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Shoutcast is a proprietary software platform that enables you to create a radio station and broadcast online. Find a web host that can provide bandwidth sufficient for live streaming.
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For new WordPress sites
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Best security and scalability
Starts at $3.75 per month
- All types of hosting
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The easiest option
Starts at $2.75 per month
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The Best Shoutcast Hosting of 2023
Bluehost earns the title of best overall Shoutcast hosting because it’s a WordPress partner, offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, and is affordable (starts at $2.75 per month).
You’ll also find Hostwinds and A2 Hosting also rank as two of the top Shoutcast hosting providers.
Our Top Picks
Best Overall Hosting For Shoutcast
Best Streaming For Shoutcast Hosting
Best Shoutcast Hosting For Speed
Digital.com dives deep into every topic it covers to offer trusted and reliable recommendations for the best business tools. See how we review Shoutcast hosting services.
The Best Shoutcast Hosting of 2023
Features
- Free domain and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
- WordPress partner
- 30-day money-back guarantee
#1 Top Pick for 2023
Why it’s best: Lots of support plus world-class technology
Price
$2.75 per month
Types of Hosting
Shared, VPS, Dedicated
24-7 Support
Yes
Free Domain
Yes
Read More
Reasons to choose Bluehost
- Bluehost has over 2 million sites under its care
- Lots of hosting options and simple upgrades
- Free anti-spam solutions to keep your site safer (easy to configure in cPanel)
- Integrated Cloudflare support
- All accounts at Bluehost come with digital security tools, including SSL, SiteLock Protection, and options for unique IPs
- A 30-day money-back guarantee
- 99% uptime guarantee
Reasons to avoid
- No automatic daily backup
- No monthly billing on shared hosting
- Longer wait times for tech support
- Fee for migrating from another host
- No Windows hosting
Bluehost is our top pick for Shoutcast hosting. A well-known name in the web hosting space and synonymous with performance and support, Bluehost is a brilliant choice for almost anyone.
Some reasons why we like Bluehost:
- Full of video and audio streaming features and support
- World-class technology powers its servers, so you won’t have to worry about uptime performance issues while streaming your internet radio station
- The best option if you want VPS or dedicated server hosting that gives you control over configuration and peace of mind regarding performance
The Bottom Line
Bluehost a reputable provider offering shared and VPS hosting. The company is easy to use, affordable, and has great uptime. It is geared toward entrepreneurs and small online startups. Billing might be confusing, but it has solid customer service for any issues.
Features
- No intermediary
- Reasonable cost
- Proprietary cloud panel
Price
$6.74 per month
Types of Hosting
Shared, VPS, Cloud, Dedicated
24-7 Support
Yes
Free Domain
Yes
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Reasons to choose Hostwinds
- Offers a wide range of payment options and services, including Skrill and bitcoin
- 24/7 support is available through live chat, email, and phone, plus a great knowledge base
- It’s one of the few hosts to offer both Windows and Linux hosting, as well as managed and unmanaged options
- SSDs and other features are available on many plans to speed up your website
Reasons to avoid
- Hostwinds only has 2 U.S.-based data centers, so your site will not be as fast for visitors internationally
- You have to pay extra for SSL certificates, which many hosts provide for free
- Refunds have strict conditions and the money-back guarantee only applies to specific plans and services
Hostwinds is another great choice for Shoutcast hosting, as plans are available for users specifically looking to stream audio and video from their website.
Its Shoutcast hosting includes:
- A fantastic server uptime guarantee
- Easy setup
- Reliable technical support
- Affordable pricing options
- Assistance with advertising and marketing
These plans would be ideal if your internet radio station or podcast is brand new and you want time (and room) to eventually scale your server to accommodate traffic growth.
The Bottom Line
Hostwinds is a web hosting company that receives top marks for its customer service and fast loading speeds. It backs its affordable offerings with a 99.9999% uptime guarantee. The user interface (UI) is easy to use and the Hostwinds include free secure sockets layers with its webs hosting.
