OVHcloud vs HostGator: Popular Doesn’t Mean Better [2024]

OVHcloud might seem like a good hosting solution, but its overly complicated website makes it difficult to find the plan you’re looking for. HostGator’s website is easy to navigate.

Either way, when I researched and tested OVHcloud and HostGator, I found that both hosts provide useful features and decent performance, and a range of different hosting types.

Still, while both these hosts are okay, if I had to choose a new web host right now, I’d probably go with InterServer. It provides excellent performance (especially for US audiences), and you really can’t beat the price-lock guarantee.

Click here to see InterServer’s latest deals, or read on to see if HostGator or OVHcloud could be the right choice for you.

1. Plans and Pricing

OVHcloud Has a Wide Range of Plans, but HostGator Offers Better Value

Although generally more expensive than its competitor, OVHcloud offers a larger variety of advanced cloud and VPS (virtual private server) hosting plans than HostGator.

OVHcloud and HostGator each offer three feature-loaded shared hosting plans for almost the same price. Their basic plans both offer 100 GB storage and unmetered bandwidth, but OVHcloud gives you five websites while HostGator only gives you one.

OVH’s cloud hosting is divided into two categories – Isolated Cloud and Performance Cloud with three and four plans, respectively. HostGator, however, provides three cloud hosting plans with slightly fewer resource allocations than OVHcloud, but at a cheaper rate.

Similarly, OVHcloud offers a wide range of VPS options, from inexpensive value plans with 40 GB SSD storage to elite plans with up to 640 GB SSD storage. HostGator offers three VPS packages, with 80 GB to 100 GB HDD storage. Surprisingly, not only does OVHcloud VPS include higher resources than HostGator VPS, it also comes at a lower monthly cost.

HostGator offers a generous 45-day money-back guarantee (excluding dedicated servers), whereas you can get partial refunds with OVHcloud. Just keep in mind that canceling your account with OVHcloud might prove to be a challenge.

Both hosts offer a free domain for the first year.

Overall, HostGator wins the plans and pricing category since it offers better value for your money.

2. Features

OVHcloud Is Geared Toward Businesses, HostGator Is for Everyone

Even though OVHcloud gives you more package options, HostGator offers more hosting solutions, including WordPress and Application hosting. These two vendors have a lot of features in common, but HostGator outshines OVHcloud by offering unlimited storage, a free website builder, free website transfer, and access to more CMS applications for free.

As for VPS, OVHcloud gets the upper hand by providing different options like SSD-powered VPS and up to 32 GB RAM with some plans, making it more popular with high-end professionals and niche businesses.

To give you a clearer idea about the difference between OVHcloud’s and HostGator’s features, take a look at this side-by-side comparison table:

HostGator takes this round because of its higher storage capacity, ease of use, and overall cost-effective features.

3. Performance

HostGator’s Impressive Performance Surpasses OVHcloud’s Advanced Technology

HostGator only offers SSD storage with its dedicated server plans, whereas OVHcloud gives you SSD-powered plans with its cloud hosting, VPS, and dedicated servers.

SSD storage performs much faster than the regular HDD storage, which, in return, boosts your website’s overall performance. OVHcloud also offers a CDN – although optional with some plans – but HostGator makes you pay extra for it.

In addition, OVHcloud has 27 data centers worldwide, far more than HostGator (with only two data centers, both in the US), which should reflect directly on the accessibility speed of the websites hosted with it from anywhere in the world.

4. Security

OVHcloud Offers More Security Features Than HostGator

Both OVHcloud and HostGator offer a free Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate, anti-spam, and anti-virus. However, OVHcloud jumps ahead by offering free protection against DDoS (distributed denial of service) attacks.

While HostGator charges you extra to add SiteLock Premium, OVHcloud includes DNSSEC, which protects your DNS (Domain Name System) from hackers and makes sure your users will access the correct website. Plus, OVHcloud offers automatic daily backups (up to 30 days), whereas HostGator provides weekly backups.

The winner? OVHcloud. It clearly places your website’s security above everything else.

‌See OVHcloud’s Latest Deals

5. Support

Getting Help from Either Host Is a Challenge

Both OVHcloud and HostGator have highly informative and resourceful websites. OVHcloud has a comprehensive knowledge base with articles and tutorials covering most major topics. HostGator has an extensive knowledge base, but links to video tutorials lead to 404 errors.

HostGator offers 24/7 support via live chat and phone. Its response time is rather slow, and you can expect to wait up to 10 minutes for an answer. However, its agents were knowledgeable and polite.

The support team at OVHcloud operates exclusively during business hours (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. UK time). New customers have the option to contact them solely through phone or email, while established customers additionally have the avenue of reaching out via a support ticket. I personally encountered a less-than-satisfactory experience with them, as it took them three days to provide a response to a question submitted through a support ticket.

HostGator wins this round just for being far quicker to answer questions.

Why OVHcloud Loses Out to HostGator

Despite its variety of robust features, bigger server network, and advanced security options, I wouldn’t recommend OVHcloud to beginners or the average user, especially those on a tight budget. Nevertheless, it’s still a solid option for advanced webmasters, enterprises, and security-concerned users.

HostGator wins this battle by a hair. It offers similar features to OVHcloud, but it’s more user-friendly, reasonably priced, and comes with more free stuff.

However, if you want to get the best value for your money, I’d suggest you check out InterServer’s latest deals before you make your final decision.

If you’re still not sure which web host is the right choice for you, see who made it to our list of the best web hosting services.

Comparison Table

FAQ Section

Does HostGator use cPanel?

Yes. HostGator includes the latest version of cPanel with all its shared hosting plans for free.

Does OVHcloud offer fast loading speeds?

Even though OVHcloud offers slower speeds than HostGator and is definitely not the fastest host in the market, it does offer pretty decent loading speeds, especially in Western Europe. You’ll also notice that speeds are slower in the US and Asia. See how we carry out a proper server performance test.

Does HostGator offer a free domain?

Yes. HostGator offers a free domain name for the first year when you subscribe annually, biennially, or triennially to any of its shared, cloud, or WordPress hosting plans.

Not sure which name to choose for your site? Check out our ultimate guide to choosing a domain name.

Is OVHcloud good for shared hosting?

OVHcloud isn’t bad for shared hosting, but it isn’t available everywhere, doesn’t offer many plan options, and it’s slightly overpriced. Instead, I recommend any of these web hosting services for shared hosting.