6 Best Free PHP Web Hosts (Secure + Fast) for 2024

The best things in life are free, which is true if you are picking berries. This is not necessarily the case in PHP web hosting. While PHP is a standard programming language for web host providers regardless of cost, there are additional functional features in the paid plans. You’ll find many services offering free PHP hosting. However, in most cases, you are much better off choosing an almost free hosting provider.

Free hosting providers often rely on other ways to make money than the hosting itself. This may result in a lack of customer support, or being subjected to add-on costs for features that you really need. Worse still, free plans may lack updated security or the latest PHP versions, affecting your website’s safety and function.

For a very small investment, you can avoid these issues with an affordable web hosting provider. There are many to choose from so to help you decide, I’ve tested dozens of PHP web hosts to find the best providers. I found some decent free hosts, but my #1 recommendation is Hostinger. Its super affordable plans support multiple PHP versions while providing impressive performance and additional features.

What We Look For in the Best Free PHP Web Hosts

There are a few truly free providers on my list, but the top services have low-cost plans with lots of features that essentially pay for themselves. This is what I focused on in my search:

• Security. Up-to-date security is important for all websites. A combination of firewalls, antivirus, and anti-malware solutions will protect your website from DDoS attacks and secure your customers’ data. Regular backups are also important for data recovery and website restoration in the case of an attack.
• Latest PHP versions. Having the most recent version of PHP is important for better website security and performance. However, you may need to access other versions if you have an older site or multiple websites with different PHP versions. For this reason, I prioritized hosts with customizable settings and support for multiple PHP versions.
• Caching. Caching stores static versions of pages of your website for your visitors, such as the About page, instead of building them each time someone visits. This speeds up your website loading speed and improves overall performance.
• Value for money. I prioritized free or affordable hosts that include additional features like SSL certificates, a domain name, email accounts, and other great perks.
• No ads. None of the web hosts on my list display ads on your website, including the free hosts.

1. Hostinger: Low-Cost PHP Hosting With All the Support and Features You Need

While it’s not a free service, Hostinger offers affordable PHP hosting starting from $2.99 per month and pricing remains low on renewal.

Caching is a default setting on Hostinger’s LiteSpeed web server and offers free LSCache plugins for a range of PHP-based content management systems (CMS). In my opinion, these features offer excellent value because they improve visitor experience and website speed.

Hostinger supports multiple versions of PHP, which is important in order to update old web pages and keep sites up and running. You also get access to the most up-to-date PHP version, which is vital for maintaining your site’s security and performance.

Additionally, there is a range of awesome features that improve your website performance and offer real value for the cost. Hostinger serves web content fast and includes generous storage and bandwidth – even on the basic plan. A free migration tool helps to ensure your website is easy to move to Hostinger from a different provider and help from an expert can be arranged for free.

Features

• Multiple CMS. Hostinger has optimized servers and one-click installation for Joomla, Drupal, and WordPress.
• Proprietary control panel. The Hostinger hPanel’s minimalist design and intuitive interface make managing your hosting easy.
• Superb performance. In our tests, Hostinger posted impressively fast loading times and superior reliability – especially when compared to the free and budget hosts we tried.
• Generous freebies. All plans include malware scanning and a website builder. One email account is featured in the Basic plan, while a free domain name for one year is included in the Business and Premium plans.

Read our expert Hostinger review for more details.

2. IONOS: All PHP Versions and Helpful Support at a Low Cost

IONOS offers multiple PHP versions, including the most up-to-date, and has low-cost plans starting from $1.00. The entry-level plan includes everything you need, such as storage, bandwidth, backups, automatic updates, and an email address. However, the pricing increases significantly on renewal and ends up being much higher than Hostinger.

I particularly liked IONOS’ preinstalled caching solution, available on the Grow plan. This plugin boosts your optimized WordPress website loading speed and improves overall performance.

The strong security protection includes DDoS shield and malware scanning and is available with all plans. While you should keep in mind the higher renewal rates, IONOS is a good fit If you need essential PHP features but don’t want to spend a lot of money upfront.

