A2 Hosting was a well-known shared WordPress host, acquired by World Host Group (WHG) in January 2025 and rebranded to Hosting.com in April 2025. WHG operates over 30 hosting brands. All shared plans include unlimited email accounts with unlimited storage, cPanel-based management, and email sending limits of approximately 500 emails per hour per account.
The notable restriction: external SMTP servers are blocked on shared hosting. Plugins configured to send via smtp.postmarkapp.com or smtp.sendgrid.net will fail unless using the provider’s HTTP API instead. This makes A2/Hosting.com less flexible than hosts like SiteGround or Bluehost where SMTP ports are fully open.
Plans start at approximately $10.99/month on renewal (intro from $2.99/month).
Email on A2 Hosting
Bundled email
Unlimited email accounts on all plans via cPanel. IMAP, POP3, SMTP (through the host’s mail server), and webmail access. SPF, DKIM, and DMARC configurable via cPanel’s Email Deliverability tools.
Sending limits and restrictions
- ~500 emails/hour per email account
- External SMTP servers blocked on shared hosting
- WordPress sends via PHP
mail()by default (unsigned, no SMTP auth)
The external SMTP block means third-party relay integration must use API-based sending (HTTP) rather than SMTP connections. Most WordPress SMTP plugins (WP Mail SMTP, FluentSMTP) support API-based sending for Postmark, Mailgun, SendGrid, and other major providers.
When to add a third-party relay
When email volume or deliverability requirements exceed what shared hosting provides. Use an SMTP plugin configured for API-based (not SMTP-based) sending, since SMTP ports to external servers are blocked.