What Is IONOS?
IONOS is a popular web hosting and cloud services solutions partner specializing in serving small and medium-sized businesses. The company, originally named 1&1, was established in 1988 in Europe and launched its U.S. presence in Chesterbrook, Pennsylvania, in 2003. In 2020, the company changed its name to IONOS.
Here are a few facts about IONOS:
Ranks number one on Forbes’ list of best web hosting services; named the best web hosting solution for startups
- Operates 15 facilities in nine countries, including ten geo-redundant ISO 27001 certified data centers that deliver 99.9% website uptime
- Custom support is available 24/7/365 via phone, email and chat
- Every hosting plan is backed with a 30-day money-back guarantee
- The IONOS Hosting Manager mobile app lets you manage your account from anywhere
- In addition to shared hosting services, IONOS also offers VPS, dedicated, cloud and enterprise hosting
- The company offers a wide variety of domain, hosting and cloud computing solutions
- IONOS also ranks number one on Forbes’ list of best e-commerce hosting providers
Featured Partners
1
Hostinger
$2.69 per month
Extra 10% discount with code: FORBES10
Free domain, Free email, Free Unlimited SSL
2
Ionos
$1 per month
10GB of storage and unlimited traffic
99.9% uptime guarantee and a 30-day money-back guarantee
3
Wix
$17 per month
Yes
Yes
4
ScalaHosting
$2.65 per month
Extra 10% discount with code FORBES10
Free SPanel, free domain, free SSL
How IONOS Works
When building a website, you need a place to house your website design and data files. Web hosting is a service that provides the storage and resources you need to make your website visible and accessible on the internet.
A website hosting provider offers storage space on a server or group of servers that is designed explicitly for the purpose of housing websites. Customers pay the provider for their storage space, essentially renting it for their website’s needs.
IONOS offers all types of hosting services, including shared, VPS and dedicated hosting services.
Shared hosting—which is when your website is hosted on the same server as others—is ideal for startups and small businesses with limited traffic and modest storage needs. Because you’re sharing resources, hosting fees are considerably lower than you’d pay for virtual private server (VPS) or dedicated hosting services—which are better options for those with more advanced website hosting needs.
We’re focusing on IONOS’ shared hosting services in this review. Feel free to check out Forbes’ list of best VPS hosting services and Forbes’ list of best dedicated hosting providers if your hosting needs are more advanced.
IONOS Shared Website Hosting
IONOS offers three levels of shared hosting plans, each designed for various levels of resource requirements. You can use the IONOS builder to create your custom website in a matter of minutes, even if you don’t have any technical or coding skills. IONOS supports popular web hosting applications, including TYPO3, Drupal, PrestaShop and Joomla.
You can also build and host a website with WordPress via IONOS. In fact, IONOS is ranked best overall provider on Forbes’ list of best WordPress hosting services.
IONOS offers both self-managed and managed WordPress hosting plans. Self-managed hosting plans are ideal for those with technical backgrounds and who want more customization and greater control over their sites. Managed plans are perfect for less tech-savvy users who need a user-friendly setup and prefer to have routine updates managed for them.
Website Domain
You’ll need a domain for your website, and IONOS offers one free domain for the first year with its hosting plans. If you intend to host more than one website, you can register additional domains with IONOS.
Should you need multiple domains, you can register a new domain with IONOS for as low as $1 for the first year. Domain renewal fees average under $20 for most .com domains.
Is IONOS Right for Me?
IONOS is an excellent option if you’re building a relatively simple website and are looking for an affordable web hosting provider. It may not be the best option if you require a great deal of customization for your website or anticipate building a large, content-heavy site that can support extensive website traffic.
IONOS Is Best For:
- Launching a simple website quickly using IONOS’ basic templates
- WordPress websites
- Small e-commerce websites
- Startups that need a budget-friendly hosting service
IONOS Is Not Recommended For:
- Those who need their existing WordPress websites migrated to IONOS for them; while IONOS says a WordPress migration tool is coming, it is not available yet
- Content-heavy websites (e.g., sites that host large video or image files)
- Highly customized websites
- Large, high-traffic websites
What Sets IONOS Apart
While many web hosting platforms come with a pricing structure that is difficult to understand, IONOS’ is straightforward. With a rate starting at $1 per month, IONOS beats almost every web hosting service’s introductory price, which sets IONOS apart from other popular hosting providers. IONOS is a terrific web hosting service if you need to keep costs low.
