Namecheap Review (2023)

Selecting the best hosting provider for your business is not an easy task. There are numerous options accessible.

You must have heard of Namecheap and perhaps even used it to purchase domain names. But today, we’re doing a Namecheap Hosting Review.

Yes, you did read that right. Despite being best known for its domain name services, Namecheap also offers hosting to its customers. Today, we’ll find out if it’s any good.

Namecheap:

Namecheap is a US-based company located in Phoenix, Arizona. It was founded back in 2000 by Mr. Richard Kirkendall as a domain registration company. Today, they have registered over 11 million domains and are serving over 3 million clients around the globe!

They offer Shared Hosting, Reseller Hosting, VPS Hosting, Dedicated Hosting, and WordPress hosting services to their customers. Namecheap is unbeatable when we talk about domain registrations.

Namecheap Overview

Namecheap User Interface:

The user interface of Namecheap looks quite easy to use with a modern design and colors.

You get the standard cPanel, which is quite intuitive and loaded with a lot of interesting features. You can easily manage your emails, files, databases, domains, security, software, etc, from here.

All the features are separated into different categories. This makes it easy for beginners to operate. Overall, I found it quite user-friendly and convenient.

Server Response Time:

The Server Response Time was quite good in the US (19 ms) and Canada (80 ms) regions.

Interestingly, they use both Apache and Litespeed servers on their Shared hosting plans, which is why we get to see good SRT on Namecheap!

Namecheap Speed:

Namecheap Uptime 

Here’s the uptime report for “Namecheap shared hosting stellar plan” for the last 365 days.

During the previous 365 days, Namecheap shared hosting had an uptime of 99.89%, which is just below average for shared hosting.

The uptime has only been 99.89% for the past 30 days, compared to 99.89% over the past 365 days! For a firm that advertises a 100% uptime guarantee on Shared, Business, and Dedicated hosting options, this is extremely surprising.

Namecheap Load Handling :

Exposing your website or app to real-world situations in order to gauge how well they handle load is referred to as load handling.

I sent 50 fictitious users from the US region to my website to test the load handling, and they made a total of 2521 requests.

Cache Plugin:

Namecheap, as a domain registrar and web hosting company, does not provide specific caching plugins themselves.

However, if you are looking for caching plugins for your website hosted on Namecheap’s hosting service (such as cPanel hosting), you can use popular caching plugins available in the WordPress ecosystem

Data Centers:

They only have data centers in a few countries, such the US, UK, and EU. The most recent addition is the EU servers.

Another thing to keep in mind is that EU and UK servers are more expensive than US servers. They ought to pick up the pace and build data centers in more places, such as Singapore, etc.

For 65+ data center locations delivering quick speeds from anywhere in the world, check out Cloudways.

Namecheap Domains 

Because Namecheap has essentially been a domain name registrar since the beginning, you will find appreciable domain options here.

Namecheap CDN

A CDN (Content Delivery Network) caches your web content on multiple servers speeding up your website’s loading time.

Namecheap offers its Supersonic CDN for free on all its hosting plans. It not only improves your website’s speed but also protects your site from DDoS attacks, lets you upload custom SSL, and handles 50 GB of traffic per month!

Security:

Namecheap’s security features encompass SSL certificates, domain privacy protection, two-factor authentication, firewall services, regular security updates, phishing protection, and email security. These measures collectively ensure a secure and trustworthy online experience for Namecheap users and their website visitors.

Backups:

Twice a week, Namecheap produces routine backups for their Stellar hosting clients. However, you can only recover your backups by opening a support case with their team.

If you upgrade to the Stellar Plus or Stellar Business plan, you get an AutoBackup plugin that creates backups of your cPanel account with the following frequency.

• 6 daily backups
• 3 weekly backups
• 5 monthly backups

If you are running a serious online website, you can also opt for CodeGuard. It is an add-on service that offers to create daily backups, perform automatic restorations, and provide daily monitoring services for your website.

Its pricing plans start from $2.50/month/website.

Namecheap Customer Support:

The support team of Namecheap is decent. They offer 24/7 support through email tickets and live chat. They also have a comprehensive knowledge base of articles meant to solve user queries.

Pricing:

Namecheap offers a range of services with varying pricing structures. Domain registration starts at approximately $8.88 per year for popular extensions like .com, while web hosting plans begin at around $2.88 per month, depending on the type of hosting and resources required.

SSL certificates, essential for website security, are available at different price points starting from $8.88 per year. Namecheap also provides VPN services, starting at approximately $1.88 per month, and email hosting, which starts at about $0.99 per mailbox per month.

It’s important to note that these prices are approximate and subject to change, so it’s advisable to check Namecheap’s official website or contact their customer support for the most up-to-date and specific pricing details based on individual requirements.

Payment Options:

Namecheap supports limited payment options that include International credit and debit cards, and PayPal.

Namecheap Refund Policy:

They have a standard 30-day money-back guarantee, just like other web hosting companies.

Namecheap Migrations:

You get one website migration completely free of cost with any of the hosting plans you choose.

Namecheap Website Builder:

You get a basic website builder with Namecheap. It is a drag-and-drop builder which is helpful for quickly building your page and publishing.

Namecheap Apps and Software:

The Softaculous App Installer offers a wide collection of 100+ free apps spanning eCommerce, CMS, gaming, marketing, blogging, social networking, project management, and a lot more.

If you are a software developer, you will be quite impressed with the features offered by the developer options provided on Namecheap.

You get support for Python, Perl, NodeJS, Ruby, PHP, etc, which is really helpful for professional programmers.

Comparison with other hosting services:

Namecheap Vs Godaddy:

Namecheap vs Bluehost: general comparison

Both Namecheap and Bluehost offer affordable solutions for beginners as well as advanced users with various options to choose from. While Namecheap, as suggested by “cheap,” is more affordable than Bluehost, the latter is faster and more reliable.

Here is a quick summary of both providers.

Namecheap vs HostGator: general info

Both Namecheap and HostGator offer cheap and easy to manage shared hosting solutions. As the name suggests, Namecheap’s main selling point is its extremely low price. However, HostGator proves to be more reliable and faster.

So let’s take a look at each provider’s main points of comparison.