Both Namecheap and GoDaddy are well-known for their cheaper domain names and web hosting, but that's where the similarities end — they're more different from you can think behind the scenes. Which web host provides you with the greatest plans and domains, in my opinion, is a no-brainer.
Both provide excellent value for money, but Namecheap is far more user-friendly. It provides a fully managed WordPress platform with a long list of features, including SSL son the shared plan. It's also less expensive than GoDaddy.
But don't rule out the competition just yet — GoDaddy has its own set of advantages and is still fighting for its share of the market. While I'd prefer one of Namecheap's low-cost hosting plans over GoDaddy's, you'll have to keep reading to find out why Namecheap wins my recommendation.
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| Namecheap vs GoDaddy: Who's Best for Domains and Hosting in 2022 |
Domain names are unique identifiers for websites
Namecheap provides freebies that GoDaddy requires a fee for.
Choosing a domain name for your new website might be thrilling, but it can also be perplexing. The price of the same domain name with the same extension might differ from one registrar to the next, as you'll see in our Namecheap vs GoDaddy comparison.
- For example, I used GoDaddy and Namecheap to look for the domain name phoenix. XYZ. The images below depict the many pricing possibilities I came across for the same domain name.
- Both Namecheap and GoDaddy offered me the name for a low initial price, but it's a different story when it comes to renewal costs, with GoDaddy's renewal rates being around 40% more than Namecheap's.
- Both proposed the domain aryehphoenix.com to me, however, the prices for this top-level domain are vastly different (TLD). Namecheap's pricing is 25% more than GoDaddy's.
The distinctions don't end there, though. You receive free custom nameservers and free Shinguard (which protects your personal information from being made public when you register a domain name) when you use Namecheap. Both of these capabilities are available at an additional cost from GoDaddy.
Hackers were able to construct false subdomains on websites that connected to GoDaddy's nameservers after GoDaddy's DNS (Domain Name System) was hijacked earlier this year. While the security problem has been rectified, the fact that it happened in the first place makes me skeptical of using GoDaddy to register my domains.
Namecheap comes out on top when it comes to domain name interfaces. The site of Namecheap is clearer and easier to use, with no unnecessary clutter. Its simple design can't compete with GoDaddy's more sophisticated UI.
Namecheap comes out on top. It takes the lead in the first round owing to reduced domain renewal fees and privacy protection. For renewals, GoDaddy's fees are much higher.
Pricing for Month-to-Month and Year-to-Year Renewals
GoDaddy's hosting costs are higher than Namecheap's.
In the web hosting market, it's common knowledge that introductory rates are intended to entice you in with low pricing, only to slap you with higher fees when it's time to renew your plan.
Namecheap, on the other hand, stands out since its rates do not change when you renew - even if you pay monthly. If you want to pay yearly, Namecheap offers a 50% discount on your first year of hosting. In other words, after the first year, your rate will double. While this may appear alarming, the renewal rate is still a fraction of that of GoDaddy.
Renewal costs at GoDaddy aren't all that much more than the introductory rate — you'll pay about 25% extra when you renew your GoDaddy plan. Although this is less than some hosting firms, it is still a substantial sum of money.
Unfortunately, GoDaddy's best pricing needs you to sign up for three years. If you sign up for a year, your monthly price will rise by roughly 17%, and if you just pay for three months upfront, your monthly cost will virtually double. In the end, GoDaddy's monthly plans are more than three times the price of Namecheap's monthly plans.
Namecheap comes out on top. Not only is Namecheap's hosting cheaper than GoDaddy's, but you can also pay monthly without paying exorbitant fees.
Features
Which is more important for your website: a free domain name or more storage?
Comparing hosting plans may be difficult, but I've collected all the information you'll need in an easy-to-read chart, so you can determine which provider has the services you can't live without.
Namecheap comes out on top. If you don't mind having less storage space (the storage space provided by the lower plants will be more than enough for most users), Namecheap simply provides you with more. No matter whatever plan you choose, you'll get SSL certificates, free website migration, and extra email addresses. However, if you'll require a lot of storage capacity, GoDaddy could be a better option. Learn more about GoDaddy in our in-depth review.
Performance
What Kind of Downtime Should You Expect?
On its sales website, Namecheap promises to offer a 100 percent uptime guarantee, but when you look at the SLA (service-level agreement), it reveals out to be a conventional 99.9% uptime guarantee.
- This isn't surprising, but it's deceptive. Besides, Namecheap's uptime record isn't exactly stellar.
Although you will receive credits for the downtime, you must consider the impact it may have, especially if you use your website for business purposes. Our lab regularly checks the numbers, and Namecheap's uptime has fallen significantly below 99.9% in recent months, and while you will receive credits for the downtime, you must consider the impact it may have, especially if you use your website for business purposes.
GoDaddy also offers a basic uptime guarantee of 99.9%. Unlike Namecheap, however, GoDaddy has a better uptime track record, with no instances of downtime below 99.9%.
For example, GoDaddy's uptime in a recent month was a disappointing 99.94 percent, amounting to about 26 minutes of outage for the month. In comparison, Namecheap's 99.81 percent uptime for the same period means 82 minutes of downtime, over four times greater than GoDaddy.
GoDaddy is the lucky winner! It takes around at long last! Namecheap's unremarkable uptime record is a letdown, and GoDaddy is more dependable overall.
Support
Namecheap's customer service is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - GoDaddy has limitations.
When it comes to web hosting, customer service may not be the most crucial consideration, but you do want to be able to obtain help when you need it, especially if you're new to constructing websites.
GoDaddy promises to provide customer service 24 hours a day, seven days a week, however, this is a little deceptive. It does not provide ticket help and just provides chat support Monday through Friday. In many countries, phone help is provided 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but in others, support is only available during defined hours. In Germany, for example, help is only provided Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. To find out the hours for your country, go to the Global Support page.
Not only is service restricted to specific hours, but the wait times are excruciating. You don't have to seek hard-to-locate customer experiences where they had to wait more than 75 minutes to connect with a live chat person.
I wanted to check for myself how long it takes to connect to live chat help during normal business hours. When I tried to join, however, I received the following message:
- GoDaddy's live chat help looks to be not just restricted in hours, but also not always accessible when you'd expect it to be.
The assistance at Namecheap is superior. For example, live chat help is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, allowing you to contact a support person quickly and effortlessly. The ticketing system is also available. I was pleased to get connected swiftly when I tested the live chat - within 48 seconds!
I didn't have to wait for replies because the support representative I spoke with was quick to respond to my inquiries, which isn't often the case with live chat for web hosting.
Namecheap comes out on top. Namecheap is light years ahead of GoDaddy, with quick live chat replies and 24/7 customer assistance available no matter where you are in the world. In this in-depth assessment of Namecheap, find out what our experts thought of their online help.
When it comes to domains and hosting, Namecheap is the better option
Namecheap is the obvious victor here since even though GoDaddy has a slightly higher uptime record, you're better off with Namecheap due to its superb customer service, feature set, and affordability.
Recommendations from Us
- Choose Namecheap if you want a cheap domain name that will renew at a fair price. Namecheap also makes it easy to manage your domain names. It is a better bargain than GoDaddy because it offers free backups and SSL certificates.
- Although GoDaddy's plans provide greater storage, most customers will never need it, so you're better off with Namecheap for service and support. Remember that if you truly need the extra capacity, you can upgrade to Namecheap's premium services and receive 'unlimited storage.