What is a web hosting service?

A web hosting service is fundamentally a service that stores websites and makes them accessible on the Internet. This means that when a website is created, the files associated with it (HTML documents, images, CSS stylesheets, and other types of content) need to be stored on a server. The hosting service provides the necessary infrastructure to keep these data files available and online, so that users can access the website using their web browsers.

The significance of this functionality lies in the fact that a website needs to reside somewhere on the Internet in order for users to reach it. Web hosting services ensure that the website is stored on powerful servers that are always on and connected to the Internet, providing stable and reliable access to users around the world. Without web hosting, websites would not be available to an online audience, as there would be no medium through which to deliver the content.

While other choices indicate related functionalities in the realm of web services—such as analyzing traffic, creating websites without coding, or purchasing domain names—they do not encapsulate the core definition of web hosting. Therefore, the option that highlights the storage and accessibility of websites accurately describes what a web hosting service is all about.