123reg Plus review

123reg's Plus package is very easy to set up. We simply visited website, chose our hosting package and entered our payment details. Within minutes our domain was up and running. Bear in mind that the monthly cost doesn't include a domain name, though.

We really liked 123reg’s control panel. It was easy to access and its design is nice and clean – not cluttered like some of its competitors. Once you’re in the control panel, it's easy to find relevant FTP details and upload your site to the 123reg servers.

Less than an hour after signing up to the hosting service, our first site was online. Setting up and using the webmail you get with your domain is just as quick and easy. We were a bit disappointed to discover that there was no phone support option - just online support and a knowledgebase which, admittedly, is very comprehensive.

For £4.99 you get a reasonable amount of online space (2GB) and monthly bandwidth (25GB), but competitors offer more. The same is true of the number of SQL databases you can install on the 123reg servers and the number of email inboxes provided. However, unless you’re using the account for business purposes, 100 inboxes will probably be more than enough, as will three MySQL slots.

The 123reg Plus account also offers a good selection of apps for your website, including popular plug-ins such as WordPress and the Joomla content management system. On the downside, unlike most of its competitors, there’s no web-design software built into 123reg’s online control panel. For this kind of service, 123reg has a different type of package, called “InstantSite”. This isn’t a big deal, but it does feel a bit stingy.

123reg is nicely designed and easy to use. It feels like a good half-way house between beginners' packages such as those offered by Mr Site and Jimdo, and some of the more complex hosting packages which offer more features but may leave inexperienced users a bit lost. You can get more for your money, though. The iPage Essential Plan is just as easy to use, offers far more features and a lot more of the basics such as server space and bandwidth.