So you want to know more about VPS hosting and dedicated hosting.
You’ve come to the right place!
You might have clicked on this article thinking:
“Should I go for VPS hosting or dedicated hosting?”
Choosing could get confusing since these are two of the most popular hosting types out there.
So how do they differ?
Today, we will talk about the pros and cons of VPS and dedicated hosting.
We’ll also tackle how well they stack up against each other when it comes to:
- Pricing
- Reliability and Performance
- Security
- Scalability
- Customization and Control
After you’ve finished reading this article, you’ll have already made up your mind on which hosting type is for you.
Let’s start!
Don’t Have Time?
If you don’t have time, that’s cool.
Here’s a comparison of VPS hosting vs. dedicated hosting at a glance:
VPS Hosting | Dedicated Hosting | |
|---|---|---|
PROS |
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CONS |
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Overall, dedicated hosting is the better choice.
It trumps VPS hosting in terms of reliability and performance, security, customization, and control.
You need the fire-power to give your website top speed, no matter the volume of traffic.
Dedicated hosting can give you that and more by letting you own an entire physical server with huge allocations of resources.
But here’s the catch: dedicated hosting comes with a hefty price tag.
That’s why VPS hosting is the more budget-friendly option with near-similar benefits.
Ready to talk about this in detail?
Let’s go!
What is VPS Hosting?
Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting works by housing multiple users in one server.
However, unlike shared hosting which accommodates websites up to the thousands, VPS hosting websites are fewer in number.
Virtual partition technology also separates the users from one another creating their own independent spaces.
Think of it as owning a room on a floor of a condominium.
You’re isolated from the rest but you know you’ve got a neighbor on the other side of the wall.
VPS hosting users are given dedicated resources such as RAM, storage space, and bandwidth.
It’s almost like dedicated hosting but without owning an entire server to yourself.
Why should you consider going for VPS hosting?
VPS Hosting Pros
There are many advantages to using VPS hosting:
- It’s more affordable than dedicated hosting
- You get dedicated resources
- Resources are flexible and easily scalable
- Great security for your websites
- You get to configure and customize up to a certain level
Let’s get into each one quickly.
It’s more affordable than dedicated hosting
VPS hosting is easily half the price of dedicated hosting with plans as low as $20/month.
This type of hosting is the middle ground for the affordability of shared hosting and the features of dedicated hosting.
Hosting providers also offer tiered plans you can choose from.
Basic plans can start at around $20/month with features enough to start a few websites.
But it can also go as high as $150/month, packed with benefits and features to maximize your VPS hosting experience.
You get dedicated resources
Reliability and stability are crucial to your website.
In 2018, Amazon lost over $100 million in sales when their site went down for an hour during Prime Day.
You might not be as big as Amazon, but your website still has to load fast and have great uptime.
Thanks to VPS hosting’s dedicated resources, you have the support you need to keep your website reliable and stable.
Even if you experience a sudden spike in website traffic, your server will be able to handle it.
But what about other websites on your server? Won’t you be negatively affected by their traffic too?
Nope!
The virtual partition technology that separates you from other websites does its job well.
Your website will remain unaffected by any activity on the other side of that wall.
Resources are flexible and easily scalable
You’re going to need more resources once your website grows and pulls in all that traffic.
Or maybe you’re planning on expanding your website soon.
If you’ve run out of storage space, bandwidth, or memory, VPS hosting makes it easy to scale up with just a few clicks.
VPS hosting also gives you the flexibility to install software and other services your site needs.
Great security for your websites
While shared hosting is generally a safe option, it does come with risks since you share with thousands of other servers.
When one of those get targeted by online threats, your website is in danger.
VPS hosting eliminates the risk of danger thanks to its enhanced security measures.
Once again, the virtual partition that separates you from other websites does its job well.
VPS hosting also lets you install stronger firewalls and active malware and virus scanners.
It’s up to you to beef up your website’s security.
You get to configure and customize up to a certain level
The last VPS hosting advantage on our list is that it’s highly configurable and customizable.
It gives you a level of control over your website, unlike with shared hosting where you have minimal control.
VPS hosting lets you install software, operating systems, and thousands of apps as you see fit for your website.
Other websites on your server won’t be affected by the changes you’re making.
Of course, this also requires some level of technical knowledge in maintaining a server.
Now that we’ve got VPS hosting’s advantages out of the way, let’s check out the disadvantages.
VPS Hosting Cons
So far, VPS hosting sounds like an awesome choice.
But what are the disadvantages you should know before choosing this type of hosting?
