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The ultimate guide to website hosting

The ultimate guide to website hosting

Everything you need to know about what web hosting includes, involves, and costs

By: Janna Sensenig | Web Design & Development

Web hosting isn’t just foundational, it’s missional

You built a website—strategy, brand, design, content, and development—to be the front door for your audience. And now the final step is to decide how and where you’ll host your website. 

Hosting isn’t just a technical step. It’s the foundation that keeps your digital “front door” open and working correctly so that more people can get to know you and take the next step, propelling you and your vision forward. 

But when your site doesn’t get the hosting it deserves, you’re likely to encounter a variety of problems:

  • Slow load times: When someone tries to bring up your page quickly to find out information, and it doesn’t load right away…causing frustration (and negative impacts to SEO)
  • Frequent outages: Or worse, your site doesn’t load at all, meaning your audience can’t access the information they need to engage with you
  • Poor customer service: If a site issue needs to be addressed or resolved, there’s no one around to help get things back up and running quickly 
  • Poor security practices: At any time, your site could be vulnerable to hackers or other kinds of online predation, leading to a loss of private information for users and your organization 

When you understand what goes into web hosting, you can decide how to host your site, save time and money, and continue to reach your goals. 


What does it take to host a website?

Website hosting isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution with a flat fee. In fact, there are multiple options and choices when it comes to hosting, depending on your strategy and budget. 

Domain Name

Your domain is your website address (artspeakcreative.com, for example). When you build a website, you usually register your domain through companies like Namecheap, GoDaddy, or Google Domains. Our favorite is Hover for their customer service and non-spammy site.

Cost: Approximately $12–20 per year (although premium domain names can be more) 

DNS Management

DNS stands for Domain Name System, and it’s what connects your domain name to your web server. Think of this as the “traffic director” that tells your audience’s browser where your site lives. Your DNS is sometimes included with your domain, but other times it’s managed separately for speed and reliability (e.g. Cloudflare, Amazon Route 53).

Cost: $0–$10 per month, depending on provider and features

Web Hosting

Your actual web hosting is the server space where your website’s files live. Different providers offer different servers: budget providers like GoDaddy or BlueHost use shared servers, while premium or dedicated hosting providers offer a personalized, secure, and speedy  environment.

At ArtSpeak, we utilize a dedicated WPEngine server that is upgraded by our regular maintenance and updates. 

Cost: Ranges from $5 per month on bargain shared plans to $75–$500+ for dedicated/managed hosting

SSL Certificate

An SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate is a digital credential that verifies a website’s legitimacy. It’s the padlock symbol in your browser that enables a secure and encrypted connection and protects user data like login credentials and credit card numbers from being intercepted. 

A lot of cheap hosting providers charge extra for this. With more premium hosts (like ArtSpeak), it comes standard. 

Cost: Free–$75/year, depending on provider

Maintenance & Security Updates

Your website runs on software (like WordPress plugins). Similar to your phone, this software needs regular updates to stay secure and function smoothly. Without updates, your site becomes vulnerable to hacks and malware, so it’s important to stay on top of maintenance and updates. 

Cost: If you do it yourself, this can be free, but often is time consuming; Professional care can be $50–500+/month depending on the level of service 

Backups

Backups are regular snapshots of your site that are kept so it can be restored if something goes wrong. Budget hosts sometimes only keep one outdated backup (if any), while professional hosting usually includes frequent, redundant backups for this reason.

Cost: Up to $20/month depending on host and tools

Support & Troubleshooting

No matter how well-built your website is, there is always a need for support and troubleshooting. Budget hosting providers often offer call centers with longer waits or the option to pay extra for priority support. Premium hosting providers usually offer direct access to the team who knows your site the best. 

Cost: Often rolled into maintenance packages, or billed hourly

What do you get when you host with ArtSpeak? 


Hosting with ArtSpeak means you’re not just keeping your site online. You’re joining a team who sees your site as an extension of your mission. If you’re considering hosting your site with ArtSpeak, here are some highlights on what that partnership looks like:


A Mission-Minded Partnership

With ArtSpeak, your hosting is tied to a creative partnership. You’re not a commodity, you’re on mission with a team of experts who see your site as a tool to reach more people, which means uptime and fixes are ministry-critical to us. Our hosting is currently trusted by 100+ churches, non-profits, denominations, and for profit businesses nationwide. 


Direct Access to Experts

Our team is your team. When you need us, you can connect with us directly—the same people who built or maintain your site are available for faster, mission-centered support and fixes. No call centers or ticketing systems, just direct access. 


