Why Unlimited Hosting Plans Aren’t as Limitless as They Seem    

Why Unlimited Hosting Plans Aren’t as Limitless as They Seem

There are all kinds of hosting offers on the market- unlimited traffic but limited disk space, tens of unlimited features, and plans where everything is more or less unlimited. Among the commonly encountered unlimited resources are monthly traffic, disk space, account load, hosted websites, emails, databases, etc. Almost anything that one can measure in numbers can be presented as unlimited. You might even start thinking these plans cost a fraction of what you’d have to pay for a server with limited features.

The cost of a virtual server isn’t to be overlooked. As of 2024, a storage server can cost up to $10,000. If you need to store video and 3D files, it can go up to $20,000. Such files consume a huge amount of storage space.

This article will discuss monthly traffic and other features that actually aren’t as limitless as your web host will have you believe.

Monthly Traffic

Your web hosting provider will likely claim that their package has no traffic limit. This means your site will always stay online no matter how much traffic it generates. This is especially important for business sites with many visitors or websites that provide access to audio and video content or allow users to download other large files. Unlimited traffic is a tempting offer, considering that a large business can expect to pay $16,000 per minute of downtime. Downtime results in frustration and potentially loss of customer revenue. According to a 2023 Deloitte study, 83% of customers believe the experience a company provides is just as significant as its services or products. If a competitor provides a better experience, 61% of customers will switch from a business they were previously loyal to.

Web hosts actually pay ISPs and data centers for the traffic they generate, which means they need to take measures to offer truly unlimited monthly traffic. One measure is giving some customers a high traffic quota at the expense of customers who pay for a hosting package without using all of its resources. They might limit an account’s bandwidth to make sure it can’t generate too much traffic. This has a direct impact on web page loading speed, especially if the site gets a lot of visitors at the same time.

Finally, the host might put a restriction on the traffic volume non-website files can generate, limiting the type of content the site can store and offer its visitors.

Disk space

Websites store files and emails in a portion of a server called disk space. Disk drive storage is limited, regardless of whether they are SSD or HDD. What’s more, unlimited plans tend to come with shared hosting, where all the resources available are shared by the users on the server. Disk space can never be unlimited unless content is distributed via cloud storage. In 2024, shared hosting holds 37.64% of the whole hosting market, continuing to reign as the most popular choice. However, VPS and cloud hosting are catching up due to their scalability and improved performance.

A web host might offer unlimited disk space, but only if the websites only use it for specific content. They can store an unlimited number of website files, but the storage of video files, audio files, backup archives, documents, and other non-website files is quite limited. Site files are normally minute, so the actual disk space the website can use is very limited in reality.

Final thoughts

Small or medium websites may find an “unlimited” plan very attractive, but they won’t be able to use the full resources they are paying for should they need to. Before committing to a hosting package, check the provider’s Terms of Service for mentions of unlimited features and look for footnotes regarding them. Look for a dedicated section in the Terms or a page on the host’s website that addresses acceptable usage.

Robert Simpson is a seasoned ED Tech blog writer with a passion for bridging the gap between education and technology. With years of experience and a deep appreciation for the transformative power of digital tools in learning, Robert brings a unique blend of expertise and enthusiasm to the world of educational technology. Robert's writing is driven by a commitment to making complex tech topics accessible and relevant to educators, students, and tech enthusiasts alike. His articles aim to empower readers with insights, strategies, and resources to navigate the ever-evolving landscape of ED Tech. As a dedicated advocate for the integration of technology in education, Robert is on a mission to inspire and inform. Join him on his journey of exploration, discovery, and innovation in the field of educational technology, and discover how it can enhance the way we learn, teach, and engage with knowledge. Through his words, Robert aims to facilitate a brighter future for education in the digital age.