Globat review

In 2001 Globat started its journey to become one of better known web hosting providers from the USA. Adapting their services around individuals and more modest businesses, Globat has been growing ever since.  Nowadays they claim to host more than 100,000 websites on behalf of customers throughout the world. It’s hardly surprising, since their solutions have stayed rather inexpensive and still include more than a decent collection of features which are geared towards newcomers in particular. 

With an emphasis on simplicity and accessibility, Globat is focused on shared hosting solutions above all, as well as additional hosting-related services. Their central office is situated in Los Angeles (the US) and their two data centers are positioned in Boston (the US). There, Globat ensures their customers that their data is safe with them as they provide backup power generators, UPS and regular checkups of all databases, websites and email accounts.

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Globat’s main website doesn’t seem to have changed much from its inception two decades ago, in terms of style at least. However, despite being old-fashioned “blast from the past”, sometimes text-heavy and somewhat unadjusted to the modern eye, the website does provide all needed information about its products and the host itself, all in a pleasantly transparent manner.

Unfortunately, Globat’s site doesn’t feature a blog and their presence on social networks is not particularly strong, which is yet another remark we are going to add on our “Reasons why Globat is too old-fashioned” list.

• Also check out our roundup of the best shared hosting

Plans and pricing

Globat makes sure that the process of decision making is kept on the simpler side by offering only two shared hosting plans of different sizes. The entry-level one is tagged as “GX01” and it goes for $4.44 per month, which is rather affordable in comparison with many overpriced alternatives out there. Still, you should keep in mind the price hike upon renewal). This package includes a few unlimited features (disk space, bandwidth and domains) and if you subscribe for a year, you’ll get a free domain registration and a Let’s Encrypt SSL certificate.

The second higher priced plan is labeled as “GX19” and starts at $19.99 a month. It is geared towards a bit more ambitious users and developers. It will provide them with almost unlimited everything and a bunch of useful tools for publishing and promoting their websites.

Both hosting plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee which is at the moment valid for credit card payments only.

In addition to credit cards, Globat accepts payments via PayPal and checks (but they have to be written in US dollars).

Ease of use

If there is something Globat won't blow your mind with, it is a variety of hosting options, since there are no more and no less than two of them. Which of them you’re going to pick out depends on your ambitions for the website, since the simpler hosting plan is best suited for personal blogs, while the more complex one is geared towards websites with medium traffic, webstores and smaller businesses. In both cases, since all features are listed below and presented in a transparent manner, making a decision shouldn’t be too time-consuming.

If you’re looking to set up a webstore, you’ll be glad to hear that Globat provides a full list of e-commerce features, including a secure chart with an SSL, a nice looking photo gallery, ability to manage your content with Mambo system and much more. What is more, you’ll be getting $100 of Google and Bing Ads credit to help you promote your newly created website.

After selecting a plan, you’ll be offered to decide what to do with a domain name: to register a new one or to transfer the one which you have in your possession. Leaving it with your current manager is, unfortunately, not an option. After this, to create an account, you’ll have to provide a number of personal information (everything as expected), a method of payment and, finally, decide if you want to include a number of recommended “website essentials”, most of which are reasonably priced.

Your account with Globat will be up seconds after the checkout process and you will get access to their pretty convenient control panel equipped with a file manager, CGI script, webmail, site statistics and the account management features. This control panel isn’t a match to industry standard alternatives such as Linux-based cPanel and Windows-based Plesk, although it is quite user-friendly. Thankfully, Globat provides enough step-by-step videos in the tutorial section of their website in order to familiarize users with the new (though rather intuitive) system. Popular apps such as WordPress, Drupal, Joomla and many more are easy to install and, as an alternative, there is a website builder with enough templates and fitting video tutorials.

Speed and experience

Although Globat provides a significant amount of information about the technology they are using (all the specifications about data centers, network architecture and security measures) they make no clear-cut promises about the speed. It may be that their apparent lack of self-confidence in that matter is not without warrant, since GTmetrix wasn’t much impressed with the speed performance of Globat’s main website.

Even though the page loading time and requests required were above the average, other core metrics weren’t, and GTmetrix conclusively rated Globat’s main website with a C (75%). This is far from the worst performance we have seen so far, but nothing to brag about nonetheless.

Since we couldn’t find a trace of uptime guarantee on Globat’s website, we weren’t expecting to be blown away. After monitoring the uptime of Globat’s main website for a month via UptimeRobot, we were presented with 99.6% of uptime, which is a bit below the industry’s standard, although not a rock-bottom.

Support

Globat puts every effort to make its customers feel like they’re getting a premium service, no matter which hosting product they’ve decided on. As a result, their customer support team is available at all times and via telephone, ticket submission and live chat.

Since the support team left a good impression on us, we couldn’t help but think it’s a shame they aren’t present on social networks, since many of their customers are and would appreciate additional channels for interaction.

For those who would rather find their way themselves, Globat offers a knowledgebase and a competent one to boot. In it, users can search for the answers through the selected categories or by using the search box, which is our preferred way. Some of the articles seem somewhat short, but they manage to cover all major issues in an easy-to-understand manner, which we’re always glad to see.

The competition

While PowWeb and Globat both go above and beyond the call of duty to make everything as simple as possible, PowWeb goes a step further and offers a one-and-only hosting solution. Although both can provide plenty of attractive (and similar) features, a significant price hike upon renewal might make you consider other options.

Even at first glance you’ll surely notice that HostGator, when compared to Globat, has considerably more hosting options and a capacity to supply everything needed by businesses of all sizes. In contrast, Globat is more tailored towards users with fewer needs, although it does provide a good value for money in its own right.

Everything said about HostGator could be repeated for Bluehost, word for word. Moreover, in addition to having more hosting options, Bluehost offers a cheaper way for its users to connect their websites to the world. However, there is a catch (it seems there's always a catch). After the initial period, the price will go up and triple the amount you originally paid for your package, which is something you should certainly keep in mind.

Like many others, FatCow provides a number of hosting options, but its entry-level plan is quite similar to Globat’s, both in price and features. Despite that, since Globat provides free automatic backups (while FatCow doesn’t), and plenty of unlimited features (disk space, bandwidth, e-mail account and domains), it might look like a better bargain. Still, FatCow has an adorable cow as its representative and tries to promote an eco-friendly attitude, which is always a plus.

Final verdict

Given that Globat has two shared hosting plans in its offer, those who are seeking something more powerful option than this will have to continue their search. If you are one of them, don’t miss what some of the most famous companies in the industry, such as HostGator, Bluehost and Hostinger, are able to offer and at an attractive price as well.

On the other hand, those who look for simpler, beginner-friendly and affordable hosting solutions that will give them all the necessary tools to quickly and successfully fire up their website, should definitely take a look at Globat.

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