Network Solutions Review

Network Solutions is a web hosting and domain registration provider that has been serving customers since 1979. The company offers a range of hosting plans that cater to the needs of different users, including shared hosting, VPS hosting, and dedicated hosting. Network Solutions’ hosting plans are known for their reliability, with a focus on providing high-performance hosting services with exceptional customer support. 

The company also offers a variety of additional features and tools, such as website builders, one-click installs for popular applications, and free SSL certificates. With its long-standing reputation in the industry, Network Solutions has gained a reputation for being one of the most reliable and trustworthy hosting providers in the industry. In this review, we’ll take a closer look at Network Solutions’ hosting plans, features, and performance, to help you decide if it’s the right hosting provider for your needs.

Overview

Network Solutions is a web hosting company that has been in business since 1979, making it one of the oldest and most established web hosting providers on the market. The company offers a range of hosting plans, including shared hosting, VPS hosting, and dedicated servers, all of which are designed to cater to different levels of web hosting needs. 

Network Solutions is known for its reliable service and top-notch customer support, which is available 24/7 via phone, email, and live chat. The company also offers a range of additional services, including domain name registration, website design, and e-commerce solutions, making it a one-stop-shop for all of your online needs. Whether you’re a small business owner or a large enterprise, Network Solutions has a hosting plan that can meet your needs and help you achieve your online goals.

It all begins with a domain. That is the first thing you can see on the Network Solutions page. It all comes down to Network Solutions being the world’s first domain registrar and a technology consulting company with 25 years of experience. 

And now it grows to offer everything you need to make your online business a success. Products and services offered are domain, web hosting, site builder, SSL certificate, professional email, and WordPress hosting.

Customer Support

Network Solutions is a web hosting company that offers a range of hosting solutions, including shared hosting, VPS hosting, and dedicated servers. Along with their hosting services, Network Solutions provides a variety of customer support options to help their clients get the most out of their hosting experience.

One of the key customer support options from Network Solutions is their 24/7/365 support team. This team of experienced technical experts is always available to assist with any hosting-related issues or questions that clients may have. They can provide support via phone, live chat or email, depending on the client’s preference.

Network Solutions also provides a comprehensive knowledge base on their website. This knowledge base includes a wealth of information on hosting-related topics, including how to manage your hosting account, troubleshoot common issues, and configure your website. Clients can use the knowledge base to find answers to their questions or to learn more about the hosting services that Network Solutions provides.

In addition to their live support and knowledge base, Network Solutions provides a range of tools and resources to help clients manage their hosting services. For example, their custom-built control panel provides easy access to server settings, application management tools, and other important details about your hosting service. They also offer a variety of integrations with popular applications like WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal.

Overall, Network Solutions provides a comprehensive set of customer support options for their hosting clients. Whether you need help resolving technical issues or simply want to learn more about the hosting services they provide, the Network Solutions support team and their online resources are always available to help.

Plans & Pricing

Network Solutions is a web hosting provider that offers a range of hosting plans to suit different needs and budgets. They are a popular choice among businesses and individuals looking for reliable and secure hosting services.

Network Solutions offers several hosting options, including shared hosting, WordPress hosting, and e-commerce hosting. Their shared hosting plans are ideal for small to medium-sized websites and offer a range of features to help customers get their sites up and running quickly and easily.

Their shared hosting plans start at $7.99/month and offer a range of features, including unlimited disk space and bandwidth, free domain registration, and a website builder tool. Their higher-tier plans offer more resources, including more email accounts and a dedicated IP address.

Below is a table of the various shared hosting plans and pricing available from Network Solutions:

In addition to hosting plans, Network Solutions also offers domain registration services, website security solutions, and online marketing services.

Network Solutions is known for their excellent customer support, with 24/7 support available via phone, live chat, and email. They also offer a 30-day money-back guarantee for their hosting plans, allowing customers to try their services risk-free.

Getting Started with Network Solutions

Let’s check out its page, browse its web hosting offers, and get started with Network Solutions. I like the fact that it has a pretty straightforward homepage with the products listed on tabs so that you can browse them with ease.

