Kinsta Review 2021: Is It the Best Managed WordPress Hosting?

Are you looking for an in-depth Kinsta review to help you determine whether it is the right choice of WordPress hosting for your business? Then you landed on the right page. 

As an aspiring webmaster looking to use WordPress, I know the necessity of having a web host solution that does not only provide hosting support but also an environment that is optimized particularly for it.

Kinsta, fortunately, is recognized as one of the most reliable WordPress hostings today. From WordPress-specific tools to robust security and speed, the hosting service offers it.

What is Kinsta?

Kinsta is a WordPress hosting company offering a wide array of hosting services that are catered mainly for small to medium-sized businesses as well as individual entrepreneurs. It was established way back in 2013 with the aim of “changing the status quo” by providing the best WordPress hosting solution.

Fast forward to 2020, Kinsta is now among the many web host services recognized for its reliable and high-performing managed WordPress hosting. It now serves thousands of customers worldwide and receives more than 30, 000 gigabytes of traffic every day. It has a team of customer representatives that is locally hired as well and receives 2, 000 support conversations weekly.

Remarkably enough, Kinsta also owns a total of 24 data centers spread across the globe and promises a 99.99% uptime guarantee. The web host company worked with several big brands already as well such as Intuit and Ubisoft, which only shows how reliable Kinsta’s services are.

What is it for?

As mentioned, Kinsta is known (and is only known) for its fully managed WordPress hosting. And that is because its hosting services are built to boost WordPress-supported webpages only. Thus, essentially, it is specifically for folks who want to launch a site using the said content management system.

Kinsta is also packed with a suite of features—from basic to advanced—that are all tailored for people working with small to large-scale WordPress projects. s

However, compared to its competitors who offer the same services as well, the web hosting solution claims to provide premium and quality WordPress solutions. But such an aspect has resulted in Kinsta selling its hosting plans ten times higher than its low-cost counterparts.

Given the situation, the web host marketed its WordPress hosting to:

·         Startups

·         Digital marketing agencies

·         Webmasters managing several sites for different clients

In fact, it has hosting solutions dedicated to each category.

But do not fret because individual entrepreneurs who are looking to dip their toes into website monetization can still utilize Kinsta for small-scale projects. But do take note that its cheapest plan starts at $30 per month.

How does it differ?

Despite Kinsta having WordPress hosting solution to offer only, its features are surprisingly unique compared to other web host providers that offer the same services.

One example is its use of Google Cloud Platform, a state-of-the-art infrastructure used by Google itself and other big brands including Spotify, Coca Cola, and Snapchat. Another feature that sets it apart is that it allows clients to pick their desired data center location from its 24 towers scattered across the globe.

But what truly caught my attention is that it comes with tools built for web developers.

Typically, web host companies would offer intuitive tools built for noobs, particularly those with less technical knowledge. Hence, it’ is quite a surprise for a hosting service to integrate tools that are familiar for professional web creators.

The pros & cons

To help you weigh things better, here are some of Kinsta’s perks as well as its downsides.

The pros

·         WordPress-oriented environment

·         Network infrastructure is built for speed

·         Intuitive dashboard and other tools

·         Offers web-developer-friendly features

·         Robust security tools

·         Free daily backups

·         30-day money-back guarantee

·         Highly scalable

·         Excellent and always-available support

The cons

·         No free domain registration

·         No free email

·         Expensive prices

·         Restricted plugins

Everything you need to know about Kinsta

Now that you have an idea what is Kinsta and what it is for, let us delve further into its features as well as its performance as a WordPress hosting provider. That said, I will explain in detail its tools and how it could help you develop the best WordPress webpages.

Let’s start?

1. Kinsta’s best features

Kinsta is comprised of numerous tools that all worked to provide an optimized and efficient environment for WordPress-supported sites. Among these features, however, there are a few that stand out. In other words, Kinsta’s best features.

Having said that, the following are Kinsta’s best.

2. Google cloud platform

If there is one feature that truly stands out among Kinsta’s arsenal of features, I believe it would be its use of Google Cloud Platform. In fact, it is what separates it apart from other hosting companies.

Why, you ask?

GCP is a suite of cloud computing services that run on the same infrastructure that Google utilizes to support its end-user products like Gmail and YouTube. Thus, technically, if you subscribed to one of Kinsta’s hosting plan, you will use the same infrastructure large companies like Google, HTC, and Coca-Cola are using.

Not only that. The hosting service also uses GCP’s fastest servers called “C2” or compute-optimized virtual machines.

But what is the deal?

