Writer: Joe Warnimont
Editor: Lillian Castro
Reviewer: Christina Lewis
A free domain name sounds too good to be true, right? Most times, yes. Yet, I’ve found that signing up for a hosting plan presents the best opportunity to keep domain name costs as low as possible for as long as possible. The first time I signed up for a domain name, I rejoiced at its $1 per year cost. Little did I know my bill would increase to $40+ per year once the year ended.
I hadn’t realized the $1 domain price only lasted for a promotional period. Most hosting companies have these deals: Sign up for cheap web hosting and get a free domain name for a year. The domain price increase isn’t a scam, but it can be surprising. Thanks to a little research, I found that some hosts offer significantly lower renewal prices than others.
That’s why I compiled the absolute cheapest domain renewal hosts on the market. The hosts listed below offer the cheapest domain renewal fees (for .com top-level domains or TLDs) when placed against the competition. This way, you get to take advantage of the domain name promotions while still keeping costs low in the future.
1. HostArmada — $11.99/Year Renewal
HostArmada, one of the cheapest domain renewal hosts, keeps domain pricing low for the foreseeable future. You sign up for a cheap hosting account and get a free domain name.
After the first year, that domain name renews to just less than $12 per year. This pricing varies from domain to domain, but site owners can rest easy knowing they will get one of the most inexpensive domain names online.
HostArmada.com
Monthly Starting Price $1.99
- Cloud-based NVMe SSD servers across 11 global data centers
- 7 daily backups, free SSL, and Imunify360 WAF protection
- Free cPanel, Softaculous 1-click installs, and website migration
- 45-day money-back guarantee — longer than most hosts
- 24/7/365 support via phone, chat, and tickets
- Get started on HostArmada now.
Christina Lewis
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45 days | 15 GB NVMe SSD | FREE (1 year) | 3 minutes |
It all starts by signing up for a HostArmada hosting account, whether that’s a shared hosting plan, VPS hosting account, or a dedicated server. The web host even provides managed WordPress hosting for those who want HostArmada to handle all the backend server maintenance.
On top of a free domain name and rock-bottom domain renewal pricing, HostArmada shared hosting plans offer a free SSL certificate, free website and domain transfer, and optimization help for getting your website noticed online.
2. InterServer — $14.00/Year Renewal
InterServer hosting users receive a free domain name for one year. Once the promotional period expires, InterServer keeps yearly pricing low. With InterServer, you can choose from ASP.net hosting, shared hosting, and VPS hosting.
InterServer.net
Monthly Starting Price $2.50
- $0.01 first month with coupon code HOSTINGADV
- $2.50/month after. No contracts or increases
- Softaculous one-click installer for WordPress and 450+ apps
- Register or transfer domains for less than $10
- InterShield security suite with AI firewall & Cloudflare CDN
- Get started on InterServer now.
Sead Fadilpasic
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | Unlimited SSD | New or Transfer | 4 minutes |
Not only does InterServer maintain lower pricing for domain names, but its shared hosting service beats out pricing when compared to many competitors. Its plans come with essentials like one-click installs for hundreds of apps, a website builder, and unlimited email accounts.
3. AccuWebHosting — $14.99/Year Renewal
AccuWebHosting provides free domain registration when you sign up for certain web hosting plans. You can find the perfect domain right from the AccuWebHosting website, and rest easy knowing the renewal cost never gets too pricey. Pick from a long list of domain name extensions, and take advantage of affordable Linux web hosting.
AccuWebHosting.com
Monthly Starting Price $1.99
- FREE RVsitebuilder & 400 templates
- Unlimited domains and databases
- Scalable shared cloud server option
- CloudLinux OS and LiteSpeed server
- Multiple DDoS protections
- Get started on AccuWebHosting.
Jack Wallen
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 10 GB SSD – 50 GB SSD | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
AccuWebHosting sells cloud hosting, WordPress-managed hosting, VPS hosting, and a regular shared hosting service to accommodate any business size. In addition to a free domain name, AccuWebHosting accounts support unlimited domain names. Some plans have an additional service with a free CDN and free premium SSL for security.
