GoDaddy Web Hosting Review 2024: A Comprehensive Review

GoDaddy Web Hosting is a global leader in web hosting and domain name sales, hosting millions of websites across the globe. Almost everything you would need to launch and maintain a website on a tight budget, at least for the first year, is available on its large list of items. 

It’s safe to claim that GoDaddy Web Hosting Review satisfies the majority of your website needs after extensive research, comparison, and deliberation, especially if this is your first time creating a website.

The plans and packages it offers have definite benefits and drawbacks, just like those of other web hosting and domain name providers.

If you need to launch a website on a tight budget, I’ve put together a top list of affordable web hosting companies so you can see your possibilities.

But GoDaddy does start to cost more rapidly if you’re looking for a more reliable web hosting service for your website project. Because of this, I think it’s a fantastic choice for new websites that can function well with either shared or dedicated hosting and don’t require a lot of server power. 

But you’re not obligated to choose a host right away. See all of my top selections to help you make a wiser choice.

Overviews

🏆Performance Grade	B
⏱️Uptime Guarantee	Yes
🔒Free SSL	Yes
🔧Hosting Types	Shared, WordPress, VPS, Dedicated Server, Reseller Hosting
💡Basic Plan Features	Storage: 20 GB SSD
💲Starting Price	$4.99

GoDaddy web Hosting in Complete Introduction

GoDaddy is the biggest domain registrar in the world. It was first established in 1997 as Jomax Technologies. Although it is unknown how many websites it hosts, the business currently oversees more than 76 million domains. More than 17.5 million people globally use its 14 sites across the globe.

GoDaddy became well-known before the majority of people in the world even knew what a domain name was or why anyone would want one. This was partly because of its Super Bowl advertisements, which started in 2005. GoDaddy stopped running advertising during the Super Bowl in previous years. 

Beyond its notable advertisements, GoDaddy proceeded to expand and add additional services until it was the full-service web store it is today. Although its prices are not as affordable as those of some other web providers, you do receive some good extras like Office 365 email, a website builder, and reliable customer service.

If all you need is a basic WordPress site, we advise making affordability your first priority. Not to be too flippant about it, but once you’re in the content management system (CMS) for the blog platform, the WordPress user experience is pretty much the same.

GoDaddy Hosting Plans & Prices – Avoid Any Misconception

There are four paid plans offered by GoDaddy, with prices ranging from $9.99 to $29.99 per month (when paid annually; more on that later). GoDaddy also offers a free plan. The price hikes are straightforward: Every time you upgrade a plan, your monthly cost will only increase by $5.

To develop your website, you will initially start with a free plan (scroll down to learn more about the free plan). You always have the option to upgrade if you want more features.

It’s important to keep in mind, though, that once you upgrade, there is no way to go back to the free plan. You’ll be obligated to pay a monthly charge for your website unless you wish to start over with a brand-new one.

Although GoDaddy makes it clear which types of websites each plan is intended for, things are rarely as straightforward as that. Let’s look deeper into these slogans to determine which plan is actually best for you.

Your “personal website” might, for instance, need certain capabilities that are only available with the Premium subscription. Or you might discover that your little internet business doesn’t require everything the Ecommerce package offers.

The two top-tier plans each unlock a set of extra features intended for particular kinds of websites, which is the most critical fact to know.

You can use the online appointment features that let website visitors schedule and pay for appointments right on your website with the Premium plan. Additionally, you can fulfill orders and take payments with the E-commerce package. Therefore, you must purchase one of these plans if you require either of these features.

According to the advertising for the free plan, “limited social and email marketing,” a phrase that is about as clear as dishwater, is included. I learned that you can link one social networking platform to your website with the free plan after asking GoDaddy support for clarity.

Additionally, you are allowed to send a limitless quantity of promotional emails, but because your website lacks a custom domain name, they will appear to have been sent from your personal email account. Not really awful (the unlimited part especially), but you might not want to give your entire subscriber list access to your personal email address!

The fact that you receive any marketing tools at all is very uncommon in the world of free website builder plans, even though you don’t have access to more advanced features like the included search engine optimization (SEO) tool.

The GoDaddy free plan is ideal for personal websites or for testing the waters while building your first website. But you actually need a custom domain if you want to be taken seriously. You must switch to a premium plan in order to do that.