- You have to have a technical expert on your team
- You don’t get full control over your server
- It can’t match the power of dedicated hosting
Let’s look at each one closely!
You have to have a technical expert on your team
VPS hosting comes in two kinds: managed VPS and unmanaged VPS.
As the name suggests, with managed VPS, an expert from your web host provider handles the site’s maintenance for you.
All you have to do is focus on your work and they will do the rest in the background.
This type of hosting does cost more but if you don’t have a tech expert on your team, I’d say it’s worth it.
Unmanaged VPS is cheaper but you have to do all the legwork yourself.
Do you really want to think about your website’s maintenance on top of your handling your business?
You don’t get full control over your server
You get some control but not the full experience you’d get with dedicated hosting.
There is still a limit to how far you can scale with VPS hosting.
And even if you’ve got a slice of your server, website customization and configuration can only be done up to a certain level.
If you think you’d want more control over your server in the future, VPS hosting might not be an ideal choice.
It can’t match the power of dedicated hosting
We’ve already established that VPS hosting is the cheaper version of dedicated hosting.
It’s good enough.
But if you’re looking for total control plus ultimate website speed and reliability, dedicated hosting can do better.
We’ll discuss all that in the next few minutes.
But first, who is VPS hosting for?
Is VPS Hosting for You?
VPS hosting is built for pretty much any type of website whether it’s a personal blog, a publication, or even an eCommerce site.
It’s specifically for:
- Those who plan on expanding their websites in the future
- ECommerce and online store owners gearing for spikes in website traffic
- Those who have the budget to shell out more than $20/month
Best VPS Hosting Provider - Bluehost
Image via Bluehost
Bluehost is an established name in the web hosting industry.
They’ve been around for nearly two decades now and, to date, have hosted over 2 million websites.
Bluehost has great pricing plans for shared hosting, even earning a reputation as one of the best providers for beginners.
Their VPS hosting plans are a great choice too, especially for those on a budget.
It starts at $18.99/month and already comes with 2 cores, 30 GB storage, 2 GB RAM, 1 TB bandwidth, and more.
Some of our other recommendations are:
- A2 Hosting - $69.99/mo
- Hostinger - $19.95/mo
- HostGator - $19.95/mo
What is Dedicated Hosting?
If VPS hosting is housed on a single, physical server with several users, dedicated hosting ups the ante.
It lets you have an entire physical server all to yourself.
Imagine the power you’d have!
You won’t have to share resources with anyone and you can customize your server however you want.
With dedicated hosting, you’re physically isolated from all the other users and this unlocks various advantages.
Dedicated Hosting Pros
Several reasons make dedicated hosting a great web hosting environment:
- You get full control over your server
- High levels of resource allocation
- Reliable performance, security, and control
Let’s take a look at each one!
You get full control over your server
The best part about dedicated hosting is that you get to configure and customize both hardware and software.
You won’t even have to worry about affecting other websites since there are no other users on your server.
Feel free to install your preferred operating systems, security enhancers, and other applications.
Just like with VPS hosting, dedicated hosting also gives you two options: managed and unmanaged.
Managed dedicated hosting is expensive but it frees you from maintaining your website.
Your web host provider will manage, control, and configure your server for you.
On the other hand, unmanaged dedicated hosting is much cheaper but it leaves you with more work.
You’ll be the one to install software for security and performance and make sure your site is in tip-top shape.
Your choice will ultimately depend on what your company needs.
High levels of resource allocation
Since you aren’t sharing with other users, you’ve got all that plot of virtual land to yourself.
You get the most out of storage space, bandwidth, RAM, and more.
Think of dedicated hosting as having a house all to yourself.
It’s 100% no sharing so you can get up and cook whenever you want or take long showers.
Reliable performance, security, and control
And because you’ve got fully dedicated resources, it will manifest on your website.
You get ultra-fast loading times, top-speed websites, and the best uptime record you could ever have.
You can almost hear the clicks and conversions!
To optimize your dedicated server, you have the option to add strong firewalls and DDoS attack prevention software.
You can also get solid storage and backup services.
In other words, dedicated hosting provides you with literally anything you’ll need.
Dedicated Hosting Cons
Do those advantages sound great?
Have they already convinced you dedicated hosting is for you?
Hold your horses!
Let’s check out the disadvantages of this hosting type first.
- It can get quite expensive
- You need to have the technical expertise
It can get quite expensive
Dedicated hosting is not for those on a budget.
Pricing plans are tiered but these start at around $100/month.
