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Compare the Best VPS Hosting Services of 2025
| Company | Forbes Advisor Rating | Superlative | Starting Monthly Price | Pros | Cons | Expert Take | Learn More |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
  | Best for Managed VPS Hosting | $49.95 | Money-back guarantee and free migration | cPanel add-on costs extra | All plans are managed, helping to take the heavy monitoring off of your plate | On ScalaHosting's Website | |
 | Best for Flexibility | $39.00 | Unlimited emails, websites, data transfer and database sizes | On the pricey side with a confusing pricing structure | Great for creating a customized plan that works for your business | On MochaHost's Website | |
| | Best for High-Traffic Websites | $5.00 | Industry-leading 100% uptime guarantee | Interface that’s hard to grasp for beginners | For businesses that get a lot of traffic, feel secure that your site can handle the pressure | On Liquid Web's Website | |
| | Best for Customization | $7.99 | Strong customizable options and unlimited bandwidth | Complicated pricing structure, CDN not included | Customize exactly what you want your VPS service to look like, and UltaHost will make it happen | On UltaHost's Website | |
 | Best for Customer Support | $41.99 | Unlimited emails and free content transfers | Expensive with no uptime guarantee | A great choice if you’re looking for the guarantee of 24/7/365 customer support | On HostGator's Website | |
| | Best for Performance | $1 per month | Flexible contracts and low starting price | Two-email limit on all plans | Reliable performance means you can rest easy that your website will run smoothly | On IONOS' Website | |
| | Best No-Contract VPS | $3.00 | No contracts, upgrade or downgrade your plan at any time | Backup service not included | With 96 plans in total to choose from, these no-contract plans are a great way to test the VPS waters | Read Forbes' Review | |
| | Best for Beginners | $59.99 | cPanel license included | Pricey starter plan | If you’re just starting out in the VPS space, the intuitive interface is easy to use | On Bluehost.com's Website |
The Best VPS Hosting Services In 2025
Methodology
Our selection of the best VPS services takes into account a number of factors that small business owners should consider when looking at a new hosting provider. We analyzed thousands of data points using our rubric that considers four categories of 35 VPS hosting service factors important to small businesses. We then gave each criterion a weighted score and landed on a final star rating out of five.
Some of the factors our editorial team considered when weighing these ratings include:
| Decision Factor | Scoring Weight | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Value | 20% | Getting the most bang for your buck is of the utmost importance for many small businesses. We looked at factors such as pricing, discounts for different contracts and if there’s a free trial offered, among other factors. |
| Service and Support | 10% | When it comes to your business’s website, you need to make sure everything runs smoothly. We looked at the VPS hosting services that offer 24/7 customer service and support through a range of methods. |
| Consumer Sentiment | 40% | What other small business owners have to report about a service says a lot. We compile data on how satisfied actual customers of each company are in terms of value, features, pricing and quality of service. |
| General Features | 30% | Features make all of the difference in VPS plans. We looked at whether a service offers factors such as unlimited bandwidth, storage limits, an uptime guarantee, automatic backups and cPanel licensing. |
How To Choose the Best VPS Hosting Service
Ultimately, choosing the best service for you will depend on a variety of factors, ranging from your budget to how much data you need to host.
Essential VPS Hosting Service Features
The best VPS hosting services will offer a variety of benefits and features. Here are some of the key features to keep an eye out for in your search.
- Root access: Keeping full control over your server means you have the full support and capabilities of the allocated server at all times. You’ll have the ability to customize your server based on your business’s needs.
- Control panel: A VPS host should offer a dedicated control panel for you to manage, maintain and monitor your website. Whether it’s a proprietary interface, cPanel or Plesk, look out for a strong user experience.
- Strong security measures: Keep your business’s assets, site and data secure with a VPS provider that offers enhanced security measures.
- 24/7 customer support and monitoring: If things go wrong on your company’s website, you want to know about it ASAP. You want a provider that not only monitors to ensure that things are running smoothly but one that is also available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Prioritizing these features means you’ll end up not only with a VPS hosting service that works for your business, but can also be customized to meet every need.
