{"id":1018,"date":"2020-01-14T16:01:07","date_gmt":"2020-01-14T16:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cheapsslsecurity.com\/p\/?p=1018"},"modified":"2021-05-24T11:00:14","modified_gmt":"2021-05-24T11:00:14","slug":"paid-vs-free-wildcard-ssl-which-certificate-is-best-for-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cheapsslsecurity.com\/p\/paid-vs-free-wildcard-ssl-which-certificate-is-best-for-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Paid Wildcard SSL vs Free Wildcard SSL: Which Certificate Is Best for You?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here\u2019s a comparison of paid and free wildcard SSL certificates to help you make an informed decision<\/h2>\n

\u201cWhy should I pay for an SSL certificate<\/a> if it\u2019s available for free?\u201d and \u201cIf there are free wildcard SSL certificates, then why are some people buying paid ones?\u201d If these two questions had popped into your head, you\u2019re not alone. Many people are looking for free SSL certificates, including free wildcard SSL certificates. But in the debate about paid vs free wildcard certificates<\/a>, which is the better option for your business?<\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s get started.<\/p>\n

Free Wildcard SSL Certificates: What Are They?<\/h2>\n

Both paid and free wildcard SSL certificates aim to achieve the same thing \u2014 secure a main domain and all of its single-level subdomains. This is helpful as you might have noticed that more and more websites are now migrating to HTTPS. In other words, more website owners are installing SSL\/TLS certificates on their websites. There are many reasons for this shift, but it\u2019s mainly due to rising level of user awareness and penalties imposed by browsers on non-HTTPS websites.<\/p>\n

The major web browsers, industry research experts, and users alike are pushing for an internet where every piece of data is encrypted. Essentially, they\u2019re pushing for \u201cHTTPS Everywhere.\u201d As a part of this campaign, groups have established free SSL platforms such as Let\u2019s Encrypt, which is a free and open certificate authority. These services have made SSL certificates free and accessible to everyone \u2014 which may sound great but isn\u2019t necessarily a great thing in all aspects.<\/p>\n

SSL certificates issued by commercial and free CAs facilitate the same type of encryption. However, free wildcard SSL certificates don\u2019t undergo the rigorous verification processes or offer many of the useful features that paid SSL certificates do.<\/p>\n

Free vs. Paid Wildcard SSL Certificates<\/h2>\n

If free wildcard SSL certificates were identical to commercial ones, no one would be using paid SSL certificates. However, that\u2019s not the case. A paid SSL certificate, especially a wildcard, holds many significant advantages over free SSL certs. Let\u2019s go through them one by one.<\/p>\n

What They Cover<\/h3>\n

Here is where paid and free wildcard certificates are the same: Both types of SSL certificates cover your primary domain and an unlimited number of single-level subdomains. In other words, if you have a website named yourwebsitename.com, then a wildcard SSL certificate will enable you to secure that as well as subdomains such as:<\/p>\n