IONOS vs Strato (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, IONOS grades higher than Strato: 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
IONOS grades higher on value for money. They get the same grade on the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
IONOS
Shared and WordPress hosting with a domain, wildcard SSL and email
Which one is for you
Pick IONOS if
- Fits if you run several small sites and want them on one plan
- Works for SSH, git and WP-CLI on hosting that's $4 a month in year one
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you need several mailboxes, as Essential has 1 and Ultimate 5, each with 2 GB
- Pricey if you pick Plus for the $1 year, since it renews at $14 a month
- Skip it if you want malware removed for you on a low plan, as that's Ultimate or WordPress Boost only
- Watch out: Essential goes from $4 to $8 a month after year one, and monthly no-minimum hosting shows no price
- Not for you if you want to try first, as there's no free plan or trial on record
Pick Strato if
- Fits if you want a domain and mailbox bundled with hosting
- Works for UK or European sites that run WordPress or Joomla
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you have several domains, as each package includes one and more cost extra
- Watch out: prices exclude VAT
- Watch out: the page says both a 6-month contract period and a 12-month minimum term
- Skip it if you want to try before paying, as there is no trial, only a money-back guarantee
- Watch out: DynDNS is not available on Basic Web
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAIONOSWeak | 1.6GPAStratoWeak | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | BEssential is $4 a month for the first year, then $8, so two years cost $144, about $6 a month, inside the cheaper quarter of hosts and just over the A line. Plus looks cheaper at $1, but it renews at $14, so two years come to $180. | CBasic Web is £4 a month excluding VAT, around the category's cheapest-quarter line once VAT and currency are counted. |
| Free plan and trial | FNothing free: there's no free plan and no trial on record, so you pay from day one. | FNo free plan or trial; the 30-day money-back guarantee is not a trial. |
| Features | CUnlimited websites, NVMe storage, a domain, wildcard SSL, daily backups and malware scanning on every plan. The gaps the listing names: Essential has 1 mailbox, and malware removal waits for Ultimate. | CDomain and mailboxes, CMS installs, backups, malware scans and unlimited traffic, but one domain per package and no DynDNS on Basic. |
| Ease of use | CNo app store rating to go on. There's a personal consultant and 24/7 phone support, but there's still a site and email to set up. | CNo store rating on record, and you set up the site and CMS yourself. |
| Platforms and integrations | CA web dashboard only. Its integrations are the apps it installs, WordPress, Joomla, Drupal and Jetpack, plus SSH and git, with no API on record. | CWeb only, with WordPress, Joomla, Typo3 and Drupal installs. |
| Best for | several small sites on one plan | hosting with a domain and mailbox included |
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: IONOS and Strato. How we grade
Price against what you get
IONOS starts at $4 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Strato starts at about $5.36 a month and scores 2.0.
They score the same, and IONOS starts $1.36 a month lower. Of the other web hosts on the chart, 10 score higher than IONOS for less, and 19 score higher than Strato 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
- IONOS also covers managed WordPress.
- Strato also covers databases.
At a glance
| IONOS | Strato | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| Starts at | $8 per month at renewal (Essential), after a first year at $4 a month | £4 per month, ex. VAT (Basic Web) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| Made by | IONOS Inc. | STRATO GmbH |
| Price read from | ionos.com | strato-hosting.co.uk |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
IONOS
- Intro prices last the first year of a 1-year term: Plus goes from $1 to $14 a month and Essential from $4 to $8.
- Mailboxes are few: Essential includes 1 and Ultimate 5, each with 2 GB of storage.
- Automatic malware removal and unlimited SSL certificates need Ultimate on web hosting, or Boost ($17 a month after a first year at $12) on WordPress.
- IONOS also offers hosting with no minimum term, billed monthly with one month's notice, but the plan tables do not show its price.
Strato
- Each package includes only one domain; more domains are optional extras.
- Prices exclude VAT, and the page says both a 6-month contract period and a 12-month minimum term.
- Strato runs separate country sites (Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, France, UK); the .com site only redirects visitors.
- DynDNS is not available on the Basic Web package.
