JustHost was founded in 2008 and now belongs to Endurance International Group (EIG). The latter is also behind such well-known web-hosting names as Hostgator and Bluehost. JustHost isn’t as popular as those hosting juggernauts but still claims to host over 1 million sites.
But is it worth your attention? This JustHost review will help you make up your mind.
JustHost Pros & Cons
This host has several advantages, including some freebies. However, there are some serious downsides you should know about. Have a quick look at them before studying the JustHost.com review in more detail.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
|
30-Day money-back guarantee
Unmetered bandwidth (shared hosting)
Free domain name for a year
Free SSL certificate
Free Website Builder
Free SiteLock security tools
1-click WordPress installation
Instant server provisioning for VPS or dedicated server plans
|
Low loading speed
No uptime guarantee
High renewal prices
No free website migration
|
JustHost in Brief
| Characteristic | Information |
|---|---|
| Uptime guarantee | None |
| Server response time | 869 ms |
| Support options | 24/7 phone, email & chat; knowledge base |
| Hosting plans | Shared, VPS, Dedicated server |
| CMSs | WordPress, osCommerce, Joomla |
| Features | Unlimited bandwidth, free SSL, Cloudflare CDN, 30 money-back guarantee, free domain |
| Server locations | Provo, Utah (USA) |
| Starting price | $3.95 a month |
When to Use JustHost
From the overview above and other JustHost reviews, we can conclude that this provider is perfectly suitable for hosting some simple web solutions. Its Website Builder has numerous templates so that you can build your website in drag-and-drop mode.
Besides, you can easily install and use the most popular content management system — WordPress. SimpleScripts offers automatic installation of many popular scripts. The knowledge base and the support team will always be there to help you.
So, you can safely choose JustHost for your student’s project or a small/medium-sized online shop.
When Not to Use JustHost
This provider doesn’t seem to be a wise choice for large, complex projects. The loading speed is mediocre at best. The absence of an uptime guarantee, which is quite common among web hosts, seems puzzling. If the provider is sure about its servers and systems’ reliability, why doesn’t it offer some insurance to the client?
You can get a refund for the hosting services within 30 days from registration. Nothing special here; it certainly isn’t any-time money-back guarantee.
Note that a migration to JustHost will cost you a pretty penny if you already have a website.
JustHost Performance Features
JustHost supports not only PHP 5 but also PHP 7. PHP is a scripting language especially tailored to web development. The 7th version is almost two times faster than the older 5th version. Its use improves your site’s performance.
The provider offers all users Cloudflare CDN, which is a widely-used content delivery network. Such networks of servers, located worldwide, speed up content delivery for users in various locations.
CDNs also reduce bandwidth costs through caching and other optimizations. Besides, such networks can cope with more traffic and tolerate hardware failure better. Moreover, a CDN can even improve security by providing upgrades to security certificates and DDoS mitigation.
JustHost Speed Test Results
Loading speed is one of the most critical metrics of a web hosting provider. Slow sites frustrate visitors. They leave and may never return. Google ranks such sites lower, so the users are less likely to come upon them at all.
Justhost.com reviews don’t suggest that this provider is renowned for its loading speed. In fact, they suggest quite the opposite. But let’s have a look at the results of the testing. To ensure objective measurements, we’ve used three different tools.
| Test | Average Loading Time |
|---|---|
| GTmetrix test | 5.3 |
| Pingdom test | 1.62 |
| PageSpeed Insights (Google) | 3.65 |
Pingdom tests show fairly decent loading time, while GTmetrix’s verdict is quite disappointing. On average, it might not be the worst result, but it is far from top players’ offers.
JustHost Uptime Guarantees
As JustHost.com reviews claim, this company doesn’t provide any uptime guarantees. And information on its website seems to confirm that. JustHost offers some vague assurances about “secure and reliable” hosting. But that is as far as it goes.
The FAQ in the Help Center provides a more straightforward answer. “Due to the complexity and nature of a shared web hosting environment, downtime occurs. Unfortunately, we do not offer compensation for any downtime”, — the provider states.
Actual JustHost average uptime for the last year was around 99.97%. An industry standard is 99.95%, so that is quite good. But in 2020, there were months when JustHost struggled to reach even 99.90%. If uptime is of prime importance for you — look for more reliable providers with 99.99% rates.
JustHost Server Response Time
An average loading time reveals how fast the data on the website goes to a user. But it isn’t the most objective indicator of server response speed. Some sites may contain a lot of images or videos, which take some time to load. But there are instruments to assess server response times without loading data. For this JustHost hosting review, we used the Bitcatcha tool.
Overall performance is excellent. JustHost’s servers responded in less than 0.3s. Bitcatcha rates such performance as A+. However, response times for Asia and Australia are noticeably longer than for North America. Note that if your audience is located mainly in those regions.
JustHost Site Migration
Unlike many other providers, JustHost doesn’t offer free site migrations. However, the company offers paid Website Transfer service. It includes moving up to five websites and 20 email accounts from a single account of your previous host. The transfer fee is $149.99.
Another option is to move your website yourself. You can use various free FTP programs to do that. JustHost recommends Filezilla, which can be downloaded and used free of charge. The knowledge base has an article describing how to to use it.
