Short answer
Web hosting is the paid service that keeps a website’s files on a server connected to the internet so visitors can load them. Plans range from shared hosting, where hundreds of sites sit on one machine, to dedicated cloud infrastructure. Hosting determines page speed, uptime and how much traffic a launch day can absorb.
Also called: Hosting, Web server hosting
Hosting, the domain name and the website itself are three separate things that are routinely bought as one bundle and then confused. The practical consequence shows up later: a business that cannot log in to its own hosting account cannot move, restore or hand over the site without the person who set it up. Whatever the arrangement, the accounts should be registered to the business and its billing details, not to an individual contractor.
Beyond the plan tier, two settings do most of the work. A content delivery network caches files close to visitors, which flattens the distance penalty for a Philippine audience served from a US or Singapore region. Automated off-server backups, tested by actually restoring one, are the difference between an incident and a loss — many hosts include backups that nobody has ever verified.
Common questions
Should our hosting account be in our name?
Yes. Hosting and domain accounts should be registered to the business, with billing under its details, and an agency or developer added as a user rather than as the owner. That keeps continuity if the working relationship ends, and it costs nothing to set up correctly at the start.
Where this comes up in our work
Related terms
Domain Name
A domain name is the address people type to reach a site, such as blackbyrds.digital, rented from a registrar in yearly terms rather than bought outright.
Uptime and Service Level Agreement (SLA)
Uptime is the percentage of time a service is available; a service level agreement is the contract stating the target and what happens when it is missed.
SSL/TLS Certificate
An SSL/TLS certificate is a file installed on a server that encrypts traffic between a browser and a website, turning http:// into https:// and removing the browser’s "Not secure" warning.
Server-Side Rendering (SSR) vs Static Site Generation (SSG)
Server-side rendering builds each page when a visitor requests it, so the content reflects the database at that moment.
Reading definitions because you are scoping a project? Skip ahead and just ask.