cPanel

cPanel gives you a web page to manage your site: files, databases, email accounts, backups and more. WHM is its administrator side, used on servers and reseller accounts.

Example: on a shared hosting plan you log in to cPanel to add a mailbox such as hello@yourbusiness.com, install WordPress, download a backup or check how many inodes you're using.

Many hosts use their own control panel instead. They do the same job; cPanel is simply the one people most often recognise, and a familiar panel can make moving between hosts easier.

What it means for your price: on shared hosting, the host pays for the licence. On a VPS or dedicated server you may need to buy it yourself, and its maker publishes its licence prices on its website. Server licences are priced by the number of accounts, so a reseller or agency with many sites pays more. Add the licence to any server price you compare.

How to check yours: your host's welcome email or control panel login page shows which panel you have.