4. ScalaHosting — $16.95/Year Renewal
As one of the cheapest domain renewal hosts in the game, ScalaHosting applies to businesses looking to scale. I say that because you can maintain reasonable domain prices throughout the entirety of your business but also keep upgrading your web hosting as your business grows — with options like WordPress hosting, shared hosting, and managed cloud VPS hosting. For the adventurous types, ScalaHosting even sells AWS hosting.
ScalaHosting.com
Monthly Starting Price $2.51
- Rated 4.9/5 on Trustpilot with 2,000+ reviews
- Turbo-fast NVMe SSD storage on all plans
- 1-click WordPress install with free migration & guided setup
- Daily backups, free SSL, and AI-powered security (SShield)
- Price lock guarantee — your rate never increases
- Get started on ScalaHosting now.
Laura Bernheim
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anytime | 10 GB NVMe SSD | FREE (1 year) | 6 minutes |
Alongside your free domain name from ScalaHosting, you gain access to a free SSL certificate. I also like the web host for its easy website management since it uses an all-in-one platform called sPanel to handle everything from a shared hosting server to a virtualized server.
5. Hostinger — $16.99/Year Renewal
Hostinger provides free domain names with free WHOIS privacy protection for all who sign up for its hosting service. Once the promotional period ends, pricing remains affordable with one of the cheapest renewal prices you can find.
Hostinger.com
Monthly Starting Price $2.69
- Best overall value: The most complete domain + hosting bundle at this price
- .com domains from $0.01 for the first year
- 300+ domain extensions with an AI domain name generator
- Free WHOIS privacy protection included with every domain
- ICANN-accredited registrar with 7 million domains registered
- Free domain included with most hosting plans
- Get started on Hostinger now.
Sead Fadilpasic
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 20 GB SSD | FREE (1 year) | 3 minutes |
Besides the domain name, hosting customers gain access to a server that supports hundreds of websites, all of which you manage from one dashboard. You also get free email accounts, unlimited bandwidth, and a free SSL certificate. Some plans even provide bonuses like a free CDN (content delivery network) and dedicated IP address.
6. IONOS — $17.00/Year Renewal
Rich with unique hosting solutions like Jamstack hosting and Joomla! hosting, IONOS helps a variety of projects get hosted online. IONOS offers a free domain name for one full year with plans like the IONOS shared hosting plan and virtual private servers. When the first year ends, IONOS has excellent renewal pricing and equally affordable hosting prices.
IONOS.com
Monthly Starting Price $1.00
- Web hosting from $1/mo with a free domain & SSL included
- Free domain privacy protection included with every domain
- 500+ domain extensions with an AI domain name generator
- 99.9% uptime, daily backups, and free website migration
- Personal consultant assigned after every order
- Get started on IONOS now.
Christina Lewis
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 10 GB SSD | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
To get that free domain name, you need to sign up for a hosting plan. You can then add the free domain name to your hosted website and enjoy features like a free Wildcard SSL certificate, daily backups, and instant installation buttons for platforms like Drupal, PrestaShop, and WordPress.
7. Bluehost — $19.99/Year Renewal
Offering shared, WordPress, VPS, and dedicated hosting, Bluehost has a reputation for keeping prices low, especially with its shared hosting and cheap domain name products. Every hosting customer gets a free domain for one year, and when the promotional year ends, Bluehost remains one of the cheapest domain renewal hosts you can find.
Bluehost.com
Monthly Starting Price $1.99
- Web hosting with a free domain and free SSL included
- AI domain name generator plus domain lock and auto-renewal
- WordPress.org recommended host with 1-click WordPress setup and install
- Domain privacy protection and free website migration
- 24/7 expert support via phone, chat, and knowledge base
- Get started on Bluehost now.
Sead Fadilpasic
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 10 GB NVMe SSD | FREE (1 year) | 5 minutes |
To go along with that cheap domain name, Bluehost gives you a free trial of professional email, allowing you to brand your company email addresses along with your website. Domain privacy protection and an SSL come free for the first year as well. Tie in malware scanning and a managed WordPress offering for a high-quality hosting package.