Dedicated Server Environment & Stability

When you’re hosting on ArtSpeak’s server, your site lives in a dedicated server environment, one that’s optimized for speed, reliability, and mission-critical performance. No sharing servers overloaded with thousands of other websites, which can lead to slower speeds and greater vulnerability. 


Security & Peace of Mind

While budget hosts offer only basic security and shared servers with weak monitoring, ArtSpeak plans offer controlled, dedicated server environments plus proactive oversight—SSL certificates, backups, and monitoring. And if something does happen, our team will fix it (not just notify you). So you can spend more time on ministry and less worrying about your website. 


An Integrated Support System

At ArtSpeak we’re a full service creative team. That means if you ever need services beyond website updates, your hosting can seamlessly integrate with creative retainer options like design, strategy, and content with a collaborative team who you partner with for your site. 

What’s included with ArtSpeak hosting?

Like we said, hosting isn’t one-size-fits-all. That’s why we have multiple hosting package options for you to choose from that offer a range of services.

Basic Support $75 / month

For leaders who need to know their site won’t crash

  • Reactive fixes if something breaks—you notify us, and we’ll fix it
  • Peace of mind that your site won’t stay broken
  • ❌ No proactive monitoring or routine checks
  • ❌ No design or content updates

Important Note: With this plan, ArtSpeak does not monitor your site for issues. We rely on you to inform us when something is broken, and we’ll step in to resolve it.

Best For: Sites with minimal changes that only need “fix it when it breaks” support.

Annual Prepay Option (6% off): $846/year ($70.50/mo)

Basic Support & Maintenance $175 / month

For teams who want light maintenance without the overhead

  • Reactive fixes if something breaks
  • Light monthly maintenance (routine performance & security checks)
  • Email support for questions or minor tweaks (content updates, design fixes, quick consulting)
  • 1 quarterly 1-hour call with the ArtSpeak team (plugin updates, training, quick fixes, etc.)

Important Note: This plan is designed for teams comfortable managing their own monitoring. Otherwise, we’ll use the quarterly touch-base to ensure everything is running smoothly, update plugins, and make sure your site stays healthy. If your maintenance needs extend beyond this scope, we’ll provide a proposal for the additional hours.

Best For: Sites that want proactive care and occasional updates without moving up to a higher plan.

Annual Prepay Option (6% off): $1,980/year ($165/mo)

Support+ $450 / month

For teams who want dedicated maintenance and support for their site 

  • Reactive fixes if something breaks
  • 3 web hours per month for content updates, design improvements, or small functionality enhancements
  • Bankable hours: unused hours roll over, up to 18 hours total
  • Quarterly 1-hour call with the ArtSpeak team (strategy, updates, training, plugin reviews) Calls are included but hours are applied toward these calls
  • Access to a dedicated portal and Asana project for submitting requests
  • Each request is reviewed, and we’ll provide an hours scope before work begins to ensure projects stay in scope and on budget

Best For: Sites that need moderate, ongoing attention or frequent updates, but not a full creative retainer.

Annual Prepay Option (6% off): $5,100/year ($425/mo)

Creative Web Support Retainer | Starting at $3,000 / month

  • 20+ hours per month of ongoing creative/media support
  • Dedicated Project Manager, Strategist, and Art Director for:
    • Website updates
    • Social media consulting
    • Content creation
    • Video production
    • Graphic design
  • Access to a dedicated portal and Asana project for submitting requests
  • Each request is reviewed, and we’ll provide an hours scope before work begins to ensure projects stay in scope and on budget
  • Dedicated website support calls in a regular rhythm to best support your needs (quarterly, bi-monthly, or monthly)
  • Calls are included but hours are applied toward these calls

Best For: Those who want a fully managed, wide-ranging creative partnership with strategic support.

Annual Prepay Option (6% off, based on $141/hr): $33,840/year ($2,820/mo, for 20h retainer)

 Scales with hours (e.g., 30h = $4,500/mo → $50,760/year with annual prepay).

Host your website with confidence and support

Your website is often one of the first places your audience will engage with you. Hosting isn’t just about uptime. It’s about making sure your front door stays open to every person who wants to learn more about you and your mission. 

Ready to get started? ArtSpeak hosting starts at just $75 per month. Whether you want to switch your hosting or talk more about building a site with ArtSpeak Creative, fill out the form below and we’ll schedule a consultation.