If you're reading A2 Hosting Reviews, then you're probably looking to become a digital marketer and start your WordPress blog, but you're not quite sure what to do about hosting?
Yeah, I get you.
There are so many FREAKING choices, right!?...
And what the heck are you meant to be looking for in a hosting provider in the first place... What's good, and what's bad?
Well, I've got some good news for you, my friend...
Today your life is going to become a lot easier because I'm going to give you the answer to reasonably priced, trustworthy, and robust hosting.
I'll also show you when A2 might not be the best hosting solution for all websites!
So let's dive in...
In Our Detailed A2 Hosting Review
You’ll learn:
- When A2 is the correct choice and When you should pass
- How easy it is to get set up with A2 Hosting
- A step by step guide on how to get started with A2 Hosting.
- What makes A2 Hosting accounts great for entrepreneurs?
Let’s get rolling.
What Is The Web Hosting Conspiracy?
Did you know that there are two web hosting companies that cover the majority of the online web hosting business? These companies own most of the web hosting providers out there!
These companies are basically corporate giants... with poor customer service, cheap prices, bottom lines driving everything, etc. With these companies, selling shared hosting plans is basically the first and only focus... even if that means cutting costs, rolling back on hosting features, cutting back on response time for customer service, etc.
These hosting companies will basically cut any cost to help sell more shared hosting plans... and that creates a situation where the hosting available is just not up to par!
That’s not the type of headache you want, when you’re trying to build a profitable online business…
I mean, picture being in the middle of a launch, or even paying for Facebook advertising and suddenly your hosting goes down….
… You’re still spending hundreds of dollars a day on ads but all your potential customers are seeing is a blank page…
This is possible when hosting companies cut costs.
You can read more about this web-hosting conspiracy here.
When A2 is the WRONG Choice!
If you’re regularly witnessing more than 100,000 monthly visitors or 400 simultaneous visitors after every mail blast, it’s time to upgrade to a managed dedicated server or virtual private server (VPS).
For instance, my main website reaches 8 to 9 million views annually. It has thousands of web pages, a membership section, online shopping cart, and a number of plugins. All this makes it a large load to handle.
Once you reach a similar stage, I recommend switching to BigScoots.
Initially, I ran my website on a shared web server, A2, (for more than 4 years) until I started facing server errors every time I lured our list with an offer to the site.
A2 Hosting is one of only a handful of mom-and-pop hosting companies that are still around.
They are based in Ann Arbor Michigan, and I just highly recommend them because they are one of the few hosting companies left who still offer fantastic support and more.
Here is why I chose A2 Hosting for my web host needs:
- A2 offers great, reliable service and a fantastic rating. You can just set it up and forget about it!
- You need to know that your host will provide great support for the money when you need it, and A2 does this
- You also want to know that you can get fast speeds. Website speeds are now a Google ranking factor. Look at what kinds of awesome speeds you can get on A2 for the money...
Can you get these page loading speeds of an A with GoDaddy or any of the other run-of-the-mill, monster corporate host companies? Good luck!
Check out how fast these blogs and webpages load on my smaller website on A2 hosting, here.
We'll take a closer look at this conspiracy later on. But for now, let me show you how simple it is to get your website launched with A2!
How To Get Started With A2 Hosting
Step 1. Choose The Right Plan For You
Whenever I started my first website 10 years ago, I was broke! So don't worry about buying anything other than the cheapest plan first. All you really need to do is get started and start building traffic!
So the first step is to go ahead click here and choose the A2 hosting plan in your budget.
I usually buy the Turbo level now, but you can quickly start with the cheapest A2 plan and grow from there.
Next, follow the steps below or look over my shoulders and learn step by step in this video, how to get A2 setup and your website, funnel, or blog on the internet fast.
Step 2. Choose Your Domain Name or Use Your Existing Domain
The domain name is the name of your website, but it’s more than your online address. Think of it as your virtual identity, and the public face of your online business.
An ingenious, unforgettable name plays a significant role in attracting visitors to your website, but a boring, nonspecific one can also shoo them away.
Selecting the best domain name for your website is one of the most central decisions you’ll make, and getting it right can be tricky.
Keep the purpose of your website in mind, and think like a visitor. It can help you discover the domain name that impeccably signifies your online personality.
