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How to fix a failed Hostinger Lifetime SSL installation

Fix a failed Hostinger Lifetime SSL installation by checking domain pointing, DNS record conflicts, and domain name length, then reinstall.

Updated 1 day ago

Fix a failed Hostinger Lifetime SSL installation by confirming the SSL status, pointing your domain to Hostinger, removing conflicting DNS records, checking the domain name length, and reinstalling the certificate. Lifetime SSL installs automatically within 1–2 hours after you add a website, subdomain, or parked domain to your web, cloud, or Agency hosting plan, and it retries automatically if it fails. Follow these steps if the website still shows as not secure after two hours.

Before you start

  • This guide applies to custom websites using PHP/HTML or WordPress.
  • The website must be added to your hosting plan (e.g. if your website is hosted on a different provider and you only have the domain name in Hostinger, the SSL is managed by your hosting provider).
  • For Hostinger AI Builder, SSL certificates are managed automatically in the background and activate only after you Publish your website.
    • Managing SSL settings is not available for Hostinger AI Builder websites.

Step 1 – Confirm the SSL status

First, ensure that the SSL installation is effectively failed, or if it’s in progress.

  1. Go to Hostinger dashboard → Websites.
  2. Click Dashboard next to the website.
  3. Select Security → SSL on the sidebar.
  4. Check the SSL status
    1. Active: The SSL is installed. Open your website on an incognito/private browser window to verify.
    2. Installing: SSL installation is in progress. Wait up to 2 hours and reload the Hostinger dashboard page to update the status.
    3. Inactive or Failed: The SSL is not installed. Proceed to the next step.

Step 2 – Point your domain to Hostinger

For an SSL to install correctly, your domain or subdomain must be pointed to Hostinger.
  • Ensure your domain uses Hostinger nameservers or points to your hosting IP address via A record.
  • If you use a Content Delivery Network (CDN) like Cloudflare, temporarily set the A record to DNS only (bypass proxy) until the SSL installation completes. You can re-enable the proxy once the certificate is Active.

Allow up to 24 hours for DNS changes to propagate globally.

Step 3 – Check for DNS record conflicts

Certain DNS records can prevent the SSL validation process from completing.

  • A records: Ensure there is only one A record per domain or subdomain to avoid conflicts. If there are more, remove them from your DNS zone.
  • CAA records: Lifetime SSL does not require Certificate Authority Authorization (CAA) records. If there are any CAA records on your domain’s DNS zone, remove them.

Step 3 – Verify domain name length

SSL certificates have technical constraints regarding the length of the domain name.

  • The total length of the domain (including subdomains and extensions like .com) must be 64 characters or fewer.
  • If your domain or subdomain exceeds 64 characters, the SSL installation will fail. In this case, you must use a shorter domain name

Need a shorter domain? Check out our Domain Checker page.

Step 4 – Reinstall the certificate

After correcting any DNS or pointing issues and waited for propagation, retry the SSL installation.

  1. Go to the SSL page of your website on Hostinger dashboard.
  2. Click on the options button (⋮) → Uninstall.
  3. Install a new SSL certificate.

The certificate should become Active within a few minutes if the domain is correctly configured. While HTTPS is forced by default, you can force it manually if needed.

Once these steps are completed, your website will automatically use an encrypted HTTPS connection, ensuring a secure experience for your visitors.

Additional resources