SiteGround is the easier choice if you want published pricing, Google Cloud infrastructure, and a familiar managed WordPress setup. Hosting.com may fit better if you want cPanel, NVMe storage, LiteSpeed, higher mailbox limits, and a migration service, but you must record its US checkout price and renewal total before paying.
For one small WordPress site, compare SiteGround StartUp with Hosting.com Starter. For several sites or a client portfolio, compare SiteGround GrowBig or GoGeek with Hosting.com Pro or Max. The right choice depends on site count, storage, staging, email needs, and the full renewal bill, not the first monthly figure alone.
Key takeaways
- Pick SiteGround StartUp for one smaller site when published pricing and managed WordPress tools matter most.
- Pick Hosting.com Starter when cPanel, 15GB NVMe storage, daily backups, and included email fit your needs.
- Pick SiteGround GrowBig or Hosting.com Pro when you need staging for WordPress and several websites.
- Record the US checkout total, billing term, tax, domain charge, and renewal amount before ordering Hosting.com.
- Treat both uptime figures as contractual guarantees with terms, not proof that a site will never go offline.
What are you actually deciding between?
Hosting.com is the current trading name of A2 Hosting. Hosting.com announced the rebrand on April 28, 2025, and says the company remains A2 Hosting, LLC, trading as Hosting.com. Its shared and cPanel plans focus on cPanel access, NVMe storage, LiteSpeed, daily backups, malware scanning, SSL, email, and managed migration.
SiteGround’s shared plans are StartUp, GrowBig, and GoGeek. SiteGround says its infrastructure is entirely based on Google Cloud, and its shared plans include email, SSL, CDN, daily backups, support, SSH, caching, and WordPress tools. Its account interface is Site Tools rather than cPanel.
That makes the decision practical. Hosting.com is the better fit when your workflow depends on cPanel, server tools, or a migration that includes supported email and DNS settings. SiteGround is the better fit when you prefer Site Tools, published US rates, Google Cloud infrastructure, and WordPress features that are clearly separated by plan.
First, write down the number of websites, storage currently used, monthly traffic, email accounts, database size, PHP version, and important plugins. Then decide whether you need staging and on-demand backups. Those answers will usually point to StartUp versus Starter, or GrowBig versus Pro.
Which plans include what you need?
Hosting.com’s public cPanel comparison lists three shared tiers. Starter supports one website with 15GB of NVMe storage, 10 mailboxes with 10GB each, daily backups with 30-day retention, free SSL, malware scanning, LiteSpeed, WordPress installation, and managed migration. Staging is not listed for Starter.
Pro supports 10 websites and 50GB of NVMe storage. It lists 20 mailboxes with 10GB each, daily backups with 30-day retention, and staging on the broader Hosting.com comparison. Max supports 100 websites and 100GB of NVMe storage, with 40 mailboxes at 10GB each, staging, higher resources, and priority support.
Hosting.com lists capacity guidance rather than hard traffic promises. Its cPanel comparison shows approximately 50,000 page views for Starter, 150,000 for Pro, and 500,000 for Max. Starter also lists a 200,000-file inode limit, two virtual CPUs, 2GB of RAM, 30 entry processes, and a 1GB maximum database size. Ask Hosting.com to confirm the limits for the exact plan and panel selected.
SiteGround StartUp supports one website and 10GB of storage. GrowBig and GoGeek support unlimited websites within their resource limits, with 50GB and 100GB of storage respectively. All three include email, SSL, CDN, daily backups, and 24/7 support.
SiteGround StartUp does not include WordPress staging or on-demand backups. Those features begin with GrowBig. GoGeek adds Git integration, private DNS, white-label access, and priority support. SiteGround gives estimated traffic guidance of about 10,000 visits for StartUp, 100,000 for GrowBig, and 400,000 for GoGeek, while stating that the figures are guidance rather than restrictions.
The practical match is simple. Hosting.com Starter gives more listed storage than SiteGround StartUp, while SiteGround StartUp gives a clearer published plan structure and Google Cloud infrastructure claim. For several WordPress sites, compare Hosting.com Pro with SiteGround GrowBig. For developer access and client work, compare Hosting.com Max with SiteGround GoGeek.
What do you pay now, and what renews later?
SiteGround publishes standard US shared-hosting prices and separate promotional WordPress prices. The standard rates below were last updated October 12, 2026, and prices exclude applicable sales tax. Prices checked October 30, 2026.
SiteGround’s US shared hosting page, read October 29, 2026, shows StartUp at $2.99 per month for a prepaid 12-month term (12 x $2.99 = $35.88), with renewal at $17.99 per month. GrowBig is $4.99 per month for 12 months (12 x $4.99 = $59.88), renewing at $29.99 per month. GoGeek is $7.99 per month for 12 months (12 x $7.99 = $95.88), renewing at $44.99 per month. SiteGround lists the 12-month term here, so check any 24-month price at checkout. Use the checkout figure before purchase. Prices checked October 29, 2026.