Go for a domain name that’s relevant to what you do and try not to overthink it.
Once you decide on a domain name, it’s time to buy it. Check on the A2 Hosting website and see if your domain name is actually available.
You can also use a domain name you already have registered on Godaddy, Namecheap, or any other domain registrar.
Step 3. Get WordPress Installed the Easy Way
A2 will get you set up with WordPress for free. The kind of support A2 hosting provides is awesome, and is always on their toes. You can ask them anything… whether about sub-domains, Cpanel, and more…either today, tomorrow, or six months later. Plus, you can get your sites hosted for about $60 to $80 annually. Talk about low cost!
A2 Hosting guys actually default you to 24 months billing cycle to offer their best price. If needed, just change it to 12 months.
Before you leave this page, scroll down to the Additional Options section and copy your WordPress- A2 Optimized login credentials.
You won't get your password after this, so save it in a notepad. Else, you’ll have to reset it in your cPanel.
Done? Good. Now click ‘Continue’.
Now you’ll reach the Domains Configuration page. Review your domain name selections and any add-ons that are available (such as DNS Management and ID Protection).
If you are purchasing a new domain, Irecommend choosing ID Protection as you don’t want your info to be out there on your domain name. This option helps you protect your personal information and reduce the amount of spam to your inbox. But this option isn’t free. Expect to pay around $10 USD per year for this.
Click Continue.
Now you’ll reach the Review and Checkout page. Just go through all the details to ensure you haven’t missed out on anything important.
All good? Click Checkout.
Enter your personal details and billing info to checkout.
Just a heads up on this next screen…
You’ll notice that when you submit the order information on the A2 hosting website, it actually kind of sits in the browser window like a spinning wheel for a couple of minutes. It might be up to three minutes.
The reason for this is….it’s not a transaction thing. What they’re doing is…they’re actually partitioning off your server space and they’re installing their optimized version of WordPress for you.
That’s all happening behind the scenes. So be sure to leave your browser window open long enough and let that happen.
And once it’s done, you get to the Order Confirmation screen. It’ll have your order number along with basic support staff contact info.
There’s their 24/7/365 contact number, or you can also submit a ticket. Plus, you’ll find their social media info.
Now it’s time to connect your website to Google and start getting traffic, check out my step by step guide to set up all this SEO stuff here.
Step 4. Set Up A Custom Domain Email
Now if you’re planning to launch a successful website with A2 Hosting, whether a blog or an ecommerce website, email marketing is an essential element. And for that, you need to have a custom domain email.
Why? Because it makes you look more authentic and professional.
Now to set it up, the first step is to pull up your A2 Hosting welcome emails and the one that has the hosting control is the one that has the subject ‘Welcome’.
Open and scroll.
You’ll notice there’s a site administration section. It’s got the site administration cPanel and username and password. Hold Ctrl and click on the cPanel link and that’s going to take you to another login window.
Now enter the username and password on this page, and log into your control panel.
To set up your email account, scroll down to the Email Header.
Now if you’re planning to launch a successful website with A2 Hosting, whether a blog or an ecommerce website, email marketing is an essential element. And for that, you need to have a custom domain email.
Why? Because it makes you look more authentic and professional.
Now to set it up, the first step is to pull up your A2 Hosting welcome emails and the one that has the hosting control is the one that has the subject ‘Welcome’.
Open and scroll.
You’ll notice there’s a site administration section. It’s got the site administration cPanel and username and password.
Hold Ctrl and click on the cPanel link and that’s going to take you to another login window.
Here's a video showing you how to access this if you need more help,
Now enter the username and password on this page, and log into your control panel.
Hold Ctrl and click on Email Accounts and a new tab will appear. Here, add email account details such as yourfirstname@domainname.com and your new password.
Keep the new password really secure as it’s better to be safe than sorry. Duplicate the password and scroll down. Shift from the 250MB default to unlimited and click on Create Account.
And that’s it.
Now, I don't know if I was specific enough about using a real name as your email address...
I started to add 'info' as the address but there are benefits to having your name from the subscriber side receiving your emails...
It feels more personal and helps you build the relationship faster. They feel that personal support. Whether tech or personal, they'll identify with it.