Impressive enough, each virtual machine supplies the best performance per core with its 60 CPUs and hundreds of gigabytes per RAM. And, compared to GCP’s previous virtual machines (the N1 and N2), C2 boosts WordPress sites’ performance by up to 200%.

Aside from that, users are guaranteed lightning-fast data delivery thanks to GCP’s “premium tier” network. Essentially, the feature was built to lessen the gap and distance, which in return result in faster and more secured data delivery. In short, your webpage’s speed remains fast no matter where your visitors are in the world. 

I would like to add too that although some web hosting solutions also offer GCP, not all utilize a premium tier network but rather a standard tier only.

Here are a few more perks of using GCP:

·         It has the largest network

·         It offers live transfers of virtual machines

·         It is used by credible and big brands like Google

To top it all, Google Cloud Platform also provides robust security tools—which I will discuss later on—to assure that all data going in and out of its clients’ web pages are protected from any form of malicious attacks.

3. Highly scalable

No entrepreneur wishes to remain below and stagnant. And for a person whose success means expanding his/her business, highly scalable software is crucial. Otherwise, it will limit your chance to earn more and climb up the ladder.

Kinsta, fortunately, is an auto-scalable web host solution that can help you adapt to certain changes your site is experiencing. In fact, it is among the many elements that put other hosting companies behind it.

Essentially, an auto-scaling feature means that Kinsta’s infrastructure is built to handle sudden surges of web traffic and load. It utilizes a remote software container technology that enables and automatically designates hardware resources to each container using its virtual machines if the situation demands it.

In layman’s terms, your site can handle an unexpected surge of web traffic no matter what the amount is.

Such a process then results in a highly secured and private hosting configuration and at the same time allows server resources to scale depending on the page’s needs.

But what happens if your hosting support is not auto scalable?

It is simple. Depending on the amount of web traffic and load, your webpage will either slow down or, worst, crash. And that will automatically cause you a loss in revenue.

4. Developer-friendly tools

Given its top-tier WordPress hosting services, Kinsta did not only build its hosting support as something that is “easy to use” and packed with “for-beginners kind of tools”—but it is also a great choice for professional and amateur web developers.

Kinsta offers a wide selection of tools that fit perfectly for WordPress web developers. In fact, it claims that many of today’s web page creators do love the web host provider’s features.

Among the many reasons why, for instance, is Kinsta’s WordPress-optimized tech stack. It includes PHP 7.4. HTTP/2, Ubuntu, MariaDB, and Nginx.

Apart from that, web creators will surely appreciate its SSH and SFTP tools as well because: a) the SSH feature, for example, allows users to run tools such as GIT and lets them do quick edits through text editors. It also works on database tools like Sequel Pro, and b) the SFTP tool enables users to change their passwords with just one click.

Kinsta allows access to premium plugins too including Cloudflare Railgun and Elasticsearch.

Here are a few more developer-friendly features:

·         Once-click cloning

·         Free SSL

·         Staging environment

·         Automatic backups

·         PHP 7.2, 7.3, and 7.4

But most importantly, Kinsta continually adds new developer-oriented tools to further improve its services.

5. Unlimited site migration

For entrepreneurs and web developers who want to shift to Kinsta, the website hosting solution also offers free and unlimited site migration. That is quite a perk since some hosting providers charge their users with additional costs for site migration.

But what I like about it is that it is available in all types of hosting plans. So, whether you use its basic or starter pack, you can still avail of it.

Another is it does not limit the number of sites you can transfer. It means If you own ten or more pages, you can do so without additional charges. You can also reach out to its support team and they will surely get back to you.  

The only downside I found out is that the service is limited to a few web hosting solutions only, which are WP Engine, Dreamhost, Cloudways, Flywheel, and Pantheon.

6. Robust security

Adding to Kinsta’s best features is its wide variety of security tools. And given the type of tools included in its arsenal, it is apparent that the website hosting solution is taking the matter seriously.

Why, you ask?

It is because Kinsta checks all of its clients’ websites to detect, as well as prevent, possible DDoS attacks. It also does monitor all websites for uptime performance every minute. And not only that. The web host has also integrated hardware firewalls with very tough software restrictions to boost its defense.

Here are a few more reasons to love Kinsta’s security features:

·         Limits IP’s access that failed to log in more than six times

·         It comes with a two-factor authentication

·         Kinsta only allows connections encrypted with SSH and SFTP

·         It comes with Free Encrypt certificates

·         Enforces strong password

·         Proactive prevention of any form of malicious attacks

·         Hack-free guarantee

7. Custom control panel

Most web hosting solutions use the classic cPanel for their control panel management system. Some web hosts, such as Kinsta and Hostinger, took a different path when it comes to the said aspect.

