Think of a shop, not one magic website box
A domain name is the address on your shop's sign, such as peace-community.org. Code files are the instructions for building and running the shop's pages and features. Hosting is the space and service that keep the website available to visitors. A database is an organized store of records, like your appointment book or stock ledger. An ecommerce platform brings online-selling jobs together, such as products, stock, orders, and checkout. A payment processor helps handle a customer's payment, like a card service connected to the register. These pieces can come from one provider or several. Paying for one does not automatically give you all the others.
Code files are not the same as business records
A website's code can describe a service page, calculate an estimate, or show a product list. It may also contain images stored with that code. But a photo uploaded later might live in separate file storage, and a booking might live in a database or outside booking service. Think of the code as your shop's instructions, not every item in its filing cabinet. Some simple sites have no database at all. Ask where each kind of information actually lives rather than assuming everything is inside the website folder.
Hosting and deployment: putting the pages where visitors can reach them
Web hosting serves your website over the internet. Deployment means placing a working version on that hosting service with the settings it needs. A folder in GitHub is not automatically a live website. Some hosts can connect to a repository and deploy selected saved changes; you must set that up and check the result. A build step turns a project's source files into the version a host can run. The host must suit the project: a simple page is different from an app that needs a database and server-side work, tasks performed behind the scenes rather than only in the visitor's browser. A domain points visitors to hosting; it does not supply the hosting itself.
Vercel, Netlify, and Cloudflare Pages: match the host to the code
Vercel, Netlify, and Cloudflare Pages are examples of web deployment services. They can publish suitable web projects and offer ways to connect code repositories. Support for frameworks — the software structure a project uses — and behind-the-scenes functions differs. Some projects need extra services or a different deployment product; a database is not automatically copied over with the pages. Ask the builder or developer which host supports your exact project, what settings it needs, and what usage limits and business-use terms apply. Keep secrets in the host's protected configuration, not public files. Test the published version, because a project working in a builder preview does not prove it works on another host. None of these names means every website can move there unchanged.
Hostinger, SiteGround, and managed WordPress
Hostinger and SiteGround are examples of providers offering web hosting and managed WordPress plans. These are hosting choices, not interchangeable names for Shopify. Check the exact product: a provider may offer several kinds of hosting or a separate builder. Managed means the provider takes on agreed jobs; ask about updates, security, backup frequency, restore help, email, and support limits. An included feature on one plan is not a promise for every plan. Compare renewal costs and what work remains yours.
Traditional hosting, managed WordPress, and all-in-one builders
Traditional web hosts provide space and services for supported website software. Managed hosting means the provider takes on agreed maintenance jobs; ask specifically about updates, security, backups, and recovery instead of assuming they handle everything. Self-hosted WordPress needs a suitable host, its files and database, and an update plan. WordPress.com is a hosted service with its own features and plan limits. All-in-one builders such as Wix and Squarespace bundle editing and hosting; ecommerce or bookings depend on supported features and plans. Shopify is a hosted ecommerce platform: you normally manage the store inside Shopify rather than putting its entire commerce system on your own host. These paths can be simpler than managing code and separate hosting. Check export limits before choosing one; not every builder's site can move intact.
A database is the filing cabinet, not the building
A database stores organized records, such as appointments or stock entries. Hosting serves the website; the database may be part of the plan or a separate service. A simple information page may not need one. An app with saved requests needs rules deciding who can read or change them. Storage for uploaded photos can be another separate service. Ask where each kind of information lives, who pays for it, and who can recover it. Never assume publishing the pages also protects the records.
A real-world example
Imagine a shop: the domain is its street address, code is the instructions for fitting it out, hosting is the space that keeps it open, and a database is the filing cabinet. A Shopify store bundles many shop jobs. A custom community app might use hosting plus separate records and file storage. Buying the address alone supplies none of those jobs.
Steps to take
- Draw address → website hosting, then add separate records or files only if needed.
- Ask what your platform includes and what needs a separate service.
- For code-based projects, confirm the exact framework and behind-the-scenes work the host supports.
- Compare two appropriate hosting plans, including renewal, usage, backup and support terms.
- Assign someone to check the deployed version and maintain its services.
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Go deeper in related modules
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Official provider guides
Independent resources, not P.E.A.C.E. partners or recommendations. Check current terms before buying.
- Vercel: deployments (opens in a new tab)
Check project requirements, deployment configuration, and current plan terms.
- Netlify: deployment overview (opens in a new tab)
How suitable projects are built and deployed; connected services remain separate.
- Cloudflare Pages: platform limits (opens in a new tab)
Check the limits that apply to your project and any additional functions.
- Hostinger: WordPress hosting (opens in a new tab)
Compare current plan features, limits and renewal terms.
- SiteGround: WordPress hosting (opens in a new tab)
Check managed hosting features, backups and support for your plan.