Free domain names and cheap web hosting packages are everywhere! In fact, there are thousands of companies that offer free domain names and cheap web hosting packages. Luckily for you, I have spent hours and hours carefully reviewing the “best of the best” free domain names and cheap web hosting packages.
Free domain names are the easy part for a person or business that wants to launch a website; you either get one or you don’t. (We’ll focus on the web hosting providers that do offer free domain names.) Cheap website hosting is the real challenge though. Yes, cheap web hosting is cost-effective and preferred, but you should select your web hosting company based on cost and the kind of hosting services you require.
For example, “shared hosting” is generally the cheapest web hosting package available because your website will share hosting space on a server with other websites. Because of the low monthly cost, shared web hosting is ideal for personal websites, and small businesses. “Dedicated hosting” is more expensive, but only your website will reside on one particular website hosting server, which is usually only necessary for hosting websites with extremely large numbers of visitors or unusual hosting support requirements, such as video or MP3 based websites. Hosting servers are also differentiated by the type of programming languages available. Does your website require PHP hosting or MySQL hosting? If so, you will have to pay close attention when selecting your website hosting package. If you’re shopping for website hosting for your business, make sure to ask your web developer which programming language your site requires.
You should also pay attention to the amount of web space and transfer allowed. Web space is just like the hard drive on a computer; there is a limit to the number of files you can save. Transfer, also known as bandwidth, is the amount of information downloaded when someone visits your website. This is critical if your website gains a significant number of visitors or includes large audio or video files. Web hosting providers will jack up the fees if your site goes over the allowed web space or monthly transfer limits, similar to the charges for using extra minutes on a cell phone.
A couple of assumptions before we get to the top three cheap web hosting companies: I’m going to assume that you’re looking for the absolute cheapest web hosting available, based on cost, and that you’re O.K. with a “shared hosting” plan. With that in mind, let’s move on to the top three free domain name and cheap web hosting packages.
#1 Free Domain Name and Cheap Web Hosting Package
Host Monster. Host Monster has everything! They simply dominate cheap web hosting with tons of web space (50GB) and an extremely generous amount of monthly transfer (999 GB). The 24/7 tech support is an absolute must for any website hosting service and Host Monster has that too. All that aside, what really pushed Host Monster to the top of our Cheap Web Hosting list is the $4.95 monthly plan, one free domain name, and the ability to host unlimited domain names! That’s right, Host Monster allows you to host an unlimited number of websites for only $4.95 a month. Basically, Host Monster is the best value we’ve ever seen for cheap web hosting, hands down.
#2 Free Domain Name and Cheap Web Hosting Package
Start Logic. Decent amounts of space (50 GB) and transfer (750 GB), but are slightly less than Host Monster at $4.95 a month. Start Logic also boasts 24/7 tech support and will throw in one free domain name, but only allows a total of 10 domain names per account. As you can see, Start Logic and Host Monster are very similar, but the smart move is to get the unlimited domains and higher transfer with Host Monster for the exact same price. Really, there’s no reason to choose Start Logic.
#3 Free Domain Name and Cheap Web Hosting Package
1and1. They are the cheapest web hosting service in terms of monthly cost at just $2.99/month, which is insanely cheap. In fact, it’s the cheapest cost per month I’ve ever seen on website hosting. 1and1 also gets high marks for reliability, customer service and being the largest website hosting provider in the world. Another benefit is one free domain name is included, but the storage (5 GB) and transfer (250 GB) are the lowest on this list and only allows a total of 10 domain names per account. 1and1 does offer some great features such as free blogging tools, a website builder and a photo gallery. If you’re new to website hosting, or are strictly looking to build a small website without video or audio files and little traffic, this is an excellent place to start, just be aware of the storage and transfer limits.