What is Managed WordPress hosting?

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We often get the question: “what is Managed WordPress hosting?”. So, we decided to share our view on Managed WordPress hosting and what it is all about.

Managed WordPress hosting is a popular term among WordPress hosting providers. It is basically some features they offer if you have a WordPress website. Managed WordPress hosting can vary much in terms of features depending on the provider as it is not a software solution. When searching for a WordPress host with Managed WordPress hosting you should read carefully which features are provided. Almost all providers promise Managed WordPress hosting but some are more efficient than others. In this article we will cover the top 10 basic features you could expect if a provider promises Managed WordPress hosting. If the provider does not offer all features, you should probably look for another host.

Features in Managed WordPress hosting

Let’s take a look at features you could expect with Managed WordPress hosting.

1. Easy WordPress installation
2. Fix vulnerabilities
3. Theme updates
4. Plugin updates
5. WordPress updates
6. Security scan
7. Backup and restore
8. Maintenance mode
9. PHP information
10. WordPress staging

The first thing you should expect is an easy way to install WordPress on your hosting account. This could be through a 1-click system or integrated in some kind of Managed WordPress interface. Even though WordPress is easily installed with an FTP client for most users a 1-click system would be preferred. When using a 1-click system most information is entered by default. You don’t have the worry about creating a database, setting up a database user, connecting that user to the database etc. A 1-click solution would handle all of this for you. You would probably only have to enter a site title, a username and a password for your website. In some cases, they want you to determine some settings about security. This could include features like limiting login attempts or backup settings.

Our next focus point is WordPress security including a variety of features. Managed WordPress should warn you on possible security vulnerabilities and at the same time provide a solution to fix these. WordPress is the most popular CMS system worldwide and therefore a natural target for hackers. A secure WordPress website should be a high priority for both client and hosting provider. Nobody wants to wake up in the morning with a broken website duo to a hacker attack. Preventing hacker attacks should therefore be a main focus area when you offer clients Managed WordPress hosting. Security issues are often duo to lack of updates to the WordPress core, plugins and themes. Let’s cover that in the next section.

So, another way to maintain a high security level is by updating plugins, themes and WordPress itself. An effective Managed WordPress hosting solution should include a feature to mass update themes and plugins or offer an auto-update solution. With updated plugins and themes, you minimize the risk of a hacker attack. WordPress should auto-update ass well. It is important that you have an efficient backup solution in place when activating auto updates. An update could go wrong and you want to make sure that you have a restore possibility available. We recommend you choose a host with daily backup and free restore included in their package so you are covered in the event of errors. You might ask why an update can break your website? Well, WordPress is an open-source platform which means developers from all over the world can contribute. WordPress has developed the core CMS but most plugins and themes are developed by different people. The risk of conflict between plugins and/or themes are present. When you perform an auto update any given plugin or theme will update automatically and contain new PHP code. This could either conflict with new PHP code in another plugin or another risk is a conflict with the PHP version on your server. Even though updates rarely result in website crashes the risk is present and should be taken into consideration in your work flow. To conclude on this, you should have daily backup and auto updates activated for the highest possible security level – and Managed WordPress hosting should provide this setup.

Another important feature which should be included in Managed WordPress hosting is security scans. The scan should run automatically with a specific time interval but you should also be able to perform a manual scan as often as you like. The scan should identify possible new security issues so you can solve them right away. Security issues can contain different levels of risks but be sure to take action on all of them. You don’t want an open backdoor for a hacker to enter your website.

Backup and restore should also be included in Managed WordPress hosting. In some cases, the backup and restore features are add-on products but if a hosting provider offers Managed WordPress hosting you should expect it to be included. If not, you should consider another hosting provider. Backup and restore is necessary when working with a CMS like WordPress where security issues are a threat. With backup and restore you can quickly be up and running if your website should face trouble. Backups are often stored for 14 days meaning that you can restore your website from any given day in that period. Let’s say you went on vacation and discover a broken website upon return. 7 days backup might not be enough if your holiday lasted for 10 days. So be sure to check how many days backup is available and how often they backup your website. We recommend a daily backup for a 14-day period.

