Honest comparison
See how Hostney actually compares
We think hosting can be better. Here's a transparent, feature-by-feature comparison against the alternatives, including where we fall short.
14 days free. No credit card. No commitment.
SELinux
Enforcing mode
Podman
Container isolation
Ellie
80+ tasks
Pricing
Simple, transparent pricing
Every plan includes managed WordPress, SSH access, daily backups, and enterprise-grade security. Start with a 14-day free trial.
Startup
Great for growing businesses
$94.99 billed annually
- 1 website
- 10 GB storage
- ~10,000 visits/month
- 5 MySQL databases
- 250,000 inodes
- 5 FTP users
What's included:
SSL & Domain
- Free SSL certificate
- Temporary subdomain
WordPress
- 1-click WordPress
- Managed WordPress
- Free WordPress migration
Advanced
For professional websites
$179.99 billed annually
- 5 websites
- 20 GB storage
- ~110,000 visits/month
- 10 MySQL databases
- 500,000 inodes
- 10 FTP users
Everything in Startup, plus:
Performance
- Memcached
Pro
Maximum performance and features
$274.99 billed annually
- 10 websites
- 40 GB storage
- ~200,000 visits/month
- 20 MySQL databases
- 750,000 inodes
- 20 FTP users
Feature comparison
Hostney vs the competition
An honest feature-by-feature comparison. Green badges highlight where we're genuinely different.
| Feature | Hostney | SiteGround | Hostinger | Bluehost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
AI server assistant Natural language server management | Ellie (80+ tasks) Beta | |||
AI WordPress assistant AI-powered WordPress content creation | AI Agent + AI Studio | AI for WordPress | ||
Control panel How you manage your hosting | Compass | Site Tools | hPanel | cPanel |
Infrastructure What powers the platform | Proprietary stack | Google Cloud + custom PHP | LiteSpeed + CloudLinux | Oracle Cloud + OpenStack |
HTTP/3 + QUIC Next-gen protocol for faster connections | Supported | |||
Account isolation How accounts are separated | Podman containers | LXC containers | CloudLinux LVE | CloudLinux LVE |
SELinux Mandatory access control (enterprise security) | Enforcing mode | Not compatible* | Not compatible* | Not compatible* |
Privilege escalation prevention no-new-privileges, capability restrictions | Multi-layer | |||
Git integration Deploy from GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket | GitHub auto-deploy | GoGeek plan only | GitHub connect | Manual setup |
Malware detection How threats are identified | Real-time (file-level) | Daily scan (included) | Built-in scanner | SiteLock (paid add-on) |
Per-user resource limits Guaranteed CPU, RAM, I/O | CPU, RAM, I/O, IOPS | LXC limits | CloudLinux LVE | CloudLinux LVE |
Web terminal SSH access from browser | Advanced | SSH (GrowBig+) | VPS only | Basic (cPanel) |
Advanced firewall WAF, rate limiting, bot blocking | 9-layer detection + ML | Custom WAF + AI anti-bot | Basic WAF | WAF (mid-tier plans+) |
Traffic quality scoring Separate bot traffic from real visitors | Per-request scoring | |||
Live traffic dashboard Real-time request stream with analytics | SSE streaming | |||
Geo-blocking Country-level access control | Built-in | Site Tools | Via CDN | |
Real-time log streaming Live error/access logs in browser | With AI explanations | |||
File-level backup restore Restore individual files or databases | Granular restore | File-level restore | File-level restore | Paid add-on (CodeGuard) |
Delegate access Team access without sharing passwords | Built-in | Collaborator roles | Account sharing | Users & roles |
Audit logs Full change tracking with old/new values | Comprehensive | WordPress plugin only | Basic activity log | |
WordPress admin SSO One-click admin login | ||||
Free SSL Let's Encrypt certificates | ||||
Daily backups Automatic backup protection | ||||
Dark mode Easy on the eyes |
*SELinux incompatibility: cPanel, CloudLinux, and most shared hosting stacks require SELinux to be disabled or set to permissive mode because their architecture conflicts with mandatory access controls. Hostney runs SELinux in enforcing mode on every server.
Competitor information was last verified in September 2025 and may have changed since.
Platform highlights
What makes Hostney different
Six features that define the platform. Each one designed and built for Hostney.
Ellie AI assistant Beta
Manage your server through natural conversation. 80+ tasks from PHP changes to database creation. No menus, no docs hunting.
