Buying hosting and a domain as two separate purchases adds an extra cost to launching a website, right at the point when most people are trying to keep things simple.
A few Kenyan hosting companies get around this by bundling a domain with selected hosting plans.
You pay for the hosting, and an eligible domain comes with it, no separate registration charge tacked on top.
Worth clarifying upfront: free domain doesn’t mean every extension is free.
One provider might include .co.ke. Another might offer .com. Some give you a short list to pick from.
The free domain also usually applies only to annual or longer billing periods, and it typically covers just the first year of registration, not every renewal after that.
Miss that detail, and a free domain can end up costing more than expected the moment the second year rolls around.
This article compares five Kenyan providers that currently bundle a domain with hosting.
/iFor each one, we look at the hosting price, which extensions actually qualify, what resources come with the plan, and the conditions attached to the free domain.
Hosting With a Free Domain in Kenya: Quick Comparison
| Provider | Hosting From | Free Domain Extensions | Plan Required | Free For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Truehost Kenya | KSh 188/mo (triennial) | .cloud, .top, .buzz, .xyz, .shop; higher plans add .co.ke and .com | Annual hosting plan | First year |
| HostPinnacle | KSh 4,200/year excl. VAT | .co.ke, .com, .org | Starter and up | First year (life on Shujaa plan) |
| Webhost Kenya | KSh 2,900/year | Confirm exact extension at signup | Gold and up | First year |
| Hostraha | KSh 4,999/year | Confirm exact extension at signup | Business and up | First year |
| HostGuru | KES 3,588/year (promo) | .co.ke | Qualifying annual plans | First year |
Prices shift often in this market, so treat these as a starting point and confirm current figures before you buy.
1) Truehost Kenya

Truehost gives customers several free-domain options rather than limiting the offer to a single extension.
Which one you can claim depends on the hosting package you buy.
The Starter plan runs from around KSh 188 per month on triennial billing, roughly KSh 6,768 a year, and it qualifies for a free .cloud, .top, .buzz, .xyz, or .shop domain.
Step up to Pro, and .co.ke joins that list.
Move to Unlimited, and .com becomes eligible too, alongside everything the lower tiers offer.
In every case, the domain is free for the first year, and the plan needs to be paid on an annual or longer cycle to qualify.
Starter includes 30 GB of SSD storage and room for up to 10 websites. Pro extends that to 50 GB and 30 websites. Unlimited removes the caps entirely.
All three come with unlimited bandwidth, unlimited email accounts, cPanel, free automated SSL, and free website migration from whichever host you’re currently on.
The practical difference between the tiers is worth thinking through.
A Kenyan business serving local customers might lean toward .co.ke for the local trust it signals.
Someone targeting an international audience would specifically want the Unlimited package, since that’s the tier where .com becomes part of the deal.
Domain renewal after the free first year starts from around KSh 1,500 for .co.ke, so it’s worth budgeting for that ahead of time.
It’s also worth noting that Truehost’s own hosting renewal pricing doesn’t typically double the way some competitors’ plans do, so the ongoing cost after year one tends to stay close to what you paid at signup.
2) HostPinnacle

HostPinnacle’s Starter Package is priced at KSh 4,200 per year, excluding VAT, working out to roughly KSh 350 a month. It comes with a complimentary .co.ke, .com, or .org domain.
The plan includes 35 GB of NVMe SSD storage, unlimited websites, unlimited bandwidth, cPanel with Softaculous for one-click installs, and free SSL.
NVMe storage runs noticeably faster than standard SSD, useful for anyone running a WordPress site with a handful of plugins active.
The free domain covers the first year of registration; renewal on the hosting itself climbs to around KSh 5,999 per year after that.
So it’s worth factoring that jump into the real first-year-versus-ongoing cost.
Worth a separate mention: HostPinnacle also runs a Shujaa .ke Hosting plan that includes a free .co.ke, .sc.ke, .ac.ke, or .or.ke domain for life, not just the first year.
For anyone specifically after a .ke-family domain without the recurring renewal cost, that plan is worth a look alongside the standard Starter package.
It’s a genuinely unusual offer in this market, most providers, Kenyan or otherwise, only waive the domain fee for the first twelve months before switching to standard renewal pricing.
3) Webhost Kenya

Webhost Kenya’s Gold package is priced at around KSh 2,900 per year and includes 50 GB of storage, unlimited subdomains, unlimited email accounts, unlimited MySQL databases, and 250 GB of monthly bandwidth.
A free domain is bundled in when the plan is paid annually.
Here’s the honest gap in this one: Webhost Kenya’s public pricing confirms the free-domain offer clearly enough, but it doesn’t spell out exactly which extension qualifies in the offer text itself.
Rather than guess, it’s worth confirming the specific eligible extension directly with Webhost Kenya at signup, since getting this detail right is the whole point of comparing these offers in the first place.
Webhost Kenya’s plans also come with a free site builder and daily backups, which is a reasonable amount of value packed into a plan at this price point, even setting the domain question aside.
4) Hostraha

