SSL Certificate Types Explained: DV, OV, EV, and Wildcard
TL;DR: SSL certificates come in four main types based on validation level and coverage. Domain Validated (DV) certificates are fastest and cheapest, verifying only domain ownership. Organization Validated (OV) adds company verification. Extended Validation (EV) provides the highest trust with rigorous vetting. Wildcard certificates cover unlimited subdomains. For most indie hackers, a free DV certificate from Let's Encrypt is the right choice.
When you see that padlock icon in your browser's address bar, you're looking at SSL (technically TLS) in action. But not all SSL certificates are created equal. Understanding the differences can save you money, prevent security headaches, and help you choose the right certificate for your specific needs.
What is an SSL Certificate? {#definition}
An SSL certificate is a digital credential that authenticates a website's identity and enables encrypted connections between web servers and browsers. When you visit a site with SSL, your browser verifies the certificate, establishes an encrypted tunnel, and displays security indicators like the padlock icon. The certificate contains information about the domain, the organization (sometimes), and the Certificate Authority (CA) that issued it.
Why SSL Certificate Types Matter for Indie Hackers
You might think "HTTPS is HTTPS" and grab whatever certificate is cheapest. Understanding the types actually matters for several reasons.
Cost ranges wildly across certificate types. DV certificates can be completely free through Let's Encrypt, while EV certificates cost hundreds of dollars per year. Knowing what you actually need prevents overspending on features that provide no practical benefit for your use case.
Validation time varies significantly too. DV certificates issue in minutes, while EV certificates can take weeks due to the extensive verification process. If you're launching fast and need HTTPS immediately, this distinction matters.
While all certificates provide the same encryption strength, some display additional trust indicators that may matter for certain applications. Understanding what each type actually provides helps you make informed decisions.
Coverage needs also vary. A single-domain certificate won't work if you need to secure multiple subdomains. Understanding wildcard and multi-domain options upfront saves headaches when you realize your certificate doesn't cover api.yourdomain.com.
The Four Main Types of SSL Certificates
Domain Validated (DV) Certificates
DV certificates are the most basic type. The Certificate Authority only verifies that you control the domain and nothing more. The validation process is straightforward: you request a certificate for yourdomain.com, prove control via email (to [email protected]), DNS TXT record, or HTTP file upload, and the certificate is issued, usually within minutes.
With a DV certificate, you get HTTPS encryption, the padlock icon in browsers, and basic domain authentication. What you don't get is your organization name in the certificate, enhanced trust indicators, or any identity verification beyond domain ownership.
DV certificates range from free (Let's Encrypt, Cloudflare) to around $100 per year from commercial CAs. They're ideal for personal sites, blogs, small SaaS products, APIs, and internal tools. Common providers include Let's Encrypt, ZeroSSL, Cloudflare, Comodo, and DigiCert.
Organization Validated (OV) Certificates
OV certificates add a layer of identity verification beyond just domain control. The CA confirms that your organization legally exists and that you're authorized to request the certificate.
The validation process involves submitting organization details including your legal name, address, and phone number. The CA then verifies your organization exists through business registries, Dun & Bradstreet, or similar services. They also verify your authority to request the certificate, typically through a phone call combined with domain verification. The entire process typically takes one to three business days.
With an OV certificate, you get everything from DV plus your organization name embedded in the certificate details and a verified business identity. However, you don't get special browser indicators beyond the standard padlock, so the visual experience for users is identical to DV.
OV certificates typically cost $50-$200 per year. They're appropriate for business websites and professional services, or situations where you want your organization identity embedded in the certificate details for B2B credibility.
Extended Validation (EV) Certificates
EV certificates represent the highest level of validation. The CA performs rigorous checks on your organization, including legal status, operational existence, and authorization.
The validation process is extensive. You submit detailed organization documentation, and the CA verifies your legal existence through articles of incorporation and business registration. They verify operational existence by confirming your physical address and phone. They verify the identity of the person requesting the certificate. They may conduct additional vetting like jurisdiction checks. The entire process can take one to two weeks or more.
With an EV certificate, you get everything from OV plus your full organization name verified and embedded, the highest assurance level available, and extensive organization information in the certificate details.
However, and this is important, you no longer get the green address bar that EV certificates were famous for. Major browsers removed this visual distinction in 2019. Users now see the same padlock icon for all certificate types. This change significantly reduced the practical benefit of EV for most websites.
EV certificates cost $100-$500+ per year. They're now primarily appropriate for financial institutions, government sites, large e-commerce operations, and situations where compliance frameworks specifically require EV validation.
Wildcard Certificates
Wildcard certificates aren't a validation level. They're a coverage type that can be combined with any validation level. A wildcard covers a domain and all its single-level subdomains.
For example, a wildcard certificate for *.example.com covers example.com, www.example.com, api.example.com, blog.example.com, and any other single-level subdomain. However, it does not cover multi-level subdomains like second.level.example.com, nor does it cover different domains like example.org.
Wildcard certificates generally cost two to three times more than single-domain certificates of the same validation level. They're ideal for sites with multiple subdomains, SaaS platforms that provision customer subdomains, and organizations running many services on different subdomains.
Let's Encrypt offers free wildcard DV certificates, though they require DNS validation rather than the simpler HTTP validation method.
Choosing the Right SSL Certificate
Assessing Your Needs
Start by asking yourself a few questions. How many domains and subdomains need coverage? Do you have compliance requirements like PCI-DSS or SOC 2 that mandate specific certificate types? How quickly do you need the certificate? What's your budget?
