Register.com vs 123-reg
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Register.com and 123-reg.
Quick Verdict
2.4/5
Register.com
0 reviews
3.0/5
123-reg
0 reviews
123-reg is rated higher (3.0 vs 2.4). Register.com registers domains and provides hosting, email, and website builders for small businesses and individuals establishing their online presence. 123-reg registers .uk and international domains with integrated hosting options. Designed for UK small businesses and individuals seeking bundled services at competitive introductory prices.
Register.com Domain registration with hosting and website building tools | 123-reg UK domain registrar with hosting bundles — cheap first year, materially higher renewals | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Rating | 2.4 (0 reviews) | 3.0 (0 reviews)✓ |
| Pricing model | paid | paid |
| Starting price | From $5/mo | From $0.01/mo✓ |
| Best for | Existing customers with legacy domain portfolios here and small businesses who prioritize phone support and single-vendor bundling over renewal economics. | UK small businesses and individuals registering .co.uk/.uk names who want domains, email, and hosting bundled under one control panel and are comfortable budgeting at renewal prices. |
| Features | ||
| IPv6 | ||
| DDoS protection | ✓ | |
| Automated backups | ✓ | |
| Snapshots | ||
| Managed option | ||
| Bare metal | ||
| GPU available | ||
| S3-compatible | ||
| Hourly billing | ||
| Free tier | ||
| Tags | ||
| Tags | — | eu datacenter |
| Visit Register.com → | Visit 123-reg → | |
Register.com
Pros
- + Three decades in domain registration — founded 1994, 2 million+ domains under management by its own count
- + One-account bundling of domains, DNS, email, SSL, hosting and a website builder for non-technical owners
- + Phone-based support channel for buyers who prefer calling over self-service
- + Standard registrar mechanics (auto-renew, transfer lock, auth codes, Advanced DNS) are documented and self-serve
- + Reseller/partner program exists for agencies managing customer portfolios ($249.99 account deposit)
Cons
- - Renewals run far above promo rates — third-party checks put .com renewals near $35/yr, the top of the market
- - WHOIS privacy is a paid add-on (~$8.99-9.99/yr) where mainstream registrars include it free
- - Steady-state pricing is hidden behind add-to-cart flows; no public renewal matrix
- - Complaint record is a concern — 2026 comparisons cite a BBB D- rating, billing disputes and transfer friction
- - Advanced DNS (DNSSEC, RBAC/audit) documentation and portfolio tooling lag specialist registrars
123-reg
Pros
- + Established UK registrar since 2000 with 400+ extensions and consolidated domain, email, and hosting billing
- + Transparent first-year and renewal prices published together on 123-reg's own pages
- + Free .co.uk/.uk transfers in and free Nominet WHOIS privacy on UK domains
- + cPanel on hosting, 99.9% uptime guarantee, and DDoS protection with 24/7 monitoring on VPS
- + Bundles (domain + email + hosting + SSL) suit non-technical UK small businesses
Cons
- - Renewals jump sharply — .co.uk from £3.99 to £12.99/year, Economy hosting from £1.99/mo to £251.64 per 3-year term
- - WHOIS privacy for gTLDs costs extra (around £4.99/domain/year), compounding portfolio costs
- - UK-hours-only support with no published response-time SLA; phone support restricted to the UK
- - Backup advertising says daily; terms say files weekly and databases daily
- - April 2016 mass site-deletion incident across 67 servers remains on the reliability record
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