20i handled the Static test with ease scoring a quick 48ms average response time. 20i also had perfect uptime on both monitors. It picked up the fastest speed in Tokyo on WPT. It also had an A+ SSL Grade. The Load Storm was extremely borderline, it had a few errors, but well below any concerning threshold, and a spike, but otherwise handled it just fine. I'm erring on the side of not penalizing what could just be random network noise versus a deeper server performance issue. 20i earns Top Tier status for this years performance.

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34SP had an good showing in the Load Storm test with the second fastest wp-login, Page and Login speed. The Static test went by without any issues. Uptime was perfect and 99.9954%. It's nice to see 34SP.com delivered a Top Tier result again this year.

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A2 Hosting stood out on the Static test with an staggeringly fast 5.4ms average response time, a mere 0.2ms behind Pressable, for second fastest average. It also tied Pressable for fastest p95 in the test. Uptime was perfect and 99.975%. A2 Hosting also had the fastest average speed on WPT and was the fastest in a single location. It also earned an A+ SSL grade. Unfortunately, A2 Hosting struggled with the Load Storm test and started to slow down around 300 VUsers and errored out later. There was a lot to like in the A2 Hosting's performance, but there's a little work left to be done before it earns Top Tier recognition.

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Bluehost took a year off after a slightly disappointing performance, but the break was worth it. Last time the Load Storm test proved a bit much for the plan. This year Bluehost handled the Load Storm test without issue. The Static test saw Bluehost score a snappy 18ms average and 25ms p95. Bluehost also had perfect uptime. It's always nice to see engineering efforts pay off, congrats to Bluehost on earning Top Tier status.

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It was not Cloudways' best performance. The Load Storm test started having issues early at 80 VUsers and started having errors towards the end. The Static test had some spikes due to CPU usage towards the end of the test. Uptime was perfect on one monitor and 99.9755% on another.

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Namecheap experienced no problems during the Load Storm test. The Static test went equally as well, both having zero errors. Uptime was 100% and 99.9954%. Namecheap also had an A+ SSL grade. Overall, the product was Top Tier and handled all the tests without any noticeable issues.

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GreenGeeks did well on the Load Storm test and even had the third fastest Login speed. GreenGeeks handled the Static test with a near perfectly flat response time. Uptime monitors showed 99.894% and 99.9783%. The Uptime Robot downtime was attributed to an SSL-Host Mismatch at the very start of the test. The other monitor noticed zero issues during this window, so the decision is erring on the side of tooling problem vs hosting problem. GreenGeeks picked up a fastest WPT speed in a single location. It also earned an A+ SSL grade. GreenGeeks had a Top Tier performance again this year.

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Hostgator is owned by Newfold Digital, same parent company as Bluehost, but the products are not the same. Hostgator actually slightly edged it's sister product in the Static test with an impressive 16ms average response time and 24ms p95. Hostgator had perfect uptime. Unfortunately, the Load Storm test exposed the difference in the Hostgator product vs Bluehost. Hostgator started to slow down around 425 VUsers and eventually errored out.

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ICDSoft stepped up their game last year and didn't let up. ICDSoft had the fastest wp-login, Page and Login speed on the Load Storm test. It also had the third fastest p95. The Static test went smoothly. Uptime was 100% and 99.9924%. It's great to see ICDSoft maintain consistency and earn back to back Top Tier awards.

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Krystal Hosting handled the Static test without a single error. It had perfect uptime on one monitor and the other showed 99.9991%. Unfortunately, Krystal started to slow down around 700 VUsers during the Load Storm test which kept it out of award contention.

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LightningBase is one of, if not, the longest continuous participant(s) in the benchmarks. The Load Storm test went well with LightningBase having the third fastest wp-login. The Static test also went well. Uptime was perfect. LightningBase also picked up a fastest single location speed on WPT. LightningBase's streak of longest continuous Top Tier awards continues.

