TODAY'S BEST DEALS Developed as a one-stop solution for bloggers and small business owners, Netfirms launched in 2, which means it has over 1 decades of industry experience under its belt. The company has remained focused on offering affordable domain names, web hosting, email, SSL certificates, site design, online marketing services and has grown to serve more than 2 million service customers worldwide. . At its peak, Netfirms aroused the interest of EIG (Endurance International Group), an American technology giant, so much so that EIG decided to acquire the Canadian host. While most of the companies belonging to the EIG have maintained their product line long after the acquisition, this does not seem to be the case with Netfirms which leaves the impression of being just an ancillary brand of solutions. the EIG. . At the time of writing this document, Netfirms operates data centers in XNUMX locations, in New York City (USA) and Toronto (Canada). Its headquarters are in the company's hometown of Markham (Canada).
Registering a domain name is the initial step to getting your site (Image credit: Netfirms) The landing page of the official Netfirms site shows a man determined to conquer the top of a mountain, which is supposedly a metaphor for ambition (we assume) mas makes the place look like a winter tourism brochure. Other than that, the site is extremely secretive about its products, has a simplistic design, and is therefore easy to use. If you're into social media, you can find Netfirms on Facebook and Twitter, where you won't find any updates after XNUMX. On his site, you will find many negative comments from his frustrated (and surely old) customers.
Netfirms makes it simple with just 3 shared hosting plans (Image credit: Netfirms)
Packages and prices
When it comes to web hosting, Netfirms offers 3 different sized shared hosting plans, and that's about it. All 3 plans offer unlimited storage space, countless subdomains, scalable bandwidth, and a free SSL certificate. However, they differ in terms of supported sites, MySQL databases, and FTP connections. It also claims that all of the plans include a free domain name for one year, but that's only good if you have a certain coupon, so keep your eyes peeled. The easiest option of the 3 to use is a hosting plan that goes by the oddly named "Plus" (isn't the entry-level plan often referred to as something like "Starter" or "Basic"? ). Still, for $3 a month (or $XNUMX if you sign up for XNUMX years), this plan will get you a single site, five FTP users, and ten MySQL databases, plus overall functionality. Aside from shared hosting, Netfirms offers a "smart" site author, domain registration, SSL certificates, Microsoft XNUMX, and Google Workspace (formerly G Suite) email hosting. If you have big ambitions for your site, you should keep in mind that Netfirms does not provide any kind of advanced hosting (such as VPS and Dedicated Servers). Netfirms plans are backed by a XNUMX-day money-back guarantee, but are only valid for credit card payments. Regarding payment methods, with Netfirms you can use credit cards (only MasterCard and Visa can handle payments that are not in USD), Paypal or through check.
Ease of use
By selecting the shared hosting plan, you will appreciate that the monthly billing is not free. This means that you should choose to subscribe for one, 2 or 3 years. To purchase any of these plans, you will need to enter the domain you want to use. So if you don't have one yet, go to the domain registration section and choose one. Many of these are free for purchase and the costs range from pocket to deep pocket only. Anyway, after that you can add any hosting plan you want to the chart along with various security related plugins and a “smart” website builder. You can also check the renewal fees here, as your price will double after the end of the promotional period. Once you've decided everything, you'll be prompted to create an account with Netfirms, which will ask you to provide your billing information and choose a payment method. If you have a coupon (probably for a free domain name for a year), this is where you can use it.
You can manage your domains and subdomains from the Netfirms dashboard (Image credit: Netfirms) The Netfirms control panel of choice is none of your industry standard consoles designed to make all hosting a breeze, no. Instead of cPanel, you can expect to get a simple dashboard with information about your web space, oddly mixed with links to various site management tools. There you will also find links to various advertisements, such as "Website Backup and Restore", which has automatic backups that you can get for an additional price (around €15 per year).
Netfirms drag and drop website builder is more than enough to make a simple site (Image credit: Netfirms) While Netfirms does provide a WordPress auto-installer, there is no one-click installer (like Softaculous) for any and all other must-have apps. As for their drag-and-drop website builder, the cheapest plan will set you back $1.99 per month (there's a monthly billing option here) and give you everything you need for a simple site, including plenty of pre-built sections and layouts. . , SEO tools, social networks and mobile optimization, etc.
We use GTmetrix to measure the uptime and response time of the main Netfirms site (Image credit: GTmetrix)
Speed and experience
While Netfirms don't talk much about its speed, GTmetrix's test results on its official website show that if they wanted to, they could say a thing or two. The site fully loaded in 4,6 seconds, which is pretty good, even longer compared to the average score of 8,0 seconds. Similarly, each and every other base speed measurement metric (higher content paint, total block time, and cumulative layout scroll) passed the test with an A (90%), promising fast performance. Netfirms promises 99,9% uptime for all hosting plans, but unfortunately this promise is not detailed on the official site. With that in mind, we tested the Netfirms site (via UptimeRobot) and carefully monitored its uptime for two weeks. The final results were a surprise (but not bad) showing 100% flawless uptime with only a few spikes in response times.
Support
Netfirms customer support must be available 24 hours a day and through a phone line, live chat and ticketing system. In addition to individual inquiries and technical support, you can also subscribe to Netfirms professional services related to website design and management. While Netfirms customer support is not something that surprises you, the agent we contacted was friendly and knowledgeable.
Netfirms knowledge base has some helpful guides, but could use an update (Image credit: Netfirms) When it comes to self-help options, with Netfirms you get a pretty exceptional knowledge base and a direct link to their video tutorial section that consists of nearly 40 easy-to-follow guides. We have described the knowledge base as not great because it appears to be in a very poor state with outdated content, broken links, and inconsistent quality. So, instead of wasting time searching the knowledge base, you'd better contact Netfirms technical team.
Competition
Although Bluehost is a US based host and Netfirms is from Canada, they both have US data centers which makes them equally convenient for US customers. Both seem pretty cheap at first, but since Bluehost's entry-level plan is a bit cheaper (even after renewal pricing) and more robust in terms of features, we think it's a safer bet for beginners. Since Netfirms only offers three shared hosting plans, users looking for advanced hosting options (such as VPS and dedicated server hosting) have no business there. For that, you might want to check out hosts like Bluehost or HostGator mentioned above, as both offer a huge variety of hosting options, features, and apps, all at affordable prices. In terms of price and functionality, PowWeb and Netfirms look pretty much the same. Both are "old school" companies offering Linux-based shared hosting packages with seemingly affordable price tags. Starter plans with both hosts include unlimited storage space, sellable bandwidth, easy-to-use site building tools, WordPress installation, and a 30-day money-back guarantee. However, PowWeb's single plan also includes a free domain name, so the odds are in your favor. There are many differences between Heart Internet and Netfirms, the most obvious being that the former is based in the UK while the latter is from Canada. On top of that, Heart Internet offers much more than just shared hosting, making it an obvious choice for users looking for advanced hosting solutions. However, when it comes to entry-level plans, both hosts should do the trick.
Final verdict
Solid uptime, fast performance, helpful support staff, and comprehensive shared hosting solutions make Netfirms worth a visit. Just be sure to pay with your credit card, as their 30-day money-back guarantee is for credit card payments only. However, if you're looking for a more versatile US host that offers a full range of feature-rich hosting packages backed by stellar support and at an attractive price, take a look at hosts like HostGator and Bluehost. THE BEST DEALS OF THE DAY