SSL certificate: what it is and whether a free one is enough
In short
An SSL certificate lets your site open over https://, encrypts data and removes the “Not secure” warning. A free Let's Encrypt certificate encrypts just like a paid one; the difference is that you have to renew it about every two months.
What an SSL certificate is
An SSL certificate (strictly speaking, TLS) is a file that the server shows the browser to prove that it really serves a given domain. Thanks to it, the browser and the server agree on encryption, and the site opens at an address starting with https://.
Why you need one
- Browsers warn about sites without https. Chrome, Firefox and Safari mark them as not secure (Chrome literally says “Not secure”), which puts customers off, especially on forms.
- Form data is protected. Email addresses, phone numbers and passwords do not travel across the internet as plain text. Where personal data is involved, this is one of the basic safeguards the GDPR expects.
- Google prefers https sites. Since 2014, https has been one of the signals taken into account in search results.
- Modern browser features, such as notifications or location, work only on https sites.
Types of certificates: DV, OV and EV
| Type | What the issuer checks | Padlock in the browser | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| DV (including Let's Encrypt) | control of the domain | yes | free or cheap |
| OV | the domain and the company details | yes, the same one | paid |
| EV | the domain and the company, more thoroughly | yes, the same one | paid |
All three encrypt the connection in the same way. They differ in how thoroughly the issuer checks who is ordering the certificate. The company details from OV and EV certificates are only visible in the certificate details, not in the address bar.
Free or paid
For an ordinary business website, online store or blog, a free DV certificate is enough: customers see the same padlock and the encryption is the same. A paid certificate makes sense when a client, a tender or a regulation requires it (e.g. an OV certificate with company details), or when you want support from the issuer.
Wildcard certificates and multiple domains
One certificate can cover several names, for example example.com and www.example.com. A wildcard certificate (*.example.com) covers all subdomains one level down: www.example.com, shop.example.com, but not example.com itself or a.b.example.com. Let's Encrypt issues it only after verification with a DNS record.
How long a certificate is valid
A Let's Encrypt certificate is currently valid for 90 days. Let's Encrypt has announced that this will be shortened to 64 days from February 10, 2027 and to 45 days from February 16, 2028.
Paid certificates are also valid for less and less time: from March 15, 2026 for at most 200 days, from March 15, 2027 for at most 100 days, and from March 15, 2029 for at most 47 days. This was decided by the CA/Browser Forum, a body that brings together certificate issuers and browser makers. Every certificate therefore has to be renewed regularly, which is why we send you an email reminder once you save the certificate in your account.
Who issues free certificates
Let's Encrypt is a certificate authority run by the non-profit Internet Security Research Group. It has been operating since 2015 and is one of the largest certificate issuers in the world. freessl.pl is not affiliated with it: it is a tool that talks to Let's Encrypt on your behalf, in your browser, and guides you through the installation.