Web hosting in Belgium — why your server's location matters
At WWW4 your website, your database and your mailboxes sit on our own servers in Belgian data centers. Your data does not leave the country, your visitors are close to the server, and when something goes wrong you speak to someone who runs the machines themselves.
Many providers call themselves Belgian when only their billing address is. Here is where the difference lies, and the question to ask a provider.
Why the location matters
GDPR gets simpler
Personal data that never leaves Belgium makes your processing register and your accountability considerably shorter. Infrastructure outside the EU adds a whole layer of agreements you have to be able to demonstrate.
Closer to your visitors
A Belgian visitor reaches a Belgian server faster than a server on another continent. That plays out on every request and counts towards how fast your site feels.
Support in your language
You explain your problem to someone who can open your environment while you are on the phone.
One legal order
Your data falls under Belgian and European law. For organisations in healthcare, government or law, that is often a firm requirement.
What "Belgian hosting" actually means
The term is not protected. These three claims look alike but mean different things. The last column gives the question that shows the difference.
| The claim | What it means | What you ask |
|---|---|---|
| Belgian company | Only the company is based here. The servers can be anywhere. | Which data center is my site in? |
| Belgian servers | The machines are in Belgium, but possibly rented from a third party. | Do you manage those servers yourselves? |
| Own infrastructure in Belgium | The provider owns and runs the machines here. That is what we do. | Who can I reach when something breaks? |