Skip to content

Shared hosting · HOST DEV

Free hosting for 180 days

An environment to test and develop your website or application

  • 6 GB SSD space
  • Daily backups
  • Free for 6 months
Activate free now Learn more
Professionals collaborating in an office in front of a monitor

Satisfied customers

+12.345

+12%

HOST DEV, the perfect development lab

Build and test your site or app in the same environment you will use in production: fewer surprises on go-live day.

  • Same panel, Softaculous and tools as Host.it shared hosting.
  • SSD space, MySQL database and traffic to upload and test your project.
  • One-click CMS install and backups to work safely.
  • Technical support when you need it, before moving to a paid plan.
Learn more about HOST DEV

Same as production hosting, free and with no renewal obligation

Connect development, testing and production with a clear path: try HOST DEV, then activate paid hosting when you are ready.

1 Sviluppo — HOST DEV

Ambiente gratuito per 180 giorni, stesso pannello e strumenti dell'hosting condiviso Host.it.

2 Test — Staging e prove

Demo, QA e collaudo prima del go-live, con pannello e strumenti simili allo Shared Hosting di produzione.

3 Produzione — Hosting a pagamento

Quando sei pronto ordini un hosting a pagamento e migri sito e database sull’ambiente di produzione (spesso su un server diverso). Softaculous e il supporto Host.it possono aiutarti nel passaggio.

How is it different from paid hosting?

A concise comparison between free HOST DEV and commercial plans.

Comparison of free HOST DEV and paid hosting
Feature Free HOST DEV Paid hosting
Duration 180 days (≈ 6 months) Annual renewal
SSD space 6 GB According to plan
MySQL databases 1 included Multiple / unlimited
Traffic Unlimited Unlimited
Let’s Encrypt SSL Included Included
Backups Included Included
Outbound email Daily limit According to plan
Performance Shared resources (trial) Plan resources
Purchase obligation None Commercial contract

Explore plans on Linux Hosting and Cloud hosting.

Start testing your site now and put us to the test

Activate HOST DEV from the Customer Area in a few steps: no commitment, just a serious environment to develop at your pace.

Activate free now
Developer working on a web project in the HOST DEV test environment

Frequently asked questions

What is HOST DEV (Host Dev)?
It is Host.it’s free trial hosting profile: shared hosting for development and testing, lasting up to 180 days per profile, so you can evaluate the platform and tools before buying.
What exactly is included?
Features include: 6 GB SSD, one MySQL database, unlimited traffic, Let’s Encrypt SSL, backups, a subdomain on sviluppo.host, one-click CMS via Softaculous, FTP and support. Outbound email limits apply compared with paid plans.
How and where do I activate it?
From your Customer Area you can create and manage trial profiles. You can activate multiple HOST DEV environments for separate projects, according to the service terms.
Is it really the same as production hosting?
Same ecosystem (panel, tools, support): what changes is duration, resources (e.g. one database, 6 GB) and trial-specific limits.
Can HOST DEV replace production hosting?
No: it is meant for trials, demos and staging. For live sites, e-commerce or continuous load, choose a Linux plan or cloud hosting.
What happens after 180 days?
You can close the trial profile with no further obligations (subject to contract terms), or order paid hosting and migrate the site and database to the production environment — including with Softaculous or Host.it support. HOST DEV does not automatically become a Shared Hosting plan.
Do I need a credit card to activate HOST DEV?
Activation happens from the Customer Area under the current commercial terms: for details on payments and free profiles, contact support or sales.
Can I use my own domain on HOST DEV?
The trial profile includes a subdomain on sviluppo.host to keep testing and production separate. For the final domain you usually move to a paid plan with full DNS management.
What are the differences versus paid hosting?
Besides the limited duration and resource profile (6 GB, 1 DB), there are outbound mail limits. Paid plans offer more space, more databases and profiles built for production.