8. SiteGround — $19.99/Year Renewal
I consider SiteGround one of the cheapest domain renewal hosts because, although it doesn’t have a free domain offering for all of its plans, some hosting plans provide a free domain, and the domain renewal stays lower than most providers on the market.
SiteGround.com
Monthly Starting Price $2.99
- Best for security: AI blocks 99.99% of malicious traffic
- Web hosting built on Google Cloud with free domain included
- Free SSL, CDN across 170+ locations, and daily backups
- 4.9/5 Trustpilot rating with 98% customer satisfaction
- 24/7 in-house expert support via live chat, phone, and tickets
- Get started on SiteGround now.
Lynn Cadet
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 10 GB SSD – 100 GB Google Cloud SSD | FREE (1 Year) | 6 minutes |
Various features, besides the domain name, come free when you commit to a year of hosting with SiteGround. Shared and VPS hosting plans include a free SSL certificate, and you get daily backups, a free CDN, and free email accounts. You can also move over old websites and email addresses with the free migration services for both. There’s also a domain transfer option.
9. DreamHost — $19.99/Year Renewal
DreamHost, a host known for its reasonable pricing across all types of hosting, sells WordPress and shared hosting for less than $5 per month. The web hosting service touts features like a free domain name and fast SSD storage. When the promotional period expires, your domain name renews at a low price to keep your budget in check.
DreamHost.com
Monthly Starting Price $2.89
- Web hosting with a free domain and handcrafted website
- Free domain privacy protection for life included
- 350+ domain extensions with flexible auto-renewal and locking options
- NVMe SSD storage, unmetered bandwidth, and 100% uptime
- ICANN accredited with 24/7 award-winning support
- Get started on DreamHost now.
Christina Lewis
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | Unlimited | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
Although DreamHost lacks a free email address to brand with your custom domain name, its email address products have incredibly low pricing. After getting a hosting account to acquire that free domain, all users receive a visual WordPress website builder, unlimited traffic, and a free SSL certificate for security.
10. Hosting.com — $19.99/Year Renewal
The web and email hosting from hosting.com includes a free domain name for you to add the name of your business to your website and email addresses. Luckily, hosting.com stands as one of the cheapest domain name renewal hosts, and you gain access to even more free goodies like an SSL certificate, DNS management, and CDN.
Hosting.com
Monthly Starting Price $3.99
- Web hosting with a free domain & SSL included
- LiteSpeed servers with NVMe SSD storage and free Cloudflare CDN included
- WAF, DDoS protection, malware scanning, and daily backups
- Free expert site migration — in-house team handles everything
- 24/7/365 in-house support via live chat, phone, and tickets
- Get started on hosting.com now.
Christina Lewis
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 15 GB NVMe SSD | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
Hosting.com has varying forms of WordPress hosting, or you can pick between shared, VPS, dedicated, and cPanel hosting. Regardless of your hosting needs, each plan supports high speeds due to SSD storage and unlimited transfer rates. Some plans even have NVMe SSDs and special hardware boosts to improve site performance.
11. GoDaddy — $22.17/Year Renewal
Often considered the go-to domain name registrar on the internet, GoDaddy lives up to its reputation by making it simple to buy a cheap domain and keep it affordable for years to come. For one, GoDaddy makes it possible to grab a domain name for close to nothing, even if you don’t sign up for web hosting. However, its several web hosting services drop the price to $0 in the first year.
GoDaddy.com
Monthly Starting Price $5.99
- World’s largest domain registrar, trusted by 20M+ customers around the world
- Web hosting with a free domain, SSL, and email included
- NVMe storage, unmetered bandwidth, and 99.9% uptime
- Automatic daily backups and free website migration included
- Award-winning 24/7 support via phone and chat
- Get started on GoDaddy now.
Lynn Cadet
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 25 GB – 100 GB | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
When the first year ends, GoDaddy minimizes the domain name renewal cost when compared to other hosting companies. As added bonuses, GoDaddy hosting includes a free SSL certificate, promotions for free Microsoft 365 mailboxes, and automated daily backups to keep your site files secure.
