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Hosting provider

A hosting provider is a company or service that keeps a website's files or application on computers connected to the internet and makes them available to visitors. A provider may also offer related services, but hosting a website is different from registering its domain.

What does a hosting provider do?

When a visitor opens a website, their browser requests a page. The provider's web server receives the request and sends the page or creates it from the site's application and data. The hosting service supplies the computing space and network access that let the website respond.

For example, Riley publishes a small portfolio with a hosting provider. The provider gives Riley a service address, while Riley's custom domain is registered through a registrar. Riley points the domain's DNS settings to the hosting service. When someone visits the domain, the browser can then reach the provider and receive the portfolio. The provider does not become the holder of the domain registration simply because it hosts the site.

Is a hosting provider the same as a registrar?

No. A registrar handles the domain registration. A hosting provider makes website files or an application available online. Some companies offer both services in one account, which can make the setup feel like one product. The roles are still separate: you can keep the domain at one company and host the website with another.

Some hosting companies also sell domain registrations as resellers through a registrar. In that case, the storefront where you bought the domain may not be the accredited registrar that submitted it to the registry. Check your registration records and agreement to find which company handles each service.

What should I check before moving hosting?

If you move a website to another hosting provider, the website files or application must be available at the new provider, and the domain's DNS settings may need to point to the new service. The domain registration can stay with its current registrar. A DNS change may take time to appear everywhere because DNS answers can be saved temporarily, so visitors may temporarily reach different destinations.

Before changing providers, check what the existing service stores: for example, website files, databases, backups, or email. Email may use separate DNS settings and may be provided by a different company. Moving the website alone does not automatically move those other services.

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