Bluehost vs InMotion Hosting: Complete 2026 Comparison
Bluehost and InMotion Hosting are both shared hosting providers, but they suit different priorities. The two are closely matched in our 7-category breakdown, each taking a share of the wins, so your decision comes down to which factors matter most to you.
Data last updated June 2026
Result
It's a Tie!
- Both hosts are evenly matched
- Choose based on your specific needs
Bluehost vs InMotion Hosting: Overview
On entry pricing, Bluehost is the cheaper option at $3.99/mo versus $4.79/mo for InMotion Hosting. Renewal tells the real story: Bluehost marks prices up about 150% at renewal versus roughly 213% for InMotion Hosting, making it the better long-term value. InMotion Hosting also gives you a longer 90-day money-back window to test risk-free.
Bluehost's standout is only host officially recommended by WordPress — a natural fit for wordPress beginner wanting official endorsement and phone support. InMotion Hosting, by contrast, leans on employee-owned US host with 90-day money-back, US-based support, and 99, ideal for US business wanting American support, long refund period, and BBB A+ rated company.
Category Winners
Best Price
Bluehost
$3.99/mo vs $4.79/mo
Best Value
Bluehost
Lower renewal markup (150% vs 213%)
Best Performance
InMotion Hosting
99.99% uptime, 3.9/5 rating
Best Support
InMotion Hosting
Live chat, Phone, 24/7
Best for WordPress
Tie
Similar WordPress features
Best for Developers
InMotion Hosting
SSH, Git, Staging, Node.js
Best for Beginners
Bluehost
Higher ease of use score (9.0/10)
Feature Comparison
| Feature | ||
|---|---|---|
| Essential Info | ||
| Hosting Type | Shared Hosting | Shared Hosting |
| Monthly Price | $3.99/mo | $4.79/mo |
| Renewal Price | $9.99 | $14.99 |
| Renewal Markup | 150% | 213% |
| Overall Rating | 3.4/5 | 3.9/5 |
| Uptime Guarantee | 99.99% | 99.99% |
| Trustpilot Rating | 4.6/5 | 4.1/5 |
| Trustpilot Reviews | 27,784 | 2,513 |
| Free SSL | ||
| Free Domain | ||
| Free Migration | ||
| Pricing Details | ||
| First Year Cost | $47.88 | $57.48 |
| Second Year Cost | $119.88 | $179.88 |
| Money Back Guarantee | 30 days | 90 days |
| Setup Fee | Free | Free |
| Monthly Billing | — | — |
| Minimum Contract | — | — |
| Technical Specs | ||
| Storage | 10 GB | 100 GB |
| Storage Type | NVME SSD | NVME SSD |
| Bandwidth | Unmetered GB | Unlimited |
| Max Websites | 10 | 2 |
| Max Databases | 20 | — |
| PHP Versions | 7.4, 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4 | 7.4, 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4 |
| SSH Access | ||
| Git Deployment | ||
| Staging Environment | ||
| Cron Jobs | ||
| Redis Available | — | — |
| Programming Languages | ||
| Node.js Support | ||
| Python Support | ||
| Ruby Support | ||
| WordPress Features | ||
| WordPress Optimized | ||
| WordPress Auto-Install | ||
| WordPress Auto-Updates | ||
| WordPress Staging | ||
| WooCommerce Optimized | ||
| LiteSpeed Cache | ||
| Object Caching | ||
| WP Multisite | — | — |
| WP-CLI Access | ||
| Security | ||
| DDoS Protection | ||
| DDoS Protection Level | DDoS protection and Web Application Firewall included on all plans | Advanced |
| Malware Scanning | ||
| Malware Removal | ||
| Firewall Included | ||
| Backup Frequency | Weekly | Daily (higher plans), Manual (basic plans) |
| Backup Retention | — | — |
| Backup Restore Fee | Free | Free |
| On-Demand Backup | ||
| Two-Factor Auth | ||
| Wildcard SSL | ||
| Dedicated IP | ||
| Support | ||
| Support Channels | Phone, Live Chat, Knowledge Base, Webinars, Blog, Academy | Phone, Live Chat, Email/Ticket, Knowledge Base |
| Live Chat | ||
| Live Chat Hours | 24/7 | 24/7 |
| Phone Support | ||
| Phone Support Hours | 24/7 | 9AM-9PM ET Monday-Friday (live chat/ticket 24/7) |
| Ticket Support | ||
| Priority Support | ||
| Support Languages | English | English |
| Knowledge Base Quality | 4.0/10 | 5.0/10 |
| Avg Support Wait | — | — |
| Email Accounts | ||
| Email Account Limit | 5 | — |
| Mailbox Size | 0.1 GB | — |
| Webmail Access | ||
| Spam Filter | ||
| Email Forwarding | ||
| Performance | ||
| CDN Included | ||
| CDN Provider | Cloudflare CDN | InMotion CDN |
| Server Locations | Provo, UT (US), Orem, UT (US), Frankfurt (Germany), Mumbai (India), Sao Paulo (Brazil), Paris (France), Sydney (Australia), London (UK), Madrid (Spain), Hong Kong (China), Shanghai (China) | Los Angeles, CA (US), Ashburn, VA (US), Amsterdam (Netherlands) |
| Server Location Count | 11 | 3 |
| Choose Server Location | ||
