If you transmit online payment information on your server, Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance is non-negotiable. It’s your responsibility to ensure that your web host meets this standard. However, finding the best PCI compliant web hosting companies can take some digging.
Some platforms only offer PCI compliance with specific plans, so it’s crucial to pick the right one. Usually, it will be one of the company’s more expensive offers with higher security measures, but there are budget-friendly options as well.
In this article, we will go through six of the best PCI compliant web hosting companies that are safe choices when processing online payments on your server. We’ll also explain what PCI compliance is and why it’s so important. Let’s dive in!
Understanding PCI compliant web hosting and why do you need it 🤔
PCI standards exist to ensure that companies collect, store, and process their customers’ credit card information securely. If you transmit payment data on your servers, your web host must be PCI compliant because it is indirectly involved in processing payment data.
You and your web host must meet 12 core requirements including:
- Using systems and networks that are up to date
- Having a vulnerability management program in place to deal with threats
- Exercising strict access control to prevent any unauthorized entry
- Maintaining a security policy that is reviewed regularly
Businesses that need to become PCI compliant are typically ecommerce stores or any type of website that accepts and processes credit card payments on their server. If you use WordPress and WooCommerce for your ecommerce needs, note that although these platforms follow the highest security standards, they’re not technically PCI compliant.
Alternatively, you can use third-party payment services such as PayPal or Stripe, which take care of credit card payments on your behalf.
⚠️ Important note: If you’re running a WooCommerce store with WordPress, the best way to achieve PCI compliance is to use a third-party payment gateway such as PayPal, Stripe, Authorize.net, etc. These payment gateways are easy to setup with WooCommerce and handle processing credit card information for you, which takes the responsibility off of your shoulders.
For example, if you use the Stripe gateway, Stripe has a feature called Stripe Elements that transmits all credit card information on Stripe’s servers, without it ever passing through your WooCommerce store’s servers. This eliminates the need for you to use PCI compliant web hosting.
Six best PCI compliant web hosting companies 🏆
Now that we’ve discussed the basics, let’s look at six of the best PCI compliant web hosting companies that currently meet these standards.
1. Bluehost
Bluehost is a beginner-friendly web hosting company that supports PCI compliance across all its plans. With some configuration [1] and guidance, you can pass your PCI scan successfully no matter which service you choose.
If you’re using WordPress and WooCommerce, it’s worth investing in the WooCommerce hosting option as it comes with additional security features, such as:
- Free SSL certificates
- A dedicated IP address
- Secure online payments
- Domain protection
Pricing starts at $9.95 for the straightforwardly-titled Online Store plan, which sets you up with 40 GB of storage. The more advanced plan, named Online Store + Marketplace, offers 100 GB storage and multi-channel inventory. Unless you really need the extra storage space or the multi-channel inventory, it’s better to opt for the cheaper choice because the two plans are very similar otherwise.
2. InMotion Hosting
InMotion Hosting offers reliable performance and PCI assistance [2]. Its live support team can even help with your compliance reviews and suggest improvements based on the PCI scan results. Note that you need to opt for one of the VPS or dedicated hosting plans in order to access these features.
InMotion Hosting offers other solid features as well, such as:
- Automatic daily backups
- Free SSL certificates
- Free site migrations
- WooCommerce optimization
- Fast VPS servers
- Access to SSH keys
Pricing starts at $14.99 per month for the VPS 4 GB RAM plan or $69.99 per month for the Aspire dedicated hosting plan.
3. WP Engine
WP Engine follows PCI DSS v3.2 standards across all its servers. You can also contact its expert team around the clock for PCI guidance [3]. Note that the company doesn’t handle cardholder information, and its Acceptable Use Policy prohibits you from doing so as well.
WP Engine offers fast-loading, managed WordPress hosting with the following features:
- Easy site migration
- Free SSL certificates, which are essential to securely process information
- Support for staging sites
- Consistently solid performance
Pricing starts at $20.00 per month for the Startup plan if you use our link via the button below. However, for large ecommerce sites, we recommend the Growth or Scale plans, which can handle more traffic. They also enable you to import your own SSL certificates if you’d prefer to do so instead of using the free one provided with your plan.
