Free SSL certificate included with your IONOS hosting plan

Did you know many IONOS products even come with a free SSL certificate included?
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How to get an SSL certificate for free

When you opt for certain IONOS services and products such as domain registration, Hosting for WordPress, or the eCommerce and MyWebsite website builders, you receive a free SSL Wildcard certificate included in the plan.

Essential

Everything you need to host your first website

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1 website

10 GB redundant storage This is the total amount of disk space available for your website's content. We mirror your data in two data centers, so you stay online even during maintenance or an outage.

10 databases 2 GB of storage per MariaDB or MySQL database. If you choose one-click installation, we'll automatically create a MariaDB 10 database for you. MySQL 5 is available if you prefer to set up everything manually.

Initial CPU & MEM resources Performance level 0 of 5: Optimized for up to 100 website visitors per minute (384 MB PHP memory, up to 512 MB RAM).

SSH, SFTP, WP-CLI access Secure tools and protocols for managing your website.

Free domain for 1 year Choose from these domain extensions: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online. Free domain offer must be redeemed on the initial purchase of a 12-month contract term.

Free Wildcard SSL certificate A Wildcard SSL certificate safeguards your domain and up to 10,000 subdomains. It creates a secure connection between you and your visitors, protecting their personal data from third parties.

Professional email One email account with a 2 GB inbox included with your web hosting plan.

Unmetered bandwidth We won't meter your bandwidth or limit traffic to your site.

1-click installs Easily install WordPress, Drupal and over 70 other popular open-source apps.

Daily backup and recovery

Free 24/7 support

Starter

More capacity, ideal for growing websites

Select

10 websites

100 GB redundant storage This is the total amount of disk space available for your website's content. We mirror your data in two data centers, so you stay online even during maintenance or an outage.

50 databases 2 GB of storage per MariaDB or MySQL database. If you choose one-click installation, we'll automatically create a MariaDB 10 database for you. MySQL 5 is available if you prefer to set up everything manually.

Basic CPU & MEM resources Performance level 1 of 5: Optimized for up to 100 website visitors per minute (384 MB PHP memory, up to 512 MB RAM).

SSH, SFTP, WP-CLI access Secure tools and protocols for managing your website.

Free domain for 1 year Choose from these domain extensions: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online. Free domain offer must be redeemed on the initial purchase of a 12-month contract term.

Free Wildcard SSL certificate A Wildcard SSL certificate safeguards your domain and up to 10,000 subdomains. It creates a secure connection between you and your visitors, protecting their personal data from third parties.

Professional email One email account with a 2 GB inbox included with your web hosting plan.

Unmetered bandwidth We won't meter your bandwidth or limit traffic to your site.

1-click installs Easily install WordPress, Drupal and over 70 other popular open-source apps.

Daily backup and recovery

Free 24/7 support
Bestselling Plan

Plus

Extra power for demanding, memory-intensive sites

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Unlimited websites

Unlimited redundant storage This is the total amount of disk space available for your website's content. We mirror your data in two data centers, so you stay online even during maintenance or an outage.

Unlimited databases 2 GB of storage per MariaDB or MySQL database. If you choose one-click installation, we'll automatically create a MariaDB 10 database for you. MySQL 5 is available if you prefer to set up everything manually.

Enhanced CPU & MEM resources Performance level 2 of 5: Optimized for up to 200 visitors per minute on your websites (768 MB PHP memory, up to 6 GB RAM).

SSH, SFTP, WP-CLI access Secure tools and protocols for managing your website.

Free domain for 1 year Choose from these domain extensions: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online. Free domain offer must be redeemed on the initial purchase of a 12-month contract term.

Free Wildcard SSL certificate A Wildcard SSL certificate safeguards your domain and up to 10,000 subdomains. It creates a secure connection between you and your visitors, protecting their personal data from third parties.

Professional email One email account with a 2 GB inbox included with your web hosting plan.

