Best Website Hosting Cities and Countries

Website Hosting Cities and Countries Analysis

There are so many web hosting companies out there. How do you make a decision?

You could start by asking the question: “where are the most websites hosted?” You might assume that because so many rely on web hosts in  a particular city, that city might be home to the best website hosting companies. But, is that really the case?

Pingdom has conducted research to this end, and the company has released a list of top website hosting countries and cities in the field of website hosting. Let's look at the results, and see if polling results should impact your website hosting decision.

US Reigns Supreme in Website Hosting Cities

• The United States hosts roughly 42 percent of the top million sites. The U.S. is followed by Germany, China, the UK, Russia, Singapore, and Sweden.
• Of these top million sites, there are a total of 7,936 cities that host them.
• Of that list of cities, the top three cities make up 10 percent of the top million sites.

Top Ten Website Hosting Cities

1.  Houston, TX, hosting 50,598 sites
2.  Mountain View, CA, hosting 29,594 sites
3.  Dallas, TX, hosting 24,822 sites
4.  Scottsdale, AZ, hosting 23,210 sites
5.  San Antonio, TX, hosting 21,808 sites
6.  Provo, UT, hosting 20,691 sites
7.  Ashburn, VA, hosting 14,871 sites
8.  San Francisco, CA, hosting 13,214 sites
9.  Chicago, IL, hosting 13,125 sites
10.  Beijing, China hosting 11,273 sites

So it becomes quite clear the U.S. dominates the world of web hosting just by looking at the list of top ten website hosting cities.

Where Other Countries Rank

If you break down the data by country, just as expected, the U.S. takes the number one spot with 431,214 total websites hosted. Germany comes in at number two with 82,152, and China number three with 49,730. Following the top three are the UK (hosting 37,829 sties), France (hosting 35,777 sites), Japan (hosting 35,138 sites), and Russia (hosting 31,134 sites.)

If you look at areas overall rather than by country, how do they stack up to the states? The U.S .still takes the number one spot in website hosting cities, with Europe coming in second (314,317 hosted sites), and Asia third (114,571 sites hosted).

What Does The Data Mean For My Website?

If you are planning to host a website, your first instinct might be to sign on with a well-known company in the areas indicated in the study. However, you might want to rethink that move.

The websites in the top million are the big dogs of the Internet. YouTube, Facebook, numerous iterations of Google for various countries, PayPal, and Blogger are among the top 50. A large number of these websites have their own servers anyway. Think about the server space these sites require, and ask yourself: “Is that what my website needs?” More often than not, the answer to that question is a definitive “No!” Of course, if the site you need hosting transfers large volumes of data on a daily basis, it may suit you just fine. Otherwise, it may be a good idea to look elsewhere.

Look At Your Needs

As I laid it out in a recent article, you should not base your decision on popularity, notoriety, or size. You need to focus on the unique needs of your business to assure that you receive the best possible experience with your web hosting company.

You might be surprised to find that a smaller, local company is the best option over a big name. You'll find a higher level of support and customization that way, making it the best hosting company for your business. Besides, if you go with a local company over one of the big names in Houston, you could be contributing to your region one day being included on this list of top website hosting cities!