How Much Disk Space Does Your Website Need?

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Are you wondering how much disk space your website really needs? With so many web hosting plans offering “unlimited” storage these days, it can be confusing to figure out what’s enough.

The truth is, most small websites don’t need nearly as much disk space as you might think. In this article, I’ll walk you through how to calculate your website’s disk space needs so you can choose the right web hosting plan without overpaying.

Key Takeways

Calculate total number of pages x average page file size.
Account for large multimedia files like images, videos and audio files.
Allow 20-50% extra space for future growth.
Most small sites only need 10-30 GB disk space.
Don’t overpay for “unlimited” disk space.

What is Disk Space and Why Does Your Website Need It?

Disk space refers to the storage space on a web server that is used to host the files that make up your website. This includes:

HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and other files that make up your web pages
Images, videos, and multimedia content
Database files if you are running a database-driven site
Backups of your site
Email accounts and email storage if your hosting plan includes email
Any other files related to your site

Without adequate disk space, your website will eventually run out of room to store all these files as your site grows.

So in short – disk space is like the hard drive for your website hosting account. It’s a necessary component for storing your site files.

How Much Disk Space Does an Average Website Really Need?

Many shared hosting plans today offer “unlimited” disk space. But in reality, you likely don’t need anything close to unlimited.

A very small brochure-style website with just a few pages might only need 1-3 GB of disk space.

A small business website or blog with up to 100 pages normally needs around 3-10 GB.

A medium-sized site like an online store with hundreds of product pages may need 10-20 GB.

And a very large enterprise site with thousands of pages and lots of multimedia content might require 30 GB or more.

But in most cases, 20-50 GB is more than enough for the majority of small and medium-sized sites. Anything beyond that is usually overkill.

How to Estimate Your Website’s Disk Space Needs

Figuring out your specific website’s disk space requirement takes a little math. Here are 5 steps to estimate how much your site will need:

1. Calculate the Average Size of Your Web Pages

A simple HTML page is around 15-20 KB. Each image on a page can be anywhere from 10 KB for a small thumbnail to over 1 MB for a high-res photo.

Use a site like GTMetrix to check the average page size for your site.

For a site with mostly text and some images, 100 KB per page is a safe average to use.

2. Estimate Total Number of Pages

How many pages will your website have? A blog may have 100+ posts. An online store could have thousands of product pages.

Make your best guess at the total number of pages you expect your site to have within the next 1-2 years.

3. Multiply Page Count by Average Page Size

Let’s say you estimate your site will have 500 pages, with an average size of 100KB per page.

500 pages x 100KB per page = 50,000KB. Or about 50MB total.

4. Account for Multimedia Files

If your site will have lots of large media files like high-resolution photos, audio, and video, make sure to account for that extra storage space.

High-res photos average 2-5MB each. Videos can be anywhere from 10MB for low quality to over 1GB for HD.

5. Add Buffer Room for Growth

It’s always smart to allocate 20-50% more space than your estimates as a buffer. Websites inevitably grow over time.

Giving yourself this extra room ensures your site won’t outgrow your hosting plan too quickly.

Recommended Minimum Disk Space by Website Type

As a general guideline, here is how much disk space I recommend for different types of sites:

Brochure Website: 1-5 GB
Small Business Site: 5-10 GB
Online Store: 10-25 GB
Membership Site: 10-20 GB
Blog: 10-30 GB
Forum: 30-50 GB
Social Network: 50-100 GB

Of course, these are just ballpark estimates. Do the calculations for your specific site.

Why “Unlimited” Disk Space Doesn’t Matter

Nowadays, most shared hosting plans offer “unlimited” disk space and bandwidth.

But in reality, you’ll likely never use more than 50 GB max on a small or medium-sized site. Unlimited sounds nice, but it isn’t an important factor.

Focus instead on choosing a plan with adequate RAM, fast CPUs, and good customer support. Those impact performance much more than unlimited disk space.

How Much Disk Space is Needed for a WordPress Site?

A baseline WordPress site with a couple plugins and a theme requires around 3-5 GB to get started.

From there, you’ll need additional disk space based on:

Number of posts/pages (1 post = ~100KB)
Media per post
Number of comments (1 comment = ~1KB)
Number of plugins
Backups and staging sites

Most WordPress sites will not exceed 10-20GB. Even large blogs and online stores don’t require anywhere close to 100GB.

Do You Need to Pay for Extra Disk Space?

Most shared hosting plans offer enough storage for the majority of users. But if you do need more than the allotted space, expansion is usually affordable.

For example, Bluehost includes 30GB disk space in their basic shared plan, and charges $2/month for each additional 20GB. So doubling your space to 60GB would only cost an extra $2/month. Very reasonable!

In other words, don’t stress too much about paying for extra disk space if needed. But again, chances are you won’t need it.

Frequently Asked Questions

If you don’t have enough disk space, you may run into issues such as being unable to upload new content or receiving error messages. Similarly, if you exceed your allocated bandwidth, your website may become slow or inaccessible to visitors. It’s important to ensure that your hosting plan provides sufficient disk space and bandwidth to accommodate your website’s needs.

Yes, most hosting providers allow you to upgrade your hosting plan if you find that you need more disk space and bandwidth. This process is usually straightforward and can often be done through your hosting provider’s control panel. If you anticipate your website growing or experiencing increased traffic in the future, it may be beneficial to choose a hosting plan that allows for easy upgrades.

Choosing a hosting plan with more disk space and bandwidth than you actually need can result in unnecessary expenses. However, in most cases, having extra disk space and bandwidth will not negatively impact your website’s performance. It simply means that you’re paying for resources that you’re not fully utilizing. If you’re unsure about your website’s needs, it’s always better to start with a hosting plan that offers a bit more than you think you’ll need.

If you have a WordPress website, the amount of disk space and bandwidth you need will depend on the size of your website and the expected traffic. WordPress websites with minimal content and low traffic may only require a few gigabytes of disk space and bandwidth. However, if your website has a lot of media files, plugins, and heavy traffic, you may need more storage and bandwidth.

Yes, cloud storage is an alternative option for hosting your website’s files. With cloud storage, your website’s files are stored and accessed from remote servers, allowing for flexible scalability and storage options. Cloud hosting may be a good choice if you anticipate your website’s storage needs changing frequently or if you prefer the flexibility and ease of scalability that cloud hosting offers.

When choosing a web hosting provider, it’s important to consider the amount of disk space and bandwidth they offer as part of their hosting plans. Look for providers that offer scalable options, allowing you to easily upgrade or downgrade your hosting resources as needed. Additionally, read reviews and consider the reputation and reliability of the hosting provider, as well as their customer support and any additional features they offer.

Final Thoughts

Focus your hosting choice on RAM, CPU cores, customer support, and overall value rather than unlimited storage and bandwidth. Follow the calculations in this post, and you’ll have a good handle on your website’s disk space requirements.

Neil Beckett

Neil is an accomplished web, designer and developer with over 15 years of experience in creating and optimizing websites for small businesses and online entrepreneurs. Read full bio

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