Bandwidth Capacity. Most hosting companies are connected to the Internet by T1 & T3 lines. A T1 line can carry up to 1.5mbs [megabytes per second], while a T3 can carry 45mbs. Thus, a T3 connection provides a much larger amount of bandwidth and speed availability. However, it is also important to check and see how many clients are hosted on a single machine. If a server is overloaded, it performance will be hindered despite a high-speed Internet connection.

Plan space capacity - Hosting companies assign you a certain amount of space with your web hosting. Most providers offer more space on their servers than you will ever need. However, you should look to get at least 20MB of webspace. Depending on the application you are using for website design, your site may take up more space. Most hosts will provide about 50MB-100MB of space, so space is generally not a concern.

Support - Another important element of choosing a hosting company is the level of support. How many hours a day are technical support staff available? How quickly do they respond? Check the methods of support offered by your potential web host [eg. phone, fax, email, etc.] If you need a higher level of support, due to a larger site, you can expect to pay more. Quality support takes money to provide and you can expect to may a higher monthly fee accordingly. Also, just because a company provides 24/7 support does not mean you can expect support around the clock. As a company whether they are simply monitoring their servers 24/7 or whether they actually have agents ready to respond to questions at all hours.