What are the Free SSL Certificates? Are They Worth to Buy?

Last updated: Nov 1, 2025

Free SSL certificates are SSL/TLS certificates issued at no cost by a Certificate Authority (CA) in order to secure website traffic via HTTPS. These certificates are designed to provide the same basic level of encryption as paid SSL certificates, meaning data transferred between a browser and a server is protected from eavesdropping, interception, or tampering. While the term “free SSL certificate” is often associated with services like Let’s Encrypt, ZeroSSL, or Cloudflare, it’s important to understand that “free” does not necessarily mean “low quality” — but it does come with specific limitations.

Free SSL certificates are primarily Domain Validated (DV). This means that the certificate authority only verifies that the applicant controls the domain, usually by email verification, DNS record, or HTTP file-based validation. There is no business identity authentication, so free SSL certificates do not display company details in the browser’s certificate viewer and do not show the company’s legal name in the address bar or security badge, as extended validation (EV) certificates used to do.

These certificates are widely used for personal websites, blogs, small business landing pages, SaaS tools, internal apps, and staging sites. They enable anyone to secure a domain with HTTPS and activate the browser padlock icon, which improves user perception of security and builds trust.

The main goal of SSL—encrypting data in transit—is met whether the certificate is free or paid. Modern free SSL providers such as Let’s Encrypt are backed by major tech organizations and are trusted by all major browsers, due in part to the Automated Certificate Management Environment (ACME) standard they helped popularize. This has dramatically reduced the time and technical skill needed to deploy HTTPS across the web.

However, free SSL certificates typically lack advanced features like warranty coverage, extended validation, site trust seals, and long validity periods. They are designed for the modern open web but not for industries where compliance, brand reputation, or high-risk transactions demand more than just encryption.

Benefits of Free SSL Certificates

Free SSL certificates offer several noticeable benefits for website owners, developers, and small businesses looking to secure their sites without extra financial burden. Despite the common assumption that “free” means “insecure,” these certificates provide strong encryption and browser trust when issued by reputable Certificate Authorities (CAs) like Let’s Encrypt or ZeroSSL.

Here are the key benefits of free SSL certificates:

• Zero Cost: Free SSL certificates remove the financial barrier to secure web traffic, making HTTPS accessible to all. This is especially useful for small sites or personal projects that don’t have the budget for paid SSL.

• Browser Trust & Padlock Enabled: Free certificates are trusted by all major browsers, just like paid certificates. They enable the padlock icon in Chrome, ensuring users see the site as secure.

• Fast Setup & Automation: Free SSL services offer automated issuance and renewal via ACME (e.g., Certbot). This lowers complexity and speeds up HTTPS deployment.

• Strong Encryption: Free certificates offer the same level of encryption (e.g., 2048-bit RSA or ECDSA) as paid SSL certificates, meaning data in transit is equally protected.

• SEO and Ranking Benefits: Google uses HTTPS as a ranking signal, and sites with SSL certificates gain benefits in organic search visibility.

• Secure User Experience: Implementing HTTPS using a free SSL certificate prevents browser security warnings like “Not Secure,” increasing user trust—even for informational or small business sites.

• Ideal for Low-Risk Sites: Sites like blogs, landing pages, staging environments, or developer test sites can safely rely on free SSL without sacrificing security.

Free SSL certificates have dramatically increased the adoption of HTTPS across the web, particularly due to their ease of installation and zero-cost nature. For many use cases—especially those not dealing with sensitive data, identity verification, or online transactions—free SSL certificates are more than sufficient and extremely valuable.

Limitations and Risks of Free SSL Certificates

Despite their growing popularity and adoption, free SSL certificates are not without drawbacks. While they provide core encryption for secure communication, they lack several advanced features and trusted assurances that paid SSL certificates offer. These limitations may pose risks for eCommerce sites, enterprises, or websites that need legally compliant, guaranteed protection.

Below are the main limitations and risks of using free SSL certificates:

• Domain Validation (DV) Only: Free SSL certificates only verify that you own the domain—not your organization or identity. They don’t support OV (Organization Validation) or EV (Extended Validation), which display your verified business information in the certificate.

• Short Validity Period: Most free SSL certificates (such as those from Let’s Encrypt) are valid for just 90 days. This means frequent renewals, and if automation fails, your site may suddenly show “Certificate Expired” errors.

• No Warranty Protection: Free certificates do not come with warranty or liability coverage. Paid SSL certificates typically include financial protection (e.g., $10,000–$1M+) in the event of security breach due to certificate failure.

• Limited Customer Support: Free SSL providers usually rely on community forums, documentation, or self-service tools. Paid providers offer dedicated customer support, live chat, or 24/7 assistance.

