Looking to buy best cheap domains ? Here is a detail breakup of the best domain registrars and what should you look into.
We will also rank the best cheap domain registrars on the basis of
- Prices
- Features
- Customer support
We will have a look at these very popular domain registrars and pros and cons of purchasing a domain from them,
- Namecheap
- Hostinger
- GoDaddy
- Bluehost
- Google Domains
Table of Contents
Role of Domain Registrars
The fundamental role of Domain Registrars is to register your domain name in the domains database of ICANN known as “Registry”.
Your domain name is the unique address of your website. It is actually a series of numbers that helps identify your website on the internet. The domain name of your website needs to be registered in the domain database, known as the registry. These can only be accessed by domain registrars and is manged by Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).
You can register a number of extensions such “.com”, “.net”, “.co”, “.biz”, “.io” etc. The list has expanded a great deal in the recent years. A domain registrar, for you can access the records and register your domain in the registry.
This way it is ensured no other entity can have the same domain name as yours.
Cheap & Best Domain Registrars
1. Namecheap
Namecheap is ICANN accredited and is one of the best places / registrar to buy a domain. They have a smooth and simple process to purchase and checkout.
A real eye catching deal is the dirt cheap pricing of the TLDs and free lifetime domain privacy along with it. This is a great option as domain privacy can cost as high as $5 a year. Domain Privacy is offered free for lifetime and this makes it very attractive. For 2 months you get a trial business email with domain extension.
An awesome price with really valuable freebies makes it the best choice to buy domains.
The only downside that we see with the domain registrar is higher renewal prices and no phone support.
Namecheap Domain Prices
Namecheap is known for its really affordable pricing. Below are the prices for popular domain name extensions TLDs;
.com | $8.98 / year (Special Price $5.98) |
.net | $10.98 / year |
.org | $8.98 / year |
.co | $7.98 / year |
Such prices with a free lifetime domain privacy is really hard to beat.
You can purchase the “.com” extension at a price as low as $5.98 by using our affiliate link. We get a small commission if you purchase using our links.
Additional Features & Services
Namecheap offers a wide range of services along with the domain.
- Lifetime Domain Privacy
- SSL – A must for Websites
- VPN – Safe & Fast Browsing
- Managed WordPress Hosting
- Professional Email – Custom email@yourdomain
- Premium DNS
- Social Media Manager – Reach and Connect More Customers
These wide variety of features are sufficient to fulfil all your website needs. They can help scale and boost website really fast. As our focus is only on domains, the lifetime privacy, professional email (free for 2 months) and premium DNS are really valuable.
Customer Support
Live Chat 24/7
Namecheap only offers 24/7 live chat support. Therefore, you cannot call them over phone and neither is any phone number provided. However, the live chat is really easy to use and your queries are answered under 24 hours.
Knowledge Base
They do have a large knowledge base where almost majority of the problems are blogged and can be accessed anytime.
Status Updates
Namecheap does have a status update blog where they mention important information related to all the customers. Updates such as, scheduled maintenances etc are shared here.
2. Hostinger
Hostinger is one of the best choice for web hosting as they are fast, reliable and have extremely good customer support. It is an ICANN accredited organisation and is a home to millions of websites.
The prices offered by Hostinger are affordable but the renewal costs are high and domain privacy has to be purchased separately.
While buying the domain check the “period” carefully. It is usually marked for 2 years with offer price on the first then renewal price for the second year. We do not like this part as you have to be extra cautious otherwise you would end up with the domain for 2 years even if you would not want it.
Hostinger Domain Prices
The domain prices offered are affordable but you need to check the “period” tab carefully. There is a separate charge of $5 per year for domain privacy. For some people / situations domain privacy is not really that important but we prefer it to be important as it avoids a great deal of unnecessary calls and emails.
Below are the prices for popular domain name extension TLDs;
.com | $8.99 / year |
.net | $12.99 / year |
.org | $9.99 / year |
.co | $23.99 / year |
The prices do tend to be on the higher side when compared to Namecheap for extensions other than “.com”.