1: Basic – For Straightforward, Professional-Looking Websites

Price: $9.99 a month

The key difference between the Free and Basic plans is that the Basic plan enables you to connect a custom domain and remove GoDaddy branding, which is essential if you want your site to appear reliable and competent.

Additionally, you have access to a few extra features, such as:

• An annual free business email address
• The choice to include a PayPal button on your website to take payments or donations
• 100 marketing emails and up to 5 social media postings each month
• On your website, your clients can make one-time appointments.

The Basic plan is a fantastic option for portfolio or CV websites where you need a polished, professional appearance thanks to these features. Due to the PayPal button’s inclusion, it may also be a good option for charitable websites or any other website that wishes to collect donations. 

And with a few social media posts and email sends included, this strategy is sufficient for you to start a somewhat effective marketing mix.

However, this plan isn’t appropriate for you if you own a business and wish to acquire more marketing tools, have the ability to sell things or allow website users to schedule recurring appointments (or pay for appointments via your website).

2: Standard – Increase Online Visibility of Your Professional Website

Price: $14.99 a month

The main selling feature of the Standard plan is that it gives you access to GoDaddy’s SEO tools, which assist you in increasing the visibility of your website on Google search results.

If purchased separately, these tools cost $6.99 per month, while the Standard plan costs only $5 more. Therefore, this upgrade is a no-brainer if you are on the Basic plan and decide that you want SEO tools.

Additionally, the GoDaddy Standard plan enables you to connect up to three social media networks to your website, administer them directly from the GoDaddy dashboard (with a monthly limit of 20 posts and replies), and send 500 marketing emails. 

In all honesty, however, aside from the SEO tools, this plan isn’t a significant improvement because these numbers aren’t that significant in the overall scheme of things.

3: Premium – Begin Making Appointments

Price: $16.99 a month

Where functionality really takes a step forward is on the Premium plan. You receive the following features in addition to those found in the Basic and Standard plans: 

• Social networking platforms with infinite connections
• Unlimited tweets and comments on social media from your GoDaddy dashboard
• Monthly email marketing mailings of up to 25,000
• Modern tools for arranging appointments

With this strategy, your clients can make additional types of appointments on your website. This capability consists of:

• Bookings for recurring appointments
• Bookings for one-time group events
• Possibility of accepting payments via credit cards, PayPal, and Apple Pay (for services, not products)
• Reminders of appointments via email and text

For service-based organizations that need to provide more than just one-time bookings, this functionality can be very useful.

4: E-commerce – Best for Online Stores, as You Might Have Guessed

Price: $29.99 monthly

The GoDaddy E-commerce plan, as its name suggests, is the only plan that enables you to open a complete online store. 

You can purchase the Premium plan with all of GoDaddy’s e-commerce tools for an additional $5 per month. These tools include:

• Product portfolios
• The capacity to receive payments for both appointments and goods
• Sync and market the goods on your website across other platforms, including Amazon, eBay, Etsy, Walmart, Facebook, and Instagram.
• Free shipping, flat-rate shipping, and carrier-calculated charges are available as shipping alternatives.
• The capacity to provide deals and features like sale price modifications

While the payment processors themselves do charge a modest transaction fee, it’s comforting to know that GoDaddy doesn’t charge sales commissions for orders made through your website. 

Another benefit is that GoDaddy offers some of the lowest PayPal transaction fees (2.7% + 30) in the industry because of its collaboration with PayPal.

GoDaddy Special Plans: The Perfect Solution for Your Small Business

GoDaddy provides a variety of hosting packages to meet various website demands. Affordable and appropriate for small websites with light to moderate traffic is shared hosting. For users who like WordPress as their website-building platform, WordPress Hosting is optimized. 

Advanced Hosting is a wise choice for companies with high demands and particular hosting needs because it offers greater resources, control, and flexibility. The size, functionality, and traffic of your website, as well as your technical know-how and financial constraints, all play a role in the hosting package you choose.

Let’s discuss them one by one with specifications: 

1: GoDaddy Shared Hosting

Shared hosting is the most affordable type of hosting, and it’s a good option for small websites, blogs, and portfolios. With shared hosting, you share resources such as CPU, RAM, and disk space with other customers on the same server. This means that your website’s performance may be affected if other websites on the server are using a lot of resources.

