If you are planning to have your web site hosted, you should choose the most appropriate service that would suit your needs. Depending on your needs, you can actually choose from several types of web solutions that are offered by different companies. Each of these types differs on their features and characteristics. In order to choose the right web hosting, it is important to research and evaluate these various services.

Some of the most common types of web hosting include shared, dedicated server, Virtual Private Server, Windows, and ecommerce web hosting.

Shared hosting is the most common type of service used by most web site owners. With this type of hosting, you are actually sharing one server with a number of other people of the same hosting company. The cost of shared hosting depends on the number of clients being hosted on a particular server. Usually, the hosting company maximizes profits per server such that a server is normally shared among its maximum serving capacity. Although shared hosting is more affordable, you should see to it that it actually supports your needs, scripting languages, and applications.

On the contrary, dedicated hosting is more sophisticated and more dedicated to a single client. A dedicated server is an entire server rented out to a single client. With this set-up, you can have full access and control to your web site which also means that you have the option and capacity to host more than one web site. Dedicated hosting is designed to give customers more reliable service. Although this type is a bit more expensive than shared service, there are several web hosts that offer affordable dedicated server plans.

A Virtual Private Server is a type of hosting service that gives you full control of your server environments. VPS is a very attractive niche hosting solution for clients who would like the stability of a dedicated server but on a smaller scale. Correspondingly, this is also cheaper than a dedicated server. In fact, most people refer to VPS as the intermediary between a shared hosting and a dedicated server. This is probably one the reasons why this type of hosting is getting more popular nowadays.

On the other hand, Windows hosting is one that supports Window platform. Basically if you are more inclined to the Windows platform in contrast with the Linux platform, this web hosting is a more practical choice.

Finally, ecommerce web hosting is the type of hosting that is most suitable for ecommerce sites. This type of web hosting comes with ecommerce tools that will enable you to do business on the internet easily and conveniently.

With all these different types of web hosting though, shared hosting is always easy to get started with. In fact, this is very ideal for small to medium scale businesses. Moreover, most new web site owners prefer this hosting service for its cost efficiency and simplicity. Thus, if your site does not require very specific needs, shared web hosting is the most practical choice to have.