But also it increases deliverability which is key. So instead of using a generic info or contact, use your name as the address (such as miles@domainname.com).
After we get that setup, I show you how to configure the account with your mail client... whether that is Thunderbird, Outlook, Windows Live Mail, or Mac Mail.
Then I go on to show you how to tie the account into your Gmail account if you are a Gmail user.
A2 Hosting - Why Look At It?
The truth is, it doesn't matter whether your dream is to become an at-home blogger or a sales funnel expert, you need a hosting provider that is predictable, reliable, and robust if you want to get your website up and running.
Wondering why you need WordPress to build your website?
Even though WordPress has a few strong competitors out there, it continues to be the most widely held choice for open source Content Management Systems (CMS).
More than 75 million sites all across the globe are using WordPress, and this number includes some of the world’s most renowned brands, companies, and media outlets.
WordPress is just straight-up easy to use. It is also free.
But wait…
Even though WordPress is free, this doesn’t mean that hosting sites with it will be.
And when it comes to reasonably priced WordPress hosting, I can’t trust anyone but A2 Hosting.
Why?
That's a great question.
Unlike big hosting corporations that compromise on quality to achieve higher returns for stock investors, A2 Hosting guarantees you exceptional service, at a high rating, without denting your pocket.
A2 Hosting Pricing
Now let's talk about A2 Hosting prices.
For shared WordPress hosting, A2 Hosting offers three pricing plans: Lite, Swift, and Turbo.
LITE
The A2 hosting Lite Package starts at $2.96 USD monthly. It’s a great start for a single website. You can enjoy unlimited speed optimized SSD Storage and Data Transfer, all with an awesome rating. This hosting A2 package includes free and easy website migration, a free website builder, free CloudFare CDN, easy cPanel (Control Panel) and Free SSL Certificate.
SWIFT
The A2 Hosting Swift package has a fantastic rating, starts at $3.70 USD monthly, and allows unlimited sites and 2X resources as compared to Lite. With this A2 hosting pricing plan, you can enjoy unlimited Storage and Transfer, free and easy website migration, and free Automatic Backups such as server rewind backups.
TURBO
A2 Hosting also offers the Turbo package, which has a great rating, and starts at $7.03 USD monthly. It’s their fastest service yet. You can enjoy unlimited websites, unlimited Storage and Transfer, free Automatic Backups, and up to 20X faster speed.
A2 Hosting also offers managed WordPress hosting starting at $11.99 USD per month. The rating on this service is also quite high.
No matter what package you choose, if for some reason you’re not 100% satisfied with A2 hosting's service, you get a money-back guarantee.
As an A2 hosting customer, this company makes sure you are satisfied with the kind of service and support you get from them. A2 covers you for 30 days, so you have the option to cancel if you are not happy with their service and get your full refund.
Talk about confidence in what they do!
What Makes A2 Hosting Great For Entrepreneurs?
As an entrepreneur, especially the one who’s just starting out, you’re already tight on a budget. And with so much on your plate already, you definitely don’t want website hosting to add to your piles of bills.
This is why I started with shared web hosting, and it’s where you should start too.
Why do I say so? Because shared web hosting is extremely inexpensive to begin with.
A2 Hosting is one of the most reliable companies in the world of shared hosting. And that’s why I use and vouch for them.
For roughly $5 per month, they’ll install WordPress for you and provide consistent hosting for your site on one of their huge computers. That's a pretty sweet price for budget-conscious consumers.
Plus, they’re available all year long with exceptional support. And you can also enjoy a free SSL and SSD license, and guess what? A2 hosting does all of the security patches for you.
What more does an entrepreneur want, right?
The best part is that you only need their Swift version to get started, and you can always upgrade with a phone call in the future.
Your A2 Hosting account comes equipped with a Cpanel subscription that’ll provide you with simple backend access to your server.
In Cpanel, you can view and manage your files, generate and restore backups, set up an infinite number of email addresses at your domain, set up forwarding, etc.
If you’re thinking…. “Oh! He’s got an affiliate link. That’s why he’s promoting A2 Hosting…”
Let me just clarify. I am not recommending A2 Hosting just for the monetary incentive. If that was my objective, I’d be publishing BlueHost reviews too! Yet here I am, giving A2 Hosting my highest rating!