Starting with DV
For most indie hackers and small businesses, a DV certificate provides identical encryption to more expensive options, and the padlock looks the same to users regardless of validation level. Use DV when you're building a SaaS, API, or web application, when you're a solo founder or small team, when you need certificates quickly, or when budget is a concern.
Considering OV or EV
Consider OV when you want your organization identity embedded in certificate details, when some B2B clients specifically require it, or when you're a registered business wanting to display legitimacy in the certificate itself (though users won't see this without inspecting the certificate).
Consider EV only when compliance frameworks specifically require it, when you're in financial services or government with regulatory requirements, or when your security team mandates it for policy reasons. Since browsers no longer display EV certificates differently, the practical user-facing benefit has largely disappeared.
Choosing Coverage Type
For a single domain, you get one certificate covering one domain with and without www.example.comexample.com and www.example.com are both included.
For a wildcard, you get one certificate covering a domain and all single-level subdomains: *.example.com.
For multiple different domains, you need a multi-domain certificate (also called SAN certificates), which covers multiple specific domains like example.com, example.org, and anotherdomain.com on a single certificate.
Selecting a Provider
Free options work well for most use cases. Let's Encrypt is the industry standard with wide support and automatic renewal via ACME. Cloudflare provides free certificates with their CDN/proxy service. ZeroSSL offers a free tier as well.
Paid options make sense when you need dedicated support, specific compliance documentation, or features like warranty coverage. DigiCert offers enterprise-grade certificates with excellent support. Comodo/Sectigo provides a wide range of options. GlobalSign has strong enterprise offerings.
SSL Certificate Best Practices
Automate renewal because SSL certificates expire -90 days for Let's Encrypt, one to two years for commercial certificates. Manual renewal processes eventually fail when someone forgets or changes jobs. Tools like Certbot handle renewal automatically and prevent outages.
Use strong key sizes by generating at least 2048-bit RSA keys or 256-bit ECDSA keys. Never reuse private keys across certificates, and never use keys from previous certificates when renewing.
Install the full certificate chain including intermediate certificates. Missing intermediates cause browser warnings in some contexts but not others, making problems hard to diagnose.
Monitor expiration dates even with automation in place. Automated systems fail, servers get reconfigured, and renewal processes break silently. Monitoring catches these failures before they cause downtime.
Keep private keys secure by storing them with restrictive permissions (600 on Linux), never committing them to version control, and using separate keys for each environment.
Common SSL Certificate Mistakes to Avoid
Paying for EV when DV suffices is increasingly common. Since browsers removed EV visual indicators in 2019, you're paying hundreds of dollars for minimal practical benefit unless compliance specifically requires it. The encryption is identical.
Forgetting about subdomains catches many people off guard. A single-domain certificate won't work for api.yourdomain.com or staging.yourdomain.com. Plan your subdomain needs upfront when choosing certificate coverage.
Manual renewal processes guarantee eventual failure. If you're still manually downloading and installing certificates, you will eventually forget, and your site will go down. Automate everything.
Not testing the certificate chain causes intermittent problems. An incomplete chain works in some browsers and fails in others, making the issue difficult to reproduce and diagnose. Test your installation thoroughly across different browsers and devices.
Using self-signed certificates in production destroys user trust. Self-signed certificates trigger browser warnings that most users won't bypass. They're only appropriate for development environments where you control all the clients.
Ignoring certificate expiration until it's too late creates emergencies. An expired certificate breaks your entire site and takes time to fix. Monitor proactively rather than discovering the problem when users start complaining.
How SecurityBot Helps with SSL Certificates
Managing SSL certificates across multiple domains is tedious and error-prone. One missed renewal can take your site offline, damage user trust, and hurt your search rankings.
SecurityBot monitors your SSL certificates and alerts you before problems occur. You get expiration alerts at 90, 30, and 7 days before expiry. Certificate change detection notifies you when certificates are renewed or replaced. Chain validation catches incomplete installations. Issuer monitoring detects unexpected certificate changes. A multi-domain dashboard tracks all your certificates in one place.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is a free SSL certificate as secure as a paid one?
Yes. Encryption strength is identical between free and paid certificates. A Let's Encrypt DV certificate provides the same encryption as a $500 EV certificate. You're paying for validation level and support, not stronger security.
Do I need an EV certificate for e-commerce?
No. Since browsers removed EV visual indicators in 2019, users can't distinguish EV sites from DV sites visually. A DV certificate with proper security practices is sufficient for most e-commerce. Major payment processors like Stripe use DV certificates.
Can I use the same certificate on multiple servers?
Yes. You can install the same certificate on multiple servers for load balancing or redundancy. However, this means sharing the private key across servers, which has security implications. Some organizations prefer separate certificates per server to limit the impact of key compromise.
What happens when my SSL certificate expires?
Browsers display security warnings that most users won't bypass, and many will assume your site is malicious or compromised. Effectively, your site becomes inaccessible. Automated monitoring and renewal prevent this scenario entirely.
How do wildcard certificates affect security?
If a wildcard certificate's private key is compromised, attackers can impersonate any subdomain covered by that certificate. Consider whether the convenience of a single certificate outweighs this risk, especially for sensitive subdomains that handle authentication or payments.
Last updated: January 2026 | Written by Jason Gilmore, Founder of SecurityBot