Last updated on December 7th, 2020 at 01:17 pm
Most people in South Africa look for free domain registration service in order to cut down on the cost of having a website, running a school project or having professional emails for their venture or side hustle. Where can one register a free domain name, and is it actually free?
A domain name is necessary for one to have a website that is functioning, email services or just to identify a resource that is located online. The bare minimum needed for a website is a domain name, hosting service and web design. Some of these products are offered for free depending on the domain registrar, while others are bundled together.
Free hosting
There are several providers who offer free web hosting. This hosting is usually provided for a given period of time, or with limited resources. The idea is to get one to use the service in the hope that they will upgrade to a paid package once they realize that the service is good or they need more resources. Several registrars offer this in South Africa.
Free Domain name
It is rare to find anyone offering a domain name for free. This is because domain names are sold by the registries, and thus any registrar who offers the domain for free must foot the cost of the domain. However, there are a few tricks that registrars use to offer ‘free’ domain names or nearly free domain registration.
This includes:
- Subsidizing the cost of the domain names, to lower their price.
- Offering free domain name for anyone who buys a hosting service. In this case, the cost of the domain is factored in the hosting.
- Bundling several packages together, such as a domain name, email services, web hosting, SSL certificates, domain privacy and web design. One may only be charged for the web design package and the rest is offered for free.