What did you expect?
You aren’t sharing space with anyone on the server.
But if your website really needs the resources, that price can give you your money’s worth.
You need to have the technical expertise
Dedicated hosting is favored by web developers and technical experts.
Why?
It’s like a huge playground where they can control everything and do anything they want.
If your company, online store, or organization has specific needs, dedicated hosting can create a unique environment for that.
But you have to have someone on your side who can do all of the server maintenance and tinker for you.
Otherwise, you can opt for the more expensive managed hosting.
Dedicated hosting’s advantages clearly outweigh the disadvantages.
But should you be opting for this hosting type?
Is Dedicated Hosting for You?
Just like VPS hosting, dedicated hosting is built for any website under the sun.
You can host your personal website, an eCommerce site, a startup, a company site, and more.
But who is dedicated hosting specifically for?
- Websites that hit high traffic almost every day
- Those who want maximum security and superb website performance
- Those who want control over their server
Best Dedicated Hosting Provider - Dreamhost
Image via Dreamhost
Dreamhost’s dedicated servers promise a 100% uptime guarantee.
The basic tier package starts at $149/month packed with features including 4 cores, 4 GB RAM, 1 TB storage, root access, DDoS protection, and more.
Some of our other recommendations are:
VPS Hosting vs Dedicated Hosting
Now that we’ve talked about the pros and cons of VPS hosting and dedicated hosting, it’s time to actually compare them
Which hosting is better in terms of:
- Pricing
- Reliability and performance
- Security
- Scalability
- Customization
Let’s find out!
Pricing
We bet this is the category you’ve all been waiting for.
VPS hosting and dedicated hosting both have great features but what’s it going to cost you?
Both of these don’t come cheap.
Dedicated hosting is the most expensive option since you’re all alone on one server.
You’re paying for the premium experience and you’re being treated like the king that you are.
VPS hosting on the other hand has tiered package plans to help you manage your money (and expectations).
Here’s a quick comparison of the VPS hosting vs dedicated hosting plans of these three providers:
web hosting provider | vps Hosting | dedicated hosting |
|---|---|---|
$18.99-$59.99/mo | $79.99-$119.99/mo | |
$39.99-$134.99/mo | $129.99-$619.99/mo | |
$19.95-$39.9/mo | $89.98-$139.99/mo |
WINNER: VPS hosting
Reliability and Performance
Your customers expect your website to load lightning-fast.
If not, they’re most likely to click away.
To meet their expectations, you need a hosting environment that can cater to that.
Both VPS hosting and dedicated hosting give your website great uptimes and fast loading speeds.
The allocations for dedicated resources help make sure your website holds up well even in heavy traffic.
But with VPS hosting, there’s only so much it could do.
Since it houses other websites on the server, it still has its limits.
Dedicated hosting can take on that high traffic and still function with ease.
Its huge limits for resources scream “Bring it on!”
WINNER: Dedicated hosting
Security
Here’s another category that’s equally as important as reliability and performance.
Both VPS hosting and dedicated hosting can give you air-tight security.
Pricing plans already come with security measures but just in case that isn’t enough, you can install your own security software too.
The question is, which can give you a higher level of protection?
While VPS hosting is secure, you are still housed on a server with others.
Shared resources make you vulnerable to online threats even if you’ve got a virtual partition in place.
Dedicated hosting leaves you all alone on a server, no vulnerability here.
You can beef up your security measures by adding as much software as you need.
WINNER: Dedicated hosting
Scalability
VPS hosting gives you room to grow your website.
The scalability of a website means you can add as many resources as you need whenever you need them.
This includes storage space, RAM, and bandwidth.
Dedicated hosting, on the other hand, leaves little room for scaling.
For one, it already has such a vast limit for resources so unless you maximize the entire server, you might not need more.
Another, scaling for dedicated hosting will mean additional physical servers.
You don’t need us to tell you that’s quite expensive.
VPS hosting wins this category but really, once you go for dedicated hosting, that’s like purchasing all the scaling available in this world.
WINNER: VPS hosting
Customization and Control
Our last category for comparison is customization and control.
Both hosting types offer advanced options that let you configure your server to your needs.
You’ve got the power to install software, applications, and maintain your website.
They also both have managed and unmanaged versions that differ in pricing and benefits.
Managed VPS and dedicated hosting leaves all the configuring to a team of experts from your web host provider.
Unmanaged VPS and dedicated hosting give you the reins to watch over the site’s performance.
But as you should know by now, VPS hosting has its limits.
