Crazy Domains Review
Nathan Finch——Last Updated on August 17, 2021
Total: 942
On its website, Crazy Domains makes all sorts of promises about making the process of publishing a website "crazy easy."
Do they live up to the hype?
Crazy Domains offers domain registration and online marketing in addition to web hosting services. While they do some things fairly well, there are many other service providers out there who provide better services at far more competitive prices.
Crazy Domains offer very basic web hosting for a price point that makes it more expensive than other hosting providers with better performance, features and pricing.
Let's take a closer look at Crazy Domains so that you can decide if it's the best hosting provider for your purposes.
What We Think of Crazy Domains
Founded in 2000, this company has made a name for itself by offering incredibly cheap domain name registration services.
They even claim to be the leading providing of cheap domain name registration in regions like Australia, the Middle East, India and Europe.
Crazy Domains' parent company is DreamScape Networks, an organization that is headquartered in Australia.
Among the brands they own are CHEAP Domains, AustDomains, WebCity, NetLogistics, WhoIs and more.
On the DreamScape Networks website, the parent company says that Crazy Domains provides "premium services" at "affordable prices." Further, the website states that Crazy Domains has three support centers, five data centers, 28 web products and more than 500 domain types.
For being a low-cost web hosting provider, Crazy Domains isn't terrible. However, we firmly believe that there are better hosts out there, ones that provide better services and more competitive pricing. For instance, both Siteground and Bluehost offer better performance for the same price point.
Related Read: Fixing “Server DNS Address Could Not be Found” Error
Crazy Domains Pricing
Crazy Domains features a wide range of pricing plans. Many of them are quite affordable, but not all of the options make a great deal of sense.
For instance, you may purchase hosting services for periods of one year, two years, three years or 10 years. The first three options seem reasonable. However, if you're just starting out with a new website, the 10-year option seems excessive.
We'd never recommend springing for the 10-year plan unless you've got money to burn and a whole lot of confidence.
The other oddity is that you can get Windows or WordPress hosting for as little as three months. However, the shortest term you can purchase for Linux hosting is one year.
Here is the pricing breakdown for Crazy Domains' web hosting services. A more detailed discussion of what you get with each hosting package follows.
| Linux Hosting | Economy | Premium | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|---|
| One year | $7.17/ mo. ($93 total) | $12.92/ mo. ($155 total) | $21.50/ mo. ($258 total) |
| Two years | $6.46/ mo. ($155 total) | $11.63/ mo. ($280 total) | $19.33/ mo. ($464 total) |
| Three years | $6.11/ mo. ($220 total) | $10.97/ mo. ($395 total) | $18.25/ mo. ($657 total) |
| 10 years | $3.58/ mo. ($430 total) | $6.45/ mo. ($774 total) | $10.74/ mo. ($1,288 total) |
| Windows Hosting | Economy | Premium | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three Months | $13/ mo. ($39 total) | $18.67 ($56 total) | $27.33 ($82 total) |
| One year | $12.92/ mo. ($155 total) | $18.67/ mo. ($224 total) | $27.25/ mo. ($327 total) |
| Two years | $11.58/ mo. ($278 total) | $16.75/ mo. ($402 total) | $24.50/ mo. ($588 total) |
| Three years | $10.94/ mo. ($394 total) | $15.83/ mo. ($570 total) | $23.14/ mo. ($833 total) |
| 10 years | $6.45/ mo. ($774 total) | $9.32/ mo. ($1,118 total) | $13.60/ mo. ($1,632 total) |
| WordPress Hosting | Economy | Premium | Unlimited |
|---|---|---|---|
| Three Months | $13/ mo. ($39 total) | $20.67 ($62 total) | $33.33 ($100 total) |
| One year | $10.67/ mo. ($128 total) | $17.25/ mo. ($207 total) | $27.83/ mo. ($334 total) |
| Two years | $9.29/ mo. ($223 total) | $15.04/ mo. ($361 total) | $24.33/ mo. ($584 total) |
| Three years | $8.83/ mo. ($318 total) | $14.33/ mo. ($516 total) | $23.17/ mo. ($834 total) |
| 10 years | $5.30/ mo. ($636 total) | $8.59/ mo. ($1,030 total) | $13.89/ mo. ($1,667 total) |
Crazy Domains Features
Support
That's almost a dizzying number of options, but chances are good that you already know whether you want Linux, Windows or WordPress hosting.
