What Is InterServer?
- Ranked one of the top 10 web hosting services in 2024
- At $7 per month (after the introductory offer of $2.50), InterServer is more affordable than many competitors including GoDaddy and Bluehost
- Free website builder allows you to build and publish a website quickly
- InterShield Security, in-house malware database and a machine learning firewall and automatic virus scanner help protect your website and increase security
Featured Partners
1
Bluehost
$2.95 per month
Unmetered bandwidth, SSD storage starts at 10GB
Free domain name & SSL for a year
2
HostGator
$2.75 per month (for first 36 months)
30 days
Free SSL certificate, free website transfer
3
Web.com
$2.75 per month
Yes
Customizable templates, Easy drag-and-drop technology, SSL certificate
How InterServer Works
Finding a web hosting provider is one of the first steps required to get a website up and running. Shared web hosting means that many websites are hosted on one web server connected to the internet. For the majority of businesses, shared web hosting is more than enough to cover their needs.
A web hosting provider will allow you to have a custom domain name such as www.yourbusinessname.com for a monthly hosting subscription fee. Another option is to use a subdomain from WordPress (or another platform) for free, but it will mean your URL won’t be as professional, as it will include a word such as “WordPress” in the URL and will likely feature standard advertisements on the website that can’t be removed. A paid subscription to shared web hosting is the most affordable way to set up a professional website for your small business.
If you already have a domain name and want to transfer it to a different provider, such as InterServer, you can easily do this. InterServer charges $7.99 to transfer a domain name.
Is InterServer Right for Me?
InterServer could be a good choice for your business if you are looking for shared web hosting with a month-to-month payment plan. However, if you are the kind of customer who feels more secure knowing you can easily reach customer service by phone to ask questions about your website, you may want to consider a different service.
InterServer Is Best For:
- Business owners who prioritize cost
- Business owners who want one simple plan without worrying about add-ons or extra unexpected expenses
- Website owners who want to use a free website builder to create and design their website
InterServer Is Not Recommended For:
- People who rely heavily on live chat support. From our experience, the live agents do not thoroughly answer all questions through the chat.
What Sets InterServer Apart
InterServer offers one plan for all shared web hosting needs. While other companies offer different tiers for different plans, InterServer structures its pricing as one-size-fits-all. This can be beneficial if you’re looking for a low-cost plan with most of the features ($7 per month after the introductory offer). However, if you want more advanced offerings or customer support, you may want to consider a competitor.
InterServer Features
InterServer offers a number of features that are important to any web hosting service, including:
Storage and Bandwidth Limits
InterServer offers unlimited storage and bandwidth for all plans.
Extras and Inclusions
InterServer offers a free SSL certificate, unlimited storage and business emails and a website builder with the Standard plan.
Ease of Use
InterServer’s navigation was clear but not as up to date as other web hosting platforms. For a modern design, consider one of InterServer’s competitors.
User Dashboard/cPanel
The original plan comes with a control panel called DirectAdmin. This tool offers what users need to run a website.
However, if you want a cPanel, which will give you more complete access over your website, you’ll need to purchase cPanel web hosting through InterServer. This may be slightly confusing since most web hosting providers do not have a separate plan for a cPanel. The cost for cPanel web hosting is slightly more expensive than the standard web hosting plan, but only by a few dollars. Here are the prices:
- $2.50 for one month, renews at $8 for one month
- $15 for six months, renews at $48 for six months
- $30 for 12 months, renews at $96 for 12 months
Security
In addition to offering a free SSL certificate, InterServer also comes with Inter-Insurance for free, which will protect your website from potential compromises and hacking. Inter-Insurance includes: restoring websites impacted by any malware, investigating why the problem occurred and fixing the issue so that it does not happen again.
InterServer Pricing and Plans
InterServer only has one standard plan. This plan comes with unlimited storage and bandwidth, a free SSL certificate and a 99.9% uptime guarantee.
The initial offer is only $2.50 per month, which is in line with competitor offers. The standard cost of this plan is $7 per month, regardless of whether you sign up for one month or two years. This can be cost-effective if you want to sign up for a monthly plan, but if you prefer to commit to a plan long term, then you will be better off with a competitor that offers steep discounts on multi-year plans.
Customer Service and Support
InterServer offers live chat and 24/7 phone support. Though live support is available both to existing customers and prospective ones, we found the chat feature difficult to use. Initially, we were told the estimated wait time would be 34 minutes, and then after we received an initial response, there was a delay before receiving a response to the follow-up question.
The following times we communicated with the live agent we received more prompt responses, but they were not all helpful and many responses did not answer our question specifically.
We tried reaching out to InterServer by phone multiple times on two separate days, and each time were put on hold for six minutes before the call dropped. Overall, customer support was one of the least helpful we’ve experienced from web hosting providers.
