EV SSL vs SSL (Standard SSL) Certificate — Which Is Right for My Website?

We get asked a lot about extended validation (EV) SSL certificates and whether they’re right for most websites. It’s the whole EV SSL vs SSL (meaning standard SSL certificates) debate. And, historically, if you were transacted in any kind of sensitive information, the answer had been “yes, EV is absolutely worth it for the visual indicator — your organization’s name showcased in browsers’ address bars – alone!”

Well, full disclosure: The security indicator is all but gone. Chrome and Firefox have both removed it, and Apple stopped supporting it a while ago. Only Internet Explorer (IE) still shows the EV name bar.

Choosing a Certificate: What’s the Value of an EV SSL vs Standard SSL

Well, for larger enterprise companies, EV SSL gives you more control over issuance for your domains. It also provides verified organization information — provided the customer knows where to look. Those are both good things, even if the green address bar has gone the way of the Dodo.

What Are the Advantages of a Standard SSL Certificate?

The benefits of domain validation (DV) SSL certificates include speed of issuance, price, and security. Here’s the thing — all SSL certificates, regardless of validation level, provide the exact same level of security. In fact, the certificate isn’t even really providing the security — it just facilitates it — the client and server’s capabilities determine the actual strength of the encryption being employed. So, you don’t sacrifice anything by going with a DV certificate.

You’ll also get the exact same indicators with DV as with any other kind of SSL certificate now. Really, the only difference is validation. DV SSL, which is basically the standard now, requires a simple domain control check before issuance, meaning it can be issued near-instantly. It can also be automated to cycle out at set intervals.

What Are the Disadvantages of EV?

Price. Time to issuance. Difficulty with automation. Extended validation certificates are — by virtue of the validation required — more expensive than their DV counterparts. And said validation can add time to issuance, sometimes taking as much as three days. It’s also harder to automate using automated certificate management environment (ACME) or other certificate management solutions owing to the price and validation structure.

What’s Right for Your Website: Extended Validation SSL Certificate vs. Standard SSL Certificate

The answer to this question depends entirely on you and your goals. If you’re a small company or are most interested in value, it’s tough to argue with standard DV SSL certificates. They’re cheap, quickly issued, and still provide strong security. Bigger companies may still want to spring for EV, though, given the identity it asserts and the control it provides.