12. HostGator — $22.99/Year Renewal
Going along with the trend of free domain names for one year, HostGator ties in the same promotion with many of its hosting plans. Alongside a free SSL certificate, HostGator users can take their new domain name and attach it to their email account. That domain name remains on your site at the end of the year, but you must pay for the renewal fee, which stays less than $20 per year.
HostGator.com
Monthly Starting Price $3.75
- Web hosting with a free domain, free SSL, and Cloudflare CDN
- Free domain locking and auto-renewals on all plans
- Unmetered bandwidth with WAF and DDoS protection
- One-click installs for WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, and more
- 24/7/365 support via phone, chat, and knowledge base
- Get started on HostGator now.
Lynn Cadet
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 10 GB SSD – 100 GB SSD | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
HostGator provides a long list of hosting options, such as eCommerce hosting, dedicated servers, VPS hosting, and shared hosting. Its basic hosting plans include the free domain, of course, but you can also expect freebies like an SSL certificate, an email inbox, and malware scanning.
13. InMotion Hosting — $23.00/Year Renewal
One of the main selling points of InMotion Hosting revolves around its initial free email and domain name whenever you sign up for its web hosting service. InMotion Hosting already has flexible billing, but the free domain makes it easier on your budget. Not to mention, the renewal price for that domain keeps things under the $25 per year mark.
InMotionHosting.com
Monthly Starting Price $2.79
- Web hosting with free domain, free SSL, and unmetered bandwidth included
- NVMe SSD storage with up to 20x faster load times on all plans
- 1-click installs for WordPress and 400+ apps, free migration
- Independently owned since 2001
- 90-day money-back guarantee and 24/7 human support
- Get started on InMotion Hosting now.
Dave McQuilling
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 days | 100 GB SSD – Unlimited SSD/NVMe | Select Plans | 5 minutes |
When you get a hosting account from InMotion Hosting, you receive a quick onboarding lesson, and the plans include dedicated security for fighting off online threats. Choose from dedicated servers, VPS hosting, WordPress hosting, and regular shared hosting. Shared hosting lowers costs, and each of its plans supports multiple websites.
What Is a Domain Name?
Simply put, a domain name is your website’s unique address on the internet. It’s what you see in the URL when you’re visiting a site through your browser. A domain name typically looks like this: Example.com.
More specifically, a domain name defines ownership and control over a certain part of the internet. People can purchase domain names to serve as the digital addresses for websites, online applications, and web servers.
To obtain one of these domains and take ownership of a segment of the internet, you must purchase a yearly lease from a domain name registrar (DNR), some of which include hosting companies. You can buy a domain name from domain name registrars and hosting companies like GoDaddy, Bluehost, and Hostinger.
ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), an organization that manages the availability of top-level domains (like .com and .org), dictates which domain names become available for purchase to the public, and sometimes only for specific industries or regions.
ICANN works with the Domain Name System (DNS) to establish rules and procedures for the sale and use of domain names. Domain names exist to make navigating the internet easier.
Computers use IP addresses to locate websites and servers online, but these numerical sequences can be difficult to remember and aren’t very user-friendly. Much like a street address, domain names offer memorable labels for specific places on the internet.
Can I Get a Domain Name for Free?
Yes, you can get a domain name for free, but it depends on the approach you take. The easiest and most legitimate way to obtain a domain name for free is to sign up for a web hosting account that offers one year of free domain registration.
Some hosts provide additional years, but one free year is the industry standard. Ideally, you should seek out some of the cheapest domain renewal hosts to keep domain pricing low after the renewal period ends. This way, you still get a custom domain name while minimizing costs.
Alternatively, some hosts and domain name registrars give out free domain names. Unfortunately, those free domain name sites come with strict limitations, and many of them appear closer to scams than legitimate businesses. Completely free domain names, for instance, often require you to release your ownership information publicly.
Even worse, many free domain providers never give you full ownership of the domain name. You simply “borrow” the domain name. You should absolutely avoid hosting a business website on a free domain name unless it comes as a free promotion from a hosting provider.
Finally, free domain names tend to have uncommon top-level domains; you often can’t get a standard .org or .com TLD but rather something like .ga or .cf.
