Hostinger vs ScalaHosting
We give Hostinger a 2.0 GPA and ScalaHosting a 2.2, out of 4.0. Hostinger grades higher on platforms. ScalaHosting grades higher on value for money and features. They get the same grade on the free plan and ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Hostinger
Shared, WordPress and cloud hosting run from its own hPanel dashboard
ScalaHosting
Shared and cloud VPS hosting with its own SPanel control panel
How we grade them
| 2.0GPAHostingerFair | 2.2GPAScalaHostingFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BPremium's only readable price is 48 months for $143.52 upfront, so two years cost you $143.52, about $5.98 a month. That's inside the cheaper quarter of hosts and a cent over the A line, and the same payment covers years three and four. Then it's $10.99 a month. | AMini is $106.20 upfront for 36 months, so two years cost $106.20, about $4.43 a month, under the $5.97 an A needs, with a third year thrown in. A 12-month term plus a year at $11.95 would be $178.80. Monthly is $11.95. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free. There's no free plan and no trial, just a 30-day refund on hosting, and a new domain can only be refunded within 96 hours. | FNo free plan and no trial on record. Monthly billing has no intro price either, so the cheapest way in still means paying. |
| Features | ChPanel, one-click WordPress, malware scanning, free migrations and an AI agent are all there. The gaps are on the plan most people buy: Premium keeps weekly backups, not daily, and the domain and mailboxes are free for the first year only. | BDaily offsite backups, SShield real-time protection, a malware scanner, WordPress Manager with staging, an AI site builder and unlimited mailboxes with blacklist monitoring. Mini has no free domain, but the core job is covered. |
| Ease of use | CNo app store rating to go on. hPanel and the AI agent take fiddly bits like DNS off your hands, but you're still setting up a domain, email and a site. | CNo app store rating to go on. SPanel or cPanel with one-click restores, but there's still a site, email and maybe a domain to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BA web dashboard, with no app on record. There's a public API, though, and hooks for Google Analytics, Google Ads, Meta Pixel, Claude Code and Cursor. | CA web panel only. Cloudflare, Google Lighthouse, Softaculous and the apps it installs are named, but no API is on record. |
| Best for | cheap hosting if you can pay four years upfront | small business sites with hosting and email |
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: Hostinger and ScalaHosting. How we grade
Price against what you get
Hostinger starts at $10.99 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. ScalaHosting starts at $2.95 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and ScalaHosting starts $8.04 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, none scores higher than Hostinger for less, and none scores higher than ScalaHosting 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
- Hostinger starts at $10.99 per month at renewal (Premium), after a first 48 months for $143.52. ScalaHosting starts at $11.95 per month (Mini), or $2.95 a month for a first term of 12 or 36 months.
- ScalaHosting also covers managed WordPress.
At a glance
| Hostinger | ScalaHosting | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | $10.99 per month at renewal (Premium), after a first 48 months for $143.52 | $11.95 per month (Mini), or $2.95 a month for a first term of 12 or 36 months |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Hostinger | ScalaHosting |
| Price read from | hostinger.com | scalahosting.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Hostinger
- Small sites and blogs whose owners can pay four years upfront
- Owners who want hosting, domain and email in one account
- People who want AI help building and running a WordPress site
ScalaHosting
- Small business sites that want hosting and email on one plan
- Sites expected to move from shared hosting to a cloud VPS later
- Buyers who would rather not pay for cPanel licenses
Worth knowing
Hostinger
- The advertised $2.99 a month needs 48 months paid upfront ($143.52); Premium then renews at $10.99 a month, Unlimited at $16.99 and Cloud Startup at $25.99.
- The plan table shows only 48-month prices. 1-, 12- and 24-month terms are also sold, but their prices appear only once the term is chosen.
- The free domain needs a plan of a year or longer, and both the domain and the mailboxes are free for the first year only.
- Hosting can be refunded within 30 days, but a new domain registration only within 96 hours.
ScalaHosting
- The $2.95 a month needs a 12- or 36-month term paid upfront; Mini renews at $11.95, Start at $14.95 and Advanced at $19.95 a month.
- Mini hosts one website and has no free domain; a domain comes with Start and higher plans.
- Several tools, including SShield, the AI site builder and the WordPress malware scan, work only with SPanel, not cPanel.
- Managed cloud plans start at $29.95 a month, and reseller hosting and larger VPS plans are sold separately.