• Not Suitable for High-Risk Sites: eCommerce websites, financial institutions, healthcare service providers, or government agencies often need OV/EV validation, trust indicators, warranty coverage, and full certificate management — which free SSL does not provide.

• Wildcard and Multi-Domain Restrictions: Some free SSL certificates do not support wildcard or SAN (multi-domain) configurations, or may require advanced manual setup.

• Browser Security Errors After Expiry or Misconfiguration: If you forget to renew or incorrectly install the certificate chains, users may see errors like NET::ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID or NET::ERR_CERT_DATE_INVALID.

Free SSL is ideal for lower-risk, informational, or temporary sites, but it isn’t designed for businesses that require verified brand identity, customer trust enhancements, legal warranties, or enterprise-level support.

Paid vs Free SSL Certificates – Feature Comparison

Choosing between a free SSL certificate and a paid SSL certificate depends on your website’s purpose, trust requirements, liability concerns, and how much hands-on management you’re prepared for. While both free and paid SSL certificates offer encryption and bring your site to HTTPS, there are major differences in terms of validation level, warranty, support, branding, and enterprise compatibility.

The following comparison table outlines the key differences between free and paid SSL certificates:

Let’s break down some of the most important differences:

1. Validation Types

Free SSL certificates only support Domain Validation (DV) — this verifies that you control the domain name, but it does not verify your company identity. Paid SSL certificates can support OV (Organization Validation) and EV (Extended Validation), which prove that the website belongs to a legitimate business. These are often necessary for banks, healthcare providers, government agencies, or eCommerce sites that need verified identity for increased trust.

2. Warranty and Liability Protection

Paid SSL certificates include a warranty — a financial guarantee (sometimes up to $1M or more) against certain types of certificate failures. If a security breach happens due to certificate mis-issuance or CA compromise, the warranty helps cover damages. Free SSL certificates do not include this, meaning the business bears full risk.

3. Support and Customer Assistance

Free SSL providers like Let’s Encrypt offer community-based support, documentation, or GitHub issue trackers. Paid SSL certificate providers offer customer support via email, chat, or even phone — useful when a certificate fails mid-transaction and timely resolution is critical. This level of support is a key factor for enterprise and mission-critical environments.

4. Certificate Management and Validity

Free SSL certificates typically last 90 days and require manual or automated renewal multiple times a year. This is not inherently bad, but it introduces risk if automation fails. Paid SSL certificates often last one or more years — reducing operational overhead and renewal points of failure.

5. Trust and Branding Indicators

Paid OV/EV certificates display company information in the certificate and may include a site seal that boosts visitor confidence. While the green address bar is no longer used in most browsers, OV and EV certificates still help users confirm that the site they are on belongs to the correct organization. Free SSL certificates do not offer these branding benefits.

Which One Should You Choose?

If you’re running a personal blog, portfolio, brochure website, or a temporary testing environment — a free SSL certificate is often all you need. If you’re hosting a customer-facing business, an eCommerce store, collecting sensitive user data, or representing corporate or government entities, the benefits of a paid SSL certificate can significantly outweigh the cost.

Free SSL is ideal for low-risk use. Paid SSL is built to support trust and value for high-conversion or high-liability use.

How to Install a Free SSL Certificate (Step-by-Step)

Installing a free SSL certificate is a straightforward process if you’re using a modern hosting provider or a platform like WordPress, and it is simple enough for most website owners to perform without advanced technical knowledge. The process involves generating the certificate, verifying domain ownership, installing the certificate, and ensuring proper HTTPS redirection. This section walks you through the setup on popular platforms and servers, including WordPress, Apache, and Nginx.

Step 1: Choose a Free SSL Provider

There are several trusted sources for free SSL certificates. The most popular include:

• Let’s Encrypt – The most widely used free Certificate Authority, backed by major organizations

• ZeroSSL – Similar to Let’s Encrypt, with a simple UI and API for developers

• Cloudflare Origin CA – Free SSL between Cloudflare and your server (also offers Universal SSL for public traffic)

• Hosting provider SSL – Many hosting companies (e.g., Bluehost, SiteGround, Hostinger) bundle free SSL into their dashboard

Choose based on your hosting setup, control panel, or preference for manual vs automated installation.

Step 2: Obtain and Validate the SSL Certificate

The next step is to issue the certificate. Most free SSLs use Domain Validation (DV), which proves you control the domain. Validation is typically done in one of these ways:

• Email Validation: The CA emails you at an admin account (e.g., admin@domain.com)

• DNS Record Validation: You add a TXT record in your domain’s DNS

• HTTP File Upload: You upload a file to your site to confirm control

Let’s Encrypt and ZeroSSL allow issuance using an ACME client like Certbot, which automates this process on most servers.

