top 10 shared hosting picks for small sites and growing projects

What 'top 10' really means

The best shared plans earn trust through evidence. Seek independent speed tests, real uptime logs, and reviews from sites like yours. Top picks balance predictable resources, smart caching, and clear terms.

Key factors and quick checklist

Match any shortlist to your goals: transparent pricing, fair limits, and essentials like SSL, backups, staging, and smooth migrations. Evaluate before you commit to multi-year promos.

1. Uptime 99.95%+ with a published SLA
2. Speed TTFB under 500 ms consistently
3. Support 24/7 via chat and tickets
4. Limits disclosed CPU, I/O, and inodes
5. Security free SSL, WAF, isolation
6. Backups daily with 7–30 day retention
7. Scaling simple upgrade to VPS or cloud
8. Dev tools SSH, Git, staging, PHP versions
9. Extras email, CDN, and free migration
10. Pricing honest renewals, no surprise fees

Use this checklist to form your personal top 10, then run a week-long trial with real traffic to verify stability, speed, and support quality.