Purchase a personal test certificate
Compared with commercial certificates, personal test certificates lower the barrier to enabling HTTPS in development and testing environments. This topic describes how to purchase the free and pro versions of personal test certificates, including claim rules, the purchase process, and important notes.
Purchase guide
A personal test certificate (free and pro) can protect only a single domain. It does not support domains with special-suffix TLDs, such as
.edu,.gov,.org,.jp,.pay,.bank,.live,.nuclear, and.ru.Personal test certificates (free and pro) do not guarantee the stability of OCSP (Online Certificate Status Protocol), which may affect real-time browser validation of certificate status. If you need to use the certificate in production, we recommend purchasing a commercial certificate.
Personal test certificates are available in two types: Individual Test Certificate (Formerly Free Certificate) and Individual Test Certificate (Pro). The following table compares the two types:
Comparison item | Individual Test Certificate (Formerly Free Certificate) | Individual Test Certificate (Pro) |
Cost | Free | CNY 34.00 per certificate |
Certificate service period | 90 days | 6 months |
Supported certificate type | DV (Domain Validation) | DV |
Technical support | Not supported | Supported |
Supported domain type | Protects only a single domain. Does not support domains with special-suffix TLDs. For details, see the notes above. | Same as the free version. |
Purchase a personal test certificate (free)
Each free certificate is valid for 90 days and is designed for development and testing environments, helping developers simulate a real HTTPS production environment.
Purchase rules
Each Alibaba Cloud individual or enterprise user (verified by real-name registration) can obtain up to 20 free personal test certificates per calendar year through the purchase process described in this topic.
After you claim a free personal test certificate, order cancellation is not supported.
If an application for a Individual Test Certificate (Free) is not submitted within three months, the system automatically issues a refund with a refund amount of 0. Refunded Individual Test Certificate (Free) do not count toward the annual quota and can be purchased again.
The free certificate quota is shared between V1.0 and V2.0. If you have already claimed the free quota on the Certificate Management Service V1.0 page (Certificate Management > SSL Certificate Management (V1.0 Discontinued)) under the Individual Test Certificate (Formerly Free Certificate) tab, the V2.0 console will show the quota as used. If the V2.0 page indicates insufficient quota or you cannot find your claimed certificates, go to the V1.0 page to view the quota and create and apply for certificates.
Issued certificates do not automatically return free quota upon expiration. To continue using free certificates, you need to use remaining quota for the current year to apply for new certificates.
A calendar year runs from January 1 to December 31. The free certificate quota is reset at 24:00:00 on December 31 each year. Certificates that have already been issued are not affected. You can apply for free personal test certificates for the new year starting from 00:00:00 on January 1.
If multiple Alibaba Cloud accounts (UIDs) are associated with the same real-name registration entity, and one of the accounts has already claimed a free personal test certificate, other accounts under the same entity cannot claim it again.
If you have already claimed your free certificate quota for the current year:
Wait for the next calendar year, when the system will reset your free certificate quota.
Purchase a Individual Test Certificate (Pro) for more certificates and a longer validity period.
For production environments, you can purchase a commercial SSL certificate.
Procedure
Sign in to the SSL Certificates Service.
In the left-side navigation pane, choose Certificate Management > SSL Certificate Management V2.0.
On the Individual Test Certificate (Formerly Free Certificate) tab, click Buy Now.
Check your free certificate quota. If you see a message such as The enterprise already obtained the quota for free certificates this year. or The current account already obtained the quota for free certificates this year., it means the account does not meet the purchase rules. Check whether another account under the same primary account has already claimed free personal test certificates.
After confirming that you have a free certificate quota, configure the following parameters, select the Certificate Management Service Terms of Service and Technical Support Agreement for Certificate Management Service, click Buy Now, and complete the payment.
Parameter
Description
Product
Select Individual Test Certificate.
Certificate Type
Select Individual Test Certificate (Free). This is a free certificate that is valid for 90 days after issuance.
Purchase Quantity
Each Alibaba Cloud individual or enterprise user (verified by real-name registration) can claim 20 free certificates per calendar year.
