FatCow hosting company has an unusual name, but what they offer is fairly typical when compared to the other web hosts we’ve reviewed. However, the folks at FatCow do have a certain charm, and you can see it all over their website. Particularly endearing are all the little cow jokes and nicknames that play a role in their service. But beyond fun, FatCow representatives pride themselves on straightforward service without the techno-talk and complicated service plans.

Standout Features

• Easy to use site builders
• Simple online store tools
• High quality customer service
• Powered by wind energy

Hosting Package:

The pricing for FatCow is a little confusing because they don’t give you a monthly price. Instead, they say that they charge $66 per year, which breaks down to be about $5.50 per month when you divide that number by 12 months. In their plan, you get unlimited storage space, monthly bandwidth, POP3 email addresses and additional FTP user and sub user accounts. Your domain name, the website builder and all the scripts they offer are free. They offer shopping carts and a secure SSL server. To top it all off, you can get your money back within 30 days if you don’t like what they’re giving you.

Ease of Use:

FatCow prides themselves on making each and every one of their features easy enough for a beginning computer user to master. Plus, their customer service team, which is aptly dubbed "The MooCrew" is ready and waiting 24 hours a day and 7 days a week to assist you in case any problems arise. Their reliable servers and superb features will prevent such a thing from ever happening.

Support and Service:

For customer support, FatCow offers 24/7 phone, email and live chat support. They also have step-by-step tutorials and an extensive FAQ library. Their customizable control panel helps to make what’s already easy even easier.

Site Creation Tools:

FatCow offers point & click site building tools that are incredibly easy to use. You can create a professional website with just a few clicks, using a variety of dynamic themes and templates. You don’t even need any programming or HTML experience to use this tool.

Server Access:

FatCow’s feature list says it offers FTP access, but doesn’t include any information on if they offer anonymous FTP, .htaccess support or Cron Jobs compatibility.

Marketing Tools:

The marketing features FatCow offers include Google WebMaster Tools, GoogleAdWords and Yahoo! Search credits, free 60-day trial for RatePoint Feedback Service, HubSpot’s Website Grader and Submitnet.

Reporting and Statistics:

FatCow says they offer "Web Analytics Tools," but they are really vague as to what that actually entails. Whether or not they allow you to look at your log files remains unclear as well.

Summary:

Overall, FatCow is a web hosting service that will meet most needs of a small to medium-sized business. The price is affordable; they also have a 30-day money back guarantee. To customize your plan, FatCow offers add-ons at additional cost. Be sure to compare plans before you purchase however, particularly if you find that you need FatCow’s add-ons.