Video marketing has exploded in popularity in recent years. An effective way to engage customers, tell your brand‘s story and explain your products and services, video allows you to connect with your audience in a personal way.
But before you can reap the benefits, you need to choose the right video hosting platform for your business. With so many options to pick from, making the best choice can get overwhelming.
This comprehensive guide compares the top 14 video hosting platforms to help you find the best fit for your video marketing needs.
Benefits of Using a Video Hosting Platform
Here are some of the major advantages of using a dedicated video hosting service over storing videos on your own servers:
Optimized for Streaming
Video hosting platforms are designed to reliably deliver high-quality video while handling the bandwidth and storage challenges. Their global content delivery networks (CDNs) ensure fast buffer-free streaming.
Built-in Analytics
Robust analytics give you insights into who‘s watching your videos and how they interact. You can identify popular content to produce more of, optimize underperforming videos and gauge ROI.
Social Sharing and Embeds
It‘s easy to share and embed videos on websites and social media. Platforms provide customizable embed codes and widgets to match your brand identity.
Reliability and Uptime
With redundant storage and backups, the risk of videos becoming unavailable is minimal. You get close to 100% uptime so viewers can access your content anytime.
Support for Live Streaming
Many platforms make it simple to live stream events and webinars right from your browser. Some even provide ways to monetize live video.
Security
Video files and data are secured behind layers of protection. Controls like permissions, watermarking and DRM prevent unauthorized access and downloads.
Clearly, video hosting platforms add a lot of value for businesses invested in video marketing. Let‘s look at some top contenders in this space.
14 Best Video Hosting Platforms for Business
1. Vimeo
The best-known video platform after YouTube, Vimeo focuses on serving the needs of professionals with premium accounts and expert support. Companies like Amazon, Starbucks and Apple host corporate and marketing content on Vimeo.
Key Features
- Beautiful high-quality playback with customizable professional players
- Detailed analytics dashboard with deep audience insights
- Review and collaborate on videos privately
- Privacy controls, password protection and DRM
- Live streaming support and chat integration
- Monetize with Pay Per View, tips and subscriptions
Pricing
- Basic: Free with 500 MB storage
- Plus: $7/month for 5 GB storage
- Pro: $20/month for 20 GB storage
- Business: $45/month with customizable storage and bandwidth
Vimeo is used by top brands for its beautiful viewing experience, analytics and monetization capabilities for business video. But the free tier is quite limited.
2. Wistia
Trusted by over 500,000 businesses, Wistia provides a video hosting solution tailored for marketers. Known for innovations like Soapbox for easy video creation and built-in lead generation with calls-to-action, the platform empowers businesses to drive results with video.
Key Features
- Unlimited viewers and bandwidth
- Custom branding with logo and colors
- Detailed viewer analytics and heat maps
- Lead capture forms and CTAs
- Integrations with marketing automation platforms
- Private sharing for proofing and reviews
- Security controls like passwords and restrictions
Pricing
- Free plan limited to 3 videos
- Starter at $20/month for 10 videos
- Pro at $100/month for 50 videos
- Advanced plans for larger video libraries
From startups to enterprises like MailChimp and Oracle, Wistia is loved for making business video creation and marketing effortless. It does have higher pricing but offers great ROI.
3. YouTube
The world‘s most popular video site owned by Google, YouTube needs no introduction! With over a billion monthly visitors, YouTube offers unparalleled reach for video content. Used judiciously, it can drive massive traffic and brand-building.
Key Features
- Host unlimited videos for free
- Embed easily on any website
- Automatically optimized for all devices
- Subtitles and translations in 100+ languages
- Live streaming support built-in
- Basic analytics on views and discovery
- Monetize popular videos via the Partner Program
Pricing
- Free with ads
- YouTube Premium for viewers starting at $12/month
- Special rates for business live streaming
YouTube provides an incredible platform for businesses to engage massive audiences for free. Just don‘t expect advanced analytics or security assurances with the basic accounts.
4. Brightcove
A popular enterprise-grade video hosting platform used by leading media companies and Fortune 500 brands. It powers video for NY Times, Discovery and Walmart with reliable streaming, detailed analytics and flexible monetization models.
Key Features
- Low latency live and on-demand video
- SSAI for customized ad experiences
- Contextual CMS for managing video libraries
- DRM and secure live video workflows
- Support for paywalls, subscriptions and payments
- Capabilities to launch OTT video services
- Consultative services for custom needs
Pricing
- Video Cloud Core starting at $199/month
- Video Cloud business plans customized
Brightcove is purpose-built to handle large-scale video distribution securely while monetizing audiences. It meets needs for media groups and global brands that YouTube can‘t fulfill.
