Free Small Business Web Hosting: 3 Pros And 3 Cons

You'll see a lot of ads for free small business web hosting and if you've never worked online before you're going to be tempted. And why not? It's free. You're just starting out and you're pinching your pennies. It only makes sense, right? Well, before you sign up, let's take a look at some of the pros and cons of free small business web hosting.

Pro: It's free

Of course, the number one reason you're considering this offer is because it's free. It's not going to cost you a cent. And in today's economy you'd be a fool if you didn't at least consider it. If this is just going to be a temporary site until you decide what you really want to do, then go ahead and take a look at these free offers. But be sure to read the fine print so you don't get locked into some kind of long-term commitment.

Con: You get what you pay for

The best things in life are free. But the most reliable things in life usually come with a price tag. This is your business you're talking about and you need a reliable web host that isn't going to crash the first time you get more than 10 visitors to your site.

Pro: It's not your responsibility

These free small business web hosting offers are usually for shared hosting services which means someone else is controlling the hosting and they're just parceling it out to you. You don't have to worry about anything and if something goes wrong, if the site crashes or a server goes down, it's not your responsibility.

Con: You have no control

The problem with that scenario is that you also don't have any control. Today it might be fine for you to load up your website with videos and contact forms and tons of images. But next week they might decide you're sucking up too much bandwidth and have you take all your videos down. Then what?

Pro: They have all the features you need

Most of these offers of free hosting include everything you'll need. You'll have plenty of disk space, plenty of server space and plenty of bandwidth. In fact, in most cases, you'll have more than you'll need, unless you're planning to set up a huge, mega-shopping site.

Con: They have no support

You're hosting your business website and you need to be able to contact someone if your server crashes or your data base disappears. And that happens a lot with the smaller, free hosting sites. They say they have support and they probably do. But you need immediate, 24-hour assistance that can help with any emergency and you won't get that with free small business web hosting. Do yourself a favor and get a dedicated site that will be there for you and your business whenever you need it.

Small business web hosting plans can be expensive. Save money with discount web hosting.
Small business web hosting plans can be expensive. Save money with discount web hosting