For this review, I will look at its cloud web hosting plan, notably the Starter plan. It is ideal for someone like me who is just starting in web hosting and development. 

This plan comes with 15 GB of disk space, one website, five email boxes, and a business tax-saving analysis. It cost $5.69 per month and includes a free domain if you choose the annual terms billing cycle.

After I clicked the Add to Cart button, I was redirected to a domain registration page where I could choose to register a new domain or use an already existing one.

The domain name I registered was luckily available. I was then confronted with a choice to include domain protection or not. 

When my domain is unprotected, it will be searchable on the WHOIS database, a public database that contains all domain names registered online. This means my personal information like name, address, and contact number will become visible publicly. 

Network Solutions offers one month of free domain protection. It will be renewed for only $1.99 per month.

When I clicked continue, I was brought to my shopping cart. I noticed that domain registration was not for free and cost $15 per year. 

After I reviewed everything, I clicked Secure Checkout. Payment methods include credit cards and Paypal.

Next, you can secure your site by adding an SSL certificate for only $1.99 for the first month and renewing at $7.99 per month. 

Getting an SSL certificate can boost your Google SEO ranking, keeps your visitor’s browsing details privates, and safeguard your user’s information.

After, I was redirected to a page where I had to create an account as a new customer. Included are the following information: name, address, contact number, email add, user id, and password.

The next part of the sign-up process is to input my credit card information and billing address.

Once my payment was confirmed, I received a welcome message from Network solutions to verify my account.

In the next section, I will show you how to manage your website using Network solutions.

Using and Managing your Website with Network Solutions

To manage your website using Network Solutions, you have to log in to its Account Manager using your registered web hosting login details.

You will be greeted by this homepage.

It has tabs on the following:

• My Products and Services – containing all purchased products like domain, hosting, site builder, and more
• Account Settings – manage your account preferences and settings
• Billing and Payments- this is where you can see all your purchases and transaction
• Special Offers- you can find here the promos and special offer
• Renewal Center- this tab makes it easy for you to renew your purchased product and service
• Support – lets you contact Network Solution’s customer support team whenever you have problems with your web hosting services.

Network Solutions Control Panel

A control panel is used to manage your website and your servers. There’s a lot of control panels available in the market today. If you have been in web development long enough, perhaps you are familiar with cPanel or Plesk.

Some web hosting providers use a third-party control panel, while others use and create their own. Network Solutions seems to choose the latter. To access your Network Solutions web hosting control panel, you have to log in to your Account Manager and go to the My Hosting Packages section.

From there, you can manage the following:

• Domains – From here, you can secure, renew, set up subdomains, transfer, and check the status of your domain. You can also view and manage your DNS record from here.
• Emails – From here, you can set up your email accounts, troubleshoot email issues, and many more.
• File Manager – From here, you can manage files like uploading a file, creating a new file and folder, and many more. You can also edit, download, copy, delete and move your web hosting files.
• Database Manager- From this, you access your MyPHPAdmin to manage your database and MySQL to create a database.
• Security – This section lets you install, delete, or renew your SSL certificates and other security features, including but not limited to site seal and cybersecurity.

Network Solutions Website Builder

Network Solutions offers a DIY Website Builder for both novice and advanced users. It is an easy way to create your own website without being an expert in web building. It comes with intuitive, user-friendly tools that can be used to customize to fit your website needs.

DIY Website Builder has a template gallery containing more than 150 professional website templates designed for your needs. It was developed to support business growth. If you are unsure what you want and later decide to have e-commerce features later, setting up online shopping and online payment is easy and quick.

You can also add form builders, image galleries, animation, HTML, content blocks, SEO optimization, and many more. Sites are also responsive to all devices, and you can preview them from your dashboard. Changes will automatically be saved if you are connected to the internet.

The Network Solution DIY website building is pretty straightforward. On the left, you can see the following: Build, Pages, Store, Themes, and Settings. On top, you can select a preview style: desktop, tablet, or smartphone. 

Once you are satisfied with the result, you can easily publish your site with a click of a button. 