Hosting.com’s public US plan comparison lists feature specifications; confirm the price at checkout. Do not treat an introductory figure as the full cost. Open the Hosting.com plans checkout for the selected US plan and record the introductory total, billing interval, tax, domain charge, and renewal total before submitting payment.
Hosting.com lists a free domain for the first year on its shared plans. That is bonus time for the initial domain term, not a permanently free domain. The domain renews at the standard rate, and the domain renewal line should be checked separately from the hosting renewal line.
SiteGround’s free domain also applies to the initial offer and does not normally include the later domain renewal in the hosting renewal price. Confirm the domain extension, first-year condition, and later renewal charge separately.
The paid term matters. A 24-month price is a prepaid total, not a month-to-month payment. Before ordering either provider, use the live US checkout and save the final price screen. Record the final hosting total, renewal amount, billing interval, tax, and domain cost.
Which plan fits a WordPress or small-business site?
For one smaller WordPress site, SiteGround StartUp is the clearer fit when you want a one-site plan with published standard pricing, included email, SSL, CDN, daily backups, and 24/7 support. Its limit is practical: StartUp does not include WordPress staging or on-demand backups, and storage is 10GB.
Hosting.com Starter fits a single site when 15GB of NVMe storage, cPanel, 10 mailboxes, daily backups, and managed migration matter more. Hosting.com also lists WordPress tools, LiteSpeed, malware scanning, and a 30-day backup retention period. Its capacity figures and exact checkout price should be confirmed before payment.
For a small business that needs a staging copy before publishing changes, SiteGround GrowBig is the safer plan match because staging and on-demand backups are listed there. Hosting.com Pro is the alternative if you need up to 10 websites, cPanel, 50GB of NVMe storage, and staging on the applicable product.
For client sites, SiteGround GoGeek adds white-label access, private DNS, Git integration, and priority support. Hosting.com Max lists 100 websites, 100GB of NVMe storage, 40 mailboxes, higher resources, priority support, and an uptime SLA. The choice is between SiteGround’s client-management features and Hosting.com’s larger stated site and mailbox capacity.
Pick SiteGround if its Site Tools workflow and published WordPress feature tiers suit your work. Pick Hosting.com if cPanel and its listed migration, email, and server-tool support save you time. For broader plan comparisons, see the Hosting.com review with plans and prices and the SiteGround review with renewal prices and plan limits.
What are the backup, staging, email, and migration tradeoffs?
Both providers list daily backups on their shared plans, but a backup is not a promise that every file will restore correctly or that malware, suspension, or an outage cannot affect the site. Hosting.com lists daily backups with 30-day retention. SiteGround lists daily backups across StartUp, GrowBig, and GoGeek, with on-demand backups beginning on GrowBig.
Staging creates a separate working copy where you can test a plugin, theme, or update before applying it to the live site. SiteGround lists WordPress staging on GrowBig and GoGeek. Hosting.com lists staging on Pro and Max in its broader comparison. If staging is required, do not select StartUp or Starter based only on storage.
Hosting.com lists email limits by plan. Starter has 10 mailboxes, Pro has 20, and Max has 40, with 10GB per mailbox. Its cPanel comparison also lists a 2,400-message daily limit and a 100MB maximum message size. SiteGround lists included email, but its sending quota is 400 messages per hour on StartUp and GrowBig, and 800 per hour on GoGeek and higher plans.
Hosting.com says supported managed migration can move files, databases, themes, plugins, email, domains, DNS, and SSL. Its cPanel documentation excludes server-level settings, firewall configurations, root-user files, server packages, Server Rewind backups, and two-factor authentication. SiteGround’s WordPress Migrator handles standard WordPress files and databases, while customized sites may qualify for a free team migration subject to plan requirements.
Before switching, export a backup of the current files and database. Confirm that the destination supports the current storage, database size, email volume, PHP version, plugins, and domain setup. Start the migration while the old account remains active, test the site on a temporary or staging address, and change DNS only after the site and email work as expected. Follow the steps to move a WordPress site to a new host without losing email or data.
How do cancellation, refunds, and renewal terms work?
Hosting.com provides a 30-day money-back guarantee for eligible products other than domains, servers, and certain third-party products. It applies once and to the first term. Domain registration, renewal, and transfer fees are excluded, so a refund request may not return every amount paid at checkout.
Hosting.com plans automatically renew for successive periods of equal duration. Its terms say cancellation must be submitted through the customer-panel cancellation form at least one day before the renewal term begins, while the terms also describe a 15-day written-notice provision. Submit the cancellation through the required channel and keep the confirmation.