| HTTP/2 Support | — | — |
| Brotli Compression | — | — |
| Uptime SLA Credit | ||
| Platform Support | ||
| Drupal Support | ||
| Joomla Support | ||
| Magento Support | ||
| Laravel Support | ||
| Django Support | ||
| Next.js Support | ||
| Rails Support | ||
| Static Site Support | ||
| Control Panel | ||
| cPanel Included | ||
| Control Panel | cPanel | cPanel |
| Softaculous | ||
| Website Builder | ||
| Builder Name | Bluehost Website Builder | BoldGrid Website Builder |
| Migration | ||
| Migration Websites Limit | 1 | 1 |
| Migration Turnaround | 4 days | — |
| Paid Migration Cost | $149.99 | — |
| Migration Quality | 4.0/10 | 5.0/10 |
| Compliance | ||
| GDPR Compliant | ||
| PCI Compliant | ||
| HIPAA Compliant | ||
| Data Center Certs | — | — |
| Ratings | ||
| Value for Money | 3.0/10 | 3.5/10 |
| Performance Rating | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Support Quality | 3.5/10 | 4.5/10 |
| Security Rating | 3.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Features Rating | 3.5/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Ease of Use | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Transparency Rating | 2.5/10 | 3.0/10 |
| Suitability Scores | ||
| For Bloggers | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For E-commerce | 4.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For Agencies | 3.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For Developers | 3.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For Beginners | 5.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| For Enterprise | 2.0/10 | 4.0/10 |
| Policies | ||
| Bandwidth Overage | Unmetered within fair use; excessive use may require upgrade | Unlimited within fair use; excessive use may require upgrade |
| Storage Overage | Must upgrade plan; inode limits apply (200K soft, 1M TOS violation) | Hard limits apply; must upgrade plan |
| Adult Content Allowed | ||
| Gambling Sites Allowed | ||
| Crypto Sites Allowed | — | |
| Reseller Hosting | ||
| White Label | ||
| API Access | ||
| Company Info | ||
| Year Founded | 2003 | 2001 |
| Headquarters | United States | United States |
| Parent Company | Newfold Digital (formerly Endurance International Group, acquired 2010) | Privately held (employee-owned, founded by Sunil Saxena and Todd Robinson) |
| Green Hosting | — | — |
| Instant Activation | — | — |
| Managed WordPress | ||
| Managed WP Available | ||
| Pricing Model | — | — |
| Monthly Visit Limit | — | — |
| Visit Overage Cost | — | — |
| PHP Workers | — | — |
| Plugin Restrictions | — | — |
| Dev Environment | — | — |
| Dev Env Name | — | — |
| Regional Info | ||
| Best Countries | United States, India, United Kingdom, Brazil, Australia | United States, Netherlands, Singapore |
| Local Currencies | USD, INR, GBP | USD |
| Support Languages | English | English |
| Data Sovereignty | GDPR | GDPR, PCI DSS |
| External Ratings | ||
| G2 Rating | 3.4/5 | 4.1/5 |
| BBB Rating | Not Accredited | A+ |
| Advanced Technical | ||
| Inode Limit | 200,000 | 50,000 |
| Max DB Size | 5 GB | — |
| Max Upload Size | 50 MB | — |
| Database Type | — | — |
| Elasticsearch | — | — |
| Image Optimization | — | — |
| PHP Switching | ||
| Subdomains | — | — |
| FTP Accounts | — | — |
| Additional Pricing | ||
| Free Domain Duration | 12 months | 12 months |
| Money Back Exclusions | Cloud hosting excluded; Monthly term plans excluded; Domains non-refundable ($15.99 deducted if free domain used); Premium domains non-refundable; Setup fees excluded; Most add-on products excluded; Renewals only refundable within 30 days | Month-to-month VPS/Dedicated plans only get 30 days; Domain registrations non-refundable; SSL certificates non-refundable; Add-on services non-refundable |
| Payment Methods | Credit Card, Debit Card, PayPal | Credit Card, Debit Card, PayPal |
| Auto Renewal Default | ||
| Domain Privacy Included | — | — |
| Domain Privacy Cost | — | — |
| SSL Provider | Let's Encrypt (auto-renewed every 90 days) | Let's Encrypt (auto-renewed every 3 months) |
| Dedicated IP Cost | — | — |
| Additional Support | ||
| Phone Support Countries | United States | United States |
| Priority Support Cost | — | — |
| Community Forum | ||
| Support Outsourced | — | — |
| Object Cache Type | — | NGINX proxy cache |
| Business & Affiliate | ||
| Affiliate Program | ||
| Commission Type | Flat rate (tiered) | Tiered (based on product and volume) |
