Hosted vs Self-Hosted: Who Runs Your Website?

The short answer: choose a hosted platform if nobody on your team will reliably apply updates and you are happy to stay with one vendor; choose self-hosted software if you need features a hosted platform cannot provide, want to own every file, and have someone (you, a developer or a managed host) to look after it. The rest of this guide explains the trade-offs in cost, control and leaving.

Two ways to have a website

A hosted platform (sometimes called software as a service, or SaaS) is a website product you rent. Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, Shopify and WordPress.com work this way. You log in, build and edit; the company runs the servers, applies updates, handles security and keeps the lights on. You pay a subscription.

A self-hosted CMS is software you install on a server, which you can rent from a web hosting company. WordPress from WordPress.org, Drupal and Joomla work this way. You choose the host, install the software and own every file. Someone, you or the host or a developer, has to look after it.

Who does the work

That table is the heart of the decision. With a hosted platform, a whole category of technical risk belongs to someone else. With self-hosted software, it belongs to you, along with the freedom to change anything.

Cost compared

Hosted platforms charge a predictable subscription; on the plans in our guides, yearly billing costs less per month than monthly billing. Self-hosted software has no license fee for WordPress, Drupal or Joomla, but you pay for hosting, and the cheapest hosting is not always enough. For WordPress, the project's requirements page recommends PHP 8.3 or newer, MySQL 8.0 or newer or MariaDB 10.11 or newer, and HTTPS; it still runs on PHP 7.4, but the page warns those older versions are past end of life. A store running WooCommerce needs more: its documentation lists a 256 MB WordPress memory limit among its minimums.

The hidden cost of self-hosting is time. Updates, backups, testing after updates and dealing with the occasional broken plugin all take hours each month, whether yours or someone you pay. The hidden cost of hosted platforms is lock-in and app subscriptions that accumulate.

Control compared

Self-hosted software lets you change anything: the code, the server settings, where the site lives. You can install any plugin or module, write custom features and move hosts whenever you like. Hosted platforms limit what you can change to what the platform supports. If your site needs only the features the platform supports, those limits may never matter. If it has unusual requirements, they can decide the matter.

Version schedules and upkeep

Self-hosted software moves on a schedule you have to follow. Drupal 10 reaches end of life on December 9, 2026, and Drupal 7 support ended on January 5, 2025, according to Drupal.org. Joomla plans a new major version every two years. Running an unsupported version means running without security fixes. Hosted platforms update themselves, which also means features can change without your say.

Leaving compared

A self-hosted site can move to any compatible host, because you hold the database and files. Hosted platforms vary: some export content in standard formats, others not at all. Wix, for instance, states that sites need "to be hosted and operated on Wix's servers." See the lock-in guide for each platform's export rules.

The middle ground

Two options sit between the extremes:

• Managed hosting for open-source software. A host that specializes in WordPress, for example, handles updates, backups and security for a higher fee, while you keep the portability of the software.
• Hosted versions of open-source software. WordPress.com runs WordPress for you, with plans from $4 a month billed yearly on Personal; your site stays on the same software that runs everywhere else.

Both reduce the work of self-hosting without the lock-in of a proprietary builder.

A worked example

Consider two ways of running the same small service business site, with ten pages and a contact form. The figures are illustrative.

Hosted builder. A plan at around $17 to $29 a month billed yearly covers hosting, security and updates. The owner edits pages in the browser. Monthly maintenance is close to nothing beyond updating content. Leaving later would mean rebuilding the pages elsewhere, which for ten pages is a few days of work.

Self-hosted WordPress. Hosting might cost a similar amount or less, and the software is free. Someone needs about an hour or two a month to apply updates, check backups and test the contact form. If the owner values that time at $50 an hour, maintenance adds $50 to $100 a month in real terms. In return, the site can move to any host, and any plugin is available.

For this simple site, the hosted option is likely cheaper in total. For a site that needs custom features, publishes heavily or may change hosts, the balance can tip the other way.

Signs you chose the wrong setup

• On a hosted platform: you keep running into features the platform cannot provide, or app costs exceed what managed hosting would cost.
• On self-hosted software: updates are months behind, nobody is sure whether backups work, or the site has been hacked because something was not patched.

Either situation is fixable, and the migration guide explains how to move without losing search traffic.

A decision checklist

Tick each line that is true for your business:

• Nobody on the team wants to deal with updates, backups or security.
• The site needs only common features: pages, a blog, a contact form, maybe a small store.
• You expect to keep the same platform for several years.
• A predictable monthly bill matters more than the lowest possible cost.

If most lines are ticked, a hosted platform is the natural fit. If instead you need a specific plugin or integration, publish heavily, want to own every file, or have a developer or managed host on hand, self-hosted software deserves the closer look.

What to ask a host or platform before signing up

Whichever way you lean, a few questions clarify what you are buying.

For a hosted platform:

• Which plan do I need for the features I listed, and what is its renewal price?
• What can I export, and in which format?
• Which features need paid apps?
• What support is included, and how do I reach it?

For hosting self-hosted software:

• Which PHP and database versions will my account run, and do they meet the software's recommended versions?
• Are backups included, how often, and can I restore one myself?
• Are software updates applied for me, or is that my job?
• Is there a staging copy where updates can be tested first?

Written answers to these make two very different offers comparable.

A quick way to decide

Ask three questions:

1. Is there someone who will apply updates every month, without fail? If not, choose hosted or managed.
2. Does the site need anything unusual? If yes, self-hosted software is more likely to accommodate it.
3. How bad would rebuilding be in three years? If very bad, favor portability.

The platform wizard weighs these same factors and shows its reasoning.

Sources for this page

1. WordPress.org: About. Official source, read November 4, 2026.
2. WordPress.org: Requirements. Official source, read November 4, 2026.
3. WooCommerce Documentation: WooCommerce Server Recommendations. Official source, read November 4, 2026.
4. WordPress.com (Automattic): WordPress.com Pricing. Official source, read November 4, 2026.
5. Wix Help Center: Exporting or Embedding Your Wix Site Elsewhere. Official source, read November 4, 2026.
6. Drupal.org: Drupal core release schedule. Official source, read November 4, 2026.
7. Joomla developer manual: Software Release Cycle. Official source, read November 4, 2026.