# How to install a free SSL certificate

> Install a free SSL certificate with cPanel AutoSSL, force HTTPS site-wide and fix mixed-content warnings. No cost, no renewal to remember.

Source: https://www.fasterhost.in/kb/install-a-free-ssl-certificate.php · SSL & security · 5 min read · updated 22 September 2026

Paid SSL made sense when certificates were hard to get. They are not any more: Let's Encrypt issues free, browser-trusted certificates, cPanel renews them automatically, and the padlock is identical to a ₹5,000 one. Here is how to turn it on and, more importantly, how to make the whole site actually use it.

## Steps

### 1. Check whether you already have one

Go to **Security → SSL/TLS Status**. Every domain and subdomain on the account is listed with its certificate state. A green lock means it is already covered — on FasterHost, AutoSSL runs on every new domain, so usually it is.

### 2. Run AutoSSL

Tick any domain showing as unsecured and click **Run AutoSSL**. It takes a few minutes.

AutoSSL proves you control the domain by fetching a file over HTTP, so it can only succeed if the domain already resolves to this server. A domain still pointing at your old host will fail here — point the domain first.

### 3. Force HTTPS for every visitor

A certificate does nothing on its own; the site has to redirect. In cPanel go to **Domains** and switch on **Force HTTPS Redirect** for each domain.

If you would rather do it in `.htaccess`, put this above any other rewrite rules:

```
RewriteEngine On
RewriteCond %{HTTPS} !=on
RewriteRule ^ https://%{HTTP_HOST}%{REQUEST_URI} [R=301,L]
```

Use a **301**, not a 302. A temporary redirect tells Google the HTTP version is still the real one.

### 4. Fix mixed content

If the padlock shows a warning, something on the page is still loading over `http://` — usually an image, font or script hard-coded in an old theme.

On WordPress, update the site address first under **Settings → General**, then run a search-and-replace across the database for `http://yourdomain` → `https://yourdomain`. WP-CLI does it safely, serialised data included:

```
wp search-replace 'http://example.in' 'https://example.in' --all-tables --precise
```

Take a backup before any search-and-replace.

## Is a free certificate as good as a paid one?

For encryption, yes — identical. Let's Encrypt uses the same algorithms and the same browser trust stores. The differences are commercial rather than technical:

- **Validation level.** Free certificates are domain-validated. Organisation and Extended Validation certificates verify the company behind the domain, which a bank might want and a blog does not.
- **Warranty.** Paid certificates carry a financial warranty. It almost never pays out.
- **Lifetime.** Let's Encrypt certificates last 90 days and renew automatically. Paid ones last a year and you remember to renew them once, then forget.

For the overwhelming majority of Indian sites — business sites, blogs, stores taking UPI and card payments through a gateway — the free certificate is the right answer.

## What happens at renewal

Nothing you have to do. AutoSSL checks daily and reissues roughly 30 days before expiry. It only fails if the domain stops resolving to the server, which is worth knowing if you ever move DNS: move the site first, then the DNS, or the certificate will lapse while the domain points somewhere else.

## Common questions

**Is SSL really free on FasterHost?**

Yes. AutoSSL issues and renews Let's Encrypt certificates for every domain and subdomain on every plan, including the cheapest shared plan. It is not a paid add-on and there is no upsell.

**Does SSL affect Google rankings?**

HTTPS is a confirmed, if light, ranking signal. The bigger effect is behavioural: Chrome marks HTTP pages "Not secure", which costs trust and conversions well before it costs rankings.

**Why does my padlock show a warning after installing SSL?**

Mixed content — the page loads over HTTPS but pulls an image, script or stylesheet over HTTP. Update the site URL and run a database search-and-replace to fix the hard-coded links.

**Do I need a separate certificate for www and non-www?**

AutoSSL covers both automatically, along with each subdomain, so no.

## Related

- [How to redirect a domain or page in cPanel](https://www.fasterhost.in/kb/redirect-a-domain-in-cpanel.php)
- [How to create a subdomain in cPanel](https://www.fasterhost.in/kb/create-a-subdomain-in-cpanel.php)
- [How to point your domain to your hosting](https://www.fasterhost.in/kb/point-your-domain-to-hosting.php)
- [Shared Hosting](https://www.fasterhost.in/shared-hosting.php): Fast, affordable hosting for your first site
- [WordPress Hosting](https://www.fasterhost.in/wordpress-hosting.php): Managed WordPress that flies
- [cPanel Hosting](https://www.fasterhost.in/cpanel-hosting.php): cPanel on LiteSpeed and NVMe, served from India