5. Kaltura
Kaltura first made a name with its widely-adopted open source video platform. Over the years, it has evolved into a full-fledged Cloud TV solution used by leading educational institutes and enterprise companies across industries.
Key Features
- Video portal for internal and external video sharing
- Tools for creating interactive videos
- Capture, edit, search and stream video collection
- Extensive integrations via APIs and plugins
- Built-in eCDN for speed
- Analyze content and viewer engagement
- Flexible subscription model for monetization
Pricing
- Customized Cloud TV packages based on usage
- Price varies based on bandwidth and features
From training companies to educational organizations, Kaltura meets specialized video management needs while providing monetization opportunities. But the pricing is not very transparent.
6. JW Player
Boasting a reach of over 2 billion unique devices, JW Player pioneered video on the web. Its flagship product helps businesses seamlessly manage and deliver optimized video across websites, mobile and OTT apps while monetizing audiences.
Key Features
- Apps for web, iOS and Android
- Advertising capabilities built-in
- Audio ads and podcast monetization
- Capabilities for subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) and live stream-to-consumer offerings
- Flexible paywall implementation
- Performance dashboard analyzing technical metrics beyond views
Pricing
- Free version for testing
- Premium plans start at $199/month video hosting only and go up based on usage
JW Player basically provides the infrastructure to launch video viewing experiences while unlocking new revenue streams for publishers – making it popular for premium content providers.
7. Vidyard
Vidyard stands out with its video analytics capabilities using interactions tracked across websites, social channels and emails. Companies can pinpoint the ROI of videos down to the asset level – ideal for optimizing video conversion funnels.
Key Features
- Embed videos personalized with branding
- Advanced analytics and A/B testing capabilities
- Track video engagement across channels
- Customizable video portals and playlists
- Secure streaming without downloads enabled
- Native apps for web, iOS and Android
Pricing
- Starter package at $600/year for up to 20 videos
- Custom enterprise pricing available
The actionable insights into video performance justify Vidyard‘s pricing for data-driven marketing and sales teams. But it lacks many ancillary video features.
8. SproutVideo
An intuitive video hosting platform built for businesses, SproutVideo makes it easy to manage video content from one place. Companies can create gorgeous branded players, privately share videos with password protection and analyze engagement.
Key Features
- Beautiful HTML5 player branding
- Detailed analytics per video
- Scheduling for video releases
- Powerful tools for trimming and concatenating videos
- Collaborate and review workflows
- Extensive security controls and DRM
Pricing
- Premium plans start at $33/month for 50 videos
SproutVideo hits the sweet spot between advanced controls expected by professionals and simplicity needed for usability. Surprisingly affordable for all included capabilities.
9. Uscreen
An end-to-end platform for video monetization, Uscreen equips entrepreneurs and media companies to sell video content seamlessly. With its built-in ecommerce capabilities, subscription management and flexible paywalls implementation, Uscreen has enabled over 7000 video businesses.
Key Features
- Video streaming across web, mobile and TV
- Multi-tier subscription model and billing
- Complete video commerce solutions
- Dynamic server-side ad insertion
- Multi-language subtitling
- DRM controls
Pricing
- Starts at $75/month for 1000 video views
- Custom enterprise pricing
For documentary producers, fitness trainers and other video creators, Uscreen provides the technology and monetization toolkit needed to run a media business online.
10. Mux
Mux stands out on this list as an API-based cloud infrastructure engineered to handle enterprise-scale video workloads. With robust capabilities supporting transcoding, streaming, monitoring and paid video features, Mux is the choice for many leading video-centric SaaS platforms.
Key Features
- Ultra-low latency live streaming
- Stream both VOD and live video
- Add server-side ad insertion and DRM
- Capabilities to support paywalls and subscriptions
- Detailed quality of streaming analytics
- Alerting when users face playback issues
- Plug and play APIs for customization
Pricing
- Free tier for testing
- Usage-based paid plans start at $100/month
While Mux doesn‘t have turnkey tools for uploading and managing videos out-of-box, their core infrastructure enables startups to scale custom streaming applications cost-effectively.
11. Cloudinary
Cloudinary takes a radically different approach from traditional video hosting platforms. A developer-friendly media experience cloud, it enables apps to deliver video via their APIs while they handle storage, CDN distribution, optimization, analytics and more behind the scenes.
