A2 Hosting Review 2024 – A2 hosting is one of the best web host
Welcome to my A2 hosting review
A2 Hosting is a reputable multiple award-winning web hosting company that Bryan Muthig started in Ann Arbor Michigan (from where it derived the name A2) in 2001 and launched a couple of years later. In 2007, A2 Hosting launched its VPS Hosting product, which was targeted at customers who needed more power and resources than a shared Hosting account but were not yet fully ready for a dedicated serveNVMe Hosting. A2 Hosting’s products and services are utilized by 110 thousand clients in 223 countries. Apart from the above-mentioned products, A2 Hosting also offers shared web hosting, dedicated hosting, reseller hosting, and domain name registration.
This A2 hosting review will focus on – Managed WordPress Hosting.
About A2 Hosting and Our Key Takeaways
- A2 Hosting ranks among the leading managed WordPress hosting providers around
- Apart from managed WordPress hosting, they also offer offer other hosting options such as VPS hosting, shared hosting, managed, reseller hosting, and dedicated hosting.
- A2 Hosting's managed hosting plans start at $9.99 per month and offer features such as optimized speed and security, free expert site migration, Jetpack daily malware scans, traffic surge protection, and 24/7/365 WordPress support, among others
- All four Managed WordPress plans include a hassle-free money-back guarantee
- They have a WordPress plan that focuses on WooCommerce/e-commerce
Best a2 hosting alternatives
I would say scalahosting, with its entry cloud deal at $14.95, is a great alternative to A2 hosting. If you are looking for cheaper options then chemicloud is the way to go. A2 hosting is great; they are one of my top picks, but chemicloud or scalahosting might be an even better option. You can read my reviews on scalahosting here and chemicloud here
What Is Managed WordPress Hosting?
Managed WordPress hosting is nothing but a service in which the hosting provider controls and maintains the server and site in terms of all technical aspects such as performance speed, security, automated backups, and updates as well as server and service monitoring, among others. This allows the site owner to focus on creating and managing their WordPress site content in other to achieve higher traffic and conversion rates.
The fly package is a great deal at $26.99/mo for does that need unlimited websites and NVMe storage.
A2 Hosting's Managed WordPress Plans
All four plans in the package have optimized and deluxe WordPress featured and are hosted on A2 Hosting’s turbo servers.
Why Should You Consider A2 Hosting?
A2 Hosting is an optimal choice for anyone on the lookout for a fast and reliable hosting provider that provides generous storage and bandwidth at affordable rates. Whether you are a blogging newbie, an SME owner, or a digital solopreneur, A2 Hosting has all it takes to offer you managed WordPress Hosting you can always rely on to power your website.
Another impressive thing about A2 Hosting is their Turbo plans with upgraded servers boasting CPU processors that are 40 percent faster; NVMe storage that is three times faster and an increased RAM offering. Additionally, A2 Hosting offers free Cloudflare CDN for all its hosting products, which implies higher speed and quicker loading times.
Overall, A2 Hosting will be effective for any business that anticipates huge traffic on their website.
What are the Features of A2 Managed WordPress?
The list is long, really, really long. But I decided to show them all since I think A2 hosting is packed with features.
NOTE: If you go with A2 web hosting, then I believe the FLY package is their best deal since you get unlimited websites and much more power.
More information about their features:
Industry-Leading Security
A2 Hosting boasts state-of-the-art security features capable of automatically scanning your website for any vulnerabilities, and ensuring that your WordPress site is safe through their round-the-clock containment of security threats. Moreover, all plans offer free SSL certificates that secure your visitors’ data by encrypting information as it moves from their web browsers to your server. This ensures the safety of information shared by your users.
Free Website Migration
If you desire a simple and stress-free migration process, then A2 Hosting is an ideal option. They have a dedicated migrations team whose specialty is to transfer existing websites to A2 Hosting.
Customer Testimonial: “The migration worked exceedingly well. Not only were my files migrated, but my databases were loaded too. So WordPress and some personal stuff worked.”