4. Liquid Web
Liquid Web offers full PCI compliance [4] and expert advice. Its team will go to great lengths to create a custom solution for your website and even provide quarterly PCI scans. While some PCI requirements are still your responsibility, Liquid Web can assist you in many ways and help you complete an Attestation of Compliance.
It offers a wide range of WooCommerce hosting plans that provide robust ecommerce features, such as:
- Free SSL certificates
- Dropshipping functionality
- Beaver Builder
- Exceptional speed and scalability thanks to Nexcess
Pricing will depend on your requirements as Liquid Web’s PCI hosting is designed for your specific needs. Their fully comprehensive PCI compliance bundles have a lot to offer but also come with a heftier price tag than their more standard hosting packages. For example, their basic WooCommerce package starts at $17.50 per month, while the cheapest PCI compliance bundle starts at $249 per month [5].
5. DreamHost
DreamHost’s sites and servers are PCI compliant. The company doesn’t offer much guidance on this topic, and it encourages you to contact your payment processor for advice. However, once you obtain your PCI certification, you can become fully compliant when hosting your site with DreamHost.
If you’re running an online store, you should look into DreamHosts’s managed WordPress solutions. They offer excellent performance and useful ecommerce features, such as:
- Free SSL certificates
- Automatic caching
- Jetpack integration, including Jetpack Backup for secure off-site backups (in addition to DreamHost’s own backup solution)
- Automatic WordPress updates
Pricing starts at $16.95 per month for the DreamPress plan, which comes with 30GB of storage, unmetered bandwidth, and even a staging site you can use to test out changes before going live with them. More advanced plans also offer an unlimited content delivery network (CDN).
6. Hostinger
Our final recommendation will appeal to those who are on tight budgets. Hostinger allocates all of its servers in PCI compliant data centers [6], so technically, you can achieve compliance even with its most affordable shared plan.
Hostinger offers a range of shared, VPS, and cloud hosting services. You can also opt for one of the WordPress-optimized solutions, which include:
- Free SSL certificates
- Automatic backups
- Jetpack integration
- Unlimited bandwidth
- LiteSpeed Cache
Pricing starts at as low as $2.69 per month for single shared hosting. However, it’s worth upgrading to one of the advanced plans for unlimited features and daily backups, especially if you require a more robust ecommerce solution.
Conclusion 🏁
PCI compliance is of utmost importance if your business deals with credit card data. Choosing the right web hosting company might not automatically make you compliant. Still, it’s a crucial step if you want to ensure that you meet the industry’s security standards.
In this article, we’ve selected six of the best PCI compliant web hosting companies that suit a variety of budgets. You can become compliant with any of these providers if you fulfill all PCI requirements. However, we find Liquid Web goes one step further by offering quarterly PCI scans and custom-made solutions. Alternatively, for simpler solutions, you might want to choose Bluehost which has always been a nice budget option in the hosting world.
However, if you’re using WooCommerce, a better solution is usually to integrate with a third-party payment gateway that can take care of PCI compliance for you. That way, you don’t have to worry about doing things yourself. In that case, you might want to consider our list of the best WooCommerce hosting instead.
Or, another option would be to use Shopify, which handles PCI compliance for you. Learn more in our Shopify vs WooCommerce comparison.
Do you have any questions about choosing PCI compliant web hosting? Ask us in the comments!
[2] https://www.inmotionhosting.com/support/website/security/pci-compliance/
[3] https://wpengine.com/support/wp-engine-and-pci-compliance/
[4] https://www.liquidweb.com/blog/become-pci-compliant-with-liquid-web/
[5] https://www.liquidweb.com/solutions/pci-compliance/
[6] https://support.hostinger.com/en/articles/1583660-are-your-servers-pci-compliant
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