After 3 years of testing, let’s compare Namecheap vs HostGator and find out how they’ve performed so far…
Namecheap vs HostGator – Testing Method
- Prior to testing, I have setup identical content on all 8 Live Test Sites
- Each week over 80,000 speed & uptime tests are run using independent tools, GTmetrix & Pingdom
- Test results below are from 04 Apr 2016 to 22 Dec 2018
Test #1: Speed
The GTmetrix Speed Test checks how long it takes for a website to fully load using a desktop internet browser. This test is then repeated every hour throughout the week (1,340 times).
- From the time they were added in Jan 2017, Namecheap’s speed has consistently been in the bottom half of our hosts.
- HostGator’s speed has typically been around the mid pack of our hosts across 2016 to 2018. Their best performance was in H1 2017 where they were 3rd fastest, but H1 & H2 2018 has seen a dropoff to 7th fastest.
- HostGator is currently sitting in 6th place, with Namecheap in 8th in our Speed Rankings.
H2 2018 Results
H1 2018 Results
H2 2017 Results
Test #2: Uptime
The Pingdom Uptime Test confirms that the website is actually accessible to visitors. This test is then repeated every minute throughout the week (80,640 times).
- While Namecheap tend to experience downtime each week, the duration was usually short in 2017. This resulted in a 4th place ranking at the end of 2017. Unfortunately, the results have dropped away in H1 & H2 2018, with Namecheap recording 614 minutes of downtime.
- HostGator’s uptime has been let down by 1 horrendous week (Week 43), where they recorded 425 minutes of downtime. Across 2018, they avoided any one off poor weeks, and a result have been the 5th best performer.
- HostGator is currently ranked 5th, while Namecheap is 7th in our Uptime Rankings.
View the Weekly Uptime Tests
Namecheap vs HostGator – Overall Test Results
The Overall Ranking accumulates the results from the speed & uptime tests to determine the #1 Host.
- The early signs for Namecheap indicated they were below average when it came to speed and above average with uptime. But 2018 has not been kind to Namecheap, with the the below average speed continuing, and the uptime results falling into the bottom 2 active hosts.
- While HostGator’s speed has shown promise at times, it has fallen into the bottom 2 hosts in 2018. When this is combined with the disastrous week of uptime, where they experienced a ridiculous 425 minutes of outages, HostGator has struggled to compete with the best hosts.
- HostGator is currently 6th and Namecheap is in 8th in our Overall Rankings.
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