leaving your website company • 2026
Who Owns My Website? What to Check Before You Leave
You own your website only if you control its domain, its content and a copy of the site; if a web company registered the domain, built the design on its own system, or holds your logins, much of it may stay with them when you cancel. Hibu, Thryv and Scorpion each say in their own terms that some parts stay with them, so leaving usually means you need a new website.
This is not about blaming anyone. These companies publish their terms, and most owners simply never read them. Take the five-question check below. It takes two minutes and tells you what to secure first.
01 • two-minute check
Do I own my website?
Do you own your website?
Answer all five to see your result. Nothing is saved or sent.
The questions follow the order that matters when you leave. Your domain comes first, because it is your address and your email. Then your login to it. Then your Google Business Profile, which is often where customers find you first. Then your photos and text. Then the site itself.
02 • five separate things
What does owning a website actually mean?
A website is not one thing. It is several pieces, and each can belong to someone different. When people say "my website", they usually mean all of them at once.
- The domain. Your address, like yourbusiness.com. Whoever is listed as the registrant controls it. Your email usually depends on it too.
- The content. Your words, photos, logo and reviews. Some of it you made. Some of it the company may have written or licensed.
- The design and code. How the site looks and works. If it was built on the company's own system, you often cannot take it.
- The hosting. The computer the site runs on. When you stop paying, it stops.
- The accounts around it. Google Business Profile, analytics, ads, social pages and call tracking numbers.
You can own some pieces and rent others. Renting is not wrong. The problem is not knowing which is which until the day you cancel.
03 • in their own words
What do Hibu, Thryv and Scorpion say about ownership?
| Company | Domain | Design and content | When you leave |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hibu (USA) | A domain Hibu provides is registered to Hibu. You can ask Hibu to transfer it to your name. | Hibu owns the IP in what it creates for the services. | Hibu is not responsible for storing your data or content after cancellation. |
| Thryv (USA, CA, AU, NZ) | Released on termination if it was your domain originally. If Thryv registered it, ask in writing for a transfer. | Thryv-created content and the website design are Thryv's property. Your own content (Client Content) is released. | Account and website are taken down. Data may be kept up to 13 months, or deleted immediately. |
| Scorpion (USA) | Yours, according to Scorpion's FAQ. | Content and imagery are yours. The underlying system is not. | You get static files, design assets and content, and rebuild on a CMS of your choice. |
Each company describes this differently, and fairly: Scorpion says plainly that you own your assets but not its system. Thryv releases your own content and your original domain. Hibu offers to help transfer a domain into your name. But all three point to the same practical result. When you leave, the website as it runs today does not come with you in a form you can switch back on.
Read the full detail for your company: cancelling Hibu, cancelling Thryv, or leaving Scorpion.
04 • the usual outcome
What do I keep and lose when I cancel my website company?
What you keep
- Your domain, if it is in your name or you get it transferred first
- Your own photos, text and logo, if you saved them
- Your Google Business Profile, if you are its primary owner
- Your customer list and reviews you collected yourself
What you lose
- The live website, once the service ends
- Design and content the company created, in many contracts
- Call tracking numbers that belong to the company
- Any data the company does not have to keep after you leave
05 • order matters
What should I secure before I cancel?
Do these before you give notice, not after. Once you cancel, you lose leverage, and sometimes access.
- 1Look up your domain on ICANN Lookup and see who it is registered to. If it is not you, ask in writing for it to be transferred to you. How to get your domain back.
- 2Get your own login to the registrar, or move the domain to a registrar account in your name.
- 3Make yourself the primary owner of your Google Business Profile. How.
- 4Save every page's text, every photo and your logo.
- 5Ask in writing what files you will receive when you leave, and when.
- 6Check your contract dates: the minimum term, the renewal date and the notice period.
- 7Have your new website ready before the old one goes offline.
Notice periods catch people out
Thryv's terms, for example, require notice at least 30 days before the end of your current period, or the subscription renews. Set a reminder below with your contract end date.
06 • the honest conclusion
Do I need a new website if I leave?
In most cases, yes. Scorpion says you will need to rebuild on a CMS of your choice. Thryv's design stays with Thryv. Hibu's terms say Hibu owns the IP in what it creates. Even when you get files back, they are not a website you can turn on tomorrow.
That is not bad news if you plan for it. A new site you actually own, on your own domain, means you never have to read this page again. Wondering if it is worth it? Run your own numbers in the rented website vs owning calculator.
I will design a new homepage for your business in 48 hours, free, before you cancel anything or pay me anything.
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Which guide do I need?
before you pay anything
Free homepage demo in 48 hours
I design a new homepage for your business. You see it first. You only pay if you want the full website.
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Remind me before my deadline
One email before your date, so it does not sneak up on you. Nothing else.
questions
Frequently asked questions
01. If a company built my website, do I own it?
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Not automatically. It depends on your contract. Many providers own the design and anything they created, while you own the content you supplied. Check who the domain is registered to first.
02. How do I find out who owns my domain?
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Search it on ICANN Lookup. It shows the registrar and, where not hidden by privacy, the registrant. If privacy hides it, ask your registrar or web company in writing who the registrant is.
03. Can a web company refuse to give me my domain?
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If the company is the registrant, it legally controls the domain, so you need its cooperation. Ask in writing. Hibu, for example, says it will assist with transferring a domain into your name.
04. Will my Google ranking survive if I change website company?
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Your best chance is keeping the same domain, keeping your Google Business Profile, and launching the new site before the old one goes down.
05. Should I cancel first or build my new site first?
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Build first. Secure your domain and accounts, get the new site ready, then cancel so there is no gap.
Sources
Checked on 15 October 2026. Company pages change, so read the current version before you act.
- 1.Hibu Inc. Digital Products and Services Terms and Conditions (General Terms and Service Terms)
- 2.Thryv Terms and Conditions (effective 18 September 2026)
- 3.Thryv Professional Website Terms and Conditions
- 4.Thryv FAQs
- 5.Thryv Help Center: Thryv Frequently Asked Questions
- 6.Scorpion: Frequently Asked Questions
- 7.ICANN Lookup: check who a domain is registered to
- 8.Google Business Profile Help: Request ownership of a Business Profile
Read next
This is general information, not legal advice. Your own contract decides what applies to you.
PrimeBuild is not affiliated with Weebly, Square, Hibu, Thryv or Scorpion. Company names are used only to describe their published terms and notices.