12 Best Cheap Domain Name Registrars (Feb. 2024) 

Most people don’t pay attention to the cost of registering a domain when they sign up for a web hosting plan. That’s because most web hosts offer free domains for first-time clients, an offer that usually lasts a year.

But make no mistake: Good domains are not free. To give you some context, the domain Cars.com holds the record of the most expensive domain ever sold. Someone paid $872 million for it, an amount higher than the gross domestic product (GDP) of some countries in 2023.

Thankfully, you don’t need to pay nearly that much for your own domain name. Let’s talk about some of the best cheap domain registrars today. I’ve reviewed 12 of the best, hoping you’ll find one within your budget. Spoiler alert: many are.

Hostinger won’t charge you domain registration fees when you sign up for a hosting package. This web hosting service offers different hosting plans, including shared hosting for small to medium projects, cloud hosting for large, resource-intensive projects, and VPS hosting for projects that require dedicated resources. Hostinger is also one of the most generous web hosting services out there. As highlighted below, it has many free features to offer.

More about Hostinger:

• Supports between 100 to 300 websites
• Comes with more than 150 designer-crafted templates
• Offers free automatic website migration

The most impressive thing about Hostinger is that it is one of those hosts that splits hosting packages to suit different budgets. In addition, it customizes these packages to ensure that you only choose what works for you, from pricing to resources.

Take the Business plan as an example. It offers up to 200 gigabytes of NVMe storage, free email accounts, CDN, domain, and SSL certificates. And that’s not even the best part; this plan supports more than 20 payment methods and comes with 0% transaction fees.

On the other hand, if you want something simple to get your feet off the ground, the Single plan has everything you need, from weekly backups, one email account, unlimited SSL certificates, and one-click WordPress installation.

IONOS, one of the cheapest web hosting providers, will give you a free domain for the first year when you purchase a hosting plan. But that’s not the only benefit of signing up for a hosting package with IONOS, as outlined below.

More about IONOS:

• Offers unlimited websites (Plus and Ultimate plans only)
• Offers a free professional email with a two-gigabyte storage capacity
• Conducts daily backup and recovery regardless of the selected hosting plan

The last point highlighted above is one of the things that makes this host particularly special. I’ve been testing web hosting companies for more than five years, and I can tell you that some hosts claim to be cheap but aren’t. But that’s not even the problem; the biggest issue here is having high renewal rates but very few resources to show.

IONOS does the opposite. The renewal rates are low, but its plans offer powerful resources. For instance, the Ultimate plan can accommodate up to 19 gigabytes of memory, perfect for a resource-intensive project. And yet, it still costs less than what some hosts charge for their basic shared hosting package.

HostArmada is a leading provider of affordable cloud hosting solutions. When you sign up for a hosting plan with this host, you’ll get a free domain, SSL certificate, website transfer, and optimization.

On top of that, you’ll get unlimited email accounts, MySQL databases, and at least one free website transfer.

More about HostArmada:

• Offers one-click application installation and provides 24/7 technical support
• Uses SSD cloud storage for maximum performance and speed
• Supports WordPress, Open Cart, PrestaShop, Joomla, WooCommerce, and Drupal

Finding a web host that ticks all the right boxes regarding quality, affordability, and reliability is rare. HostArmada is among the very few of its kind.

With datacenters in almost every corner of the world, this host guarantees maximum performance for your website or web application. The best part? There are no risks involved. If you’re unhappy with the service, you can cancel within 45 days of purchase, and you’ll receive your money back with no questions asked.

Bluehost needs no introduction in the world of web hosting. This has been the go-to web host for many individuals and small businesses for more than two decades.

A free domain for the first year awaits you when you sign up for a hosting plan with Bluehost. But that’s not all it has to offer; there’s more.

More about Bluehost:

• Supports up to five websites (shared hosting)
• Comes with a free SSL certificate for the first year
• Offers various domain extensions to suit your website

Speaking of a domain extension, Bluehost lets you choose from .com, .store, .net, and .website when setting up your domain. The ability to select your preferred domain name extension works best in situations where you want your domain to perfectly express what your website is all about.

