SiteGround vs KnownHost
SiteGround and KnownHost compared on measured uptime, response time, pricing and features from our own tests. SiteGround scores higher overall.
By Jennifer T. · Updated
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Verdict
SiteGroundWins overall
Managed-feel shared hosting on Google Cloud with daily backups and staging; the renewals are the price
Managed cPanel hosting since 2006 on LiteSpeed and NVMe with stated cores and RAM, daily backups and three locations
SiteGround wins 5 of the six sub-scores and comes out ahead overall (8.0 vs 7.4).
How do the scores compare?
SiteGround leads on 5 sub-scores, KnownHost on 1. Higher is better.
| SiteGround | KnownHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | 8.0 (better) | 7.5 |
| Uptime | 8.5 (better) | 7.0 |
| Support | 8.5 (better) | 7.5 |
| Features | 8.5 (better) | 8.0 |
| Value | 6.5 | 7.0 (better) |
| Ease of use | 8.0 (better) | 7.5 |
Which one is faster and more reliable?
| SiteGround | KnownHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall score | 8.0 (better) | 7.4 |
| Uptime (published)HostingStep 243 d vs TechRadar 30 d; methods differ | 99.97% | 100.00% (better) |
Which one costs less?
On renewal, KnownHost is cheaper ($7.16/mo vs $17.99/mo). Intro prices need the listed term.
| SiteGround | KnownHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan | StartUp | Basic |
| Intro price | $2.99/mo (better) | $3.47/mo |
| Renewal price | $17.99/mo | $7.16/mo (better) |
| Required term | 12 months (better) | 36 months |
| Websites | 1 | 1 |
| Storage | 10 GB | 10 GB |
| Money back | 30 days | 30 days |
What does each include?
| SiteGround | KnownHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Free domain | First year only; regular renewal fee after that | No |
| Free SSL | Yes | Every plan, every domain |
| Daily backups | Kept for 30 days; on-demand backups on GrowBig and GoGeek | Not stated |
| CDN | SiteGround CDN on Google Cloud, 170+ edge locations | Not stated |
| Email hosting | Unlimited accounts with webmail and spam protection | Not stated |
| Staging | GrowBig and GoGeek; GoGeek adds Git | No |
| Free migration | Automatic WordPress migrator on every plan; expert transfer by staff | Migration team copies files, databases and email and tests the site |
| Caching | Multilevel caching with the Speed Optimizer plugin | LiteSpeed Web Server with LSCache on every plan; Redis and Memcached optional |
| WP-CLI and SSH | Yes | Not stated |
| Fair-use limits | CPU seconds per hour 1,000 / 2,000 / 4,000; inodes 200k / 400k / 600k; 768 MB RAM per process; databases up to 1 GB | Not stated |
| Uptime guarantee | 99.9% per month; 5% of that month's fee as a service-extension credit | The network page claims a 99.999% availability SLA and 99.99+% uptimes; the terms of service contain no uptime clause or credit schedule |
| Choice of data center | 11 locations on Google Cloud, chosen at signup | Not stated |
| Phone support | No | A US toll-free number on every page, with 24/7 ticket support |
| Windows hosting | No | No |
| Backups | Not stated | Daily JetBackup with 2-day and 1-week retention on every plan; extended retention sold as an add-on |
| Free CDN | Not stated | No |
| SSH, Git and cron | Not stated | Every plan, with current PHP versions |
| Resource limits | Not stated | CloudLinux isolation with 1, 2, 4 and 6 cores and 1, 2, 4 and 6 GB memory limits by plan |
| Data center choice | Not stated | Atlanta, Seattle or Amsterdam at checkout |
| Security | Not stated | Imunify360 with real-time malware scanning and a web application firewall; Patchman optional on Basic and Standard, included above |
| Not stated | 5, 25 or unlimited mailboxes by plan, with webmail |
Company facts
| SiteGround | KnownHost | |
|---|---|---|
| Control panel | Site Tools (SiteGround's own panel) | cPanel with Softaculous |
| Data centers | 11 (better) | 3 |
| Support channels | chat, ticket, knowledge-base | ticket, phone, knowledge-base |
| Founded | 2004 | 2006 |