Features
- Outstanding speed
- Premium support
- 30-day money-back guarantee
Price
$2.99 per month
Types of Hosting
Shared, VPS, Dedicated
24-7 Support
Yes
Free Domain
Yes
Read More
Reasons to choose A2 Hosting
- 24/7/year-round high-quality, English-speaking, expert support staff available via phone, email, and live chat
- Choose a server location from Europe, the U.S., or Asia
- Unmanaged and managed plans with plenty of options
- Free SSDs included
- Shopper Approved reviews reveal that 96% of the reviews posted on their site certainly would suggest friends and family use A2 Hosting
Reasons to avoid
- Mod_perl, Plexum, HTMLDoc, PDFLib, MS SQL, or ColdFusion are not supported
- Only two data centers, so if your target audience is in neither North America nor Europe, choose another nearer service provider
- Limited plans for Windows hosting
- Slightly more expensive than other hosting plans (but prices are still competitive)
Finally, we recommend A2 Hosting, one of our picks for the best streaming audio/video hosting. Like Hostwinds, A2 Hosting has plans dedicated to Shoutcast hosting. If security, bandwidth, and ease of use are a priority for your streaming audio site, then this would be a great web hosting option to consider.
As a bonus, since these plans fall under the category of managed server hosting, you won’t have to worry about configuring the server, managing upgrades, or handling other performance monitoring tasks often involved in traditional VPS and dedicated server hosting.
The Bottom Line
A2 is a reliable, affordable hosting company that has fast speeds. The customer service is generally responsive but could use more updated tutorials and documentation.
Compare Shoutcast Hosting Services
Bluehost is the best overall Shoutcast hosting service. It starts at $2.75 per month, and plans are backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Shoutcast Hosting Provider
Best Features
Pricing
Best Overall Shoutcast Hosting
- Free domain and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
- WordPress partner
- 30-day money-back guarantee
$2.75 per month
Best Streaming For Shoutcast Hosting
- No intermediary
- Reasonable cost
- Proprietary cloud panel
$6.74 per month
Best Shoutcast Hosting For Speed
- Outstanding speed
- Premium support
- 30-day money-back guarantee
$2.99 per month
What You Need to Know
What is Shoutcast?
Shoutcast is a software application that allows anyone to stream audio over the internet. It is commonly used for creating internet radio stations.
What Is Shoutcast Web Hosting?
What makes Shoutcast stand out from other internet radio station solutions like Icecast is its focus on users and its high level of accessibility.
Unlike stations on most internet radio sites, almost all Shoutcast stations and programs are streamed live instead of being queued up for broadcasting ahead of time by either a person or a computer. Hosting providers can offer features and services to enhance your Shoutcast streaming station, such as statistics, control panel access, and 24/7 support.
Shared hosting won’t be adequate for Shoutcast. Instead, look for VPS or quality cloud hosting plans with fast servers and solid-state drives (SSDs). Consider your audience size, too. The best Shoutcast hosting plans can scale as your station grows.
Is Shoutcast open source?
No. Shoutcast is proprietary software and uses some proprietary data formats.
How does Shoutcast work?
Shoutcast is installed on a server. It receives an audio source, such as input from an audio application, and converts the audio data into a streaming audio format consumable by anyone connected to the internet. Anyone who wants to listen simply opens the URL in a compatible software client, such as a media player.
Can I use Shoutcast with a shared hosting plan?
Shared hosting doesn’t normally support Shoutcast, mainly because of the bandwidth it uses.
Can I use Shoutcast on a VPS hosting plan?
Yes. Check what the bandwidth limitations are and if there are any fees for exceeding them.
What are the web hosting requirements for Shoutcast?
You can run Shoutcast on Linux, Mac, or Windows web hosting, provided your plan supports it.
How much bandwidth do I need to stream Shoutcast audio?
There is no set limit because it correlates with the bitrate, which will vary depending on whether you’re broadcasting audio or speech. It also depends on how many users are listening.
Do I need a dedicated server for Shoutcast?
A dedicated server is a good idea if you plan to broadcast high-quality audio or build a large audience. It will provide room to grow while giving you complete control over the software. As with a VPS server, check the bandwidth limits carefully.
What are some alternatives to Shoutcast?
Take a look at Icecast v2, or use a subscription service that offers a fully hosted radio platform.
How We Review Shoutcast Hosting Providers
Of the 1,500 hosting plans reviewed, we shortlisted the ones that provide sufficient bandwidth for streaming, high uptime, and solid network support.
To determine the top Shoutcast hosting services, we checked this list against our database of genuine reviews from real Shoutcast customers.
Just because you can use the cheapest option for Shoutcast doesn’t mean you should, especially if you care about your listeners’ experiences.
Learn more about our review methodology.