You may know Gandi’s name from its domain name registration and sales service. The company is indeed one of the biggest names in the field today. However, we will be interested in the context of this full review of the Gandi hosting service. To see if it lives up to expectations. To do this, we have tested and analyzed at length all the aspects that characterize a good web host. We tell you more below.
Who is the Gandi host?
To start this review on Gandi as well as possible, we offer you a quick presentation of this company more than known in the web domain.
Gandi was created in March 2000. Since then, the company has been bought (in 2005) to ensure its expansion on 3 continents. Currently, the company says it has offices in Paris, Luxembourg, San Francisco, as well as Taipei.
As we have suggested in the introduction, Gandi is particularly known for its domain name registration service. In 2021, the host offers for purchase no less than 750 different extensions.
This allows it to manage more than 2 million domain names around the world to date. As for hosting (which we recall will be the central aspect of this review on Gandi), the host provides 20,000 customers and hosts no less than 100,000 sites.
Now that you know a little more, we will be able to start this full test and review on Gandi. And for this, we invite you to discover the strengths and weaknesses of its hosting solution:
His strengths :
- SSL certificate offered
- Clarity of offers
- Very professional customer support
Its weaknesses:
- Uncompetitive domain name prices
- No phone line to reach customer support
- High rates for accommodation
- No domain name offered
Performance: availability, loading,, and speed
As usual (see our review on Amen ), we pay particular attention to the performance and availability of accommodation.
This is why we are going to begin our Gandi review by telling you about the results we have had the opportunity to see over the past few months.
First of all, we would like to point out that we were surprised to see no mention or commitment from Gandi regarding the availability rate of its services. The observation was also the same concerning the type of data center set up. No information is available on these subjects… and that is a great pity.
A host of the caliber of Gandi must commit to an availability rate. After several months of testing, know that we have personally been able to find uptime of 99.92%. This may sound good, but in reality,, we are still a bit far from the recommendations of a type 3 data center (which is the second-best level in terms of quality and stability).
Our opinion on Gandi at this level is therefore not really positive. We would have liked to have obtained an availability rate close to 99.98%.
In terms of the loading speed of our test site, we relied on two platforms called GTMetrix and Pingdom. The latter makes it possible to know the overall loading time of a site while having access to avenues for improvement.
However, neither can we say that Gandi is one of the most efficient hosting providers that we have had the opportunity to test. The loading times that we have seen are still a bit too slow for our liking.
Test of the Gandi administration interface
Having access to a clear and easy-to-use administration interface is important. This is why we have decided to devote a complete section to this subject as part of our Gandi opinion for 2021.
The least we can say is that the host offers a very pleasant interface to use.
You will have quick access to the management of your domain names, your hosting, your contract, etc. You will also be able to view the status of services or contact customer support.
Now, regarding the administration of the hosting, we regret that it is not possible to go through cPanel . For those who do not know, this is currently the best administration interface for anything related to web hosting.
However, this is not an end in itself because the web control panel deployed by Gandi remains rather convincing. Even if for us, it is a little less complete than what we can find on cPanel.
In conclusion, our opinion on Gandi and its administration / customer area interface is good. However, there are still some areas for improvement to be explored.
Security and protection
What does Gandi put in place to ensure the safety of your visitors, your accommodation, as well as your customer area?
A lot of things, like any self-respecting host, we want to tell you!
First of all, know that you will be entitled to an SSL certificate offered with any hosting . The goal is obviously to ensure the safety of your visitors throughout their visit to your website.
In order to protect your web hosting, Gandi obviously has an anti-DDoS system but also firewalls. The goal is obviously to avoid any unpleasant surprises.
A system of free snapshots (a kind of backup) is also offered so that you can easily recover files from your site in an earlier version.
Finally, to protect your customer area, Gandi will allow you to configure a double authentication system:
This is something that is more and more common in the field, and if you want our opinion, it is a very good thing to find this option at Gandi.
Overall you will understand, we have nothing to reproach the host since absolutely everything is done to keep your little world safe.
Our opinion on the customer support of the host Gandi
On the other hand, our opinion on Gandi’s customer support will be a little less rosy.
Indeed, after several months of using the hosting service, we found a few things to complain about.
The first thing that we deeply regret is that it is not possible to call Gandi customer support directly . This is something that PlanetHoster or o2switch offer… and it is a real plus to have such a possibility.
If you were to opt for Gandi, you will therefore have to do without this option. Indeed, you will only be able to contact customer support by opening a ticket or by setting up a telephone meeting with customer support.
This inexorably increases the processing time of a request for assistance. However, we must inform you that our opinion on the agents of Gandi is very good.
Customer support has proven to be effective in solving problems. Which is necessarily appreciable.
Types of accommodation and pricing
Let’s continue this detailed opinion on Gandy by presenting the different types of accommodation offered. Next, you will discover all the specifics of each plan, the prices, but also the clible clientele.
Web hosting
Gandi’s flagship offer is undoubtedly its offer called “Web Hosting” or also “Simple Hosting”.
Four plans exist to meet very different needs:
- S +: € 7.20 incl.taxes / month
- M: € 9.60 incl.tax / month
- L: € 19.20 incl.taxes / month
- XXL: 38.40 € TTC / month.
As you can see in the screenshot above, a preferential price is offered for your 1st engagement (-50%). However, we find that Gandi’s shared hosting remains rather expensive .
Especially when we see the technical characteristics to which we will be entitled (1 CPU and 256 MB of RAM in the case of the S + plan).
