TL;DR
“Web hosting free trial no credit card” may sound unlikely. After all, when it comes to commercial goods and services the term free trial often comes with strings attached. Vendors want your payment information so they can be sure you aren’t taking them for a free ride – so they want to know that you can (eventually) pay for it.
We’ve cobbled together a list of five hosting providers where you can sign up and test drive their hosting services without credit card information with InMotion Hosting as our #1 recommendation.
With sites we aren’t sure we want to do business yet, many of us are leery of providing them with financial information. Don’t despair though as there are other options that exist and we’re going to explore the best free trial web hosting.
There are various ways that this can work. For example, some offer alternative payment methods like PayPal, while others may have a free hosting option you can use as a starter to try out their services. Others which might not have a free trial do offer a money-back guarantee.
1. InMotion Hosting
InMotion Hosting
InMotion Hosting come with a 90-day money back guarantee free trial. Unhappy with InMotion during the first three months? Just ask for a full refund!
InMotion Hosting Free Trial: 90 days
Pay with: PayPal, Money Order, Check
Who InMotion Hosting is for: InMotion has long held a reputation for strong performance and sheer scope of hosting products it covers. For those who are looking to evaluate a strong business hosting with long term prospects, they are a must-see.
Why We Like InMotion: With such a strong product range, InMotion still maintains some very good prices, especially for those who are just starting out. That combines well with their refund assurance to offer newbies a great launch pad into the website business.
Of course, if your site grows and you need to scale up, there is lots of room for you to grow at InMotion. No migrations necessary! For those wary of providing credit card information, you can opt to pay by PayPal or even a U.S. Purchase Order or Check.
As with many other hosts, the free trial on InMotion hosting is technically tacked on as a money back guarantee. The key difference is that InMotion offers one of the longest periods around at 90 days. This means that even though you must pay first, you can quit and get your funds back anytime within that period.
Other Notable Features: Excellent track record, Free domain name & AutoSSL, Application rollbacks, and Multiple website builders to choose from.
InMotion Hosting Ratings & Performance
InMotion Hosting Tested Performance
For further insights about InMotion Hosting, read our detailed InMotion Hosting review.
2. A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting
A2 Hosting first attracted us with their excellent performance and then gave me more reason to host with them – thanks to their anytime money-back guarantee.
A2 Hosting Free Trial: 30 days + Anytime Money Back
Pay with: PayPal, Skrill, Money Order, Check, Bank Wire Transfer
Who A2 Hosting is for: Aside from being a host offering strong performance, A2 Hosting is also known to offer many developer-friendly features and a whole range of products to choose from. Personally, I’ve been with them for almost a year now and it’s been a great experience.
Why We Like A2 Hosting: A2 Hosting customers all benefit from an anytime money-back guarantee. However, to prevent misuse of the guarantee it is pro-rated, meaning you get your money back, less the amount of time you’ve already been on the plan. Consider it a lifetime trial account!
As with most other top web hosts, A2 Hosting doesn’t require a credit card, there are other options available.
Other Notable Features: Turbo servers, Developer-friendly features, and Custom WordPress optimizations.
A2 Hosting Ratings & Performance
A2 Hosting Tested Performance
To find out more about this hosting provider, read our A2 Hosting review.
3. Hostinger
Hostinger Shared Hosting
Test out Hostinger for just $0.99/mo. Cancel and refund during the first 30 days if you are unhappy with them.
Hostinger Free Trial: 30 days
Pay with: PayPal and crypto currencies.
Who Hostinger is for: Hostinger really has plans that suit a variety of role. Shared hosting start at $0.99 per month and cloud plans (powered by Google infrastructure) goes all the way up to $69.99 per month.
Why We Like Hostinger: If you are looking for hosting that’s cheap and easy-to-start then this is the place for you. The company offers an easy-to-use, reliable, and business-friendly web hosting service that comes with stellar features and security.
Although they don’t offer 100% free web hosting trial what they do is nearly as good. Hostinger’s ultra-cheap price tags allow users to try out their shared hosting for just $0.99/mo. Plus, if you were unhappy with their services, you can cancel and refudn within the first 30 das.
To take advantage of this deal, you won’t need a credit card and can pay with PayPal or Bitcoin.