Bluehost is a WordPress-approved host that makes it stand out in the crowded web hosting industry. Only SiteGround and DreamHost enjoy such an endorsement from the world’s largest and most popular content management system.

You’ll get a free domain when you sign up for a shared hosting plan at InMotion Hosting, but there’s a catch: you can only choose the Launch, Power, or Pro plans.

The Core plan, the most basic shared hosting option, comes with a free SSL certificate, but you’ll need to purchase and register a domain.

More about InMotion:

• Hosts between 25 to unlimited websites
• Features tons of marketing tools
• Has one of the best customer service departments in the web hosting industry

InMotion offers many unlimited features, even for a basic shared hosting plan. While other hosts only support one website if you choose the base plan, InMotion supports two websites and gives you up to 10 email addresses for free.

Digital marketing is one area in which this hosting service provider excels. Regardless of the hosting plan you choose, InMotion comes with powerful marketing tools, which include a website builder, email on any device, free advertising credits, and customer management systems to help get your website closer to your target market.

HostGator offers a free domain for the first year when you sign up for certain hosting plans here (I’ll reveal them below). That’s the key you need to unlock other offers from this veteran host.

Here’s an overview of what to expect from this host.

More about HostGator:

• Provides a Cloudflare CDN and dedicated IP (Baby and Business plans only)
• Has 24/7 customer support via chat and phone
• Offers up to $100 in Microsoft advertising credits

Back to the free domain, it’s worth noting that you’ll only get it if you sign up for at least a one-year contract with this host. On top of that, the free domain offer only applies to the following plans: HostGator shared, WordPress, or cloud hosting.

HostGator offers simplicity, which appeals to users who feel overwhelmed by too many features when setting up their hosting environment. This is one of the few hosts still using the traditional control panel. Yes, there may be some changes here and there, but none are too complex to leave you feeling stuck and overwhelmed.

Enter GoDaddy, the world’s largest domain registrar. Like other hosts I’ve reviewed, GoDaddy will give you a free domain for the first year when you sign up for any of its hosting plans.

Let’s see what else this popular domain registrar offers.

More about GoDaddy:

• Offers a proprietary GoDaddy Conversations feature to put all your website chats in one place
• Provides online payment links, perfect for eCommerce businesses
• Allows you to set up one-time appointments, track sales, create videos, and manage your social media under one roof

If you owned a website in the early and mid-2000s, you probably purchased its domain from GoDaddy. Back then, GoDaddy was basically the Walmart of web hosting; almost everyone you knew went there to buy a domain. Today, this host has evolved in many ways but still maintains the largest market share in the domain registration sphere.

Speaking of GoDaddy’s evolution, you’ll notice that it has gone from being a standard web hosting provider to a leading eCommerce host. While it still hosts standard websites, it works even better with eCommerce businesses thanks to a host of powerful features designed to promote online sales and marketing.

If you want to build a website on WordPress and you haven’t purchased a domain, DreamHost is a great place to start. Like Bluehost, DreamHost is yet another WordPress-approved web host.

Here, you’ll also get a free domain once you sign up for select hosting plans. We’ll go over these plans shortly. For now, let’s look at what else DreamHost has to show.

More about DreamHost:

• Comes with a powerful WordPress website builder
• Provides one-click WordPress staging, ideal for WordPress developers
• Offers a free SSL certificate to protect your domain

Before signing up for a hosting plan with DreamHost, remember that the free domain offer only applies when you sign a minimum of a one-year contract with this host. Even so, it only applies to the Shared Starter, Unlimited, and any annual DreamPress plan.

DreamHost also has one of the longest money-back guarantees in the web hosting industry. While other hosts offer money-back guarantees lasting an average of 30 days, this host extends it to 97 days. That’s three months and one week of test-driving this host.

