This is a detailed review of the renewal prices of different services offered by Namecheap.
I have been a Namecheap customer and bought domains and hosting plans from the company for a few of my projects. Along with that, I researched a lot about the company before purchasing its services since I was investing my hard-earned money in its plans.
So my first-hand experience with Namecheap and the in-depth research that I carried out, allowed me to bring all this information to you.
In this article, you will get to know the domain renewal prices of Namecheap and how you can quickly check them before purchasing a domain. I’ll also be discussing the Namecheap hosting renewal costs and some of the best alternatives to different services offered by Namecheap.
So keep reading to get all the details about Namecheap renewal price.
Namecheap domain renewal price
Domain renewal prices with all the domain providers are always more expensive than the initial prices of domains. Namecheap is not an exception in this case. You will find higher renewal rates than initial domain rates at Namecheap too.
Generally, the domain providers, including Namecheap, receive initial period deals from the main domain registry. They pass this initial period discount to us, the customers.
The renewal price is governed by the registry and usually does not have any discount offer. You might also notice that renewal prices of non-generic domains are generally higher than the generic ones.
Namecheap .com renewal price
The initial price of a .com domain with Namecheap is $8.98 but if you are a new customer, you can grab it for $5.98 by using the promo code “NEWCOM598” currently.
The renewal price of this Generic top-level domain (gTLD) with Namecheap is $13.98 per year. You can find the renewal rates of a .com domain extension for different terms in the following table:
Term length | Renewal cost of .com domain with Namecheap |
1 year | $13.98 |
2 years | $27.96 |
3 years | $41.94 |
4 years | $55.92 |
5 years | $69.90 |
You can compare the renewal and initial prices of a .com domain from Namecheap for different terms lengths in this image:
How to quickly check Namecheap renewal cost?
Checking the domain renewal cost before buying a domain is extremely essential to plan your website budget well. You can check the Namecheap renewal cost for a domain by searching for the availability of your desired domain with the domain provider.
Follow these steps to quickly check the renewal cost of any domain with Namecheap:
Step 1: Visit the Namecheap website.
Step 2: Enter your desired domain name in the search box provided.
Step 3: Namecheap will then determine the availability of your desired domain name and display the prices for the same.
The cost displayed in bold is the initial cost of your desired domain extension while the one listed as the retail price is its renewal cost.
By following these 3 simple steps, you can quickly check the renewal cost of any domain extension with ease before you own it.
Namecheap hosting renewal price
Let’s now discuss the hosting renewal prices offered by Namecheap. The host offers different types of hosting plans including shared, WordPress, Virtual Private Server (VPS), and more.
I’m here discussing the renewal prices of shared and WordPress hosting plans offered by the host since these are the most popular ones.
Namecheap offers 3 shared hosting plans:
- Stellar
- Stellar Plus
- Stellar Business
These are available for monthly, yearly, and 2-year terms. The initial prices of all these plans are cheaper than the renewal prices, except in the case of monthly terms.
Here is an overview of the Namecheap Shared hosting renewal prices:
Namecheap Shared hosting plan | Renewal rates for monthly term | Renewal rates for a yearly term | Renewal rates for a 2-year term |
Stellar | $3.88 | $42.88 | $84.88 |
Stellar Plus | $5.88 | $68.88 | $136.88 |
Stellar Business | $9.88 | $118.88 | $236.88 |
You will notice that you will save a few cents each month in your renewal costs if you choose long-term plans.
For instance, the Stellar plan is available at the renewal cost of $3.88 per month when you go for the monthly term. The yearly term drops its monthly renewal cost to $3.57 ($42.88/12). And the 2-year term further drops its monthly renewal cost to $3.54 ($84.88/24).
Namecheap WordPress plans
Namecheap also offers managed WordPress hosting plans for the convenience of WordPress lovers. It has the following 3 WordPress hosting plans with different features:
- EasyWP Starter
- EasyWP Turbo
- EasyWP Supersonic
These are available for monthly and yearly billing terms. The yearly plan comes with cheaper initial prices than renewal ones. On the other hand, the initial and renewal prices of the monthly plans remain the same.
