Top Hosting Review: IX Web Hosting
By: BigHosts.com Staff
Updated 11/27/2008
Visit IX for Space & Bandwidth
Price Features Service Space Bandwidth Security Reliability Ease of Use # of Plans 
Overall
| 2 Free Domains for Life |
Save money on domain renewal fees |
| 5,000 E-mail Accounts |
Add all the users that you need |
| 8 Domains per Acct |
Host a network of sites |
| Free Marketing Credits |
Increase website visibility |
| Free SSL Certificate | Ensure secure e-commerce transactions |
| Friendly Control Panel | Manage your website more easily |
| Front Page Extensions | Design your own website |
| MySQL Databases |
House a customer list |
| Perl, PHP, CGI | Build your site using a variety of languages |
| Shopping Carts |
Open an online store |
| Spam Assassin |
Protect against SPAM |
| Streaming Audio/Video |
Host your own videos |
| Webmail | Check e-mail from any browser |
| Website Stats | Measure your site's performance |
| Website Templates |
Get a fast, professional appearance |
Big Space, Nice Features
Location: Hopkinsville, KY
Year in Business: 8
Size does matter to some, and for those, there’s IX Web Hosting. Providing the most combined disk space and bandwidth of any host in this price range, its plans also support multiple domains. If you’re thinking about developing or transferring a network of sites (or even one monster site) IX Web Hosting offers the most bang for your buck.
The popular “Business Plus” plan comes with 500 gigabytes (GB) of web space, 3,500 GB of monthly bandwidth, and the ability to host up to 8 domains on one account. For about $6 more per month, you can bump up to the “Unlimited Pro” plan which features unlimited space, 4,000 GB of bandwidth and support for 16 domains. Either of these options provides ample resources to grow your online enterprise.
IX Web Hosting offers more information about its business than many other hosts, making it much more comfortable to complete a purchase. This includes details of its 8-year history and an overview of its private data center and network connectivity. Now hosting over 200,000 domains, the company has significantly increased its support staff, and expanded its facilities to provide improved service.
IX Web Hosting is very customer oriented, which you’ll notice when visiting the site. Each plan comes with the added assurance of 3 guarantees - a 30 day money-back, an “anytime” guarantee and an uptime guarantee, ensuring that your site is online at least 99.9% of the time. There is also 24/7 phone support and live chat to help you morning, afternoon and night.
Tons of space and customer friendly -- whether you’re managing a heavily trafficked social networking site, own a group of marketing sites, or just find peace of mind in having plenty of room to grow, IX Hosting is an excellent choice.
Price & Plans
IX Web Hosting offers three types of hosting plans: Expert, Business Plus and Unlimited Pro. The Business Plus plan is comparable to other top hosting packages and the best choice for most customers. Pricing and contract length options for this plan are as follows:
3 Months - $9.95/month
6 Months - $8.95/month
12 Months - $7.95/month
24 Months - $6.95/month
There is a $30.00 set-up fee and $10.00 domain registration cost which are both waived if you choose a 12 or 24 month package.
If you do the math, you’ll find that the 3 month contract costs a total of $60 while the 24 month costs $167. So for roughly three times the cost, the 24 month contract covers a time period that is 8 times longer, making it a much better value.
Features
See table (left) for a list of key features and benefits for the Business Plus plan. For a complete list of features for all packages, visit IX Web Hosting.
Service
Phone support, live chat and an online ticket system are available 24/7. There is also an in-depth FAQ with answers to over 150 questions, as well as a comprehensive online hosting manual if you prefer to help yourself. We encourage you to use these tools and become a better website manager.
Space
500 gigabytes; most sites are 20 megabytes or less (1 gigabyte = 1,024 megabytes) so there is more than enough space to host several large sites.
Bandwidth
3,500 gigabytes per month; most sites need 10 gigabytes or less. If your site has very high traffic (several million page views per month) or is very image intensive, consider the Unlimited Pro package.
Security
IX Web Hosting manages its own data center and has taken all the precautions to ensure your website and data are safe. This includes a multi-layer security infrastructure that has been certified as “Hacker-Safe.”
Reliability
IX Hosting has multiple tier-1 Internet connections through telecom partners such as Verizon and BellSouth. This means there are a variety of ways for your website and visitors to connect.
Ease of Use
The IX control panel (called “H-Sphere”) is simple to use. It looks very similar to your computer “desktop” with obvious icons for each category like E-mail, FTP and Tools. Try the demo at IX Web Hosting by going to the Business Plus plan description page.
Freebies
Every new web hosting account receives 2 free domains with free renewals while you are an IX customer. There are also free credits for search engine marketing programs like Google and Yahoo!, which can drive more targeted visitors to your website. This amounts to over $300 in giveaways that you get for free.
Guarantees
IX Hosting offers one of the most comprehensive set of guarantees including 30 days or your money back, an anytime guarantee, and an uptime guarantee. Of course each has its stipulations (just like other hosts) but they are trying hard to build your trust.
Discounts
There are savings on merchant accounts and website design services when purchasing the Business Plus plan. This is a nice bonus if you want to take orders online and improve the professionalism of your site.