Features

• Uptime guarantee. IONOS offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee and achieved 100% in our independent tests.
• Free domain name. All plans include a free domain name for one year.
• Stellar security. IONOS offers enhanced data, website, and email protection.
• PHP Extended Support. IONOS supports older PHP versions, which will fix security vulnerabilities. This support comes at an additional monthly cost.

Check out our expert [IONOS] review for more details.

3. 000webhost: Free PHP Hosting and Decent Security

The top-rated truly free web host on my list, 000webhost supports the whole range of PHP versions. However, you may have to wait a bit longer to access the latest version than you would with a paid host like Hostinger.

Unlike many free services, 000webhost doesn’t put ads on your website, so you don’t have to be concerned that your website looks unprofessional. It’s also a trustworthy free service, as it’s owned and operated by Hostinger. If you decide you want to make a change, it’s easy to upgrade to one of Hostinger’s low-cost plans.

Unfortunately, 000webhost doesn’t include Hostinger’s LiteSpeed web server, nor will you get a free domain name. The free plan supports one website, with limited storage and bandwidth. The amount of storage and bandwidth is restricted to 300 MB storage and 5 GB bandwidth, but that shouldn’t cause performance issues for a small site. That said, if you have a busier website, you will want to choose a paid plan.

Features

• Control panel. 000webhost has an easy-to-use cPanel with a range of administrative tools, like one-click installers and domain name management.
• Website builder. 000webhost uses Hostinger Website Builder, a drag-and-drop tool that can get your website going in minutes.
• Security. Secure your website with built-in firewalls, DDoS protection, and a dedicated administrative team.
• Easy to upgrade. While it’s free to use, 000webhost also has paid plans if you need more server space or resources. You can also upgrade to a low-cost Hostinger plan.

Read our expert 000webhost review for more details.

4. GoogieHost: No Ads and Free PHP Hosting

Not to be confused with Google, GoogieHost is a free PHP web hosting provider that uses LiteSpeed Web Servers for fast performance (the same servers used by Hostinger, in fact). GoogieHost supports multiple CMS including WordPress, Opencart, and Iconcube loader, as well as multiple versions of PHP, including the recent versions.

Similarly to 000webhost, GoogieHost will not automatically post ads to your website. Googiehost also has a 99% uptime guarantee, though as with other free plans, it doesn’t come with any service credits if that target isn’t met.

GoogieHost has 1 GB of storage, 100 GB of bandwidth free email accounts, and supports up to 3 websites on its free plan. However, GoogieHost is limited in its security features. You can get a free SSL certificate and malware protection, but you will get better security options from other web hosts. You should also keep in mind that since it’s a free service, you may have to wait longer for activation than you would with a paid provider.

Features

• Impressive Speed. If you’re using WordPress, you can take advantage of the LiteSpeed Cache plugin that boosts speed.
• Cloudflare CDN. The free plan comes with access to Cloudflare’s content delivery network. This will help your site to load faster for international visitors and offer some extra security.
• Free subdomain. Free subdomains come with the free plan, and you can connect your own domain name if you have one.
• Control panel. The free plan lets you choose between DirectAdmin control panel or cPanel. You can easily install WordPress with the Softaculous installer.

Read our expert Googiehost review for more details.

5. AwardSpace: Free PHP Plan Includes 24/7 Support

AwardSpace has free and paid premium plans. While it supports multiple versions of PHP, it can be slow to include the newest versions. The free plan offers a one-click installer for three different CMS: WordPress, Joomla, and GRAV, but you can manually add others.

AwardSpace’s free hosting plans are a good option for beginners or anyone wanting to test a new website idea. However, it doesn’t offer the performance and reliability needed for a more professional site. The paid hosting plans have better features than the free ones, but the costs are much higher than my top-rated PHP hosting provider, Hostinger.

AwardSpace offers 24/7 customer support, which is unusual for a free web host, but the response times may be slow. Free users also get 1 GB of storage and 5 GB of bandwidth, and more is available on the paid hosting plans.

