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Linux and Microsoft Windows are two different operating systems. Windows is a household name and doesn’t need much introduction. Linux is a free, Unix-like operating system. Both make excellent environments for web hosting, but there are some differences between them.
To help you decide whether Linux or Windows hosting is better for you, we look at the following elements:
Cost
Linux is an “open source” operating system, which means there are no licensing fees to pay. Because of this, Linux hosting is usually cheaper than Windows hosting, where the cost of Windows Server licenses is built into the price.
Reliability
Linux is known for being very stable and reliable. A well-run Linux server rarely needs to be restarted, which means more uptime for your website.
Experience
Linux has a longer history in web hosting than Windows, and it runs the large majority of web servers today.
Speed
There is no real difference in speed between Linux and Windows, but Linux is slightly faster in processing basic web pages.
Functionality
Windows supports ASP and ASP.NET, Microsoft’s programming frameworks for building dynamic, database-driven web pages that connect to Microsoft databases such as SQL Server or Access. Linux doesn’t support classic ASP or Access databases, and instead uses free databases such as MySQL and MariaDB. (Newer ASP.NET Core applications can also run on Linux.)
Scripts
Most of the popular website software available online, including WordPress and other PHP scripts, was developed on Linux servers. So it tends to install more smoothly and run more reliably on a Linux server. Much of it is also free.
To summarize, most users find that Linux hosting is easier to use, more reliable, comes with free, open source software and is cheaper than Windows hosting. So unless you need Windows-specific features such as ASP.NET with MS-SQL or an Access database, Linux is probably the better choice.