Choosing new WP Managed Host

Hi,

After months of struggling with reliability and performance with DreamHost/DreamPress (and upgrading from shared to VPS to Optimized WP VPS), I’ve come to the conclusion it might not be all due to my inexperience but rather the host itself (or you get what you pay for with relatively cheap hosting). After days of exhaustive research, I’m having trouble making a decision on what host to switch to, and I’d appreciate any feedback about my approach.

Key elements of what I *think* I need:
– Managed hosting since I don’t have the experience or the time to manage and optimize server settings/etc.
– WordPress optimization – speed and security are important, and I believe tuning the server for WP (caching, security, etc.) can make a difference
-VPS — since shared hosting did not work out for me with DreamHost (was shutdown due to memory use). My memory use is at 800 mb and growing. I’m building a eCommerce website (currently pre-launch) that hopefully will generate increasing amounts of traffic in the future.

I have narrowed down to the following 4 (I cancelled out Pagely (multisite require $149 Pro Plan) and Synthesis, among others).

**WP Engine** – Professional Plan

Pros:
– Staging area feature sounds very convenient, since I need to figure out how to set one up, and this should made it a lot easier/efficient.
– Appears to have robust WP optimization — it’s their sole focus

Cons:
– Does not host domain, e-mail, or DNS management, so I would have to find, use, and pay for these with separate company(s)
– $104/month (in order to allow SSL)

**SiteGround** – Cloud 1 Plan

Pros:
– Appears to have most comprehensive support (phone, chat, e-mail, and support forum, all 24/7).
– Has staging area feature
– Includes domain and e-mail hosting
– They handle free migration of site to them from old host (if under 1 GB)

Cons:
– $120/month ($70/month with 6 months prepaid + $50/month WP Booster/optimization; includes SSL support & certificate)
– They were a little too eager to get me onboard with their cheap shared plan (and then assume I would have to upgrade), in that the first salesperson was positive I would be fine (but the second person acknowledged I would need Cloud VPS now)

**Flywheel** – Tiny Plan

Pros:
– $25/month (includes SSL support)
– They handle free migration of site to them from old host
– Fully optimized for WP

Cons:
– No staging area (but plans to develop one)
– Small and untested (only launched in Sept 2013, and their CEO has been responding to my sales questions)
– Less support resources and restricted to CST business days/hours

**A Small Orange** – Cloud VPS (1 Core) Plan

Pros:
– $25/month (includes SSL support)
– They handle free migration of site to them from old host (in most cases)
– Includes domain and e-mail hosting
– Green hosting (fits well with my company’s values)

Cons:
– Not optimized specifically for WP (just compatible)
– They recommend we still use own security solution
– No staging area

Unfortunately, they all have trade-offs! I guess it kind of comes down to whether I want to spend the time and energy doing some things the harder way and/or on my own (e.g., staging area, migration, domain/e-mail/DNS management, WP optimization and security), or pay more for it to be taken care of by the hosting experts (although it didn’t quite turn out that way with DreamPress). I’m also running business development, writing website content, and am involved with all aspects of my startup website (design, etc), so…

Any thoughts appreciated! Hopefully my research might be helpful to others too…

Thanks!