Step 3: Install Free SSL Certificate on Your Hosting or CMS

Here’s how installation works across platforms:

WordPress (Beginner-Friendly)

• If your host supports “Free SSL Certificate” in your dashboard, enable it in one click.

• Install a plugin like Really Simple SSL, which automatically detects the certificate and applies HTTPS settings.

• Make sure to enable force HTTPS redirection and fix any mixed content errors (where some assets still load over HTTP).

cPanel Hosting

• Log into cPanel → SSL/TLS → Install and Manage SSL for Your Site

• Paste the cert, private key, and CA bundle provided by the free SSL tool

• Save and verify installation

Apache Server (Manual Install)

Nginx Server

Always restart the server after making changes, and validate the installation by visiting your website using https://.

Step 4: Enable HTTPS and Redirect All Traffic

After installation, redirect all HTTP traffic to HTTPS to avoid mixed content and duplicate content issues.

• On WordPress, Really Simple SSL can handle this automatically.

• In Apache, use .htaccess:

• On Nginx:

Step 5: Test and Verify the Certificate

Once installed, use these tools to verify everything is configured correctly:

• SSL Labs Test: https://www.ssllabs.com/ssltest/

• DigiCert SSL Checker: https://www.digicert.com/help/

• View the certificate in your browser dev tools (padlock icon → details)

Check for:

• Valid certificate dates

• Correct certificate chain installed

• No expired intermediate or root certificates

• No mixed content warnings (all assets loading via HTTPS)

Step 6: Set Up Auto-Renewal (Critical for Free SSL)

Free SSL certificates (such as Let’s Encrypt) expire every 90 days. To prevent outages and errors like NET::ERR_CERT_DATE_INVALID, set up automatic renewal:

• On Linux servers, add a cron job to run Certbot auto-renew

• For WordPress or cPanel users, use plugin or built-in automation

• Some hosting providers (e.g., Cloudways, Kinsta) handle renewals automatically

To verify automation is working, use:

A successful dry run means the renewal process is healthy.

Optional: Troubleshooting Common Free SSL Issues

• Site still shows “Not Secure”: Fix mixed content or incorrect redirects

• Certificate not trusted in browser: Ensure the correct CA bundle or intermediate certificate is installed

• Renewal failed: Check DNS, firewall, or ACME rate limits

• Wildcard cert doesn’t work: ACME DNS challenge is required for wildcard SSL

By following these structured steps, most site owners can install and maintain a free SSL certificate with ease—whether the site is built on WordPress, Apache, Nginx, or a shared hosting platform. Ensuring proper HTTPS enforcement and auto-renewal will give your users a secure experience without recurring costs.

Browser Security Errors Related to Free SSL and How to Avoid Them

Even though free SSL certificates perform the same essential role in encrypting website traffic as paid ones, they can still trigger browser security errors if not installed, configured, or renewed properly. These SSL-related errors can disrupt traffic, harm user trust, reduce conversions, and negatively impact SEO because modern browsers penalize insecure or misconfigured HTTPS connections. This section explains the most common security errors site owners may encounter when using free SSL certificates, and how to avoid or resolve them efficiently.

Common Browser Security Errors Related to SSL Certificates

Here are the most frequently encountered browser errors specific to improper SSL setup, misconfiguration, or renewal lapses:

• NET::ERR_CERT_DATE_INVALID – This error appears when the SSL certificate has expired or the user’s device clock is set incorrectly. With free SSL certificates expiring every 90 days, even a small oversight can trigger this error for all users.

• NET::ERR_CERT_AUTHORITY_INVALID – This indicates the certificate was issued by an authority the browser doesn’t trust, or the intermediate/root certificate was not installed correctly on the server.

• Your connection is not private (with red warning screen) – A general error message in Chrome that kicks in to protect users when certificate validation fails for any reason.

• Mixed Content Warnings – These errors (often a yellow triangle in the browser bar) occur when some assets (e.g., images, scripts, stylesheets) are still being loaded over insecure HTTP, even though the main page uses HTTPS.

• HTTPS Redirect Errors – These can occur when the website redirects are misconfigured and HTTP traffic isn’t properly forwarded to the HTTPS version of the site.

These issues are not due to inherent faults with free SSL certificates themselves, but rather can stem from configuration mistakes, missing renewals, or incomplete installation.

How to Avoid or Fix Browser Security Errors When Using Free SSL Certificates

To prevent browser errors and ensure a smooth user experience, it’s critical to follow best practices when installing and maintaining free SSL certificates:

• Automate Renewals: Since free SSL certificates typically expire every 90 days, use tools like Certbot, ZeroSSL’s ACME client, or hosting-controlled renewal systems to automate renewals and prevent downtime.