InterSever has been around for more than 22 years now. It’s one of those hosts that isn’t so loud about what it offers but is a true gem once you discover it.

When you first sign up, you’ll receive a free domain for the first year and many other incredible offers worth using, as highlighted below.

More about InterServer

• Offers InterShield protection for enhanced security
• Uses network routing technology to improve server performance
• Provides 24/7 support via phone, email, and ticket system

It almost seems like InterServer loves to keep a low profile in the web hosting sphere. Some call it a well-kept secret; others think it spends more time improving its resources than marketing them.

Whichever theory you believe in, we all agree that this host deserves more flowers. I’ve seen web hosts that are not even half as good but with louder marketing campaigns, and InterServer blows them out of the water.

A2 Hosting doesn’t offer a free domain. But when you look at the other features it has, you’ll realize that purchasing a domain here is well worth it.

One of my personal favorite features is A2 Hosting’s use of NVMe SSDs. This infrastructure gives your website a major speed boost, and that’s only the start of what A2 offers. Here’s a preview of what else you can expect.

More about A2 Hosting:

• Offers a free website migration service
• Provides performance-boosted NVMe SSD servers
• Comes with Anycast DNS for increased performance and redundancy

Speed is one of the most important ranking factors in modern search engines, including Google. And with the rise of social media platforms such as TikTok, the human attention span has dropped to an all-time low.

Today, no one wants to wait longer than three seconds for a webpage to load, so having a website optimized for speed means faster loading times and lower bounce rates. That’s one area A2 Hosting leads in.

Hostwinds is the jack of all trades in the web hosting world. Whether you need shared VPS (for Windows and Linux), cloud, dedicated, or even reseller hosting, this host always has the perfect plan on the shelves for you. Although it doesn’t offer a free domain like other hosts I’ve covered, most of the free features you’ll find at Hostwinds are what other hosts will charge a small fee for.

More about Hostwinds:

• Comes with free dedicated IP addresses
• Provides free SSL certificates for every domain you purchase
• Has a Weebly website builder, perfect for beginners

As mentioned earlier, Hostwinds offers many premium features for free. I’m talking about free IP addresses, website migration, and nightly backups. These are the services, features, or functionalities most web hosting providers offer at a fee.

So, how does Hostwinds manage to deliver all these premium features for free? It all boils down to the fact that it owns all of its hosting infrastructure, so there are no middleman fees involved.

SiteGround is home to more than 2.8 million domains, even though it does not offer free domain name registration. In fact, of all the domain registrars I’ve covered so far, SiteGround charges the highest rate.

That leaves you wondering why so many customers trust this company with their domain and hosting needs. That’s not a coincidence; there is something about this host, as you’ll find out below.

More about SiteGround:

• Offers a free SSL certificate and CDN
• Comes fully equipped with various eCommerce tools and plugins
• Features unlimited databases, websites, and email accounts

Most SiteGround reviews I’ve read agree that this host is powerful but also expensive. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. If it were, this host wouldn’t have more than 2 million customers. It’s true that SiteGround costs slightly more than what other standard shared hosting providers charge for the same service.

In the same breath, it’s also worth noting that this WordPress hosting provider offers many premium features for free. Where else can you get email and website migration, WordPress installation, SSL certificates, email accounts, daily backups, CDNs, unlimited databases, and a host of eCommerce tools, all for free? That’s what makes SiteGround a one-of-a-kind web hosting company.

A domain registrar is a company that registers and manages domain names. Here’s an overview of how this process works. I’ll start with a quick trip down memory boulevard.

Many years ago, domain names didn’t exist. Instead, IP addresses were the primary way of identifying websites. That wasn’t always easy.

Think about the people on your contact list whose phone numbers you can remember at this very moment. It took me months to memorize my own phone number, so you can imagine how long it would take to remember IP addresses back then.

Domain names replaced IP addresses to make domains more memorable and easier to access. After the transformation, the role of a domain registrar was to facilitate the official registration of that name with the central domain registry associated with the selected top-level domain (TLD), such as .com, .net., .store, or .org.

