Hostinger vs Namecheap: which one is better for you?

Hostinger is an affordable, well-performing hosting provider with modern AI tools. Namecheap is also very cheap and user-friendly. But beyond this superficial comparison, how do they actually perform when placed against one another?

To find out, our research team and I investigated Hostinger and Namecheap’s prices, performance, features, security, and customer support. Overall, Hostinger is better than Namecheap in terms of security and functionality. And while it is slightly pricier, you get more for your money with Hostinger than with Namecheap. Continue reading to learn more.

Namecheap vs Hostinger 2025: overview

Both Namecheap and Hostinger are popular web hosting services with features catering to different customer expectations. Hostinger has more storage space, free automated backups, and up to 100 free accounts. Meanwhile, Namecheap is cheaper and has a slightly better uptime guarantee. However, both have similarities, like the 30-day money-back guarantee, 24/7 live support, and a free domain.

	Hostinger	Namecheap
⭐ Rating:	4.9 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★	3.6 ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
💵 Price:	From $2.78/month	From $1.58/month
📑 Uptime guarantee:	99.9%	100%
🔥 Coupons:	Hostinger coupon 77% OFF	Namecheap coupon 70% OFF
Storage space (from):	100 GB SSD	20 GB SSD
✂️ Free domain (first year):	Yes	Yes
🔒 Free SSL certificate:	Yes	Yes
➡️ Site migration:	Free unlimited migrations for WordPress and open-source sites	Free WordPress and cPanel migration
💾 Automated backups:	Free (weekly)	2 times/week (without auto backups)
📧 Email accounts:	Free (up to 100 accounts)	Free (up to 30 accounts)
👨‍💻 24/7 live support:	Yes	Yes
💰 Money-back guarantee:	30-day	30-day

Pricing comparison: Namecheap costs less, but Hostinger offers more

Namecheap is pricier than Hostinger but offers fewer features when comparing the most basic plans. Hostinger plans start from $2.78/month for a 4-year subscription. It also offers WordPress, Cloud hosting, VPS hosting, and Business plans. Namecheap plans start from $1.58/month for a 2-year subscription, but there are also WordPress, Reseller, VPS, and Dedicated Server hosting plans.

Here’s a quick summary of Hostinger and Namecheap hosting plans and their prices:

	Hostinger	Namecheap
Shared hosting	✅ Yes, from $1.79/month	✅ Yes, from $1.58/month
VPS hosting	✅ Yes, from $4.64/month	✅ Yes, from $6.88/month
WordPress hosting	✅ Yes, from $2.78/month	✅ Yes, from $5.74/month
Cloud hosting	✅ Yes, from $7.43/month	❌ No
Dedicated hosting	❌ No	✅ Yes, from $47.88/month
More information on plans and prices	Hostinger review	Namecheap review

Hostinger has multiple plans to cater to specific needs. Web hosting plans range from $2.78/month to $7.43/month, with feature count increasing the pricier the plan. For example, the Cloud Startup plan includes free CDN and a dedicated IP address, which the Premium plan does not have. Web hosting plans are most suitable for small-to-medium websites.

Namecheap’s hosting plans range from $1.58/month to $4.48/month, with plans reflecting a specific purpose. For example, the Stellar plan is great for beginner users, while Stellar Business is, evidently, for businesses. While the cheapest Stellar plan is more affordable than Hostinger’s, the increase in features between this plan and the pricier Stellar Business is not as noticeable as with Hostinger. Overall, Namecheap doesn’t have as many features as Hostinger in any of its plans.

Hostinger vs Namecheap performance

Both Namecheap and Hostinger performed extremely well during our testing. They both excelled in uptime and response time, website speed, and stress testing. Comparing the two really boils down to mere decimals.

Brand	Uptime guarantee	Uptime test results	Fully loaded time
Hostinger	99.9%	100%	1.667s
Namecheap	100%	100%	1.103s

But let’s not base it all on a few numbers. Below, you’ll find the details of our extensive testing.

Uptime and response time

Our research team tested Namecheap and Hostinger’s uptime, reachability, and response times in three main locations: New York, London, and Mumbai. The three-location results were then converted into the average response time.

Hostinger, despite committing to a 99.9% uptime, delivered a full 100%. Its reachability was 99.95% – a very good but not perfect result. Hostinger’s response time was the best in New York and worst in Mumbai, with an average response time in all locations of 175.72ms.