Here is why:

Given that Kinsta offers managed WordPress hosting services, it developed its own control panel system customized with WordPress-specific features and design. It has an intuitive interface that is perfect for beginners.

And just like the classic cPanel, you can manage your accounting information as well as your websites through its dashboard. Another remarkable thing about it is that its design is responsive to all types of devices. It means that you can check your websites even through your mobile phone or tablet without any troubles.

But that is not all. You can also access the following perks:

·         Seamlessly create new WordPress pages

·         Check plugin updates

·         Keep backups and clear cache

·         Launch free migration

·         24/7 access to Kinsta’s customer service team

·         WordPress plugin monitoring

·         Access to various plugins like Kinsta cache and New Relic

8. Automatic daily backups

Unexpected site issues are inevitable. And as a webmaster, the only thing you can do is to prepare by keeping data backups.

That being said, Kinsta comes with a feature that lets its clients keep data backups.

The web host’s backup feature is divided into two categories. The first one is a two-week worth of data backups and the other is allows automatic backups every day. In fact, users can also change the frequency of keeping backups by installing a specific plugin. It means that you can keep backups every 8 hours, 6 hours, or even less depending on your site’s requirements.

Such a feature is a great security option particularly for medium-sized firms or web owners earning a high amount of web traffic every day.

9. MyKinsta demo

Another feature that I find interesting in Kinsta is its “MyKinsta Demo.” As its name suggests, it is a demo tutorial of the software that anyone can avail of for free.

You have to create and register first, however. If you are interested, you can check kinsta.com/mykinsta and sign up for a free demo.

Here are some of the features you can access on MyKinsta Demo:

·         WordPress webpage creation

·         Performance monitoring

·         CDN integration

·         SSL management

·         PHP version

·         One-click staging area

·         Website backup management

·         Search and replace

Performance

Performance-wise, Kinsta upholds its promise of a nearly 100% uptime guarantee and high-speed webpages. But that is not much of a surprise given that the web host provider is known for its network infrastructure that is geared for speed.

Having said that, I ran several site tests before I confirmed that the web host solution’s overall performance is genuinely up to par and true to what it claims. And to show you some proof, I listed down the results below.

1. Uptime

Downtime is a no-no for webmasters. And as a WordPress hosting provider geared towards small-scale to large-scale businesses, it must provide an excellent uptime performance.

Kinsta, on the one hand, claims to provide a perfect score of 100%. So, to see that it genuinely provides satisfactory results, I conducted a test using UptimeRobot.

Surprisingly, it delivered a solid 100% uptime score.

But what is hugely impressive about it is that it is not for a single month only. Kinsta delivered a 100% uptime score for straight four months. Thus, technically, your site will rarely experience downtime—or possibly, never.

But if on the flip side, you experienced downtime, Kinsta has an uptime guarantee policy which will give a 5% credit from your entire bill. More like compensation for its failure to implement a 24/7 availability for your page.

2. Page loading time

When it comes to, speed matters that Kinsta took it very seriously.

Just like how I confirmed its uptime score, I ran a few tests using Sucuri Load Time Tester and GTmetrix. And based on the results, Kinsta proved again that it is worth more than it charges.

Here is the reason why:

·         Using GTmetrix, Kinsta’s fastest loading speed was a whopping 0.8 seconds. Its average loading time, on the one hand, is a decent 1.2 seconds while the slowest is 1.6 seconds—which, for me, is still fairly acceptable and fast enough.

·         The results using the Sucuri Load Time Tester is quite remarkable as well. The fastest loading time recorded is 0.144 seconds while the slowest is 2.033 seconds. The average loading speed, on the flip side, is 0.631 seconds.

The figures shown are indeed amazing. But the thing about it is, it is how it should be given that Kinsta’s network infrastructure is built for speed.

If you can recall, Kinsta offers Google Cloud Platform. The webpage host company then uses multi-regional deployment which allows its clients to pick different data centers for each of their websites. 

Google also owns 24 data centers across Asia-Pacific, Europe, U.S., and South America. In simple terms, it means your site’s latency is low. Kinsta also partnered with KeyCDN. It is an IPv6-powered content delivery network as well as a real-time HTTP/2 with 34 POPS that boosts data delivery including images and CSS.

Pricing plans

Kinsta is undeniably an expensive web hosting support for WordPress users. Hence, if you are looking for a low-cost WordPress hosting plan, I suggest that you give it up now and instead try other web host services like FastComet and Hostinger.

