A major issue for many people who are deciding on the server type for their blog is price. While you can create a hosted blog at WordPress.com, the options that are available to you are limited.  Instead, anyone who wants to have full control over their blogging experience should download the full WordPress platform from WordPress.org.  While the WordPress platform is free to download, you will have to choose your own web hosting for the blog, which will cost you money.

Shared web hostingis a valuable asset to anyone who is just starting a business or who wants their blog for personal use. Unfortunately, you may be more restricted as to what you can or cannot upload to your shared server because of the usage and bandwidth restrictions that shared servers will have to put on their users. These restrictions mean that you won’t be able to upload as much video, Flash or large amounts of pictures that have to be downloaded from the server. However, it does offer an economical option because the costs of server maintenance and control are divided amongst many different users.

On the other hand, you do have the option to use a dedicated server. If you are expecting a large amount of traffic and cannot accept the restrictions that are forced on you with a shared service, this option may be for you. Unfortunately, more technical skill and knowledge is an absolute must with a dedicated server, as there is less support from your provider. In some cases, there won’t be any support at all outside of the care of the server. However, most often there is a compromise between the two and it comes down to your investment capabilities (this is a more expensive option) and your requirements and skills.

Next, you have to choose which operating system you prefer for the server you are using. While beginners will commonly be attracted to the Windows format because they are familiar with it, Windows hosting does not support PHP.  Because PHP is the core of WordPress, you will need to choose a Linux based web host to successfully run your WordPress blog.

Since you will be choosing Linux, you also have the option to go with a virtual private server, which is the ideal middle ground between shared and dedicated servers. With a virtual private server, the provider will take a single server and divide it up into equal partitions to ensure the usability and functionality of the websites that are being hosted on the server. This means that there will be more hard drive space and RAM that is dedicated solely to your blog, which will help with its performance and speed.

In order for your blog to be as successful as you envision it being, you will need to find a server that offers you enough space and bandwidth to accommodate your needs. This correlates to which type of server you decide upon. If you don’t choose the right setup for your particular blog, you will likely run into issues with the amount of time that your site is accessible to others due to bandwidth restrictions.  Transfer limitations are also part of this equation, and you should ensure that you have enough to accommodate your needs, but also that you’re also using almost to your limit each month so you aren’t wasting money.

Although it’s important to understand these different guidelines and figure out what works for your specific situation, if you’re not sure where to start, my three recommendations are HostGator, ThinkHost and Blue Host. Each of these hosts has its own advantages, so you can take the knowledge you’ve gained from this article and evaluate which one is the best fit for you.