Hosting comparison
Hostney vs Hostinger
Hostinger focuses on affordability and simplicity. We focus on security and developer tools. Here's an honest look at the differences.
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 by feature
Side-by-side comparison
| Feature | Hostney | Hostinger |
|---|---|---|
AI assistant Natural language server management | Ellie (80+ tasks) Beta | |
AI WordPress assistant AI-powered WordPress content creation | Kodee (350+ actions) | |
Traffic quality scoring Separate bot traffic from real visitors | Per-request scoring | |
Live traffic dashboard Real-time request stream with analytics | SSE streaming | |
Control panel How you manage your hosting | Compass | hPanel |
Infrastructure What powers the platform | Custom orchestrator | LiteSpeed + custom stack |
HTTP/3 + QUIC Next-gen protocol for faster connections | Supported | |
Account isolation How accounts are separated | Podman containers | CloudLinux LVE |
SELinux Mandatory access control | Enforcing mode | Not compatible* |
Privilege escalation prevention no-new-privileges, capability restrictions | Multi-layer | |
Git integration Deploy from GitHub/GitLab/Bitbucket | GitHub auto-deploy | Premium+ plans |
Malware detection How threats are identified | Real-time (file-level) | Monarx AI detection |
Per-user resource limits Guaranteed CPU, RAM, I/O | CPU, RAM, I/O, IOPS | Per-account limits |
Web terminal SSH access from browser | Advanced terminal | Premium+ plans |
WordPress admin SSO One-click admin login | ||
Free SSL Let's Encrypt certificates | ||
Daily backups Automatic backup protection | ||
Email hosting Bundled email service | Not included | |
Website builder Drag-and-drop site builder | ||
Domain registration Register domains through hosting | Coming soon | |
Dark mode Easy on the eyes |
*SELinux incompatibility: Hostinger's infrastructure does not support SELinux in enforcing mode. Hostney runs SELinux in enforcing mode on every server, providing mandatory access control at the kernel level.
In detail
Where the real differences are
Bot detection and threat protection
Hostinger includes a WAF and DDoS protection on all plans, with their in-house CDN adding "Under Attack Mode" on Business+ tiers. Malware detection is handled by Monarx, which uses behavior-based AI detection rather than signature matching. Hostney runs a 9-layer bot detection system: rate spike detection, honeypot traps, 404 scanner detection, sustained scraper detection, endpoint hammering detection, ML scoring (26-feature model), edge micro-model inference in Lua, JavaScript proof-of-work challenges, and nightly challenge sweeps. Every IP gets a 0-100 threat score updated every 5 minutes.
9 detection layers. ML scoring (26 features). Edge micro-model (per-request). PoW JS challenges. 0-100 IP threat scores. Live traffic dashboard with SSE streaming.
WAF + DDoS protection. Monarx AI malware detection (behavior-based). "Under Attack Mode" on Business+ plans via CDN.
Caching and performance
Hostinger runs LiteSpeed Web Server across all plans with HTTP/3 and QUIC support. Their caching stack includes LiteSpeed Cache for WordPress (pre-activated), LiteSpeed Object Cache, and server-level caching built into LiteSpeed. Their in-house CDN is included on Business+ plans. Hostney runs a 5-layer caching stack: FastCGI microcaching for PHP pages, proxy caching for upstream responses, aggressive static asset caching (7-day TTL with stale-while-revalidate), per-user isolated Memcached instances, and SQLite-indexed cache purging for instant invalidation. The Lua-based edge layer and cache management system are architecturally CDN-capable - the same infrastructure that handles bot detection and caching today can scale to edge delivery across multiple PoPs.
5-layer caching: FastCGI microcache, proxy cache, aggressive static assets, per-user Memcached, SQLite cache indexing. CDN-ready architecture (Lua edge layer + cache management). Per-container guaranteed CPU, RAM, I/O, IOPS.
LiteSpeed Web Server + LSCache (pre-activated). LiteSpeed Object Cache. HTTP/3 + QUIC. In-house CDN on Business+ plans.
