Tom's Guide Verdict
Despite offering a suite of hosting solutions and professional services that appear very attractive on the surface, AT&T web hosting just has too many flaws for us to recommend it.
Pros
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Professional design services available
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User-friendly management interface
Cons
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Quite expensive compared to most competitors
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Very average self-help resources
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In our search for the best web hosting services, we decided to undertake a full AT&T web hosting review. AT&T offers a wide range of web design, hosting, and other professional services, including fully managed packages where the company builds your site for you akin to the best website builders.
In this review, we take a closer look at every aspect of AT&T’s web hosting solutions. By analyzing its main features, prices, customer service, and more, we aim to provide you with all the information you need to make an informed decision about its usefulness.
AT&T web hosting: Plans and pricing
AT&T offers a selection of hosting solutions, including three website plans that you can use to build your own site, and three advanced solutions for those who want their site built for them.
The three DIY plans include a selection of tools such as one-click WordPress and Joomla installers, a highly functional website builder, and a free domain for the first year. You will also benefit from unmetered bandwidth and unlimited storage across the board.
With the Basic plan (from $10 a month), you’ll get full access to the advanced web design tool, support for up to 100 email accounts, and advanced web analytics. However, you will only be able to connect one website.
Upgrading to the Enhanced plan (from $16 a month) adds support for up to five sites and 250 email accounts. You’ll also get a suite of social media tools, access to automatic online directory listings, and advanced management features.
At the top end of the spectrum, the Premium plan (from $25 a month) adds a selection of ecommerce tools to help you sell online. You will have support for up to 500 email accounts and ten websites, along with everything that’s included in the two cheaper plans.
If you want your website to be designed and built by the AT&T team, you will need to subscribe to one of the three Build It For Me plans. These range from $35 to $110 a month, and include a suite of professional services.
AT&T web hosting: Features
All AT&T web hosting plans come with a decent range of advanced features. For one, you will have full access to a mobile-first site creation tool. Using this, you can create mobile-friendly websites and online stores, which will help improve the user experience and boost your search engine rankings.
There’s also a great range of online marketing tools, with premium email marketing add-ons available if required. Take advantage of the built-in analytics portal for insights into customer behavior and acquisition, then use this data to make informed business decisions.
With one of the more expensive subscriptions, you’ll have access to a suite of ecommerce tools to help you build an online store. However, these certainly don’t compare to those offered by more ecommerce-focused providers.
AT&T web hosting: Interface and in use
Signing up for a new AT&T web hosting plan is as simple as adding the required subscription to your cart and working through the checkout process. There’s no free trial or free-forever plan, but this isn’t unusual among web hosting providers. Unfortunately, we were inundated with upselling attempts and add-ons whilst trying to complete payment, which was frustrating, to say the least.
The management dashboard is simple yet functional. It includes a selection of options to help you look after your site, including website, marketing, and domain management tools. On the right of the screen, you’ll be able to view your current resource usage.
AT&T web hosting: Support
If you need technical support from the AT&T team, you will benefit from live chat, phone, and online ticketing options. However, none of these are available 24/7. Despite claims that live chat is available at all times, there were no support agents online at any time during our testing.
There’s also a knowledge base with a few self-help resources, but these are basic at best. The search tool is limited and hard to use, and it wasn’t able to provide relevant results for even the most basic queries.
AT&T web hosting: Security
Unfortunately, AT&T provides very little information about its security practices. This is concerning, and it certainly makes it hard for us to recommend its hosting solutions. One thing worth noting is that you will be encouraged to upgrade to a premium SiteLock subscription, which suggests that base security features are far from perfect.
Alternatives to AT&T web hosting
There are numerous more attractive hosting options on the market. For example, Bluehost is a great option for beginners who are new to the web development space. Its feature-rich plans come with unlimited bandwidth, and prices start from just $2.75 a month.
Another decent choice is GreenGeeks, which offers eco-friendly hosting from just $2.95 a month. Every plan is backed by a 300% green energy offset, along with excellent management tools.
AT&T web hosting: Final verdict
At the end of the day, AT&T web hosting just doesn’t have enough going for it. There’s limited information available about exactly what its packages include, customer service is average at best, and it doesn’t appear to offer anywhere near good enough security services.
Because of this, we’d highly recommend looking elsewhere. There are plenty of more powerful options on the market, so spend some time and find the best web hosting services for your needs.
