ReadyWebs Types of SSL Certificates: DV, OV, and EV Compared
Types of SSL Certificates: DV, OV, and EV Compared
How We Compared: We examined each option against consistent benchmarks drawn from performance benchmarks, uptime monitoring, and hands-on testing. Factors in our assessment included page load speed, scalability, customer support quality. Brands featured did not pay for or influence their inclusion.
Security Note: This article discusses website security concepts for educational purposes. Always consult a qualified security professional before implementing security changes on production systems.
SSL certificates come in three validation levels: Domain Validated (DV), Organization Validated (OV), and Extended Validation (EV). All three provide the same level of encryption. They differ in how thoroughly the certificate authority verifies the identity of the certificate requester, which affects the trust signals displayed in browsers.
What You Need to Know
Domain Validated (DV) certificates verify only that you control the domain. They are issued in minutes, cost nothing (via Let’s Encrypt) to moderate amounts, and display the standard padlock icon. DV certificates are sufficient for most websites including blogs, business sites, and small e-commerce stores. Organization Validated (OV) certificates verify your organization’s legal existence and physical address. They take 1-3 days to issue and cost $50-200/year. OV certificates display your organization name in the certificate details. Extended Validation (EV) certificates require thorough vetting of your organization. They cost $100-500/year and take 1-2 weeks to issue. EV certificates once displayed the company name in the browser bar, but most browsers no longer show this distinction.
Which SSL Type Do You Actually Need
For most websites — blogs, small business sites, portfolios, and informational sites — a free DV certificate from Let’s Encrypt provides everything you need. The encryption is identical to a $500 EV certificate. Browsers show the same padlock icon regardless of certificate type. Google does not differentiate between SSL types for search ranking purposes.
Consider an OV certificate if your organization wants its verified name displayed in the certificate details (visible when clicking the padlock and viewing certificate information). Financial institutions, government agencies, and large corporations sometimes require OV or EV certificates as part of compliance requirements.
EV certificates have lost most of their visible advantage since Chrome and Firefox removed the green company name display from the address bar. The extended vetting process still provides the highest level of identity verification, but the user-facing difference from DV certificates is now minimal.
Wildcard and Multi-Domain SSL Certificates
Wildcard certificates cover your main domain and all subdomains at one level (*.example.com covers blog.example.com, shop.example.com, and mail.example.com). These are essential for WordPress Multisite subdomain installations and sites with multiple subdomains. Let’s Encrypt issues free wildcard certificates using DNS validation.
Multi-domain (SAN) certificates cover multiple distinct domains (example.com, example.net, different-site.com) under a single certificate. These are useful for organizations managing several related domains from the same server.
SSL Certificate Management
Set up automatic renewal for Let’s Encrypt certificates, which expire every 90 days. Most managed hosting providers handle renewal automatically. For VPS hosting, Certbot (the Let’s Encrypt client) includes automatic renewal scheduling. Monitor certificate expiration with a tool like UptimeRobot, which can alert you days before a certificate expires to prevent the browser security warnings that an expired certificate triggers.
Transitioning from HTTP to HTTPS
If your site is not yet on HTTPS or you are migrating from a self-signed certificate to a proper SSL certificate, implement the transition carefully to avoid disrupting your search rankings and user experience. Install the SSL certificate through your hosting control panel or Let’s Encrypt client. Update your WordPress Address and Site Address in Settings to use https:// URLs. Run a search-and-replace on your database to update all internal URLs from http:// to https://, using WP-CLI or Better Search Replace.
Add a 301 redirect in your .htaccess file or Nginx configuration to redirect all HTTP requests to HTTPS automatically. This ensures visitors who have bookmarked your old HTTP URLs, and search engines with your HTTP URLs indexed, are seamlessly redirected to the encrypted versions.
After implementing SSL, check for mixed content warnings using browser developer tools or a tool like Why No Padlock. Mixed content occurs when your HTTPS page loads resources (images, scripts, stylesheets) over HTTP, which triggers browser warnings and may block those resources from loading entirely. Common sources of mixed content include hardcoded HTTP image URLs in older blog posts, theme files referencing HTTP resources, and third-party widgets or ad scripts that have not been updated to HTTPS.
Submit the HTTPS version of your site to Google Search Console and update your sitemap URL. Google treats HTTP and HTTPS versions as separate properties, so your Search Console data will not carry over automatically. Notify any external services, directories, and backlink sources about your URL change to maintain the SEO value of existing external links pointing to your site.
This content is for informational purposes only and reflects independently researched guidance. Platform features and pricing change frequently — verify current details with providers.