$15 first year hosting, $130 renewal year. Is this normal?

25 replies
Imagine this scenario...

You pay $15 for a year of hosting and then you find out that your credit card is automatically billed for $120.40 a year later!


I understand that most web hosting companies do this.

But is this normal for basic shared hosting?
#$130 #$15 #hosting #normal #renewal #year
  • Profile picture of the author Paleochora
    It depends what the sales page says. Perhaps you had some kind of introductory offer or something.

    $120 a year is still pretty cheap, though.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10973864].message }}
  • {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10973878].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ChrisBa
    Sounds like the $15 is a trial, and the rebill is $120..
    $15 for a year of hosting is very cheap..
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10973899].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author newbim
    IPage did that to me last year. Except that was over $200. They were great, and sorted the issue there and then, but not a great customer experience.
    Signature
    If what I said helps, let me know, throw me a 'thanks'.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10973954].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Brent Stangel
    A lot of hosting companies display their discounted price with an asterisk.

    $6.99* per month -

    *Discounts on 1, 2 and 3 Year Plans!
    You won't really pay $6.99 unless you buy three years in advance.

    You have to pay attention to what you are agreeing to.
    Signature
    Get Off The Warrior Forum Now & Don't Come Back If You Want To Succeed!
    All The Real Marketers Are Gone. There's Nothing Left But Weak, Sniveling Wanna-Bees!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10973978].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author preciousscic
      Originally Posted by Brent Stangel View Post

      A lot of hosting companies display their discounted price with an asterisk.



      You won't really pay $6.99 unless you buy three years in advance.

      You have to pay attention to what you are agreeing to.
      I agree, you definitely need to read the small print.

      I signed up to the iPage intro offer $1.99/month, and could only afford one year at the time, so before I knew it the 1 year was almost over and I received an email saying my renewal price would be almost $200.

      I ended up speaking to the support team before the bill date and luckily they were able to offer me a deal I could afford.

      I was lucky enough to get this deal, but it might not always be the case, so I encourage people to take a look at the fine print when there's an offer on something like hosting.


      All the best
      Steph
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974059].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author li0n1
    I think The most web hosting companies do this you need to contact hosting companie
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974088].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author spartacusmx
    I highly recommend mochahost.com, I started with purely hosting with a very bad service, then I changed to ipage which is very cheap to start but the renewal price is too high, and finally found mocha host.

    When you select a hosting service you need to review the quantity of websites that you are allowed to host, the disk space, if they have Cpanel and the monhtly traffic, this company have a great customer support and they have many affordable packages, I recommend the linux business package for 3 years (2.45USD per month, around 88 usd per 3 years) and the best part is that if you buy the 3 years package you will have a lifetime discount (2.45 per month).

    Thanks
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974187].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author spartacusmx
    It's the same issue with the domain registrars, many times the discounted price is very cheap, but you need to review first the renewal price, don't forget that you can transfer to domain to another registrar to avoid the renewal price of your current company, in this case the best option is namecheap.com, be careful with godaddy and please don't buy the domain name with your hosting company, normally they resell this service at a higher price. If you are starting, buy your domain name first with namecheap and then create your account with the hosting company that you prefer.

    Good Luck!
    Have a Great Year!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974190].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Nick Rod Evans
    I think this situation is normal. What is hosing's name?
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974217].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author farrow26
    Hello,

    Most of the web hosting companies offer huge discount on 1st year to get customers. After that they will be charged the actual cost of their selected package. you can see actual cost before buying it from them. Make sure you note it when you buy next time.

    Thank you.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974285].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author ileadpros ENT
    Banned
    [DELETED]
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974340].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Omarkenawy
    It`s very normal for me, personally I`m using namechep as my web hosting for my websites and I paid $9 for the first year and then be paid $39 yearly automatically. Compared to other web hosting providers like Host gator or Blue host, Name cheap is the cheapest. The point here is how to find a good fit web hosting provider for your specific needs with cheaper price for the instant moment and years to come.

    All my best wishes
    -Omar
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974416].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
    It's not "normal" for it to be that high of a markup the second year, unless you signed up with FatCow or iPage. In those cases, it is completely normal.
    Signature

    For SEO news, discussions, tactics, and more.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974503].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author unlimitedoptions
    Hi: That sounds like an introductory offer to get you excited about the low price. You should be able to cancel the next year's subscription (unless the fine print says otherwise). If they are a reputable company then they will allow you to cancel. Search for larger more well know companies. Bluehost, GoDaddy, and several others come to mind. Do a google search for best webhosting companies and you will get a ton of recommendations.

    Good luck,

    Dan
    Signature
    Exactly What I am Doing to Easily Build Consistent Recurring Income.
    WATCH FREE VIDEO HERE
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974596].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author hynds
    Almost hosting providers offer huge discount on the first year, sometime just only for $1/month or 90% off (only $2 - $3/month), however after the 1st year, they change back to the normal price. So before buying you need to read carefully about their price policies and decide which package you want to buy.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974628].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author anish0
    yes if your want good and stable hosting go for hostblast.net
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974629].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    It's not "normal" for it to be that high of a markup the second year, unless you signed up with FatCow or iPage. In those cases, it is completely normal.
    I don't agree - the $15 for a YEAR was obviously a loss leader for the company - $120 for a second year would equal a cost of less than $6 per MONTH over the two year period.

