HostGators service is usually ranked highly in web hosting reviews and web hosting comments posted by users are mainly positive.

To me the key part of HostGators service is the support offered. Although I have never tested it, HostGator still advise that a support issue can be escalated to the Chairman (and founder) Brent Oxley if necessary.

If the past I have experienced the frustration of being unable to get a problem resolved because the support team did not seem particularly interested (this was a different host). At one time I also had a site with a hosting reseller (because it was free) but this did not seem like such a good deal when my site had a problem one Friday evening and there was no support over the weekend. For historic reasons I am still using another host that only supports its own applications. I have a WordPress site running but am on my own if there are problems.

These experiences have made me believe that support is the most important factor when choosing a web host (after, of course, ensuring that your technical requirements are met).  Certainly it is more important than getting the lowest possible price.

HostGator support is quite extensive. The website includes a support section with forums for user discussions and articles and videos on common questions. Real time support is provided 24×7 and can be contacted by phone (at no charge if in USA), live chat or email (which links to a help desk system).

All this is fine but, at the end of the day, it is the people providing the support that matter. Are they friendly and helpful, are they knowledgeable about their service and are they able to fix problems?

I have found that the people providing support at HostGator are knowledgeable and prepared to help where ever possible, including giving advice on issues outside their control. It would be very easy, and probably understandable, to establish that a problem was nothing to do with HostGator and leave it at that. However on several occasions they have done more than this, helping me establish what the problem was advising me how to fix it. This includes issues with WordPress sites for which HostGator is a good option.

As a result I am a happy customer and am pleased to recommend HostGator to anyone struggling to chose a hosting service.