You can use our link for exciting web hosting discounts on Hostinger.
Additional Features & Services
Hostinger does offers a smooth process with not so many upsells. They do not pushy with the checkout and do not mark unnecessary products along with the domain.
The services offered along with the domain are as follows;
- Web Hosting
- Priority Support
- SEO Toolkit
- Domain Privacy
These additional features all come at a price and nothing is offered free with the domain. You can avail the domain for free if you purchase the web hosting plan but otherwise the domain can become really expensive if you happen to need any of these additional services.
Customer Support
Live Chat 24/7
Hostinger only offers 24/7 live chat support. Therefore, you cannot call them over phone and neither is any phone number provided. However, the live chat is really easy to use and your queries are answered under 24 hours. They do offer multi-lingual chat support.
Knowledge Base
They do have a large knowledge base where almost majority of the problems are blogged and can be accessed anytime.
3. GoDaddy
GoDaddy, it is very likely you have already heard about this registrar. It is a massive name when web hosting, websites is being talked around. A well renounced ICANN accredited organisation and a vast majority of domains, websites are registered on GoDaddy. It is a complete package solution.
Renew prices are really high and when you are buying a domain remember to check the duration. The first year is at an extremely cheap price but the renew prices are way higher.
The part we really hate is the upsells. There are just so many upsells on every step of the process.
GoDaddy Domain Prices
GoDaddy offers really lucrative discounts and prices but the renew prices are really high. Privacy protection is an additional purchase at a cost of $9.99 per year. This is a bit on the higher side along with other upsells.
Below are the prices for popular domain name extension TLDs;
.com | $4.99 / year |
.net | $16.99 / year |
.org | $9.99 / year |
.co | $11.99 / year |
Normally the price ranges from $5.99 per year for “.com” extension but if you use our link you can get a price of $4.99 per year.
Additional Features & Services
GoDaddy is offers a number of upsells along the process. The checkout therefore feels a bit cumbersome. If you are considering the domain with website, GoDaddy is surely among the top considerations.
The services offered along with the domain are as follows;
- Privacy Protection
- Custom Email
- Free Website Builder
These three features is what GoDaddy offers during checkout. They do combine and offer a combination of domains with a reduced price but that you should consider only if you need it. The more domains you buy the more you will end up paying on renewal.
Customer Support
GoDaddy has the best customer support by far and we say this with personal experience. There are multiple modes to reach out to GoDaddy help incase you are stuck somewhere. If you are new to all this and do not have much of hands on practice, GoDaddy is a big consideration then.
Live Chat 24/7 (Multi Lingual)
The best part of chat support is that it is available in multiple languages. The messages are answered under 5 minutes and usually problems are resolved instantaneously.
Call Support
You can reach out to GoDaddy customer care anytime via call too. They have call centres in a number of countries and they are all available 24/7. It just couldn’t get better.
To check out the calling support number of your country click here.
Knowledge Base
They have pre answered a number of questions and you can easily access this knowledge base. They are well explained and mostly these links will be referred by the support executive.
4. Bluehost
Bluehost is one of the best web hosting service providers in the world. The are well suited for business organisations of all sizes. The tool set offered by Bluehost can best help your website grow and scale in no time.
As far as buying a domain name is concerned, Bluehost is an ICANN accredited registrar and you can also get a domain for free, if you buy a web hosting plan.
The buying process is really smooth, not many upsells, a bit pricey compared to other providers on the list. They offer a wide variety of extensions to choose from and some of the extensions as as low as just $1.
Bluehost Domain Prices
Bluehost is not really the cheapest on the list but it does offer some extensions at a rock bottom price of as low as $1. Domain privacy and protection has to be purchased separately for $11.88 per year.
