Fasthosts Reviews

I’ve tested many hosting companies over the years, but Fasthosts stood out to me for their specific focus on the UK market. With their own data centers right in the UK, they promise excellent performance for local audiences, which is a claim I was eager to put to the test.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect from a host that isn’t one of the giant global names.

However, after setting up a real WordPress site on their platform and running my standard suite of performance benchmarks, I found that Fasthosts has some compelling strengths. This is especially true for users who prioritize speed and reliability within the UK.

In this review, I’ll walk you through my hands-on testing, what worked well, where I ran into some issues, and who I believe Fasthosts is the perfect fit for.

My Verdict on Fasthosts

After running speed tests, checking server response times from different locations, and interacting with their custom control panel, I can say that Fasthosts is a solid choice for UK-based businesses and bloggers. They deliver on their promise of speed and reliability for their target audience.

They are not without their drawbacks. The live chat support has limited hours, and my stress test was blocked by their security systems, which made it hard to gauge scalability for very high-traffic sites. But you get fast initial speeds, great uptime, and a straightforward user experience.

If you’re looking for a no-nonsense host with UK-based infrastructure and solid performance, then Fasthosts is definitely worth considering.

If you’re wondering how I arrived at these conclusions, here’s a look at our detailed review process and why thousands of readers trust our recommendations.

🔍 With that foundation laid, let’s take a closer look at Fasthosts and what my tests revealed.

About Fasthosts

Fasthosts was founded in 1999 and quickly became one of the fastest-growing IT companies in the UK. They own and operate their own data centers, which run on renewable energy and are located exclusively in the UK.

This gives them end-to-end control over their infrastructure, which often translates to better optimization and performance. Beyond shared WordPress hosting, they also offer cloud hosting, VPS, dedicated servers, and domain registration.

Fasthosts Pros and Cons

After thoroughly testing Fasthosts, here’s a straightforward breakdown of what I liked and where I think they could improve.

✅ What I Like

• Excellent UK Speeds: Their UK-based data centers provide very fast load times for visitors in the region.
• Reliable Uptime: My test site experienced 100% uptime during the monitoring period.
• Free Domain and SSL: Every hosting plan includes a free domain for the first year and a lifetime SSL certificate.
• Free Website Migrations: They offer to migrate your existing WordPress site from another host at no extra cost.
• Good Security Suite: Essential features like malware scanning and DDoS protection are included by default.

❌ What I Didn’t Like

• Limited Live Chat Hours: 24/7 support is not available via live chat, which isn’t ideal for urgent issues outside of business hours.
• Stress Test Blocked: Their security system prevented a full stress test, making it difficult to verify performance under heavy load.
• Limited Email Accounts: The entry-level and mid-tier plans only come with one 2GB mailbox.
• Single-Site Limits: You need to purchase the more expensive ‘Advance’ plan to host multiple websites.

Fasthosts Performance Tests

Performance can make or break a website. That’s why I ran Fasthosts through four critical tests to measure their speed, responsiveness under pressure, and overall reliability.

Here are the results from my hands-on testing.

Speed Test Results (Pingdom)

For the first test, I used Pingdom to measure the speed of my demo site from a European testing location. The result was excellent, with the site loading in less than half a second.

This is a fantastic result for a brand-new site without any caching or optimization plugins installed, demonstrating the strength of their server infrastructure.

Server Response Time (Bitcatcha)

Next, I used Bitcatcha to check the server response time from various global locations. As expected, the performance was exceptional in Europe, especially in London.

While response times were slower in the US and Asia, they were still respectable. This confirms that Fasthosts is an ideal choice for websites targeting a primarily European audience.

Stress Test (K6)

To see how Fasthosts handled a traffic surge, I used K6 to send up to 50 virtual users to the site at once. Unfortunately, I hit a roadblock here.

Fasthosts’ security system identified the test as a potential DDoS attack and began blocking the requests.

While it’s good that their security is sensitive, it means I was unable to verify how the server scales under heavy, legitimate traffic. This could be a concern for larger sites expecting rapid growth.

Uptime Monitoring

Throughout all my other tests, I kept an uptime monitor running on the site.

As you can see, the site remained online the entire time, with zero recorded downtime. This shows that their infrastructure is stable and reliable for keeping your site accessible.

Features and Ease of Use

Fasthosts uses their own custom control panel instead of the more common cPanel.

I found it to be clean and relatively easy to navigate, although it might take a day or two to get used to it if you’re coming from a different hosting environment.

From the dashboard, I could easily manage all the core aspects of my hosting account.

Here are some of the key features I tested:

• 1-Click WordPress Installer: Setting up a new WordPress site was simple and took just a few clicks.
• Free Website Migrations: They offer a service to move your existing site over for you, which is great for beginners.
• Domain Management: The panel makes it easy to manage the free domain that comes with your plan.
• Resource Scaling: For the Plus and Advance plans, you can easily increase server resources directly from the control panel as your site grows.

Fasthosts Plans and Pricing

Fasthosts now offers four WordPress hosting plans tailored for different needs. All plans include free domain registration, AI website creation tools, and generous storage.

I explored these updated tiers during my review.

Here’s a simple breakdown of what each plan includes:

The Business plan is a great value for most users — it’s affordable and adds more resources like AI-powered content creation and multiple email addresses.

Bonus Tip 💡: WPBeginner readers can get WordPress hosting from Fasthosts for just 49p/month using our exclusive Fasthosts coupon code.

Fasthosts Customer Support Experience

A good support team is essential, especially when you run into an unexpected problem. I explored Fasthosts’ support options to see how they measured up.

They offer 24/7 support through phone and email tickets.

However, their live chat support, which is often the quickest way to get help, is only available from Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM GMT. This is a significant downside if you’re working on your site over the weekend and need immediate assistance.

On a positive note, they have an extensive knowledge base and an active community forum.

I found that most common questions were already answered there, which is great for users who prefer to find solutions themselves. When I did submit a ticket, the response was helpful and came within a reasonable timeframe.

Final Verdict: Should You Use Fasthosts?

After putting Fasthosts through its paces, I found them to be a very capable and reliable hosting provider, particularly if your audience is in the UK or Europe. The performance is solid, uptime is dependable, and the plans are priced competitively.

Their custom control panel is easy to use, and they provide essential features like a free domain, SSL, and migrations without extra charges.

I would recommend Fasthosts for bloggers, small businesses, and DIY users who want a fast, UK-based host and are comfortable with finding answers in a knowledge base.

However, if you require 24/7 live chat support or run a high-traffic eCommerce site that needs proven scalability, you might want to consider other options. The inability to complete the stress test is a notable question mark for performance under extreme load.

Here is a quick summary of our Fasthosts review findings:

FAQs About Fasthosts

1. Where is Fasthosts based?

Fasthosts is headquartered in the United Kingdom. Their data centers and servers are also located in the UK, making them an excellent choice for websites with a primarily British or European audience.

2. Is Fasthosts good for WordPress?

Yes, Fasthosts is a good option for WordPress. They offer optimized WordPress hosting plans that include a 1-click installer, free migrations, and security features specifically for WordPress sites.

3. Does Fasthosts use cPanel?

No, Fasthosts uses its own custom-built control panel. While it looks different from cPanel, I found it provides all the necessary functionality for managing your website, domains, and email.

4. Does Fasthosts offer a money-back guarantee?

Yes, they offer a 30-day money-back guarantee for their shared and WordPress hosting plans. This allows you to try their service risk-free.

Ultimately, if your website primarily serves a UK audience, Fasthosts is a compelling choice that delivers on its promises of speed and reliability. 👉 Click here to start with Fasthosts.