FastComet Review 2020: Customers Love It But Will A Lack Of Uptime Guarantee Put You Off?
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Our Verdict: Outstanding Choice for a Lifelong Free Domain
FastComet hosting plans offer excellent value. All packages come with a free domain for life and 45-day money-back guarantee.
You can currently get a FastComet package for as little as $2.95 monthly when you click on any of the discount links on this page.
Pros:
- Unlike many hosting providers, FastComet doesn’t charge higher renewal rates
- 24/7 premium customer support through ticket or live chat
- Cloud VPS hosting boasts lightning-fast provisioning
Cons:
- Setup fees apply in some cases
- Website builder has limited theme selection
Don’t just take our word for it. FastComet scored 4.5 out of 5 stars overall based on more than 35 reviews. Customers have praised the tech support and response time.
Is FastComet Perfect for Your Website?
Looking for specific information? Go right to one of our most popular sections:
- Expert review – read our thorough analysis by hosting specialist, David Delony
- Customer reviews – see what actual FastComet customers have to say
- Hosting plans – compare FastComet hosting plans and prices
- FAQs – find answers to the most common questions about FastComet
FastComet Web Hosting
FastComet is a relatively new hosting company, but it already serves customers in over 80 countries. It offers attractive, feature-rich hosting plans that come with cPanel access and 1-click WordPress installation, but its bizarre technical support policy may put off potential customers.
What is FastComet Hosting?
FastComet is a web hosting company based in San Francisco, California. The company has been in operation since the late 2000s and moved into public cloud hosting in late 2013.
It now serves more than 40,000 customers in 80 countries worldwide, as at April 2019.
When FastComet launched its public cloud service, it switched its focus slightly. By doing so, they placed emphasis on packaged solutions rather than simply hosting services.
It now primarily focuses its business on SSD cloud hosting solutions.
FastComet Hosting Plans
FastComet offers 3 main types of hosting: shared, cloud VPS, and dedicated.
FastComet Shared Hosting
FastComet’s shared hosting is provided from a choice of datacenters and is marketed in less technical language that will appeal to new hosting users.
It offers a basic plan for a single website or more advanced plans for multiple sites and domains.
The three shared hosting plans are StartSmart, ScaleRight, and SpeedUp.
All plans benefit from unlimited bandwidth and SSD storage, and all servers run CloudLinux with FFmpeg support. Free SSL certificates are also provided through Let’s Encrypt.
Shared Hosting Features
There are a handful of features that make FastComet’s shared hosting stand out from almost any other host:
- Free Domain for Life
- Guaranteed Resources
- Renewal Price Same as Registration
- Free Cloudflare CDN
- Choice of the Datacenter
- SSD Disk Space
- Open-Source Hosting
- FastComet Site Builder
It is rare to find even one of these features offered on shared hosting, let alone all of them.
Free Domain Name Registration for Life
Some hosts offer free domain name registration for one year when you sign up, and then you have to pay an annual registration fee.
FastComet provides that free domain for life as long as you are hosting with them.
Guaranteed Resources
There’s always a risk with shared hosting that other sites on the shared server will slow down yours (or take you down altogether).
FastComet guarantees a certain amount of resources so that your site won’t suffer as much if your server becomes congested.
Renewal Price Same as Registration
Many hosts offer a cheap price on their website to entice you to sign up. Then, once that initial sign up term is done, they start charging you their “regular” rates.
FastComet charges you the same price that you signed up for.
Free Cloudflare CDN
You get access to Cloudflare’s 100 + datacenter locations around the world. Your site files will be replicated on multiple servers so visitors anywhere can access your site without their location potentially slowing them down.
Choice of the Datacenter
You get to choose from FastComet’s 8 datacenters that span 3 continents. This is a significant advantage; in many cases, you have little to no control over datacenter choices.
SSD Disk Space
All hosting plans on FastComet utilize SSDs, which are 300% faster than standard HDDs at read-write operations. In plain English, your site runs faster.
