WordPress For Dummies: Best UK Hosting & Free/Premium Plugins

Starting a website is an excellent way to connect with an audience and build your brand online. Whether you’re a seasoned online marketer or someone who has never used a computer before, you know that having your website is a great way to promote your business and connect with potential customers.

A lot of people don’t know how to get started with their website or what tools are available to help them make the most of it. If you’re looking to start a blog, build a business, or learn more about how to harness the power of the web, this guide is for you. Keep reading to discover everything you need to know about running an online business and what we like to call WordPress For Dummies.

What Is WordPress?

WordPress is free, open-source software called a Content Management System (CMS) where you can create all types of websites from blogs, services or e-commerce stores.

WordPress will provide the framework for your site and the tools necessary to make it function seamlessly and look professional with just about any theme and plugin imaginable.

You can even customize every little detail, such as fonts, colours and backgrounds, without having an understanding of coding! All these features are what makes this platform so versatile.

WordPress is perfect for managing content because of its ease of use, scalability, and extensibility. It’s also an excellent choice for web designing and development through the large community of users and plugin developers worldwide.

What Is The Different WordPress Hosting Options

There are four main types of web hosting available today: Shared Hosting, Virtual Private Server (VPS), Dedicated Server and Cloud Hosting.

Shared Hosting

This is the most common form of web hosting. This type of hosting is great for beginners because it is inexpensive and easy to use. It can be an excellent choice for small businesses that don’t have much traffic on their sites, such as a blog or a small e-commerce businesses whose websites don’t generate much traffic. The downside to shared hosting is that your site’s performance may suffer from time to time if other websites on the server are receiving a lot of traffic. Suppose there is not enough bandwidth for all the sites on this particular server to run optimally simultaneously. If you’re looking for a hosting solution that is inexpensive and easy to use, then shared hosting is the way to go.

Virtual Private Server (VPS)

This type of web hosting is great because it combines the ease of use of shared hosting with the performance benefits of a dedicated server. With a VPS server, you have your own virtual private “server” with its operating system and resources to do whatever you want. With VPS, you’re sharing the same server, but you have your allocated section of that server, so you are genuinely set away from others, unlike shared hosting.

A VPS can be used for just about anything, including a personal website, blog, e-commerce site or even a small business website that does not get much traffic. Using VPS will provide your site with more resources, such as more memory, disk space, and bandwidth, so your site’s performance will be better than on shared hosting.

Dedicated Server

If you have a high traffic website that needs to be fast, you need a dedicated server. Dedicated servers are great for high traffic sites because they have more resources than VPS and are not shared with other websites. They also have their operating system and can run on various hardware platforms such as Windows or Linux. A dedicated server may cost a little more than VPS, but it will give your website the power to run fast and efficiently so that your visitors don’t experience any lag time when visiting your site.

Cloud Hosting

Cloud Hosting is another popular hosting solution because it offers high performance, scalability, and reliability at a reasonable price. Cloud hosting is also known as virtualized hosting because the websites run on virtual servers that reside on a cloud infrastructure. This means that your website will be hosted on multiple servers in one location instead of just one server, as with other types of hosting solutions such as Dedicated Hosting or Shared Hosting. Cloud hosting is perfect for high traffic websites because it offers load balancing, distributing traffic across multiple servers, so your site stays fast even when its traffic is high. Cloud hosting also provides high availability because your website will still be accessible from another server if one server goes down.

Free Hosting

Free hosting is an excellent solution for small personal websites or blogs that don’t have much traffic. This type of hosting is free and easy to set up and use, but you will not get any support or performance features like other hosting solutions. Free hosting is also known as Shared Hosting because your website will be hosted on the same server as other websites, so you will not get much power or performance compared to dedicated servers or VPS. Free hosting is great for small personal sites, but its servers are usually overloaded with ads, so they cannot handle high traffic.

WordPress Managed Hosting

WordPress Managed Hosting is an excellent solution for all types of websites with high traffic because it offers many features that you won’t find in free hosting. Managed hosting allows you to choose the type of server (dedicated, VPS or cloud) that you want and provides performance monitoring and security services. You will get support from the service provider, and they will also help you with optimization and troubleshooting when needed.

What Is The Best WordPress Hosting UK?

Choosing a web host for your WordPress site can be a complex process. There are so many hosting companies to choose from, and most of them offer unique and compelling features.

I have been down that road, constantly looking through reviews and articles to determine which hosting package is the best for my website and the visitors to the website. SEO is an important reason I became obsessed with the fastest reliable hosting provider in the UK, and I want to make life easier for you.

Below, I will show you my favourite hosting provider and my previous hosting provider, who also scored top marks by myself. Interestingly, my previous host doesn’t get much credit online, and I wonder why, as it’s £1.20 for hosting and a free domain!

