Ionos is the UK trading name of IONOS SE, a subsidiary of United Internet AG. They are one of the largest web hosting providers in Europe, and their domain registration business benefits from the infrastructure and ICANN accreditation of a major operator.
The honest summary: Ionos is a good registrar for .co.uk and .uk domains for UK businesses. Their .com renewal rates (approximately £12/year) are higher than Namecheap’s (approximately £10.88/year) and significantly higher than Cloudflare’s ($10.44/year). Privacy protection is not free it costs extra, unlike Namecheap, Porkbun, and Cloudflare.
Pricing
| TLD | First year | Renewal | Privacy included? |
|---|---|---|---|
| .co.uk | £1/yr (promo) | £7.99/yr | No (extra) |
| .uk | £1/yr (promo) | £6.99/yr | No (extra) |
| .com | £1/yr (promo) | ~£12/yr | No (extra) |
| .net | £1/yr (promo) | ~£12/yr | No (extra) |
Privacy protection: Ionos charges for WHOIS privacy (typically £1–3/year on top of domain renewal). For a buyer who treats privacy as standard (it should be), add this cost to every renewal comparison.
The honest comparison vs Namecheap for .co.uk:
- Ionos .co.uk renewal: £7.99/yr + £1–3 privacy = £9–11/yr
- Namecheap .co.uk renewal: £6.98/yr with privacy included = £6.98/yr
For UK domain buyers, Namecheap wins on .co.uk pricing after privacy is included.
Where Ionos wins
Bundled email: Ionos includes an email inbox with domain registration 2 GB mailboxes, accessible via webmail or standard IMAP. For a small business that just needs a professional email address (enquiries@mybusiness.co.uk), this bundle is convenient. Setting up email separately through Google Workspace costs £5+/month.
UK customer service: Ionos has a UK phone number with UK-staffed support during business hours. For non-technical small business owners, speaking to someone who understands UK-specific requirements (VAT, HMRC, .co.uk rules) is valuable.
Bulk domain management: The Ionos control panel handles multiple domains reasonably well. Not as clean as Cloudflare’s interface, but serviceable for managing 5–20 domains without a dedicated registrar management tool.
What Ionos gets wrong
Privacy not included: In 2026, free WHOIS privacy is table stakes. Namecheap, Porkbun, Google Domains (Squarespace Domains), and Cloudflare all include it free. Charging extra for privacy is an unfriendly default.
Renewal pricing jump: The year-1 promotional pricing creates the same renewal shock as GoDaddy buyers see £1/yr, renew at £7.99–12/yr, feel surprised.
Upsells: The checkout includes hosting, SSL, and website builder upsells. Not as aggressive as GoDaddy, but present.
When to use Ionos
- UK business buying a .co.uk or .uk with bundled email
- Non-technical business owner who wants UK phone support
- Business already on Ionos hosting (consolidating registrar and hosting makes management simpler)
When not to use Ionos for domain-only purchases: for .com domains without email bundling, Namecheap or Porkbun are cheaper on renewal with privacy included free.
See also: Namecheap Review · How to choose the right domain extension · Domain privacy explained