Origins in the Dot-Com Era
PowWeb was founded in 1999, during the peak of the dot-com boom. The late 1990s were a period when small businesses and individuals were rushing to get online, and the demand for affordable, easy-to-use web hosting exploded. PowWeb carved out a niche by branding itself as the “one plan, one price” host—positioning simplicity as its edge in a market crowded with confusing tiers and upsells.
Its original headquarters were in Massachusetts, and its early marketing targeted freelancers, small businesses, and personal website owners who wanted predictable pricing. PowWeb’s reputation grew through word of mouth, partly because it bundled generous bandwidth and storage for the time.
Growth and Acquisitions
By the early 2000s, PowWeb had earned recognition as a budget-friendly provider, competing alongside other well-known shared hosts like iPage, HostMonster, and Bluehost.
In 2006, PowWeb was acquired by Endurance International Group (EIG), a company that would go on to buy dozens of hosting brands, including iPage, Bluehost, and HostGator. Under EIG, PowWeb continued to operate under its own name but gradually shared infrastructure, support, and billing systems with its sister brands.
This acquisition marked a turning point: while PowWeb maintained its branding, many longtime customers noticed the shift toward centralized support and the standardization of features across EIG’s hosting portfolio.
Service and Reputation
For much of the 2000s and 2010s, PowWeb was a low-cost entry point for people new to web hosting. Its “one plan” approach appealed to hobbyists and budget-conscious site owners who didn’t want to wade through multiple product tiers.
However, reviews became increasingly mixed over time. Users praised PowWeb’s simplicity but criticized performance bottlenecks, lack of innovation compared to newer hosts, and long support wait times. These complaints were common across many EIG-owned hosts as resources were consolidated.
Transition to Network Solutions / iPage
By the mid-2020s, PowWeb was no longer marketed as a standalone brand for new customers. The official login portal now redirects users to iPage by Network Solutions, signaling that PowWeb has effectively been merged into the larger Network Solutions ecosystem.
This consolidation mirrors the broader hosting industry trend: smaller legacy brands being rolled up into fewer, more centralized services. Customers with PowWeb accounts can still log in, but new sign-ups are funneled into iPage and Network Solutions offerings, or in some cases to Bluehost.
Legacy
PowWeb’s legacy rests on its simplicity. In an era when many providers tried to upsell customers with complicated packages, PowWeb offered a straightforward deal: one hosting plan, unlimited bandwidth, and a flat rate. That pitch resonated with thousands of small site owners and made PowWeb a recognizable name in the early 2000s hosting market.
While the brand itself has now been absorbed, it remains a piece of web hosting history from the dot-com era—one of many once-independent companies that helped bring affordable web publishing to a mass audience.