Container isolation
Every account runs in its own Podman container with dedicated CPU, RAM, and I/O. Your neighbor's problems stay in their container.
SELinux enforcing mode
Mandatory access control trusted by the NSA. Competitors disable it because their stacks are incompatible. We built ours to work with it.
Real-time malware detection
File system monitoring catches threats the moment they appear, not during a daily scan 24 hours later.
Git deployment
Connect GitHub, GitLab, or Bitbucket. GitHub repos auto-deploy via webhook. Framework auto-detection for React, Vue, Angular, Svelte, and more.
Custom orchestrator
Our entire infrastructure runs on a custom CLI tool. No cPanel, no CloudLinux. We control every layer of the stack.
Security
Enterprise-grade protection, every plan
Multiple independent security layers included with every hosting plan, at no extra cost.
ModSecurity WAF
Web application firewall with OWASP rules blocks SQL injection, XSS, and common attacks at the server level. Per-site anomaly score thresholds let you fine-tune sensitivity.
AI bot detection & JS challenge
AI-powered threat scoring analyzes traffic patterns and automatically challenges suspicious IPs with a JavaScript proof-of-work page. Bots that can't execute JavaScript are blocked; real visitors pass through in under a second.
Country-level geo-blocking
Block or allow traffic by country. Reduce your attack surface and comply with regional access requirements. Block individual IPs or entire ranges.
Firewall overview
Last 24 hoursThreats blocked
2,847
SQL injection
1,203
Bot requests blocked
18,492
AI crawlers
4,217
Bot challenges served
1,284
Failed (bots)
1,261
Rate limited
892
Countries blocked
3
Real-time firewall stats from the Hostney control panel.
Control panel tools
More than just hosting
Built into every Hostney account. No plugins, no add-ons, no extra cost.
SSH & web terminal
Full SSH access within your isolated container plus a browser-based terminal. Connect from anywhere, no client needed.
Traffic analytics
Server-side analytics with 9+ categories including browsers, countries, search engines, and peak hours. No JavaScript tracking needed.
Real-time log streaming
Tail error and access logs live in your browser. AI-powered explanations help you understand what each log entry means.
Remote MySQL access
Connect to your databases from external applications with IP-whitelisted access. Create multiple database users with granular permissions.
Cron jobs dashboard
Schedule recurring tasks with full crontab support. Monitor execution history and troubleshoot failures from the control panel.
Memcached cache browser
Interactive cache key inspection with real-time stats: memory usage, hit rate, cached items, and uptime at a glance.
Delegate access
Grant team members access to specific features without sharing your password. Full audit trail of who did what.
Comprehensive audit logs
Every change tracked with old and new values. See exactly who changed what, when, and what it was before.
Password-protected directories
HTTP Basic Auth on any path. Protect staging sites, admin areas, or client previews with server-level authentication.
WordPress
Managed WordPress included in every plan
No extra cost, no separate product. WordPress management is built into the platform.
Full WordPress management
Deploy, update, secure, and troubleshoot WordPress - all from one panel.
Learn more about managed WordPress- One-click WordPress deployment (~30 seconds)
- SSO admin login from the control panel
- Auto-updates with configurable smart delays
- Plugin health monitoring every 30 minutes
- Database snapshots before every core update
- Security hardening at the server level
Transparency
Being honest about trade-offs
No product is perfect for everyone. Here's when Hostney might not be right for you.
- You need cPanel specifically. Some legacy tools and migration scripts only work with cPanel. If you have hard dependencies on cPanel, we're not the right fit.
- You want a reseller/WHM setup. We're focused on direct hosting, not reseller infrastructure. If you need to create separate cPanel accounts for clients, look elsewhere.
- You need very large storage. Our plans max out at 40GB. If you need 100GB+ for media files, consider a dedicated server or cloud storage integration.
- You want bundled email hosting. We focus exclusively on web hosting. For email, we recommend Microsoft 365 with conditional access policies - dedicated email platforms do a better job than bundled hosting email.
Detailed comparisons
One-on-one comparisons
Dive deeper into how Hostney compares to each provider individually.
Hostney vs SiteGround
LXC containers vs Podman, Site Tools vs our AI-powered panel, and why SELinux matters for security.
Read comparisonHostney vs Hostinger
CloudLinux LVE vs container isolation, hPanel vs our custom control panel, and pricing transparency.
Read comparisonHostney vs Bluehost
cPanel vs custom-built, shared resources vs guaranteed isolation, and the WordPress.org endorsement.
Read comparisonGet started
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