Hostraha, a Nairobi-based host, currently prices its Business package at KES 4,999 per year.
That plan includes 50 GB of SSD storage, hosting for 5 websites, free SSL, and daily automated backups, running on cPanel with LiteSpeed for faster page loads.
A free domain is included from the Business package upward, according to Hostraha’s current plan listings.
As with Webhost Kenya, the exact extensions covered by that offer aren’t spelled out plainly on the pricing page, so it’s worth checking directly which TLDs qualify before you commit, rather than assuming .co.ke or .com specifically.
Hostraha also offers free migration for anyone moving over from another host, and support runs 24/7 through WhatsApp, tickets, and email.
Its lower Essential package, at KES 2,999 per year, doesn’t carry the same free-domain benefit, so the jump to Business is specifically where that perk kicks in.
5) HostGuru
HostGuru is a Nairobi-based, KENIC-accredited registrar and hosting provider, and its annual hosting plans include a free .co.ke domain for the first year on qualifying plans.
The Starter Hosting plan runs at a promotional KES 3,588 per year (down from KES 5,988), working out to about KES 299 a month when billed annually.
That plan includes 5 GB of NVMe SSD storage, hosting for 1 website, cPanel, LiteSpeed, free SSL, and daily backups with 7-day retention.
HostGuru’s terms are explicit that the free domain applies to first-year registration on annual plans only, renewing at the standard rate from year two, so there’s no ambiguity to chase down here, unlike a couple of the other providers on this list.
Payment runs through M-Pesa alongside the usual card options, useful for anyone who’d rather not deal with international payment methods for a purely local website.
HostGuru also throws in free WHOIS privacy, DNS management, and domain locking on every domain it registers, which are sometimes charged separately elsewhere.
As a relatively newer name in the Kenyan hosting space, having only launched in 2023, it’s a bit less established than some of the others on this list.
But its pricing structure and domain terms are laid out more plainly than most, which counts for something when you’re trying to compare offers accurately rather than guess at fine print.
Get Web Hosting and Your Domain From Truehost
Buying hosting and a domain together simplifies getting a new website online.
Instead of managing two separate purchases, two separate renewal dates, and two separate accounts, you get one bundled setup that’s ready to go.
Truehost’s eligible free extensions depend on which hosting package you choose.
Starter currently includes .cloud, .top, .buzz, .xyz, and .shop. Pro adds .co.ke to that list. Unlimited adds .com alongside everything else already available on the lower tiers.
Before choosing any provider, check both the initial hosting cost and what the domain actually costs to renew once the free first year ends.
The cheapest headline price isn’t always the cheapest real cost once renewal is factored in.
It’s also worth checking whether the plan requires annual billing to unlock the free domain in the first place, since a couple of the providers here don’t extend the offer to monthly billing at all.
Explore Truehost Kenya’s free domain hosting offer and see which package fits what you’re building.
FAQs
Is hosting with a free domain actually cheaper?
Usually, yes, for the first year. You skip a separate domain registration fee entirely, which on its own can run anywhere from a few hundred to over a thousand shillings depending on the extension. Just remember the domain typically reverts to a normal renewal price after year one, so compare the ongoing cost too, not just the launch price.
Can I get hosting with a free .co.ke domain?
Yes. Several providers on this list, including Truehost’s Pro and Unlimited plans, HostPinnacle, and HostGuru, include a free .co.ke domain with qualifying hosting packages.
Can you keep the domain if you change hosting providers?
Generally yes. A domain registered through a hosting bundle is still yours, and most registrars allow transfers to another provider once any minimum holding period has passed, though it’s worth checking the specific provider’s transfer terms first. Standard domain industry rules usually require a domain to be registered for at least 60 days before it can be transferred elsewhere.
Is the domain free forever when I buy hosting?
Almost always no, with one clear exception here: HostPinnacle’s Shujaa .ke Hosting plan includes a free domain for life. Every other offer in this comparison covers only the first year, with standard renewal pricing kicking in afterward.
Do I own a domain that comes free with web hosting?
Yes. Once registered under your name and contact details, the domain belongs to you, the same as if you’d paid for it separately. The “free” part refers to the cost, not the ownership.
Can I transfer a free domain to another hosting provider?
In most cases, yes, once past any lock-in period the registrar enforces, usually 60 days from registration under standard domain rules. Confirm the specific provider’s transfer process before you need to use it.
Do I have to pay to renew a free domain?
Yes, after the first year. Renewal pricing varies by provider and extension, so it’s worth checking that figure before signing up, not after the free year has already ended.
Is it cheaper to buy hosting and a domain together?
Often, at least for year one, since the domain registration fee is effectively waived. Compare the bundled price against buying hosting and a domain separately to see the real saving for your specific case.
What happens to my free domain if I cancel my hosting?
The domain itself usually stays registered to you regardless of what happens to the hosting account, though you may need to point it elsewhere or move it to a different registrar to keep using it. Check the provider’s specific cancellation terms to be sure, since a few hosts handle domain and hosting cancellations as entirely separate processes with their own notice periods.
Can I host multiple websites when my hosting package includes one free domain?
That depends on the hosting plan, not the domain offer. Several plans on this list, like Truehost’s Starter and above, or HostPinnacle’s unlimited-website tiers, support multiple websites under one account, with the free domain simply being one part of what’s included.
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