Value
Of course, finding a VPS at a price point that won’t break your budget is top of mind. You’ll want to take some notes and compare to figure out which service can cater to your business’s needs.
You may prefer a more customizable service that allows you to pick exactly what kind of storage, speed and bandwidth you need. We like UltaHost and Mochahost for their strong range of customization. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a baseline plan that offers the standards without the need to customize, consider a service such as Liquid Web.
Similarly, if you’re looking for flat-out value on plans that offer you a good amount of standard features that will keep most websites up and running, consider InterServer.
Here are a couple of tips to help you assess the value you can pull from your VPS hosting service:
- Payment cycle: Consider how you want to pay, whether monthly, annually or as part of a long-term contract. You can often save more by committing to a longer period, but that may not make sense for all businesses.
- Money-back guarantee: Want to try before you buy? Some of the picks on our list, such as Bluehost and ScalaHosting, offer a money-back guarantee if you’re not happy with the services provided.
On-Demand Scalability
Modern businesses are always changing. Ultimately, you will want to consider if a VPS service will allow you to upgrade—or downgrade—your plan’s capabilities. Some hosts let you scale up only, while others will let you scale down or up at will.
You’ll want to think ahead on your business’s calendar of peak seasonality—think Black Friday or Small Business Saturday if you run an e-commerce website—and when you may need additional bandwidth. Research before you buy, and know what you’re getting into before moving forward with a long-term contract.
Linux or Windows
It helps to know which operating system you’re most familiar with before moving forward with a VPS provider. Similar to Apple and Android, these systems are vastly different. Look at what your VPS provider offers and choose wisely based on your experience.
Which VPS Hosting Service Is Best for Your Business?
Choosing the right VPS hosting service for your business comes down to the features and use case you’re looking for. Here’s a closer look at three scenarios and what hosting option works best:
For Small Businesses Looking for Help Managing Their VPS
If you’re just starting out with your VPS and looking for some help before jumping into the deep end on your own, look for a managed VPS service. For this, we love ScalaHosting, which provides support managing your hosting service. Not only is the managed help included at no extra cost, but help is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There’s a 30-second guaranteed response time for live chat and a 15-minute guaranteed response time by ticket.
For Small Businesses With High-Traffic Websites
For websites that get a lot of traffic on a daily basis or experience spikes throughout the year, you’ll want to look at a reliable VPS hosting service to ensure you’re not losing out on valuable revenue. A service such as Liquid Web features more than 21 different plans, the highest of which will allow you to rest easy knowing you’ll get 32GB RAM, 400GB storage and 8TB in bandwidth. Plus, with its industry-leading 100% guaranteed uptime, you’ll know that your site is not going to suddenly crash under pressure.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is a VPS hosting service?
A virtual private server (VPS) is a type of hosting that divides a physical server into multiple private server environments. While you’re not sharing resources—such as RAM, storage and CPU power, which are entirely yours—you’ll still share space with others.
Is VPS hosting secure?
VPS hosting with reputable companies—such as our best picks—are secure and reliable for hosting your business’s website, along with any other hosting service. Look for a service that offers firewalls, backups, attack protection and 24/7 customer support.
What is managed VPS hosting?
Managed hosting uses the hosting provider’s tools to monitor and maintain your VPS as part of your plan. It’s a great tool for VPS users who may not be as familiar with the technicalities of the system and want to allocate tasks including backups, security improvements, optimizations and monitoring to the provider.
What’s the difference between VPS and shared hosting?
Shared hosting allocates its resources from a single server among its many users, while VPS dedicates resources on a virtual server space for each user. This typically means VPS servers are less strained and offer more reliable service.
What’s the difference between VPS and cloud hosting?
Whereas VPS hosting divides a single physical server into multiple private server environments for each user, cloud hosting utilizes multiple physical machines that are networked together.