I am choosing to recommend A2 Hosting because they’re genuinely in your best interest.
My love for A2 Hosting is not recent. In fact, I’ve been using A2 hosting for a really long time now.
For my affiliate marketing website example discussed in this case study, I chose their Turbo Level with CPU upgrade and free SSL package, and the total cost out of pocket was roughly $141.06 for one year.
Wondering why I chose the A2 Turbo Level with a CPU upgrade?
Because I wanted my website to be really fast (and at a reasonable price).
You obviously want your website to load as fast as possible, from the very first day. So it’s the best option out there.
You can also start with a basic A2hosting option that’s way cheaper and if needed, upgrade to Turbo after you've got your first sales.
However, your website speed is actually a critical ranking factor, so the extra amount for your hosting is worth it.
The Upsides To Using A2 Hosting
Let’s quickly sum up why you should be using A2 Hosting (and why I use it too).
It is super-fast, offers awesome customer support, and there's a wide range of hosting plans A2 offers with plenty of options. On top of it, your A2 Hosting account includes safety and backup features, free site migrations and money back guarantee when you cancel within 30 days.
This means you aren’t tied down with A2 Hosting. Don’t like it? No problem. You can cancel your A2 hosting subscription at any time with a FULL REFUND. No need to contact the A2 hosting support to get it done! Easy as that, A2Hosting is gone.
A lot of plugins can actually make your WordPress installation sluggish and less safe. That's because every installed plugin usually reduces the speed of your WordPress website, and often these plugins are not updated enough.
As a result, outdated plugins make your WordPress website mainly vulnerable to hacks and spam. In such a scenario, A2 Hosting offers WordPress-friendly hosting, and you can also have WordPress installed automatically. No need to worry about manual installation and upgrades with A2 Hosting.
Are There Any Downsides?
Although A2 Hosting offers everything you can ask for when it comes to choosing a reliable web hosting service for your site, there’s just one drawback…
The rates on A2 Hosting are slightly higher, depending on the plan, as compared to other web services. A2 Hosting is worth this extra price, though.
A2 is definitely a great value for your money!
Web Hosting Conspiracy: A2 Isn’t One Of The Corporate Giants
As bigger companies are taking over smaller corporations to maximize profits, bigger web hosting services are getting worse.
This is why there’s a huge misapprehension about what’s happening in the realm of web hosting.
When you start growing a blog, creating your first affiliate marketing funnel or growing your authority website, you must know how to not be hoodwinked by the web hosting industry. Plus, you must be aware of the web hosting solutions that efficiently support your requirements for your lasting corporate success. Hosting A2 keeps that efficiency up.
Long ago, there were several smaller web hosting providers in the industry that constructed their own businesses, and they offered exceptional services. Their web servers were not bogged down, and the support tickets would be swiftly resolved.
Consequently, customers had remarkable experiences using hosting A2 services, and other similar services.
But over time, larger companies have taken over many of these smaller mom-and-pop hosting services.
And at present, almost all web host corporations are in fact branches of two giant companies: EIG and GoDaddy.
It looks like there is a competition going on among BlueHost, Domain.com, PureHost, HostGator, iPage, SuperGreen Hosting, and several other hosting services. However, they are all EIG.
So why do small web hosting companies surrender to EIG and GoDaddy?
Because these conglomerates offer millions of dollars to buy out these smaller web hosting corporations and unfortunately, a wide majority of them bail out when these acquisition possibilities are presented.
A2 has not caved to these hefty offers and remains one of the only remaining 'mom and pop' web hosting providers.
A2 Hosting Features
I've been using A2 Hosting for years. And until you are getting upwards of 400 or more people on your site at the same time, you will be able to set up your A2 Hosting and just forget about it... because it will just plain work, and it is the best bang for your money.
Some of the key features of A2 hosting include:
Automatic Setup
One of the best A2 Hosting features is Automatic Setup.
Believe it or not, you can set up your awesome website, complete with this little mom-and-pop-style web hosting, from a company based out of Ann Arbor Michigan... and have it up and running in as little as 20 minutes!!!
With your site hosted on A2 Hosting, you don't have to worry about WordPress installation files as WordPress is pre-installed for you.
