Beyond “Good Enough”: Why We Moved to the UK’s Fastest and Greenest Web Host
If you have been following our recent articles on how we build websites at Egret Digital, you’ll notice a recurring theme: an absolute obsession with performance. We strip out bloated page builders, write native WordPress code, and meticulously engineer our analytics tags so they don’t slow down the user experience.
But there is one foundational element that dictates website speed before a single line of code is loaded: your web hosting.
For a long time, SiteGround was our go-to hosting provider. They are a fantastic, reliable company that serves millions of websites brilliantly, and we built many successful projects on their infrastructure. However, as our agency evolved and our performance benchmarks became stricter—like aiming for a First Contentful Paint (FCP) of under 0.5 seconds—we realised we needed a partner that pushed the boundaries of server technology just as hard as we push our code.
We also wanted a partner that shared our values regarding the environment.
That is why we transitioned our hosting infrastructure to Krystal – the fastest and greenest web host in the UK. Here is why making this switch was one of the best decisions we’ve made for our clients.
Speed: The Foundation of First Contentful Paint
In our previous article, we talked about how a heavy website forces users to stare at a blank screen. But even the lightest, most brilliantly coded native WordPress site will load slowly if the server takes too long to respond.
This is measured by a metric called Time to First Byte (TTFB). It is the milliseconds it takes for a user’s browser to connect to the server and receive the very first piece of data.
Krystal’s infrastructure is built entirely on enterprise-grade NVMe SSDs (which are significantly faster than standard solid-state drives) and LiteSpeed web servers. Furthermore, because their datacentres are based right here in the UK, data doesn’t have to travel across the globe to reach your local customers.
When we pair our lean, native WordPress builds with Krystal’s lightning-fast TTFB, the results on WebPageTest are phenomenal. Pages don’t just load; they snap into place instantly. This translates to lower bounce rates, higher conversions, and a significant structural advantage for your SEO.
Sustainability: The Internet’s Hidden Carbon Footprint
Performance was our primary catalyst for the move, but Krystal’s commitment to the environment made them the undisputed winner.
It’s easy to think of the internet as an invisible, weightless “cloud.” In reality, the internet relies on massive physical datacentres running millions of servers 24/7, requiring enormous amounts of electricity to power and cool them. If the internet were a country, it would be one of the top polluters in the world.
We believe that building high-performing digital assets shouldn’t come at the expense of the planet.
Krystal is the UK’s only B Corp Certified web host. Their entire operation is powered by 100% renewable energy – not through complex carbon-offsetting loopholes, but directly from the sun, wind, and sea. By hosting our clients’ websites on Krystal, we ensure that their digital footprint is genuinely green.
The Agency Difference: A Zero-Compromise Approach
As an agency, every tool we select is a reflection of the value we want to deliver to our clients.
SiteGround served us well during a specific era of our business. But moving to Krystal represents our modern philosophy: zero compromises. We want local UK support, bleeding-edge server speeds to fuel our native WordPress builds, and a verifiable commitment to renewable energy.
When you host your website with Egret Digital, you aren’t just getting a space on a server. You’re getting an enterprise-grade foundation that actively benefits your bottom line, your users’ experience, and the environment.