Open Source Hosting
Under open-source hosting on FastComet’s website, there are 4 hosting plans listed:
- WordPress
- Joomla
- OpenCart
- SocialEngine
While confusing at first, these are just the shared hosting plans renamed for each piece of open source software.
They feature a 1-click install, but that’s provided on standard shared hosting plans through Softaculous anyway. When you look for more detail on each individual plan page, they all link back to their shared hosting comparison page.
FastComet Site Builder
If the site you’re trying to build only has a few pages, a site builder might be a better choice than a full-blown CMS, especially if you’re new to web development.
FastComet offers their own site builder, hosted upon their shared hosting services. It’s the same price as the shared hosting by itself. It’s simpler to get a site running – you start by picking a theme.
There are lots of drag-and-drop builders and themes to choose from, some are great, and some are a little dated.
It’s not the best selection of themes that I’ve seen a site builder offer, but it’s far from the worst. Then, use the drag-and-drop builder to change text and images, and add any elements you’d like.
If you know exactly what you want, you can have your site running within 30 minutes.
FastComet Reviews by Our Community
Overall Rating from 37 Reviews by FastComet Customers
| Support | |
|---|---|
| Quality | |
| Features | |
| Value |
Most Helpful Reviews
Chirag Aggarwal bloggingjerks.com
May 01, 2016
Aayush Nair youngerwilderfree.com
Jan 31, 2018
I’ve been developing websites since 2010. Initially, I was using Hostinger. There were a ton of complications with them.
A lot of limitations. I left using it in 2014. Since then I was searching for the best.
I used a couple of hosts later. Support of some was good, Speed of some was good and Features of some were good but there were no overall hosts and also they weren’t cheap at all. A friend of mine recommended me to use FastComet.
I’m using it from 2016 and no complaints so far. There were minor issues but solved immediately. Kudos!
to their support. They have budget-friendly hosting options. Setup is easy and time-saving.
The best thing, they provide a 14-day trial! The only not so bad thing I have seen is uptime. Their servers sometimes have downtime for almost 5 seconds not more than it.
If you’re searching for a pocket-friendly host with all best features, you can go with FastComet! Hope this review helps.
Steve Mailleux spike.be
Jan 29, 2018
Each time a support is requested, each time the tech is able to resolve it fast and with a clear explanation. Such a support is very rare, among the experiences I had in the past. Really, give at least a try with this hoster and his unvaluable services. Thanks to Nickola, Jack, Irina, Kalin, Vlad and the the support team !
Fully Managed SSD Cloud VPS Hosting
FastComet’s cloud VPS plans are more expensive but offer an upgrade in performance. Any business with a decent amount of traffic should be looking at these VPS plans.
With shared hosting, you share a server’s resources with other sites. Your resource allocation will be inconsistent because it depends on how much they use.
With a cloud VPS plan, you have your own specific space on a server (much more than on a shared plan), and no other sites affect the performance of yours.
Cloud VPS Hosting Features
FastComet offers four cloud VPS hosting plans. The allocation of RAM, SSD Space, and the number of CPUs, increases as the plans get more expensive.
You get all the positive aspects of a shared plan, but there are also a few features you get access to with a cloud VPS plan:
- Completely managed – FastComet handles server maintenance, security, and performance.
- Scalable – You can upgrade or downgrade to a different cloud VPS plan at any time if you need more or fewer resources.
- Root access – Not many other managed hosting services provide complete control over your virtual server.
FastComet has a competitive edge here. Your VPS is ready minutes after ordering. It takes other hosts hours or even days to get a server provisioned when you order.
Dedicated Hosting
For even better performance, you can choose a dedicated hosting plan. These are the most expensive and highest performance on FastComet.
The feature set is very similar to the cloud VPS plans, just with more resources available. Dedicated servers are provided on a fully managed basis, with cPanel available on all plans, plus hybrid HDD and SSD storage.
Free Installation and Protection
Applications and modules are installed free of charge by the FastComet tech team on all hosting plans; applications can also be upgraded at no cost.
All servers are provisioned with a free web and CSF firewall that helps to mitigate the risks associated with DDoS attacks and other malicious hacking attempts.
