Reseller web hosting for small businesses

Local small businesses, freelancers, nonprofits and web designers who want one contact for their site, email and domain.

Monthly or annual hosting plans, domain renewals, and one-off fees for moving a site or setting up email. Bundling hosting with light site care helps keep customers.

• Comfortable with websites, DNS and email settings
• Clear, patient customer support
• Basic billing and record keeping

• You depend on your supplier's uptime and support, so a bad host reflects on you
• Check your state's sales tax rules for hosting and web services, which vary a lot
• Write clear terms of service covering acceptable use, backups and refunds
• Check whether you need to register a DMCA agent and how to handle abuse reports
• Consider liability or tech errors and omissions insurance, and check your LLC or business license needs with your state and city

Startup costs are typically around $200 to $1,000, depending on the reseller plan you choose, your branding, billing tools and a basic website. These are estimates only. Your supplier's plan is the main ongoing cost to compare.

Monthly revenue is typically around $300 to $1,500, depending on how many customers you sign up and what you charge for hosting, domains, email and support. These are estimates, not guarantees, and about 5 hours a week is a minimum.

Check your state's sales tax rules for hosting and web services, whether you need to register a DMCA agent, and your LLC or business license needs. Write clear terms covering acceptable use, backups and refunds, and consider tech errors and omissions insurance.