Entry-level shared hosting renews at a median of 165% above its intro price in our index (prices checked October 2026). That means a $3 plan typically renews near $8.
The biggest jump belongs to SiteGround StartUp, at 502%. UltaHost Starter and AccuWeb Budget renew at their intro price, and OVHcloud Starter rises only 63%.
This index covers 20 shared and WordPress entry plans and 6 VPS plans.
Every row comes from the host’s official pricing or renewal page, checked September 25 to October 4, 2026.
Rows change only when a host changes its pricing. The index sits with the other web hosting buying basics for first-time customers.
Renewal price index: shared and WordPress entry plans
The table lists each host’s cheapest shared or WordPress plan, the term its intro price needs, and its renewal price.
Rows run from the largest jump to the smallest.
| Provider | Plan | Intro price | Required term | Renewal price | Renewal increase | 4-year total | Source (checked) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SiteGround | StartUp | $2.99/mo | 12 months | $17.99/mo (12-month term) | +502% | $611.52 | Rates (Sep 25) |
| HostArmada | Start Dock | $1.99/mo | 36 months | $9.95/mo | +400% | $191.04 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| FastComet | Starter | $1.99/mo | Not stated | $9.95/mo | +400% | Not computable | Pricing (Oct 4) |
| GreenGeeks | Lite | $2.95/mo | 12 months | $13.95/mo | +373% | $537.60 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| ScalaHosting | Mini | $2.95/mo | 36 months | $11.95/mo | +305% | $249.60 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| Hostinger | Premium | $2.99/mo | 48 months | $10.99/mo | +268% | $143.52 | Pricing (Oct 4) |
| InMotion | Core | $3.19/mo | Not stated | $10.99/mo | +245% | Not computable | Pricing (Oct 4) |
| HostPapa | Essentials | $2.95/mo | 36 months | $8.99/mo (3-year term) | +205% | $238.08 | Plans, renewals (Sep 27) |
| InterServer | Standard | $2.50/mo | Any term, 1 to 24 months | $7/mo | +180% | $228.00 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| Bluehost | Starter | $3.99/mo | 36 months | $9.99/mo (36-month term) | +150% | $287.52 | Renewal FAQ (Sep 25) |
| Namecheap | Stellar | $2.28/mo, billed yearly | 12 months | $55.88/yr ($4.66/mo) | +104% | $195.00 | Pricing (Oct 4) |
| GoDaddy | Economy | $5.99/mo | 36 months | $11.99/mo | +100% | $359.52 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| IONOS | Essential | $4/mo | 12 months | $8/mo | +100% | $336.00 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| Namecheap | EasyWP Starter | $3.24/mo, billed yearly | 12 months | $5.74/mo | +77% | $245.52 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| OVHcloud | Starter | $1.89/mo | 12 months | $3.09/mo | +63% | $133.92 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| DreamHost | DreamPress 1 | $14.99/mo | 12 months | $19.99/mo | +33% | $899.52 | Pricing (Sep 25) |
| UltaHost | Starter | $3.44/mo | 24 months | $3.44/mo for 2 years | 0% | $165.12 | Pricing (Sep 27) |
| AccuWeb | Budget | $1.99/mo | Not stated | $1.99/mo | 0% | $95.52 | Pricing (Oct 4) |
| HostGator | Hatchling | Shown only as a “% off” discount | 36 months | $10.99/mo (3-year term) | Not computable | Not computable | Price chart (Oct 4) |
| WP Engine | Essential | $28/mo, first year only | 12 months, billed yearly | Not published | Not computable | Not computable | Plans (Oct 4) |
Hostinger’s 4-year total includes no renewal, because its 48-month intro term covers all four years. A fifth year at $10.99 a month brings it to $275.40.
AccuWeb’s total holds whatever term you pick, because its renewal equals its intro price. AccuWeb doesn’t state a required term for Budget.
