Hands-on hosting and website-builder testing with up-front disclosures, but by its own admission listicle rankings can factor in "commercial agreements with providers."
What it's really for An affiliate-funded review site testing hosting and web tools.
What our grade covers The grade on this page is about its hands-on hosting and website-builder rankings, not everything the site does.
Medium Scoring Confidence Mostly sourced, but a detail or two still needs a primary source, so the grade could shift slightly.
Vendors it ranks pay indirectly through affiliate commissions on purchases made via its links, and the site discloses that its commercial agreements with providers can factor into listicle rankings, though it says it "never accept[s] payment to review a product or service."
Source →- Operating since
- 2013 (13 years) · source
- What it costs you
- Free to read The reviews are free to read.
- How they make money
- An affiliate-commission-funded review site that tests and ranks web hosting, website builders, and related web services.
- What they do
- It publishes hands-on reviews and ranked "best of" lists of hosting providers, website builders, and web tools, supported by tests like launching real sites to measure speed and uptime.
- What to watch for
- The catch, by its own disclosure, is that listicle rankings "may take into account reader feedback and our commercial agreements with providers," and it states it does not review every provider.
- Composite score
- 3.30 / 5.00 → grade B
How the grade was reached
Does the site take money from the very entities it ranks? Pay-for-placement, vendor-funded data, and affiliate commissions all pull this down. The less the ranking can be bought, the higher the score.
What is the ranking actually built on? Hands-on testing scores highest, then verified first-hand reviews, then opinion or popularity surveys and self-reported figures, then pay-to-rank, which scores lowest.
Is the methodology published, specific, and reproducible? Can a reader see how a given rank was reached, or is it a black box?
Are commercial relationships, sponsorships, and affiliate arrangements disclosed clearly and near the rankings themselves, rather than buried?
How hard is it to game? Controls against fake reviews, solicited reviews, and vendor gaming raise this; an open box anyone can stuff lowers it.
Evidence
- Website Planet states it was "launched in 2013 by two passionate web developers" and that to keep content free it covers expenses through affiliate commissions, noting "on listicle pages, our rankings may take into account reader feedback and our commercial agreements with providers" while it "never accept[s] payment to review a product or service." Source: Website Planet — About Us →
- On its ownership and funding page the site discloses: "To keep our content free for readers, we cover our expenses through affiliate commissions... This arrangement allows us to maintain our independence although on listicle pages, our rankings may take into account reader feedback and our commercial agreements with providers," and "We do not review all providers of the relevant services." Source: Website Planet — Ownership and Funding →
- The web hosting rankings page carries a disclosure at the top: "We rank vendors based on rigorous testing and research, but also take into account your feedback and our commercial agreements with providers. This page contains affiliate links," alongside an Advertising Disclosure link, and describes testing real hosted sites for speed and uptime. Source: Website Planet — Best Web Hosting Services 2026 →