Understanding the Differences Between Domain and Hosting
You need both a domain and web hosting to have a functioning website. While the domain name is the permanent address of your website on the internet, web hosting is a space where your website files are stored. As these elements are important and work hand-in-hand to create a website, it’s crucial to have an in-depth understanding of them.
What is a domain name?
A domain name is a website’s address on the internet where people can access your website. It’s what internet users type in the URL bar of the browser to visit your website. For example, bigrock.in.
Primarily, domain names have two parts that are separated by a dot. The first is your company/brand name or any word of your choice (like “bigrock” in the above example), which can have any combination of numbers and letters. And the second part is known as domain extension or TLD, for example, .org, .in, .net, .com, and .uk (like .in in the above example). Every domain is unique and there can never be two same domain names.
What is web hosting?
Web hosting is basically where your website files are stored. It is like your website’s home. Let’s understand this with an illustration.
If your domain is your house’s address, then your hosting server is the house. And that is why you need both web hosting as well as a domain name to create a website.
When a user tries to access your website by entering your domain name (your web address) in the browser, the domain name points the user to the website files stored on the web server. The web hosting then makes your website files available for anyone on the internet.
Domain name vs. web hosting – The Differences
Though web hosting and domain names are two different things, both are necessary to create a website and work closely together. Meaning, you cannot build a website without either of them.
The main differences between web hosting and domain name are:
Domain |
Web hosting |
| A domain is an address where internet users can find and access your website. | Web hosting is the service that makes your website accessible on the World Wide Web. |
| It is a name registered in the DNS universally identified by online organizations and web servers. | It’s like renting or buying space online to house your website and serve visitors looking for your website. |
| It represents an IP (Internet Protocol) address for finding a website on the internet. | It ensures that the computer keeps working and the connection stays active all the time. |
How do domain name and web hosting create a website together?
Once you buy your domain name and web hosting, you need to synchronize and point your domain to your web hosting.
To give you a demonstration, we’ll take you through the steps of building a website with BigRock:
- Choose a domain name and check for its availability using BigRock’s domain name registration tool. Finalize the name that suits your business and complete the domain registration process.
- Explore different hosting options. Create an account with BigRock and select a suitable web hosting plan for your website.
- Once you have bought both domain name and web hosting, choose a platform on which you want to build your website. You can either opt for BigRock’s drag-and-drop website builder or popular CMSs like Joomla, WordPress, or Drupal. At this stage, make sure to choose a theme for your website, add plugins, get an SSL certificate, and create different pages for your website (About us, Contact us, Homepage, FAQs, etc.)
- Once you have built and customized your website according to your needs, start uploading files and adding content. When you’re ready and confident of the outcome, go ahead and publish it.
READ: Web Hosting 101: Your Ultimate Guide to Understanding Web Hosting
Can I buy domain and web hosting from the same company?
Yes, absolutely. You can get your domain and hosting from separate agencies, but we recommend buying from the same company. If you do, the setup process becomes simpler, as you won’t have to make any changes to the domain name settings.
BigRock offers both domain and web hosting at an affordable price for small businesses, individuals, and professionals. With every domain purchase, you get ₹5000 worth of free services like DNS management, domain forwarding, domain theft protection, easy-to-use control panels, free email accounts, and multiple mail forwards.
Learn the essentials of getting online
Despite being entirely different, both domain and web hosting are essential elements of website building and provide different functions to help your online presence grow.
We hope this article helped you in understanding the differences between web hosting and domain names and how they go together to power a website.
If you have any questions, you can ask them in the comment section below. We’ll be happy to help.
