Every price shown with its source · independent measurement probes Every price sourced · independent probes Prices last checked: 24 Sep 2026
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Which validation level? Choose with data.

DV, OV, EV and wildcard certificates at yearly prices.

Validation?
5 plans · ranked by 3-year real cost · scores use the balanced profile Jump to list
Which one for whom
OVERALL55 Namecheap · InstantSSL Pro $176.77 · 36-month total Get plan
Budget34 Namecheap · InstantSSL $122.37 · 36-month total Get plan

These picks are pure data, not scores: three-year real cost and flat renewal.

Sort: 3-year real cost
3-year real cost Score Renewal price First-term price
2 providers · 5/28 plans

Prices last checked: 24 Sep 2026 · ranked by 3-year real cost · scores use the balanced profile

LE
Let's Encrypt · DVfree DV certificate · no commission · outside the ranking
free

For blogs, personal and most business sites the free Let's Encrypt is enough; it renews automatically. What justifies paid SSL is OV/EV validation, the warranty and support coverage.

How to set up
2
IONOS · Instant SSL OV First term $22.11/yr · annual
48score
—
36-month total
$1,691,250.00
Warranty
OV
Validation

Validation OV Warranty $1,691,250.00 Certificate authority Sectigo

spec sheet incomplete Renewal price unknown
Details Get plan

We show each provider's single best plan for the chosen sort; the rest sit under the card. Some links here may pay us a commission. It never changes the order.

How we rank
How we rank
  • The default order is the score; the renewal price, not the promo price, is what counts.
  • Each provider shows its single best plan for the chosen order; the rest sit under the card.
  • Payment, partnership or coupons never change the order.
Read the full details →

The decision, from the data
For the long run, the cheapest known renewal is Namecheap PositiveSSL at $1.10/mo.
If only the first term matters, Namecheap PositiveSSL starts at $0.92/mo.
Watch out for Namecheap InstantSSL — its renewal jumps to ×1.2 of the promo price.
Which plan has the lowest renewal price here?
Namecheap PositiveSSL, at $1.10/mo renewal — the promo price is excluded from this answer on purpose.
How much do renewals typically jump in this category?
Across the 28 plans we track, the median renewal is ×1.2 of the first-term price.
How fresh are these prices?
The newest record on this page is 12 days old; every row carries its own date.
Which validation types are available?
The pool has 13 DV, 5 OV and 3 EV certificates; 7 support wildcard. Higher validation levels cost more and take longer to issue.