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SiteGround review: $2.99 for a year, then $17.99, with daily backups
Updated Oct 15, 2026 · scored under rubric v1
SiteGround StartUp suits one site that wants daily backups and a phone line at any hour, and whose owner can pay a high renewal: $2.99 a month for the first year, then $17.99. The catch is that renewal, six times the intro price, and no staging.
SiteGround's StartUp plan costs $2.99 a month for the first 12 months, prepaid, then renews at $17.99 a month on the same term. It hosts one website and includes daily backups, free SSL, a CDN, a free first-year domain and email, with 24/7 chat, phone and ticket support. Staging starts on GrowBig. Shared hosting is refundable within 30 days of activation.
What it does well
- Daily backups, free SSL, CDN, domain and email on StartUp
- 24/7 support by chat, phone and ticket
- Renewal price printed under each plan
- Full refund of shared hosting within 30 days of activation
Where it falls short
- Renews at $17.99 a month, six times the $2.99 first-year price
- No staging on StartUp; it starts on GrowBig
- One website on StartUp
- Monthly billing appears only in help articles from 2021 and 2024
What SiteGround costs
| Plan | First-term price | Then | Term | The limit that matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| StartUp | $2.99/mo | $17.99/mo | 12 months, prepaid | 1 website, 10 GB |
| StartUp | Not shown | $14.99/mo | 24 months (help article) | Same |
| StartUp | $24.99/mo | $24.99/mo | 1 month (help article) | Same |
| GrowBig | $4.99/mo | $29.99/mo | 12 months | Unlimited websites, staging |
| GoGeek | $7.99/mo | $44.99/mo | 12 months | Staging + Git, white-label access |
Prices from its web hosting page, read Sep 25, 2026 (GoGeek Sep 26); the 1-month and 24-month rates from its rates article, last updated Feb 01, 2024.
On the 12-month term, StartUp costs $35.88 for the first year and $215.88 for the second.
Over time
Total = monthly price × 12 × years, or yearly price × years, or a one-time price once. Only current plan prices; fees are listed separately. Taxes, add-ons and promotional prices are not included.
Current prices
| Plan | Price | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| StartUp (renewal, 24-month term) regular 24-month rate from the same help article | $14.99 per month | Oct 9, 2026 |
| StartUp (renewal, 12-month term) regular rate for a 12-month term after the first invoice | $17.99 per month | Sep 25, 2026 |
| StartUp (1-month term) regular monthly-term rate from the help article 'Current Rates of Our Shared Hosting Plans' (last updated Feb 01, 2024) | $24.99 per month | Oct 9, 2026 |
| GrowBig (renewal, 12-month term) regular rate for a 12-month term | $29.99 per month | Sep 25, 2026 |
| GoGeek (renewal, 12-month term) regular rate for a 12-month term | $44.99 per month | Sep 26, 2026 |
What you get on StartUp
- One website with unlimited traffic and 10 GB of storage.
- "Free SSL, CDN, Backups" and "Free email" on the card; "Free daily Backups" under "All Plans include".
- A free domain for the first year of the initial term.
- No staging site: staging is listed under GrowBig's "Exclusive Features" and as "Staging + Git" on GoGeek.
Catches and fine print
- The discount is one invoice. "Discounted prices apply to the first invoice only. Regular prices apply for all consecutive renewals unless explicitly stated otherwise." The page's own "SAVE 83%" tells you how far the price moves.
- Monthly billing is in the help centre, not the sales page. A 2021 help article says "You can pay monthly for all your hosting plans", and the 2024 rates article lists StartUp at $24.99 a month on a 1-month term. The sales pages show only the 12-month offer.
- The free domain is for year one. Its terms limit the free domain to the first year of the initial term, so the domain renews at a charge alongside the higher hosting rate.
- Refunds. Its terms of service refund shared hosting "if cancellation is requested within 30 days from initial activation".
Support
"Our reps work 24/7 and resolve 90%+ of inquiries at first contact - on chat, phone, and ticket." (source)
Who it suits
StartUp suits one business site that wants daily backups, a CDN and email in the price, and a phone line at any hour, and whose owner accepts paying $17.99 a month from year two. Its WooCommerce page sells the same StartUp with WooCommerce pre-installed, so it is on our WooCommerce list; GoGeek, with white-label access and pre-configured client roles, puts it on our agencies list.
Look elsewhere if you need staging on the cheapest plan, more than one site, or a renewal that stays near the intro price.
See the full web hosting ranking, renewal prices side by side and how we score hosts.
Alternatives in Web hosting
| Alternative | Score | Best for | Visit |
|---|---|---|---|
| IONOS | 8.0/10Very goodOur score | Shared hosting with 24/7 phone support and unlimited websites, renewing at $8 a month No affiliate relationship | Visit IONOSOn ionos.com |
| Namecheap | 7.7/10GoodOur score | Shared hosting that starts with a 30-day free trial and renews at $4.66 a month No affiliate relationship | Visit NamecheapOn namecheap.com |
| Liquid Web | 7.3/10GoodOur score | One managed WordPress site at $9 a month, the same price at renewal No affiliate relationship | Visit Liquid WebOn liquidweb.com |