Best CDN Providers for 2021

Why do I need a CDN service?

Before you can answer that question, you need to know what a content delivery network (CDN) is and what the various content delivery network providers are supposed to offer you.

As the name suggests, a CDN serves as additional horsepower for delivering the content on a given webpage to your visitors. The way a CDN works is by storing a copy of the files your website uses across several geographical locations, serving the visitor through the server closest to them. This method drastically reduces load times, thus increasing engagement.

However, a CDN isn’t a web hosting alternative – you still need someone to host your site for you. Once you have that covers, the top CDN providers will provide your site with file caching and additional space for storing scripts and images in case a service cutout happens. In short, a service like this can improve the experience for your customers in many ways.

Improving Site Speed

If your website loads slowly, you’re likely to lose customers. Most internet users have high-speed internet connections. With a DSL or a faster option, they’re used to practically instantaneous webpage loading. It’s a matter of keeping up with times, especially if you expect a high traffic volume for your website. The main advantage of working with CDN service providers is decreasing the ping and allowing visitors quicker access to your platform.

It’s also a matter of staying well-ranked on search engines. Google and other search engines highly value fast websites that keep their visitors engaged and their bounce rate low. A slow website is a surefire way not only to lose your user base but to fall to the dreaded second page of Google search results. After all, no one ever goes there, so neither should your website. And if you get the best CDN host for your money, you won’t have to.

Better Stability

This year, Black Friday and Cyber Monday shoppers managed to overload a bunch of websites during peak hours. There was also that infamous PlayStation 5 pre-order disaster where the onslaught of customers and automated bots brought down many gaming stores. What CDN would have done in this instance would be to offload traffic from the central server across the whole network, thus keeping the site stable and fast. For owners of high-traffic websites, using a top CDN to supply server power has become a must, unless they’re prepared to lose customers.

Decreases Overall Costs

While this is not immediately obvious in the short-term, a CDN can save you plenty of money. Instead of getting an expensive cloud server, lots of backups, and whatnot, you can purchase a smaller plan and invest the remainder of your money into a content delivery network. Overall, you’ll end up spending less money while getting better results on your big websites with a top CDN provider if you’re in it for the long haul. What’s more, you’ll have fewer tech support calls to bring crashed websites back, as previously mentioned.