    I have no doubt that disclaimer was clearly listed when the OP signed on for the super cheap hosting....it's often done that way on these great "deals". The title says $130 renewal - but the post says $120.

    I can't believe anyone would expect decent shared hosting on an ongoing basis for $15/yr. That's crazy cheap.
    Signature
    Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
    ***
    Please do not 'release balloons' for celebrations. The balloons and trailing ribbons entangle birds and kill wildlife and livestock that think the balloons are food.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974648].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author MikeFriedman
      Originally Posted by Kay King View Post

      I don't agree - the $15 for a YEAR was obviously a loss leader for the company - $120 for a second year would equal a cost of less than $6 per MONTH over the two year period.

      I have no doubt that disclaimer was clearly listed when the OP signed on for the super cheap hosting....it's often done that way on these great "deals". The title says $130 renewal - but the post says $120.

      I can't believe anyone would expect decent shared hosting on an ongoing basis for $15/yr. That's crazy cheap.
      $120 a year is $10 a month. For shared hosting, that is silly. There are plenty of quality hosts at around half that price.

      And usually if you are going to pay for a full year or two upfront, hosts offer a discount on the pricing.
      Signature

      For SEO news, discussions, tactics, and more.
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10976285].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author phenomix
    This is common practice and the hosting providers put this into their fine print which you agree to when purchasing.

    The rebill rate may seem high, but as Kay King mentioned above, the second year equals a lower cost over the two year period. It's just their way of marketing to entice you in.

    Consider yourself lucky that it was only $130, some other hosting companies charge a lot more than that.

    NameCheap offers one of the best deals around, about $20 for the first year of domain registration and hosting with about a $40 renewal fee for every year after.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10974974].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author hammadsaeed
    There are many hosting companies which are providing hosting at low rates..

    GoDaddy offers 12$/yr for domain+hosting, after 1 year they charge almost $4/mo ...
    Signature
    Virtual Assistant - Available for any administrative tasks! -- Inbox me :-)

    Do or Die!!! That's Life!!!
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10975214].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author Kay King
    Mike - I was averaging the two years....one that was WAY below the norm and one that was a bit higher than necessary.

    My point is if you go for a super cheap "great deal" - read the terms you are signing up to. This isn't hidden or even 'fine print' - the "rebill" statement is almost always a 2-3 line statement where you are filling out info. People just don't take it seriously.

    I maintain one year at $1.25 a month and a second year at $10 month - amounts to $5.63/mo for a 24 month period. Now - the THIRD year would be a different story.

    if you are going to pay for a full year or two upfront, hosts offer a discount on the pricing.
    You don't think the first at $15 is pretty big discount?
    Signature
    Saving one dog will not change the world - but the world changes forever for that one dog
    ***
    Please do not 'release balloons' for celebrations. The balloons and trailing ribbons entangle birds and kill wildlife and livestock that think the balloons are food.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10976320].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author RogozRazvan
    Originally Posted by CityCowboy View Post

    Imagine this scenario...

    You pay $15 for a year of hosting and then you find out that your credit card is automatically billed for $120.40 a year later!


    I understand that most web hosting companies do this.

    But is this normal for basic shared hosting?
    Yes, it is normal.

    Before this, the hosting was ranging from $6 to $12 per month. Now there is a loss leader on the front-end and then a bigger fee at renewal. It is similar to how mobile (phone) subscriptions work.

    However, you know that you can just get a new introductory package, move all the files via FTP and then cancel the old one right? It is exploiting the system but it works.

    Honestly, when they've sent me the bill for $90 after I've paid like $9 to get started, I've just got a new hosting package. Since all I host is a small blog, I had no SEO loss and the transfer effort was minimal. Eventually they'll close this loophole (limiting the introductory price a single time) but for now ...
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10977159].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author YourBizAid
    Banned
    You failed to read the fine print
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[10977622].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author mohsinfancy
    Originally Posted by CityCowboy View Post

    Imagine this scenario...

    You pay $15 for a year of hosting and then you find out that your credit card is automatically billed for $120.40 a year later!


    I understand that most web hosting companies do this.

    But is this normal for basic shared hosting?
    This is normal if you are getting it from the big brand out there... That how they attract small business to signup for their services. once you fall into the trap they will charge you more after the first year and for all the additional service you get from them.

    Most of the time you buy the plans which are not even needed for your website hosting needs.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11001927].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author mdallen
    Introductory prices and free trials have all have the same fine print. Always be ware of the deal you are making. Sometimes if you cancel early you obligate yourself to the non introductory price because you did not fulfill your commitment. Always be careful with recurring subscriptions.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[11001945].message }}

Trending Topics