34SP vs SiteGround (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, SiteGround grades higher than 34SP: 1.8 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
SiteGround grades higher on features. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
SiteGround
Shared and WordPress hosting on Google Cloud with its own Site Tools
Which one is for you
Pick 34SP if
- Fits if you want UK-based hosting with phone support
- Works for small business sites on a month-to-month plan
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you need daily backups, as they cost at least £2.50 a month extra on Professional
- Watch out: prices are in pounds and include 20% VAT, and domains are separate
- Skip it if you want to try first, as there is no free plan or trial
- Watch out: the FAQ gives a base price range that differs from the plan pages
Pick SiteGround if
- Fits if you want daily backups and malware removal without adding plugins
- Works for teams that need many email accounts at your domain, as they aren't capped
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you stay past year one, when StartUp jumps from $2.99 to $17.99 a month
- Tight if you run more than one site, as StartUp hosts one and suits around 10,000 visits
- Skip it if you want staging or on-demand backups on StartUp, since they start on GrowBig
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $24.99, or need priority support, which needs GoGeek at $39.99
- Watch out: the 30-day refund covers new orders; renewals are refunded only under policy conditions
How we grade them
| 1.6GPA34SPWeak | 1.8GPASiteGroundWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CProfessional Hosting is £9.95 a month incl. VAT, in the ordinary range, billed month to month. | CStartUp's first year is $2.99 a month, then it renews at $17.99, so two years cost $251.76, about $10.49 a month. That's past the cheaper quarter of hosts and the dearest of the shared hosts we could price. A 24-month term at $14.99 a month costs more. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan or trial; the money-back guarantee is not a trial. | FNo free plan and no trial. New shared hosting orders get a 30-day money-back guarantee, which isn't a trial. |
| Features | CManaged WordPress containers, container hosting, reseller hosting, SSL and backups. The cheapest plan has weekly backups only. | BEvery plan keeps daily backups, a CDN, SSL that renews itself, daily malware scans with free removal and unlimited email accounts. Staging and on-demand backups wait for GrowBig, but nothing in the core job is missing on StartUp. |
| Ease of use | CManaged hosting with a panel, though sites still need setup. No store rating. | CNo app store rating to go on. Each site gets its own Site Tools panel, but there's still a domain, email and a site to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb hosting with a few integrations listed and no apps. | CA web panel only, with WordPress and WooCommerce as the named integrations. There's SSH and WP-CLI for developers, but no API is on record. |
| Best for | managed UK hosting with phone support | WordPress sites that want daily backups built in |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: 34SP and SiteGround. How we grade
Price against what you get
34SP starts at about $13.33 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. SiteGround starts at $14.99 a month and scores 2.3.
SiteGround scores higher, and starts $1.66 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other web hosts on the chart, 36 score higher than 34SP for less, and 5 score higher than SiteGround for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- 34SP also covers no-code.
- SiteGround also covers malware protection.
At a glance
| 34SP | SiteGround | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | £9.95 per month including VAT (Professional Hosting) | $14.99 per month prepaid for 24 months; 12 months is $2.99 a month in year one |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | 34SP.com | SiteGround |
| Price read from | 34sp.com | siteground.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Worth knowing
34SP
- Prices are in pounds and include 20% VAT; domains are not included and are bought separately.
- Professional Hosting includes weekly backups only; daily backups cost at least £2.50 a month extra.
- The site's FAQ says base packages run from £7.95 to £44.95 a month, which differs from the £9.95 to £41.95 listed on the plan pages.
- Hosting is billed month to month with no setup fee.
SiteGround
- The $2.99 a month is for the first year of a 12-month StartUp term only; it then renews at $17.99 a month, and GrowBig and GoGeek at $29.99 and $44.99.
- StartUp hosts one website and suits around 10,000 visits a month; more sites need GrowBig.
- Staging, on-demand backups and faster PHP start on GrowBig, and white-label access and priority support need GoGeek.
- The 30-day money-back guarantee covers new shared hosting orders; renewals are refunded only under conditions in SiteGround's refund policy.
Key features
34SP
- Managed WordPress containers
- WordPress plans run in a site container with staging sites, free migrations, daily backups and managed updates.