Looking for a great hosting deal?
Use our special discount link to get the best pricing on FastComet plans. Includes 24/7 U.S.-based support plus a 45-day money-back guarantee.
FastComet Datacenters
FastComet offers to host from 7 datacenters in 3 continents. It provides details about its datacenters on its website, splitting them by location, although it doesn’t offer any clues as to the names of the facilities it has chosen.
FastComet does not own its own datacenters and uses Linode servers.
In the US, FastComet has servers in Chicago, IL, and Dallas, TX, which gives FastComet a presence in the north and center of the country.
Server Locations Across the World
In Europe, FastComet utilizes datacenters in London (UK), Amsterdam (Netherlands) and Frankfurt (Germany). And in Asia, FastComet hosts from both Singapore and Tokyo (Japan).
All datacenters have 24/7 security, redundant power supplies, fire suppression, and cooling, with green cooling in some locations.
If you’d like to test download speeds, FastComet provides test files and IP addresses for each of its datacenters.
Control Panel
FastComet only provides familiar control panels and applications, making it an easy switch if you’re coming from a different host.
cPanel
On all plans, the latest version of cPanel is the control panel provided. Having a well-known control panel has its benefits.
| cPanel | Custom Control Panel | |
| Ease-of-Use | Intuitive and familiar | Could be patchy and poorly built |
| Script Installation | Compatibility is guaranteed for hundreds of one-click installs | Potential danger of having to manually install add-ons |
| Webmail | Guaranteed compatibility for a handful of webmail clients | You may not have access to your desired client |
| Security | Familiar form of backups and security measures | Danger of unfamiliar procedures leaving you vulnerable |
It comes with Softaculous, the most popular script installer for cPanel, that lets you install hundreds of open source applications with a few clicks (WordPress, Joomla, PrestaShop, etc.).
If you order a dedicated server or cloud hosting plan, you manage your server through WHM.
WHM Features
All plans come with free migration.
It’s made by the same company that makes cPanel, so the interface has a similar style and it’s intuitive to use.
WHM lets you manage important aspects of your journey as a webmaster. Here are a few examples:
- Create cPanel user accounts
- Transfer cPanel accounts for new customers
- Customize and brand your dashboard
- Server configuration
- SSL
- Offer multi-factor authentification to your customers
- IP addresses
- Alerts and notifications
- Host access control
Customer Support and Service
FastComet provides fully managed hosting with 24/7 support, which is always free with any plan. Historically, FastComet support claims to have resolved more than 93% of inquiries within 10 minutes.
Users generally log in to their control panel to create a ticket, but support is also available via live chat and email.
We tested FastComet’s live chat and the customer service rep responded quickly with a detailed answer.
You can contact the sales team toll-free if you’re in the U.S, but won’t be able to get technical support via phone.
FastComet Support Features
FastComet calls their support “premium support” because they generally go above and beyond what other low-cost hosts offer. This includes:
- 24/7 monitoring – They use a proactive monitoring approach to detect problems and solve them before they even become issues to you and your visitors.
- Added security – All plans come with a free firewall that’s specifically configured to any CMS that you’re using to prevent common exploits.
- Full support for all hosting aspects – Even though they only provide the servers, FastComet’s support team will try to help you fix any issues with open source software or other services like email.
Technical Support Policy
FastComet has a few clauses in its technical support policy you want to consider before signing up.
The hosting company “may refuse” technical support for a “technical issue requiring excessive amount of time”. Your request might also be denied if you’ve submitted an “excessive” number of requests during the past billing cycle.
Now most – probably all – hosting providers have terms of service that define the scope of free technical support. But, you don’t usually see a clause around resolution time or the volume of support requests.
Knowledgebase
FastComet doesn’t have a traditional knowledgebase that provides support documentation to guide you through problems.
They expect you to utilize the 24/7 free support instead. This is fine for most users, but you may have a different opinion. Instead of a traditional knowledge base, FastComet has created a series of tutorials to teach customers how to use a particular aspect of hosting.
