Businesses that engage in ecommerce or run an online store often leverage cloud hosting to support their customer-facing computing environment. Cloud hosting gives companies an efficient way to implement a modern ecommerce platform without maintaining it in an on-premises data center.
This article focuses on the benefits of dedicated servers for ecommerce, and discusses the features customers should look for when selecting a hosting partner. We conclude with an examination of some of the top dedicated hosting providers for ecommerce businesses.
Why Choose Dedicated Hosting for an Online Store?
Companies that host an ecommerce environment in the cloud have two main options when selecting a hosting plan. The two primary choices are dedicated or shared hosting.
- Dedicated hosting provides businesses with exclusive use of a server for their ecommerce site. The customer controls hardware and software configuration and can optimize the server to meet specific ecommerce performance objectives.
- Shared hosting uses a server and its resources to host multiple customers. This model is typically less expensive than the dedicated alternative, but entry-level shared hosting does not offer the same level of security or performance.
Ecommerce businesses should adopt the dedicated server approach, especially if they process payments. Companies gain enhanced security, consistent uptime, and improved performance, enabling them to support a revenue-critical ecommerce website effectively.
The table below summarizes the differences in these two cloud hosting models for ecommerce platforms.
| Feature | Dedicated Hosting | Shared Hosting |
| Performance | The exclusive use of server resources enables teams to configure them for stable and optimal performance, addressing ecommerce business requirements. | Companies cannot count on consistent or high performance because they share server resources with other clients. |
| Uptime | Ecommerce businesses can obtain better uptime SLAs with dedicated servers. | Uptime can be affected by other clients or by provider-imposed limitations. |
| Security | High security with physical isolation, control over security configuration, and the ability to deploy advanced security tools. | Less secure due to exposure to other tenants’ security vulnerabilities and limited control over security configuration. |
| Customization | Teams have full control to customize the server, including selecting the operating system and application stack to support their online store. | Companies have limited customization options that may not align with ecommerce requirements. |
| Compliance Support | A dedicated server streamlines compliance with PCI-DSS. Providers often offer compliance support and compliant-ready server configurations. | The shared environment may not meet compliance requirements, and providers may not offer compliance support. |
| Scalability | Support vertical scaling by adding resources to support business growth. | Limited vertical scalability, which may require growing ecommerce stores to move to higher shared tiers. |
| Backup and disaster recovery | Automated backups and customized retention periods effectively protect ecommerce data. | Backup and recovery options are often limited. |
| Cost | Higher monthly costs, which can be increased with the addition of managed services. | Low monthly cost. |
What Makes a Good Ecommerce Hosting Provider?
Ecommerce businesses must carefully select their web hosting provider to ensure they can deliver the performance needed to maintain high customer satisfaction. They must be certain that the hardware, software, and network bandwidth of their dedicated resources can effectively support their ecommerce stores. Companies with limited technical expertise may require more than the raw performance of dedicated servers and opt for a provider that offers managed services.
The decision-makers responsible for choosing a company’s ecommerce hosting provider should look for the following key features that differentiate prospective hosting vendors.
Strong uptime guarantees
The provider should offer uptime SLAs of at least 99.99%. Premium managed hosting providers support the availability requirements of ecommerce businesses through load balancing and failover options, ensuring online stores remain open.
Targeted and optimized performance
Ecommerce relies on database and transaction performance to ensure high customer satisfaction. A dedicated ecommerce server environment requires a high-performance infrastructure that delivers low latency and faster data access, with NVMe or SSD storage. Server performance should be optimized to support popular solutions such as WordPress hosting. The objective is to increase conversion rates and SEO rankings by improving page load speed.
Robust security
Ecommerce businesses need more than the basic security features offered by most web hosting companies. For example, they require SSL certificates to enable the secure exchange of customer financial data, malware scanning, and DDoS protection to ensure the availability of online stores.
Compliance support
Companies that process customer payments must comply with regulations like PCI-DSS. The hosting provider should support compliance with measures such as end-to-end data encryption and SOC 2-aligned security practices. Many hosting providers offer PCI-compliant servers that address ecommerce business requirements.