Unmetered bandwidth We won't meter your bandwidth or limit traffic to your site.

1-click installs Easily install WordPress, Drupal and over 70 other popular open-source apps.

Daily backup and recovery

Free 24/7 support

Ultimate

Peak performance for high-traffic or eCommerce sites

Select

Unlimited websites

Unlimited redundant storage This is the total amount of disk space available for your website's content. We mirror your data in two data centers, so you stay online even during maintenance or an outage.

Unlimited databases 2 GB of storage per MariaDB or MySQL database. If you choose one-click installation, we'll automatically create a MariaDB 10 database for you. MySQL 5 is available if you prefer to set up everything manually.

Maximum CPU & MEM resources Performance level 5 of 5: Optimized for up to 500 visitors per minutes on your websites (896 MB PHP memory, up to 19 GB RAM).

SSH, SFTP, WP-CLI access Secure tools and protocols for managing your website.

Free domain for 1 year Choose from these domain extensions: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online. Free domain offer must be redeemed on the initial purchase of a 12-month contract term.

Free Wildcard SSL certificate A Wildcard SSL certificate safeguards your domain and up to 10,000 subdomains. It creates a secure connection between you and your visitors, protecting their personal data from third parties.

Professional email One email account with a 2 GB inbox included with your web hosting plan.

Unmetered bandwidth We won't meter your bandwidth or limit traffic to your site.

1-click installs Easily install WordPress, Drupal and over 70 other popular open-source apps.

Daily backup and recovery

Free 24/7 support

State and local taxes will apply. Click here for our General Terms and Conditions.

Start

Ideal for smaller websites or blogs

Select
  • 25 GB SSD storage
  • 1 email address
  • Standard performance
  • Website Cockpit for WordPressThe IONOS Website Cockpit is your central hub in WordPress. It helps you set up, optimize, and monitor your site using helpful tools.
  • Vulnerability scans and malware detectionDaily scans for malware and WordPress-specific vulnerabilities in plugins and themes. Only in Boost and eCommerce, you'll also get automatic removal of malware found.
  • Automatic backupsAutomatic updates for core, plugins, themes and PHP. Daily backups are stored for up to 7 days.
  • AI Website BuilderGet your own customizable WordPress site in minutes with help from AI, by just answering a few questions.
Bestselling plan

Grow

Great for content-rich sites with AI tools for faster creation

Select
  • 50 GB SSD storage
  • 5 email addresses
  • Enhanced performance
  • Website Cockpit for WordPressThe IONOS Website Cockpit is your central hub in WordPress. It helps you set up, optimize, and monitor your site using helpful tools.
  • Vulnerability scans and malware detectionDaily scans for malware and WordPress-specific vulnerabilities in plugins and themes. Only in Boost and eCommerce, you'll also get automatic removal of malware found.
  • Automatic backups + 12 months Jetpack Vault includedAutomatic updates for core, plugins, themes and PHP. Daily backups are stored for up to 7 days. Jetpack Vault is included in certain plans as a voucher with no payment or customer info required to redeem.
  • AI Website BuilderGet your own customizable WordPress site in minutes with help from AI, by just answering a few questions.
  • AI AssistantInstant support while working on your site. The AI Assistant helps with content, design changes and more.
  • AI-generated text and images
  • AI-generated pages and blog posts

Boost

Maximum performance, optimised for demanding websites

Select
  • 75 GB SSD storage
  • 10 email addresses
  • Performance boostMore resources (RAM, parallel processes, PHP memory limit) and caching improve your site’s load speed.
  • Website Cockpit for WordPressThe IONOS Website Cockpit is your central hub in WordPress. It helps you set up, optimize, and monitor your site using helpful tools.
  • Vulnerability scans + automatic malware removalDaily scans for malware and WordPress-specific vulnerabilities in plugins and themes. Only in Boost and eCommerce, you'll also get automatic removal of malware found.
  • Automatic backups + 12 months Jetpack Vault includedAutomatic updates for core, plugins, themes and PHP. Daily backups are stored for up to 7 days. Jetpack Vault is included in certain plans as a voucher with no payment or customer info required to redeem.
  • AI Website BuilderGet your own customizable WordPress site in minutes with help from AI, by just answering a few questions.
  • AI AssistantInstant support while working on your site. The AI Assistant helps with content, design changes and more.
  • AI-generated text and images
  • AI-generated pages and blog posts

State and local taxes will apply. Click here for our General Terms and Conditions.