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ManagedWPHosting handled the Static test fine, it may have been the slowest in average and p95, but the graph was flatish and slightly speeding up as the test went on with an average of 162ms. They had excellent uptime at perfect and 99.9991%. ManagedWPHosting also picked up the second fastest PHP Bench and an A+ SSL grade. Unfortunately, the Load Storm test had a spike right as it reached 1000VUsers causing a slow down, which it recovered from. However, it caused too much of a slow down and errors to be considered for an award. I'm not sure what caused it because it handled 1000VUsers after recovering for a while, but the product looks about one spike away from award consideration.

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Nexcess has been a regular participant in these benchmarks and missed earning any awards the last couple years at this price tier. But this was finally Nexcess's year. It's nice to see hard work and improvements pay off. The Load Storm test went by effortlessly. The Static test saw Nexcess pickup the third fastest average and p95 at 13ms and 20ms respectively. Their Achilles heal had been uptime issues which were finally solved this year with 99.999% and 99.9873% uptime. Nexcess also had the fastest PHP and WP Bench scores. Nexcess finally earned a well deserved Top Tier award for this price tier.

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Pressable brought the speed again this year. Pressable had the fastest p95 on the Load Storm test and the second fastest Asset speed. Pressable also had the fastest Static test with an average response time of 5.2ms and 12ms p95. Perfect uptime on both monitors. Another year, another Top Tier for Pressable.

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ROMARG was another first time participant in the benchmarks. The Load Storm and Static test went without issue, flat response times and zero errors is always nice to see. ROMARG's uptime was 99.962% and 99.9372%. ROMARG also picked up the third fastest WP Bench score. Overall, ROMARG's performance was Top Tier, it handled all the tests without showing any signs of stress.

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Despite no longer offering the product, ShortPixel Hosting had a very good showing. The Load Storm test went well and ShortPixel even managed the third fastest wp-login speed. The Static test also went well with 140ms average response time. ShortPixel also had perfect and 99.9964% uptime. ShortPixel even picked up the fastest speed in one location on the WPT and the second fastest WP Bench. It was a Top Tier performance for ShortPixel's hosting product.

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SiteGround's Static test had a quick average response time of 22ms. The uptime was perfect and 99.9982%. SiteGround looked excellent on the WPT where it had the second fastest average and was the fastested in 3 locations individually. The Load Storm test went almost perfect but there was a few spikes that looked like a couple locations had networking issues causing the very small spikes. I've erred on the side of these being networking issues, as the server itself seemed fine and continued to server content fine to the other locations without any impact on loading speed. So SiteGround earns Top Tier status this year.

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Stoute Web Solutions is a new GridPane powered participant in the benchmarks. Stoute Web Solutions handled the Load Storm test without issue. While their results in the Load Storm test were somewhat middle of the pack, the Static test saw Stoute Web Solutions deliver a very fast 21ms average response time and 30ms p95. Uptime was solid at 100% and 99.9868%. It even picked up a fastest single location in the WPT. They also picked up third fastest PHP Bench. Stoute Web Solutions was a welcome newcomer that had an excellent first showing - earning themselves Top Tier recognition.

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Stromonic was acquired mid-test and the new owner was not prepared or interested in participating. The results are incomplete. They were disqualified from any award consideration.

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WP Buzz was a new entrant this year and the only company to take advantage of the sponsorship program. The Static test went very well for WP Buzz with an average response time of 48ms. The uptime was 100% and 99.9991% which is fantastic. WP Buzz even picked up the fastest WPT speed in a single location. Unfortunately, the Load Storm test didn't go very well. There were issues starting around 250 VUsers and then errors. This was due to a security issue which couldn't be worked around. So there may very well be a very strong product underneath, but we weren't fully able to test it which kept WP Buzz from any award contention.

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WPX has been a consistent Top Tier performer in these benchmarks. The Load Storm test went very well this year with WPX clocking the second fastest p95 and the fastest Asset speed. The Static test went equally as well with WPX having an blazingly fast average response time of 11ms, good for third overall. Uptime was 100% and 99.9995%. WPX also managed the third fastest average on the WPT with the fastest score in 2 locations. WPX's streak of Top Tier awards won't be broken this year.

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