Managed services
Companies may wish to engage the provider for managed services to focus on core business activities. The providers’ technical teams will perform server maintenance and infrastructure setup to support online stores. Small business owners who lack a strong IT team can enjoy the benefits of a dedicated ecommerce solution, like managed WooCommerce hosting, and compete more effectively with larger market rivals.
Backup and disaster recovery
The web hosting provider must offer automated, encrypted, and validated backups, along with flexible restore options, to support customer-defined recovery point and time objectives. Businesses must be able to recover quickly from operational failures or cyberattacks. Providers can support enhanced resilience through georedundant and offline backups.
Scalability
Prospective providers should support business growth through vertical and horizontal scaling. They should offer solutions to address seasonal or unexpected traffic spikes. Companies must ensure that hosting services can be scaled to maintain responsiveness as customer volume and monthly visits increase.
Transparent pricing
The provider should offer clear pricing and a variety of hosting plans to address the needs of different ecommerce businesses. Customers should expect predictable monthly costs with no hidden fees for support or bandwidth.
A responsive customer support team
A good hosting provider offers excellent customer service from a responsive team that addresses issues before they affect online store availability or performance. The support team must be available 24/7/365 and be ready to assist less tech-savvy users in dedicated server management.
Top Dedicated Hosting Providers for Ecommerce Sites
The following ecommerce hosting providers offer businesses effective dedicated solutions.
Atlantic.Net
Atlantic.Net offers multiple dedicated server options that align with ecommerce requirements, including fully managed hosting plans. The company offers custom-built dedicated servers with root access and complete control over resources. Atlantic.Net maintains data centers across multiple regions to minimize latency and improve website responsiveness.
Factors that make Atlantic.Net an excellent choice for hosting an ecommerce platform include:
- Over 30 years of experience providing secure hosting services that support ecommerce;
- High-performance Intel and AMD CPUs supporting multiple operating systems;
- 100% uptime SLA;
- Fully audited and PCI-compliant data centers.
Kamatera
Kamatera provides customers with dedicated and shared hosting plans tailored to ecommerce businesses. Server options support Windows and multiple Linux distributions, including Ubuntu and Debian. The company provides 24/7 technical support to address issues before they impact revenue-generating online stores quickly.
Kamatera’s noteworthy features include:
- Flexible monthly and hourly pricing plans;
- Fast server response times and 99.95% uptime guarantee.
- An extensive marketplace of pre-configured apps and services.
GoDaddy
GoDaddy is a popular cloud hosting provider that leverages AI website builder tools to streamline the creation of ecommerce platforms. They offer affordable, reliable WordPress and WooCommerce hosting plans designed to support business growth. The company’s professional email and marketing tools help businesses compete with SEO-friendly websites.
Nice features offered by GoDaddy include:
- One-click installs of the latest application versions;
- Themes and add-ons to customize an ecommerce site;
- GoDaddy Payments is a built-in payment gateway.
Host Gator
Host Gator offers affordable shared hosting and dedicated, managed, and unmanaged hosting plans. They support small and emerging businesses with one-click WordPress installation and SSD web storage. Their dedicated servers are optimized for ecommerce or other high-performance applications such as gaming platforms.
Host Gator offers features including:
- Support for WHM/cPanel and Plesk control panels;
- One-year free domain registration;
- Unlimited bandwidth to handle high-traffic online stores.
Kinsta
Kinsta specializes in managed WordPress hosting and offers customers the option of utilizing dedicated servers for their ecommerce platforms. They maintain 27 global data centers, allowing customers to host online stores locally for optimal performance. The MyKinsta dashboard lets teams manage databases, WordPress sites, and applications from a unified, user-friendly interface.
Kinsta’s outstanding features include:
- Edge caching to reduce WordPress page load times by 50%;
- Pricing plans based on required bandwidth or the number of monthly visits;
- A high-performance content delivery network leveraging over 300 worldwide locations.
Conclusion
Ecommerce companies must partner with a reliable provider that offers dedicated server hosting plans tailored for online stores. We have discussed the reasons to use dedicated servers for ecommerce hosting, the factors to consider when selecting a partner, and some of the top dedicated hosting options. The right provider can help your ecommerce site and your business flourish with the resources required to support a growing customer base.