Key Features
- Auto video format conversion
- Intelligent auto-cropping and thumbnail generation
- Real-time manipulation and effects
- AI-powered tagging, moderation and search
- Extensive API capabilities
- Plans optimized for volume and bandwidth
Pricing
- Free tier for testing
- Usage-based plans starting at $49/month
By leaving the complexity of infrastructure management to Cloudinary, developers can focus on delivering amazing video experiences in their products easily.
12. Hippo Video
Built for creating result-oriented video content faster, Hippo Video makes it easy for anyone to produce professional videos. Using its robust web and mobile apps, businesses can customize videos with branding, animate explainer content, add interactivity and track engagement.
Key Features
- Create videos from templates
- Animate text, characters, logos
- Add CTAs and quizzes
- Interactive video overlays
- Host and embed videos with analytics
- Collaborate on feedback
Pricing
- Startup plan $9/month, unlimited videos
While Hippo lacks sophisticated monetization options, its focus on helping produce better-converting video content makes it a great affordable alternative to complex solutions.
13. Renderforest
Renderforest is another creation-focused video platform aiming to simplify animated video production. Users can select professional video templates crafted by designers, customize scenes effortlessly and produce social and marketing videos tailored for platforms like YouTube and Facebook.
Key Features
- 6000+ ready-made video templates
- Animated scene customization
- Logo intro/outros, dynamic text animations
- Background music library access
- Host, download and embed
- Mobile apps for editing
Pricing
- Free account with Renderforest watermark
- Unlimited video exports from $9/month
Easy to produce awesome animated videos without technical expertise, Renderforest speeds up video creation considerably for social media and blogs.
14. Clipchamp
Acquired by Microsoft, Clipchamp is a versatile online video editor that also includes hosting capabilities for businesses to manage and share videos securely. Users can create videos from templates, upload their own footage and access a library of free stock videos and graphics.
Key Features
- Flexible and intuitive video editor
- Export videos in different resolutions
- Upload and embed videos
- Manage video library permissions
- Add your brand with watermark
- Quality analysis to optimize
Pricing
- Free plan with Clipchamp watermark
- Premium plans start at $9/month
For Microsoft 365 subscribers who need an end-to-end video solution combined with Essentials productivity features, Clipchamp delivers good value and integration.
Factors to Consider For Video Hosting
With so many options for video hosting suited for different needs, you need to weigh a few factors like these to make the ideal choice:
Your Monthly Video Upload Requirements: Storage size ranges widely from free tiers under 100 MB on YouTube to customizable enterprise plans. Choose based on your video volume needs.
Viewer Experience: Elements like reliability, video quality, custom branding and formatting define the viewer experience you can deliver. Some platforms excel here.
Integrations With Other Stack: Opt for a platform that easily integrates with your other martech and tools via APIs or plugins.
Security Control Expectations: Evaluate permission controls, encryption standards, watermarking availability and DRM based on how much protection you need.
Analytics Insights: The depth of built-in analytics varies tremendously. If actionable metrics are critical, shortlist appropriately.
Monetization Path: If you want to generate revenue directly from videos via ads, subscriptions or payments, ensure platform fits the bill.
Ease of Management: How intuitive the interfaces and workflows are for uploading, managing, editing and sharing videos.
Budget Available: Video hosting plans range from free tiers to enterprise offerings costing thousands per month. Outline budget before shortlisting.
Support Availability: With mission-critical platforms, access to timely and expert customer support is vital when issues arise.
Outline your exact video hosting needs factoring in these elements before zeroing down on the best platform.
Key Takeaways and Recommendations
The video hosting ecosystem has matured tremendously over recent years. Several enterprise-ready yet easy-to-use platforms now empower businesses to implement sophisticated video marketing strategies.
If your needs are straightforward without advanced configuration requirements, I recommend exploring Wistia, SproutVideo or Vimeo to start. They provide the best blend of customization, analytics and security controls for small business usage.
For video creators already monetizing content, JW Player and Uscreen open up great opportunities to scale revenue with paywalls, subscriptions and ads.
On the other hand, media companies and large brands managing enterprise video portals should evaluate Kaltura, Brightcove and Mux for specialized hosting at higher scale.
And don‘t forget the ever-popular YouTube! While feature limitations exist for businesses compared to paid platforms, its immense reach makes it a must for supplemental video distribution.
At the end of the day, understand your niche video hosting needs, choose key factors wisely and deploy the solution meticulously to maximize viewership and ROI with minimal hiccups.