Impressive VPS Hosting
Are you a startup company looking for an affordable cloud hosting plan? A2 hosting offers three pricing options depending on the VPS hosting management level you need.
For example, the very basic A2 hosting plan is the Unmanaged VPS with an uber cheap price of five bucks a month. This includes root access and Linux hosting, which are features geared more towards more experienced developers.
If you want both a Managed VPS and root access, there is the Core VPS plan at $25. But if you don't really require root access and Linux hosting, yet you want greater power and support than their basic shared hosting plans, the A2 hosting Managed VPS package fits you just right.
And don't let me get started on their cloud hosting plans...
Their cloud hosting super-charges your website and makes it 20X faster than the average sites.
If you encounter issues from A2 cloud hosting or anything at all from their service, you can easily contact the A2 hosting support that's ever-responsive and ready to help you sort things out.
With their ultra-reliable dedicated servers, you can count on the A2 hosting company to ensure that your website has an uptime rating of 99.9%. The kind of servers A2 provides will make sure your website is up and running at a lightning speed rate.
But that's not all...
A2 hosting stands by their promise at all costs - or your money back! Simply cancel your subscription within 30 days and you can get the full price you paid.
No questions asked!
20X Faster Page Loads
A2 Hosting allows you to enjoy the fastest WordPress Hosting by hosting your website on their Turbo Servers.
These Turbo Servers by A2 hosting offer an extra hosting speed improvement with LiteSpeed Cache for WP, which is a potent plugin that connects with your Turbo server and LiteSpeed Cache to statically cache your WP website and significantly decrease your loading time.
The A2 LiteSpeed Cache is developed right into your server, reducing the overhead and improving the efficiency of caching in comparison with other PHP-based caching options.
Well-Optimized WordPress
Your A2 hosting account is already configured with the unsurpassed speed, response time, and security settings. The WP software comes pre-installed and well-optimized on your Shared Hosting account.
A2 Optimized WordPress is an outcome of their guru crew support team of optimization specialists who determined the safest and utmost performance setup by trying out a number of configurations.
Via robust testing, A2 Hosting ends the speculation of how to get faster loading speed for your WordPress site. It offers auto-configuration so that you achieve the finest performance and safest settings. This means you can concentrate more on creating your website, crafting content, and marketing.
Free Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
A2 Hosting accounts provide you with a pre-configured SSL certificates for your website. They make sure that every website they host remains secure and with a high level of credibility.
Worldwide Servers
With its worldwide data centers, you can host your website close to your visitors. A2 hosting makes it seamless for you.
Developer Friendly
A2 Hosting has a solid emphasis on loading your account with the best versions of the most prevalent development software. A few of these development softwares include:
- PHP 4.4, 5.x, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3 or 7.4 (Choose Your Version)
- MySQL 5.6/MariaDB
- PostgreSQL 9.6
- Python 2.6, 2.7 or 3.2
- PERL 5.10
- Apache 2.4
- Node.js
- FTP / SFTP
- Free SSH Access
- SSL and Free SSL
High Performance
Did you know, just a second delay in page loading can affect your bounce rate, search engine rankings, and even your conversion rate?
But with A2 Hosting by your side, you don't have to panic about any of this. Its super quick SwiftServer platform allows you to host your site on a speed optimized server. Plus, A2 hosting offers the flexibility to choose your server location.
Uninterrupted Security
your website to be safe and secure from hackers.
A2 Hosting provides uninterrupted security methods that help prevent you from becoming the next prey. This is why your A2 hosting account includes free HackScan Protection to combat hackers before they can harm your website.
That's just one of the many perks of the hosting plans A2 offers to their customers...
Some other security features of A2 hosting include KernelCare rebootless kernel updates, powerful defense, a dual firewall etc. Their bulletproof distributed denial of service (DDoS) protection also increases the probability of your website remaining online even during the most advanced DDoS attacks.
Strong Community
A2 Hosting is a gratified member of the WordPress community. Every month they participate in and fund a number of WordCamps and Meetups.
The kind of support A2 hosting offers to its users and customers is pretty impressive.
If you are interested in A2 Hosting funding your meetup or WordCamp, you can get in touch with them and tell them about your community using this link.