Other Notable Features: Free SSL, GIT access, optimized for best WordPress performance, free domain, and full SSD hosting.
Hostinger Ratings & Performance
Hostinger Tested Performance
To learn more about this web host, go to our comprehensive Hostinger review.
4. DreamHost
DreamHost
DreamHost doesn’t have a free trial but extends its money-back guarantee to a staggering 97 days. Now that’s impressive.
DreamHost Free Trial Web Hosting: 97 days
Pay with: PayPal
Who DreamHost is for: DreamHost is great for those who are looking for a hosting solution with great scalability. The company has reached a level that gives it supreme confidence in the products it sells. Here you can get anything from standard web hosting to Cloud products and even register your own domain.
Why We Like DreamHost: DreamHost is a stable option that’s good for a wide range of sites. However, the key selling point to new users is their extended money-back guarantee.
It offers users more than enough in terms of resources and backs that with a solid support plan that gives help when needed. Alternatively, you can leverage on their extensive knowledge base for DIY assistance if you are really in a pinch.
Other Notable Features: Lots of resources, Excellent track record, Free backups, Extended money-back guarantee.
DreamHost Ratings & Performance
DreamHost Tested Performance
To learn more about DreamHost, check out our DreamHost review.
5. 000WebHost
000WebHost
000WebHost is unusual since this free trial is actually offered by parent company Hostinger. Still, you get the opportunity to experience a real commercial environment for free.
000WebHost Free Trial Hosting: Unlimited
Pay with: Nothing!
Who 000WebHost is for: Since this is one of the truly free web hosts, there isn’t much to consider here. Anyone can sign up but be warned that these free accounts are seriously limited in what hosted sites can handle.
Why We Like 000WebHost: Of course, as with all freebies, it comes with some restrictions, especially on resource usage. That shouldn’t really matter though since the whole idea is for you to test if you like how it works. Don’t be mistaken though – it is a fully functional web hosting experience and lesser, static sites can sit here indefinitely.
Think of 000WebHost as a sandbox where you can try things out for free. It’s an ideal environment for users who have never signed up for web hosting before and will give you a starting idea of what things are like on other hosts (in particular – Hostinger, the owner of 000WebHost).
Because it’s a free experience, 000WebHost is the only one on this list that doesn’t require any form of payment or financial information to sign up for.
Other Notable Features: Totally free & ads allowed, subdomains available, Easy sign-up process, Site Builder included.
000WebHost Ratings & Performance
000WebHost Tested Performance
To find out more about this provider, read our 000WebHost review.
Why Pay Attention to Hosting Companies’ Guarantees and Free Trials?
One of the holy grails of online shopping is that service providers can offer users a taste of their services. In many cases, this takes the form of a money-back guarantee.
Of course, vendors can’t be expected to extend this forever, so make sure you pay attention to the period that refunds are allowed for.
When looking for a free trial web host, always make sure that they have a transparent and strong refund policy. This will help you not only have an easier time getting your money back, but also spell out for you which hosts have extended refund periods.
Standard Web Hosting Trial Refund Periods: 30 – 60 Days
Standard refund periods are around 30 to 60 days in web hosting, depending on the type of hosting you’re looking at. Anything above that and you’ve got a winner.
In the rare case of A2 Hosting, the money-back guarantee stretches the entirety of your stay with them – but it’s pro-rated.
This means that you will be refunded for time left on your contract, not the entire amount you paid when signing up. Details matter, so make sure you look for the terms and conditions before signing up for anything!
Conclusion: Free Hosting Rides Do Exist
As you can see, it isn’t necessary to have a credit card to sign up for web hosting and you often will get a chance to test the hosting to see if you like it. The situation with 000Webhost is ideal since it’s 100% free, but this isn’t always possible.
Because of that, I always recommend that if you’re planning on signing up with a host to take advantage of their money-back guarantee, always choose a reputable one. Some may give you problems or simply take forever to process refunds.
The hosts in this list have been around for some time now and all have excellent reputation, so feel safe with their assurance.
In a nutshell, aside from using credit cards, your other options include: Third-party payment processors such as Skrill or PayPal, Bank Transfers, or Check. Do bear in mind though that the latter two are often only possible if you are residing in the same country as the web host is in.