It is a drag-drop website building, so you can easily add your blocks to your site. 

To start using this site builder, you need to sign up to get a free domain name. I checked my domain’s availability, and thankfully it is still available. 

There are three packages to choose from: Website Builder; Website and Online Marketing; Website, Marketing, and Store.

The cheapest package has an introductory price of $2.95 per month.

It comes with free custom domain name registration, professional design layouts, the Do-It-Yourself site builder, and many more.

Upon purchase, an email confirmation and verification will be sent to your account containing login details and including access to Network Solution’s library and resource center.

If you are an online business owner, content creator, or blogger who wants to build an online presence, Network Solutions also offers a professional site for you. It is for a fee, of course, but this means you don’t have to worry about the building process.

Network Solutions App Installer

Most hosting companies include an app installer in their dashboard. While accessing mine, I couldn’t find it, so I asked for help from Network Solution customer support. 

I was pointed to the knowledge base to read about the process of installing an application.

From the Site Enhancement section, click Open Source Applications. You will see a list of open source applications that are available for a one-click installation. Click Add New, then Set-Up and Installation.

Network Solutions Customer Support

Customer and technical support should be one of the factors you need to consider in choosing a web host. There are times what we are really stuck and don’t know the answer to our hosting problems. Having experts to rely on is an advantage that any hosting provider should be prioritized.

For this review, I used the live chat feature to asked about Network Solution’s control panel. You can also choose the telephone support option. I made a mistake because I did not choose a category of the query first. I went back and chose Domain, Hosting, and Website as a category because that is where my question falls under.

I asked about the dashboard or control panel that they used. Ray was accommodating in pointing me in the right direction until I could find what I was looking for. He sent me links and guides I could read. I also asked about free site migration, but unfortunately, they do not have that offer.

Included in their support is a list of knowledgebase. I like that it is categorized according to its services.

Buyer’s Guide for Network Solutions

Network Solutions has everything you need to make your business online. It offers domain registration services, domain management, email accounts, hosting services and packages, security for hosting plans, website builders, and many more.

Plans, Pricing, and Features

Cloud Web Hosting

This hosting service comes in four different hosting plans:

Starter

This cloud hosting package is ideal for beginners in web hosting and development and comes with the following features:

• It starts at $5.69 per month
• 15 GB Disk Space
• 1 Website
• 5 Email Boxes
• Free Business LLC Formation

Essential

This hosting package is ideal for personal website users and comes with the following:

• It starts at $9.96 per month
• 300 GB Disk Space
• 3 Websites
• 1000 Email Boxes
• Domain Name Included (for an annual term hosting options only )
• SiteLock (Malware Scanning)
• Free Business LLC Formation

Professional

This cloud hosting service is good for entrepreneurs and freelancers and comes with the following inclusions:

• It starts at $15.78 per month
• Unlimited Disk Space
• 10 Websites
• Unlimited Email Boxes
• Domain Name Included
• SiteLock Premium (Malware Scanning, Auto Malware Removal)
• Free Business LLC Formation

Premium

This cloud hosting plan is good for business owners or agencies. It has the following inclusions:

• It starts at $21.62 per month
• Unlimited Storage
• 10 Websites
• Unlimited Email Boxes
• Domain Name Included
• SiteLock Premium (Malware Scanning, Auto Malware Removal)
• SSL Certificate
• Free Business LLC Formation

WordPress Hosting

More than 40 percent of the websites that are created are using WordPress. It is a content management system that most developers prefer because of its ease of use, numerous themes, and excellent plugins. 

Network Solutions hosting package includes WordPress for entrepreneurs, businesses, enterprises, and professionals.

