I am planning to put up my second forum site, but as of this moment haven't decided yet on what host to choose. I have only a budget for a shared hosting and just planning to move to a vps or a dedicated one in the near future. I have read a lot of threads here but still don't have the idea who to choose. My current host gives me headaches so I need to look for another. Who would you recommend for me?

What are you looking for, in term of traffic, size and the like ?

I use Bluehost.com. You can get your domain and a year's worth of shared hosting for about $100. They have installers for TONS of apps; you'll probably find a forum app you can use. They also allow shell access, if you're geeky that will come in handy. I have also used Godaddy.com, and Bluehost is better and cheaper.
---scott
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Since this is just for starting up, ~$10/month shared hosting should do the trick for a while, so the budget, hopefully, won't be an issue, unless you're severely limited in that department.

I can go on with the budget of $10 a month or less, as this is only a starting point since I don't have enough budget. I think less than 50GB of bandwidth at this time is enough for me.

What software is used for forum? I think that your friend can follow software developer's sugustions on their developer web sites?

You may use HostWW.net for your forum. this company offers cheap shared plans with discount on their web site. The6y also offer VPSs and dedis and you may upgrade your plans with time easily.

I'v never had a dedicated server or a vps, but I hear that bluehost is good also.

I am using vbulletin for my forums.

Still looking, eh?

I hear that A Small Orange is good, and I have a friend who has a top 30 Technorati blog hosted on it.

Why don't you use the same host's service you have your first forum with? You might have both sites on one multiple hosting account or a reseller one, unless you have set your mind on a vps deal. HostV.com are offering lots of discounts on their vps deals like double ram and 50%off their price, that concerns your first payment only either monthly or annual.

Theres lots of good companies out there to choose from.
Most of the shared hosting providers these days offer a valuable service.

I suggest you check them out.

ServerPoint.com, Site5.com and Ahosting.biz offer nice software for forum. Having shared package plan with them you may always upgrade it. It's not a problem at all.

hostgator is the best

I would recommend a low end dedicated server, you can try asking for one from Wholesaleinternet.com they do offer low end dedicated servers once in a while.

Originally Posted by wisdomtool

I would recommend a low end dedicated server, you can try asking for one from Wholesaleinternet.com they do offer low end dedicated servers once in a while.

I really don't think a low end dedicated is the best solution for a forum that is just starting out. If the forum is expecting an explosion of traffic overnight maybe, but for a standard forum shared hosting is certainly the way to go.

Check out kevworks, I have a vps from them but I know they also do shared hosting.

I'm happy with fluidhosting.com

Take a look at lots of hosting options, and remember that there's no such thing as "unlimited".

Originally Posted by Brandon

I'm happy with fluidhosting.com

Do you mean they offer unlimited stuff?

Originally Posted by dbzanime

hostgator is the best

For me hostgator is also the best but I don't think it fits his budget.