After conducting a series of tests, A2 Hosting stands out as the clear winner in this A2 Hosting vs SiteGround comparison. A2 Hosting offers a broader range of hosting options and up to 20x faster loading times thanks to its Turbo Servers. A2 also offers a 90-day money-back guarantee, providing more flexibility and confidence to users.
Premium WordPress and shared hosting from A2 Hosting offers customisable hosting to a large audience. Their high-performance, versatile devices provide smooth website operation for all users. Want a smooth online experience? Explore A2 Hosting and boost your website performance.
A2 Hosting is a web hosting company founded in 2001, and has established itself as a high-performance hosting company catering to both new and professional website owners.
The company offers a variety of hosting services such as shared hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated servers, and reseller hosting. They have data centers located in the United States, Europe (Amsterdam), and Asia (Singapore), allowing them to offer fast and reliable service to a global customer base.
SiteGround is a hosting company founded in 2004 in Bulgaria. Since then, the company has grown into a large corporation that crossed 1 million domains in 2018 and then quickly doubled that by 2022.
SiteGround offers shared hosting, Cloud hosting, WordPress hosting, WooCommerce hosting, and reseller hosting plans. The company also offers email hosting and domain registration, among other enterprise solutions.
Up to 40 GB on shared hosting, up to 160 GB on cloud hosting
Up to unlimited on shared hosting, and up to 450 GB on VPS hosting
Bandwidth
Unmetered
Unlimited
High-performance SSD storage
Yes
Yes
Free daily backups and restore
Yes
Yes, except for the startup plan
Free WordPress installation
Yes
Yes
Free site migration
Yes for WordPress sites
Yes
Free website builder
Yes
Free for single page websites
Free SSL
Yes
Yes
A2 Hosting Features
A2 Hosting offers shared hosting, VPS hosting, dedicated hosting and reseller hosting plans. On its shared hosting, you get unmetered bandwidth and unlimited storage, apart from its basic plan with 100 GB diskspace. On its VPS plan you get up to 450 GB diskspace, on its dedicated plans, up to 2 TB diskspace, and up to 250 GB for its reseller plans.
You get high-performance SSD drives, a free SSL on all plans, and free daily backups and restore on every plan except for its most basic plan. Installing WordPress and migrating your website is free, however, the website builder ‘free of charge’ is only good for 1-page websites.
A2 Hosting also has WordPress-specific plans plus a very versatile suite of hosting plans for different services and business types.
SiteGround Features
SiteGround offers shared hosting, cloud hosting, and reseller hosting as its main plans, plus specialized WordPress and WooCommerce plans for websites built on WordPress. On every plan, you get a free SSL to keep your website secure out-of-the-box.
For its shared hosting plan, you get unmetered bandwidth and up to 40 GB storage. On its cloud hosting, you get 5 TB bandwidth and 160 GB diskspace. On reseller plans you get up to 40 GB diskspace, and unlimited websites.
To ensure the best performance all your data is stored on high-performance SSD drives and backed up daily. Plus, if you are looking to create a completely new website, SiteGround allows you to build your website for free with Weebly and WordPress.
And the winner is A2 Hosting
This is a very close tie but A2 Hosting comes out on top thanks to its higher storage and more versatile hosting plans than SiteGround.
A2 Hosting offers three tiers of shared hosting plans, starting with the Startup plan at $2.99 per month, which includes:
Hosting for one website
100 GB SSD storage
Free SSL
Website builder
Unlimited email accounts
This entry-level plan is designed for those starting a new website, offering free and easy site migration, a money-back guarantee, and promising 99.99% uptime with unlimited data transfer.
The $5.99 per month plan offers unlimited websites and SSD storage, plus free automatic backups.
The top tier at $14.99 per month boosts performance with unlimited NVMe SSD storage, Turbo speed for faster page loads, and increased capacity for higher traffic, ideal for demanding websites.
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StartUp at $2.99/month for one website with 10 GB web space
GrowBig at $4.99/month for unlimited websites and 20 GB web space
GoGeek at $7.99/month for unlimited websites with 40 GB web space
Each plan includes free domain, SSL, daily backup, CDN, email services, enhanced security, managed WordPress, and supports eco-friendly hosting with 100% renewable energy.