These are all extremely well written, and they have tutorials for just about every aspect of hosting.
It may not be the quickest solution if you’re trying to solve a specific problem, but if you’re willing to learn about the software that you’re using, it’s a great resource. You will be better off in the long-term if you utilize these tutorials.
Backups
On all shared hosting plans, FastComet includes one-click backup tools for fast, simple backup creation of hosting account data. Additionally, all of the restore operations are free.
On dedicated server plans, backups are taken daily and weekly. FastComet also offers free snapshot backups on request.
Uptime Guarantee
FastComet does not offer an uptime guarantee on its web hosting plans.
Should you be wary based on that? I don’t think so. I view uptime guarantees as a last resort.
Most hosts that have them make you monitor uptime and then go through a painful process to get reimbursed a small amount. In most cases, they’re for show, but don’t really mean much.
I think a host being transparent and including tons of extra performance and support features like FastComet does means a lot more than an uptime guarantee.
Billing and Payment
FastComet customers can pay for their plans via credit card or PayPal. It accepts Amex, Discover, Visa, and MasterCard.
Customers are not tied into a contract, and all plans are provided with a 45-day money-back guarantee.
This is a decent money-back guarantee. HostGator is another hosting company that comes with a 45-day money-back guarantee. But many hosts, like GoDaddy, offer a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Setup Fee
When you sign up for any plan, you get to choose your billing cycle. You can choose to pay every month, year, 2 years, or 3 years.
If you pay monthly, you have to pay a $19.95 setup fee. The fee is waived for the longer payment terms.
This is obviously a big deal if you’re signing up for a cheap shared plan.
Liking This Host So Far?
Here are a few options which share similarities with FastComet. Check them out!
LiquidWeb
If you’re concerned about not having an uptime guarantee, LiquidWeb offers a 100% power uptime guarantee. Their services are pricey, as they only focus on high-performance hosting (no shared hosting plans).
They offer 24/7 support, managed plans, and the latest server technology. You can learn more in our Liquid Web review.
SiteGround
A great overall host that offers all types of web hosting. Their shared hosting also has a free CDN, SSD disk space, and free SSL. They offer 24/7 support and have one of the best traditional knowledgebases I’ve seen. Plus, their support policy doesn’t have any clauses on the volume of support requests you can submit.
They have no setup price, although they have a higher “regular” price after your initial term is over. Here’s our SiteGround review if you’d like more detail.
Kinsta
If all you’re looking for is high performance and simplicity for a WordPress site, Kinsta is a great alternative.
They only offer simple managed WordPress hosting that is hosted on servers that are customized for optimal WordPress performance. Here’s our full Kinsta review.
Overview of FastComet
It’s easy to be overwhelmed when you visit FastComet’s site for the first time because they provide a lot of information about their plans.
But some things are more important than others, so I’ll try my best to distill all that information into the most significant pros and cons of what FastComet has to offer.
Pros
I could make a huge list of pros for FastComet, but a few really stand out compared to other similar hosts:
- Free Cloud CDN and SSD on all plans – Only a few other web hosts offer these modern hosting features on shared hosting plans.
- Free domain for life – This is a unique offer I haven’t seen elsewhere. Almost all hosts who offer a free domain only do it for the first year, and then charge a significant renewal fee.
- Massive tutorial base – If you want to learn about web hosting, FastComet has the best collection of high-quality tutorials I’ve come across.
- 24/7 premium support – Whether or not you actively need support help, FastComet’s support team is monitoring your site for issues and fixing any they can. They are available 24/7 through ticket and live chat support, with quick responses.
- No hidden fees on renewal – I love how transparent FastComet is. When you sign up for a plan at a specific price, that’s what you pay when you renew. Some other hosts jack up the price during renewal.
Cons
I don’t have any huge deal-breakers to complain about when it comes to FastComet, but there are a few cons that may lead you to opt for a different host instead.
- No traditional knowledgebase – While tutorials are great for learning in general, they don’t usually provide instant help if you have a specific problem.