That certainly narrows down the choices. You do save money by going with the two- or three-year plans, but the three-month and one-year plans are affordable enough if you just want to dip a toe in the water.
All-in-One Packages
If you're really starting from scratch, then it may be worthwhile to consider a package from Crazy Domains. These packages aren't just for web hosting. Instead, they also include domain name registration, website building and e-commerce tools.
Currently, Crazy Domains is offering three all-in-one packages. The first is Online Startup. This is a really basic package that comes with a domain name, hosting and a personal email address with your domain name.
With this plan, you may register either an Australian or global domain name, and your website will be hosted on a cloud DNS network. In addition, you'll have the economy hosting package with 150 GB of web space and up to 100 personal email addresses from your domain. The entire package costs $128.
The Business Builder package includes everything in the Online Startup plan plus the ability to build a website with the Crazy Domains website builder.
Your website can include as many as five pages. Also included in the plan is the Traffic Booster app to ensure that your website is found by all of the major search engines. This middle-of-the-road package costs $318.
The largest package is the Ultimate Empire. It features everything that the two smaller packages do in addition to the ability to sell online, email marketing tools and access to web analytics. With a price of $537, this isn't a bad deal.
On its website, Crazy Domains boasts about its 24/7 customer care, which they say provides "expert advice" and "friendly tech support." The company further claims that you can contact them via phone, live chat or email.
In reality, many customers report incredibly frustrating experiences with trying to actually interact with the support team. Among the most common complaints is the presence of a "Start Chat Now" box on every page of the company website. This leads people to believe that they should be able to initiate a live chat at any time.
However, one customer after another notes that clicking on the live chat box just takes them to an email interface. These incidents happen so often that it's a bit difficult to believe that the live chat function ever works.
Additionally, even when customers do get through to the support team, they report having bad experiences. Response times are slow, and the responses received frequently are unhelpful.
If you're trying to operate a business on a website that's hosted on Crazy Domains, then you need immediate, helpful answers. Waiting hours for a questionable response is just not acceptable.
A lack of customer support may not be a problem for the really tech-savvy people out there, but everyone needs help occasionally. Crazy Domains doesn't measure up.
Is Crazy Domains Worth Your Money?
Stated plainly, Crazy Domains probably doesn't deserve your money. Their web hosting isn't necessarily terrible, but there are far better and more reliable options out there.
Plus, if you have the feeling that you'll need technical support at some point, Crazy Domains is not a safe bet. Even if your main goal is cheap hosting, you can do better.
First, let's take a look at what Crazy Domains promises in terms of its hosting services:
- ☑️ Guaranteed 99.9% uptime
- ☑️ Automatic backups that are retained for a maximum of 30 days
- ☑️ Hosting of multiple domains with more expensive packages
- ☑️ Choice of 150 GB SSD, 500 GB SSD or unlimited SSD disk space depending upon the package you choose
- ☑️ Unlimited data transfer
- ☑️ Domain registration, for a fee
- ☑️ SSL certificate, for a fee
Linux and Windows devotees will be happy to note that Crazy Domains supports both of these operating systems. What's more, you have access to cPanel with Linux-based systems and Plesk with Windows.
If you need an app or add-on, Crazy Domains offers one-click installation on approximately 200 different ones. Accordingly, Crazy Domains works with integrations such as Drupal, Joomla, WordPress, LimeSurvey, PrestaShop, Magneto, ZenCart and many others.
Those who are technically savvy further will appreciate the ability to code on Crazy Domains with Ajax, Ruby, Python and a variety of others. This is surprisingly ambitious for a relatively bare-bones service provider.
Linux Hosting in Detail
Everyone who chooses Linux hosting gets some of the same basic features like access to the cPanel, unlimited data, DDos Protection, multi-code support, FTP & SSH access and file backups.
With the Economy plan, customers get one website with 150 GB of storage. Two stock images, 10 databases and 100 email addresses are included in the package.
