namecheap is an American domain registrar and web hosting provider based in Phoenix, Arizona. An entrepreneur named Richard Kirkendall started Namecheap in 2000 and led the company as CEO for more than two decades. Namecheap is one of the best web hosting companies in the world, serving 11 million registered users.
Namecheap supports more than 1,500 top-level domains (TLDs), one of the highest of all domain registrars. It offers shared or dedicated cloud hosting services and free services such as SSL certificates, a content delivery network (CDN), and a VPN.
We’ve tested the ins and outs of Namecheap to give you a detailed, objective review. We rated the web hosting platform based on specific criteria including features, pricing, ease of use, customer support, etc.
Subscriptions and Prices
Namecheap domains have a wide price range as the company supports numerous TLDs. Generic TLDs like .COM, .ORG, and .NET cost between $10 and $15 per year, cheaper than many competing platforms. On the other hand, unusual, premium TLDs like .IO and .AI cost between $30 and $80 per year.
Namecheap offers hosting plans for $4 to $81 per month. The shared hosting plans are cheaper while the dedicated hosting plans are relatively expensive. But Namecheap’s most expensive plans are affordable in the grand scheme of things.
Namecheap charges between $10 and $200 annually for SSL certificates. You can choose from over a dozen SSL plans. Namecheap charges between $15 and $70 annually for professional email services.
Functions
Namecheap allows users to register a wide variety of domain names. The platform supports more than 1,500 domain name extensions, a remarkable number for any domain registrar. You can search for any domain name on the platform and buy it immediately if it is available. Namecheap also allows you to perform bulk searches on domain names (up to 5,000 at a time).
Namecheap offers free privacy protection for any domain name registered on its platform. Privacy protection helps prevent spammers from contacting you easily. Likewise, through Namecheap, you can search for contact details for specific domain names in the WHOIS database. But you wouldn’t find any information if the owner has privacy protection enabled.
Namecheap allows customers to manage their domains through the DNS naming system. You can get PremiumDNS, an advanced DNS manager, for just $5 a year.
Finally, Namecheap allows you to transfer domain names registered elsewhere to its platform.
Hosting
Namecheap offers a wide variety of web hosting plans. It offers shared hosting, WordPress hosting, VPS hosting, reseller hosting and dedicated servers. Shared hosting is the cheapest hosting option because you share the server hosting and maintenance costs with other users. On the other hand, dedicated hosting is the most expensive because it involves renting a single server just for your needs.
Reseller hosting involves buying hosting space from Namecheap to sell to others for a fee. Namecheap allows you to create and resell up to 150 sub accounts. Namecheap also offers WordPress hosting through a standalone platform called EasyWP. EasyWP’s plans cost $5 to $14 per month.
Security
Namecheap offers several security tools, including SSL certificates, a virtual private network (VPN), and cyber insurance (for US customers only).
SSL certificates are digital certificates that verify the identity of a website and enable an encrypted connection. Every modern website needs one for both security and reputation purposes.
Interface and in use
Namecheap has quite a complicated user interface. It has many features spread across the platform, so the interface can be quite challenging to understand.
We saw significant challenges in activating an SSL certificate for our website. The process involved jumping through many nooks and crannies.
Customer service
Namecheap offers customer support via email and live chat. There is no option for telephone support. You can speak directly to a customer support representative if you encounter any problems. Namecheap’s support agents typically respond to email inquiries within 24 hours.
Namecheap also has an extensive online knowledge base so that users can familiarize themselves with the platform. This knowledge base offers a lot of help with complex issues. It walks users through all Namecheap products step-by-step and is a good place to seek help before talking to a support person if you’re not satisfied.
The competition
Namecheap’s main competitors are GoDaddy, Google Domains, and Hover. Namecheap’s advantage over its competition is relative affordability, but it lags behind in ease of use compared to these rivals.
final verdict
Namecheap is a good all-in-one web hosting platform. You can buy a domain, buy an SSL certificate, build a website and host it online, all on Namecheap. Namecheap’s services are relatively affordable, which is its main advantage. The platform has a wide feature set, which makes it attractive to potential customers.
Namecheap is not without its drawbacks. The user interface is quite complicated. The pricing structure can also be confusing at times due to the fact that you have a lot of plans. Likewise, we’ve found Namecheap’s email communications to customers to be quite over the top.
