Web hosting and domain names: what do they actually cost?

In Finland, a domain name costs around 15–30 euros a year and web hosting 80–350 euros a year. However, the advertised monthly price is almost always the price for the first billing period, and renewals typically cost twice as much. This article explains what both services involve, what you should look for in a web hosting provider, and when the cheapest option is sufficient.

Domain name: consisting of two parts

The price of a Finnish .fidomain name consists of two parts, and only one of them is negotiable.

Part	For whom	Price
Traficom fee	For public authorities	€12 per year (from 1 January 2026; previously €9)
The agent’s commission	For service providers	It varies — that’s where the difference lies

Traficom manages .fidomain names but does not sell them directly to you: a domain name is always registered via a domain name registrar. Therefore .fia domain name cannot, in practice, cost less than twelve euros a year, even if a promotional price suggests otherwise.

There are two things you should check when choosing a provider, and neither of them is the price:

• Are you listed as the domain holder? Not the creator, not the agency, but your company. This is the most important line in the whole article: if the holder is someone else, the domain name isn’t yours.
• Can you manage it yourself? Transferring your account to another provider requires your login details. If you cannot obtain them, the transfer will always require someone else’s consent.

Web hosting: the promotional price is not the actual price

This is the most common pricing method in the industry, and it’s no secret — it’s stated on the providers’ own websites. For example, Louhi states in its price list that the promotion is ‘50% off for the first billing period’. The standard prices thereafter are:

Package	Campaign	Standard price	Disk space
Mini	€3.25 per month	€6.50 per month	1 GB
Basic	€6.25 per month	€12.50 per month	10 GB
Boundless	€9.25 per month	€18.50 per month	20 GB
Power	€14.75 per month	€29.50 per month	20 GB SSD

All prices are VAT-free. The figures are taken from Louhe’s own price list, checked on 4 September 2026 — other suppliers have the same structure, although the figures differ.

So compare renewal prices, not initial prices. Comparing prices based on the first year’s rate is, in practice, like comparing random numbers, as the discount percentages differ from one another.

What to look for in a web hosting provider

Disk space is a poor indicator — a standard business website takes up less than a gigabyte. These factors are more important:

• Daily backups and restoration. Do also ask whether restoration is charged for separately. Some providers do charge for it.
• The latest version of PHP. Older versions of PHP are slow and pose a security risk. Check which version is available.
• SSL certificate included in the price. It’s almost always included these days, but do check — without it, the browser will warn visitors.
• Number and size of email inboxes. This is what runs out first, not disk space.
• Server location. A server located in Finland or the surrounding region is faster for Finnish visitors, and speed is a measured ranking factor.

Email is that hidden cost

Web hosting email is sufficient for one or two addresses. When more inboxes are needed, or when email needs to work on a mobile, in a calendar or within a team, many people switch to a separate service — and that costs per user per month, typically more than the web hosting package itself.

This isn’t a mistake but a choice, but it’s worth making a conscious decision rather than just noticing it on the bill. For a one-person business, the web host’s own email service is almost always sufficient.

How much does the whole package cost per year?

Method	Per year	Who does the work?
Cheapest web hosting + domain name	around €100	You
Mid-range web hosting + domain name	around €170	You
Managed by us, €39 per month	468 €	We

Let’s put it plainly, as the reader will work it out anyway: cheap web hosting is cheaper in euros. The difference isn’t in the server, but in who does the work.

Our monthly fee of €39 includes the server, domain name, email accounts, daily backups, SSL, WordPress and theme updates, as well as one hour of content updates per month. If you do these things yourself, the cheaper option is the right one. If you don’t do them at all, the cheaper option ends up being more expensive — an unupdated website is where 91 per cent of vulnerabilities are found.

In demand

Should you go for .fi or .com?

For a company operating in Finland .fi. It immediately tells visitors that this is a Finnish business, and that it is well-established in Finland. Only .com one alongside the other only if you sell abroad. Buying both ‘just to be on the safe side’ is cheap but rarely necessary — and if you do, redirect one to the other rather than maintaining two separate websites.

What happens if you forget to renew your domain name?

The website and email accounts will stop working. The domain name won’t immediately become available for others to purchase, but restoring it requires action and may incur a fee. Set up automatic renewal and ensure that the billing email address is one you actually check — many people lose their domain because the renewal reminder was sent to an old address that no longer exists.

Can I change my web hosting provider later on?

Oh, and it’s a routine job. The WordPress site is transferred as files and a database. There are two things you should take care of: transfer your emails before the old account is closed, and carry out the switchover so that both services are up and running at the same time for a short while. The switchover is why you need to have the admin credentials.

Is the cheapest package enough for WordPress?

Technically speaking, yes — a standard business website fits within a gigabyte. With the cheapest packages, the limiting factor is usually something else: a traffic cap, the number of email inboxes, or the complete lack of backups. It is this last point that makes the cheapest option unwise if the website is important to your business.