You saw the ad. Low monthly price, “unlimited” bandwidth, free domain. But you’ve been burned before by cheap WordPress hosting that slowed to a crawl after three months. The real question isn’t “Is FastHosts cheap?” It’s “Is it good enough for your site?”
This checklist helps you test that before you hand over your card details.
Why this checklist matters more than a general review
A generic review tells you what the host wants you to hear. This checklist makes you verify the things that actually affect your site: speed, renewal cost, backup reliability, and support quality. Spend 30 minutes on these steps, and you’ll know exactly what you’re getting.
Step 1: Check the plan specs against your actual site
FastHosts offers several WordPress plans. Don’t just look at the headline number. Open your current site’s resource usage (or estimate it if you’re building new).
- Storage: How much space does your site actually use? A small blog might be fine with 10 GB, but an ecommerce site with product images might need 50 GB.
- Visitors: The entry-level plan often has a visitor cap (e.g., 10,000 visits/month). If you’re close to that, you’ll need to upgrade.
- Database size: FastHosts doesn’t always advertise this limit upfront. Check the fine print.
If your site is image-heavy or expects moderate traffic, the cheapest plan might not cut it.
Step 2: Run a speed test on a real demo site
Don’t trust the marketing page. FastHosts has a 30-day money-back guarantee. Use it.
- Sign up for the cheapest plan.
- Install WordPress using their one-click installer.
- Upload your actual theme and a few posts or products.
- Install a caching plugin (like WP Rocket or Flying Press) if FastHosts doesn’t include server-level caching.
- Test with GTmetrix or Pingdom from a location close to your audience.
Look for a Time to First Byte (TTFB) under 300ms and a fully loaded time under 3 seconds. If you see higher numbers, consider their faster tiers or a different host. For a lightweight WordPress site, fast VPS server performance often beats shared hosting.
Step 3: Calculate the real cost over two years
The monthly price in the ad is usually for a 12- or 24-month upfront payment. Here’s what to check:
| Item | What to look for |
|---|---|
| Intro price | How long does it last? 12 months? 24 months? |
| Renewal price | What’s the monthly cost after the first term? It’s often 2-3x higher. |
| Domain renewal | Free domain in year one? What’s the renewal fee? |
| Add-ons | SSL included? Backups? Staging? |
Write down the total cost for two years including renewal. Compare that to a cheap VPS provider that might have a higher initial price but a flat renewal rate.
Step 4: Test support with a real technical question
Don’t ask “Is WordPress hosting included?” Ask something that matters.
Example question: “Can I increase the PHP memory limit beyond 256 MB in the control panel, or do I need to contact support?”
- Open a ticket or use live chat.
- Note the response time (under 5 minutes for chat is good; under 1 hour for tickets).
- Check if the answer is accurate and helpful, not a copy-paste script.
This test tells you how support will behave when your site is down.
Step 5: Check backup and restore process
FastHosts says they do daily backups. But “daily” doesn’t mean “restorable.”
- In your dashboard, find the backup tool.
- Initiate a manual backup.
- Try to restore a single file or a full site.
- Time how long the restore process takes.
If you can’t do a one-click restore from the control panel, that’s a red flag. For mission-critical sites, consider a third-party backup plugin regardless.
Step 6: Confirm migration assistance and downtime risk
FastHosts offers free migration for WordPress sites. But “free” doesn’t mean “instant.”
- Ask: “How long does a standard migration take?”
- Ask: “Will there be downtime during the migration?”
- Ask: “Do you migrate plugins, theme settings, and custom post types?”
If they only migrate the default WordPress content, you’ll have to redo your customizations manually.
Step 7: Review the staging environment
A staging environment is essential for testing updates without breaking your live site. FastHosts includes it on some plans.
- Check if staging is one-click.
- Check if you can push staging to production without losing recent changes (like new orders or comments).
- If staging is missing, you’ll need a plugin like WP Staging, which adds complexity.
Common mistakes when testing FastHosts
- Skipping the speed test after installing a caching plugin. Default WordPress is slow; caching makes it usable.
- Only checking the first-year price. The real cost is the renewal rate.
- Not testing support with a real problem. “Hello” doesn’t reveal their technical depth.
- Assuming unlimited means unlimited. Read the fair use policy for CPU and visitor limits.
Mini scenario: How a local business used this checklist
Maria runs a photography portfolio site with 50 GB of images and about 5,000 visitors per month. She signed up for FastHosts’ entry-level plan. After running the checklist, she found:
- The plan had a 10,000 visitor cap, which was fine.
- But the storage limit was 20 GB, so she’d hit it within a year.
- The renewal price was 2.5x the intro price.
She upgraded to the mid-tier plan, which gave her 50 GB storage and a staging environment. She used the 30-day guarantee to test speed (TTFB was 280ms after caching) and was satisfied. Without the checklist, she would have outgrown the cheap plan in six months and paid more for an emergency upgrade.
Final practical takeaway
Don’t buy WordPress hosting on price alone. Run this checklist before you commit. If FastHosts passes all seven steps, it’s a solid choice for your site. If it fails on speed or renewal cost, consider a hosting for SEO provider that prioritizes performance over low introductory rates. For lightweight sites, our pick for cheap VPS hosting often gives you more predictable performance than shared WordPress plans.
Your site’s speed and reliability depend on what you check before you pay. Spend 30 minutes now to save months of frustration later.
FAQ
Q: Does FastHosts WordPress hosting include a free domain?
A: Yes, the first year of domain registration is free on most annual plans. Renewal costs apply after that.
Q: How does FastHosts compare to other UK-based hosts?
A: FastHosts is competitive on speed if you use their CDN and caching, but their renewal prices are higher than some alternatives. Always compare the two-year total cost.
Q: Can I host multiple WordPress sites on one FastHosts plan?
A: The entry-level plan typically allows one site. Higher tiers allow multiple sites. Check the plan details before buying.
Q: Is there a money-back guarantee?
A: Yes, FastHosts offers a 30-day money-back guarantee on hosting plans. Use it to test speed and support without risk.
Q: Does FastHosts offer VPS hosting for WordPress?
A: Yes, they offer VPS plans that can run WordPress. For sites that outgrow shared hosting, a managed VPS is a common upgrade path.
