Starting a website, a web shop, or moving an existing site, you quickly run into the word web hosting. But what is web hosting, how does it work, and which type suits you? Here’s a straight guide — no jargon.
What is web hosting?
Web hosting is a service that stores your website’s files on a server and makes them available on the internet around the clock. When someone types your address, their browser fetches the files from the host’s server and shows the page. Without hosting, your site only exists on your own computer — no one else can reach it.
Simply put: the domain is your address, and the web host is the plot and the house where the website actually lives.
How does web hosting work?
- The server stores your files and database and runs the code (e.g. WordPress).
- The domain points via DNS to the server’s IP address.
- The visitor types the address → the server returns the page → the browser displays it.
A good host also handles what you don’t see: security, SSL certificates (https), backups, updates, and keeping the server fast and always up.
Types of web hosting
- Shared hosting: cheapest — your site shares a server with many others. Fine for small sites, but neighbors can affect your performance and security.
- VPS (virtual private server): your own isolated slice of a server with guaranteed resources. More power and control than shared — the base for growing sites and apps.
- Dedicated server / private cloud: your own resources, full isolation and control. For demanding sites and where data residency and security are business-critical.
- Cloud hosting (cloud server): resources from a cloud platform you can scale up and down. Combines VPS power with flexibility.
- Managed hosting: any of the above, but the provider handles ops, updates, security and support for you.
Shared vs VPS vs cloud — which should you pick?
Rule of thumb: shared for a simple, low-traffic site, VPS or a cloud server when you need more performance, control or run an app, and managed when you’d rather spend time on the business than the server. Many end up on managed cloud or WordPress hosting: full power, but someone else keeps it updated and secure.
What to look for when choosing a host
- Performance: fast hardware and isolation — a slow site loses visitors and ranking.
- Security & backup: SSL, firewall, monitored updates and daily backups you can actually restore.
- Data residency: are the servers in the EU? Important for GDPR and for many clients and tenders.
- Support: can you reach a human when something breaks — not just a FAQ?
- Scalability: can you grow without switching providers?
Web hosting for WordPress
If you run WordPress, managed hosting is nearly always worth it: you skip doing updates, security and backups yourself, and the site sits on an environment tuned for WordPress. That’s exactly what Managed WordPress at Kepler is — Swedish, EU-sovereign hardware, monitored updates and a human who answers.
In short
Web hosting is where your website lives — and choosing the right type (shared, VPS, cloud server or managed) decides how fast, secure and scalable your site is. Want the power of your own cloud without running ops yourself? Look at Kepler’s Managed WordPress or our cloud platform — built on our own green hardware in Sweden.