36 month package.
If you do the math, you’ll find that the 3 month contract costs a total of $230 if renewed over a 2 year period (when including the additional fees). Meanwhile the 24 month contract costs about $95 for the same time frame, a much better value that saves $135.
Features
See table (left) for a list of key features and benefits for the Business Plus plan. For a complete list of features for all packages, visit IX Web Hosting.
Service
Phone support, live chat and an online ticket system are available 24/7. There is also an in-depth FAQ with answers to over 150 questions, as well as a comprehensive online hosting manual and more than 40 video tutorials – if you prefer to help yourself. We encourage you to use these tools and become a better website manager.
Space
Many web hosts are now offering unlimited disk space. While no host can truly provide unlimited resources, IX Web Hosting easily supports the average website that uses 20 megabytes or less (1 gigabyte = 1,024 megabytes). Of course, if you plan to start the next MySpace or FaceBook, no low cost web host will be able to handle your account.
Bandwidth
In addition to disk space, many web hosting companies are also offering unlimited bandwidth. Again, no web host can provide infinite bandwidth each month, but IX Web Hosting easily supports the typical website that uses 10 gigabytes or less. If your site has very high traffic (several million page views per month) or is very image intensive, consider upgrading to the Unlimited Pro package.
Security
IX Web Hosting manages its own data center and has taken all the precautions to ensure your website and data are safe. This includes a multi-layer security infrastructure that has been certified as “Hacker-Safe.”
Reliability
IX Hosting has multiple tier-1 Internet connections through telecom partners such as Verizon and BellSouth. This means there are a variety of ways for your website and visitors to connect.
Ease of Use
The IX control panel (called “H-Sphere”) is simple to use. It looks very similar to your computer “desktop” with obvious icons for each category like E-mail, FTP and Tools. Try the demo at IX Web Hosting by going to the "Hosting Plans" description page.
Freebies
Every new web hosting account receives a free domain for life while you are an IX customer. There are also free credits for search engine marketing programs like Google and Yahoo!, which can drive more targeted visitors to your website. This amounts to over $100 in giveaways that you get for free.
Guarantees
IX Hosting follows the industry standard by providing a 30 day guarantee. If you are unsatisfied with your purchase for any reason, just ask for a full refund, less the cost of the free domain that was provided (this stipulation is similar to other web hosting companies).
Discounts
You didn't hear this from us, but if you click the link below to visit the IX Web Hosting website, there is a "secret link" at the bottom of the page that leads to a coupon that saves 20% off the already low price of $3.95. We don't know how long this will last so take advantage while it's available.