How Much Should a Domain Renewal Cost?
A domain renewal (at reasonable prices) can cost anywhere from $12 to $30 per year. These prices, however, vary based on the top-level domain, hosts’ promotional periods, and the domain name’s desirability. You might see domain renewal prices reach anywhere from $50 to $100 per year, but avoiding those domain name registrars and hosting companies is recommended.
Domain renewal fees usually increase from the first year price because of promotional rates given by your hosting provider or domain name registrar. You might sign up for a hosting account and receive a domain name for free, but that only lasts one year.
Other hosts and domain name registrars offer lower first-year pricing to get customers to sign up for their products and services. Once the promotional period ends, however, the yearly pricing for the domain increases. Having said that, renewal pricing for domain names still remains affordable from reputable hosting companies, sticking between $12 to $30 per year.
Which Is the Best Domain Registrar?
Several domain name registrars may be on the list of the “best registrars,” but GoDaddy consistently performs as the best and most recognizable name in the domain name space. GoDaddy provides consistent and competitive pricing for its domain names, and customers have access to thousands of top-level domains ranging from .com to industry-specific ones like .realtor.
GoDaddy.com
Monthly Starting Price $5.99
- World’s largest domain registrar, trusted by 20M+ customers around the world
- Web hosting with a free domain, SSL, and email included
- NVMe storage, unmetered bandwidth, and 99.9% uptime
- Automatic daily backups and free website migration included
- Award-winning 24/7 support via phone and chat
- Get started on GoDaddy now.
Lynn Cadet
| Money Back Guarantee | Disk Space | Domain Name | Setup Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | 25 GB – 100 GB | FREE (1 year) | 4 minutes |
GoDaddy has an intuitive search and filter tool for finding the domain name that fits your website’s brand. The search functionality and large collection of domains help users register just about any domain they want. The search results share immediate information about the availability of the domain and its price to purchase for the coming year.
On top of domain name registration, GoDaddy serves as an all-in-one website-building platform with solid customer support. With a domain name and website, users can launch a website within minutes. Pair that with the GoDaddy Website builder, business email hosting, and free SSL certificate for a complete platform to launch an eCommerce site, blog, or business website.
How Do I Choose a Domain Name?
You choose a domain name by evaluating the purpose of your website, its content, branding strategy, and SEO potential for the domain names in question. The first step: think about the purpose of the website, web app, or server.
When creating a business website or app, think about the name of your business, the services or products you offer, and your target audience. Typically, site owners establish the business name first, then work on crafting a domain name that includes the company’s name.
Other areas of concern when choosing a domain name include the top-level domain (often called the domain extension) and the legality of your domain name. A domain extension — one like .com, .org, or .biz — helps add to the identity of your custom domain name and can assist with the memorability of the name.
Many businesses prefer region-specific domain names (like .uk or .de), while others choose niche or industry-focused top-level domains such as .law, .film, or .bank. Sometimes, companies get inventive with their TLDs, integrating them into the domain name to form a single seamless word. This is similar to how flic.kr or goo.gl utilize unique domain extensions to create what appears to be a singular brand-related term.
Before committing to a domain name and domain extension, you must verify the legality of owning the domain and marketing it for business purposes. Just because a domain name registrar or host puts it up for sale doesn’t mean you won’t stumble upon issues with copyright or trademark infringement.
It’s wise, therefore, to complete copyright and trademark searches for your country to see if any other companies have similar domain names reserved just for their branding. This also helps avoid problems with SEO, so you don’t have to compete with another website with a similar domain name.
Domain Renewals That Don’t Break the Bank
Never spend too much money on domain name registration. Several hosts and domain name providers have great promotions, and the yearly renewal prices should stay relatively low. Hosting companies like InterServer, HostArmada, and Hostinger lead the way as some of the cheapest domain renewal hosts to choose from.
You can also find great renewal deals from hosts such as GoDaddy, InMotion, and Bluehost. Stick to this list to ensure your domain name renewal pricing never gets much higher than $20 per year. With a price like that, you can still find excellent domain names and just about every top-level domain around.
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