Features

• No ads. AwardSpace does not automatically install unwanted ads on your website.
• Proprietary control panel. The control panel is easy to use and has the Zacky website builder, with lots of themes to get your website ready in minutes. You can install WordPress or Joomla in less than 5 minutes.
• Host multiple websites. The free plan supports 1 main website and up to 3subdomains.
• Firewall. The free plan comes with automatic firewall protection – an important security feature for protecting your website.

Check out our expert AwardSpace review for more details.

6. Freehosting: Free PHP Support and Lots of Storage

Freehosting, like the name suggests, offers free PHP hosting. While the free plan has a cap on the number of site visitors (30,000 daily!), I found it to be surprisingly generous. If your website regularly gets more visitors than the cap allows though, you may want to consider a paid plan.

As with other free hosts, site uptime is not a guarantee, and loading speeds can be slow. Freehosting has paid packages, but the low-cost plans from Hostinger offer better performance and value for your money.

Still, Freehosting offers 10 GB storage and unlimited bandwidth, which is more than most free hosts. Just keep in mind that if you opt for the free plan, you’ll still have to pay to register your own domain name.

Features

• cPanel. The free plan includes cPanel, as well as the Softaculous installer, which lets you easily install hundreds of apps.
• Low-cost premium features. A variety of features can be purchased with a one-time fee, like SSH, subdomains, SSL, PHP mail, additional MySQL databases, and more. It’s important to mention that if you pay for all of these features, you’ll get more value for your money from a paid plan.
• No ads. Freehosting does not place unwanted automatic ads on your website.
• Nice freebies. A free blog, user-friendly website builder, and single-click app installer are all nice-to-have inclusions.

Read our expert Freehosting review for more details.

Choose a PHP Provider Based on Your Needs, and Be Aware of the Limits of Free Plans

The best PHP hosting provider is the one that meets all of your requirements. Personal projects and prototypes can be refined with free plans. If you want to reliably meet the needs of your audience, there are some real benefits to choosing a low-cost provider over a truly free plan.

For the best low-cost, long-term PHP host, Hostinger is my top recommendation. It has very affordable plans that remain budget-friendly on renewal, plus it offers many premium features. Best of all, Hostinger’s LiteSpeed servers and LSCache plugins offer top performance for PHP-dependent sites.

If you want unlimited resources, consider IONOS. It supports multiple versions of PHP and has lots of great security features, which help to keep your site secure and ready for visitors.

On the other hand, if you want a truly free PHP hosting provider, go with 000webhost. It’s user-friendly and features the same LSCache plugins as Hostinger. However, you won’t have access to Hostinger’s LiteSpeed servers.

FAQ

Which is the best free PHP web hosting provider?

My top free recommendation is 000webhost, as it has good performance and doesn’t put ads on your website. However, I suggest selecting an affordable PHP web host like Hostinger instead because it has better performance and reliability. Why not get awesome features for hardly any money?

Does it matter which PHP hosting provider I choose?

Yes, it does. Many of the best PHP web hosts offer very similar features and services but some will have a better combination to meet your needs. Your PHP web host provider impacts the functionality of your website. Items to consider beyond cost are uptime, whether the most recent PHP versions are supported, and if it offers other important features like strong security. Check out my top 3 PHP web hosting recommendations.

Should I pay for PHP web hosting?

While there are some decent free PHP web hosts to choose from, there are low-cost alternatives that are worth the very small investment. If you have an e-commerce site, a professional site, or want a reliable high-performing site, you’ll want a paid plan. If you are testing an idea, have a prototype site, or want to build your skills, then the free web hosts are suitable.

Hostinger is a top-quality, low-cost PHP hosting provider and has lots of great features that will enhance your website presence and performance.

Is it important for my web host to support multiple versions of PHP?

Yes. PHP is updated regularly and having the most recent version will enhance your website performance and security. That said, access to older versions can be beneficial. Having the option to change the version of PHP you are using may be important if you have an older website or multiple websites using different versions of PHP. The best hosting services give you the option of changing which PHP version you are using.