Expert Services
The Application Assistance and Deployment services help you resolve issues when using SSL certificates. Alibaba Cloud helps you prepare application materials, coordinates with the CA to expedite certificate issuance, and provides remote video guidance through experts to troubleshoot installation or configuration issues. For details, see Purchase value-added services for certificates.
Not Required
Assistance Application: Assists with SSL certificate applications during business hours (9:00–18:00) on workdays.
Deployment: Helps troubleshoot SSL certificate deployment issues during business hours (9:00–18:00) on workdays.
Assistance Application + Deployment: End-to-end assistance for certificate application and deployment, with support also available on non-workdays (9:00–18:00), to help you quickly complete certificate issuance and deployment.
Purchase a personal test certificate (pro)
Usage notes
Individual Test Certificate (Pro) does not support automatic hosting (you must manually re-apply for and deploy the certificate after it expires).
Individual Test Certificate (Pro) does not support direct renewal. Before the certificate expires, you need to purchase a new Individual Test Certificate (Pro) certificate quota, submit an application for issuance, and then deploy the new certificate to your server.
Sign in to the SSL Certificates Service.
In the left-side navigation pane, choose Certificate Management > SSL Certificate Management V2.0.
On the Individual Test Certificate (Formerly Free Certificate) tab, click Buy Now.
Configure the following parameters, read and accept the service agreements, and complete the payment.
Parameter
Description
Product
Select Individual Test Certificate.
Certificate Type
Select Individual Test Certificate (Pro).
Purchase Quantity
The number of certificates to purchase.
Expert Services
The Application Assistance and Deployment services help you resolve issues when using SSL certificates. Alibaba Cloud helps you prepare application materials, coordinates with the CA to expedite certificate issuance, and provides remote video guidance through experts to troubleshoot installation or configuration issues. For details, see Purchase value-added services for certificates.
Not Required
Assistance Application: Assists with SSL certificate applications during business hours (9:00–18:00) on workdays.
Deployment: Helps troubleshoot SSL certificate deployment issues during business hours (9:00–18:00) on workdays.
Assistance Application + Deployment: End-to-end assistance for certificate application and deployment, with support also available on non-workdays (9:00–18:00), to help you quickly complete certificate issuance and deployment.
FAQ
Do I need to fill in the resource group and tag group when applying for a free SSL certificate?
The resource group and tag group are optional and do not need to be filled in.
Does a free SSL certificate support renewal after expiration?
Renewal is not supported. After a free personal test certificate expires, you need to apply for a new free certificate from the console (which consumes quota for the current year, or you can wait for the system to automatically reclaim unused certificate quota), and then redeploy the new certificate to your server to replace the old one.
Does a free SSL certificate support wildcard domains or multi-domain binding?
No. Free personal test certificates support only single domains (DV type), with each certificate protecting one domain. If you apply for a www subdomain (such as www.example.com), the root domain (example.com) is usually included automatically. However, other subdomains or different domains require separate certificates, with each certificate consuming one free quota.
Why does the console show that my free quota is used up when I haven't actually used that many?
This is usually because the quota was claimed on the SSL Certificate Management (V1.0 Discontinued) page, while you are viewing or operating on the V2.0 page. The free certificate quota is shared between the V1.0 and V2.0 pages. Sign in to the SSL Certificate Management (V1.0 Discontinued) console and check the actual remaining quota under the Individual Test Certificate (Formerly Free Certificate) tab to apply for certificates.
What is the impact of using a personal test certificate in a production environment?
Although personal test certificates are officially recommended for development and testing environments only (due to no guaranteed OCSP stability and no SLA coverage), using them in production will not typically result in being blocked or direct certificate invalidation. For business stability and security, we recommend purchasing a commercial SSL certificate for production use.
Next steps
After purchasing a certificate, you need to submit an application to the CA. For more information, see Submit a CA application.
If you encounter issues with certificate application or configuration while using a personal test certificate, see FAQ about personal test certificates.