Difference between web hosting and Domain Name

As it is in our contemporary world not all users or business owners are familiar with the concept of website hosting and domain name.  In fact, a lot of users and business owners do not understand the difference between Website Hosting and Domain Name. A lot of people think that they do the same thing.

Most people who are also learning how to build websites or website development for the first time also do not understand that domain name and web hosting are two separate things.

What we will attempt to do here is to explain the difference between a domain name and web hosting.

WHAT IS A DOMAIN NAME?

A domain name is the address of a website that people type into their web browser to access the website. For example, the domain name of Google is “google.com”. Domain names are registered with domain name registrars and must be unique.

what this means is that if we liken your website to a house then your domain name can be likened to or called the address.

Bear in mind that your address can actually be a physical address without any physical structure on it yet. The same thing applies to domains as you can have a domain name with nothing on it until web hosting is done.

Let us expatiate further

First, we need to understand what makes up the internet. The internet is usually a giant network of computers connected to each other with the aid of cables.

To make it easy to uniquely identify each computer they are usually assigned a series of numbers known as IP addresses.

Now what do we mean by IP address?

This is usually a combination of numbers separated by dots. It takes the form 66.249.66.1

Now these numbers are pretty easy for computers to remember but the same is not the case with human beings who will not be able to remember these numbers to connect their websites to the internet. so to make it easier for humans to remember domain names were invented.

Domain names comprise the use of words which makes it easy to remember website addresses without having to memorize a string of numbers.

So visiting a website on the internet becomes easier as all you need to do is to type the domain name.

Domain names and how do they work – another topic

how to choose the best domain name – another topic

What is web hosting or Website Hosting?

Web hosting, on the other hand, is a service that allows a website to be accessible on the Internet. Web hosting providers host website files on their servers, making them available for users to access via the website's domain name.

Webhosting can be referred to as the actual house or building structure at your house address. The house contains you and everything you own.

you can also look at web hosting as the place where all your website files reside that is your scripts, your images, etc . Let us just call it the actual home of your website.

It is worth noting that all websites on the internet need a place to live – web hosting

So, the way this works is that when someone enters the domain name of your company website in a browser the domain name usually gets interpreted into the IP address of your web hosting company's computer.

The web hosting company or your web host usually has a computer known as a hosting server that contains your website's files and it sends those files to the users' browser whenever it is called for.

web hosting companies specialize in storing and serving websites.

There are different kinds of hosting plans offered by web hosting companies to their customers.

These include shared hosting, vps hosting, managed word press hosting cloud hosting e-commerce hosting, and more

HOW DOMAN NAMES AND WEB HOSTING ARE RELATED

The concept of having a domain name and also having web hosting are two different services that are related because both of them work together to ensure that you have a fully functional website.

A domain name is just like an address book that is updated regularly. Behind each domain name is an address of the web hosting service that stores the files of your websites.

so just note that people will not be able to find you without a domain name and without web hosting you will not be able to build your website.

WHAT IS REQUIRED TO BUILD A WEBSITE – DOMAIN NAME OR WEBSITE HOSTING

You will require a domain name and a web hosting account in order to create a website.

When you purchase a domain name on your own, you can only use it for a limited time. (usually one year).

To store the files for your website, you need web hosting. You must alter the settings for your domain name to point to your web hosting company once you have hosting.

Additionally, you can purchase both hosting and a domain from the same business. Web hosting typically costs $7.99 per month, while domain names typically cost $14.99 per year.

This may seem overwhelming if this is your first website.

Thankfully, Bluehost, a hosting company that WordPress officially recommends, has decided to provide our users a free domain AND UP TO 70% OFF.

You can begin developing your website after purchasing hosting and registering your domain name. See our tutorial on creating a WordPress website for detailed step-by-step instructions.

DO WE NEED TO BUY THEM TOGETHER OR SEPARATELY

Web hosting and domain names can be bought from two different website hosting companies. However, in such a scenario, you'll need to update the DNS settings on your domain name to point it toward your web hosting provider.

On the other hand, you won't need to modify domain name settings if you buy your domain name and web hosting from the same business or from the same web hosting company.

Additionally, using the same dashboard to manage and renew both subscriptions is significantly simpler.

You can purchase individual domain names from reputable domain registrars.

CAN A DOMAIN NAME BE MOVED TO A DIFFERENT COMPANY

Yes, a domain name can be moved to a different company. When you register a domain name, you typically acquire the ability to use and transfer it anywhere you like.
Consider the following scenario: You acquired your domain name from Domain.com and your website hosting from Bluehost. To make managing and renewing your domain name simpler, you now want to transfer it to Bluehost. That is very simple to do. You can transfer your domain name by following the thorough, step-by-step procedures provided by both companies.
We advise you to start the transfer at least 45 days before renewing your domain name. Every time a transfer is started, ICANN, the global body in charge of domain names, requires a one-year renewal. By transferring your domain name before it is due for renewal you could lose that year's renewal fees.