In this current era of technology and digital advancement, an online presence is no longer a luxury but a necessity for any business that wants to succeed. However, the technical aspects of creating a website can be intimidating, especially if you’re unfamiliar with the jargon associated with it. Terms like domain names, website hosting, and email hosting can easily confuse any business owner. But fear not! In this article, we’ll break down these concepts into easy-to-understand language and provide recommendations for service providers to help you get your business online quickly and easily. So buckle up and get ready to learn the difference between domain names vs website hosting vs email hosting and how they can help establish a strong online presence for your business:
What is a Domain Name?
A domain name is basically the address of your website on the internet. You know how your house has a street address so people can find it? Your website needs an address too, and that’s where domain names come in.
Let’s say your business is called “My Business.” You could choose a domain name like “mybusiness.com” or “mybusiness.net.” It’s a unique name that nobody else can use, and it’s how people will find your website when they want to visit it.
A domain name is like the address of a physical building. Just as a building’s address helps people locate and access it, a domain name helps internet users find and access a website or email account.
In this analogy, a website is like a building that has been constructed and hosted on a piece of land. Website hosting is like the land on which the building is constructed, providing a space for the website to exist and be accessible to visitors.
Similarly, email hosting is like a mailbox or a suite number in a building, providing a space for emails to be received, stored, and accessed by the user. And just as multiple buildings can share the same address but have different suite numbers or unit numbers, multiple email accounts can be hosted under the same domain name.
Getting a Domain Name
Now, you might be wondering how you actually get a domain name. You can buy one from a domain registrar, which is a company that specializes in selling domain names. Some popular registrars include GoDaddy and Namecheap.
When you’re choosing a domain name, there are a few things to keep in mind.
Firstly, it should be easy to remember and spell. You want people to be able to find your website easily.
Secondly, it should be related to your business or brand. You don’t want people to be confused when they visit your website, and it has nothing to do with what they are looking for.
Lastly, you should try to choose a domain name with a popular extension like .com or .net. These are the most common, and people are more likely to remember them. There are also country-specific extensions like .ca for Canada or .co.uk for the United Kingdom.
What is Website Hosting?
Website hosting is the process of storing all the files that make up your website on a server that is connected to the internet so that people can access your website anytime, anywhere. Think of it like renting space on the internet where you can store your website files.
There are many different types of website hosting, ranging from shared hosting to dedicated hosting to cloud hosting.
Shared hosting means that your website is hosted on a server with other websites, while dedicated hosting means that your website has its own server all to itself.
Cloud hosting refers to the process of hosting websites, applications, and services on remote servers that are accessed through the internet. In cloud hosting, the resources required to run an application or service, such as processing power, storage, and bandwidth, are distributed across multiple servers instead of being hosted on a single physical server.
The type of hosting you choose will depend on the size and complexity of your website, as well as how much traffic you expect to receive. Make sure you choose a hosting provider that offers a flexible, scalable, and cost-effective way to host your website while ensuring maximum uptime and reliability.
If you’re just starting out with a small business website, shared hosting might be a good option for you. But if you expect to have a large website with lots of traffic, you might want to consider dedicated hosting.
Why Do You Need a Web Hosting service?
Website hosting is important because it allows your website to be accessible to visitors on the internet. It provides data storage, security, customization, search engine optimization, and technical support.
Without website hosting, your website cannot be viewed by anyone on the web, and all your hard work in building and designing a website will be for nothing.
How Do You Get Web Hosting Services?
To obtain website hosting, you need the services of web hosting companies. A website hosting company, or hosting provider, is a company that acts as a landlord for your website. It provides an online space where all your website’s content and files are saved and can be accessed by anyone with an internet connection.
Sometimes, your domain name (the web address for your website) may be registered with a different company than your web hosting company. It’s important to keep track of where you manage each element.
For instance, if you need to update your contact information on your domain, you’ll go to your domain name registrar. However, if you encounter an issue with an image or other content on your website, you’ll need to contact your web host.
While some people prefer to keep all aspects of their online presence with a single company for easier management, others prefer to separate them for various reasons.
What is Email Hosting?
Email hosting is the process of hosting your email accounts on a server so that you can send and receive emails using your domain name. This is useful for businesses that want to have a professional-looking email address, such as info@yourbusinessname.com, instead of using a generic email address like Gmail or Yahoo.
When you sign up for an email hosting account, you’ll typically get access to features like webmail, spam filtering, and email forwarding. These features can help you manage your email accounts more effectively and keep your inbox organized.
How Do You Get Email Hosting?
If you want to get email hosting for your business, you’ll need to figure out what kind of hosting you need. This includes deciding on how many email addresses you’ll need, as well as the level of security you want.
Once you have an idea of what you need, you can start looking for an email hosting provider that meets your requirements. Many companies that provide website hosting and domain registration also offer email hosting, so it might be worth checking with them first.
When you find a website hosting provider that you like, you can sign up for a website hosting plan that includes email hosting. This will usually involve choosing a domain name (if you don’t already have one) and setting up your DNS settings.
Next, you’ll need to create email accounts for your team members and set up your email client (like Outlook or Gmail) to connect to your email server.
This will allow you to send and receive emails using your own domain name, which looks more professional than using a generic email address.
What’s the Difference Between Domain Names vs Website Hosting vs Email Hosting?
