Does server location matter?

[Catherine1]

I was thinking about starting a new blog and I want it separate from my other and have been looking for web hosting for it somewhere other than my current host.

I am seeing a couple of web hosting providers offer hosting with the servers in different locations.

Does the location of the web hosting server matter?

 

[Dean]

Server location can matter sometimes if you are not using a content delivery network (CDN) like Cloudflare for example. If you are just serving your website from your hosting services only then having your server located near where your target audience is can speed up the load times of your web pages.

It will not matter if you are using a CDN because they have servers located around the world that can speed up web page load times so your actual server location will not matter much.

 

[KeralMTG]

I read last year that your web hosting server should be close to where your website visitors live. I think if you have cloudflare then it might not matter though.

 

[Catherine1]

Server location can matter sometimes if you are not using a content delivery network (CDN) like Cloudflare for example. If you are just serving your website from your hosting services only then having your server located near where your target audience is can speed up the load times of your web pages.

It will not matter if you are using a CDN because they have servers located around the world that can speed up web page load times so your actual server location will not matter much.

So if I use a CDN then I can get web hosting anywhere and it will not matter?

I read last year that your web hosting server should be close to where your website visitors live. I think if you have cloudflare then it might not matter though.

What if I don't know where my visitors will come from?

 

[bestcast4u]

it's better to select a sever near by your visitors

 

[Dean]

So if I use a CDN then I can get web hosting anywhere and it will not matter?

Well for the most part that is right. It can help sometimes to still have hosting in the same location where your target audience is. Overall thought it shouldn't make much difference.

I would just worry about getting a good host first.

 

[Catherine1]

it's better to select a sever near by your visitors

Why is that? Will it help my rankings or my traffic for my website or something else?

I'm trying to learn these things so any information will help.

I would just worry about getting a good host first.

Mine that I am on now is but I am looking at maybe finding another one to see if I like it better.

 

[ulterios]

If you have a certain GEO location that you are targeting then getting web hosting there can help, even with a CDN. It's not a must-have but it can help.

Either way I would use CloudFlare or another CDN to help speed up the delivery or your website content and to help add a little extra security and protection for your site.

 

[Catherine1]

If you have a certain GEO location that you are targeting then getting web hosting there can help, even with a CDN. It's not a must-have but it can help.

Either way I would use CloudFlare or another CDN to help speed up the delivery or your website content and to help add a little extra security and protection for your site.

I didn't know that a CDN gives extra security. I thought it was just to make your website faster.

 

[AlexRozett]

It depends on what GEO location in the world you want to target.

If you are targeting for example Europe only it's recommended that you have your server located in that part of the world.

Reasons why:

• Latency - Data crossing the Atlantic Ocean will incur additional latency
• GeoLocation - The IP address will be graphically tagged with the wrong region
• Connectivity - Connectivity between the two regions is a point of failure
• SEO - SERPs will be impacted by the location of the server
• Speed - The store would be slower if it wasn't hosted in the US

I hope you found this post useful.

 

[Catherine1]

It depends on what GEO location in the world you want to target.

If you are targeting for example Europe only it's recommended that you have your server located in that part of the world.

Reasons why:

• Latency - Data crossing the Atlantic Ocean will incur additional latency
• GeoLocation - The IP address will be graphically tagged with the wrong region
• Connectivity - Connectivity between the two regions is a point of failure
• SEO - SERPs will be impacted by the location of the server
• Speed - The store would be slower if it wasn't hosted in the US

I hope you found this post useful.

What do I do if I am targeting 2 basic location like the United States and Western Europe?

 

[AlexRozett]

Hey Catherine1 sorry for the late reply,

Well, in my opinion, I would keep my hosting provider within Europe if you wish on targeting the States as well. Here are the reasons why:

- From the States, you have two countries that are Tier 1 traffic and those are USA & Canada. Plus ISPs from that traffic provide fast enough internet that will be enough two view your site normally.

- On the other hand, there is a lot of Tier 1 traffic countries located in Europe (UK, Germany, Austria, Ireland, Netherlands, Finland etc). So either way, you have a win, win combo.

 

[Catherine1]

Hey Catherine1 sorry for the late reply,

Well, in my opinion, I would keep my hosting provider within Europe if you wish on targeting the States as well. Here are the reasons why:

- From the States, you have two countries that are Tier 1 traffic and those are USA & Canada. Plus ISPs from that traffic provide fast enough internet that will be enough two view your site normally.

- On the other hand, there is a lot of Tier 1 traffic countries located in Europe (UK, Germany, Austria, Ireland, Netherlands, Finland etc). So either way, you have a win, win combo.

That's ok Alex, I appreciate your help with this. I just don't know much about web hosting things.

Thanks for the detailed explanation. It makes sense now that you put it like that. I wasn't thinking about the number of countries with traffic like that. I guess I wasn't thinking too much beyond the 2 main countries.

Thanks for your explanation.

 

[Traveler]

I think that the most important thing is to get good web hosting first. It will not matter where your web hosting service is located if it is bad hosting that is slow or has a lot of down time.

 

[Catherine1]

I think that the most important thing is to get good web hosting first. It will not matter where your web hosting service is located if it is bad hosting that is slow or has a lot of down time.

That's true. I just didn't know if it made much of a difference what country your site was hosted in.

 

[david smith]

The location of the servers if located in the same geographical location the latency that is created is less. But if the website visitors are distributed all over the globe then latency will not be very significant. The level of technology is also increased these days, and server locations do not give a great advantage in latency.

 

[Catherine1]

The location of the servers if located in the same geographical location the latency that is created is less. But if the website visitors are distributed all over the globe then latency will not be very significant. The level of technology is also increased these days, and server locations do not give a great advantage in latency.

Most of my website visitors are in Europe and mostly in the UK and France. Should I just get something in Europe?

 

[Traveler]

That's true. I just didn't know if it made much of a difference what country your site was hosted in.

You can use a CDN like Cloud Flare to help make the load times of your website much faster in locations that are far from your hosting servers so it does not make much of a difference.

 

[Catherine1]

You can use a CDN like Cloud Flare to help make the load times of your website much faster in locations that are far from your hosting servers so it does not make much of a difference.

I have heard of that but I really would not know how to set that up.

 

[boxiii]

Server location has not that much importance that you might believe. Speed and reliability are important - but they do not correlate with location. Your store could be faster hosted with anyother location in the UK, than in your domestic market.