IONOS Features
In addition to budget-friendly plan fees, IONOS offers fast loading times, unlimited traffic, website security best practices, easy app installation, generous storage, extensive customer support options, business email and marketing functionality.
RAM, Storage and Bandwidth Limits
IONOS’ Essential plan comes with up to 512MB RAM, a 384MB PHP memory limit, 10GB of storage, unlimited traffic and unlimited FTP accounts.
The IONOS Business plan comes with up to 6GB RAM, a 768MB PHP memory limit, unlimited storage, unlimited traffic and unlimited FTP accounts.
The IONOS Expert plan comes with up to 19GB RAM, an 896MB PHP memory limit, unlimited storage, unlimited traffic and unlimited FTP accounts.
Ease of Use
IONOS makes creating and managing your website easy; you can launch a simple website with IONOS in mere minutes. The IONOS website builder has its own drag-and-drop functionality that comes with hundreds of customizable design templates. Cheap WordPress hosting plans are also available, which allow for more website customization options.
IONOS offers one-click installation for more than 70 popular third-party applications. While most users find the IONOS dashboard intuitive and user-friendly, tech-savvy users report facing challenges using the IONOS interface to tailor their websites via advanced customizations.
Each IONOS shared hosting plan comes with one free business email and up to 2GB of email storage. Frankly, the one email limit is a bit low for the advanced plans, but you can purchase additional emails for an add-on fee. Email forwarding, webmail 2.0, anti-phishing and anti-spam are included in all plans.
Marketing
IONOS offers a few marketing features with its plans. SiteAnalytics, Google Sitemaps and 10 to 100 mailing lists are included with each IONOS shared hosting plan.
User Dashboard/cPanel
IONOS has made several improvements to the user experience over the past few years. Those with modest technical skills typically find the IONOS user experience largely positive, while beginners may experience a steeper learning curve.
More advanced users who are accustomed to working with cPanel—which IONOS does not have—sometimes report some confusion with IONOS’ proprietary tools.
Security
Every website hosting plan comes with a free SSL certificate with 256-bit encryption. IONOS server facilities are ISO 27001 certified, and geo-redundant hosting means that your data is mirrored in two data centers. Geo-redundancy ensures that a website remains live even if one server is down for maintenance or an unexpected outage. IONOS also includes malware and DDoS protection with its hosting services
IONOS Pricing and Plans
| Essential | Starter | Plus | Ultimate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introductory Pricing | $4 per month | $6 per month | $1 per month | $10 per month |
| Renewal Pricing | $6 per month | $8 per month | $12 per month | $16 per month |
| Contract Lengths Available | Monthly plans available at standard prices; annual contracts to receive promotional discounts | Monthly plans available at standard prices; annual contracts to receive promotional discounts | Monthly plans available at standard prices; annual contracts to receive promotional discounts | Monthly plans available at standard prices; annual contracts to receive promotional discounts |
| Storage | 10GB | 100GB | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| RAM | 512MB | 512MB | 6GB | 19GB |
| PHP Memory Limit | 384MB | 384MB | 768MB | 896MB |
| MariaDB 10 or MySQL 8 databases (2GB each) | 10 | 50 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Bandwidth/Traffic | Unlimited; 262,144 inode file limit | Unlimited; 262,144 inode file limit | Unlimited; 262,144 inode file limit | Unlimited; 262,144 inode file limit |
| Free Domain Name (First Year) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Free SSL Certificate | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| cPanel* | '- | '- | '- | '- |
| Daily Backup and Recovery | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Security | ISO 27001 certified | ISO 27001 certified | ISO 27001 certified | ISO 27001 certified |
| Business Email | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Mailing Lists | 10 | 10 | 25 | 100 |
| Uptime Guarantee | 99.90% | 99.90% | 99.90% | 99.90% |
| Money-Back Guarantee | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days |
| Customer Support | 24/7 via phone, email and chat | 24/7 via phone, email and chat | 24/7 via phone, email and chat | 24/7 via phone, email and chat |
| *IONOS does not use cPanel, but rather uses its own proprietary control panel. | #colspan# | #colspan# | #colspan# | #colspan# |
The IONOS Essential Plan
The Essential plan is economical for smaller websites with minimal storage and processing needs. The plan costs $4 per month for the first year and renews at $6 per month. The Essential plan includes up to 512MB Ram, a PHP memory limit of 384MB and a 10GB storage limit. The plan also comes with 10 MariaDB 10 or MySQL 8 databases, up to 2GB each, and 10 mailing lists.