Namecheap delivered on the promised 100% uptime. However, its reachability was lower than Hostinger’s, reaching 95.95%. Just like Hostinger, Namecheap’s fastest response time was also in New York, but the average response time was slightly slower than Hostinger’s – 179.05ms.

Our research team tested Namecheap and Hostinger’s uptime, reachability, and response times in three main locations: New York, London, and Mumbai. The three-location results were then converted into the average response time.

Website speed

For those who are not familiar with more technical terms, the largest contentful paint (LCP) is the amount of time it takes for the visible page to load. For example, it refers to how long it takes for you to see this page. Meanwhile, fully loaded time (FLT) is how long it takes for the invisible parts to load as well, such as cookies and script. Both of these metrics are used to determine the overall website speed.

Both Hostinger and Namecheap’s fully loaded time was, surprisingly, lower than LCP. Normally, it’s the opposite, but it’s not something that should concern you as a user. Hostinger’s LCP was 1.728s, and FLT was 1.667s.

Namecheap was slightly faster. Its largest contentful paint was 1.188s, and the fully loaded time was 1.103s. However, as the difference between Namecheap and Hostinger is after the decimal point, no one could notice the difference.

Stress testing results

Hosting shouldn’t work in perfect conditions only. You might need to handle a larger number of websites or data. Our research team conducts stress tests to ensure that your provider will not let you down. The purpose of these is to put the hosting providers under immense stress and see how they would perform in extreme conditions.

Over a period of 5 minutes and 12 seconds, Hostinger’s server was bombarded with 7056 requests by 50 virtual users. At its peak, there were 46 requests per second. Hostinger’s HTTP did not fail, and the response time was 56 milliseconds. This result indicates good system stability and responsiveness. There were no failures.

Namecheap was also given 5 minutes and 12 seconds to pass the stress test. Over this time period, 50 virtual users sent around 6700 requests, peaking at 46 requests per second. The system remained stable, with no HTTP failures and overall successful load handling.

Hosting features and ease of use: Hostinger exceeds expectations

Both Hostinger and Namecheap are very easy to use. I could tell that Hostinger was designed with beginners in mind, as its panel was simple to navigate and pleasantly automated. In comparison, Namecheap requires a bit more effort but is otherwise very simple to use. Its panel has all the necessary tools neatly laid out. But it’s Hostinger that can offer more features in general.

Account management dashboard

I liked both Namecheap and Hostinger’s dashboards, though I found both quite different. Namecheap’s dashboard is packed with functions, while Hostinger’s is less cluttered and more streamlined. However, neither is worse than the other, as both allow you to manage your accounts without too much effort.

Hostinger’s account management dashboard leads you to various website creation and management tools. Everything I needed was within easy reach and without needing too many clicks. This is the main area where users will navigate their Hostinger account.

Namecheap’s accounts are managed through cPanel. The interface is busier than Hostinger’s, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I was able to manage my accounts and find everything I needed just as easily as I did with Hostinger. Overall, in Namecheap’s account management dashboard, you can find your domain list, emails, hosting, tools, and apps.

Control panel comparison

While Namecheap uses the standard cPanel as its account management dashboard, Hostinger has its own hPanel. It’s similar to cPanel, but I found it easier to navigate and, generally, more effortless. There’s nothing wrong with Namecheap’s cPanel, but I feel that hPanel is more elevated in terms of functionality.

Having used both, I could tell that Hostinger’s hPanel was designed with ease of use and efficiency in mind. The main page consists of Home, Websites, Domains, Email, VPS, Billing, WordPress, Marketplace, and Account sections. Each of these opens up a whole toolset for web hosting, yet all are very simplistic.

Namecheap’s industry-standard cPanel offers a familiar and feature-rich management system. The main page includes sections for Domain, Hosting, Email, SSL certificates, Apps, and Profile management. Overall, I found that Namecheap provides extensive tools for advanced website management. Even if the system seemed familiar to me, I don’t think complete beginners would find it very difficult to use. Nevertheless, I found Hostinger even easier.

WordPress features comparison

Both Hostinger and Namecheap have a decent list of WordPress features, but only Hostinger has been officially recommended by WordPress. This is not just due to its smooth and vast CMS incorporation but also due to its abundance of features. Here’s a quick summary of Namecheap and Hostinger’s WordPress features:

WordPress feature	Hostinger	Namecheap
Free and easy installation	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Multisite (on the same WP integration)	✅ Yes	❌ No
WooCommerce	✅ Yes	❌ No (only as plugin)
Vulnerability scanner	✅ Yes	✅ Yes (security features)
Backups	✅ Yes (with pricier plans)	✅ Yes

Once you try Hostinger’s WordPress hosting, you begin to understand why WordPress recommends it. Installing and integrating with Google Hostinger’s WordPress takes just one click. Even the basic plan includes WooCommerce, so you can start your eCommerce hosting without obstructions. Additionally, there’s a handful of AI tools, such as a content creator, website builder, and assistant.