These plans are designed to accommodate from 10,000 to 400,000 monthly visits, featuring a 30-day money-back guarantee.
A2 Hosting’s reseller plans start with Kickstart at $17.99, offering 60 GB SSD storage and 600 GB transfer, suitable for newcomers.
The Launch plan at $22.99 provides 120 GB storage for growing demands, while the Grow plan at $29.99 increases to 160 GB storage and 1600 GB transfer for more extensive needs.
The top-tier Scale plan at $39.99 offers 250 GB storage and 3500 GB transfer, ideal for advanced reselling. All plans include Turbo options, free SSL, 24/7 support, and a money-back guarantee.
SiteGround Reseller Plans
SiteGround’s reseller plans start with GrowBig at $4.99/month for unlimited websites and 20 GB web space, including daily backups and free SSL.
The GoGeek plan at $7.99/mo ups the web space to 40 GB, keeping all GrowBig benefits for more resource-intensive sites.
The Cloud plan, at $100.00/mo, extends web space to over 40 GB, aimed at high-traffic websites, maintaining comprehensive features like enhanced security and e-commerce support.
A2 Hosting’s Managed WordPress hosting begins with the Run plan at $11.99/month for 1 website and 50 GB NVMe storage, including essentials like free site migration, SSL, backup, and 4 GB RAM.
The Jump plan at $18.99/month supports 5 websites with 250 GB storage and daily backups.
The Fly plan at $28.99/month and the Sell plan at $41.99/month offer unlimited websites and storage, with RAM increasing to 8GB and 16GB, respectively, plus daily security checks.
All plans promise 99.9% uptime and unmetered bandwidth, tailored to suit a variety of WordPress hosting needs from basic to high-traffic sites.
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StartUp at $2.99/month for one website with 10 GB web space and essential features like free domain, SSL, and daily backups, ideal for ~10,000 monthly visits.
GrowBig, at $4.99/month, expands to unlimited websites, 20 GB web space, and supports ~100,000 visits with all StartUp features plus more.
GoGeek at $7.99/month provides for unlimited websites, 40 GB web space, catering to ~400,000 visits, with advanced resources.
All plans include eco-friendly hosting, enhanced security, and a 30-day money-back guarantee, tailored for different WordPress hosting needs.
Your host’s uptime and server speed are important metrics to consider. Higher uptime figures mean you can be sure your website will always be online to your users. And quicker response times mean your website will load quicker and you’ll rank higher in search, ultimately more conversions.
A2 Hosting Uptime & Speed
To get a rough estimate on A2 Hosting server speeds, I ran a website hosted on A2 Hoting through GTMetrix and Google PageSpeed Insights.
On GTMetrix, A2 Hosting had a very impressive TTFB of 138 ms and an overall performance of 89%:
And on PageSpeed Insights, the host showed a TTFB of 600 ms and an overall performance of also 89%:
SiteGround Uptime & Speed
I performed the same tests on the same testing tools for SiteGround. I also performed in the same time frame to get fair results. Check them out:
On GTMetrix, SiteGround had an impressive time to first byte (TTFB) of 244 ms and an overall performance of 94%:
On PageSpeed Insights, the host had a TTFB of 500 ms for the desktop version and an overall performance of 89%:
And the Winner Is A2 Hosting
In terms of website speed, A2 Hosting performed just slightly better overall. You could even call it a tie and I was truly impressed by each host.
A2 Hosting provides 24/7 support, a phone directory, a vast knowledgebase, live chat, ticket and email support.
If you need quick answers to urgent issues, their phone support makes the most sense and there are numbers you can call for very region:
Their knowledgebase has a healthy chunk of information and with a built-in search bar, you can quickly find whatever you’re looking for:
I was happy that I could chat with an agent live on A2 Hosting even without signing up and decided to try it out:
I likeed that they tell you exactly how long you have to wait for and your position on the queue. So I waited… for over 30 minutes…
Eventually, she responded, and I asked a couple of questions. The agent was very knowledgeable and answered everything I asked professionally but still took a while.
