A virtual private server (VPS) is a great way to harness some of the power of a dedicated server without shelling out the cash to actually have your own. Virtualization is good for the providers and consumers because resources are better allocated, keeping prices down. Still, for a small startup blog, a VPS may be more than you need, even if the price is alluring (some go for as low as $5 per month).
What You Get
With a VPS, you will get your own virtual operating system with full root access and also:
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Dedicated CPU percentage or even entire cores dedicated to your VPS
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Dedicated RAM and burstable RAM – this eliminates a problem with shared hosting sites taking up more than their fair share of memory
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isolated storage and security – everything is self-contained
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the ability to duplicate, spin up, and destroy virtual machines with ease, fully customized to meet your OS and application needs
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the full range of developer tools (you can install any database, programming API, or framework you need)
What You May Not Want
You may not be ready to run your blog from a VPS if you do not want:
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Responsibility for server security – Even though it is not a full server, you will need to treat it as such, managing a firewall and any other necessary security measures
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Self configuration of networking, databases, and other tools. Unless you have a managed VPS, you will have to do all of this yourself, whereas it normally comes ready to go on a shared hosting account
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Less for more – these days many shared hosting accounts offer more disk space and bandwidth than you can ever hope to use. If you do not need a VPS for the reasons specified in the “what you get” section, you can probably get by just fine with shared hosting.
A busy blog with lots of commenting and participation from users will need dedicated CPU and RAM, something a VPS can provide. If you are not to that point and do not anticipate getting there in the future, you may prefer shared hosting. On the other hand, if managing your own server does not scare you, it cannot hurt to be well-prepared for the future, especially when the price is right.