FastComet and A2 Hosting have proved mainly themselves as two of the most promising Web Hosting companies over the years. Here is our comparison of FastComet Vs A2 Hosting, and we can say FastComet is the clear winner.
To write a data-backed comparison post, I bought a hosting account from FastComet and A2 Hosting and installed a test site on each.
I then monitored the response time and uptime for more than 24 months. I also talked about other features which will be vital to make the best option.
Choosing the best out of the two is a difficult task for me. While comparing two hosts, If their performance is similar, I consider the pricing option to recommend the best.
But in the case of A2 Hosting and FastComet, both the performance and pricing (both introductory & renewal) are also similar.
Based on my personal experience, I give more weightage to A2 Hosting.
The first reason, A2 Hosting handled the load test way better than FastComet. The second reason, A2 Hosting offers 600,000 inodes, and FastComet offers slightly lower 500,000 on its plan.
Contents
FastComet vs. A2 Hosting: Overview
A2 Hosting started in 2001, providing speed-focused, affordable Web Hosting solutions. The company has innovated its hosting plans with the latest tech stacks and never shies out from offering critical hosting services.
FastComet was founded in 2013 and primarily focused on Shared hosting services. They also offer VPS and Dedicated Server hosting.
FastComet Vs. A2 Hosting: Performance
TTFB Test
Based on the last 12 months data, the FastComet site recorded an average server response time of 321ms, while the A2 site recorded an average server response time of 323ms.
Both the hosts are equally good at offering faster TTFB.
Uptime
In my comparison, the FastComet site recorded an impressive uptime of 99.98%, while the A2 site recorded an uptime of 99.95%.
While there is a slight difference between the two hosts regarding uptime, it is worth noting that FastComet performs slightly better than A2 Hosting.
Load Testing
Load testing is another crucial factor when evaluating hosting services, as it determines how well a hosting provider can handle high traffic.
To test this, I conducted load testing on both sites by sending 500 simultaneous traffic to each site.
The results showed that the FastComet site recorded 323ms, while the A2 Hosting site recorded 102ms.
These findings indicate that A2 Hosting is undoubtedly faster than FastComet when handling loading.
If your site regularly receives simultaneous visitors, A2 Hosting should be your top choice.
Global TTFB
Another critical factor to consider when evaluating hosting services is Global TTFB, particularly for sites that rely on multiple global locations for traffic.
To determine the Global TTFB of both hosting services, I conducted a test by pinging my sites hosted with them from 35 international locations.
Based on my last Global TTFB test results, the FastComet site recorded an average Global TTFB of 594ms. In comparison, the A2 site recorded an average Global TTFB of 639ms.
While FastComet's TTFB is slightly better than A2 Hosting, both FastComet and A2 Hosting provide the fastest TTFB for a global audience.
Core Web Vitals
Core Web Vitals test is a crucial test of performance since the kind of user experience a site can deliver at the most directly depends on this factor. Most importantly, user experience has become an important ranking factor, so you can't afford to overlook this factor at any cost.
As per the last Core Web Vitals test performed on my sites hosted with these two services, my FastComet site recorded a ‘Largest Contentful Paint' of 568ms, a ‘Total Blocking Time' of 0ms, and a ‘Cumulative Layout Shift' of 0.
The A2 site recorded a ‘Largest Contentful Paint' of 495ms, a ‘Total Blocking Time' of 0ms, and a ‘Cumulative Layout Shift' of 0.
FastComet vs. A2 Hosting: Support
I contacted FastComet Support many times, and no matter how big or small my query is, I have always found them to be pretty fast and friendly in handling it. This holds for both live chat and tickets.
A2 Hosting Support or the Guru Crew support may not be as fast as FastComet Support. Still, it certainly has exceptionally knowledgeable executives to assist you with every query or technical difficulty.
Like FastComet, A2 Hosting offers live chat, phone, and ticket support.
Winner: Both
FastComet vs. A2 Hosting: Data center locations
FastComet provides users with 11 data center locations to choose from. It includes Chicago, Dallas, and Newark in the USA, Frankfurt, London, and Amsterdam in Europe, and Singapore and Tokyo in Asia.
However, A2 Hosting has only 3 data center locations to offer Michigan in the USA, Amsterdam in Europe, and Singapore in Asia.
Winner: FastComet
FastComet vs. A2 Hosting: Pricing
Regarding pricing, FastComet allows you to start for as low as $2.19/mo, while A2 Hosting lets you create as low as $2.99/mo.
Conclusion
Choosing the best out of the two is a difficult task for me. While comparing two hosts, If their performance is similar, I consider the pricing option to recommend the best.
But in the case of A2 Hosting and FastComet, the pricing (both introductory & renewal) is also similar.
Based on my personal experience, I give more weightage to A2 Hosting. The first reason, A2 Hosting handled the load test way better than FastComet. The second reason, A2 Hosting offers 600,000 inodes, and FastComet offers slightly lower 500,000 on its plan.
