Question :-
If I signed up for a year with Hostmonster, and used their free domain feature to register my domain, does that mean they actually own this domain?
I checked whois and Hostmonster is listed as the owner. Does this mean I cannot switch to another host and own this domain? And when my hosting plan runs out with Hostmonster, the domain is no longer mine?
Answer :-
Hostmonster is only listed as the owner if you have privacy turned on. Turn privacy off and it will list you as the owner. Hostmonster is also a domain registrar, just like all other domain registrars. You can host that domain anywhere you like, or you can move the domain to a different registrar. It’s not “tied” to Hostmonster in any way.