Hostinger vs SiteGround: which is better value?

By The Web Hosting Depot team · Updated Oct 8, 2026 · How we research

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Quick verdict

Hostinger is cheaper over three years ($108 vs $468 on the entry plans). On our overall rating, Hostinger scores higher (4.4 vs 4.2).

Pick Hostinger if

beginners and small sites that want the lowest upfront cost and an easy panel.

Visit Hostinger

Pick SiteGround if

wordPress sites that value support, speed tools and daily backups, and can live with high renewals.

Visit SiteGround

Side by side

	Hostinger 5 wins	SiteGround 3 wins
Cheapest plan	Premium · $2.99/mo	StartUp · $2.99/mo
Prepay for intro price	4-year term	1-year term
Renews at	$10.99/mo	$17.99/mo
Renewal jump	+268%	+502%
3-year cost	$108	$468
Money-back	30 days	30 days
Backups	Weekly on Premium; daily on Business/Cloud	Daily, 30 days of history
Free domain	1 year on Premium and up	1 year (.com/.org/.net)
Control panel	hPanel (custom)	Site Tools (custom)
Data centers	Multiple regions (US, Europe, Asia, South America); choose at setup	6 regions across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia
Performance (our rating)	4/5	5/5
Support (our rating)	4/5	5/5
Ease of use (our rating)	5/5	4/5
Value (our rating)	5/5	2/5

Green = better on that row. Entry plans compared: Hostinger Premium and SiteGround StartUp (Shared hosting). Prices checked Oct 8, 2026.

Hostinger: real cost

Intro$2.99/mo4-year term

Renews at$10.99/mo+268%

3-year cost$108intro + renewals

SiteGround: real cost

Intro$2.99/mo1-year term

Renews at$17.99/mo+502%

3-year cost$468intro + renewals

Why Hostinger

Lowest entry price among the big shared hosts
Free migration and a free domain on most plans
Simple custom control panel (hPanel)
Upgrade path from shared to cloud and VPS

Downsides: Headline price needs a 48-month prepay; Renewal is roughly 3-4× the intro price; Entry plan has only weekly backups and 3 sites.

Why SiteGround

Daily backups with 30 days of history on every plan
Strong WordPress tooling (staging, caching, security)
Intro price only needs a 12-month prepay

Downsides: Steepest renewals in this group (StartUp renews at $17.99); StartUp allows just one site; Storage is modest for the price.

The bottom line

Hostinger is the budget favorite: the Premium plan starts around $3 a month and includes a free domain, free migration and a clean custom panel. The catch is the 48-month prepay for that price and renewals near $11 a month.

SiteGround is the premium shared host: daily backups, staging and excellent WordPress tooling, with a cheap first year that only needs a 12-month prepay. Renewals are the steepest we track: StartUp goes from $2.99 to $17.99 a month.

Frequently asked questions

Is Hostinger cheaper than SiteGround?

Over three years, Hostinger costs less on the cheapest comparable plans: about $108 versus $468, counting the intro price for its required term and then the renewal price. Month one is misleading: compare the 3-year totals.

Which has the better money-back guarantee?

Hostinger: 30 days. SiteGround: 30 days. Domain fees are usually not refundable.

Can I move from Hostinger to SiteGround later?

Yes. Moving a site means copying its files and database, then pointing your domain at the new host. SiteGround advertises free migration: Free WordPress migrator plugin. See our guide to switching hosts.