Do You Actually Own Your Website? A Five-Minute Check

Last Updated on October 30, 2026

You own your website only if your business holds the accounts behind it: the domain name, the hosting, the website login, your email and your Google accounts. If any of those sit in a designer’s or agency’s name, they control it, whatever you paid. Five minutes and five logins will tell you where you stand.

The problem usually shows up at the worst time. You want to change supplier, the old one goes quiet, and you find the domain was registered in their name. In UK business forums the same questions come back year after year: can my designer keep my domain, and can they charge me to release it?

This is not legal advice. It is a practical check to run before there is a problem.

The mistake most businesses make

They treat the website as one thing that the designer “does”. It is actually five separate accounts. Each one can be in a different name, and each one can lock you out on its own.

The five-minute check

1. Your domain name. Find out which company your domain is registered with (the registrar). Then check you can sign in to that account yourself, and that your business is named as the owner (the registrant). If only your designer can sign in, ask for it to be moved to an account in your name.
2. Your hosting. This is where the website files live. Check whose name and card the hosting account is under, and that you have your own login.
3. Your website login. If you use WordPress or a website builder, make sure you have your own administrator account, not a shared login.
4. Your email. Business email often runs on the same domain. If you lose the domain, you can lose the email too. Check you can sign in to the account that controls it.
5. Your Google accounts. Google Business Profile, Search Console, Analytics and Google Ads should each be owned by an account you control, with others added as users. Our guide to leaving your marketing agency covers these in more detail.

Write the result down: account, who it is in the name of, and who can sign in. Keep the list somewhere other than the website itself.

If your domain is in someone else’s name

Start politely and in writing. Ask for the domain to be moved to an account in your business’s name, and ask for any transfer code you need. Most suppliers will do it.

If they will not, there is a route for UK domains. For names ending .uk, Nominet runs a Dispute Resolution Service. In one case reported by law firm Chubb Bulleid in August 2024, a web developer had registered a company’s domain on its behalf, then stopped responding. An independent expert ordered the domain transferred to the company and called the developer’s behaviour abusive.

Each case turns on its own facts, and other endings (such as .com) follow different rules. Take advice before you start a dispute.

When you hire someone new

Put ownership in writing before any work starts. A one-line clause does it: the domain, hosting and all accounts are registered to the client, and the supplier is added as a user. If a supplier will not agree to that, ask why.

Questions people ask

Can my web designer keep my domain name?

It depends on how it was registered and what you agreed. Ask in writing for it to be moved into your business’s name. For .uk domains, Nominet’s Dispute Resolution Service is a route if a supplier will not co-operate. Take advice on your own case.

How do I check who owns my domain name?

Find out which registrar holds your domain, then check you can sign in to that account and that your business is named as the registrant. If only your designer can sign in, ask for the domain to be moved to your own account.

What accounts should my business own for its website?

Five: the domain name, the hosting, the website administrator login, the email account and your Google accounts (Business Profile, Search Console, Analytics and Ads). Suppliers should be added as users, not owners.

Can I lose my email if I lose my domain?

Yes. Business email usually runs on your domain, so whoever controls the domain can control where your email goes. Check you can sign in to the account that manages it.

The takeaway

If your name is not on the account, you do not own it. Check the five logins today, while everyone is still answering your emails.

Want to see how your site looks to Google and the AI engines? Run the free Visibility Check.

Whito

Whito is an independent UK research publisher. We publish research on how UK businesses are found, trusted and priced: what they cost to market, how their sectors work, and who actually gets recommended. Studies are free to read, every figure carries the date it was checked, and nobody pays to appear.

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