Quick Verdict
IONOS lures with $1 promotional pricing but renewals are shocking (500%+ increase). RunHost offers honest, transparent pricing from day 1.
| Feature | RunHost | IONOS |
|---|---|---|
| Intro Price | $1.99/mo | $1/mo |
| Renewal Price | $1.99/moLocked-in | $6/mo |
| Price Increase | 0% | +500% |
| Support Response | 2–3 minutes | 8–12 minutes |
| NVMe Storage | All plans | Premium only |
| Free Migration | Full white-glove | Limited / paid |
1. Pricing: Where RunHost Wins Decisively
IONOS is known for ultra-low promotional pricing ($1/month). The real issue emerges at renewal—pricing jumps 500%. RunHost offers transparent pricing with no hidden renewals: what you pay on signup is what you pay forever.
IONOS pricing
- Intro$1/mo
- Renewal$6/mo
- Increase+500%
RunHost pricing
- Starter$1.99/mo
- Business$3.99/mo
- Pro$5.99/mo
3-year cost comparison
IONOS: $156 vs RunHost: $72
54%
total savings
2. Why IONOS? Strengths & Weaknesses
What IONOS does well
Ultra-low promotional pricing ($1/month)
The critical problem
Confusing control panel, poor support, 500%+ renewal shock
3. Features: What You Actually Get
| Feature | RunHost Starter | IONOS Basic | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Storage | 5GB NVMe SSD | 10GB SSD | IONOS (size) |
| Storage type | NVMe (15–20% faster) | Standard SSD | RunHost |
| Websites | 1 | 1 | Tie |
| Free domain | Yes (1 year) | Yes (1 year) | Tie |
| Free SSL | Auto-renew | Auto-renew | Tie |
| Free migration | Full white-glove | Limited / paid | RunHost |
| Support response | 2–3 min (chat) | 8–12 min (chat) | RunHost |
4. Performance: Speed Matters for SEO & UX
Both providers maintain 99.9% uptime, but RunHost's NVMe-first infrastructure delivers a 15–20% speed advantage over IONOS's standard SSD approach.
RunHost
- TTFB: 180 ms
- LCP: 1.8 s
- Uptime: 99.99%
IONOS
- TTFB: 220 ms
- LCP: 2.2 s
- Uptime: 99.9%
A 400 ms difference matters: every 1-second delay reduces conversions by ~7%, and faster sites rank higher in Google.
5. Support Quality: Where You Feel the Difference
When something breaks, support quality becomes your lifeline.
RunHost support
- Response: 2–3 minutes
- Tier-1 resolution: 78%
- Team: In-house, dedicated
IONOS support
- Response: 8–12 minutes
- Tier-1 resolution: 45%
- Team: Outsourced
7. Migration: How to Switch from IONOS
Switching hosts sounds scary—RunHost makes it effortless.
- 1Contact RunHost support with your IONOS login
- 2Our team migrates your entire site within 24 hours (free)
- 3Zero downtime — migration happens in the background
- 4DNS updated only after verification
Final verdict
Choose RunHost
For 99% of website owners, RunHost is the clear winner over IONOS.
- 75–80% lower renewal costs
- 15–20% faster performance (NVMe)
- Better support (2× faster response)
- No surprise renewal fees
- Free white-glove migration from IONOS
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Frequently Asked Questions
Will my site go down during migration?
No. RunHost migrates in the background, then updates DNS. Zero downtime for properly configured migrations.
Is RunHost as reliable as IONOS?
Yes. Both maintain 99.9%+ uptime. RunHost is equally reliable but more transparent about pricing.
Can I keep my current domain?
Absolutely. You keep your domain; we just point it to our servers. DNS typically propagates within 30 min to 2 hours.
What if I don't like RunHost?
30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund, no questions asked. Zero risk.