Daily Automated Backups
A2 Hosting’s daily automated backups ensure that your site is safe in the event of any Mistakes. These backups provide you peace of mind by enabling you to easily restore your site via a few clicks.
A2 Optimized WordPress
The A2 Optimized setup feature comes preinstalled on all of the company’s WordPress hosting plans. With this great feature, you’ll get a site that is configured to provide top performance and high-level security settings, ensuring you have the best possible foundation to grow your site.
Staging and Cloning Tools
A2 Hosting's staging tool facilitates the easy creation of an environment suitable for testing any changes you intend to make before delivering such changes to your audience. So this tool gives you peace of mind from worrying about whether a change will have adverse consequences for your site, and then trying to revert them if such is the case. In a nutshell, staging will help you precisely determine the impact an update will have on your site before you do the update.
The cloning feature of a WordPress installation helps in either backup or development. Clicking on this feature yields a complete copy of a WordPress installation in addition to making all the necessary configuration changes needed to create a working site in a subdomain of the original installation.
Carbon Neutrality
With the ever-growing need for a net-zero planet, carbon neutrality is becoming an important CSR and ESG concept for businesses worldwide. A2 Hosting is doing well on this scorecard with its support for carbon-neutral web hosting. All of the company’s servers are carbon neutral and they are partnering with global nonprofit organizations (including carbonfund.org which it has been working with since 2007) and consumers to evolve eco-friendly web hosting solutions.
Additionally, even before COVID-19, the company had a policy of encouraging its staff to telecommute or carpool whenever it is possible in order to lower fuel use. They also responsibly recycle old hardware in addition to supporting global tree replanting bodies such as Carbon.org for the purpose of promoting carbon sequestration and ecological diversity.
A2 hosting speed test
So, how fast is A2 hosting? We will use our movearoundsite for our speed test. Movearoundsite is a test site created for measure speed on various hosting providers. The movearoundsite.com will always stay the same, with no updates, no changes, no nothing. In this way we can always compare the different hosting providers and see who performs the best.
So, enough said. This is the first speed run:
The first speed run shows that A2 only does okay, but this is before we use their A2-optimized WP plugin, which seems to be free. It was installed by default when I created a new fresh WordPress install.
So on we go with an exciting second speed test run with this plugin activated:
As you can see, the results are not good at all. If this is all they can do then there are much better options. However, after looking more at the A2 plugin, I found out you had to activate the LiteSpeed plugin to get their turbo speed.
So that's what I did, I activated the LiteSpeed plugin that also comes with the package and hit preset/ advanced settings. Speed test number 3:
Ok, so now we are getting excellent speed. I am not sure if optimizing with the LiteSpeed advanced preset + a2 optimize plugin is a good thing. I know that the LiteSpeed plugin can cause problems with Elementor not loading. So I think you have to play some with the settings once you start working on your site. I tried to change the LiteSpeed plugin to basics, and speed dropped some.
Expert Support Team
For all your inquiries and other support needs, A2 Hosting has a team of WordPress experts available 24 hours a day, seven days a week via phone, live chat, or support ticket. However, impatient customers may be a bit frustrated at having to fill out the form below before being connected with their live chat service.
But if you persevere in filling out the form, you'll get good support from their so-called “Guru Crew.”
Wrapping Up
A2 Hosting is widely acknowledged and hailed for its speedy servers and efficient customer service. As you can see above, the A2 Hosting managed WordPress package does well when it comes to speed. Another impressive thing about A2 Hosting is their Turbo plans which are equipped with upgraded servers boasting CPU processors that are 40 percent faster; NVMe storage that is three times faster and an increased RAM offering.
Some other attributes of these advanced servers include optimized configurations, limited occupancy, and sophisticated caching software. In all, A2 Hosting will be effective for any business that anticipates huge traffic on their website. Additionally, A2 Hosting free Cloudflare CDN for all its hosting products, ensuring extra speed and faster loading times. Not every web host offers CDN, let alone free of charge.