Types, Features, and Hosting Pricing
The array of available packages isn’t vast. JustHost makes the main focus on shared hosting plans, which are displayed prominently on its web site. There are also VPS and dedicated server plans, but they hide at the main page’s bottom. It might suggest that those types of hosting aren’t JustHost’s main priority. However, our JustHost web hosting review will dwell on all available options.
Shared hosting
Shared hosting is the most widespread type of hosting. You share server resources with other sites, which makes this type of hosting the cheapest one.
All JustHost shared hosting plans include unmetered bandwidth, a free SSL Certificate, and a free domain. Plus and Choice Plus packages also offer an unlimited number of websites and unlimited storage. Besides, you get SpamExperts spam prevention and $200 in advertising credits.
The Basic plan will cost you at least $3.95 a month. The Plus-plans have the same promotional price – $ 6.95. However, they renew at different regular rates, so think twice before choosing the most advanced option.
VPS hosting
Choosing VPS hosting, you will also share resources with other sites on the same server. But you have some allocated section all to yourself, which improves performance. VPS is more flexible and scalable than shared hosting, although also more expensive.
JustHosts points out that its VPS solutions are cloud-based, offering even more possibilities for growth. Enhanced cPanel environment is claimed to provide an extensive feature set. Besides, the client has full root access to CentOS.
The Standard VPS plan from JustHost will cost you $19.99 per month. It includes 2 GB RAM, just 30 GB storage, and 1 TB/month bandwidth. You’ll have to choose Enhanced, Premium, or Ultimate package for more.
Dedicated Server Hosting
Dedicated Server hosting is suitable for large web projects, requiring maximum resources. All resources of the server are dedicated to your needs. Therefore, it is the most expensive type of hosting.
JustHost claims that clients’ data gets automatic protection with RAID 1 storage. RAID means Redundant Array of Independent Disks. Thus, the information is mirrored on multiple drives for the sake of safety. Besides, the provider offers write-back caching with its own RAM. That ensures better performance.
The Standard dedicating hosting plan starts at almost $80 per month. It offers four GB RAM, 500 GB storage, and 5 TB of monthly bandwidth. All packages include Intel Xeon Processor with four cores. The servers run on CentOS.
Ready to choose your plan?
Go to Justhost hostingSecurity
All JustHost’s shared hosting plans include a free SSL (Secure Socket Layer) certificate. It is vital for sites accepting payments. Such a certificate serves to verify a website’s identity and encrypt data exchange between the server and the site.
The provider offers SiteLock security tools, which include:
- Daily scanning for vulnerabilities in code and outdated applications. It doesn’t affect your site’s performance. So-called 360-degree scans include defacement, application vulnerability checks, database vulnerability checks, and drive-by downloads;
- Automatic malware removal;
- CMS (Content Management System) Vulnerability Patching;
- Web app firewall;
- Dynamic verifiable trust seal, ensuring web visitors that the site is safe.
Support
JustHost offers 24/7 customer support via phone, email, and live chat. The provider guarantees quick responses in a “friendly, courteous manner.”
However, JustHost hosting reviews provide controversial opinions about the quality of customer support. Some users report that the answers came quickly and were helpful. Others were not impressed. For example, one review mentioned that the support team provided misleading information about the prices.
Email and dashboard alerts will notify you if any threats are detected. Thus, you can solve the problem before search engines blacklist your site.
JustHost also has a Help Center with answers to frequently asked questions. Those articles and numerous tutorials will make setting up your website easier.
JustHost Quick Facts
| Fact | Information |
|---|---|
| Website migration | Not free ($149.99) |
| Free features | SSL certificate, one domain, $200 in advertising credits |
| Control Panel | cPanel |
| Email accounts | At least 5 |
| Bandwidth | Unmetered for shared hosting plans |
| Webspace | 50GB and more |
| CDN | Free Cloudflare CDN |
| Hidden fees and clauses | Renewal prices are significantly higher. You should cancel the renewal at least sixteen 16 calendar days before the end of your current term. Shared hosting accounts with a large number of files (200k+ inodes), database tables (5k+), or of an excessive database size (10GB+) may be terminated “with or without notice.” |
JustHost Review: Do We Recommend It?
Yes, we do.
On the one hand, JustHost has its perks. Free domain, SSL certificate, and Website Builder will make your life easier. Unmetered bandwidth does seem enticing. Hosting plans seem to provide enough value. Instant server provisioning is another advantage worth mentioning. A money-back guarantee also encourages to give this provider a try.
On the other hand, the web hosting market is highly competitive. JustHost’s loading speeds are below average, which is a severe disadvantage. It doesn’t provide an uptime guarantee, which casts doubts on its reliability. A 30-day money-back guarantee isn’t something extraordinary. And the prices, though affordable, certainly aren’t the lowest. Not to mention that you’ll have to pay for site migration.
Therefore, you might try JustHost for some simple web projects. But it can hardly be called the best bargain. You can find faster and more reliable options for the same money.
Ready to choose your plan?
Go to Justhost hostingJustHost Alternatives
So, what other web hosts should you consider? The market is enormous! Let’s have a look at several options:
- Bluehost — one of the largest web hosting companies in the world, also owned by EIG. It has some great WordPress options;
- Hostgator is another EIG web hosting, popular with bloggers and start-ups. It is one of the most affordable options to get your web project up and running;
- NameCheap offers the cheapest web hosting. Prices for the basic shared hosting plan start at $1.58 a month. As well as JustHost, it provides a domain name in its packages.