Key features
IONOS
- Unlimited websites and NVMe storage
- Web hosting plans host any number of sites with unlimited traffic, on 100 GB to 500 GB of NVMe storage with more CPU priority on each tier.
- Domain, wildcard SSL and email
- Every plan includes a domain free for the first year, a wildcard DV certificate and 2 GB email accounts, from 1 on Essential to 5 on Ultimate.
- Backups and malware scanning
- Plans run daily backups, malware scanning and DDoS protection on geo-redundant servers. Ultimate adds advanced scanning with automatic removal.
- Developer access
- SSH, SFTP, WP-CLI, git version control, cron jobs and a choice of PHP 8.2 to 8.4 are included, with one-click installs for WordPress, Joomla and Drupal.
- AI tools for WordPress
- Every WordPress plan includes an AI Website Builder, and Grow and Boost add an AI assistant that writes text, images, pages and blog posts.
- Personal consultant
- Customers get a personal consultant to guide them, alongside 24/7 support by phone, chat and email.
Strato
- Domain and mailboxes included
- Each package includes one domain and mailboxes with webmail, spam filtering and virus protection.
- One-click CMS installs
- WordPress, Joomla, Typo3 and Drupal can be installed from the customer login, with git, Ruby, Python and Matomo also listed.
- Backups and malware scanning
- Backup Control makes website backups several times a day, and SiteGuard and a SiteLock scan check for malware.
- No traffic limit
- All four packages list unlimited traffic, SSD storage, SSL certificates and DDoS protection.
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- The UK site promises a refund for almost all products within the first 30 days, requested from the logged-in account.
Plans
IONOS
Essential$8
per month at renewal, after a first year at $4 a month
Web hosting with unlimited websites, 100 GB NVMe and 1 mailbox. $4 a month for the first year of a 1-year term, shown against a crossed-out $10.
Starter$10
per month at renewal, after a first year at $6 a month
200 GB NVMe, 3x server resources, 2 mailboxes and a CDN. $6 a month for the first year, against a crossed-out $12.
Plus$14
per month at renewal, after a first year at $1 a month
350 GB NVMe, 5x server resources and 4 mailboxes. $1 a month for the first year, against a crossed-out $16.
Ultimate$18
per month at renewal, after a first year at $10 a month
500 GB NVMe, 10x resources, 5 mailboxes, unlimited wildcard SSL and automatic malware removal. $10 a month for the first year.
WordPress Start$8
per month at renewal, after a first year at $5 a month
One managed WordPress site, 25 GB, automatic backups and the AI Website Builder. $5 a month for the first year, against a crossed-out $9.
WordPress Grow$12
per month at renewal, after a first year at $1 a month
50 GB, 5 mailboxes, a year of Jetpack Vault and the AI Assistant for text, images and posts. $1 a month for the first year.
Strato
Basic Web£4.00
per month, ex. VAT
1 domain, 1 mailbox, 50 GB web space and 2 SSD databases.
Power Web£6.00
per month, ex. VAT
100 GB web space, 2 mailboxes, 25 SSD databases and Python and Ruby support.
Advanced Web£10.00
per month, ex. VAT
150 GB web space, 2 mailboxes, 50 SSD databases and 50 SFTP accounts.
Enterprise Web£15.00
per month, ex. VAT
200 GB web space, 5 mailboxes, 75 SSD databases and 80 SFTP accounts.
Ways to pay less
IONOS
- Other savings
First year of web hosting Plus at $1 a month
On a 1-year term the first year costs $1 a month for Plus, $4 for Essential, $6 for Starter and $10 for Ultimate, before $14, $8, $10 and $18 a month.
- Other savings
First year of WordPress Grow at $1 a month
On a 1-year term the first year costs $1 a month for Grow, $5 for Start and $12 for Boost, before $12, $8 and $17 a month.
Strato
No public discounts listed.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, IONOS or Strato?
As of Nov 13, 2026, IONOS is cheaper to start with: $4 a month, against about $5.36 a month for Strato. IONOS starts at $8 per month at renewal (Essential), after a first year at $4 a month, and Strato starts at £4 per month, ex. VAT (Basic Web).
Which has a free plan, IONOS or Strato?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither IONOS nor Strato 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.