• Install Full Certificate Chain: Always ensure the complete certificate chain (certificate + intermediate + root CA) is properly installed on your server. Missing intermediates can trigger “untrusted certificate” warnings in Chrome, Safari, or mobile browsers.

• Force HTTPS on All Pages: Use permanent redirects (301) from HTTP to HTTPS and update all internal links, sitemaps, and CDN assets to avoid mixed content issues.

• Use HTTPS Checker Tools: Regularly test your site on tools like SSL Labs, Why No Padlock, or Google Lighthouse to catch configuration or renewal issues early.

• Enable HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security): This ensures browsers always load your site via HTTPS, even if users type http:// in the address bar.

• Monitor Error Logs and SSL Status: Set up systems like UptimeRobot or Cron jobs to notify you when SSL is about to expire or misconfiguration occurs.

Why Free SSL Errors Are More Common (But Preventable)

Unlike paid SSL certificates that often last 1–2 years, free SSL certificates renew frequently (every 2–3 months) and rely more on automated tools. If a system fails silently (e.g., ACME bot fails, DNS changes, firewall blocking ports), it can break certificate validation and immediately cause user-facing errors.

This does not mean free SSL is unreliable — but it requires proper automation, testing, and server configuration to ensure there are no interruptions in HTTPS coverage.

By proactively managing SSL renewals, validating certificate chain installation, enforcing HTTPS across your site, and monitoring SSL status, you can avoid or quickly fix browser warnings that otherwise undermine user trust and security.

Summary and Final Verdict – Are Free SSL Certificates Worth It?

Free SSL certificates have played a pivotal role in democratizing web security and making HTTPS accessible to everyone — from developers and bloggers to growing businesses. With trusted Certificate Authorities like Let’s Encrypt and ZeroSSL offering cost-free certificates, the barriers to web encryption have dramatically lowered, enabling millions of websites to become more secure and compliant with modern browser standards.

However, while free SSL certificates do a great job delivering core encryption and preventing basic “Not Secure” warnings, they are not a complete fit for every type of website or business. Whether or not they are “worth it” depends entirely on the specific goals, audience, and operational risks associated with your website.

Here is a final comparison based on typical use-case scenarios:

• Free SSL certificates are enough when:

  • You run a personal website, blog, or hobby project.

  • Your website does not handle sensitive personal or financial information.

  • You have low to medium traffic and don’t require business identity validation.

  • You are developing a staging or demo environment.

  • You understand how to automate renewals and maintain server configuration.

  • You want to enable basic encryption without investing money.

• Paid SSL certificates are better options when:

  • Your website handles eCommerce transactions, customer logins, or private data.

  • You want business identity and trust indicators (via OV/EV validation).

  • You need warranty coverage and legal assurance in case of security issues.

  • You require multi-domain or wildcard SSL certificates with support.

  • You need dedicated customer support and help during SSL deployment or errors.

  • Your site operates in regulated industries or high-risk sectors (e.g., banking, healthcare, government).

In the end, both types of SSL certificates deliver the essential function of encrypting communication between browsers and servers. But the distinctions involving identity validation, warranty protection, support levels, certificate lifespan, and trust-building make a significant difference when you’re operating a business, processing payments, or handling confidential information.

If you’re running a low-risk site with a small budget, free SSL certificates are absolutely worth using — they deliver full TLS encryption without any financial cost. If you’re running a serious business, using a paid SSL certificate can deliver peace of mind, additional trust, and the legal protection that free options lack.

Ultimately, the value comes down to risk tolerance, regulatory needs, user expectations, and the level of support or validation you need for your website.

FAQ Section

1. What is the difference between a free SSL certificate and a paid SSL certificate?
A free SSL certificate provides basic encryption and domain validation, while paid SSL certificates may include additional features like organization validation (OV), extended validation (EV), warranty coverage, site seals, and multi-domain or wildcard support.

2. Are free SSL certificates safe to use?
Yes. Free SSL certificates offer the same encryption strength as paid certificates. They are safe to use for most websites, especially for content sites, blogs, and low-risk applications.

3. Can I use a free SSL certificate for my online store?
Technically, yes—but it is not recommended. Paid SSL certificates provide identity validation, warranties, and trust indicators that are beneficial for eCommerce and financial transaction sites.

4. How long do free SSL certificates last?
Free SSL certificates typically last for 90 days. You must renew them regularly, often through automatic tools like Certbot.

5. What happens if my free SSL certificate expires?
If your SSL certificate expires, users will see browser errors like “Your Connection is Not Private” or NET::ERR_CERT_DATE_INVALID. You must renew the certificate promptly to restore trust and secure traffic.