We also focus on maintenance mode which means the possibility to restore your website if an update fails. This is a great security feature allowing you to update without concern knowing your website will recover if any problems are detected after an update. The difference between maintenance mode and backup is that it happens instant. The backup is made right before updating the website and if any errors are registered after the update completed the system will automatically restore the backup from moments before. Let’s say you have been working all day on your website and perform an update at 2 pm. It would be a shame if all that work was lost because you had to run a backup from 2 am (12 hours before). So, maintenance mode when updating is a great feature.

A minor feature in Managed WordPress would be information about the current PHP version. Running the latest PHP version would probably ensure a faster performing website. Be sure to update WordPress, themes and plugins before changing you PHP version. This is to ensure your PHP codes are compatible with the selected PHP version. You should be notified if a newer PHP version is available on the server on your Managed WordPress hosting dashboard.

The final and most important feature should be WordPress staging. This allows you to work on major website updates without your visitors noticing. You might want to try out a new WordPress theme or launch an eCommerce store. With WordPress staging you can clone your existing website to a temporary URL allowing you to work on your website. When you are done you should be able to clone the new website directly to your online URL. The change would take effect within seconds and visitors has not been disturbed by your work. If you were to transfer the website manually you could easily be looking at 5 hours of work and face the risk of errors after migrating. With WordPress staging you have access to a faster and more secure migrating solution.

Managed WordPress hosting could include other features and vary between hosts but our list includes the top 10 features we would recommend prioritizing. Don’t know if the hosting provider you are considering offers these features? No problem, just send them a link to this article asking if they cover all features we recommend.

Managed WordPress hosting providers

The list below includes some of the best WordPress hosting providers offering Managed WordPress hosting. You should still consider our top 10 list and compare each host. Send them a link to this article and let them tell you if all features are included in their hosting plans.

Host	Score	Prices
HostGator hosting	9/10	4 $/mo.	READ MORE
WP Engine hosting	9/10	20 $/mo.	READ MORE
GoDaddy hosting	8/10	7 $/mo.	READ MORE
NameCheap hosting	7/10	2 $/mo.	READ MORE
Kinsta hosting	6/10	29 $/mo.	READ MORE
Bluehost hosting	6/10	3 $/mo.	READ MORE
Last updated: 09.09.2022

Managed WordPress hosting vs. shared hosting

Shared hosting is a term used when multiple clients share the same server. Each client is offered an amount of space and resources. A server might have 4 TB of space available and let’s say each client is offered 10 GB. This would mean the shared hosting server could contain 400 clients. Usually, each client does not max out their disk space which would result in hosting companies adding more clients to the server.

We are often asked to compare Managed WordPress hosting vs. shared hosting. The fact is that shared hosting most likely includes Managed WordPress hosting on the hosting packages. There should be no problem choosing a shared hosting plan for your WordPress website and get all the advantages of Managed WordPress. As Managed WordPress hosting is a selection of features these features are most likely offered to you already. So, feel free to select a shared hosting provider and begin installation WordPress with Managed WordPress hosting tools.

Advantages with Managed WordPress hosting

Managed WordPress hosting consist of WordPress features gathered in one smart interface. Most of these features are available directly in WordPress in different locations. The advantage with Managed WordPress hosting is the possibility to manage all these settings from one interface. You don’t have to navigate to ten different places in your WordPress installation or at your hosting provider. The biggest advantages would be found if the host offers features not available in WordPress by default. An example could be WordPress staging which is not included in WordPress itself. This feature would be developed by the specific host or the service they use like cPanel and WordPress ToolKit.

Managed WordPress hosting pricing

Now to the most interesting question – Managed WordPress hosting pricing? The cost of Managed WordPress is hard to determine. In some cases, hosting providers has developed these features themselves and add it to the overall price of a hosting package. In other cases, you can choose if you want regular hosting plan or a Managed WordPress hosting plan. These would typically vary a bit in pricing. In general, we have not seen a big price increase after managed WordPress became a popular term among hosting providers. Hosting clients expect a high level of service and Managed WordPress is part of these expectations. Clients are not prepared to pay extra for Managed WordPress as it is expected to be included. That is probably why all providers advertise their Manage WordPress hosting solution quite much. If a client gets the impression, it is not included, they will look around for another host.

Conclusion

I hope you learned more about Managed WordPress hosting. To conclude you should find a hosting provider that covers all or most of our top 10 features. The main focus should be on WordPress security and WordPress staging as they are nice long-term features. Short-term features like 1-click installation are also preferred. We hope you find the best WordPress hosting provider for your new website.

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