Since 2000, Charvi Associates has served over 2,550 customers. It offers Windows and Linux SSD web hosting and e-commerce website packages, as well as domain and SMS services.
LightSpeed Web Server is used on all web hosting and a free SSL certificate is included as well. Servers are located in India, U.K., and the U.S. and the website is in English.
Features and Ease of Use
Charvi Associates web hosting comes in either Linux or Windows formats. Each hosting plan allows one domain to be hosted and includes these features:
- LightSpeed Web Server
- Free SSL certificate included
- SSD storage
- cPanel
- Free website migration
- Softaculous software installer
Both offer SSD storage, a free SSL certificate, and LightSpeed Web Server. The entry-level H-001 Linux plan comes equipped with: 2,000MB of disk space, 10,000MB of monthly bandwidth, 10 email accounts, and five MySQL databases. Jumping up two levels to the H-003 plan will afford users higher data levels: 10,000MB of disk space, 100,000MB of bandwidth, 100 email accounts, and 100 MySQL databases.
For Windows hosting customers, the data packages are a little different. The entry-level W-001 plan includes: 500MB of web space, 10,000MB of monthly bandwidth, and 50 email addresses. Stepping up two levels, the W-003 plan allows: 5,000MB of web space, 10,000MB of monthly bandwidth, and 100 email accounts. Each Windows hosting plan supports MySQL and MSSQL databases.
cPanel is available and includes the Softaculous software installer with 450 scripts available for popular software titles such as WordPress, Joomla, PHPBB, and PrestaShop.
For customers who want to have an online store but would rather not spend the time or effort creating one, Charvi Associates offers a premium managed e-commerce service. For a monthly fee, you get an online store ready for physical or downloadable virtual products, as well as some marketing activities, such as email marketing and Facebook group promotion. The fee for this service is quite high, so we’re not sure who exactly would most benefit from this.
Pricing and Support
Pricing for Charvi Associates web hosting may be affordable and competitive with international providers, however, compared to other Indian hosting providers, Charvi Associates is no longer considered cheap or that competitive. I looked at a few top local providers and based on data and features, hosting plans here cost around 200%-250% more than the competition. Having said that, potential customers will want to shop around to make sure they are getting the best deal.
Charvi Associates hosting plans are available to purchase yearly, biennially, or triennially with no discount given for longer term contract lengths.
The e-commerce package has a listed monthly fee that is about 10 times the cost of using a hosted e-commerce company like Shopify or Wix. While this package does include email marketing and other potentially valuable features, the price seems a bit too high from this perspective.
Customer support is handled via telephone, Skype chat, and email and is listed as being available 24/7/365, however, the office hours are listed as Monday-Saturday, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM. Customer support personnel are fluent in English and Hindi. I wasn’t able to verify the quality of the support, as I did not receive a reply to my email in the few days leading up to this review.