Featured Partners
1
Bluehost
$2.95 per month
Unmetered bandwidth, SSD storage starts at 10GB
Free domain name & SSL for a year
2
HostGator
$2.75 per month (for first 36 months)
30 days
Free SSL certificate, free website transfer
3
Web.com
$2.75 per month
Yes
Customizable templates, Easy drag-and-drop technology, SSL certificate
Additional Features Worth Noting
InterServer also offers reselling hosting services for professionals who are operating and selling multiple websites. The reselling hosting costs $19.95 per month for 20 cPanel accounts and comes with daily backups and unlimited domains, in addition to all the features available in the standard shared web hosting.
InterServer offers a separate offer of private email hosting for $2.50 per month. Another benefit to signing up with InterServer is that it promises to maintain a 50% capacity policy as a way to ensure it is able to meet its customers’ needs.
InterServer Alternatives and How They Compare
InterServer vs. TMDHosting
InterServer and TMDHosting both received a score of 3.7 out of 5 stars. Both have very competitive introductory offers ($2.99 versus $2.50 per month). However, with TMDHosting, you’ll be able to sign on for the introductory offer for three years, while with InterServer, you’ll be capped at two years. InterServer also has an additional charge of $7.99 to register or transfer a domain while TMDHosting offers this service without an additional charge.
InterServer vs. GoDaddy
GoDaddy and InterServer both received the same score of 3.7 out of 5 stars. GoDaddy is significantly more expensive than InterServer. The introductory plan is $5.99 per month, which is more than twice the cost of InterServer’s introductory plan. GoDaddy’s plan renews at $9.99 per month for long-term plans while InterServer’s renews at $7 per month.
However, GoDaddy’s customer service is a lot more reliable than InterServer. Choosing a web hosting provider requires entrusting it with your business and when something goes wrong and customers can’t access your website, every minute spent on troubleshooting can impact your business’s bottom line. With this in mind, some business owners may feel more secure with GoDaddy.
InterServer vs. HostPapa
HostPapa received a significantly higher score than InterServer at 4.1 compared with 3.7 out of 5 stars. HostPapa’s emails are capped at 10 free emails while InterServer offers unlimited emails. Both offer a 30-day money-back guarantee. Our experience interacting with HostPapa’s customer support was much more positive than our interactions with InterServer’s customer support.
Our Expert Opinion
InterServer is a solid choice for a basic starter web hosting provider. At $2.50 per month for an introductory offer, InterServer’s initial offer is one of the more competitive on the market. The company’s monthly rate of $7 per month is competitive for users who want a month-by-month plan but is not recommended for those who want to sign on for a multi-year plan.
The company’s Inter-Insurance helps ensure your website will be protected, particularly the promise to investigate and determine why the issue occurred. Perhaps the biggest downside to signing up with InterServer is the lack of reliable customer support.
Compare InterServer With A2 Hosting And BlueHost
Starts at $2.50 per month
Customer service 24/7 phone support
Uptime guarantee 99.90%
$2.50 per month
24/7 phone support
99.90%
InterServer
A2 Hosting
Starting at
$2.99
per month (annual basis)
Customer service
24/7 support team
Uptime guarantee
99.90%
$2.99
per month (annual basis)
24/7 support team
99.90%
- Extensive knowledge base
- Fan favorite
- Excellent uptime
- 24/7 phone service and live chat
- Windows hosting “coming soon”
- Expensive short term plans
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is InterServer’s cheapest hosting plan?
InterServer’s cheapest offering is $2.50 per month as an introductory offering either for one month, six months, one year or two years. After the introductory period is over, the price will increase to $7 per month (regardless of the subscription length), which is still more affordable than many plans on the market.
Does InterServer offer a money-back guarantee policy?
Yes. You can receive a refund after 30 days, which is the standard time frame for web hosting returns.
What’s the difference between WordPress hosting and shared web hosting?
Shared hosting is the most popular choice for anyone who is building a website but does not have particularly high traffic demands. It is set up so that multiple websites share the same server and bandwidth. Ninety-nine percent of InterServer’s customers use shared web hosting. WordPress hosting is specifically suited for users who know they want to build their websites on WordPress. WordPress is preinstalled, and the hosting option automatically ensures it is up to date.
How can I transfer my website to InterServer?
InterServer provides migration services for shared web hosting and VPS for $7.99. InterServer is available to do this 24/7 and guarantees there will be little, if any, downtime when making the transfer.
How do I choose the best web hosting plan for my website needs?
Shared web hosting is the most popular and affordable option for people who are building a website and do not have high traffic demands. When considering the right plan, you’ll want to make sure shared hosting suits the traffic demands of your website or whether you need a virtual private server (VPS). You’ll also want to consider whether you plan to use WordPress to build your website and would benefit from WordPress hosting and whether you need specific hosting such as e-commerce hosting to sell products on an online store.
How do I choose the best web hosting services?
When choosing the best web hosting services for your business, you’ll need to consider a variety of factors. The most important include your website’s size, traffic and goals. You’ll also want to consider the type of hosting you need—shared, VPS or dedicated hosting. And finally, factors such as which come with the extras you need (e.g., a domain name or business email) and support in your preferred contact method (e.g., live chat, phone or email) should influence your decision.
