What is the best cheap web hosting?
The short answer
Namecheap gives the most for the least. Under $2 a month on promo and, rarer still, a renewal that stays cheap at around $4.50. Hostinger is the budget benchmark with the best panel, and IONOS has the lowest entry at $1 a month for the first year.
In detail
Comparing cheap hosting means comparing renewal rates, because the promo prices all look alike. Through that lens, Namecheap wins. The Stellar plan starts under $2 and renews around $5.88, still among the cheapest in the entire market. No calendar reminder needed for the renewal date.
Hostinger remains the international benchmark, at about $3 a month prepaid, with a hundred sites on one plan and the friendliest control panel in the budget class. The $11 renewal is the catch, so mark it in your calendar and decide again when it comes. IONOS plays the same first-year game harder than anyone at $1 a month, with a fair $8 renewal and a personal assistant included.
The budget names to be wary of are the loudest ones. Bluehost and GoDaddy combine deep promos with renewals at double the price or more and checkout flows full of upsells. Cheap that becomes expensive is not cheap.