1and1 Reviews

1&1 (also called 1and1) is one of the established names in web hosting, particularly shared hosting, where it has a large chunk of the market.  However, they also offer a broad range of other hosting products, such as virtual, dedicated and dynamic cloud servers, as well as selling cheap domain names and eCommerce products.  With 1and1, you can satisfy all your hosting needs in one place, find great value for money and choose from an impressive selection of products.  But has their position as one of the web's premier hosting companies made 1and1 complacent in recent years?

Shared Hosting

1and1.com has four basic shared hosting packages, all offering extraordinary value for money.  Unlimited bandwidth allows you to have as many visitors to your site as you or your business want, and a great record of uptime and reliability should assure you that your website is not going to suffer from large amounts of downtime.  To be honest, the 'Beginner' package only offers limited functionality, as it does not support a number of scripts.  However, all other plans are fully comprehensive and offer specifications above and beyond what their prices might command elsewhere.  Yes, disc space is limited, whereas some competitors provide unlimited storage.  But again, anything above the Beginner plan will have more than enough storage space for the vast majority of personal or small business websites.

MyBusiness Site

Like many of the best hosting companies, 1and1 now offers a number of tailored 'business' plans alongside its regular shared hosting options.  For these you pay a little more than you would for the equivalent in shared hosting, but the features are specifically designed for small businesses.  Shopping functions, newsletters and search engine optimization are all at your fingertips and can be implemented as and when you need them.  MyBusiness has been designed for the less technically-minded, and does not bore you with descriptions of your bandwidth allowance or what scripts are supported.  Instead, it offers a very simple website design tool, so you can have a professional-looking and attractive site up and running in minutes.  1and1 has pitched its MyBusiness Site at quite normal prices for the industry average, but it is so packed with features that it delivers great value for money.

Dedicated, Virtual and Dynamic Cloud Servers

1&1.com offers a good range of virtual and dedicated servers.  Although not as customizable as those from some companies, their range should have most needs covered.  The dynamic cloud servers on offer are more fully customizable.  Choose the number of processor cores, the hard disc space and the RAM to suit your exact needs, or pick from several pre-configured packages for different uses.  1and1 offer great performance, reliability and security, and also offer managed hosting so you really do not have to do any of the work if you do not want to.  Although some of the specialist server companies offer more flexibility and more cutting-edge technology, 1and1's servers are solid and reliable.

Support

So far, 1and1 sounds pretty perfect.  Unfortunately, however, it lets itself down in the area of customer support and user-friendliness.  One of the most common complaints against 1&1 is the inadequacy of its technical support package.  Although it provides 24-hour phone support alongside its online center, staff can sometimes be unhelpful.  Support is one of the most important factors when choosing web hosting, and so this really does impact on 1and1's overall score.  Another problem with 1&1 is its slightly confusing pricing plans.  Many packages come with money off the first three or six months, and whilst this is great, you will need to make sure you read the small print and know how much you will eventually be paying.  The prices listed above are the full ones, so look out for any offers that are on when you look for your hosting.

In most respects, 1and1 is a great hosting company.  For many users, its mediocre support may never be a problem, and certainly those with high technical skill themselves have little to worry about.  However, if you want the comfort of knowing you have the best support possible, you may want to look elsewhere.

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