Renewal price index: VPS entry plans
VPS renewals in our index rise 67% to 200%. Several VPS hosts discount only the first two or three months, not a long term.
| Provider | Plan | Intro price | Required term | Renewal price | Renewal increase | 4-year total | Source (checked) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IONOS | VPS+ S+ (2 GB) | $2/mo for 3 months | 12-month contract | $6/mo | +200% | $276.00 | VPS pricing (Oct 4) |
| HostArmada | Spark (1 GB, unmanaged) | $3.69/mo | 12 months | $8.20/mo | +122% | $339.48 | VPS pricing (Sep 25) |
| Liquid Web | Managed VPS (4 GB) | $36/mo for 2 months | Monthly | $72/mo | +100% | $3,384.00 | Managed VPS (Sep 25) |
| HostArmada | Web Shuttle (2 GB, managed) | $29.95 first month | Monthly | $59.90/mo | +100% | $2,845.25 | Managed VPS (Sep 25) |
| ScalaHosting | Build #1 (4 GB, managed) | $29.95/mo | 36 months | $54.95/mo | +83% | $1,737.60 | Managed VPS (Sep 25) |
| GoDaddy | VPS 1 vCPU, 2 GB | $8.99/mo | 36 months | $14.99/mo | +67% | $503.52 | VPS pricing (Oct 4) |
Hosts that list one price with no intro discount
These hosts publish one price per billing term, so there is no renewal jump to measure. We list them separately rather than score them as 0%.
- Rocket.net Starter ($300 yearly or $30 monthly): its pricing page promises no price increase on renewal.
- Kinsta Single 35k ($350 yearly or $35 monthly): its pricing page attaches no first-year-only condition.
- Pressable S1 ($250 yearly or $25 monthly): its pricing page lists one price, with no intro or renewal split.
- WPX Starter ($179.90 yearly or $17.99 monthly): its terms say promotional prices renew at the ordinary fee.
- DigitalOcean, Vultr, Linode, Hetzner, Cloudways: monthly cloud pricing with no intro term.
Flat pricing is common among managed WordPress hosts, whose managed WordPress plan tiers and prices have their own breakdown.
A flat price can still change. Hetzner raised cloud prices for new orders and rescales from June 15, 2026, with CX23 moving from $4.99 to $6.49.
Key findings
Most entry shared plans renew at two to five times their intro price, but a few hosts keep the price flat.
Here is what stands out.
- Largest jump: SiteGround StartUp, +502% on a 12-month renewal. Even on its 24-month rate of $14.99, the rise is 401%.
- Next largest: HostArmada Start Dock and FastComet Starter, both +400% from $1.99 to $9.95.
- Smallest rise with a discount: DreamPress 1 at +33% and OVHcloud Starter at +63%.
- Flat renewals: UltaHost Starter, for two more years, and AccuWeb Budget.
- Median jump: 165% across the 18 shared and WordPress plans with a computable increase.
Renewal can be most of the bill. On SiteGround StartUp, 94% of the 4-year total is renewal pricing. On GreenGeeks Lite it’s 93%.
That share is why the SiteGround StartUp renewal rates matter more than its $2.99 start.
The renewal term changes the jump. Bluehost Starter renews at $9.99 on 36 months (+150%), $11.99 on 12 months (+201%), or $15.99 billed monthly.
The SiteGround vs Bluehost cost comparison shows how those term choices play out against the largest jump in this index.
Low renewals beat low intros over time. AccuWeb Budget ($95.52) and OVHcloud Starter ($133.92) have the lowest 4-year totals, below Hostinger Premium’s $143.52, the lowest total on one prepaid term.
OVHcloud’s prices come from its worldwide site in US dollars. Its US site doesn’t sell shared web hosting.
Renewal gaps also decide head-to-head matchups. Namecheap’s low renewal is why Hostinger and Namecheap trade places in year five: $275.40 against $250.88.
My verdict: judge a plan by its renewal price and 4-year total, not the intro price. A $1.99 banner told us almost nothing about who costs least.
