| Plans | Price Per Month |
|---|---|
| The Original FatCow Plan | $3.15/Month |
| Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Min disk space allowed | Unlimited |
| Min Bandwidth Allowed | Unlimited |
| Addon domains | Unlimited |
| Free Domain | yes |
| Free site builder | yes |
| CGI/BIG Access | yes |
| SSI Access | yes |
| FTP Access | yes |
| HTTPS Support | no |
Fatcow Review
Website: http://www.fatcow.com
FatCow is an eco-friendly US-based hosting company that offers surprisingly strong hosting in an affordable package. Most web hosts charge monthly for their services, but FatCow also offers annual plans at a bulk rate. These annual packages do require a commitment of one year or more, but because of FatCow’s solid support and their 30-day money-back guarantee, buyers can confidently commit upfront to years of web hosting.
FatCow also offer domain registration services, SEO services, data backups and SSL certificates, which means that they could be your single point of contact for all web-based needs. While customers of other companies have separate accounts, bills and support for each of these different products, FatCow customers have it all in one convenient location. Plus, they can ask the FatCow support team for help with any one of them without having to go back-and-forth between many different vendors.
FatCow Highlights
FatCow – like most other hosting companies – offers unlimited disk space, bandwidth, domains and databases. They also offer 24/7 support and a 99.9% uptime guarantee. Besides these typical offerings, FatCow has some unique qualities that make it stand out among its fellow web hosts.
VERY Green – FatCow’s websites are all powered by 100% wind energy. In addition to their eco-friendly energy policy, they also support worthy causes. For example, FatCow has been donating a portion of their proceeds to Breast Cancer Awareness Month for the last 4 years running. With so many similar options, web hosting can sometimes seem like a commodity. If you’re going to choose from dozens of extremely similar hosting companies, you might as well choose one that is preserving the planet and helping those in need.
Selective Freebies – Some web hosts throw a ton of “freebies” and “extras” into their plans, and leave it up to the customer to sort the best ones from those that aren’t worth the time and effort. FatCow has thankfully deviated from this “more is better” approach and assembled a careful selection of free perks. They offer advertising credit for Facebook, Yahoo, Google and Bing, and they provide installations of the very best CMS platforms. Clearly, they’ve “cut the fat” out of the usual overwhelming buffet of freebies and brought only the prime choices to the market.
The “HeiferCratic Oath” – FatCow offers a (tongue-in-cheek) pledge to each one of their customers. They promise to call all new customers within 7 days to welcome them and provide assistance, they commit to answering all phone calls in 2 minutes or less, and they’ll give you a free month of hosting if they ever break their oath.
Great for E-Commerce – FatCow would be a great place to host an online store. They offer ShopSite shopping cart software, and they can provide an SSL certificate, which gives your customers confidence that they’re buying on a secure website.
Solid Profit-Sharing – FatCow offers $100 for each new customer referred, and it has pre-designed advertisements to help you secure those referrals. There is no limit to the amount of referrals you can earn, and they can be paid as cash or as hosting credit. This generous referral program could offset your hosting costs or even become a “cash cow” of its own.
FatCow Weaknesses
While FatCow offers a very solid service, it’s clearly for US-based customers. They do not offer phone support outside of the US. To their credit, FatCow does make this very clear on their website, but it’s still nonetheless a downside for international customers.
FatCow also charges for services that other hosts offer for free. Sitelock security and data backups are often free in similarly-priced, competing hosting plans. FatCow charges for both.
FatCow also offers search engine optimization (SEO) services starting at $99 per month, but they come with a disclaimer that states that that “the entire risk as to the quality and performance [of the SEO service] is with [the] customer…” Admittedly, no SEO consultant can guarantee you’ll get to the top of Google, but promising at least a slight improvement of some kind might make such a purchase more attractive.
Conclusion
FatCow is a great hosting option for US-based customers, especially if their website involves selling products online. They offer carefully chosen perks that come with each FatCow hosting plan, and they’ve backed their customer service pledge with free hosting (in the event that they break their “heifercratic oath”) and a money-back guarantee if you’re truly dissatisfied with their services. They’ve really put their money where their mouth is, and it makes it much easier for a customer to commit to a year or more of web hosting.
But, if you’re outside the United States, you shouldn’t expect any phone support from FatCow. And, to get their best prices you have to make at least a year-long commitment. So, if you’re hesitant to pay for the next year (or more) of web hosting upfront, you might want to consider companies that have appealing short-term plans or free trials.
Click here to view Fatcow’s latest plans & offers
FatCow Customer Quotes
“When I first signed up, I thought the price was reasonable for a bare-bones service; every time you folks add another little utility, I almost feel guilty…”
“Fatcow offers good value for the price. Support is decent and there’s a lot of features. Control panel is very easy to use.”
“Every time I call, I get someone on the phone quick who sounds like they actually love their job and want to help…”