Here is an overview of the Namecheap WordPress hosting renewal prices:
Namecheap WordPress hosting plan | Renewal rates for monthly term | Renewal rates for a yearly term |
EasyWP Starter | $4.88 | $34.88 |
EasyWP Turbo | $8.88 | $78.88 |
EasyWP Supersonic | $13.88 | $108.88 |
The yearly plans save you a few dollars a month and are, therefore, more profitable for you. For instance, the EasyWP Starter costs $4.88 per month with the monthly term but the monthly renewal cost drastically reduces to $2.91 ($34.88/year) with the yearly term.
With these cheaper renewal rates for the yearly plans, Namecheap encourages you to pay in advance and commit to a longer term with the host. It’s a win-win for you as well as the host. You get to receive great discounts and Namecheap gets to retain you as its customer for a longer term.
After the end of the 30-day trial, the host automatically renews your WordPress hosting plan at the monthly renewal rates listed above. If you do not want to renew your hosting, you can cancel your plan from your Namecheap account easily to prevent the deduction of renewal charges.
Follow these steps to turn off the renewal of your plan after a free trial:
Step 1: Go to “Apps” in your Namecheap account.
Step 2: Click on the “Subscriptions” tab.
Step 3: Turn off the free trial subscription to prevent automatic renewal.
Reason for Namecheap price increase in 2017
Many Namecheap customers were concerned about the increase in prices in 2017. But it is important to understand that the prices are majorly controlled by the regulatory authorities and such domain price increases are also a result of that.
This is what Namecheap shares about the reason for price increase in general:
All domain providers were required by GDPR law to offer free WhoisGuard from 2017. In all probability, Namecheap raised its prices a bit to cover the cost of providing this additional service along with the domain registration.
Best Alternatives
Namecheap is a reliable domain and hosting provider but some better options might be more suitable for your website needs. Let’s find out some Namecheap alternatives here:
NameSilo – for domains
When you are looking for a new domain for your website, NameSilo is a cheaper option than Namecheap in the long run. The initial and renewal prices of the domains remain the same with NameSilo, thereby resulting in big savings.
For instance, the initial and renewal price of a .com domain is $9.95. Though the initial price of a .com TLD offered by Namecheap is $8.98 (or $5.98 for a new customer), the renewal price is $13.98. So with Namecheap, you will be saving money only for the initial term but with NameSilo, you will be saving it with every renewal.
Hostinger – 1st choice for hosting
Hostinger is the no. 1 choice for shared web hosting services. The host offers extremely competitive pricing without compromising on the hosting features of its plans.
You will also receive a free SSL certificate, managed WordPress, 24-hour support, and a 30-day money-back guarantee with all Hostinger shared hosting plans.
The hosting prices begin at just $1.39 per month and the renewal costs are also low at just $2.99 per month. You will be saving on the renewal costs when you choose Hostinger hosting over Namecheap which has a renewal cost of $3.88 per month for its Stellar plan, as discussed above.
Apart from the shared hosting plans, Hostinger also offers WordPress hosting plans for boosting the performance of your WordPress website. The prices for these plans start at $1.99 per month with the renewal price being $3.99 per month.
Though we are discussing Namecheap alternatives here, this one is more specific about the Namecheap WordPress hosting plans. In my opinion, Namecheap shared hosting is a better alternative to Namecheap WordPress hosting.
The EasyWP plans from Namecheap are slow-performing and often run out of memory quite quickly. Additionally, they come with a variety of restrictions that limit your flexibility because of which you might have to compromise on your website functionality.
The shared hosting plans of Namecheap allow you to easily install WordPress with the help of the Softaculous app installer. Also, you will get more flexibility and cheaper prices.
Takeaway on Namecheap Renewal Price
Namecheap is a trusted domain and hosting provider but I would suggest you purchase your domain and hosting from two different companies. You might change your mind in the future and plan to shift to a different host for any reason when your website grows.
Keeping your domain and hosting separate will help in the easier transfer of your website from one host to another. You can easily point your domain to the new hosting provider without any downtime. So it is always best to keep your domain and hosting services separate.
FAQ (frequently asked questions)
📌 Does Namecheap increase prices?
Yes, not only Namecheap but all domain providers increase prices following the price hikes made by the domain regulatory authorities.
📌 How much should a domain renewal cost?
A domain renewal should cost about the same as the initial domain cost. However, in some cases, domain providers can get discounted domains for the initial terms. So this discount is passed on to us, the customers.
📌 Is SSL free on Namecheap?
No, SSL is not available for free with Namecheap. However, if you are getting a good deal for your desired domain name with Namecheap, you can get a free SSL from Cloudflare.