The IONOS Starter Plan
The Essential plan is suitable for companies or individual users that have up to 10 websites or projects that need hosting. The plan costs $6 per month for the first year and renews at $8 per month. The Starter plan includes up to 512MB Ram, a PHP memory limit of 384MB and a 100GB storage limit. The plan also comes with 50 MariaDB 10 or MySQL 8 databases, up to 2GB each, and 10 mailing lists.
The IONOS Plus Plan
The Plus plan costs $1 per month for the first year of the plan (under the current promotion) and renews at $12 per month. This plan is a budget-friendly option for small to medium-sized websites with modest storage and processing needs.
The Business plan includes up to 6GB RAM, a PHP memory limit of 768MB and unlimited storage. The plan also comes with unlimited databases, unlimited websites and 25 mailing lists.
The IONOS Ultimate Plan
If you need more computing power, you’ll need to go with IONOS’ Ultimate plan, which is ideal for those with multiple or larger web projects. The Ultimate plan costs $10 per month for the first year and renews at $16 per month. It comes with unlimited websites, unlimited storage and unlimited databases, plus 100 mailing lists. The Ultimate plan also has up to 19GB RAM and an 896MB PHP memory limit.
Customer Service and Support
IONOS offers extensive customer support options; you can contact the company 24/7 via telephone, email or live chat. Forbes used both phone and online chat support when writing this review and found the experience in both instances to be helpful, prompt and courteous.
The company hosts an extensive online help center and an online community where you can connect with other users. The online resources are ideal if you want quick answers and prefer to seek them yourself rather than reach out for personalized help.
Customer Feedback
Feedback on IONOS customer reviews is mixed. Positive reviews mention unbeatable pricing, responsive support and platform stability and reliability. The less favorable reviews comment on website glitches, billing misunderstandings, pushy upselling and complications with launching websites.
Featured Partners
1
Hostinger
$2.69 per month
Extra 10% discount with code: FORBES10
Free domain, Free email, Free Unlimited SSL
2
Ionos
$1 per month
10GB of storage and unlimited traffic
99.9% uptime guarantee and a 30-day money-back guarantee
3
Wix
$17 per month
Yes
Yes
4
ScalaHosting
$2.65 per month
Extra 10% discount with code FORBES10
Free SPanel, free domain, free SSL
Additional Features Worth Noting
IONOS offers website development and design solutions through its MyWebsite Design Service. The IONOS team of designers and copywriters will create a website with up to seven pages for you; they’ll even develop a logo for your business. Choose from three levels of website and design maintenance services.
The IONOS Design Service S is perfect for businesses that require a relatively small website and anticipate minimal changes. This plan includes a website design with up to three custom pages and edits once a quarter. The fee is $45 per month, plus a one-time setup fee is $199.
The IONOS Design Service M is ideal for medium-size websites that require more frequent updating. This plan includes a website design with up to five custom pages and one website edit per month. The fee is $65 per month, plus a one-time setup fee of $299.
Those with more significant website needs may want to go with IONOS’ Design Service L. For $85 per month, plus a one-time setup fee of $299, you’ll receive a website with up to seven custom pages and unlimited website edits.
IONOS also offers e-commerce design services. For $65 per month (for the first six months, which renews at $90 per month), plus a one-time setup fee of $999, the IONOS e-commerce site developers will create an online store with three pages, 10 products and 10 product detail pages. Your website will come complete with payment and shipping setup, Facebook and Instagram Shop integration, and unlimited maintenance, edits and updates.