If you want the full reasons hosts price this way, the post on why hosting renewal prices rise explains it.
How the index is built
We read each price from the host’s own pricing, renewal, or help page and recorded the date.
Every figure was read on the live page between September 25 and October 4, 2026, on the date shown in its row.
- Plan chosen: the cheapest shared or WordPress plan each host sells, plus one entry VPS for six hosts.
- Intro price: the lowest advertised monthly price, with the term it needs.
- Renewal price: the regular rate for the same term length when the host publishes rates by term, as Bluehost, SiteGround, and HostPapa do. Otherwise, the single regular rate shown.
- Renewal increase: (renewal minus intro) divided by intro, rounded to the nearest whole percent.
- 4-year total: the cheapest published path to exactly 48 months, starting with the intro term.
For 36-month intro terms, year four uses the one-year renewal rate where published (Bluehost $11.99, HostPapa $10.99). Otherwise, it uses the single regular rate.
SiteGround’s total uses a 24-month renewal at $14.99, then 12 months at $17.99. Namecheap’s uses three yearly renewals of $55.88.
Excluded: taxes, domains, add-ons, setup fees, promo codes, and free-trial months. Prices are in US dollars.
Not computable: a cell reads “Not computable” when the host doesn’t publish the dollar intro price, the required term, or the renewal price. We don’t estimate those.
Cite this index
You may quote or chart this data with a credit and a link back to the index. Please use this citation line:
Source: HostingGuider Web Hosting Renewal Price Index (prices as of the page’s last update)
Change log
We add a line here with the date whenever a host changes a price.
- October 4, 2026: First version. 20 shared and WordPress entry plans and 6 VPS plans, prices checked September 25 to October 4, 2026.
How we keep the index current
When we spot a host changing its intro or renewal price, we recheck that row on the official page and log the change above.
Hosts can reprice at any time, so treat each row as correct on its check date only.
Renewal prices don’t follow a calendar or season, though first-term promo prices can change during sales.
For recommendations rather than raw data, the budget hosts ranked on four-year cost roundup turns these totals into picks.
Two companion pages are on the way. How Much Does Web Hosting Cost in 2026 covers typical costs by hosting type.
A Web Hosting Cost Calculator will total your own plan’s cost.
Frequently asked questions
Why does web hosting cost more at renewal?
Hosts sell the first term at a discount to win new customers, then bill the regular price. In this index, the median entry shared plan renews 165% higher.
Which web host has the lowest renewal price?
AccuWeb Budget has the lowest renewal in this index, at $1.99 a month, because it doesn’t rise at renewal.
Among plans with an intro discount, OVHcloud Starter is lowest at $3.09.
Which hosts don’t raise prices at renewal?
UltaHost Starter (for two more years) and AccuWeb Budget renew at their intro price. Rocket.net, Kinsta, Pressable and WPX publish one price with no intro discount at all.
Can I avoid the renewal increase?
Partly. A longer intro term delays it: Hostinger’s 48-month term covers four years at $2.99. Some hosts also renew cheaper on longer terms, like Bluehost’s $9.99 on 36 months.
How much does Hostinger renew at?
Hostinger Premium renews at $10.99 a month after its 48-month intro term at $2.99, a 268% increase.
Because the intro term lasts four years, the higher rate starts in year five.
How often is this index updated?
There’s no fixed schedule. A row is updated only after a host’s official page shows a new price, and each change gets a dated entry.
How we researched this
Each row was copied by hand from the provider’s own pricing, renewal, or help page between September 25 and October 4, 2026. Coupon, reseller, and review sites were not used.
The increases and totals are our own arithmetic, run twice. Gaps stay marked “Not computable” rather than filled with an estimate.
As customers of Hostinger and Namecheap, we could also compare a published rate with a real bill.
Our Cloud Startup account’s renewal price of $311.88 a year matches Hostinger’s listed $25.99 a month.
The index itself uses only published prices, including for the Hostinger Business term we prepaid, and follows the same price-checking method as every HostingGuider page.