And to top it off, you wo n’t even be entitled to a free domain name . Only an SSL certificate… To conclude, we do not really recommend this offer for the unconvincing price / quality ratio.
Instead, opt for shared hosting offered by Hostinger .
Who is this plan for: the offer called “web hosting” by Gandi is in fact a shared hosting offer. Depending on the formula you are going to choose, it can also be adapted for the creation of a static site, a blog, an e-commerce site, or several sites.
WordPress hosting
We are continuing our Gandi review with a review of its WordPress hosting offer.
Unlike its shared plan, here you will only find 3 offers:
- S +: € 7.20 / month
- M: € 9.60 / month
- XXL: € 38.40 / month.
Once again we find the prices rather important for the capacities supplied.
And what about the fact that it is mandatory to already have a domain name with Gandi in order to be able to subscribe to one of these offers ? We find that just plain ludicrous.
This is clearly not going to improve our opinion of Gandi and its accommodation offers.
Who is this plan for: people who only want to create one or more websites on WordPress. If you prefer to go through Drupal, or even Joomla, you will have to turn to the classic “web hosting” plan.
PrestaShop hosting
Like the WordPress hosting package, Gandi’s PrestaShop hosting is available in 3 offers.
Each offer will suit very different needs (ranging from the creation of your first online store, to the administration of a sales site with significant traffic).
We must admit that we expected to have access to a more substantial hosting configuration. Only 2 CPU and 512 MB of RAM for € 9.60 incl.tax / month ?
It’s expensive, once again! If you want to set up an e-commerce site without breaking the bank, prefer a host like PlanetHoster instead (it will only cost you € 6.00 incl. Tax / month and you will have access to much better performance). It is one of the best web hosts that fully support PrestaShop .
Who is this plan for: as its name suggests, this hosting plan has the sole objective of assisting you in the creation of an online store via PrestaShop.
Cloud hosting
Cloud hosting is the last actual hosting offer that we are going to mention as part of our review on Gandi.
The 4 plans offered by the host are really aimed at a varied audience. This ranges from individuals to web agencies with substantial needs. We invite you to discover the detail on the image below:
We still want to point out that once again, you will not be able to benefit from a free domain name. On the other hand, you will indeed be able to obtain an SSL certificate.
In any case, Gandi undertakes to deliver your accommodation to you in 2 minutes flat. And once is not customary, the host ensures that it is able to guarantee a monthly availability of 99.95%.
Who is this plan for: Gandi Cloud hosting is suitable for individuals as well as professionals and companies. We think for example of developers, web agencies, or SMEs.
NextCloud Hosting
This type of hosting will not allow you to host a website. However, we still wanted to share with you the existence of the offer.
For those who do not know NextCloud, it is a solution that will allow you to quickly and easily build online storage space. And that doesn’t matter what your goal is (personal storage, collaborative work, etc.).
Here are the three offers made available by Gandi:
- M: € 9.60 incl.tax / month
- L: € 19.20 incl.taxes / month
- XXL: 38.40 € TTC / month.
We regret that the basic disk space offered is only 50 GB. Of course, you will be able to extend this capacity to 1 TB, but you will have to go to the cash for that.
This may increase the bill faster than expected (knowing that the base prices are not the most affordable).
Who is this plan for: As described previously, the NextCloud hosting plan is not intended to host a website. The goal here is to build your own Cloud storage via the NextCloud solution . For example, this will allow you to store photos, files, share files, or even do collaborative work.
Read more: Bluehost review: full web host test [updated 2021]
Additional information about Gandi
Do you think you know everything about the Gandi web host? Well let us tell you that you are wrong! We actually still have a number of points to deal with in order to make this review on Gandi truly comprehensive.
Below you will find more information about domain purchases, the location of Gandi datacenters… and more.
Does Gandi offer free web hosting?
Gandi does not offer 100% free accommodation . This is absolutely not a problem in our eyes because this type of offer turns out to be very often limited and unreliable.
However, we would like to let you know that a 10-day free trial is offered for the hosting offer called “Simple Hosting”.
What is very nice about this offer is that no credit card or deposit will be necessary. You will therefore be able to test the standard hosting offer of the host without any commitment.
Thanks to this free trial, it will for example be possible for you to create your first website on WordPress .
Domain name purchase
Gandi being an accredited registrar, you will of course be able to buy and register a domain name from its platform. But if we can afford a piece of advice: don’t!
Indeed, after a quick analysis by our teams, it turns out that the prices charged by Gandi are not very attractive.
For example, it will take € 20.40 / year to obtain a .net domain name, € 14.40 / year for a .fr, or even € 15.60 / year for a .com.
In order to obtain the most competitive rates on the domain name market, turn to companies like Hostinger or PlanetHoster instead . You will easily find prices twice lower than those of Gandi.
Refund policy: what to expect from Gandi?
The first thing to note is that there is no 30-day money-back guarantee as there may be with other hosts.
The conditions applied by Gandi in order to obtain a refund are a little more complex than that, and the withdrawal period is often minimal.
For example, the reimbursement of a domain name can be made if its registration can be canceled, which leaves you very little time. While the purchase of an SSL certificate can be fully refunded within a period of 30 days.
And when it comes to hosting, you’ll have to settle for the 10-day free trial… unfortunately.
Where are Gandi’s data centers located?
Gandi’s data centers are located in France and Luxembourg . You can also choose the location that suits you the most when confirming your order for accommodation:
We have absolutely nothing to report in this section of our opinion on Gandi since we are delighted to find suitable locations for a French or European site.
For website maintenance service contact us.