WordPress for Entrepreneurs

It starts at $7.99 per month and has the following:

• 50 GB Disk Space
• 10 Email Boxes
• 1 WordPress Site
• On-Demand Cloud Backup
• Domain Name

WordPress for Growing Business

It starts at $13.98 per month and has:

• 100 GB Storage
• Multisite Management
• 25 Email Boxes
• 3 WordPress Sites
• On-Demand Cloud Backup
• SSL included
• Domain Name (for annual terms only)

WordPress for Professionals

It starts at $18. 98 per month and has the following inclusions:

• 200 GB Storage
• Multisite Management
• 50 Email Boxes
• 5 WordPress Sites
• On-Demand Cloud Backup
• SSL included
• Domain Name

Webstie Builder

Website Builder

Price starts at $2.95 per month and comes with the following features:

• Free Domain Name Registration
• Professional Design Layouts
• Do-It-Yourself Website Builder

Website and Online Marketing

The introductory price is $3.95 per month and has the following inclusions:

• Everything in Website Builder
• Business profile in dozens of local search engines
• Search Engine Submission to Google, Yahoo, Bing, and more

Website, Marketing, and Store

The introductory price is $4.95 per month and comes with:

• Everything in Website Builder & Online Marketing
• Sell up to 500 products
• Accept credit cards with a secure shopping cart
• Link to your Facebook Marketplace

E-Commerce Website Builder

Starter

Price starts at $7.95 per month and includes:

• Sell up to 25 products
• 5 Email Boxes Included
• Mobile Optimized Online Store
• Domain Name Included

Standard

Price starts at $9.95 per month and has the following:

• Sell up to 300 products
• 50 Email Boxes Included
• Mobile Optimized Online Store
• Domain Name Included

Premium

Price starts at $19.95 per month and comes the following features:

• Sell up to 100,000 products
• Bulk Management Tools
• 100 Email Boxes Included
• Mobile Optimized Online Store
• Domain Name Included

Email and Office

Professional Email

Price starts at $1.75 per user per month and includes:

• Professional email accounts that use your own domain
• Access all of your files and email from any device with internet access
• Share calendars, contacts, and tasks with your team
• Enhanced Spam and Virus protection
• 25 GB of email storage

Professional Email Plus

Price starts at $4.99 per user per month and comes with:

• Professional email that uses your domain
• Access all of your files and email from any device with internet access
• Share calendars, contacts, and tasks with your team
• Enhanced Spam and Virus protection
• Guard Encryption for enhanced security
• 80 GB of email storage

Mobile Emails

This plan provides you with seamless access to your email and collaboration tools using your smartphones and tablets.

Office 365 Business Premium

Price starts at $14.99 per user per month and has the following inclusions:

• Includes online versions of Office365
• Downloadable Versions of MS Office apps on up to 5 PCs or Macs. (MS Outlook, MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, MS ACCESS)
• Accessible on tablets and smartphones
• Business Tools including Bookings, MileIQ, & more
• 50 GB of email storage for professional email that uses your own domain
• 1 TB OneDrive storage for Business cloud storage

Security and Backups

Network Solutions offers the following security features to its customers:

SSL certificates

• Removes “Not Secure” from the browser address bar
• Shows sign of security to earn your customer’s trust
• Drives more customer engagement ad conversions
• Encrypting important information
• Protects your personal data to makes browsing safe
• Provides unlimited reissues
• Domain, subdomain, and organizational

*Pricing only applies when a 2-year billing term is selected in the cart. The prices reflected are the monthly cost only.

Xpress

• Domain Validation Certificate- validates that you are the owner of your domain.
• It starts at $59.99 per year and auto-renews at $69.99
•  Safeguards customer data
•  Demonstrates site legitimacy
• Reassures search engines your site is safe

Basic

• Organizational Validation – it verifies your business is what it says it is
• It starts at $124.50 per year and auto-renews at $139.99
• Up to 256-bit encryption
• HTTPS closed padlock and a site seal
• Reimbursement guarantee

Advanced

• Full Coverage Organizational Validation
• It starts at $199.5o per year and auto-renews at $255
•  Up to 256-bit encryption
• HTTPS closed padlock and a site seal
• Reimbursement guarantee

Wildcard

• Secures your domain and subdomains
• It starts at $579 per year
• Up to 256-bit encryption
• HTTPS closed padlock and a site seal
• Issued in 1 business day

