The most expensive website problem isn't a bad design. It's discovering, two years later, that the domain, the hosting or the code belongs to the person who built it. Here's what you should own — and how to check.
1. The domain name
Your domain should be registered in your account at a registrar, with your email as the owner contact. If the developer registers it "for you" in their account, you're one disagreement away from losing your address on the internet.
2. The hosting account
Hosting should be in your account too, with the developer added as a team member. That way you can remove access at any time without the site going down.
3. The code
Ask for the source code in a repository (for example GitHub) that you own. With a website builder, there is no exportable code — which is the main trade-off of tools like Wix and Squarespace. We cover that in Wix alternative: custom vs Wix.
4. Analytics and search accounts
Google Analytics (or a privacy-friendly alternative), Google Search Console and your Google Business Profile should all be owned by you. Years of traffic data are valuable — don't let them sit in someone else's account.
5. Content and images
You should have the right to use every image, font and piece of copy on the site. Stock photos and fonts need licences that cover your business, and those licences should be in your name or transferable.
A simple handover checklist
Before the final payment, confirm you can log in to:
- Domain registrar
- Hosting account
- Code repository
- Analytics and Search Console
- CMS (if you have one)
And ask for a short document explaining how it all fits together.
That's how we hand over every project — it's in our pricing on every plan, and it means leaving us is always an option.