| Commission Amount | $65 per sale base; up to $125/sale for high performers; 30-day cookie; $100 minimum first payout; via Impact.com | Tiered commission based on hosting product and sales volume; 90-day cookie duration |
| Additional Policies | ||
| File Hosting Allowed | ||
| Proxy/VPN Allowed | ||
| Bandwidth Overage Cost | — | — |
| Account Suspension Policy | AUP violations may result in suspension or termination; 48 hours to respond to abuse team before suspension | AUP violations may result in content deletion, suspension, or termination; InMotion reserves right to delete material deemed inappropriate |
| Malware Removal Cost | — | $0.00 |
| Downloadable Backups | ||
| Additional Platforms | ||
| PrestaShop | ||
| Ghost | ||
| Shopify Migration | ||
| Wix Migration | ||
| Squarespace Migration | ||
| Webflow Export | ||
| Editorial Info | ||
| Best For | WordPress beginners (officially recommended by WordPress.org); Users wanting phone support 24/7; Users who need cPanel; Staging environment included; Free Cloudflare CDN; Global audience (11 data centers Oct 2025); High affiliate payouts ($65-125/sale) | Business users needing US-based support; Users wanting 90-day money-back guarantee; WordPress users (optimized with staging); cPanel users; Users needing 4 global data center locations; Users wanting employee-owned company |
| Avoid If | Budget-conscious at renewal time; Need Node.js on shared hosting; Adult or gambling content; Require large email storage; Dislike aggressive upselling; Need cheap VPS (competitors much cheaper); Enterprise compliance requirements | Budget-conscious at renewal time (5x markup); Need 24/7 phone support; Need low inode limits; Adult or adult-adjacent content; Need cheap monthly VPS plans |
| Known Issues | Renewal prices 2-3x higher than promo ($2.95 → $9.99); Aggressive upselling on add-ons; Limited 100MB email on Basic plan; No Node.js on shared hosting; 4,000+ negative reviews cite cancellation/billing issues; VPS pricing significantly higher than competitors; G2 rating only 3.4/5; Not BBB accredited; Some Reddit reports of downtime issues; $99.95 domain redemption fee | Renewal prices ~5x higher than promo ($2.62 → $12.49); Phone support limited to business hours (9AM-9PM ET M-F); Automated backups only on higher plans; Low inode limit (50,000) compared to competitors; 21% of Trustpilot reviews are 1-star; Domain renewal $19.99/yr is higher than competitors; Month-to-month VPS/dedicated only get 30-day refund |
| Unique Selling Point | Only host officially recommended by WordPress.org with staging on all WP plans | Employee-owned US host with 90-day money-back, US-based support, and 99.99% uptime |
| Ideal Customer | WordPress beginner wanting official endorsement and phone support | US business wanting American support, long refund period, and BBB A+ rated company |
| Best Alternative To | HostGator | GoDaddy |
| Primary Competitors | HostGator, SiteGround, Hostinger | DreamHost, Bluehost, A2 Hosting |
We strive for accuracy, but pricing and features change frequently. Some data may be outdated. Report an error and we'll update it promptly.
Our Verdict
Choose Bluehost if you...
- Want to save money ($3.99/mo vs $4.79/mo)
- Prefer more predictable renewal pricing
- Are new to web hosting
- Want more server locations (11 available)
Choose InMotion Hosting if you...
- Want higher-rated hosting (3.9/5)
- Want to run Node.js applications
- Need enterprise-grade features
Bluehost vs InMotion Hosting: Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bluehost cheaper than InMotion Hosting?
Yes — Bluehost is cheaper, starting at $3.99/mo compared with $4.79/mo for InMotion Hosting. Factor in renewals too: Bluehost marks up about 150% after the first term.
Does Bluehost or InMotion Hosting have better uptime?
InMotion Hosting edges out Bluehost on performance with a 99.99% uptime guarantee and a 3.9/5 overall rating. For uptime-sensitive sites, it's the more dependable choice.
Which has better customer support, Bluehost or InMotion Hosting?
InMotion Hosting has the edge on support offering 24/7 live chat, phone support and ticket support.
Is Bluehost or InMotion Hosting better for beginners?
Bluehost is friendlier for beginners, scoring higher on ease of use in our assessment. New users will generally find it quicker to get started.
Should I choose Bluehost or InMotion Hosting?
Bluehost and InMotion Hosting are evenly matched overall, so the best choice depends on your priorities. Use the category winners and feature table above to weigh the factors that matter most for your project.