Right, let’s get started.

Cloudways

Cloudways is an all-in-one Platform as a Service (PaaS) that offers managed cloud servers with various pre-installed applications like WordPress, Drupal, Laravel, Node JS, PHP, and Python. It also offers premium add-ons that let you host your application on other cloud providers like Amazon AWS, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean, and Microsoft Azure.

We love Cloudways because it offers a great platform to manage our website and applications. With Cloudways, we can quickly deploy, manage and monitor our website and apps with ease. Plus, the customer support is top-notch! With a response time of around 2 -5 minutes, I don’t think anyone can beat it.

Migrating your website to cloudways is a piece of cake. Install their WordPress plugin and follow the how-to, and within the hour, your website will see speed improvements.

Rocket.net

Rocket.net is a web hosting company that offers managed WordPress hosting for customers around the world. The company was founded in 2020 and has undoubtedly made a name for itself.

Rocket.net claims to be the fastest WordPress hosting in the world, and we can say that we are very impressed. We moved to Rocket.net after completing speed and web vital checks and can say that this is the fastest host we have experienced.

Below is the cost for each package, the starter package being a reasonable 30 dollars that can handle up to 250,000 visits a month.

Rocket.net offers free SSL, Cloudflare Enterprise, Daily Backups, Free Malware Checker and daily backups for a great price.

We find Rocket.net hosting a top-tier competitor and outranks the likes of Kinsta, WP Engine, and SiteGround.

Cloudways or Rocket.net?

We’ve been with Cloudways for years and still believe that they are one of the best hosting companies in the UK. However, after using Cloudways for so long, we found an even more impressive host called Rocket.net.

Rocket.net is a new hosting company that has quickly become one of the most popular web hosts in the UK. They focus on WordPress websites and, most importantly, have the best speeds around.

They offer managed WordPress packages that centre on the number of visitors you get a month rather than the amount of CPU, RAM and storage provided. They integrate Cloudflare enterprise into their packages (something that you pay $5 extra with Cloudways). This leaves you to focus more on what matters, building your website and content.

The reason we like Rocket.net is for the simple options it provides. No matter how many visitors you gain through the year, they promise to continue providing fast speeds.

Don’t get me wrong, Cloudways is excellent and one of the best, but I feel sticking with a hosting platform that we have tested is faster and also simpler to stay on the same package is something we were looking for. I do not want to think about upgrading my package if there is a massive increase in traffic. Cloudways is all about RAM, CPU and storage, but Rocket.net is all about the raw speed of your website and maintaining that speed no matter how many visitors are allowed within that package.

What Is The Cheapest WordPress Hosting UK?

There are many different options for cheap WordPress hosting if you’re starting out with your website. However, Ionos WordPress hosting is the most affordable option that I have come across. For only £1.20 per month, you get a free domain and all of the features you need to get started with your site. This is an excellent option for those on a budget who still want a high-quality hosting service.

Remember, Ionos WordPress hosting is shared with other users, which may change the scores you get on GTMetrix and Google Page Speed at different times of the day. For example, nighttime and weekends are when users are more likely to visit websites, meaning that the websites you’re sharing with eat up some of the server load time you require.

If you’re looking for a more comprehensive package, I would recommend Cloudways or Rocket.net, but if you’re just starting, then ionos WordPress hosting is the perfect option for you.

What Does Ionos Hosting Offer?

Ionos Hosting offers a variety of hosting services for those who are just getting started with their website. For only £1.20 per month, you get a free domain and all the features you need to get started. This is an excellent option for those on a budget who still want a high-quality hosting service.

What Is The Best WordPress Security Plugin?

WordPress is the most popular content management system in the world. It’s used by millions of people, including some of the biggest brands in the world. That’s why it’s such a target for hackers. If you’re using WordPress, you need to ensure that your website is safe. One way to do that is by using a WordPress security plugin.

First, let’s take a look at the best free WordPress security plugin

Best Free WordPress Security Plugin

If you’re looking for a comprehensive security solution for your WordPress site, then All In One WP Security & Firewall is your plugin. This plugin provides a wide range of security features, including malware scanning, firewall protection, user account security, and much more. All In One WP Security & Firewall is an excellent choice for those who want to keep their WordPress site secure from harm, and the best thing is it’s completely free!

The level of protection this plugin provides is incredible, you can lockdown pretty much every part of your website. These types of features you see are usually only seen in premium plugins, and don’t get me wrong, if you have the money, it’s advised to go premium. But this plugin delivers all the protection you need for a new website.

All In One WP Security & Firewall provides users with an easy to use dashboard where you can view at a glance the security of your website.

