A Comparison - AWS Lightsail Vs Shared Hosting
Are you planning to launch your blog or website? If yes, then you have to think about the hosting first. Hosting is a common technical term used by website developers across the world. A hosting service enables users to make their websites accessible through the internet. If you Google your hosting options, you will invariably end up choosing between cloud and shared hosting. In this post, we look at AWS Lightsail Vs shared hosting.
Choosing the right hosting provider is a critical step when creating and managing a website. Amazon’s Lightsail hosting has become the go-to service for those that require secure, flexible hosting at a fixed cost, while the traditional shared hosting method remains a popular choice for web developers. Choosing a suitable hosting service can be a daunting task for a novice. Researching each of the hosting options available is vital. Investigate and compare all the features, pricing and support before choosing your hosting.
Shared Hosting
Shared hosting allows multiple users to share a web server to access resources for web solutions. With shared hosting, a server is used by numerous users, and each of the users is allowed to use a specific amount of the server resources. Due to to the nature of it being 'shared' you can usually find very cheap hosting deals, in some cases for as little as £1 per month.
The Benefits of Shared Hosting
- Cost - as little as £1 per month
The Drawbacks of Shared Hosting
- Poor site performance
- Heightened security risks
- Poor customer support
- Limited control over your website.
These risks are discussed in more detail in this article.
Choose the right shared web hosting company such as my preferred provider Blacknight, and you will be fine.
Amazon Web Services Lightsail
Amazon’s Lightsail launched back in 2016. Lightsail is a hosting service that makes it simple for the users to deploy and operate WordPress websites in the cloud for a fixed monthly price. With prices beginning at $3.50 a month, cloud hosting and the flexibility and scalability it offers is now an affordable option for even the smallest of websites.
The Benefits of Lightsail
- Cost – from $3.50 per month
- Security
- Website performance
- Scalability
- Control.
The Drawbacks of Amazon Lightsail
- You are unable to follow the AWS well-architected application framework which I won’t go in to here.
Let discuss each of the benefits in more detail.
Cost
The pricing of shared hosting service can vary. However, the pricing of AWS Lightsail is fixed, so there will be no issue of receiving an unexpected bill at the end of the month. A user can run a website paying from $3.50 per month, which is comparable to the pricing of shared hosting. Controlling costs is everything for small businesses, check out what others spend on AWS.
Security
With AWS Lightsail, users are entirely in control of their instances security through easy to use security rules. Shared hosting, on the other hand, gives limited access to and control of the server. Moreover, Lightsail cloud hosting comes with backup tools that help users to recover lost data in the event of a security breach.
Website Performance
Since Lightsail cloud hosting integrates a caching mechanism, users enjoy faster page loading time. Shared hosting, on the other hand, serves numerous sites that can lead to slow page loading times.
Storage space is another vital factor in the process of running and managing your website. AWS Lightsail provides you with scalable SSD backed storage, providing reliable and low-latency performance. Shared hosting services come with limited space, and users are restricted within specific storage limits.
Scalability
Hosting your application or WordPress website on Lightsail gives you access to the broader range of AWS products. Should your website grow, you can quickly move to a full EC2 environment with ease. Shared hosting rarely allows users to scale rapidly and efficiently.
Control
AWS Lightsail gives you full control over your environment, from security to performance, something you will not get with shared hosting.
Summary
Amazon Lightsail is for you if you want to host a blog or website for a fixed monthly price. The ease of install will appeal to both novices and experienced users alike, and there is no reason not to give it a try with the first 30 days being free. If you need help or assistance with any aspect of your Amazon Web Services environment, then get in touch.
Disclaimer
I am not an employee of AWS and have not been paid for this endorsement. I hold an Amazon Certification and Social Media Manager Ireland are an Amazon consulting partner.