- No uptime guarantee – While I don’t think you should expect to run into significant issues if uptime is crucial for you, there are other hosts that offer close to 100% uptime guarantees.
- Setup fee if paying monthly – If you choose a monthly billing cycle, there’s a $19.95 setup fee, even on cheap shared plans.
Interested in FastComet?
Use this special discount link to get the best pricing on FastComet plans. Includes 24/7 U.S.-based support plus a 45-day money-back guarantee.
FastComet Review Summary
With its cloud hosting services, FastComet takes aim at some of the most established hosts in the industry and markets its plans quite aggressively against them.
There are a lot of reasons to investigate further: multiple datacenters, full management, and support promises are all compelling.
With a broad geographical spread, a diverse cloud hosting catalog, and a clear focus on future growth, FastComet will be an attractive option for customers at all levels of business.
While we’ve covered all the features you’d need in a hosting company, and how FastComet stacks up, you may want to try the hosting service for yourself. Visit FastComet to test its offering – you have 45 days to decide if it’s a good fit.
Additional material by Claire Broadley.
Most Popular FastComet Hosting Plans
| Single Website | VPS Cloud 1 | |
|---|---|---|
| Disk Space | 35GB | 24GB |
| Bandwidth | Unlimited | 2TB |
| Price | $2.95 / mo (Billed as $2.95 Per Month) ⓘPrices in are approximate, based on current exchange rates. The host will likely charge you in USD, or at a different exchange rate. Usual price: – Get % off! | $49.95 / mo (Billed as $2.95 Per Month) ⓘPrices in are approximate, based on current exchange rates. The host will likely charge you in USD, or at a different exchange rate. Usual price: – Get % off! |
| Visit FastComet Now | Visit FastComet Now |
FastComet Frequently Asked Questions
- What features come with FastComet hosting?
If you sign up to a shared hosting plan, FastComet promises a “free domain forever.” It also takes care of the domain renewals.
You also get free access to CloudFlare, a content delivery network (CDN) that could help to speed up your website.
- How do I reach the FastComet support team?
FastComet offers live chat, email and ticket support, but there’s no telephone support.
- Can I use WordPress with FastComet?
Yes, you can choose a managed WordPress plan, or install WordPress by yourself.
On a managed WordPress hosting plan,FastComet will take charge of all of the technical stuff. All you need to do is select your template, create your content, and upload your media.
You can also install WordPress on its shared hosting plans, and then maintain WordPress yourself. Despite being slightly more technical, this route is slightly cheaper. However, maintaining WordPress can be more time-consuming, particularly if you don’t have any experience.
- What payment methods does FastComet accept?
FastComet accepts Amex, Visa, Mastercard and Discover, as well as PayPal. It only offers monthly payment plans, so when signing up, it’s best to choose a payment method that you plan to stick with permanently.
- Where are FastComet’s datacenters?
FastComet uses 7 different datacenters around the world, giving it very good coverage and an excellent choice for customers. Its locations are Chicago, Dallas, London, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Singapore and Tokyo.
- What is cloud hosting?
Cloud hosting simply means that your data is replicated in more than one location.
If one datacenter goes offline, your website should still be available, because the other datacenters would automatically step in and serve your site.
FastComet offers cloud hosting with all VPS plans, in addition to SSD storage.
- Will FastComet back up my data?
Backup services aren’t included automatically on shared hosting or VPS hosting plans, so you’ll need to make your own arrangements.
It provides easy one-click backup tools, but you obviously need to remember to log in and click. Set a reminder in your calendar every day, or – preferably – set up an automated backup solution.
Customers with dedicated servers benefit from automatic backups.
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Hosting with FastComet for a lot of time, I have some general idea of how they work. FastComet
Pros:
1. Offer Awesome Support which is usually answered within 10 minutes
2.
Fast Speed
3. Help regarding website problem such as improving speed, installing plugins, site checkup etc.
4. Value for Money
5.
Many Freebies
Cons:
1. A bit on Downtime faced at Beginning but now running very well
I would totally recommend fastcomet to someone who is starting a new blog or running a small business site.