Since Kinsta is marketed towards WordPress users only, its hosting plans are divided into four categories only: the starter, pro, business, and enterprise. The business and enterprise hosting plans, however, comes in four levels.

Each plan differs in prices as well. To give you an idea, I enumerated below its basic prices.

·         Starter plan costs $30 per month

·         Pro plan starts $60 per month

·         Business’ basic plan starts at $100 a month

·         Enterprise’s basic plan starts at 400 a month

When it comes to the length of the subscription, Kinsta offers monthly and yearly options only. And if you avail of its yearly subscription, you will receive a two-months free subscription.

Kinsta does not have hidden charges as well nor offers upsells. And if you are not satisfied with its services, it has a 30-day money-back guarantee policy which allows you to get a refund of your payment. Moreover, the policy applies to all its WordPress hosting plans.

Kinsta does not sell nor offer free domains too. So, if you want to get one, you need to make a separate purchase.

Customer Support

All types of businesses require a team of customer service to help customers with their concerns. And just like its competitors, Kinsta offers up to par customer service teams.

Here is how it can help you:

·         Customer support representative. If you prefer talking to a customer support representative, you can reach out to Kinsta’s team through various means. You can do it via live chat, phone call, email, and even by requesting a ticket. You will see all these tools on MyKinsta’s dashboard.

Its team is available 24/7 as well so clients all around the globe could receive immediate troubleshooting.

·         Knowledgebase. Giving out written information that is pretty accessible is also a great approach to help users. That is why Kinsta has a collection of handy data that users can access and browse anytime they wish to.

For instance, it has a wide array of article collections that talk about everything a newbie should know of Kinsta’s features and tools. It has several WordPress tutorials as well that you can read. Free eBooks and webinars are available as well to further help you improve your knowledge about websites.

Things to take note of

Kinsta is not an “all good” web host solution and, in fact, lacks a few aspects. To give you more details, I listed down below its downsides and a few things I found that Kinsta does not provide.

1.  No free email and domain

You can genuinely say that Kinsta is unique if compared to other web host companies. Because while most of its competitors offer both free domain registrations and email accounts, Kinsta does not.

So, what does it mean?

Website and server-wise, it has zero effect on Kinsta’s overall performance. In fact, everything will still work well even without these perks. The only catch is that if you wish to purchase a domain name, then you have to do it through third-party software. The same goes for an email account.

Aside from that, it is sort of unfair too that given it has awfully expensive prices, you cannot have the same benefits low-cost web host providers give.

2.  Limited plugins

A website requires several plugins for numerous reasons. But mostly, it is to boost a page’s performance and to manage things more seamlessly and efficiently.

If you are that kind of person who relies on add-ons, you should take note of Kinsta’s limited plugins. The web host provider, unfortunately, allows a limited number of plugins that you can integrate and run on its server. And most of them are popular ones.

If that is something that will trouble you, you can check Liquid Web instead as it allows all types of plugins. It is a hosting solution for WordPress users as well with prices and tools that can compete with Kinsta.

It might sound like a downside but Kinsta did it for a good reason. And that is to avoid their setup from being interfered with and cause conflict. Hence, it is its way of maintaining good service and performance.

That said, here are some of the plugins that are banned in Kinsta:

·         EWWW image optimizer

·         Login Wall

·         Wordfence

·         Performance plugins including WP-Optimize and WordPress Minify

·         Backup plugins including Backup Buddy and WP DB Backup

·         Cache plugins like Cache Enabler and WP Fastest Cache

3.  Expensive hosting plan

Kinsta is already an established and credible managed WordPress hosting provider, which I could say justify its costly hosting plans. Still, it is too expensive especially for individual entrepreneurs who wish to start a website monetization business.

The verdict

Kinsta is indeed one of the best fully managed WordPress hosting solutions in the industry today. As a matter of fact, it is on the top of my list. From its Google Cloud Platform to website-developer-friendly tools, you can trust that your business or project is in the right hands.

Its features perfectly fit small to large digital marketing agencies’ demands as well. It is why I highly recommend it to people with large-scale projects.

On the one hand, its tools—from basic to advanced ones—are all intuitive too. Hence, beginners and non-techy individuals can use Kinsta without any problem understanding how it works.

However, if you are the type of newbie that requires a budget-friendly web host and do not want to gamble a fortune for something that you are not well-versed in, I suggest you skip Kinsta on move to other hosting solutions like Interserver and FastComet.

All in all, Kinsta does a great job as a WordPress hosting solution.