All website design plans require a minimum 12-month commitment and renew month-to-month after the first year. Each website is optimized for search. IONOS offers a free consultation to see if this service is a fit for you.
IONOS Shared Hosting Alternatives and How They Compare
| IONOS | TMDHosting | HostGator | InMotion | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating |    |  | | |
| Starting Price | $4 per month | $8.99 per month | $3.75 per month | $1.99 per month |
| Renewal Rate | $6 per month | $9.99 per month | $10.99 per month | $10.99 per month |
| Contract Length* | One year | Three years | Three years | Three years |
| Storage Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | 10GB | 100GB |
| Bandwidth Limit | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Free Domain Name | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | -** |
| Free SSL Certificate | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Business Email | One | Unlimited | Unlimited | 10 |
| Uptime Guarantee | 99.90% | 99.99% | 99.90% | 99.90% |
| Money Back Guarantee | 30 days | 60 days | 30 days | 90 days |
| Customer Support | 24/7, phone, email and chat | 24/7, phone, email and chat | 24/7; basic plan chat only; higher-tier plans also include phone support | 24/7; chat and ticket only for lower-tier plans; top-tier plans also include phone support |
| Learn More | -- | |||
| Read Reviews | -- | |||
| #colspan# | #colspan# | #colspan# | #colspan# |
IONOS compares favorably to many other popular shared web hosting service providers. In fact, with a score of 4.6, IONOS ranks highest on Forbes’ list of best hosting service providers.
At only $1 per month for the first year, IONOS has one of the best introductory price we’ve seen. With IONOS, you can only lock into that $1 per month deal for one year, which is a benefit and disadvantage. On the one hand, you don’t have to pay much upfront; on the other hand, you’re hit with the higher $12 per month renewal fee sooner than with providers that let you lock in the lower introductory price for three years, which TMDHosting, HostGator and InMotion all allow.
IONOS vs. TMDHosting
Both IONOS and TMDHosting offer unlimited storage and bandwidth and 24/7 support via phone, email and chat. With a starting price of $4 vs. $8.95 per month, IONOS delivers a better value than TMDHosting. TMDHosting scores higher in terms of guarantee—60 days compared to IONOS’ 30 days—and number of business emails allowed—unlimited compared to IONOS’ paltry one email per plan.
IONOS vs. HostGator
HostGator only provides 10GB of storage on its lowest-priced starter plan, compared to unlimited storage with IONOS. Both providers offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, unlimited bandwidth, a free domain and an SSL certificate. HostGator offers unlimited emails, whereas IONOS limits each plan to just one free business email.
IONOS vs. InMotion
While IONOS offers a better starting price, there are a few areas where InMotion shines. InMotion’s 90-day guarantee is certainly better than IONOS’ 30-day guarantee. InMotion allows 10 business emails per plan, compared to IONOS’ one.
IONOS has an advantage over InMotion in terms of storage capacity, offering unlimited storage compared to InMotion’s 100GB storage cap on its core plan. Also, InMotion does not include a free domain on its starter plan; IONOS offers a free domain on every plan.
Our Expert Opinion
Overall, IONOS has a solid reputation for reliability and security and offers the lowest introductory pricing we’ve found in light of the number of features provided. We recommend IONOS for startups and small businesses on a tight budget.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How do I cancel my IONOS contract?
You can cancel your IONOS contract through your account by following the instructions provided here. After the first year, IONOS charges $16 per month for its WooCommerce plan for the first year. The good news is that customers are not locked into a multiyear plan. It is common for web hosting providers to only offer multiyear plans.
Where is IONOS based?
IONOS’ headquarters are located in Germany. Its U.S.-based headquarters is based in Chesterbrook, Pennsylvania.
Is 1&1 now IONOS?
In January 2020, 1&1 IONOS changed its name to IONOS. The company was originally established in 1988 as 1&1, initially in Europe, and then expanded to the United States in the early 2000s. In 2018, 1&1 partnered with ProfitBricks’ cloud infrastructure solutions and renamed themselves 1&1 IONOS.
Can I transfer my domain to IONOS?
Yes. The process of migrating your domain name to IONOS can be done through IONOS’ technical support. The company is available by phone 24/7/365.
