Don’t Host Your Website in India: Choose Singapore Instead!

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HostArmada is Best for India Based Hosting

Even though I don’t recommend it, if you still want to host in India, I suggest HostArmada. I’ve worked with them in the past and their service is better than other India web hosts like Hostgator India. Here’s a 75% off HostArmada coupon for India:

HostArmada has a data center in Bangalore, and it relies on professionally managed virtualization platforms like those provided by Google Cloud Compute. So it’s probably a lot more reliable than other ad hoc data centers in the country. Plus, it’s the only provider I know of in India that offers LiteSpeed as an option with their top-tier “Speed Reaper” plan. Here’s a quick explanation of what LiteSpeed is, and why it’s so amazing.

Here’s my complete HostArmada review, so you know what you’re getting into.

HostArmada Has a Data Center In Singapore Too!

The icing on the cake is that HostArmada also has a data center in Singapore! So you can start out hosting with the HostArmada India center, and then migrate to the Singapore one. Or vice-versa. The point is, you won’t have to switch hosting providers to change your location, and that’s a big deal. You can sign up in Singapore and if you still feel you have too much latency, just ask HostArmada to switch you over to the Bangalore center and you’re done!

Alternative #2: Hostgator India

If you don’t want to go with HostArmada, I suggest you choose Hostgator India. It’s not optimal, but it’s still the best of the alternatives. They have server locations in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Hyderabad, and Bangalore.

Like other Indian web hosts, they don’t own their datacenters either. But Hostgator India is large enough and has enough clout to ensure a greater control over their servers compared to other providers. Plus they partner with GPX, who has a Tier IV datacenter in Mumbai. In my opinion, this is the best hardware and security you can get for India based servers.

But if you only need servers close to your clients and not India based servers specifically, then Singapore is a much better location. Here’s why.

But Global Hostgator is a Better Choice

However, even if you’re located in India, I feel the global Hostgator is a better choice for reasons as diverse as price, customer support, and reliability. And the price is cheaper! Here’s the US-based Hostgator coupon code page for proof.

But if price is not that high of a factor, there are other web hosts you can choose that have data centers located in Singapore. But why choose Singapore?

Why is Singapore a Better Choice than India for Hosting?

First, let’s get the obvious out of the way.

It’s Close to India

Singapore is very close to India. How close? Here’s a map to show you:

Depending on where your clients connect from, Singapore might actually be closer to them than some other locations in India! The extra little bit of distance doesn’t really count when it comes to website latency. So if you’re looking for servers close to your website visitors, Singapore fits the bill.

In many ways, it’s the same situation as hosting in Morocco, which has Europe nearby!

Singapore is the Hosting Capital of Asia

Singapore is by far, the most popular hosting destination for top quality websites in Asia. Here are a few stats from Cushman & Wakefield’s recent report: “Data center investment: A rare opportunity for the right investor”

1. Singapore comprises 54% of datacenter capacity in South East Asia
2. Web GIANTS like AWS, Netflix, Oracle, and IBM have chosen to host in Singapore
3. In a list of 10 Asian countries, Singapore ranks number 1 (India ranks last).

Here’s a diagram showing that last comparison, ranking the countries in Asia in terms of suitability for datacenter locations:

Here’s the final ranking:

Comparing India to Singapore for Datacenter Locations

Datacenters need a lot of great infrastructure to support them. Billion-dollar industries rely on their server uptime to run. It’s not just about how great an individual datacenter is. The environment has to support it as well. For example, will the city fumble in the aftermath of a natural disaster? Is the government politically stable?

It’s hard to explain in words how much better Singapore is for hosting server locations. So I made a table showing the rankings of the two countries on a variety of parameters relevant to datacenter suitability.

This table is a great illustration of why it’s better to host in Singapore, as opposed to India – even if your client base resides in India.

Natural Disaster Readiness

To hammer home the point, DigitalOcean recently opened up operations in Bangalore. However, when cyclone Vardah hit in 2016, it greatly damaged the undersea fiber optic cables for Chennai. Without sufficient redundancy, it led to the entire datacenter going down. Choosing to host your website in India is a risky proposition!

Professionalism and Security

Another complaint is that 3rd party colocation services in India don’t follow the best practices with regard to security and don’t have great customer support. For example, hosting provider SkyNetHosting started operations in India, only to be hit with a 23Gbps DDoS attack. Unfortunately, their datacenter was unresponsive and didn’t help them take measure to defeat it in a timely manner.

Reasons like this make me wary of hosting in India. The only exception I would make is if the hosting company is large enough to make the datacenter owners bend to their will – as I imagine EIG is with Hostgator India.

So Which Web Host to Choose for Singapore Hosting?

Here’s a list of well-known web hosts with datacenters in Singapore:

1. HostArmada – 75% HostArmada Coupon
2. A2 Hosting – A2 Hosting coupon list
3. SiteGround – Unfortunately, I don’t recommend SiteGround anymore

Note: These are affiliate links – your clicks and purchases help me pay the bills!

My personal recommendation is HostArmada. I’ve had a great experience with them, they offer free SSL with Let’s Encrypt (unlike GoDaddy), and are a very solid host all around. Plus their web hosting is pretty cheap starting at just $2.99/month.

I hope this article was helpful!