Green Hosting Providers Compared

Environmental protection and sustainability are two important topics that humanity has been dealing with for generations. Especially in the digital age, these concepts have not lost their significance, but are more important than ever. By using climate-neutral green hosting, a valuable contribution can be made to sustainably protect the environment.

While in the mid-90s having a home computer with internet access was still considered more of an exception, browsing the internet with a click has now become as much a part of everyday life as the morning commute to work. Nowadays, there are over 240 million domains worldwide ready to serve over 2 billion internet users. As this requires a corresponding technical infrastructure of data centres, it is hardly surprising that a considerable amount of CO2 emissions is generated. Operating a data centre is very energy-intensive. Not only the servers themselves, but the entire infrastructure of the data centre, including backup generators and air conditioning units, must be available around the clock. According to the Federal Association for Information Technology, Telecommunications and New Media (BITKOM), there are currently over 50,000 data centres in Germany consuming 9.1 TWh of electricity, which is equivalent to the consumption of approximately 2.6 million households. The providers of green hosting in our comparison aim to reduce CO2 emissions for the benefit of the environment.

What is Green Hosting

Green hosting is not just about using green eco-friendly electricity, but it encompasses a completely sustainable business philosophy. Providers of Green Hosting not only avoid the usually cheaper nuclear or coal power, but also rely on energy providers whose electricity is generated from renewable sources. Mainly, hydroelectric power plants or wind turbines are used to generate "green energy". These alternative energies can be used without producing CO2 emissions and do not consume fossil fuels. In addition to the conscious and responsible use of resources, there are other ways for Green Hosts to operate their data centres in an ecological and environmentally friendly manner. It is not only about electricity generation, but also about energy-efficient infrastructures and workflows within the company. Some of the Green Hosting providers in our comparison also engage in additional measures for carbon neutralisation in the atmosphere, such as the Plant-a-Tree programme or focus on collaborating with 100% environmentally friendly partners.

In summary, Green Hosting stands for:

• Utilisation of natural resources for power generation
• Reduction of CO2 emissions
• Energy-efficient operation of the technical infrastructure
• Implementation of energy-saving concepts to keep web hosting costs low
• Best web hosting for environmentally conscious customers

Development of Green Hosting

For a long time, Green Hosting was only offered by a few providers. In recent years, the topic has experienced rapid development. Not only have the largest web hosts in Germany increasingly focused on sustainability. There is now a wide range of offerings available to interested parties, from simple webspace to professional business hosting, all carrying the label "Green Hosting". One reason for this is that more and more customers are considering environmental protection in light of the global situation and value being able to contribute by choosing a sustainable and environmentally friendly host. Green hosting has evolved from a small niche for environmentally conscious customers to a major global trend. Many providers are following the trend and offering Green Hosting themselves. It is becoming increasingly challenging for customers to keep track of the various certifications and offerings. Our comparison of Green Hosting providers can help with this.

What Makes a Host a Green Host?

Hosting providers have various options available to implement Green Hosting:

• Use of Renewable Energies for Power Supply
• Collaborating with electricity producers that meet numerous environmental criteria and regulations supports the continuous expansion of power generation from renewable resources, contributing to CO2 reduction and a cleaner environment.
• Technical Infrastructure
• By using energy-efficient technology for the data centre infrastructure, electricity consumption can be significantly reduced. For example, the highly efficient free cooling method can be used for ventilation, where both outside air and exhaust air are utilised for cooling. The additional use of fans with EC technology can achieve higher efficiency compared to conventional systems.
• Data Centre Construction
• A special construction method for efficient air conditioning in data centres is the concept of hot and cold aisles. Cold aisles, where servers are front to front, alternate with hot aisles, where servers are back to back, allowing for the separation of cold and warm airflows, which can be more effectively cooled as a result.
• Energy-Efficient Hardware
• Utilising modern, energy-efficient hardware with power-saving processors and efficient power supplies provides significant advantages in energy balance compared to older server technology. Additionally, the production of these hardware components avoids the use of toxic substances.
• Virtualisation
• A server system consumes over 75% of its energy requirement even when idle. Through virtualisation, it is possible to operate multiple servers on a single physical hardware, reducing the need for physical servers while delivering the same performance. Existing servers are more heavily utilised to significantly increase their energy efficiency.
• Innovative Ideas
• Additional innovative ideas, such as utilising waste heat, can lead to increased energy efficiency. For example, the extremely warm air generated by servers can be used to heat other rooms.

Webmasters and Green Hosting

Providers of Green Hosting often offer their customers special logos or banners that can be integrated on the website. These are usually quality seals or badges with the inscription "climate-neutral hosting" or "eco-friendly web hosting". Environmentally conscious site visitors appreciate such measures. A good impression, in turn, usually leads to increased acceptance of services offered on the website, such as in an online shop hosting. Thus, not only the environment benefits, but also the website owner of Green Hosting.

Conclusion

If you also want to participate in the "Green Hosting" initiative with one of your websites, you can choose from the offerings of one of the web hosting providers in our comparison. Responsible resource management and efficient energy use are challenges that everyone should address with the available means. Green Hosting allows you to make a clear statement in terms of environmental protection. The list above provides an overview of Green Hosting providers for comparison.

If you want to learn more about web hosting, also check out the Web Hosting 101 Guide on our website.