UCC

• Validate Multiple Domains
• It starts at $50 per year per domain for the first three domains

Extended

• Extended Validation-signal to customers they are safe to proceed to your site.
• It starts at $399 per year and auto-renews at $549
• Up to 256-bit encryption
•  HTTPS closed padlock and a site seal
•  Issued in 4-5 business days

Trusted Site Seal

• Network Solutions offers nsProtect™ Assured website seal to add credibility to your website.
• Proves that you are a legitimate website and you undergo and passed the verification process
• Clicking the Site Seal shows your business and website credentials to your visitors.
• Improves user activity by increasing visitor trust and confidence

Website Security By Sitelock

Sitelock Premium – scan and remove malware

• starts at $6.99 per month
• Daily Vulnerability Scan
• Automatic Malware Removal
• Display SiteLock Trust Seal on your page

Sitelock Defend

• It starts at $29.99 per month
• Web Application Firewall
• Daily Malware scan Up to 500 Pages
• Ongoing Vulnerability Scan
• Automatic Malware Removal*
• Global Content Delivery Network (CDN)
• Dynamic Content caching
• SSL Compatible
• Block OWASP Top 10 Threats
• Display SiteLock Trust Seal on your page

Sitelock911

• It starts at $199.00 per year for a one time purchase
• Start removing malware within minutes
• Most sites are clean within 2 hour
• No site size limitation
• Automatically scans and removes malware until your site is clean*
• Email notifications as malware are removed

SiteLock911 + Defend

• It starts at $399.00 per year
• Start removing malware within minutes
• Most sites are clean within 2 hours
• Daily Malware scan up to 500 Pages
• Ongoing Vulnerability Scan
• Automatic Malware Removal
• Display SiteLock Trust Seal on your page
• Global Content Delivery Network (CDN)
• Dynamic Content Caching
• SSL Compatible
• Block OWASP Top 10 Threats
• Web Application Firewall

Cyber Security Solutions for Small Business

• It starts at $4.16 per month for a one year term
• Available dedicated security experts on-call whenever you need them
• Protecting your small business from identity threats
• Risk mitigation- stopping threats before they actually happen
• Remotely wipes data when the device is stolen
• 24/7 device monitoring
• Safe browsing

Cloud Website Backup

Network Solutions offers an automatic backups feature that comes with the following inclusions:

Basic

• starts at $1.99 per month
• 1 GB of Space
• 1 Website
• 1 Database

Deluxe

• starts at $5.99 per month
• 5 GB of Space
• Up to 5 GB Website
• Unlimited Database

Professional

• starts at $9.99 per month
• 10 GB of Space
• Up to 10 GB Website
• Unlimited Database

Pros

Here are some of the advantages of using Network Solutions as your web hosting provider:

• Fast customer support
• Free domain for some plans
• Includes free website builder
• Custom and advanced options are available
• Supports domain transfers.
• Email packages included
• Caters both novice and advanced users
• Offers cyber security solutions for small businesses
• Offers WordPress hosting

Cons

Here are some of the disadvantages of using Network Solutions as a web hosting provider:

• No free SSL certificates
• No free site migration
• Complex interface and control panel
• No dedicated hosting services
• No live chat support (only email and phone)
• Lack of freebies across all hosting plans
• The knowledgebase is not very comprehensive
• No more Network Solutions VPS hosting plans
• No money-back guarantee
• No dedicated IP address option
• Not so good user reviews recently

Final Thoughts

Although Network Solutions was considered the first domain registrar, we couldn’t say the same for web hosting. Many companies were offering hosting services before they actually decided to play in that field.

Network Solutions hosting options are limited to cloud web and WordPress hosting only. Many Network Solutions alternatives offer more inclusions in their hosting plans, including VPS(Virtual Private Server) and dedicated server.

Would I recommend Network Solutions?

Yes! If you are looking to spend money in one place from domain to hosting and web building, and other services, then you can go ahead and try Network Solutions. Otherwise, there is so many web hosts company with more features but for a lesser price, like Namecheap.

I hope this Network Solutions review helped you in your web hosting journey!