Security is a big concern for any online eCommerce store, especially when you own a WooCommerce store.

Even if you transfer clients to a third-party site to receive payments, you will collect customer data. It’s important that this data doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.

An SSL certificate helps you with this and makes your store secure. It will prevent your site from hackers stealing any user information. 

So In today’s article, I’ll explain everything about WooCommerce force SSL checkout. I’ll also mention a few plugins that will help you to force the SSL to WooCommerce checkout. 

So without any further ado, let’s jump into it. 

Note: I do not recommend serving your site on HTTP if you run an eCommerce store, as it will open the doors for hackers to steal the user’s payment and personal information. HTTPS is a secure protocol and will make your site safe. 

How to Enable the WooCommerce Force SSL Checkout?

If you don’t have any SSL certificate installed and want your site to be served on HTTP and enable the WooCommerce force SSL checkout option, please follow the following steps. 

Note: I’ll later explain the process of installing the SSL certificate and securing your whole site later in this article. 

1. Ensure Yout Site is Using HTTP

First, you must ensure that your site is being served on HTTP protocol. To confirm this, navigate to Settings » General from your WordPress admin dashboard. 

Now in the general settings, ensure that the WordPress URL and the Site Address URL have the HTTP protocol instead of the HTTPS protocol. 

2. Navigate to WooCommerce Advanced Settings

After confirming that, navigate to WooCommerce » Settings » Advanced from your WordPress admin dashboard. 

3. Enable the WooCommerce Force SSL Checkout

The second name of this option is ‘WooCommerce Force Secure Checkout.’ To enable it, click the Force Secure Checkout checkbox. 

Once you enable it, a new option will appear below it. You can enable this option if you want to force the HTTP to your site when users leave the checkout. 

Your whole site or store will be served using the HTTP protocol, but only the checkout page will be served using the HTTPS protocol. 

Note: You must have an SSL certificate installed on your site to make this setting work. 

What is an SSL Certificate?

SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer. It’s a crucial technique for establishing the authenticity of information exchanged over the web. 

It is a verified piece of code that establishes a link between encryption and the hosting business.

Using the secure HTTPS protocol signifies that a website has been verified as secure. This prompts the padlock icon or a conspicuous green bar to appear in the visitor’s browser to reassure them that it is safe to continue browsing. 

To maintain their credibility, reputable websites must employ SSL encryption for their customer’s personal information and financial transactions.

Benefits of Using an SSL Certificate

SSL certificates protect user data, identify website ownership, prevent attackers from creating a fake site, and build user trust. Here are some benefits of a WooCommerce SSL certificate:

• It makes your website secure.
• It boosts your position in search results.
• It helps in winning customers’ trust. 
• It makes web browsing more secure for users. 
• It helps in protecting the information. 

Why Do You Need an SSL Certificate?

Every site needs an SSL certificate, especially if it takes the user’s information. The following are a few reasons why you need an SSL certificate for your site or store. 

• You need people to have faith in your website.
• You want people to make purchases from your online shop.
• The addresses and payment card numbers you are receiving, and sending must be protected.
• You should protect your website’s registration and login processes.
• There are privacy and security standards that must be met.

How to Install an SSL Certificate for WooCommerce?

You have three options to get an SSL certificate for your site. 

1. Hosting Provider

Nowadays, popular web hostings like Bluehost and Hostinger offer free SSL certificates installed automatically once you create a domain. 

But, If you want to install the SSL certificate manually, you can do that from the hosting panel. 

I am using Hostinger web hosting, so I have installed the SSL certificate. Each hosting will have different options and different screen views. You can read the hosting documentation to install the SSL certificate. 

You can also contact your existing hosting provider to ask if they offer a free SSL certificate. If they provide it, you can install it in just a few clicks. 

2. Free SSL Certificate Plugin

You can also install a free WordPress plugin like the Really Simple SSL plugin to install the free SSL certificate. 

The most straightforward SSL plugin available is a Really Simple SSL. This plugin can auto-detect your settings and set up your site to work securely via HTTPS. The shift to HTTPS will also be applied to any incoming requests.

You just need to install and activate the plugin by navigating to Plugins » Add New from your WordPress admin dashboard and following the configuration process to install the SSL certificate. 

You don’t need to dive into any technical stuff to install it. Anybody with a basic knowledge of WordPress and English can easily install the SSL certificate using the plugin. 

3. Paid SSL Certificate

Several companies offer various SSL certificates that can be added to your online shop. In addition, your web server may offer premium SSL certificates and provide installation services for both new and existing online stores.

SSL Certificate prices vary by the certificate authorities. Their annual cost is somewhere around $50-$200 per year. Some suppliers sell add-on services with their certificates, which might increase SSL certificate costs.

I recommend Domain.com for SSL certificates. They’re one of the world’s largest domain registrars and offer the best SSL certificates.

Simple SSL certificate plans start at $26.96/year and include a $10,000 security warranty and TrustLogo site seal. After buying an SSL certificate, your hosting provider can install it.

First, see if you can get a free SSL certificate.

Note: Once you have installed the SSL certificate, please ensure that your WordPress URL and Site URL has the HTTPS protocol in the WordPress general settings. 

Once you install it, everything URL will be served using the HTTPS protocol, but to avoid any errors, you can navigate to Settings » General and ensure the URLs have the HTTPS protocol. 

Conclusion

That’s it for today’s article. 

I hope this guide was helpful to you and you were able to enable the WooCommerce force SSL checkout option and install the SSL certificate on your store. 

An SSL certificate is very important for any online eCommerce store. It will not only help the users to trust your site for entering their card and address information but will also help you boost your Google rankings.