A2 Hosting vs HostGator
Both cover similar ground, so the useful question is which is better for your specific situation. Here is how they differ on the things that change the answer.
Developer-friendly shared hosting with tuned "Turbo" tiers
High-volume shared hosting from the Newfold group
Quick verdict
A2 Hosting takes 2 of the 8 categories we can currently judge. 5 could not be decided on verified data. That is a scoreline, not a recommendation — read the categories that matter to you.
Category by category
Who wins what
A category shows “not enough data” when either side has a gap. We would rather leave it blank than invent a winner.
| Category | Winner | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Not enough dataNeither provider has a verified current price yet, so this cannot be called. | Neither provider has a verified current price yet, so this cannot be called. |
| Performance | Not enough dataComparable performance tooling on both, on the data we have verified. | Comparable performance tooling on both, on the data we have verified. |
| Beginners | HostGatorHostGator is the gentler starting point. | HostGator is the gentler starting point. |
| Support | A2 HostingA2 Hosting offers more ways to reach a human. | A2 Hosting offers more ways to reach a human. |
| WordPress | A2 HostingA2 Hosting is better set up for WordPress specifically. | A2 Hosting is better set up for WordPress specifically. |
| Ecommerce | TieNeither stands out for ecommerce on verified data. | Neither stands out for ecommerce on verified data. |
| Developers | TieComparable developer access on both. | Comparable developer access on both. |
| UK visitors | Not enough dataBoth offer UK-region hosting, or neither does. | Both offer UK-region hosting, or neither does. |
Specifications
Feature by feature
| Feature | A2 Hosting | HostGator |
|---|---|---|
| Control panel | cPanel | cPanel |
| UK data centre | Unknown | Unknown |
| Free SSL | Yes | Yes |
| Email hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Staging | Yes | Unknown |
| CDN included | Unknown | Unknown |
| Free migration | Unknown | Unknown |
| SSH access | Yes | Yes |
| Git | Yes | Unknown |
| WP-CLI | Yes | Unknown |
| WooCommerce | Yes | Yes |
A2 Hosting in short
Worth a look if you want shared hosting that does not fight you when you need SSH, Git or a specific PHP version.
- + Developer tooling available on shared plans
- + Choice of PHP versions
- + Anytime money-back guarantee
- − No UK data centre
- − Turbo branding makes plan comparison harder than it needs to be
HostGator in short
Cheap and familiar, but there is little here that its sister brands or the budget specialists do not do as well.
- + 24/7 phone and chat support
- + cPanel keeps things portable
- + Long-standing brand with plenty of documentation
- − US-only data centres
- − Steep renewal pricing
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