I can only recommend A2 Hosting and their fantastic features. For me the Fly package is their best deal.
/Until next time, stay safe and enjoy your day
FAQs
Q: What is A2 Hosting?
A: A2 Hosting is a web hosting provider that is popular for its speedy performance. The company has data centers in the USA (Michigan), Europe (Amsterdam), and Asia (Singapore).
Q: What Makes A2 Hosting’s Managed WordPress Solutions So Fast?
A: Their Managed WordPress plans are hosted on advanced Turbo web servers whose components include solid-state NVMe drives, LiteSpeed TurboCache for WordPress, the A2 Optimized Plugin, and several other features. All these help to significantly boost read, write, and page load performance.
Q: What is the Nature of A2 Hosting’s Support Department?
A: A2 Hosting calls its support staff the “Guru Crew.” They are very friendly and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year via live chat, email, and phone.
Q: How Level of Control Will I Have Over My Managed WordPress Sites?
A: Although A2 Hosting will manage your server, you will enjoy full access to your WordPress admin panel at all times. You’ll also have access control of your websites, site files, email, databases, and site statistics via the cPanel (control panel). Also included is the WordPress Toolkit which makes it easy to add plugins, change the theme of your website, and more.
Another feature you will access is WordPress staging, through which you can test changes and updates in a safe environment prior to taking them live. Additionally, WP-CLI comes pre-installed, meaning that power users can manage their WordPress sites from the command line.
Q: Does A2 Hosting’s Managed WordPress Plans Support WooCommerce?
A: Yes. One of A2 Hosting’s managed WordPress plans (the Sell plan) not only supports WooCommerce but other e-commerce platforms as well.
Q: What is A2 hosting and what are its main features?
A: A2 hosting is a web hosting service known for its high-speed performance and reliable hosting plans. Its main features include shared hosting plans, VPS plans, dedicated hosting plans, and a range of hosting options for different user needs.
Q: What are the pricing options for A2 hosting?
A: A2 hosting provides various hosting plans with different pricing options. These include shared hosting plans, VPS hosting plans, and dedicated hosting plans, each with different pricing tiers to cater to different needs and budgets.
Q: What are the pros and cons of A2 hosting?
A: Some pros of A2 hosting include high-speed performance, a range of hosting options, and reliable customer support. However, some cons include higher pricing compared to some competitors and occasional issues with uptime.
Q: How does A2 hosting compare to other web hosting companies?
A: A2 hosting stands out from other web hosting companies with its emphasis on high-speed performance, a wide range of hosting options, and a reputation for strong customer support. However, its pricing may be higher compared to some competitors.
Q: What are the key features of A2 hosting’s shared hosting plans?
A: A2 hosting’s shared hosting plans provide reliable server hosting, a range of hosting features, and access to the company’s high-speed performance, making it a popular choice for those looking for a reliable web hosting service.
Q: What are the different hosting support options offered by A2 hosting?
A: A2 hosting offers hosting support through various channels, including ticket support, live chat, and phone support. This ensures that customers can get assistance with any hosting issues they may encounter.
Q: What sets A2 hosting apart from other web hosting services?
A: A2 hosting is known for its emphasis on high-speed performance, a reliable range of hosting options, and strong customer support. This sets it apart from other web hosting services in the market.
Q: Is A2 hosting suitable for hosting WordPress websites?
A: Yes, A2 hosting is a popular choice for hosting WordPress websites due to its high-speed performance, reliable hosting features, and dedicated support for WordPress hosting needs.
Q: Can A2 hosting be recommended as a reliable web host?
A: Yes, A2 hosting is often recommended as a reliable web host due to its emphasis on high-speed performance, a wide range of hosting options, and strong customer support, making it a popular choice among users.
Q: What are the types of hosting plans offered by A2 hosting in 2023?
A: In 2023, A2 hosting offers shared hosting plans, VPS hosting plans, dedicated hosting plans, and a range of hosting options catering to different user needs and preferences for web hosting services.