Best Premium WordPress Security Plugin

There are multiple contenders for the best premium WordPress plugin, but we are going to focus on our favourite.

iThemes Security

Ithemes Security is the best plugin for protecting your WordPress site. It offers a comprehensive set of features to secure your site, including password protection, two-factor authentication, malware scanning, and more. Ithemes Security is easy to use and provides a great deal of flexibility in how you can configure it to suit your needs. There is a free version available and a premium version with additional features.

If you’re looking for a plugin to help secure your WordPress site, Ithemes Security is a great option. It offers a wide range of features to choose from, making it easy to find the right security solution for your site. Ithemes Security is easy to use and provides a great deal of flexibility in how you can configure it to suit your needs. There is a free version available and a premium version with additional features.

Ithemes Security is the best plugin for protecting your WordPress site. It offers a comprehensive set of features to secure your site, including password protection, two-factor authentication, malware scanning, Php blocking, and so much more. Ithemes Security is easy to use and configure. You can find the free version in the WordPress plugin directory or go for the premium version that offers more features.

Some of the great features Ithemes Security offers:

– Password protection: Ithemes Security allows you to set up a firm password policy for your site, ensuring that all user passwords are secure and difficult to guess.

– Two-factor authentication: This add-on provides an extra layer of security by requiring users to enter a code from their mobile phone to log in.

– Malware scanning: Ithemes Security includes malware scanning as standard, helping to protect your site from malicious code.

– PHP blocking: This feature blocks any attempts to run PHP files on your server, making it more difficult for hackers to compromise your site. There is also an Ithemes Security Pro version that offers even more features, including:

Customizable security settings: With the Pro version, you can better tailor the security settings to suit your needs.

– Site backups: The Pro version includes site backup as standard, so you can rest assured that your data is safe.

– Priority support: If you need help with Ithemes Security, the Pro version includes priority support from the iThemes team.

If you’re looking for a plugin to help secure your WordPress site, Ithemes Security is a great option. It offers a wide range of features to choose from, making it easy to find the right security solution for your site.

What Is The Best WordPress SEO Software?

If you want to ensure that your website gets the best possible exposure on search engines, you need to invest in a good SEO platform. There are a lot of different SEO platforms out there, but not all of them are created equal. You need to find one that offers the features and tools you need to get the most out of your website. Here are some things to look for in a good SEO platform:

– Comprehensive keyword research tools: The best SEO platforms will offer comprehensive keyword research tools that allow you to find the right keywords for your website.

– Link building tools: A good SEO platform will also offer link building tools that can help you get high-quality backlinks from other websites.- Social media integration: A good SEO platform should also offer social media integration so you can track your website’s performance on social media networks.

– Reporting and analytics: A good SEO platform should offer reporting and analytics so you can track your website’s progress over time.- Support: A good SEO platform should offer support if you run into any problems.

If you want to ensure that your website gets the best possible exposure on search engines, investing in a good SEO platform is a smart move. Find one that offers the features and tools you need to get the most out of your website.

SE Ranking

SE Ranking is one of the most popular SEO software tools. And for a good reason: it’s packed with features that allow you to do just about everything when it comes to optimizing your website for Google and other search engines.

Here are some of the things that make SE Ranking an excellent choice for your SEO needs:

– Keyword research: With SE Ranking, you can easily find the right keywords to target for your website. It includes a powerful keyword research tool that lets you see what keywords are being used by your competition and how difficult it would be to rank for those keywords.

– On-page optimization: SE Ranking provides all the tools you need to perform on-page optimization for your website. This includes things like title tags, metatags, and other elements that help search engines understand what your website is about.

– Link building: SE Ranking’s link building features are some of the best in the business. With its help, you can easily find high-quality backlinks from authority websites that will help improve your website’s ranking in search results.

– Reporting and analytics: SE Ranking gives you access to robust reports and analytics tools that let you track your progress and see where you need to improve. This vital information can help you fine-tune your SEO strategy and ensure that you’re always on the right track.

These are just some of the reasons why SE Ranking is a great choice for your SEO needs. If you’re looking for a comprehensive and easy-to-use SEO software tool, then SE Ranking is definitely worth considering.

We use SE Ranking for our website along with the hosting, plugins and software we have spoken about.

Let’s take a look at the price of SE Ranking:

SE Ranking provides users with an affordable option compared to Semrush if they are on a budget. We believe that Semrush is the best SEO software on the market, and there is no doubt about it. But we love SE Ranking for its affordability, complete SEO reports and Keyword monitoring which is the best game.

If you pay yearly, you can save 20% on the price, which is even better for your money and value for WordPress users.

Conclusion

In our opinion, the best host, plugin, and software we’ve tested and chosen is the one that’s right for you. As of writing, we use every single product we have written about and love everyone.

Let us know what you think in the comments and if there are any improvements or better options out there.