For individuals and small organizations, shared hosting is a popular and economical hosting solution. Multiple websites share the same server resources, including CPU, RAM, and storage, in this sort of hosting. 

Shared Hosting plans from GoDaddy are intended for people who are just starting out with a website or have a website with a low level of traffic. They include services including a free domain name for the first year, unlimited bandwidth, and one-click installation of well-known web software like WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal, and they provide multiple pricing tiers to fit varying needs. 

Although shared hosting is cost-effective and easy to set up, it might not be appropriate for resource-intensive apps or heavy-traffic websites because server sharing might have an impact on performance.

GoDaddy shared hosting plans include features:

• One-click installation of popular content management systems (CMS) such as WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal
• Free domain name for the first year
• Free SSL certificate
• 24/7 customer support

Price:

2: GoDaddy WordPress Hosting

Shared hosting that is customized for WordPress websites is known as WordPress hosting. Over 40% of all websites run on WordPress, the most widely used CMS in the world.

The WordPress content management system (CMS) hosting plans from GoDaddy are designed simply for individuals who want to create and maintain their websites using this platform. One of the most widely used systems for creating websites is WordPress, which is recognized for its user-friendly design and numerous customization choices. 

Automatic WordPress updates, pre-installed themes and plugins, regular backups, and improved security features are just a few of the advantages that GoDaddy’s WordPress Hosting provides to safeguard your website. 

These plans are WordPress performance-optimized, guaranteeing quicker loading times and more overall stability. GoDaddy’s WordPress Hosting plans are designed to meet a variety of demands, regardless of whether you’re a novice or a seasoned WordPress user.

GoDaddy WordPress hosting plans include all of the features of shared hosting, plus additional features such as:

• Automatic WordPress core updates and security patches
• WordPress-specific malware scanning and removal
• One-click staging sites
• Developer tools such as WP-CLI and SSH access

Price:

3: GoDaddy Advanced Hosting

A form of hosting called “advanced hosting” is made for websites with advanced requirements or heavy traffic. Compared to shared or WordPress hosting, advanced hosting gives you additional resources and control over your server environment.

For organizations and individuals with demanding hosting needs, advanced hosting—also known as VPS (Virtual Private Server) or dedicated hosting—is a high-performance hosting solution. 

Depending on your preference, GoDaddy’s Advanced Hosting plans give you either your own dedicated server or a piece of a powerful virtual server. Compared to shared hosting, this type of hosting provides more control, customization, and resources. 

Software is perfect for resource-intensive websites, custom applications, or busy e-commerce platforms since users may install and modify it according to their individual needs. 

Advanced Hosting is appropriate for companies who are expanding quickly or need reliable hosting solutions because it offers cutting-edge security features and scalability possibilities.

GoDaddy advanced hosting plans include features:

• Dedicated CPU and RAM
• Root access to your server
• Support for custom applications
• 24/7 customer support

Price:

Choose the right one according to your website demands.

Which Hosting Plan is Right for You?

The best hosting plan for you depends on your specific needs and budget. If you’re just starting out and you have a small website, shared hosting is a good option. 

If you have a WordPress website, you may want to consider WordPress hosting. If you have a high-traffic website or complex needs, advanced hosting is the best option for you.

Here is a table that summarizes the key differences between GoDaddy shared hosting, WordPress hosting, and advanced hosting:

Feature	Shared Hosting	WordPress Hosting	Advanced Hosting
Price	Most affordable	More affordable than advanced hosting	Most expensive
Resources	Shared with other customers	Shared with other customers, but optimized for WordPress	Dedicated CPU and RAM
Control	Limited control	Limited control	Full control
Features	One-click installation of popular CMS, free domain name for the first year, free SSL certificate, 24/7 customer support	Automatic WordPress core updates and security patches, WordPress-specific malware scanning and removal, one-click staging sites, developer tools such as WP-CLI and SSH access	Dedicated CPU and RAM, root access to your server, support for custom applications, 24/7 customer support

Who is GoDaddy best suited for?

