Domain and hosting: what they are and how to choose

Every website needs two things: a domain and hosting. They are often confused, sold together or hidden in a package, so here is what each one is and what to look for.

What is a domain?

A domain is your website's address, like studiov1.com or yourbusiness.bg. It is what people type in the browser and what appears in your email address. You do not buy a domain forever; you register it, usually for a year at a time, and renew it. Mozilla's MDN guide explains in more detail how domain names are structured [1].

What is hosting?

Hosting is the computer (server) where your website's files live and from which they are sent to visitors. Without hosting, a domain is an address that leads nowhere. Hosting is also paid regularly, monthly or yearly. In technical terms, a web server is a computer that stores a website's files and delivers them to the visitor's browser [2].

A simple comparison: the domain is your street address, the hosting is the building.

Choosing a domain

ICANN, the organisation that coordinates domain names worldwide, publishes the rights and responsibilities of every domain holder [3].

• Short and easy to say. If you have to spell it on the phone, it is too complicated.
• Your business name or what you do, ideally both clear and memorable.
• The right ending. .bg signals a Bulgarian business; .com is international. Many businesses register both.
• No hyphens or numbers unless they are part of your name.
• Registered in your name. This is the most important point: the domain should belong to your business, not to the person who built the site.

For all the rules with examples and a step-by-step check, see how to choose a domain name.

Choosing hosting

• Speed: a fast server and a setup that serves pages quickly. See why is my website slow.
• Security: an SSL certificate included and kept up to date: what is an SSL certificate.
• Backups: regular, automatic copies of the site.
• Reliability: the site should almost never be down.
• Support: someone who answers when something goes wrong.

The cheapest hosting is often the slowest and comes with the least help.

Domain, hosting and email

Your business email (name@yourbusiness.bg) uses the domain too. It can run on the same hosting or on a separate email service. If you move your website, make sure your email keeps working: how to move your domain to a new website.

The domain is your address, the hosting is your building. Own the address, and choose the building for speed, security and support.

Do you need to deal with this yourself?

Not necessarily. With our monthly plan, domain, hosting and SSL are included and handled for you, so you never have to think about renewals or servers.

References

1. MDN Web Docs (Mozilla). "What is a domain name?" developer.mozilla.org
2. MDN Web Docs (Mozilla). "What is a web server?" developer.mozilla.org
3. ICANN. "Registrants' Benefits and Responsibilities." icann.org