Namecheap also makes it very easy to install WordPress and provides everything you need for its management, but most of the features are available through plugins. So, to have as comprehensive a suite as Hostinger automatically provides, you will need to install free or paid add-ons. For example, WooCommerce, which Hostinger includes in its WordPress hosting plans, is available only as a plugin on Namecheap.

Web builders comparison

Both Hostinger and Namecheap offer a website builder. While Hostinger offers its web builder both as an additional feature to pricier plans and as its own subscription, Namecheap’s website builder is linked entirely to hosting.

Hostinger’s website builder is easy to use, has numerous AI tools for content creation and editing, including AI SEO, and over 150 templates. The subscription starts from $2.78/month, but some hosting plans have it as well. You can read our Hostinger web builder review for more information.

Namecheap’s website builder is also straightforward and has over 200 templates. However, it does not have as many features as Hostinger’s.

Hostinger vs Namecheap security: Hostinger overwhelms competition

Regarding security, Hostinger offers far more safety features than Namecheap. While both providers are entirely secure, Hostinger overwhelms the competition with the sheer number and availability of listed features. It’s best to look at it in more detail:

1. SSL certificates. All Hostinger’s hosting plans include an unlimited free SSL. It lasts a lifetime and can protect all of your websites. Meanwhile, Namecheap also includes free SSL certificates in all of its hosting plans, but they’re free for only the first year. They also are limited to 50 websites.
2. Backups. Hostinger conducts weekly or daily automatic backups, depending on your chosen hosting plan. Weekly backups are stored for 7 weeks, while daily ones are stored for 7 days. You can also select on-demand backups. Namecheap also has automatic backups, but only for pricier plans (Stellar Plus or Stellar Business). The backups are conducted twice a week.
3. DDoS protection. Hostinger specifically states that it provides DDoS protection for all of its hosting plans. Namecheap, on the other hand, does not state anywhere that DDoS protection is included. However, it has enough security features to assume it could handle a DDoS attack.
4. Malware and domain protection. Hostinger has a firewall, malware scanner, and free domain privacy protection (WHOIS) in all of its plans. Namecheap, too, has a virus scanner, domain name and privacy protection. So, both providers are equally secure in this regard.

Customer support: both are equally great

Both Namecheap and Hostinger have direct communication and knowledge base customer support options except for a phone line. It took me a couple of minutes to get a response from Namecheap’s live chat customer support and a few minutes for Hostinger’s. Below is a quick summary of all Namecheap and Hostinger customer support options.

	Hostinger	Namecheap
24/7 live chat	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Email	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Phone line	❌ No	❌ No
Ticketing	✅ Yes	✅ Yes
Knowledge base	✅ Yes	✅ Yes

Hostinger’s live chat customer support was professional and helpful despite taking slightly longer to reply. I was provided with tutorials and troubleshooting guides to solve my issues, but the customer support representative also gave helpful expert advice. I would recommend email or ticketing support for more developer-related questions, as live chat is better suited for quick-fix issues.

Namecheap’s representative was quicker to respond and equally helpful. He engaged with me to provide solutions to my problems, resolving the issue in a timely manner. However, if you have more complicated issues, I suggest you write an email or file a ticket. This way, issues like bugs or technical difficulties can be more thoroughly addressed.

Hostinger vs Namecheap: final recommendations

Considering all the features, functionality, speed, price, and customer support, Hostinger wins over Namecheap. However, Namecheap stood its ground, showing that it’s definitely one of the best website hosts on the market. Its affordable price, fast loading times, and helpful customer service stood out to me, but it couldn’t outperform Hostinger’s feature-rich service.

Although Hostinger costs slightly more than Namecheap, it offers its subscribers much more value for money. It also has a better response time, handles a higher volume of stress testing requests, and is more compatible with WordPress. Additionally, I found Hostinger’s control panel easier to use.

Overall, if you seek a more beginner-friendly hosting service that can handle the pressure and offer more for your money, Hostinger is a better option than Namecheap. However, you wouldn’t lose by picking either of these great hosting providers.

Hostinger vs Namecheap FAQs