Key features
Hostinger
- hPanel dashboard
- Hostinger's own control panel handles sites, domains, email, databases and backups, with one-click installs for WordPress and more than 100 other apps.
- Domain, SSL and email included
- Plans bought for a year or longer include a domain free for the first year. SSL is installed automatically, and mailboxes are free for the first year.
- Backups by plan
- Premium keeps weekly backups, Unlimited daily backups with restore, and Cloud Startup daily plus on-demand backups.
- Malware scanning and blocking
- Every plan scans for and removes harmful files, and lets you block visitors by IP address or country. Domain privacy hides your contact details.
- Hostinger Agent and AI credits
- An AI agent builds a WordPress site, sets up domains and DNS, and fixes common problems in chat. Plans come with a one-time gift of 250 to 1,000 AI credits.
- Free site migrations
- Hostinger moves existing sites over at no charge, with no limit on how many, either automatically from hPanel or with help from support.
ScalaHosting
- SPanel or cPanel
- Accounts can run on ScalaHosting's own SPanel, offered free, or on cPanel. Some tools, such as SShield and the AI site builder, come only with SPanel.
- SShield and malware scanning
- SShield watches for attacks in real time, and every shared plan lists real-time malware protection, brute-force protection and a WordPress malware scan tool.
- WordPress Manager
- Automatic WordPress updates, staging and cloning, a security lock for files, admin role controls and Google Lighthouse reports, managed from the panel.
- AI WordPress site builder
- An AI site builder for WordPress is included on every shared plan when it runs on SPanel.
- Daily offsite backups
- Backups run every day and are stored offsite, and archives can also be made by hand and restored in one click from the control panel.
- Email with reputation tools
- Unlimited mailboxes, forwarders and autoresponders, with blacklist monitoring and delivery tracking to help mail reach inboxes.
Plans
Hostinger
Premium, 48 months$10.99
per month at renewal, after a first term of 48 months
3 websites, 20 GB SSD and weekly backups. The first 48 months cost $143.52 ($2.99 a month), paid upfront, then it renews at $10.99 a month.
Unlimited, 48 months$16.99
per month at renewal, after a first term of 48 months
Unlimited websites and mailboxes, 50 GB NVMe and daily backups. The first 48 months cost $191.52 ($3.99 a month), then $16.99 a month.
Cloud Startup, 48 months$25.99
per month at renewal, after a first term of 48 months
Cloud plan with dedicated resources, 100 GB NVMe and on-demand backups. The first 48 months cost $383.52 ($7.99 a month), then $25.99 a month.
ScalaHosting
Mini, 1 month$11.95
per month, billed monthly
1 website, 10 GB NVMe storage and no bandwidth limit, with SPanel or cPanel. Monthly billing has no introductory price.
Mini, 12 months$11.95
per month at renewal, after a first year at $2.95 a month
The same Mini plan. The first 12 months cost $35.40 ($2.95 a month), paid upfront, then $11.95 a month.
Mini, 36 months$11.95
per month at renewal, after a first term of 36 months
The same Mini plan. The first 36 months cost $106.20 ($2.95 a month), paid upfront, then $11.95 a month.
Start, 36 months$14.95
per month at renewal, after a first term of 36 months
Unlimited websites, 50 GB and a free domain. $5.95 a month for the first 36 months ($214.20), then $14.95; the same $5.95 on 12 months.
Advanced, 36 months$19.95
per month at renewal, after a first term of 36 months
Unlimited websites and 100 GB. $9.95 a month for the first 36 months ($358.20), then $19.95 a month.
Entry Cloud, 36 months$39.95
per month at renewal, after a first term of 36 months
Cloud VPS with 2 dedicated CPUs, 2 GB RAM and 50 GB NVMe. $24.95 a month for 36 months; a 12-month term starts at $14.95 a month.
Ways to pay less
Hostinger
- Other savings
First 48 months of Premium for $143.52
Premium costs $2.99 a month for the first 48 months, paid upfront, against a regular $575.52. Unlimited is $191.52 ($3.99 a month) and Cloud Startup $383.52 ($7.99).
ScalaHosting
- Other savings
Mini at $2.95 a month for the first term
On a 12- or 36-month term Mini costs $2.95 a month, Start $5.95 and Advanced $9.95, paid upfront. They renew at $11.95, $14.95 and $19.95 a month.
