Cancelling IONOS: how to separate website, domain and email

At IONOS you cancel in your account under My Account, Contracts and Subscriptions: select the contract and, in the details, choose Cancel contract. Because website, domain and mailbox are often in the same contract, first cancel only the website service and back up all your data beforehand.

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Last updated: 23 October 2026 · By Maurice, freeehouse team · About 3 minutes to read

How do I cancel at IONOS step by step?

According to the IONOS help pages:

1
Log in to your IONOS account.
2
Open My Account and choose Contracts and Subscriptions.
3
Select the contract concerned.
4
On the Details tab, click Cancel contract.
5
Choose whether to cancel the whole contract or only individual services.
6
Confirm with Cancel contract now.

Confirmation arrives by email. According to IONOS, you can also cancel by phone.

Whole contract or single service?

This is the most important decision. If you cancel the whole contract, you cancel everything attached to it, which may include the domain and mailbox. If you want to keep domain and email, cancel only the website service. If in doubt, ask IONOS customer service what exactly is attached to your contract before you confirm.

What notice period applies at IONOS?

According to the IONOS help pages, you can cancel at any time as long as you observe the minimum contract term and the agreed notice period. Both are in your contract details. For some products there is a 30-day money-back guarantee, which applies in the first month. In that case you will see a button in the contract to end the test phase. Consumers also have a statutory right of withdrawal of 14 days under the IONOS terms and conditions.

What do I need to back up before cancelling?

According to IONOS, a data export is no longer possible once the cancellation has taken effect. So back up the following beforehand:

all text and images from your website that you want to keep
your invoices, which IONOS explicitly advises downloading
a list of all email accounts, mailboxes and forwards
the DNS records of your domain, especially those for email
form entries, shop orders and customer data from extra modules

In which order do I cancel correctly?

1
Finish the new website. The IONOS site stays online until then.
2
Decide whether domain and mailbox stay at IONOS or move.
3
Point the record for the website to the new site, and do not touch the email records.
4
Spend a few days checking that website and email work.
5
Cancel only the website service.
6
Cancel domain and mailbox only after they have safely moved.

In our moves, some customers at first took us for IONOS. We are not: we work with your existing IONOS account only as far as you want, and usually a guide is enough for you to change one record yourself.

With freeehouse, your IONOS mailbox stays where it is. We build the new website, you change one record with our guide, and the first invoice only comes when your IONOS contract ends. Move from IONOS

Checklist before cancelling at IONOS

Read the contract details: minimum term and notice period?
Downloaded the invoices, as IONOS recommends?
Made a list of all mailboxes and forwards?
Written down the DNS records, especially MX and SPF?
Backed up text, images, form and shop data?
New website online and checked?
Decided: whole contract or only the website service?

What if I made a mistake?

If you cancelled the whole contract by accident, contact IONOS customer service straight away, while the cancellation has not yet taken effect. It only takes effect at the end of the term, and until then you can usually still save something. Once it has taken effect, according to IONOS no data export is possible.

Frequently asked questions

Can I cancel only the website at IONOS?

Yes. According to the IONOS help pages, you can cancel a whole contract or individual services. That way domain and mailbox stay in place.

What happens to my domain if I cancel IONOS?

If you cancel the whole contract, the domain ends too, provided it is attached to it. If you want to keep it, cancel only the website or move the domain first.

How long does cancelling take at IONOS?

The cancellation itself takes a few minutes. It takes effect at the end of the minimum term or after the agreed notice period.

Can I cancel IONOS by phone?

Yes, according to the IONOS help pages that works too. Online in your account is usually faster, and you get the confirmation straight away.

What happens to my emails if I cancel?

If the mailbox is attached to the cancelled contract, it ends with the contract. Back up your emails beforehand or cancel only the website service.

Sources

IONOS Hilfe: Gesamten IONOS Vertrag kündigen, accessed 23 October 2026
IONOS Hilfe: Fristen für die Vertragsbeendigung, accessed 23 October 2026

Providers' prices and terms change often. What counts is what's in your customer account and your contract. Not legal advice.

Cancel IONOS, keep your domain and email What does a website cost at IONOS?Cancellation roadmap: switch websites without losses Moving away from IONOS MyWebsite: process and cancellation

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