Scala Web Hosting Review | PCMag

Choosing the precise web hosting service comes right down to your wants. You is likely to be a enterprise proprietor who wants a robust, devoted server for promoting merchandise on-line or a hobbyist author who merely wants a low-cost shared server for running a blog functions. Scala Hosting believes there’s ample house for one thing within the center. While Scala Hosting presents many choices, akin to shared, WordPress, and reseller internet hosting, its major providing is managed cloud VPS. Scala touts this feature as one of the best of all worlds, with reliability, efficiency, and help that takes server upkeep out of your arms. In our exams, Scala Hosting proved a robust internet contender within the VPS and shared classes, however lacked a number of options present in Editors’ Choice picks akin to DreamHost and 1&1 Ionos.

Shared Web Hosting

Scala has three shared internet hosting tiers. With shared hosting, your web site lives on a server with different websites. The web sites share server sources (therefore the class’s identify!), which lowers the person prices. Unfortunately, that additionally signifies that a visitors spike on Site X could take server sources from Site Y, impacting efficiency. If you want extra sources or reliability than what this cheap web hosting supplies, VPS or devoted internet hosting is the way in which to go. More on these in a bit.

Scala Hosting presents annual plans for shared internet hosting; there’s no month-to-month choice. That mentioned, the associated fee goes down as you decide to longer annual phrases, as much as three years.

Mini (beginning at $7.95 monthly for a 12-month dedication) is the entry-level shared plan the corporate touts as having sufficient server sources for a single web site. It contains 20GB of SSD storage, and limitless month-to-month information transfers. The Start plan ($10.95 monthly for 12 months) permits you to create limitless websites and presents 50GB of SSD storage, limitless month-to-month information transfers, and real-time safety monitoring. Finally, the Advanced plan ($15.95 monthly for 12 months) kicks the obtainable storage as much as 100GB and tacks precedence help onto the bundle. If you wish to attempt before you purchase, Scala presents a trial month for simply 99 cents.

Scala doesn’t record CPU cores for shared internet hosting, as an alternative going with its personal “CPU Power” metric. The Mini, Start, and Advanced plans offer you 1x (30,000 guests), 2x (60,000 guests), and 4x (120,000 guests) CPU Power, respectively.

It’s price noting that Scala lacks Windows-based shared internet hosting choices—it’s Linux or bust. For a server powered by Microsoft’s working system, try HostGator, our Editors’ Choice decide for shared internet hosting. It presents a selection of Windows- or Linux-based servers at aggressive costs, plus month-to-month shared internet hosting plans.

VPS Web Hosting

Virtual non-public server (VPS) internet hosting is a step up from shared internet hosting. With VPS hosting, a number of websites stay on the identical server, however in a far much less crowded vogue than shared internet hosting. It’s an excellent choice in case you’re searching for extra server energy and reliability, however don’t wish to spend an excessive amount of cash.

Scala’s managed VPS plans are the place the corporate focuses its efforts and advertising. These are managed, Linux-based servers, so the corporate takes care of the setup, updates, server backups, and malware scans. No Windows choices can be found.

Scala has 4 tiers of managed VPS internet hosting. The Start plan (beginning at $19.95 monthly) provides you one CPU core, 2GB of RAM, 20GB of SSD storage, and limitless month-to-month information transfers. Next up is the Advanced plan (beginning at $31.95 monthly) that provides two CPU cores, 4GB of RAM, and 30GB of SSD storage. If you want extra server energy, the Business plan ($51.95 monthly) bumps the CPU cores to 4, RAM to 6GB, and SSD storage to 50GB. Finally, there’s the high-end Enterprise plan ($73.95 monthly) that incorporates six CPU cores, 8GB of RAM, and 80 GB SSD storage.

None of those tiers are set in stone, although. Scala Hosting is versatile, letting you configure your VPS internet hosting plan utilizing quite a few sliders. For instance, RAM maxes out at 128GB, and SSD house can go as excessive as 2TB. Configuring a top-tier, managed VPS server is $805.95 monthly; most individuals received’t want that, nevertheless it’s nice that Scala provides you a selection. Scala additionally presents self-managed VPS plans (beginning at $10 monthly) if you wish to get your arms soiled with server care.

That’s not sufficient to dethrone Hostwinds, the Editors’ Choice decide for VPS website hosting. Hostwind’s lowest tier is $10.99 monthly for 1 CPU core, 1GB of RAM, 30GB of SSD house, and 1TB of month-to-month information switch. Plus, Hostwinds permits you to arrange a Windows-based server.

Cloud Web Hosting

With cloud hosting, your web site’s sources aren’t restricted to bodily server limits. The sources scale to satisfy your web site’s necessities, taking sources from a number of servers when wanted. Scala Hosting’s VPS service is technically a cloud VPS service, however there’s additionally a self-managed choice extra akin to conventional cloud internet hosting.

The month-to-month pricing is similar whether or not you select the 1-, 3-, 6-, or 12-month billing cycle; no gross sales, no renewal charge jumps. It’s refreshing. The Start plan for self-managed cloud internet hosting ($10 monthly) has one CPU core, 2GB of RAM, 50GB SSD storage, and 3TB of month-to-month information transfers. The Advanced plan ($19 monthly) presents two CPU cores, 4GB of RAM, and 70GB SSD storage. Business ($33 monthly) boosts these numbers to 4 CPU cores, 6GB of RAM, and 100GB SSD storage. Finally, you’ve gotten the Enterprise plan ($49 monthly) that nets you six CPU cores, 8GB of RAM, and 150GB of SSD storage. There are additionally Windows-based server choices right here, although they price $20 extra monthly. 