SiteGround Customer Support
SiteGround offers a suite of support options including 24/7 availability, phone support, live chat, email support, ticket support and a vast knowledgebase. However, the bulk of these support portals are reserved for existing customers.
Still, I was impressed with two support you don’t usually see on other hosts – podcasts and a tutorial page:
I wanted to try at least chatting with a live agent, but the option wasn’t available unless I signed in. In all, as an existing customer, you’ll enjoy high-priority response times and can call, chat with agents live, have a bot attend to your most basic inquiries, and open a support ticket.
And the Winner Is A2 Hosting
I’ll still go with A2 Hosting for this round just because I was able to chat with an agent live, even though I must say, waiting for 30 minutes is no fun but it’s better than nothing if you’re not yet a customer.
A2 Hosting’s UI plays with a lot of green and orange and I like it. Without needing to scroll down, you can see the hosting categories grouped on top and can contact their live chat or place a call right away:
A2 Hosting’s user dashboard is one of the best looking I have seen and places strong emphasis on the host’s support features:
A2 Hosting also uses a modern version of the traditional cPanel and it’s just login away from your main dashboard:
For old timers, the cPanel will feel right at home but it may be slightly intimidating for hosting newbies or no-code audiences.
SiteGround Ease of Use
SiteGround has a fun user interface with color combinations and icons that pop. You can start finding out important details of the different plans right from the homepage:
Once you’re a customer, you’ll have access to their account management dashboard that’s quite intuitive, decluttered and looks like the industry standard:
From here, you can manage all your account and website frontend shenanigans and access your CMS directly.
One awesome thing about SiteGround is that they offer their own custom cPanel – Site Tools – designed for hosting newbies who haven’t seen a lot of backend:
SiteGround Site Tools still looks vaguely familiar so if you’re a die-hard cPanel fan, you’ll still enjoy using it.
And the Winner Is SiteGround
A2 Hosting has an intuitive user interface and dashboard that looks better overall, but SiteGround’s custom cPanel is very convenient to use for just about anyone.
6. Privacy and Security Comparison: Which Platform is More Secure?
A2 Hosting also gives you a free SSL on all of their plans, DDoS protection, and has a built-in firewall that’s impressive. You get a malware scanner that runs periodic checks to ensure your website’s integrity and automatic daily backups on most plans but not on the most basic plan which sucks.
A2 Hosting is also CloudFlare compatible and allows you to activate Brute Force Defense, meaning extra security. For SiteLock, I also couldn’t find any information on their compatibility but A2 Hosting is compatible with one of SiteLock’s products Patchman that prevents your website from being hacked and automatically quarantines affected files within 24 hours.
SiteGround Security
SiteGround offers all the security essentials out-of-the-box including a free SSL certificate, DDoS attack protection, and daily backups on all its plans to keep your data safe. You get a malware scanner and all plans on the hosting provider are CloudFlare-compatible.
I couldn’t find any information on SiteGround’s compatibility with SiteLock Security. The host also provides access to free WAF plugins to add an extra layer of security.
And the Winner Is A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting provides more security features out-of-the-box on its basic plans than SiteGround plus it has a workaround for SiteLock.
You want your host to have as many servers and data centers globally as possible. This will make your website load quickly and also reduce the impact of any security breaches if they happen.
A2 Hosting Server Locations
A2 Hosting has servers located in data centers in:
USA (Michigan)
USA (Arizona)
Europe (Amsterdam)
Asia (Singapore)
And through its SwiftServer platform, the host provides specialized hosting packages by server location across 35 countries:
SiteGround Server Locations
SiteGround has data centers in four continents across:
USA – Ashburn, Council Bluffs, Dallas, Los Angeles
Europe – London, Madrid, Eemshaven, Frankfurt
Australia – Sydney
Asia – Singapore
SiteGround also offers CDN services to help spread your website footprint to:
Ashburn (Virginia, US)
Council Bluffs (Iowa, US)
Dallas (Texas, US)
Los Angeles (California, US)
Moncks Corner (South Carolina, US)
The Dalles (Oregon, US)
London (UK)
Madrid (Spain)
Eemshaven (Netherlands)
Frankfurt (Germany)
Hamina (Finland)
Warsaw (Poland)
Sydney (Australia)
Tokyo (Japan)
Singapore (Singapore)
Sao Paulo (Brazil, South America)
SiteGround also boasts a renewable energy match for its green data centers – i.e all the energy consumed is matched with a renewable source for sustainability.
