Most Popular Hosts
April 2008

1		BlueHost
2		HostMonster
3		midPhase
4		Lunarpages
5		EasyCGI
6		ANHosting
7		DreamHost
8		Yahoo!
9		1&1
10		ThinkHost

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This website is dedicated to cutting through the clutter to find great hosting for your site.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: December 2005

Welcome to 2006. In December, midPhase pulled off a neat trick; not only did they revamp their ANHosting brand and produce a solid winner, but they managed to get both ANHosting and their flagship brand in the top three! With BlueHost and ANHosting leading the way (and PowWeb right behind!) we are seeing a new wave of storage increases that should be good news to a lot of webmasters. Yahoo! remains in the top ten, as do many of the usual suspects. SimpleHost regained their position in the top five after an unexplained dive in November. Others wandered up and down a bit (although HostGator's down was rather large).

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: November 2005

Another month and another surprise. Yahoo! revamped their plans this month and popped onto the top ten for the first time. Yes, I will be updating their review; it is sadly out of date, mainly because their offerings used to be painfully meager. Otherwise, we get BlueHost pushing back against midPhase to retake the top spot and (for no discernable reason) Simplehost sinking like a rock to last place. Of course, last place is still in the top ten, so don't count them out yet. They remain a solid hosting choice.

Sorry for the delay in getting this up. Three of the four members of my household have had the flu this week. Not fun.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: October 2005

The big news in October is how popular HostGator was out of the gate. We just reviewed them last month and here there are at #3. Not too shabby. midPhase and BlueHost are still on top, having traded spots for the third time in so many months, although midPhase's lead is considerable this time. Site5 sank hard and 1&1 went down a bit as well. The only solid trend I can see is the ongoing (and understandable) popularity of Fantastico; four of the top five offer it.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: September 2005

Well, I thought September would shake things up and it did to some extent, but not much. BlueHost retook the lead from midPhase but it was just by a hair. 1&1 and Site5 continued their respective rises and PowWeb and Simplehost both slipped a little but remained strong.

I would love to offer some generalizations, but it is difficult. I could say that you folks like Fantastico hosts, as half of the top ten provide it, but then half of them don't. I could say you like single-plan hosts, as they came in at positions one, four, and six, but there were still seven in there that are multi-plan. You like hosts with generous storage and transfer allowances, but that's a bit of a no-brainer. Perhaps the Great Pumpkin will illuminate me by next month and it will be clear what you are looking for in a host. Of course, the reality is that everyone is looking for something slightly different.

Note: Starting this month, we will be separating iPowerWeb from StartLogic in the popularity reports. While we maintain that they are in fact the same company, their plans are different enough that they are likely to have different appeals.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: August 2005

Okay, I'm back. Sorry about things last week. Not only did I not have the brainpower to try to explaing things, I didn't even get the numbers right. The corrected numbers are shown here now. midPhase has bumped BlueHost out of its number one spot, a testament to the strength of midPhase's relaunch. BlueHost and PowWeb still posted great numbers. EasyCGI returned with a nice showing. Globat fell off the list, perhaps due to some negative comments they've received on some forums lately. (Don't worry, folks, I will be re-reviewing them soon and if the negative comments seem warranted, they will be gone from the recommended list. Innocent until proven guilty for the moment, however.) As vacation time ends and students return, we should see a bit more snap, crackle, and pop to the list over the few month. Stay tuned.

Original Comment: I have to admit something, folks. I have been watching coverage of the Hurrican Katrina aftermath all evening and I am really not in a good frame of mind to try to explain the changes in August vs. July. EasyCGI is back; Globat fell off the list, a few others shuffled a little. In general the usual suspects remain. Sorry for the crappy analysis. Maybe I'll retrofit one after the weekend when my brain is working better. Give to the Red Cross.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: July 2005

You know, I felt that July was boring from the heat, humidity, and general miasma that is the Pittsburgh weather. But then I ran the popularity numbers for July and the feeling was confirmed. Can you say "June, redux"? Sure, EasyCGI wandered off the list and was replaced by Aplus.net and Globat and Lunarpages traded places. But that's it. Nothing else changed. Well, I guess you folks like who you like. Maybe we're just finally settling into a nice idea of who the favorites really are. Here's the list:

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: June 2005

Well June seems to have reinforced some of the changed we saw in May. The top five stayed the same with PowWeb continuing to show strength (although not enough to unseat the perennial favorite, BlueHost. The bottom five shuffed a bit, but without any clear trend. Easy CGI has now dropped to ninth, from an April high of fourth. Simplehost moved back up to sixth. Summer is looking to be a bit different than spring and winter were. Should be fun to watch.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: May 2005

So, I have a new one for you. Instead of "April showers bring May flowers", howsabout "April specials bring May sales." Not as catchy, I suppose, but three of the top four in May had specials. The number one position, of course, was the perennial favorite BlueHost. A few surprises, though: PowWeb zoomed up to number two from number six and 1&1 debuted on the list at number five! On the other hand, SimpleHost plummeted to eighth place and EasyCGI to seventh for reasons I cannot fathom. A bit of a summer shakeup, maybe. We'll see if it lasts.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: April 2005

Eliot wrote "April is the cruellest month", but it certainly wasn't cruel to EasyCGI. This Windows-only host surged up to fourth from nineth. Otherwise, the list is a lot of the same familiar names. BlueHost, SimpleHost, and PowWeb keep the single-plan hosts well represented. midPhase remains the strongest multi-plan host. It should be interesting to see if the summer doldrums cause any shakeup like the holiday season did.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: March 2005

Not sure what to write this month. Not a lot of surprises. BlueHost stayed on top; SimpleHost and PowWeb moved up nicely. I guess you folks do like the ease of one-plan hosts. The iPowerweb/StartLogic behemoth is back. Otherwise, same old, same old.

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: February 2005

Am I the only one who hates February? Sure, there is Valentine's in the middle, but the second half is just cold and wet. Oh well. Good weather for building web sites, I guess. Here's what hosts you folks liked in February:

Most Popular Shared Web Hosts :: January 2005

Well, I guess the barren wasteland of winter has brought everyone out of their holiday reverie. At least the numbers seem more normal. Anyway, here's what was popular in January: