Best Hosting Services in 2025 with Free SSL and Domain Included

Why Free SSL and a Free Domain are Important in 2025

With the digital world making rapid strides in 2025, starting a website is simpler than ever - and more daunting! Contemplating your options when there are hundreds of hosting options with uptime guarantees, speed promises, user-friendly interfaces, 24/7 support staff, and ironclad security can be overwhelming, even for pros! While there are essential features that should never be optional, a Free SSL Certificate and a Free Domain Name are two such features of increasing relevance.

The SSL, or Secure Sockets Layer, is what encrypts the data that is shared between your website and your visitors - you've seen it in action every time you visit a website with URLs starting with https://. It is no longer just a bonus security feature - it is now a trust signal and a ranking factor in Google's algorithm. Websites without one may show warnings or even be penalized in rankings altogether.

A custom domain name is not just the unique URL or your website's address; it's also your brand. A free domain name included in your hosting plan doesn't just help avoid early startup costs but means you're able to simplify the entire website launch experience with everything from the registration to configurations all in a single place. The days of paying the domain registrar separately from your web host are gone, replaced by a one-stop shop built from the same dashboard.

Many Hosting Providers Are Evolving in 2025

As demand for easy, all-in-one solutions continue to increase among those new to the digital landscape or just seeking a hassle-free experience, a number of top hosting companies are now offering free SSL and free domain registration as default features. But not all offers are equal. Some companies give you the domain only for the first year; others hide the SSL activation process under stories of menus. It's all about knowing which features are truly "free" - and which are just free for the time being or the next upselling opportunity.

Along with SSL and domain registration, other features that modern hosting providers are bundling in include:

• Free website migrations
• WordPress or other CMS installers
• Automatic daily backups
• Malware scanning and protection
• Email hosting and professional inboxes
• E-commerce features

Whether you're building a personal blog, an eCommerce store, or a portfolio, these features at the start both save you time, headaches, and money.

What to Look For in A Hosting Provider

Choosing the right hosting provider in 2025 is about balancing price, performance, scalability, and ease of use. Factors you should keep in mind include:

• Performance: Look for SSD storage, HTTP/3 support, and CDN integration.
• Uptime guarantee: 99.9% uptime is the industry standard; anything less is too risky.
• Security: In addition to SSL, look for DDoS protection and server monitoring.
• User interface: cPanel is still widely used, but some hosts now offer custom dashboards.
• Support: 24/7 customer support by live chat or tickets is essential.

Once you know your intended use, keep an eye out for different providers offering transparent price points with real long-term value options - as opposed to flashy discounts that'll triple after renewal!

Why Hostinger Is One Of Our 2025 Favorites

One hosting provider that gets consistent praise for its mix of performance, price, and included features is Hostinger. Regardless of whether you're a developer, small business owner, or a complete beginner, Hostinger's platform is designed to be intuitive while still offering power and control to experienced users.

Their plans start with an affordable monthly rate, and all plans come with:

• Free SSL Certificate included with all hosting plans
• Free Domain Name registration for the first year
• WordPress hosting optimized with LiteSpeed technology
• Feature-rich built-in caching to speed up the load times of your website
• Automatic backups and impressive security features

What makes Hostinger so appealing is that you aren't sacrificing quality for price. Their server infrastructure is globally distributed, meaning your website will load fast regardless of where your audience is located. And if you ever do end up needing help, their customer support is available 24/7 through live chat.

If you're looking to build your next site or move an existing site to a platform that's more affordable and secure, we highly recommend that you give Hostinger a try. They run promotions all the time, and through our referral you can check them out with exclusive pricing and options that aren't available otherwise. Click the link below to see the latest deals:

Check Hostinger Plans Here →

In the coming sections, we'll also compare Hostinger against a list of other top providers that offer free SSL and domain registration, so you can make a decision based on your goals and budget.

Top Hosting Companies with Free SSL and Domain Compared

Although Hostinger is number one in our picks for 2025, it’s worth lining it up against other giants in the hosting world to see how it measures. All companies come with their own strengths, pricing, and set of features. Here, we’ll compare the offering from four of the most popular providers in addition to Hostinger: Bluehost, Ionos, SiteGround, and Namecheap.

Bluehost: WordPress-Recommended but Not Cheap to Renew

Bluehost is also a familiar name in hosting, especially among WordPress users. They are officially recommended by WordPress.org and have a user-friendly dashboard. Other aspects they excel in are uptime, beginner-friendly service, and features in the first year. All shared Bluehost hosting plans include:

• Free SSL certificate (Let’s Encrypt)
• Free one-year domain name
• Free CDN
• One-click WordPress installation
• 30-day money-back guarantee

The catch with Bluehost is renewal pricing. Their introductory prices are low, but after the first year they more than double in price. Their performance may not be as good compared to newcomers using LiteSpeed servers like Hostinger.

Namecheap: Great for Domains, Okay for Hosting

Namecheap started only as a domain registrar and later moved into hosting. Because of that, they excel at the management of domains, and all their plans come with a free domain and free SSL. Here’s what makes Namecheap attractive in 2025:

• Low initial price, especially when paying monthly
• Free SSLs
• WHOIS privacy protection free with their plans
• 30-day money-back guarantee
• Easy integration with website builders like Site Maker

Namecheap hosting is useful for small websites, portfolios, or landing pages. It might not be as strong when there’s higher traffic or complex applications. Support has improved, but response times fall short against leaders like Hostinger.