GoDaddy is a well-known web hosting and domain registration service that provides to an extensive range of clients, making it appropriate for different people and companies. Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are one of its main target markets. 

GoDaddy is a great option for SMBs wishing to launch their online presence quickly and economically since it provides easy-to-use website creation tools, dependable hosting services, and domain registration. 

SMBs are able to create websites with a professional appearance without important web development skills thanks to the platform’s user-friendly website builder and selection of themes.

GoDaddy is also a good choice for startups and business owners on a tight budget. It appeals to people who want to keep their initial investment in online services modest due to its competitive price and promotional motivation. 

To launch their internet businesses, entrepreneurs may quickly purchase a domain name, set up hosting, and create a simple website. GoDaddy is appropriate for small web retailers and business owners wishing to sell goods or services because it also offers necessary e-commerce tools.

The services offered by GoDaddy might also be useful to individuals and beginners interested in running personal blogs or websites. Making a personal website or blog to share ideas, interests, or creative content is simple with the aid of an easy-to-use website builder and blogging tools. 

In order to meet everyone’s demands, the platform provides a variety of hosting packages, making it possible for users with varying levels of technical expertise to launch their websites.

GoDaddy is a great option for people who might require help with website management or technical issues due to its customer service and resources. 

Their broad knowledge base and round-the-clock customer service can assist users in navigating the web hosting and domain administration industries, making it an accessible choice for people and enterprises with all levels of technical skill.

SMBs, entrepreneurs, startups, and individuals searching for a user-friendly and reasonably priced platform to create an online presence may choose GoDaddy. It is an ideal choice for a variety of consumers thanks to its user-friendly features, affordable pricing, and dependable customer service.

GoDaddy Hosting Features:

GoDaddy has every essential component you want in a web host. When you sign up for a year or more with its basic plan, a domain is free. GoDaddy limits the top-level domains it offers for free to a few, including. CLUB,.COM,.NET,.XYZ,.ORG, CO, and.CN.

Actually, GoDaddy can only provide the bare minimum. It received a 3.8 out of 5 stars in our research for features, ranking it in the middle of the pack. Not the finest or the worst.

You must also pay an additional 18 cents per domain per year for the duration of your commitment to ICANN.

GoDaddy provides a free year’s subscription to Microsoft Office 365 business email, which normally costs $60 annually, with the entry-level shared hosting package. Unmetered bandwidth, which includes limitless storage and website bandwidth, is another feature of GoDaddy hosting. Unlimited storage is less popular for basic web hosting plans than unlimited bandwidth.

Having said that, GoDaddy’s unlimited plans do have some unique limitations. You are limited to 250,000 inodes (files, directories, etc.) per account if you use its Linux hosting. There is a cap of 500,000 files and folders per account for Windows-based hosting.

If that sounds complicated to you, you definitely won’t be impacted. For the majority of websites, GoDaddy’s generous storage space will take some time to fill.

Additionally, take care of any hosting requirements. GoDaddy performs poorly in terms of dedicated hosting features, scoring only 2.7 out of 5, but excels in terms of shared hosting, scoring 4.3 out of 5!

1: Easy to Use

With GoDaddy, choosing a hosting plan is really simple. Following your selection of the desired plan, there are clearly highlighted offers for a number of add-on options. Website backup is the only add-on that is by default selected. Site security and an SSL certificate for HTTPS are some of the other add-ons that are possible.

Once the package is configured, you are presented with a simplified interface. From here, you may create a website, configure your email, and access the cPanel management interface for your website. This website part is perfect for beginning users because everything is very clear and uncomplicated.

The organization is still fairly obvious, although things can become a little confusing once you enter the cPanel portion. The statistics for your website, including file usage, storage, and other data, are displayed on the left. If you want to know the demands your website is making on the server and whether you are using all of your allocations, this can be useful.

The many cPanel sections, including Files, Preferences, Databases, Web Applications, Domains, Email, Metrics, Security, Software, and Advanced, take up the majority of the window.

Own drag-and-drop website builder available from GoDaddy. You are prompted to choose a category and a name for your website right away. Then it chooses a simple template for you to start with automatically. The website builder then walks you through the building process, giving you the option to modify the theme that was picked for you automatically.

