Reseller Hosting
Buying Hosting in Bulk to Sell Under Your Own Name
What is reseller hosting? It is a plan that lets you buy hosting capacity from a provider and resell it to your own customers under your own brand. The provider runs the servers, and you handle sales, billing and first-line support for your clients. When the provider's name is hidden entirely, the arrangement is often called white label hosting.
A reseller account usually includes a larger allowance of disk space, bandwidth and hosted accounts than a single shared plan, along with tools for creating and managing those accounts. Each client account can have its own domain, email and resource limits, which you set.
Who Carries the Responsibilities
Reseller hosting moves a layer of responsibility to you. The provider keeps the servers running, but your clients come to you first. Typical duties include:
- Setting your own prices and billing your customers
- Answering first-line support questions and escalating server problems
- Setting resource limits for each client account, so one client does not consume the whole allowance
- Making sure your clients follow the provider's acceptable use rules
Most providers hold the reseller accountable for what its clients host, so monitoring for abuse matters. The rules that govern hosted content are set out in the provider's acceptable use policy. The provider's own support levels, which set what you can expect from it when you escalate a problem, are explained in web hosting support.
A Web Agency Hosting Its Clients' Sites
A small web design agency builds sites for local businesses. Rather than hosting each client separately with a different company, the agency uses a reseller plan and creates an account for each one. Invoices come from the agency, clients have a single point of contact, and sites can be moved between accounts when needed. The agency must still watch resource use, because one heavy client can slow others on the same reseller allowance.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need technical skills to become a reseller?
Some are needed. You should understand the basics of hosting, domains and email, and be able to troubleshoot common problems or direct clients to the right support. You do not need to run the servers, because the provider does that. Experience with a shared hosting account is a useful starting point.
Is reseller hosting cheaper than regular hosting?
A reseller plan costs more than a single shared plan because it includes capacity for several accounts. Its value comes when you host many sites, since the cost per site can be lower than buying separate plans. Whether you save money depends on how many clients you serve and how much time you spend supporting them.