Do they give you full details of what they can offer?
	Is their pricing structure clear?
	Can they accommodate domain transfers?
	Do they make an additional charge for domain transfers?
	Do they have their own servers?
	Are there bandwidth or disk space restrictions?
	Do they have firewall protection?
	What is their level of security and data backup?
	How good is their technical support and customer service
	... and so on ...

A good web hosting site will give detailed information on what they are capable of supporting - take the time to read this - it's important you understand what you are getting.
 

What about FREE hosting?

Um-Hm ... well - what about it? 

All I'll say is - I advise caution to be the operative word here! - I guess you need to satisfy yourself that the company offering "free lifetime hosting plans " are actually going to be around for your businesses "lifetime"!  

Bear in mind that Companies offering "free hosting" have to get their money from somewhere (otherwise they can't sustain themselves) - so where are they making their charges?  

Free ANYTHING is what we call a "spratt to catch a mackerel" - (a baited hook) - and how much more will you end up paying for, let's say, a domain name, or an "additional" service (sometimes a "service" that's provided as standard by other hosting companies!), or maybe there are restrictions on disk space  ..  it could be anything - but it's got to be something!



Beginners Tip:  If you're just starting out, you might like to take a look at our special "Hosting Deals" that we've put together for you - they're not free, but are very reasonably priced to help you get off the starting block - take a look and see if they're any use to you.