Home » Porkbun Review: Is It A Reliable Domain Registrar?

Porkbun Review: Is It A Reliable Domain Registrar?

Sezmi

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7.5 Out Of 10

What is Porkbun?

Porkbun, a ICANN-accredited domain registrar, is based in Portland, Oregon. Porkbun offers domain names as well as hosting products and SSL certificates. Their goal is to make domain registration simple, fun, and affordable.

Porkbun is one small domain registrar with a loyal but smaller following than big brands such as Namecheap and GoDaddy.

Is Porkbun still able to live up to its “amazingly awesome” mission? They were recently tested. We have a full PorkBun review, including pros and cons as well as alternatives.

Porkbun Pricing

Get your domain name with Porkbun

Porkbun Alternatives

There are many other options than Porkbun. Namecheap is a popular alternative to Porkbun. While Porkbun is more focused on domain names, Namecheap offers more features than that domain registration. Both services are primarily known as domain registrars.

Google Domains may be the best option if you’re looking for a domain registrar.

Namecheap Review

Rating

9.0/10

No cost DNS

Yes

No cost domain privacy

Yes

Promotion

Get A .COM For $0.98!

GoDaddy Review

Rating

8.0/10

No cost DNS

Yes

No cost domain privacy

No

Promotion

Only $4.99

Google Domains Review

Rating

8.5/10

No cost DNS

Yes

No cost domain privacy

Yes

Promotion

20% Off Promo 

Search for the Best Domain Registrars

Porkbun Pros

Here are some of my findings about Porkbun’s advantages over direct competitors in domain registration.

Straightforward Search + Bulk search Process

Porkbun delivers on its promise to deliver a pleasant experience, especially with its domain search functionality.

Their interface is simple, clean, and easy to use. Their branding flair, such as the Oink! Their functionality and usability don’t suffer, which is an excellent thing.

It is also very easy to search for multiple domains in bulk. This is useful if you are looking for many domains. You can search for as many as 1000 domains simultaneously and add them to your shopping cart.

Although Porkbun offers complementary products such as website builders and web hosting, more information will follow, their design does not include upsells, cross-sells or visual clutter. The main action of searching for and registering a domain is completed quickly and easily.

Pricing (Transparency, Value)

Nothing is more frustrating than having to search for pricing information at a domain registrar. Porkbun’s pricing is transparent 100% of the time. The domain page contains a comprehensive list of prices for all available top-level domains (TLDs). It even breaks it down into renewal, transfer, and registration pricing.

There are no surprises, add-ons or hidden fees. Porkbun’s transparency and clarity is refreshing in a market where pricing policies are often more complicated than website owners might like.

All domains are eligible for free WHOIS privacy protection. All domains are eligible for a free SSL certificate from Let’s Encrypt.

In terms of value , Porkbun is also a strong competitor to other domain registrars. Their domains tend to be cheaper than other TLDs and their renewals are also less expensive than many providers.

A variety of Top Level Domains

ICANN now allows more TLDs beyond generic.com/.net/.org. Website owners need to ensure their domain registrars have all the variants they require, especially if they’re bulk buyers.

Porkbun has a wide range of domain extensions and TLD options. These include domain extensions that are specific to a country or a category, such as technology, real estate, or international use. They have over 440 domains available as of 2020. This means that you can find the unique domain you’ve always wanted.

Upsells

Although annoying and sometimes even harmful, upsells don’t have to be inherently bad. Many domain registrars make the error of trying to sell customers via direct sales tactics, and they end up becoming annoying.

Porkbun isn’t one of these domain registrars. Porkbun is a small group that cares about domain buying and delivery.

They do not offer any complementary products, such as web hosting and website builders.

These can be added from the main navigation, which is accessible from the homepage or from your account. However, you will not be bombarded by pop-ups nor forced to navigate through upsells when trying to purchase a domain.

Easy Domain Management

Porkbun’s domain management interface is another great feature. You will be amazed at how easy their domain management interface works.

The control panel is simple and doesn’t need any fancy features. That’s okay. They are not necessary. Even if you don’t have domain management experience, the interface is simple to use.

This allows you to find everything you need and lets you add products from one convenient location. You can add URL forwarding and email forwarding quickly. You can also renew your domain quickly if you just need it. It’s all in one.

Complementary Products

Remember that a domain does not mean a website. It’s not email or any other service. It is simply your email online. It allows people to locate your property by telling browsers/email/etc which direction to go to obtain whatever they need (website files and emails, images, data, etc).

Setup a Website You will need to have a Hosting Plan or a Website Builder/ Ecommerce Provider which provides hosting.

Porkbun offers a complete package with complementary products. Porkbun allows you to bundle domain, web builder, hosting and email, all within one platform.

While I prefer to keep my domains and hosting separate for added control and reliability, many website owners prefer them to be bundled together for ease of use.

We also liked Porkbun’s transparency regarding how they work. This note is on the shared hosting plans.

This disclaimer is applicable to all web hosts providers (even the best) because you are “sharing” a hosting environment. But not many people call it that explicitly. It is refreshing to see Porkbun so open, even though this product is not their main product.

Porkbun Cons

You can find a lot of Porkbun review online. Many are either negative or positive. I attempt to find and balance the real disadvantages of a company…and to whom those disadvantages might apply. Everyone has different needs & goals. As a customer, your goal is to understand these needs and find a company that meets them. These are some of Porkbun’s downfalls.

Inadequate Onboarding

Porkbun is an excellent domain registrar and offers a great domain transfer services.

We couldn’t find anything that would be considered a solid “con” for the product. Their onboarding was the one thing that we thought stood out as something that could have been better.

Software can sometimes leave you wondering, “What’s next?” Porkbun does not provide that guidance.

Porkbun won’t give you any advice if you don’t have experience with domain registration or management.

Their knowledge base covers all aspects of domain connections. You can also contact them via live chat or phone for great customer service. However, you will need to search for the information on your own.

This may not matter if you have domain management experience. Porkbun is a good choice if you want a step-by, detailed process. You still need to understand email forwarding, URL redirecting , email host, hosting and other domains.

Deep Discounting & Bundling

Porkbun’s “consistently low” pricing is not reflected in their ability to offer deep discounts at purchase like GoDaddy and other large registrars. Porkbun is not a good choice for those who want to bulk buy domains or grab 99c domains “just in case”.

They are also unable to compete with hosting companies and website builders, who often offer a free domain along with a subscription.

Porkbun has to explain why your domain should be kept separate from your preferred web builder or hosting. Because I have many domains, I prefer to keep them separate. I also like the ability to migrate my site quickly if needed. This approach is not practical for single domain owners who want the simplicity and convenience of a free domain from either a good web hosting company, or website building service.

Conclusion

If you are:

• You want a simple process for buying domains
• You don’t need to be guided on how to set-up / manage your domain. Or, you can do it yourself using an intuitive platform
• You can save on domain renewals
• You are looking for complementary products that you can tailor to your needs?

But, if you are…

• Have no experience getting online
• You need to know how to set up and manage your domain.
• You want to keep your website/hosting separate from your domain?

There are many better options available (mainly for pricing and onboarding). I personally use Namecheap.

Finally, I’ve compiled a list of the top domain registrars so you can find one that suits your needs.