Starter

An intuitive editor for beginners who want to get online quickly

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From idea to website in record time with our AI Website Builder

Intuitive website editing with simple design options Build a website and customize your design.

Free domain for 1 year Choose your preferred domain extension during checkout and get it free for the first year: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online . The renewal price for the second year will be shown once you select your domain. You can add more domain extensions at any time for an additional cost.

Professional email address with 2 GB inbox With your professional email, you can create additional email addresses with your domain name, like contact@help-domain.com. You can also add more mailboxes and storage space at any time.

Includes 10 GB webspace & 10 pages

Competitor tracking with marketingRadar Keep track of your competitors' Google activity and more.

AI Logo Generator Create a professional logo in just a few steps, tailored to your business identity.
Bestselling Plan

Plus

A powerful editor to customize your website design

Select

From idea to website in record time with our AI Website Builder

Intuitive website editing with advanced design options Build a website and customize your design.

Free domain for 1 year Choose your preferred domain extension during checkout and get it free for the first year: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online . The renewal price for the second year will be shown once you select your domain. You can add more domain extensions at any time for an additional cost.

Professional email address with 12 GB inbox With your professional email, you can create additional email addresses with your domain name, like contact@help-domain.com. You can also add more mailboxes and storage space at any time.

Includes 50 GB webspace & 200 pages

Competitor tracking with marketingRadar Keep track of your competitors' Google activity and more.

AI Logo Generator Create a professional logo in just a few steps, tailored to your business identity.

AI Page Generator Generate an entire page in seconds. Includes customized text and images.

AI Text Generator & AI Text Improver Generate texts in seconds, based on your input. Each generated text is unique and can be edited afterwards.

Professional design with AI Image Generator & AI Color Palette Generator Our AI Image Generator crafts customized, brand-aligned creative visuals, maintaining a cohesive visual identity.

AI SEO Text Generator Instantly generate page titles and descriptions for improved Google and other search engine discoverability using our AI SEO Text Generator.

AI image recognition Generate accurate image ALT text with AI for better SEO and accessibility.

SiteAnalytics Detailed overview of visitor statistics and performance analysis for your website.

Integrated online booking tool Receive and manage appointment bookings quickly through your website, anytime.

Pro

The perfect combo of a powerful editor and SEO Optimization Tool

Select

From idea to website in record time with our AI Website Builder

Intuitive website editing with advanced design options Build a website and customize your design.

Free domain for 1 year Choose your preferred domain extension during checkout and get it free for the first year: .us, .ca, .com, .net, .org, .info, .me, .biz, .online . The renewal price for the second year will be shown once you select your domain. You can add more domain extensions at any time for an additional cost.

Professional email address with active sync on all devices and 50 GB inbox With your professional email, you can create additional email addresses with your domain name, like contact@help-domain.com. You can also add more mailboxes and storage space at any time.

Unlimited webspace & pages

Competitor tracking with marketingRadar Keep track of your competitors' Google activity and more.

AI Logo Generator Create a professional logo in just a few steps, tailored to your business identity.

AI Page Generator Generate an entire page in seconds. Includes customized text and images.

AI Text Generator & AI Text Improver Generate texts in seconds, based on your input. Each generated text is unique and can be edited afterwards.

Professional design with AI Image Generator & AI Color Palette Generator Our AI Image Generator crafts customized, brand-aligned creative visuals, maintaining a cohesive visual identity.

