Choosing hosting should be simple; marketing makes it noisy. Here's what actually matters on NZ shared plans.
Renewal price first
Ignore headline promo rates. Find renewal NZD ex-GST — that's what you'll pay long-term. Our comparison table lists renewal pricing explicitly.
Shared hosting fits most starters
Unless you already know you need VPS isolation or dedicated hardware, shared hosting is the right default for brochure sites, blogs, and small shops. Upgrade when metrics say so — not because upsell copy says so.
Ignore vanity specs
Unlimited disk/bandwidth always has fair-use fine print. Unlimited emails rarely decides anything real.
Actually care about these
- PHP 8.1+ (ideally 8.2/8.3) for modern apps
- Backup frequency + whether you can self-restore
- Support hours vs how you actually work incidents
- SLA numbers — read what's excluded
NZ vs AU servers
NZ servers usually shave latency for NZ visitors; AU isn't automatically slow — compare measured TTFB and verified DC claims rather than geography alone.
Quick checklist before checkout
- Renewal rate locked in
- PHP version path clear
- Backup + restore story understood
- Support channels match how you'll escalate