What is Uptime in Web Hosting?
Last updated: 31 December 2025
What is Uptime in Web Hosting?
Uptime is the time that a server is online and accessible. It is expressed as a percentage and indicates how reliable a hosting provider is. The higher the uptime, the less often your website is unreachable.
Uptime percentages explained
| Uptime % | Downtime per year | Downtime per month |
|---|---|---|
| 99.0% | 3.65 days | 7.31 hours |
| 99.9% | 8.77 hours | 43.83 min |
| 99.99% | 52.60 min | 4.38 min |
| 99.999% | 5.26 min | 26.30 sec |
Why is uptime important?
- Visitor experience - Unreachable websites frustrate visitors
- Revenue - Every minute of downtime costs potential sales
- SEO - A lot of downtime can negatively affect your rankings
- Trust - A stable website radiates professionalism
SLA and Uptime Guarantees
An SLA (Service Level Agreement) is an agreement between you and the hosting provider in which guarantees are recorded. Many providers offer:
- 99.9% uptime guarantee - Standard with most providers
- Compensation for downtime - Discount or credit for longer outages
- Excluded maintenance - Scheduled maintenance often does not count
Factors that affect uptime
- Server hardware - Quality and redundancy of hardware
- Datacenter - Location, cooling, power supply
- Network - Connections and DDoS protection
- Software maintenance - Updates and patches
- Traffic spikes - Overload due to many visitors
How do you check uptime?
There are various tools to monitor uptime:
- UptimeRobot (free)
- Pingdom
- StatusCake
- Better Uptime
These tools regularly check if your website is accessible and send alerts during downtime.
Compare hosting on reliability
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does web hosting cost on average?
Web hosting costs between €3 and €15 per month for shared hosting on average. VPS hosting starts around €10-€20 per month, and dedicated servers from €50 per month.
Can I upgrade to a different package later?
Yes, with most hosting providers you can easily upgrade to a larger package when your website grows. This can usually be done without downtime.
Is Dutch hosting better than foreign hosting?
For Dutch visitors, Dutch hosting is often faster due to the shorter distance. Additionally, communication with support is easier and you comply with GDPR legislation.
Was this article helpful?
Compare hosting packages directly to find the best choice for your situation.
Related articles
What is VPS Hosting?
VPS hosting explained: what is a Virtual Private Server, who is it suitable for and what are the advantages compared to shared hosting?
What is an SSL Certificate?
Everything about SSL certificates: what is SSL, why do you need it and how do you recognize a secure website? Essential for every website.
How much storage do I need for my website?
Discover how much disk space you really need for your website. Practical guide with examples per website type.
Email hosting explained: what you need to know
Everything about email hosting: what it is, why you need it, and how to set up professional email on your own domain.
What is a Dedicated Server? Complete Guide
Discover what a dedicated server is, its pros and cons, when you need it and how it differs from shared and VPS hosting.