- UK phone and email support
- The company says its Manchester support team is open from 8 am to 8 pm every day by phone, email and ticket.
- Container hosting
- Universal Hosting runs each site in its own private container with a dedicated IP address and a 99.9% uptime SLA.
- Free SSL and backups
- SSL certificates are free on all plans, and the site says backups are free on its plans, with daily backups an add-on on Professional.
- Reseller hosting
- The reseller plan allows unlimited sites with a white-label, client-level control panel.
- Money-back guarantee
- A rolling 30-day money-back guarantee refunds the last 30 days of hosting fees.
SiteGround
- Site Tools panel
- Each site gets its own Site Tools panel for WordPress, email, domains and backups, so access to one site can be shared without exposing the others.
- Daily backups, CDN and SSL
- Every plan keeps daily backups and includes a CDN and SSL certificates that renew by themselves. GrowBig and GoGeek add on-demand backups.
- Malware scans and bot blocking
- Sites are scanned for malware every day with free removal, and an AI anti-bot system and custom firewall rules block attack traffic.
- WordPress services
- Free site migrations, managed automatic updates, WP-CLI and SSH, and an AI agent for WordPress. Staging starts on GrowBig, with Git on GoGeek.
- Unlimited email accounts
- Every hosting plan includes email at your own domain with no cap on accounts, plus webmail and spam protection.
- Website Builder with AI
- A drag-and-drop builder with templates, AI text and image generation and built-in SEO is included alongside WordPress.
Plans
34SP
Professional Hosting£9.95
per month, including VAT
1 main website with 50 GB storage, 500 mailboxes, 50 databases, 500 subdomains and unlimited bandwidth. Daily backups are an add-on from £2.50 a month.
WordPress Hosting, 1 site£11.95
per month, including VAT
One WordPress site container with 25 GB storage, unlimited bandwidth, free migration, staging and daily backups. 3, 5 and 10 site plans run £21.95 to £51.95.
Universal Hosting, Standard£21.95
per month, including VAT
A private container with 15 GB storage and 2 GB memory. Ecommerce is £51.95 (60 GB, 5 GB) and Heavy Duty £101.95 (135 GB, 10 GB).
Reseller Hosting£41.95
per month, including VAT
Unlimited sites on 50 GB storage and 2 GB RAM, with white-label control panel and daily backups. Also £503.40 per year.
SiteGround
StartUp, 1 month$24.99
per month
One website, 10 GB storage and around 10,000 visits a month, paid month to month at the regular rate.
StartUp, 12 months$17.99
per month at renewal, prepaid yearly, after a first year at $2.99
One website and 10 GB storage. The first 12 months cost $2.99 a month, prepaid, then the plan renews at $17.99 a month.
StartUp, 24 months$14.99
per month, prepaid every 24 months
One website and 10 GB storage at the lowest regular monthly rate. The sales page shows its first-term discount only on 12-month terms.
GrowBig, 24 months$24.99
per month, prepaid every 24 months
Unlimited websites, 50 GB, staging and on-demand backups. On a 12-month term it is $4.99 a month for the first year, then $29.99.
GoGeek, 24 months$39.99
per month, prepaid every 24 months
100 GB, staging with Git, white-label access and priority support. On a 12-month term it is $7.99 a month for the first year, then $44.99.
Ways to pay less
34SP
- Annual discount
Reseller billed yearly
The Reseller plan lists £503.40 per year beside £41.95 per month, which is the same as twelve monthly payments.
SiteGround
- Other savings
First year of StartUp for $2.99 a month
On a 12-month term the first invoice is $2.99 a month for StartUp, $4.99 for GrowBig and $7.99 for GoGeek, prepaid. Renewals are $17.99, $29.99 and $44.99 a month.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, 34SP or SiteGround?
As of Nov 13, 2026, 34SP is cheaper to start with: about $13.33 a month, against $14.99 a month for SiteGround. 34SP starts at £9.95 per month including VAT (Professional Hosting), and SiteGround starts at $14.99 per month prepaid for 24 months; 12 months is $2.99 a month in year one.
Which has a free plan, 34SP or SiteGround?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither 34SP nor SiteGround has a free plan.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.