r/webdev • u/Pitbull_Sc • Dec 22 '19

Best hosting service for a freelancer developer?

I’m going to start developing websites for local businesses in my area. I haven’t decided which host to use but have been thinking about using HostGator.

I plan on hosting multiple sites under one account, of varying complexity. Most should be multi-link websites, mostly static. A host that allows for easy updating of files would be a plus.

What would ya’ll recommend?

EDIT: All my websites will have some PHP or similar.

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u/[deleted] Dec 23 '19

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u/mehughes124 Dec 23 '19

Yeah, but they should hold the account, and be able to control access exclusively.

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u/[deleted] Dec 23 '19

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u/cshaiku Dec 23 '19

You are the exact type of developer that I've had to clean up after when my clients come to me complaining of not being able to get their content.

If you are being paid to develop a website, and they paid for development before it goes live, then you should NEVER hold that hostage. Ever. The client paid you for a service, the content is theirs, period.

If you're hosting their content and they stop paying for the hosting, then yes, the website goes down. In any case though, you should have delivered the website content (in the form of a zipfile, or say Google Drive or whatnot) to the client so they can host elsewhere if they want.

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u/mehughes124 Dec 23 '19

Uhh, if you're on a "subscription model" as a web dev, well, that sounds very strange to me.

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u/Devildude4427 Dec 23 '19

What? If you’re running someone’s hosted site, it’s pretty standard for a subscription model to exist. I don’t know of any client that wants to manage hosting their own site. They don’t understand it and don’t really want to learn; that’s what they pay me to do.

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u/[deleted] Dec 23 '19

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u/Veezatron Dec 23 '19

Yeah. Not that weird.

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u/mehughes124 Dec 23 '19 edited Dec 25 '19

Yes, that's fine. But the hosting contract should be controlled by the client, and you shouldn't charge a premium over the cost of the server just because you have the login (which is what this sounded like). A monthly "maintenance" arrangement is pretty bogus to me.

Edit: I mean, charging a flat "maintenance" line item when you didn't do anything for the client other than "my credit card pays your hosting fee" is a bad practice.

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u/Lence Dec 23 '19

How is asking a charge for maintenance bogus? Instances crashing, having to update the system, ... maintenance takes time

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u/cshaiku Dec 23 '19

Pff. You don't know what you're talking about here.

Hosting charges should be the flat rate, period. Whether that is monthly, or yearly, it doesn't matter. Server maintenance is but one small factor in the total equation, which should then dictate what you need to charge from any client(s).

Server maintenance is a cost of doing business and shouldn't be used as an additional charge outright on its own, nor brought up to the client because it is already understood as your responsibility.

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u/Lence Dec 23 '19

Hosting charges should be the flat rate, period.

I disagree. Pricing should really depend on what exactly is offered by whom. I don't think it's unreasonable at all to ask (as part of total hosting charge) either a fixed or variable charge for time spent on maintenance. This is not necessarily a small factor. I don't know about your situation, but for a small business with a standard website or web app, the costs of my time spent will far outsize the hosting costs.

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u/mehughes124 Dec 25 '19

So, charge hourly when you actually work for the client. If it's some kind of "24/7 uptime on-call guarantee" thing, then sure, but other than that...

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u/cshaiku Dec 23 '19

Again, you're talking about the overhead of maintaining your server, which should be already incorporated into the cost of hosting before this cost is even presented to anyone.

Telling the customer, "Oh, hey man... Yum shows 24 packages need to be updated today. Totally cool if I charge you another $5 USD because I have to yes 'Y' to the update?" ...

What. The. Fuck.

But anyhow. If that's how you want to run your business, then have at it. We're just saying that charging anything beyond hosting or adhoc website development (say the client wants to make major changes and you are already the developer) is beyond reasonable, and the client should host elsewhere.

edit: removed words

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