I am definitely getting vps hosting but I need it to have wordpress. Ideally I want it with auto install but how hard is it to download wordpress and install it yourself on your vps host?
Manual installation of WordPress is also very easy. 1) Upload files. 2) Create database. 3) Visit website and complete installation. http://codex.wordpress.org/Installing_WordPress
If you get Linux VPS with cPanel, you can install Wordpress through One-Click installation using Softaculous or Fantastico whichever included.
For easier management, I recommend you to have cPanel or any control panel that compatible with Linux. Have Softaculous or Fantastico installed in the control panel so that you can install Wordpress easily. Remember that you have to upgrade Wordpress whenever there is an updated version. With a control panel, it ease your task.
Wordpress is one of the easiest scripts to install and it really only takes a couple of minutes. Maintaining a vps is a much more time-consuming and complicated task. If you can handle a vps then installing wordpress will be a breeze. There are some auto-installer scripts out there that will do wordpress, but honestly it isn't worth paying an extra monthly fee just to install it one time.
Most hosts support wordpress but not all of them can help you optimize the server based on your wordpress usage. I would find a host that is very in tune with wordpress. If you are going for an unmanaged server, then you can go with anyone as you will be doing the setup and work on it. But if you are choosing a fully managed provider, I would ask a few questions before signing up to judge their wordpress knowledge. One click installs are nice, but there is more to maintaining the server and keeping it running at peak performance.
5min install guide http://codex.wordpress.org/Installing_WordPress http://www.wpbeginner.com/wp-tutorials/how-to-install-wordpress-on-your-site/