Excellent Support
Another thing that A2 is great at is in providing impeccable, high rating support to their customers.
If you check out the reviews on the A2hosting website, you will read accounts of people raving about the high level of support they get from this hosting company.
You can easily get in touch with a support staff over the phone or by email, so you can get your issues resolved without the long waiting times.
When you need a company to host your website and stand by you and help you out when you encounter stumbling blocks, I cannot recommend A2hosting enough for this purpose.
They are hands down outstanding when it comes to customer support, and of course, their products and services are just as amazing, if not one of the best there is.
Wrap Up - A2 Hosting Is The Best Choice To Start Your Own WordPress Blog
Like I said… unlike big corporations that rip you off and deliver pathetic service in return, A2 Hosting is one of the very few ‘good’ guys left in the web hosting business. Whether you're looking for Windows hosting or Reseller hosting, A2 is one of the best left in the industry.
They may not be as popular as some of the biggies in the world of web hosting, but A2hosting is genuine, efficient, and has a high rating. A2 hosting is upfront about their price structures, there aren’t any hidden fees, and their customer service is impeccable.
Not to forget, they offer a 100% money back guarantee, which is a huge reassurance... especially for startups and budding entrepreneurs who are already tight on a budget. A2hosting has you covered for 30 days. A2 has you covered long after that if you stay with them.
So if you’re looking for screaming fast servers, stress-free WordPress installation, extremely consistent service, and remarkable customer support staff, A2Hosting is your one-stop solution. I can easily give them a rating of 11 stars for the amazing support and value for my money that A2hosting has offered me through the years! That rating comes with a glowing review too!
A2 hosting not only provides you with the best versions of both PHP and MySQL, you also get a free Let's Encrypt SSL Certificate for your website. This creates the perfect WordPress web hosting environment as stated by WordPress themselves.
A2 Hosting’s WordPress Hosting solutions are intended to be easy to use, yet they are full of a number of powerful features that developers need.
Personally, I’ve had a very long journey with A2 Hosting. In fact, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that we’ve evolved together in our respective businesses. A2 and I have transformed together.
I can’t stress enough how much A2 hosting simplifies the website development and operation process by hosting your site on really powerful supercomputers that deliver awesome speed. And also by pre-installing customized versions of WordPress into your A2 hosting account so that you don’t have to manually go through the process.
With just a few quick clicks and minor tweaks, your website is up and running within no time thanks to A2. On top of it, creating your very own fully functional custom domain address is a matter of minutes.
A2 hosting offers three very flexible pricing plans and you can easily add on features or upgrade later, if needed.
To Conclude....
When I started out, I was skeptical about which hosting company to choose for my baby (new website). And at first, I worked with a web hosting company that was acquired by a giant company... so I saw how inconsiderate their customer service and tech support became after the fact.
Been there, done that!
With plenty of other things on your plate, web hosting is the last thing you should be worried about. You have to look through a lot of bogus reviews to get to the good stuff. But hosting is the foundation for any online business, so you can't just overlook it.
It’s like a do or die situation.
That’s why I decided to create this detailed A2 Hosting review, so that you would know how to differentiate the sheep from the wolves when it comes to choosing a web hosting company. Hopefully this will encourage you to choose A2 for your hosting needs!
They are a fantastic host company. Whether you are looking for reseller hosting, managed vps, windows hosting, vps hosting, or great support, you just can't beat A2 Hosting for the money.
Whether you are getting vps hosting, windows hosting, unlimited storage, whether you have disk space unlimited or not, etc. the best kind of hosting is hosting that you don't have to think about... it just works!
I strongly recommend A2 Hosting. A2hosting won't treat you like a dollar sign, or be dismissive about tech support or customer support. Their ability to host numerous clients at once without depleting quality is excellent. What better rating could you ask for?
Plus, they get great reviews!
Offering a variety of packages with perks like disk space unlimited or varying pricing structures, it's perfect.
I hope this A2 Hosting review has helped you in more than one way. Got any feedback or questions? Leave a comment… see you on the next post!
Also don't forget, if you're hungry to kick-start your online business then I suggest you check out my free course for support that reveals the 7 step process that took me from $50,000 in student loan debt to a million dollar business online, click here to get your copy!
