Why Cheap Domain Registrars Cost More
Domains are cheap. A .com costs £10 - £15 a year. A .co.uk costs £5 - £10. The whole thing is maybe one coffee a month. So why are there registrars selling domains for £2? And more importantly, why is buying from them expensive?
What You're Not Paying For at a Cheap Registrar
When a registrar can afford to sell domains for £2 but everyone else charges £10, something is cheaper. Usually, it's support, security, and your experience.
Cheap registrars make money from:
- Selling add-ons you don't need
- High renewal prices (after the first year)
- Slow customer support
- Minimal security
- Upselling related products
- Selling your data to advertisers
The Hidden Costs
Renewal shock. The domain costs £2 for year one. Year two, it renews at £20. Nobody told you this. You thought you had a £2 domain. This is the classic bait and switch. You get used to owning the domain, and suddenly it costs 10x what you expected.
Renewal hijacking. Some cheap registrars deliberately make it hard to renew or transfer your domain away. They know you'll probably just renew with them at the inflated price rather than deal with the hassle.
Upselling. At every step - domain registration, DNS settings, email setup - cheap registrars try to sell you add-ons. WHOIS privacy costs extra. Email forwarding costs extra. Domain backup costs extra. Things that cost nothing at reputable registrars.
Support delays. When something goes wrong - your domain isn't pointing to your website, email forwarding stopped working, DNS broke - you're waiting days for responses or getting no help at all.
Security shortcuts. Cheap registrars sometimes cut corners on security. Your account gets hacked. Your domain gets stolen. Now you're paying thousands to get it back, instead of paying £1 more per year for a registrar that takes security seriously.
The Real Cost Example
You register a domain at a cheap registrar for £2. Year one, your total cost is £2. Looks great.
Year two, it renews at £18. Total so far: £20.
You want to set up email forwarding. That's £10 extra per year. Total: £30.
You want WHOIS privacy. That's £5 extra. Total: £35.
Someone compromises your account and steals your domain. It costs £200 in lawyers' fees and time to get it back.
You could have used a reputable registrar from day one:
- Year one: £12
- Year two: £12 (same price as year one)
- Email forwarding: included
- WHOIS privacy: included
- Security: robust
- Support: responsive
Total for two years with a reputable registrar: £24 + free extras + no hacked domain = peace of mind.
What Makes a Registrar Expensive Is What You're Paying For
A reputable registrar charges more because:
- They invest in security (encryption, 2FA, fraud prevention)
- They have real support people answering real questions
- They don't upsell you things you don't need
- They make money on volume, not on exploiting customers
- They invest in their infrastructure so things work reliably
- They don't raise your renewal price after year one
You're paying for reliability and trust. That's not expensive. That's necessary.
How to Spot a Cheap Registrar's Tricks
Read the fine print on the renewal price before you register. If the first year is insanely cheap but year two is double the price, walk away.
Check reviews from people who've renewed domains there. Not new customers - people who've been with them for years. They'll tell you if renewal surprises are common.
Look for hidden costs - do they charge extra for email? Extra for WHOIS privacy? Extra for basic DNS management? If yes, they're not cheap. They're just hiding the cost.
The Registrar That's Right
Look for a registrar that:
- Shows the renewal price upfront (not after you've already committed)
- Charges the same price for year one and year two
- Includes WHOIS privacy and basic features
- Has actual customer support (not just an FAQ)
- Doesn't aggressively upsell at every step
- Has decent security and two-factor authentication
You'll pay slightly more upfront. You'll save money overall. You'll sleep better knowing your domain is actually protected.
The Bottom Line
The £2 domain is never £2. Count the full cost - year one, year two, the features you'll need, the time you'll spend dealing with their support - and the reputable registrar is actually cheaper.
A domain for £10 - £15 a year that works reliably, renews at the same price forever, includes the features you need, and has support when something breaks - that's the deal you want.
Spend the extra £1 per month. Your future self will thank you.