SiteGround provides a 30-day refund window for shared hosting. It offers 14 days for cloud hosting. Renewal refunds may be full when cancellation occurs within 30 days of payment and the renewal term has not started, or partial after the term begins. Domain fees, paid support, and third-party services are excluded.
SiteGround hosting is configured for automatic renewal, and the setting can be changed in the client area. SiteGround says expired shared accounts may be kept for up to 30 days, with a backup copy retained for up to 60 days after termination, subject to payment for renewal and restoration.
Before payment, read the refund exclusions for domains, third-party services, paid support, and add-ons. Confirm the renewal rate and billing interval, then check whether automatic renewal is enabled and how cancellation must be submitted.
How do you move from SiteGround to Hosting.com?
Start by listing the SiteGround site’s files, database size, email accounts, DNS records, domain registrar, PHP version, plugins, and scheduled tasks. Keep SiteGround active while Hosting.com copies and tests the site. Do not cancel the old account before the new site and email are working.
Hosting.com says its supported migration service can move WordPress files, databases, themes, plugins, email accounts and settings, DNS, redirects, FTP accounts, cron jobs, backup settings, supported applications, and SSL certificates. It does not automatically move server-level configurations, firewall settings, root-user files, installed server packages, Server Rewind backups, or two-factor authentication.
Ask Hosting.com which location will serve the account, and choose the available location during checkout if the option appears. Ask the provider to confirm the exact migration scope for your plan and panel, especially if the account includes email or custom server settings.
Test the copied site with a temporary or staging address. Check forms, images, logins, checkout pages, redirects, analytics, contact email, and mailbox delivery. Lowering DNS time-to-live before the change can help future DNS updates spread sooner, but it does not replace testing.
After DNS points to Hosting.com, keep the SiteGround account active until traffic and email are reaching the new account. Then confirm the Hosting.com hosting renewal separately from the domain renewal. For a fuller migration checklist, use how to move a WordPress site to a new host without losing email or data.
Frequently asked questions
These answers address the next checks that usually affect the choice.
Is Hosting.com cheaper than SiteGround?
Hosting.com may have a lower or more flexible entry price, so confirm its introductory and renewal amounts at checkout. SiteGround publishes standard and promotional rates, so compare the full prepaid total and renewal amount rather than the first monthly figure.
Which host is better for one WordPress website?
SiteGround StartUp fits one smaller WordPress site when you want published pricing, daily backups, email, SSL, CDN, and managed WordPress tools. Hosting.com Starter fits when cPanel, 15GB of NVMe storage, and 10 mailboxes are more useful.
Which host includes staging?
SiteGround includes WordPress staging on GrowBig and GoGeek. Hosting.com lists staging on Pro and Max in its broader comparison, while Starter does not list staging.
Does Hosting.com use cPanel?
Hosting.com’s cPanel product uses cPanel for files, databases, email, PHP settings, and one-click WordPress installation. Its standard web hosting uses a Hosting.com panel, so confirm the exact product and panel before ordering.
Does SiteGround use cPanel?
No. SiteGround uses Site Tools for account and hosting management. SiteGround’s shared hosting still includes tools for WordPress, email, SSL, caching, backups, and SSH.
Does Hosting.com include a free domain?
Hosting.com lists a free domain for the first year on its shared plans. The domain renews at the standard rate, so record the extension, first-year condition, and later renewal charge separately.
Do both providers include email hosting?
Yes. Hosting.com lists 10, 20, or 40 mailboxes on Starter, Pro, and Max, with mailbox limits of 10GB each. SiteGround includes email on its shared plans, but sending quotas vary by plan.
Is either uptime figure observed uptime?
No. Hosting.com documents a 99.9% uptime SLA on its cPanel page and 99.95% on its newer package comparison. These are contractual guarantees with terms and possible credits, not an independent measurement or a promise that a site cannot go offline.
Can Hosting.com migrate email from SiteGround?
Hosting.com says supported migrations can move email accounts and settings. Ask the provider to confirm the exact mailbox, DNS, message, and authentication scope before changing nameservers.
Should you cancel SiteGround before moving?
No. Keep SiteGround active until the Hosting.com copy is tested, DNS points to the new account, and email delivery works. Export the current files and database first, then retain a rollback copy during the DNS change.
Hosting.com is the conditional pick for cPanel users, higher listed mailbox capacity, and a migration workflow that matches the account. SiteGround is the conditional pick for published prices, Google Cloud infrastructure, Site Tools, and staging or on-demand backups on GrowBig and GoGeek. Record the exact US checkout total and renewal amount before you pay, then use the SiteGround review with plans and renewal prices if staying is still under consideration.
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