And the Winner Is SiteGround
SiteGround has more servers and more data centers across the globe than A2 Hosting. Plus, its renewable energy match policy makes it the greener host, in a world where energy concerns are rising.
A2 Hosting vs SiteGround: Final Recommendations
Why Choose A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting wins this matchup and is best for you if:
You want VPS hosting
You want the most affordable hosting packages
You want the most storage
You are a large corporation that needs dedicated resources
You want to resell your hosting plans
You are a fan of the traditional cPanel
A2 Hosting
Premium WordPress and shared hosting from A2 Hosting offers customisable hosting to a large audience. Their high-performance, versatile devices provide smooth website operation for all users. Want a smooth online experience? Explore A2 Hosting and boost your website performance.
SiteGround is one of the best hosting providers in the world for good reason. Choose SiteGround for your hosting needs if:
You want cloud hosting packages
You are new to hosting and don’t know how to use the cPanel
You want the best support
You want a wider server footprint
You are green-earth conscious
SiteGround
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A2 Hosting and SiteGround Alternatives
Provider
Overview
Expert & User Reviews
Hostinger offers affordable shared hosting, VPS hosting, and cloud hosting, along with domain registration services.
Focuses on speed, security, and reliability and offers features like SSD storage, free website migration, daily backups, and a user-friendly control panel.
A2 Hosting wins the 7-round matchup against SiteGround as the better host. A2 Hosting provides so many hosting plans including packages tailored for specific businesses, plus more storage on its dedicated hosting. Their server response time is also faster on average and as a small company, their support is helpful.
SiteGround, on the other hand, focuses on niche hosting plans and is also really fast. The host emphasizes ease-of-use with its custom cPanel, is eco-conscious, and provides a suite of solutions for both small businesses and enterprises.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is SiteGround better than A2Hosting?
Siteground has its strong points and is one of the best A2 Hosting competitors, however, I prefer A2 Hosting overall. In terms of server footprint, ease of use, and support, SiteGround wins, but A2 Hosting offers more plans, is faster on average, and is cheaper for smaller businesses.
What are some great SiteGround and A2Hosting alternatives?
Some good SiteGround and A2 Hosting alternatives are Hostinger, BlueHost, Namecheap and GoDaddy.
Is A2 Hosting fast?
Yes. A2 Hosting server response time is at 138 ms on GTMetrix. Most other hosts sit between 200-900ms.
Is A2 Hosting Reliable?
A2 Hosting is highly reliable, known for its excellent uptime and swift performance. It offers a variety of hosting plans that cater to different needs, ensuring websites run smoothly. With a strong emphasis on speed and security, A2 Hosting provides a dependable hosting environment, making it a favored choice among users seeking a stable and efficient web hosting solution.
Is A2 Hosting good for WordPress?
A2 Hosting is excellent for WordPress, offering specialized hosting plans that are optimized for WordPress sites. These plans include features like easy one-click installs, automatic updates, and enhanced security measures tailored for WordPress. With its emphasis on speed and reliability, A2 Hosting ensures WordPress sites perform optimally, providing a seamless experience for website owners and their visitors.
Is SiteGround Reliable?
SiteGround is renowned for its reliability, offering exceptional uptime, cutting-edge speed technologies, and top-notch customer support. It has a strong reputation for maintaining high performance and providing robust security features. SiteGround’s hosting solutions are designed to meet the needs of various users, from bloggers to large businesses, making it a trusted and reliable hosting provider in the industry.
HostAdvice.com provides professional web hosting reviews fully independent of any other entity. Our reviews are unbiased, honest, and apply the same evaluation standards to all those reviewed.While monetary compensation is received from a few of the companies listed on this site, compensation of services and products have no influence on the direction or conclusions of our reviews. Nor does the compensation influence our rankings for certain host companies.This compensation covers account purchasing costs, testing costs and royalties paid to reviewers.
