For E-Commerce & Retail

Websites and hosting for E-Commerce & Retail in Kenya

Take orders and M-Pesa payments while the shop is closed.

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A rocket launching from a laptop
The situation

What do E-Commerce & Retail need from a website?

Most Kenyan shoppers now look a business up on their phone before they buy. They compare prices, check whether an item is in stock and ask on WhatsApp before making the trip or sending money. A shop that shows its range clearly online, with prices and a simple way to pay, gets those orders without waiting for the customer to walk in.

Trade is the largest part of Kenya's small-business economy. The KNBS 2016 MSME survey counted 4.57 million businesses in wholesale, retail and motor repair, out of 7.41 million in total, and found that 56.5 per cent of small businesses did not advertise at all. A retailer with a proper website stands out in a crowded market simply by being easy to find and easy to buy from.

We host online stores built on WordPress and WooCommerce or other shop software, with a free SSL certificate on every plan so checkout pages load over HTTPS. A small catalogue runs well on shared hosting, and a busy store with thousands of products can move to Corporate Hosting or a VPS as orders grow.

Common problems

What usually goes wrong?

Customers ask before they buy

Staff lose hours answering the same questions on WhatsApp about prices, sizes and stock, and sales slip away when replies come late.

Social media alone is fragile

A shop that sells only through a social page depends on the platform's reach, and a hacked or suspended account can wipe out the storefront overnight.

Payments are hard to track

M-Pesa confirmations arrive as text messages, so matching payments to orders by hand leads to missed deliveries and disputes.

How we solve it

How does NairoHost help?

A catalogue that answers questions

Every product has photos, prices, sizes and stock status, so buyers can decide before they message you.

A storefront you own

Your shop lives on your own .co.ke or .com domain, and social posts link back to it instead of replacing it.

Orders and payments in one place

An e-commerce checkout with an M-Pesa payment plugin records each order with its payment, so dispatch works from one list.

99.9%

Uptime

Free

SSL on every plan

M-Pesa

Pay yearly in shillings

24/7

Support in English & Swahili

What's included

What should a website for E-Commerce & Retail include?

WooCommerce-ready hosting

Install WordPress and WooCommerce on shared hosting and manage products, orders and customers from one dashboard.

Free SSL on checkout

Every plan includes an SSL certificate, so product and payment pages load over HTTPS.

M-Pesa checkout plugins

Connect an M-Pesa payment plugin so customers pay by STK push at checkout.

Order emails from your domain

Order confirmations and receipts go out from an address on your own domain rather than a free mailbox.

Delivery and pickup options

Set delivery zones and fees by area, or let customers choose to collect from the shop.

Room to grow

Move from shared hosting to Corporate Hosting or a VPS when the catalogue and traffic outgrow the starter plan.

Getting started

How do you get started?

  • Product pages with photos, prices and stock status
  • M-Pesa checkout plugin connected
  • Free SSL certificate active on every page
  • Delivery areas and fees listed
  • Order emails sent from your own domain
See plans

  1. Pick a domain and plan

    Register a domain that matches your shop name and choose a hosting plan sized for your catalogue.

  2. Add your best sellers first

    Upload the products that bring the most enquiries, with clear photos, prices and sizes.

  3. Set up payment and delivery

    Connect M-Pesa checkout and list the areas you deliver to, with fees and timelines.

  4. Point customers to the site

    Put the web address on your social pages, receipts, packaging and WhatsApp status.

Recommended

Which plans suit E-Commerce & Retail?

WordPress Hosting

From KES 15,000/yr

Optimised, managed WordPress hosting built on LiteSpeed with pre-installed WP, automatic updates, staging environments,...

See details

Corporate Hosting

From KES 10,000/yr

High-performance hosting for established businesses and e-commerce sites that demand reliability, speed, and premium sup...

See details

Domain Registration

From KES 1,500/yr

Register your perfect domain name. We offer .KE Kenyan domains and popular international TLDs with free WHOIS privacy.

See details
All 47 counties

Where in Kenya do we host E-Commerce & Retail?

Nairobi

Nairobi

Coast

Kilifi Kwale Lamu Mombasa Taita-Taveta Tana River

North Eastern

Garissa Mandera Wajir

Eastern

Embu Isiolo Kitui Machakos Makueni Marsabit Meru Tharaka-Nithi

Central

Kiambu Kirinyaga Murang'a Nyandarua Nyeri

Rift Valley

Baringo Bomet Elgeyo-Marakwet Kajiado Kericho Laikipia Nakuru Nandi Narok Samburu Trans-Nzoia Turkana Uasin Gishu West Pokot

Western

Bungoma Busia Kakamega Vihiga

Nyanza

Homa Bay Kisii Kisumu Migori Nyamira Siaya
Questions

E-Commerce & Retail: questions answered

Can I accept M-Pesa on my online shop?
Yes. WooCommerce and most shop software support M-Pesa payment plugins that send an STK push to the customer's phone at checkout. You need a Paybill or Till number from Safaricom and the plugin's API credentials. Our hosting supports the plugins, and the free SSL certificate keeps the checkout on HTTPS.
Which hosting plan suits a small online shop?
A shop with up to a few hundred products usually starts well on shared hosting. If you expect thousands of products, heavy traffic from promotions or several staff managing orders at once, Corporate Hosting or a VPS gives the store more resources. You can move up to a bigger plan later as the shop grows.
Do I still need social media if I have a website?
Yes, but the two do different jobs. Social media helps people discover your products, while the website is where they browse the full range, check prices and pay. Linking every post to a product page turns attention into orders you can track, and the website keeps working even if an account is restricted.
Are my store's backups included?
Corporate Hosting is backed up daily. On other plans you can add CodeGuard for daily backups you can restore yourself. For an online shop that takes orders every day, having a recent backup is worth arranging from the start, because orders and customer records change constantly.
Can I get a refund if the hosting doesn't suit my shop?
Shared hosting comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee under our Terms of Service. That gives you time to install your store, test checkout and confirm the plan fits before you commit for the rest of the year.
How do I pay for hosting?
Plans are priced in Kenyan shillings and can be paid yearly by M-Pesa. There is no card or foreign currency needed, and support is available 24/7 in English and Swahili if you need help getting the store online.
Keep going

Related industries

Supermarkets & Minimarts Fashion, Tailoring & Boutiques Phone & Electronics Shops

Get your online shops website online

Pick a plan, pay with M-Pesa, and talk to support 24/7 in English or Swahili.

See plans