A person needs two things to take his business website online. One is the domain name, and another is the hosting to keep his website live on the internet. Although domain name is easy to handle and purchase, it may get confusing looking at the number of hosting options available in the market. Common hosting options include Shared, Dedicated, VPS and Cloud Hosting. Each has its own pros and cons. So, it is important to understand the mechanism of how hosting works before taking the plunge. 

The most preferred hosting solution among new website owners remains to be Shared Hosting, mainly due to its low price. However, in this article, we will discuss why Shared Hosting comes at a low price and has long been the best friend of new website owners. 

What is Shared Hosting and How Does it Work?

In a Shared Hosting plan, a single physical server is used to host multiple websites. It means a single server stores data of all the websites hosted on it. All resources of the server such as CPU, RAM and storage are shared between the websites. As the cost of the resources on the server is shared between all the website owners, Shared Hosting plans are affordably priced. This makes it the most economical hosting option available in the market. 

Advantages of Shared Hosting for beginners

1. Cost-effective: The low price of Shared Hosting is what makes it a lucrative option for beginners. It is the single most important factor which influences decision-making for thousands of website owners. The reason, as stated earlier, lies in the fact that the cost of the server hosting is shared by multiple website owners rather than a single person as is the case with Dedicated Hosting. 
2. Low-traffic expectation: Usually, a new website expects much lower traffic and could do with fewer resources initially. It is not considered prudent to invest in a huge amount of resources in the beginning when the number of visitors per month is low. As the website grows, one can seamlessly buy additional resources or upgrade their hosting plans to VPS, Dedicated or Cloud Hosting. 
3. No prior technical requirements: As the server hosts multiple websites, the core functions of the server are restricted to the control of the hosting provider. This eliminates the need of having technical knowledge as a prerequisite on the part of the users. The functions of maintaining and securing the server remain with the hosting provider. Each website gets its own easy-to-use hosting control panel which can be used seamlessly for installing the contents of the website. 

Conclusion

It is evident from the above discussion that Shared Hosting is an apt choice for hosting new websites, especially if you expect low traffic. However, resource-intensive websites such as a news or e-commerce website may not be able to run efficiently with a Shared Hosting plan. It has its own set of limitations which should be considered. Therefore, jotting down all the resource requirements as well as the purpose of the website can help you effectively make the right decision.