For beginners who want to create their own website but are unsure of where to begin, it is a fantastic tool. During the tool’s trial period, it allowed us to select one of eight fundamental templates and then freely change the fonts and colors. From there, everything was customizable, and updating any piece just required clicking on it and making the necessary changes in the right-hand sidebar.

2: Customer Support

There are many official and unofficial methods available to you to locate a solution if you experience any issues with your GoDaddy website. In fact, GoDaddy consistently receives great marks for aid and support, earning a total rating of 3.5 out of 5.

The initial point of call should be the knowledge base of GoDaddy. It’s likely that there is a common solution to your problem and that it is not that uncommon. Unexpectedly, doing this frequently saves more time than waiting for a support agent.

The most frequent issue categories on GoDaddy’s support site, such as those concerning domains, cPanel, Windows Hosting, SSL certificates, Office 365 email, and account administration, are each represented by a sizable symbol. Additional potential issue categories appear in a text-only list when the More Products link is clicked.

Although each issue page has a few basic advice at the top, GoDaddy often lacks the in-depth support content that some web providers independently produce. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because forum entries frequently update the problem solutions, but it’s not for everyone since it typically calls for a bit more investigation. 

Always bear in mind that a simple Google search might be useful if the knowledge base approach doesn’t work. Due to GoDaddy’s size and popularity, numerous websites and YouTube channels publish articles with solutions to issues unique to the company.  

GoDaddy also provides live chat, and round-the-clock phone assistance, and responds to support inquiries on social media if conducting that kind of research is not in the cards.

3: Pricing and Value for Money

Although there are several variations in the average, GoDaddy’s value for money rating is 3.5 out of 5. For instance, GoDaddy gets the lowest value-for-money rating (1.9 out of 5) for dedicated hosting. The rating for shared hosting is only 2.5 out of 5. GoDaddy, however, actually places second for VPS with a 3.8 out of 5!

When you sign up for three years of service with GoDaddy, shared hosting with the Economy plan costs as little as $6.49 per month. 

The cost increases to $8.99 each month after that first period. The beginning monthly cost for the Deluxe plan is $7.49, and the Maximum is $22.99.

Compared to Bluehost or HostGator, where costs start at about $5, that is far more expensive. Value for money has actually decreased significantly at GoDaddy, with the Economy plan now costing $39.99 instead of the previous $1.99.

However, for anyone who wants to use GoDaddy’s user-friendly website builder, that additional investment might be worthwhile.

For a limited time, GoDaddy’s dedicated WordPress hosting for sites with higher traffic costs $8.99 per month ($9.99 thereafter), while the Deluxe and Ultimate plans start at $11.99 and $18.99, respectively.

There is also Web Hosting Plus, which hosts your WordPress website on a personal VPS server. Starting at $21.99 per month for the Launch plan, it rises to $69.99 for the Expand plan.

A virtual private server (VPS) with 1GB of RAM, 20GB of storage, unmetered bandwidth, 2 dedicated IPs, and a free SSL certificate for a year starts at $5.99 per month, significantly less than other providers. There are three other VPS options available, with initial monthly costs ranging from $23.99 to $83.99.

The cost of dedicated hosting, which is essentially buying a server from GoDaddy, ranges from $149.99 to $469.99 per month. They renew at those costs as well, despite the fact that it may sound pricey (and it is). You don’t really need to worry about them if you merely run a blog or a small business because this plan is only reserved for the largest websites.

How Do GoDaddy Plans Measure Up to the Competition?

While being one of the largest domain name registrars and web hosting companies in the world, GoDaddy isn’t always the best or most affordable choice available. Many GoDaddy competitors provide superior features at lower prices and with top-notch customer service.

Here is a comparison between GoDaddy’s plans and those of some of its largest competitors:

Plans	GoDaddy	Bluehost	HostGator	Hostinger
Shared Hosting	Starting at $5.99/month	Starting at $5.99/month	Starting at $2.75/month	Starting at $1.99/month
WordPress Hosting	Starting at $6.99/month	Starting at $8.99/month	Starting at $5.95/month	Starting at $2.99/month
VPS Hosting	Starting at $4.99/month	Starting at $19.99/month	Starting at $19.95/month	Starting at $3.99/month
Dedicated Hosting	Starting at $129.99/month	Starting at $89.99/month	Starting at $79.99/month	Starting at $69.99/month

As you can see, GoDaddy’s plans often cost more than those of its rivals, particularly for shared hosting and WordPress hosting. However, GoDaddy does provide a greater selection of services, such as email hosting, website development, and domain name registration.

