In short, HostGator is light years beyond 1and1 in every respect.

As soon as I signed up with HostGator, I was sent an invoice. I paid it through PayPal and within 5 minutes I had all the credentials I needed to get in and start administering the site.

For security reasons, SSH access is disabled by default. So from CPanel, I just had to request an SSH be turned on for my account. It was an easy, quick, and painless process as a ticket was created for my request. I kid you not, within 7 minutes of my request, I had an email informing me that the account was enabled and instructions on how to log in.

HostGator is such a breath of fresh air compared to my dealings with 1and1. In fact, let’s compare HostGator to 1and1 real quick. HostGator handled my ticket within 7 minutes. I submitted a help request to 1and1 5 hours ago, and I still have not heard anything about it.

The biggest hurdle with HostGator has been getting familiar with their architecture, but I’m over that hurdle now and all my sites are ready for prime time. However, 1and1 continues to drag their feet and not all the sites are pointing to HostGator yet. I guess in just 24 hours of dealing with HostGator, I’m already spoiled and expect other companies to act the same way.