Like Scala’s normal cloud VPS plans, the self-managed cloud VPS plans are totally versatile. You can mess around with sliders to tweak your plan nevertheless you need it. A maximized server, with 24 CPU cores, 128GB of RAM, and 2TB of SSD storage, prices $506 monthly. 

Scala has extra wallet-friendly cloud-hosting choices in comparison with the DreamHost, the class’s co-Editors’ Choice decide. However, DreamHost presents extra storage and limitless month-to-month information transfers. And in case you want extra total cloud energy, try Co-Editors’ Choice 1&1 Ionos. That internet host is prepared for high-end and enterprise customers with its spectacular (and costly) cloud internet hosting choices.

WordPress Web Hosting

Scala Hosting has the choice to put in the WordPress content material administration system (CMS) onto any server. That mentioned, it additionally presents WordPress-only servers. There are three tiers—WP Mini, WP Start, WP Advanced—which mirror the corporate’s shared internet hosting choices when it comes to specs and pricing.

Once once more, Scala stands near the competitors. After renewal, Scala is $7.95 monthly, whereas Editors’ Choice decide A2 Hosting is $6.99 for a similar 12-month dedication. A2 Hosting’s service excels with 100GB in SSD storage (versus Scala’s 20GB) and limitless month-to-month transfers. If you are simply stepping into WordPress, A2 is a superb place to begin.

Dedicated Web Hosting

Unfortunately, Scala Hosting lacks dedicated web hosting. If you are interested by that stage of high-end internet hosting, try AccuWeb Hosting, our Editors’ Choice decide.

Reseller Hosting

If you’re seeking to get in on the net internet hosting enterprise, however you don’t wish to mess with costly bodily server infrastructure, Scala Hosting has reseller hosting packages. 

The starting tier is Scala1. For $14.95 monthly (right down to $12.95 monthly with an annual dedication), you acquire entry to 1x CPU Power, 25GB of SSD storage, 1TB of month-to-month information transfers, and as much as 20 CPanel accounts. That scales as much as Scala3 ($38.95 monthly), which has 1x CPU Power, 75GB of SSD storage, limitless month-to-month information transfers, and as much as 60 CPanel accounts. 

Editing a site in SitePad

Building a Scala Hosting Website

Once you’ve signed up for service, Scala Hosting presents a reasonably normal, backend shopper space. You can configure your servers to make use of both Scala’s free SPanel or the trade normal CPanel. Please word that cloud VPS internet hosting solely makes use of SPanel.

I constructed a web site utilizing the SitePad website builder. It let me choose from a a number of engaging themes and let me add pictures and create pages as wanted. That mentioned, the bespoke web site builders that another hosts supply include extra user-friendly choices that information you thru the method and serve up context on how web site components match collectively. For instance, HostGator’s glorious Gator Website Builder has quite a few themes and intensive drag-and-drop options. Squarespace and Wix additionally supply easy-to-use web site builders. BlueHost is engaged on a sturdy website-builder choice, too.

Please word that we had points getting our Scala check web site working with our website-monitoring software. If you are planning to watch your web site, you will have to leap via some hoops. Fortunately, Scala has a responsive, useful customer support staff. More on that in a bit.

E-Commerce Options

With Scala Hosting, you’ve gotten entry to a number of normal e-commerce companies. OpenCart, osCommerce, Magento, ZenCart, and extra can be found for set up on the press of a button. With just some clicks, you possibly can set up a buying cart and create a fantastic on-line retailer through easy drag-and-drop performance. 

Excellent Uptime Results

An awesome web site is nothing if it retains happening. Scala Hosting has an uptime assure that credit you with a proportion of your subscription for each unscheduled downtime that sinks your web site’s uptime beneath 99.8 %. If your uptime dips beneath 99 %, you may obtain a 100% credit score to your account. Very cool.

We use a website-monitoring software to trace the uptime of the positioning we created on Scala Hosting’s service over a 14-day interval. Every quarter-hour, the software pings the web site and sends an e mail whether it is unable to contact the positioning for no less than a minute. The testing information reveals that Scala Hosting didn’t have any failures over a two-week testing interval. Building a web site is likely to be more durable with Scala Hosting in comparison with a number of the competitors, however the web site you construct will hardly ever go down.

Responsive Customer Service

Scala Hosting has sturdy buyer help. Even earlier than you join Scala’s companies, you possibly can faucet the corporate’s Knowledge Base and stay internet chat for solutions. The stay internet chat delivers quick responses that are available mere minutes.

I had a difficulty with our check web site early on that required me to create a assist ticket. Scala’s buyer help staff wasn’t capable of help me at the moment, however its responses at all times got here rapidly. 

Scala Hosting has a 30-day, money-back assure that provides a full refund. That’s typical for the website hosting trade, however shorter than Dreamhost’s spectacular, 97-day money-back assure.

A Decent Web Hosting Service

Scala Hosting clearly believes within the energy of a managed VPS service; it’s the place the corporate’s strengths lie. If you are searching for VPS internet hosting that scales as your web site grows, and would not break the financial institution, Scala Hosting is a advisable service.

While the net host is mostly an excellent one, Scala Hosting lacks a number of the dead-simple web site builders that bigger, competing companies present, and solely presents Windows internet hosting with its cloud tier. Across quite a few classes, although, our Editors’ Choice picks, together with Dreamhost and 1&1 Ionos, supply extra flexibility and bang for the buck. They’re terrific website hosting beginning factors, significantly for VPS internet hosting.

For extra on getting began with website hosting, be taught how to create a website. You may also wish to try how to register a domain name for your website. Don’t overlook to learn our SEO tips, too.

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