The features of GoDaddy’s plans are equivalent to those of its rivals. All of the above-mentioned service providers provide limitless disk space, bandwidth, and a free SSL certificate. However, other rivals, like Bluehost and HostGator, provide extra features, such unlimited email addresses and access to cPanel/WHM.

The customer service offered by GoDaddy is comparable to that of its rivals. All of the above-mentioned service providers provide live chat, phone, and email customer care around the clock. However, some customers have complained that GoDaddy’s customer service can be unreliable and sluggish to respond.

GoDaddy is a decent option for web hosting overall, but it’s neither the best nor the cheapest on the market. Many GoDaddy competitors provide superior features at lower prices and with top-notch customer service.

To pick the best web hosting service for your requirements, it’s important to compare several plans and features. 

GoDaddy is a great choice to take into account, but it’s not the only one. Before choosing a supplier, make sure to compare them all.

Conclusion

GoDaddy excels in a number of areas above the competition. It is a great option for anybody looking to build image-rich personal or portfolio websites because its free plan offers unparalleled perks, such as limitless storage. In addition, it offers superior appointment-booking services at a lower cost than its competitors.

GoDaddy is hardly the most affordable nor the costliest website builder on the market. Similar to its prices, my general impression of it is that it is very mediocre.

The GoDaddy editor excels at many tasks that other builders just perform better. There are also several things that GoDaddy completely ignores while other editors do. To understand how the GoDaddy website builder compares to the competitors, read our in-depth evaluation.

I would advise looking at rivals like Squarespace or Wix, which provide more potent capabilities if you require a site editor that gives a wider selection of features for better functioning. 

Wix and Squarespace both offer free plans, similar to GoDaddy’s, so it’s worthwhile to try them out before making a commitment.

FAQS (Frequently Asked Questions)

Q#1: What is GoDaddy web hosting, and what types of hosting plans do they offer?

Popular web host GoDaddy provides a selection of hosting packages to suit different needs. They provide dedicated server hosting, shared hosting, WordPress hosting, and VPS (Virtual Private Server) hosting. VPS and dedicated hosting are appropriate for websites with higher traffic and resource requirements, while shared hosting is the most popular option for newcomers.

Q#2: Is GoDaddy a reliable web hosting provider?

GoDaddy is frequently rated as a trustworthy web server. They have a sizable customer base and promise uptime of 99.9%. Like any other hosting company, there may, however, occasionally be downtime because of maintenance or unforeseen problems. When selecting a plan, it’s important to keep an eye on the functionality of your website and take into account the uptime guarantee.

Q#3: How does GoDaddy’s customer support work, and is it good?

GoDaddy offers phone, live chat, and ticket support for its clients. Additionally, they feature a knowledge resource with lessons and articles. Some consumers have reported great customer service experiences, while others have had unsuccessful outcomes. When selecting a hosting service, it’s a good idea to study reviews and take into account your own support preferences.

Q#4: What features are included in GoDaddy’s hosting plans?

Depending on the type of hosting you select, the features included in GoDaddy’s hosting plans can change. However, standard features consist of a free domain name for the first year, simple website builders, one-click WordPress installation, email hosting, security features, and different resource allocations (e.g., storage, bandwidth, RAM) depending on the plan.

Q#5: Does GoDaddy offer a money-back guarantee, and what are the terms?

Yes, most of GoDaddy’s hosting plans have a 30-day money-back guarantee. This entails that you may test out their services risk-free and get a refund if you’re not satisfied within the first 30 days. Reviewing the guarantee’s terms and conditions is necessary, though, as there may be specific limitations and limitations.

Q#6: Can I upgrade or downgrade my hosting plan with GoDaddy?

Yes, you can increase or lower your hosting package with GoDaddy as your website’s requirements change. You may do this quickly by logging into your GoDaddy account or by getting in touch with their customer service. Remember that some hosting plans could have particular specifications or limitations, so it’s best to check the alternative options and conditions before making changes.