AI SEO Text Generator Instantly generate page titles and descriptions for improved Google and other search engine discoverability using our AI SEO Text Generator.

AI image recognition Generate accurate image ALT text with AI for better SEO and accessibility.

SiteAnalytics Plus Detailed overview of visitor statistics and performance analysis with automatic reporting via email for your website.

Integrated online booking tool Receive and manage appointment bookings quickly through your website, anytime.

SEO-optimization with rankingCoach Standard

State and local taxes will apply. Click here for our General Terms and Conditions.

Benefits of an SSL/TLS certificate

Protect your data transactions

SSL secures the browser connection between visitors and your website with up to 256-bit encryption. This means all transmitted data is protected from third parties attempting to access it.

Anti-phishing

You can protect your site against phishing (attempting to gain sensitive data from usernames) with SSL Business/Premium. Not only will our partner Sectigo check that your company owns and has the right to use the domain, but also that your company is registered and in good standing.

Builds trust with your site visitors

You want your visitors to feel confident that you are protecting the information they submit on your website. Sectigo is a global leader in internet security, meaning you have leading SSL security standards at your fingertips.

Better ranking with Google

Google ranks websites with SSL higher compared to sites without security certification. Professionally validated sites can receive up to 6% higher rankings in search results!

Site Seal

Site Seals are tiny images that let your website visitors know that your page is encrypted and safe. Users are more likely to trust websites with this proven and well-recognized symbol for online security.

Browse the internet safely

Our SSL certificates are compatible with all major browsers and mobile devices so your visitors and customers know their data is protected and encrypted.

Only at IONOS

Your personal consultant

Not only do you get the latest AI tech, but you also get your own personal consultant to guide you every step of the way. 

24/7 expert support

Technical questions? Our award-winning experts are always available to help by phone, chat or email.
1 484-254-5555 Start chat

Free SSL - FAQs

What is the difference between an SSL certificate and an SSL Wildcard certificate?

A regular SSL certificate covers only one domain and one subdomain within that domain. This might be sufficient to webmasters that own a single website and don’t plan on adding any additional subdomains.

Wildcard SSL certificates, on the other hand, are a special type of SSL certificate, and can cover websites with multiple subdomains, saving you time and money.

When you purchase the Wildcard SSL, you need to place an asterisk (*) before the domain level that you want to encrypt. This signals that all subdomain variants should automatically be covered even if some are added later.

How important is an SSL Wildcard certificate for search engine optimization (SEO)?

According to Google, having an SSL certificate is the easiest thing a webmaster can do to improve their SEO rankings. Google rewards all website owners with a minor ranking boost when they switch from HTTP to HTTPS, thereby enhancing security measures. With a Wildcard SSL certificate, it’s even easier to signal to Google that all your subdomains are secure, which results in more trust from your website visitors.

How do I activate/install my SSL Wildcard certificate?

Setting up your free SSL Wildcard certificate from IONOS can be done directly in the Control Panel. Log in and simply follow these step-by-step instructions to issue the SSL certificate to the desired domain. Once your SSL Wildcard certificate has successfully gone through the validation process, it will be installed in your webspace, and automatically activated.

What are the advantages of a free SSL Wildcard certificate?

There are numerous benefits to an SSL Wildcard cert: * The main one being that you show your visitors you take website security seriously by having this maximum encryption, which in turn helps gain their trust. * The SSL Wildcard certificate enables you to secure all your subdomains under one certificate and gives you the possibility to add other subdomains later without having to re-issue your certificate. The certificate grows with your business. * A faster HTTP/2 connection isn’t possible without an SSL certificate. Since HTTP/2 is becoming the new standard for websites, enhancing usability and speed, you’re more than prepared with your free Wildcard SSL certificate from IONOS. * Another advantage is that you get an SSL certificate for free with certain IONOS products, and it remains free with the product you choose, meaning long-lasting security without having to spend a dime.

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