SiteGround: Great Speed and Support, But Expensive

SiteGround is known for speed, security, and support. What sets them apart from many competitors is that they’ve built their own hosting stack and tools. That’s how they’re able to offer:

• Free SSL certificates (auto-renewed)
• Free email accounts
• Responsive and superb support
• Daily backups
• SuperCacher technology to make your website almost lightning fast

What they are a little lacking in is their pricing. Their initial prices are fair at first, but later down the road, renewal costs can skyrocket. Their free domain is also not automatically included — only with some plans/periods of time. Depending on the promotion, it sometimes includes a free first year or $1 for the first year, which is not free. (Unlike Hostinger, who often provides a free domain year-round.)

IONOS: Clean Value for Simple Websites

IONOS (former 1&1 IONOS) has created a niche for itself with its unbelievably low prices for beginners. Here’s what their plans contain:

• Free SSL
• Free one-year domain
• Very basic website building tools
• Tools for email & DNS

They are, however, lacking when it comes to performance and usability of their interface. The custom control panel is not very user-friendly compared to cPanel or Hostinger’s hPanel, and advanced users might find the whole system to be clumsy. If you only care about price and your website is small, it’s decent, but if you’re looking for long-term value, flexibility, and top-notch performance, then Hostinger does it much better.

Comparison of Features in Summary

As you can see in the table above, Hostinger is not only including both a free SSL and a free domain but is also one of the cheapest and fastest hosts on this list. Global reach, fast load times, and a user-friendly dashboard make Hostinger a hosting solution for everyone—absolutely top of the line. However, there are different needs for different types of projects, so let’s dive into which provider is best suited for you in the next section, depending on what kind of project you’re launching. It can be a blog, online store, or freelance website.

Which Hosting Provider Is Right for You?

Having discussed what free SSL and domains entail for your website, and compared the best providers, the last part is deciding which host best suits your project goals. Every project has its own specifications — whether it’s creating a blog for personal use, an online portfolio to display work, an eCommerce store, or a page for your business. Let’s look at the scenarios.

1. Personal blogs and portfolios

If you’re creating a blog, a writing space, or personal portfolio, you probably want a cheap hosting solution that’s easy to use and includes free tools to help you get started. In this case, we recommend Hostinger for:

• One-click WordPress installation
• Free SSL and a domain name (included in all shared plans)
• User-friendly hPanel (easier to use compared to cPanel for most new users)
• Speed and uptime better than expected on the basic plan

Starting small doesn’t mean that you need to sacrifice performance. Hostinger helps you achieve a fast-loading and sleek site that feels professional from the first day. Plus, your growth will be easy when the time comes — you won’t even need to migrate to another host.

2. Small business or local services

If you’re a small business owner or an entrepreneur that provides local services — law offices, clinics, repair services, or consultancy, for example — you’ll benefit from website reliability. You need hosting that guarantees great uptime, a professional email address, and built-in security.

Why choose Hostinger again? Because their business hosting plans come with:

• LiteSpeed caching for better performance
• Built-in website backups
• A 99.9% uptime guarantee
• Custom email addresses that feature your domain

For less than 3 USD/month, you can create a high-speed site with a custom domain, designed with professional-looking free templates, along with built-in user-friendly tools for SEO on your website. Test Hostinger here to start your business website affordably and confidently.

3. Online store or eCommerce

If you’re running an online store, you’ll need more resource-heavy hosting. You want fast servers, safe payments, remote backups, and, ideally, WooCommerce or Shopify. Shared hosting will probably be too limited for this, so you should opt for cloud or VPS plans.

Here’s why Hostinger is still a good choice:

• Hosting optimized for WooCommerce
• Free SSL to keep payments encrypted and safe
• Domain + email + backups — all included
• eCommerce optimization with LiteSpeed servers for better performance

They even have cloud hosting for stores that are on their way to success and need scalable performance. This is a good thing if you expect heavy traffic all at once during a sale or holiday season.

4. Developers and agencies

If you’re a designer, developer, or agency professional that works for multiple clients, you’ll want flexible, high-performance hosting with staging, Git, SSH, and great resource management.

Hostinger comes through with:

• Git integration and SSH access
• Hosting for multiple websites in one plan
• Sub-accounts for client access
• Powerful admin dashboard in hPanel

Coupled with their low entrance price, it’s a convenient option for hosting multiple projects on a limited budget. Your clients will also benefit from great uptime, fast loading speeds, and secure connections — all included.

Final verdict

There’s no best all-in-one solution in web hosting — but if we had to recommend one in 2025 that checks off free SSL, free domain, low price, performance, and ease of use, it would be Hostinger.

Whether you’re a total beginner on their first website or an expert building websites for clients, Hostinger will offer flexible and satisfying performance — no expensive upselling, no cluttered dashboards.

Launching a site is more than just picking a name — it’s about becoming visible in the online world. You want to grow without limits, and that starts with the right host.

Ready to get started on your site? Click here to start with Hostinger and get your domain and SSL for free while you can.