Below are the prices for popular domain name extension TLDs;
.com | $12.99 / year |
.net | $18.99 / year |
.org | $9.99 / year |
.co | $27.99 / year |
Bluehost is really clean with their prices, they do not offer discounts for 1 year and then charge high renewal prices. That is one thing we really appreciate with Buehost.
Additional Features & Services
Bluehost offers a great deal of features and services that are valuable for any business organisation.
Bluehost mostly features in the lists of best web hosting providers and therefore if you consider having all the things in one place, Bluehost is a good domain buying choice. Bluehost is more of a package deal for the entire website.
Here are some of the upsells or additional features / services offered by Bluehost along with the domain;
- Domain Privacy & Protection
- Free 1 Month Web Hosting
- Google Workspace Collaboration and Email
The privacy + protection service is priced at $11.88 per year per domain. These additional services are of great value if you wish to host the website with Bluehost.
Customer Support
Bluehost is one of the best in the web hosting industry and the customer support service they provide is truly remarkable. They are at par with GoDaddy and offer call, chat support 24/7.
Chat With US (24/7)
The have a live chat feature that can be accessed even if you are not logged in the account. The problems are resolved within minutes and is a smooth process.
Call Support (24/7)
A full time call support, what more could we have asked. The lines are available 24/7 and you can reach out for resolution.
To check the helpline number click here.
Knowledge Base
The pool of articles that can help you solve the problems which were earlier solved or are quite common. They are detailed and in almost all cases will take care of the problems.
5. Google Domains
Google Domains, one of the best ICANN accredited registrar. A very simple clean process. There is no discount pricing and then increasing the price etc. They provide just one price and you will be charged the same on renewals too.
It is more like, instead of having a catchy 1 year price and higher renewals, they charge 1 decent price and then stick to it, no higher renewals.
They do offer a lot of other services such as Auto Renew, Free Privacy Protection which makes it really useful.
The only drawback is that they focus just on domains, no web hosting along with it. If you wish to host on Google then Google Cloud Hosting is the only option which is not so friendly with beginners.
Google Domain Prices
Google offers just one low price and there are no high renewal prices. Privacy protection and auto renewal makes it a good option. The prices are really cheap if you compare on a long term basis.
Below are the prices for popular domain name extension TLDs;
.com | $12.00 / year |
.net | $12.00 / year |
.org | $12.00 / year |
.co | $30.00 / year |
The overall prices are really good and they have free domain privacy along with this in this price. This gives Google Domains an edge over Bluehost in domain prices.
Additional Features & Services
We cannot stress this enough, domain protection is a value service to have and if it is for free with the domain that is a huge advantage.
As Google Domains only focuses on domains there no options for web hosting options.
However they do offer the following services along with domain purchase;
- Auto Renew
- Free Privacy Protection
- Google Workspace
These are some of the valuable services that you can buy along with the domains and they are almost a must have, excluding Google Workspace.
Customer Support
This is a grey area for Google Domains. The customer service is not really as that of GoDaddy or Bluehost but the steps and process in Google Domains is very self explanatory and simple.
While buying a domain you are not likely to need any assistance but it does feel good to know there are instant connect options with the customer support team.
Knowledge Base
This is a pool of articles that contains almost every problem that you could end up having on Google Domains.
Email Support
If you run into problems that are not covered in the knowledge base then you can reach out to Google Domains via e-mail option only. They do not have any other form of contact and that is the only drawback.
Cheap & Best Domain Registrar
After carefully going through all these domain registrars, each one of them is different from each other and has a distinct offering that makes it a good choice.
Keeping the focus on Domains only here are the cheap and best domain registrars;
- Namecheap
- Google Domains
- Hostinger
- Bluehost
- GoDaddy
These are ranked on the basis of prices, additional features, customer support and the level of tech savviness required.
Namecheap offers the best deal and is a complete solution if you are looking to further host your website along with them.
These rankings are not final as they change depending on the objective. If you wish to host your business website along with the domain then Hostinger, Bluehost & GoDaddy are really great choices.
If you are looking for Google Integration then the best one is Google Domains.