As you’ve seen above, there’s no standard cost for a domain name. The truth is that domain registration is never free, although some hosts, like those covered above, may choose to offer this service for free, usually for the first year.

That said, the average cost of a domain name is $20 a year. This, however, will depend on various factors, including the value of the domain. A top-level domain such as .com, .net, or .org will cost a little bit more.

The same applies to shorter domain names. Since they are usually easier to memorize than longer ones, you should expect to pay more to acquire them.

The domain’s renewal fees will also determine the final price. As I discussed earlier, most hosting providers offer free domains when you first sign up but will charge you a fee when you renew the domain registration, usually after a year from the date you signed up and acquired said domain.

If the domain had a previous owner or valuable keywords, it would likely cost more than a new one that doesn’t contain a high-value keyword.

Let’s look at these two domains: pandamourfoundation.com and cheapcarsales.com for demonstration purposes.

Which one of these two would you expect costs more? Of course, the cheapcarsales.com domain will fetch a higher price since it has the valuable keyword “cheap car sales.” Whoever types that domain into the search bar is likely looking to buy a cheap car.

On the other hand, a user who types “pandamourfoundation.com” probably wants to learn more about the foundation and not necessarily transact with it. For this reason, web hosts consider a domain like cheapcarsales.com a premium domain.

GoDaddy is not only the best domain registrar but also the world’s largest. More than 84 million domains call this popular host their home. That’s 30 times the number of users who’ve registered their domains at SiteGround.

Studying GoDaddy’s closest competitor in the domain registration market can help paint a clearer picture of how wide the gap is between this registrar and others. Namecheap comes second after GoDaddy in this market, but it can’t even catch the scent of GoDaddy’s cologne. That’s how wide the distance between these two is. GoDaddy stands at 84 million registered domains, while Namecheap is a distant second at 16.5 million.

According to statistics, GoDaddy also has the third-largest web hosting market share, just behind Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud Platform, which hold the first and second spots, respectively.

Cloudflare is the closest you can get to a domain registrar with no markup pricing. In 2018, the company announced its plans to expand its domain registration service by offering wholesale pricing with no markup.

On top of the no-markup policy, Cloudflare also announced that each registered domain would come with free WHOIS domain privacy protection. The main purpose of WHOIS privacy is to ensure that no one can access the domain owner’s details by simply searching the internet.

Cloudflare isn’t the most popular domain name registrar out there, but it’s a company that’s learned from its own mistakes in this field. In 2013, a hacker gained access to its domain name system but didn’t cause any significant damage.

As a result, the company embarked on an intensive campaign to boost its security and provide better domain management. Today, it is one of the most secure, affordable, and reliable domain registrars on the internet and mostly deals with high-profile domains.

Privacy protection is usually a premium feature. While some hosts may offer this feature for free, most charge a small fee. That’s because protecting your online privacy requires a lot of resources. And given that cybercriminals always find ways to stay ahead of the game, web hosting companies can’t afford to let their guard down. This means investing in powerful security infrastructure, which costs money.

That said, GoDaddy, DreamHost, and Hostinger are examples of domain registrars that offer free privacy protection. At Hostinger, you’ll get free domain privacy protection if you purchase Premium, Business, or Cloud Startup plans. The Single plan, which falls under Hostinger’s umbrella of shared hosting, doesn’t come with free privacy protection.

On the other hand, DreamHost will protect your domain’s privacy regardless of the shared hosting plan you choose. This protection extends to its VPS hosting plans. And, last but not least, GoDaddy has free privacy protection woven into its domain registration service.

Now that you know how much it costs to get a good domain and where to get it at an affordable price, I hope you’ll find the domain you need to make your website or brand stand out. Remember to research and read the fine print before registering the domain.

That’s one good way of avoiding unexpected costs further down the road with your current domain name provider. It also saves you from the painful and often frustrating domain transfer process to a new registrar.