AI assistants and tools
Hostinger has invested heavily in AI. Their assistant Kodee handles 350+ admin actions and resolves 83% of support interactions without human help. They also launched Hostinger Horizons, an AI web app builder powered by Gemini and Claude, plus Hostinger Reach for AI email marketing. Hostney's Ellie takes a different approach: instead of guiding you through tasks, it directly executes server operations (PHP version changes, database creation, cron jobs, DNS management) through natural conversation.
Ellie AI executes 80+ server tasks directly through natural language. No website builder.
Kodee (350+ actions, 83% of support resolved). Horizons AI app builder. Reach AI email marketing. AI Troubleshooter for WordPress.
Pricing model
Hostinger's introductory prices start as low as $1.99/month on 48-month commitments, making them one of the cheapest options available. However, renewal prices jump significantly: Premium renews at $10.99/month (308% increase), Business at $16.99/month (290% increase). Domain renewals also jump from $2.99 to $19.99/year, and email becomes paid after 12 months. Hostney's pricing stays the same on renewal. Annual plans offer a discount, but the price you sign up with is the price you keep.
Same price on renewal. Annual discount available. No introductory pricing tricks.
Starts at $1.99/month (48-month). Renews at $10.99-$25.99/month (270-310% increase). Domain $2.99 -> $19.99/year. Email free for 12 months only.
Under the hood
Security and caching, side by side
Both platforms take security and performance seriously, but with different architectures. Here's what each stack actually includes.
9-layer bot detection
Rate spike detection, honeypot traps, 404 scanner detection, sustained scraper detection, endpoint hammering detection, ML scoring (26 features), edge micro-model (per-request Lua inference), JavaScript proof-of-work challenges, and nightly challenge sweeps. Every IP gets a 0-100 threat score.
5-layer caching stack
FastCGI microcaching for dynamic PHP pages, proxy caching for upstream responses, aggressive static asset caching (7-day TTL with stale-while-revalidate), per-user isolated Memcached instances, and SQLite-indexed cache purging. CDN-ready architecture - the Lua edge layer and cache management can scale to multi-PoP delivery.
SELinux + Podman isolation
Every account runs in a rootless Podman container with its own filesystem, process tree, and network namespace. SELinux enforcing mode provides kernel-level mandatory access control on top. Per-container guaranteed CPU, RAM, I/O, and IOPS.
Infrastructure comparison
Bot detection
9 layers + ML scoring + PoW
WAF + DDoS + Monarx
Caching layers
5 (FastCGI, proxy, static, Memcached, index)
LiteSpeed + LSCache + Object Cache
Web server
Nginx/OpenResty + Lua edge (HTTP/3)
LiteSpeed (HTTP/3, QUIC)
Account isolation
Podman rootless containers
Per-account resource limits
SELinux
Enforcing mode
Not used
Malware detection
Real-time file monitoring
Monarx AI (behavior-based)
Traffic dashboard
Live SSE streaming + scoring
Basic analytics
All features included in every plan on both platforms.
Transparency
Where Hostinger wins
We believe in honest comparisons
Hostinger is the better choice if:
- You need a website builder or AI app builder. Hostinger's drag-and-drop builder creates sites without code, and Horizons builds full web apps from natural language prompts. Hostney doesn't have a website builder - we focus on WordPress and code-based hosting.
- You want an all-in-one platform. Hostinger bundles domain registration (300+ extensions), email hosting, a website builder, AI marketing tools (Reach), and a CDN into one package. Hostney focuses exclusively on web hosting.
- You need LiteSpeed support. Hostinger runs LiteSpeed Web Server with LSCache pre-activated on all plans. LiteSpeed has great performance for WordPress sites, especially with their Object Cache option.
- You're on a tight budget for the first term. Hostinger's introductory prices start at $1.99/month on 48-month plans. If upfront cost matters more than renewal pricing, they're hard to beat. Just be aware that renewal jumps 270-310%.
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