Cultivating Boredom

So you want decent web hosting for your site but you don’t want to pay through the nose to get it.

Well, you’ve come to the right place.

Just sit your coupon-clipping butt down and listen to Cory’s own 3 step web hosting solution.

1. Find a web host offering a good 1-year deal. - This actually isn’t as hard as it sounds. There are plenty of hosting companies out there all eagerly trying to get you “hooked” on their hosting. The first hit is .. not free, but cheap. Last year I found a deal with Dreamhost at $22 for 1 year including domain name registration. This year, Netfirms offered the same, but with two free domains instead of just one (the offer is expired now). These deals aren’t hard to find if you know where to look. RetailMeNot.com can help you find discount codes and special offers.
2. When the year is over, repeat step 1. - You’ll probably need to find a different host for each successive year. The point of their deals is to draw in new clients, then charge them full price when they renew their hosting. Luckily for you, there are plenty of hosting companies out there.
3. Transfer your old site to your new host. - Copy and paste files. Export databases. Make sure any links are updated. Don’t forget to transfer the domain name as well. If you wait until after the registration expires, someone else could snap up your domain before you have the chance to renew it.

But wait, you say. Surely there won’t always be some amazing 1-year deal out there. That’s where NearlyFreeSpeech.net comes in. They offer hosting for just pennies a day. You pay for exactly what you use and nothing more. Also, you prepay for hosting so you’re guaranteed not to get burned if your site hits Digg or Slashdot. Just throw $10 on your account until you can find the next 1-year hosting deal. Then switch again. They’ll even refund any extra money you don’t use. If you run a small site, like a low-traffic blog, you may want to just stick with NearlyFreeSpeech. They really are that cheap.