Here’s how these three things relate to each other when it comes to a website. In order to have a website, you need a domain name and website hosting. The domain name is what people use to access your website by typing it into an internet browser address bar, while the website hosting is what allows your website to be available online.
Here is another great analogy showing the relationship between domain names, websites, website hosting and email hosting:
Think of a domain name like a phone number that connects you to a business. Just as a phone number identifies a specific business and connects you to their phone line, a domain name identifies a specific website or email account and connects you to their server.
Website hosting is like the physical store or office where the business operates. Just as a store or office provides a physical space for a business to operate and store its business assets, website hosting provides a digital space for a website to store its digital assets, and to exist and be accessed by visitors.
Email hosting is like the voicemail or answering machine for the business phone line. Just as a voicemail system provides a space for messages to be received and stored when the business can’t answer the phone, email hosting provides a space for emails to be received, stored, and accessed by the user when they can’t check their email in real-time.
Overall, a domain name serves as a unique identifier that links the website and email account to the appropriate server and hosting platform.
Can you have one without the other?
Email hosting is not strictly necessary for a website, but it can be very useful for businesses that want to use a professional email address that matches their domain name.
As mentioned earlier, email hosting is often offered by the same companies that provide website hosting and domain registration, so it’s easy to set up all three services together. But you can also get them from different places if you wish.
It’s important to note that you can have a domain (name) without hosting a website or email, but you can’t have a website or email address without a domain (name).
Understanding the distinction between your domain name, web hosting, and email is crucial for keeping track of your online presence if different companies handle your domain, web hosting, and email services.
This way, if something goes wrong with your website or email, you’re able to quickly identify where the issue originates from and how to reach out to the company to resolve the problem or manage your services.
Who Needs Domain Names, Website & Email Hosting?
Having a website is crucial for the success of any business. Regardless of the size of your business, a website can help you reach more customers, increase your online presence, and establish your brand.
It’s your virtual billboard and virtual storefront, and it’s available to potential customers 24/7. Therefore, any business that wants an online presence without depending only on social media needs a website.
But creating a website involves more than just designing a few web pages. You also need to register a domain name, choose a web hosting provider, and set up email hosting. These technical terms might sound overwhelming, but understanding them is essential to building and managing your website.
Check this article on what you need to build your own website.
How Much Do They Typically Cost?
When it comes to the cost of domain names, website hosting, and email hosting, it really depends on a few different factors. For example, the provider you choose, the type of hosting you need, and the features you require can all impact the overall cost.
But from our findings, domain names usually cost between $10 and $50 per year, depending on the domain extension and the registrar you use. On average, you can expect to pay between $5 and $50 per month for shared hosting, $50 to $200 per month for a Virtual Dedicated Server, also known as a Virtual Private Server (VPS) hosting, and $150 to $500 per month for dedicated hosting.
As we said earlier, costs still depend on your web hosting service provider. Website hosting can range from just a few dollars per month for basic shared hosting to hundreds or even thousands of dollars per month for more advanced hosting options.
Email hosting is another consideration, and prices for this service can range from free to just a few dollars per month for basic email hosting to $10 or more per user per month for enterprise-level email hosting with advanced features. On average, you can expect to pay between $1 and $10 per user each month for email hosting.
Of course, it’s important to keep in mind that these are just general ranges, and actual prices can vary depending on a number of factors. Many web hosts offer bundled packages that include domain registration, website hosting, and email hosting at a discounted price, so that might be worth considering as well. And, as always, it’s a good idea to do your research and compare options before making any final decisions.
Our Recommendations
Choosing the right provider for domain hosting, website hosting, and email hosting can be a big decision, and it’s important to find a provider that meets your specific needs and budget.
However, Namecheap is a great option for domain hosting. They offer a wide variety of domain extensions, and their prices are very competitive. We also like their user-friendly platform, which makes it easy to manage your domains and other account settings.
When it comes to website and email hosting, both A2 Hosting and Cloudways are great hosting providers. A2 Hosting offers a range of hosting plans at affordable prices, and they are known for their excellent performance and uptime.
They also offer a range of email hosting options, which is great if you’re looking to create a professional email address.
Cloudways offers managed cloud hosting, which means they provide a fully-managed hosting solution on various cloud infrastructure providers, such as AWS, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean, Vultr, and Linode. This can be a great option if you want to choose from a variety of plans, each offering different levels of resources, performance, and features as well as a reliable and scalable hosting solution.
Ultimately, the choice between A2 Hosting and Cloudways will depend on your specific needs and preferences. Both web hosting service providers offer many features and tools to make it easy to manage your website and email, and both have excellent customer support to help you if you run into any issues.
Get Started Building Your Online Presence
Having an online presence is essential for any business, and creating a website involves several technical aspects that may seem confusing to some. However, understanding the differences between domain names, website hosting, and email hosting is the first step to establishing a strong online presence.
A domain name is the address of your website on the internet, while website hosting is the process of storing all the files that make up your website on a web server that is connected to the internet. Email hosting, on the other hand, allows businesses to have a professional-looking email address using their domain name. The cost of these services varies depending on the provider, type of hosting, and features required.
It’s important to choose the right service provider to help you get online quickly and easily. You can get started right away with Namecheap for domain hosting and either A2 Hosting or Cloudways for website and email hosting. We wish you luck in your online business!
