Looking for a managed VPS service to host your website(s)? You’ll discover many options. Likewise, as you search online for reviews of host providers, you’ll find plenty of pundits eager to share their findings and expert opinions. Below, we add our voice as we critique GreenGeeks.com.
What distinguishes this review from others? We consider only managed VPS hosting, not shared, or self-managed hosting. We compiled appraisals from 21 different sources; all were published in 2020. Scroll to the bottom to see the aggregate of reviewers. We survey the most recent info on GreenGeeks’ managed VPS hosting plans.
For example, as we went to press, GreenGeeks announced that its Canadian and European data centers now host managed VPS solutions for Canuck and continental customers. Previously, only Americans could take advantage of GreenGeeks’ managed VPS services.
GreenGeeks Company Overview
In 2008, IT veteran Trey Gardner founded GreenGeeks in Agoura Hills, CA, northwest of L.A. The world’s premier eco-friendly hosting provider, GreenGeeks has been called the “the brand ambassador of green hosting.” It currently hosts approximately 300K websites.
If you’re concerned about the impact data centers across the globe have on environmental quality (and you should be), GreenGeeks is the obvious choice to host your website(s). The company claims its green web hosting is “300%” powered by renewable (wind) energy, meaning that it returns to the North American electrical grid three times the energy it uses in its data centers.
GreenGeeks also delivers a high-quality user experience and competitive pricing.
View this brief YouTube video overviewing GreenGeeks’ commitment to negating its environmental impact: https://youtu.be/iIuYzbtLVGE
Review Metrics
Weigh the following benchmarks when considering a managed VPS host:
- Performance: includes elements such as software, hardware, bandwidth, latency rates and reliability.
- Features: includes ease of use, free domain availability, free website migration, application compatibility, management portals, etc.
- Customer Support: includes tech availability and service ticket resolution.
- Pricing: includes managed VPS hosting plans, promotional coupons, money-back guarantees, etc.
GreenGeeks Performance
The company focuses on North America and Europe, where its five data centers are located (two in the U.S., two in Canada and one in Amsterdam). Proximity to a serving data center matters; the closer a website visitor is to the serving data center, the faster the site’s web pages load.
Thus, GreenGeeks’ hosted websites in Asia, South America, Africa and Oceania generally experience slower web page load times than those in North America and Europe. The difference is small but noticeable.
One reviewer found that his website’s “pages only took 454 ms on average to load.” This speed is twice as fast as the industry standard of 890 ms. Canadian customers average an astounding 178.6 ms response times. Fast site loads are essential since most users abandon a site if page loads take longer than two seconds.
GreenGeeks servers deliver super-fast download intervals by using:
- SSD (not HDD) arrays
- MariaDB and LiteSpeed
- Proprietary caching technology
Too, GreenGeeks easily handles website traffic surges. Traffic surge tests show that GreenGeeks’ hosted websites perform consistently no matter if the load is one or a hundred simultaneous visitors.
GreenGeeks uses a Linux-based operating system (CentOS x86-64 architecture), not a Windows-based OS, with 2 GB to 8 GB of RAM depending upon plan. SSD storage space ranges from 50 GB to 150 GB, also depending upon plan. And CPU cores start at 4vCPU with the option to upgrade to 6vCPU. All plans receive 10 TB of bandwidth.
Finally, GreenGeeks guarantees 99.9% uptime. According to pingdom.com, uptime was 100% in 11 months since September 2018, or an average of 99.9688%.
GreenGeeks Features
The company offers customers a dedicated IP address, 24/7 proactive monitoring, an intuitive cPanel graphical interface (GUI) portal, a free SSL, a free Softaculous license for web app scripts, free domain availability and free website migration. GreenGeeks also provides free application compatibility (separates web apps from the underlying OS) and even a blacklist-free IP, which removes suspect IP addresses.
Incredibly, they can provision your website in less than a minute.
Customer Support
Described as “enviable” with “polite” and “well-trained” personnel, GreenGeeks has forged a solid reputation for its quick, efficient and responsive customer support. Choose between three support options: email ticket, live chat (both available 24/7) and phone (available M-F from 9 AM to midnight EST; weekends from 9 AM to 8 PM EST).
Too, take advantage of GreenGeeks’ knowledge database offering users helpful video tutorials to resolve frequently-found issues.
Pricing
GreenGeeks offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Select from three plans:
$39.95/month— 2 GB RAM, 10 TB bandwidth, 50 GB storage and 4 CPU cores
$59.95/month— 4 GB RAM, 10 TB bandwidth, 75 GB storage and 4 CPU cores
$109.95/month— 8 GB RAM, 10 TB bandwidth, 150 GB storage and 6 CPU cores
In Sum
Invariably, eco-friendly GreenGeeks is described as the “best green host.” It’s an ideal solution for small and midsize business (SME) owners who want an independent, environmentally-responsible managed VPS hosting provider.
Review Aggregate
| digital.com | techbullion.com | hostingvote.com |
| whoishostingthis.com | makeawebsitehub.com | bestvpshostings.com |
| webhostingsecretsrevealed.com | ourcodeworld.com | hostingtribunal.com |
| techradar.com | veloceinternational.com | bloggingden.com |
| bitcatcha.com | hostingvictory.com | hostingpill.com |
| websitehostingrating.com | hostingfacts.com | review42.com |
| websiteplanet.com | howtogetonline.com | digitizd.com |
