So, you want to grab some of that internet for yourself…
To start, you’ll need a domain, but there’s literally LOADS of domain companies, so which do you pick?
Here’s my opinion, based on my experience, not taking into consideration what anyone else has said and I’m not being paid to promote anyone…
I’ll start by saying I use https://www.1and1.co.uk for my hosting, from my experience they have really good hosting packages but that’s a totally different topic which I’ll cover later.
I tend to buy my own personal domains from 1AND1 (even though they’re slightly more expensive) simply because it’s easier to have my domains and hosting packages in one place, so I’ll start with my review of them:
1AND1
Pros
Usually has an introductory offer
Good for hosting, normally bundle everything you need so you don’t get
Don’t charge extras for things like email, subdomains, databases, (but they d charge for SSL certs)
Easy to use CPanel
Cons
Not the cheapest
Customer service can be a tad lacking
Cost
.com domains usually around £12 per year without offers
123Reg
My preferred option for simply picking up no-frills domains.
Pros
The biggest domain name provider in the UK
Usually has an introductory offer
Compared to others the C-Panel quite easy to use
Never needed to use their customer service but I’ve heard it’s decent
Cons
Not the best for hosting, tend to charge for everything as an extra
Cost
.com domains usually around £16 per year without offers
Siteground
A new one to me, I’ve recently had the pleasure of using
They’re much more focused on hosting but have competitive prices for domains too
Pros
Excellent customer service
Easy to use CPanel
Don’t charge extra for services, even SSLs
Cons
Great full service, but no cheap initial offers for domains
Cost
.com domains usually around £14 per year without offers
Ones to avoid
Godaddy
Like the Ryanair of domains, starts off cheap but if you need to do anything you better believe there’s a cost for that!
Cpanel can sometimes can be a bit complicated
Cost
.com domains usually around £13 per year without offers
Fasthosts
Used to be decent until they were bought out
Horrific customer service and quite expensive in comparison
CPanel is a nightmare to navigate
Cost
.com domains usually around £25 per year without offers
Once you have your domain, you’ll either need to point it to a website or buy yourself some hosting. More on that coming soon.