You’re only given a portion of a server so you can’t go all out with the customization.
Dedicated hosting is the true definition of customization freedom -- you’ve got that vast field of possibilities all to yourself.
WINNER: Dedicated hosting
Overall Winner: Dedicated Hosting
Dedicated hosting trumps VPS hosting in every category of our head-to-head comparison.
It’s better for your website’s reliability and performance since you have a huge limit of resources at your disposal.
Not to mention you don’t have to share (even virtually) any server space with other users.
Dedicated hosting also gives you better security for peace of mind.
Its scalability and customization make it so that it can adapt to your website’s needs.
What’s not to like?
Except for the price difference with VPS hosting, dedicated hosting takes the cake.
Should You Upgrade to Dedicated Hosting?
Maybe you’re reading this article because you’re seriously considering jumping from VPS hosting to dedicated hosting.
Should you do it?
There are several factors to consider before you migrate your website:
- Have you got the budget for it?
- Can you maximize the resources?
- Are you comfortable maintaining and customizing your server?
Consider the price increase when you upgrade to dedicated hosting.
From an average of $50/month with VPS hosting, you’ll have to shell out at least $100/month for dedicated hosting.
When it comes to resources, dedicated hosting is better than VPS hosting since you don’t have to share a server with anyone.
But can you use the resources to their full potential?
More often than not, when we scale up, we leave a lot of resources unused and that’s just a waste of money.
If you’re not expecting constant spikes in traffic, then maybe you should just stick with VPS hosting.
Another factor you should consider is your comfortability and skill in maintaining a single server.
Sure, you can always go for managed dedicated hosting, but as we said earlier, that could get expensive.
If you don’t have someone on your team who can maximize this advantage, it’s a wasted opportunity.
At the end of the day, only you can decide whether you should upgrade to dedicated hosting.
Consider the factors we discussed and think about it!
Other Web Hosting Types You Should Consider
VPS and dedicated are just two of the main types of web hosting.
There’s also shared hosting and cloud hosting.
How do these hosting types work and what can they offer you?
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting is the most basic type of hosting and it’s best for low-traffic websites.
Of course, if you started off with VPS hosting or even dedicated hosting, it would be a major downgrade to shift to shared hosting.
This type of hosting works by housing hundreds to thousands of users on a single shared server.
It’s affordable since you’re splitting the cost will all those other websites but you also have to split the resources.
Your website’s reliability and stability are always at a risk with shared hosting.
If your neighbor websites experience a spike in traffic, your website is most likely going to suffer too.
When it comes to security, shared hosting does provide measures but to an extent.
Once other websites experience online threats, your website is vulnerable too since you share resources.
Our recommended shared web host providers are:
- Bluehost - $2.75/mo
- HostGator - $2.75/mo
- SiteGround - $6.99/mo
Read our Shared hosting vs VPS hosting comparison here!
Cloud Hosting
Cloud hosting gives you the simplicity of shared hosting with the upgraded features of VPS hosting.
It works by storing all your files on a bunch of interconnected virtual servers called ‘the cloud.’
When one of these servers goes down, you won’t have to fear your website crashing.
There are still other servers that can keep your site up and running.
Cloud hosting is also a value-for-money option since it lets you pay for your resources on demand.
This way, you only pay for what you use and you eliminate unused resources.
Cloud hosting is a flexible, scalable, and affordable option.
So if you’ve got the budget for it and a website that’s got moderate to heavy traffic, it’s worth trying out.
Final Thoughts on VPS Hosting vs Dedicated Hosting
Settling on a specific type of hosting can spell success or defeat for your website.
If you don’t decide well, you might end up with a hosting environment that fails to give you what you need.
Are you still confused about which hosting type to go for?
Your answer to these next few questions will help point you in the right direction:
- What kind of website are you building? (Personal, blog, eCommerce)
- What kind of traffic are you anticipating? (Low, moderate, heavy)
- Are you planning on expanding your website in the future?
- Do you need the freedom to customize and configure your server?
- What’s your monthly budget for hosting?
VPS hosting and dedicated hosting are both great options so you’ll never really lose.
They both give you dedicated resources and great performance, stability, and reliability for your website.
That’s on top of having control over your server and the freedom to scale according to your needs.
The only difference between the two is the level of customization and the price you’re willing to pay for the services.
Whichever one you choose, you’ll still get a website with fast load times and speed.
There you have it!
That’s our comparison for VPS hosting vs dedicated hosting.
Tell us in the comments section which one you’re thinking of going for!