Upgrading to the Premium plan grants the customer an unlimited number of websites and free stock images. With 500 GB of storage, 500 email addresses and 50 databases, this could be the right plan for a growing business venture.
It's also vital to note that the Premium plan includes hosting on a cloud network, which Crazy Domains says will mean 300% faster speeds.
The largest plan is called Unlimited, and the name is fitting. Customers who choose this package get unlimited storage space for an unlimited number of websites.
The number of email addresses and databases that they are allowed similarly is unlimited. Ten stock images, cloud network hosting and one year of access to Search Submit so that your website gets noticed are included.
Windows Hosting in Detail
When you choose Windows hosting, every plan gives you access to Plesk, ASP.NET Hosting and file backups. Other features include unlimited data, DDOS protection, FTP & SSH Access, multi-code support, MS SQL server hosting and more.
From here, the Windows plans are virtually identical to the Linux plans with regard to storage space, the number of email addresses and the number of stock images.
The main differences are the 10 GB of MS SQL BD with the Economy plan, the 50 GB of MS SQL DB with the Premium Plan and the unlimited MS SQL BD with the Unlimited plan.
WordPress Hosting
WordPress hosting is quite different, which is an important consideration if you want to use Crazy Domains as your host but aren't decided about which platform makes the most sense.
Every WordPress plan includes the ability to deploy the latest WordPress software with a single click as well as one-click staging. GIT is pre-installed, and Crazy Domains is WP-CLI enabled. SSH & SFTP access is available as are automatic updates.
With the Economy package for WordPress hosting, you may host one website with 10 GB of SSD storage. You are allowed 100,000 visits per month, and you have unlimited data transfers.
The Premium plan makes it possible to have two WordPress websites with 25 GB of shared SSD storage. Data transfers are unlimited, but you may only have a maximum of 400,000 monthly visits.
The Ultimate plan enables you to have as many as five WordPress websites, but you'll only have a total of 50 GB of SSD storage. One million monthly visits and unlimited data transfers are included in the plan.
Data Centers
Crazy Domains has data centers located in the U.K., Perth and Sydney. Servers are found in Newark, New Jersey in the U.S. as well as Hong Kong and Singapore.
Additionally, EPP servers are located in Newark, New Jersey; Brussels, Belgium; Delhi, India and Melbourne, Australia.
Having data centers and extra EPP servers located in Australia should mean lower latency rates and faster load times for people who are browsing from across the entire continent.
These data centers use Dell technology coupled with Cisco routers. Those are respectable choices, though some users nonetheless note that performance on their websites tends to be a bit sluggish.
Load balancers and N+1 redundant power mean that Crazy Domains' data centers are pretty solid. With a redundant network, they are probably able to live up to their 99.9% uptime guarantee most of the time.
The load balanced network means that web traffic is distributed across multiple servers, all of which perform similar functions at the same location. Using cloud technology, this load balancing network should guarantee better performance.
Transferring from Another Host
Do you already have an active website that's hosted somewhere else? If so, you're in luck. Crazy Domains really does appear to make it simple to transfer an existing website to their hosting services.
The automatic interface for website transfer seems easy to use. The first step is choosing a hosting plan at Crazy Domains. This is followed by receipt of an email requesting information about the prior host. After the new customer responds to the email, the Crazy Domains website transfer team takes care of the rest.
This appears to be a relatively straightforward process, and the company frequently offers incentive pricing for customers who are transferring an existing website. Just be certain to read all of the fine print. Too many customers report being taken by surprise with hidden fees.
Creating a New Website
If you need more than hosting, Crazy Domains may be able to accommodate you. Building your own website is pretty easy with the company's drag-and-drop SiteBeat website builder.
In fact, you can begin the process by building a website and choosing a package that includes web hosting.
From there, you can choose increasingly expensive packages for time periods of as much as eight years.
SiteBeat has some nice-looking templates but boasts nowhere near the style, functionality and versatility of other website builders. However, if you're building a basic first website, it may do the trick.
Other Services from Crazy Domains
Crazy Domains really does try to do it all for you by offering to build a website for you. They'll also take care of all sorts of online marketing tools, and they'll even design your company's logo. Of course, all of these services come at an extra cost.