There are large numbers of Domain Registrars in the market, and it’s increasing on daily basis. Most of them are self-claiming themselves as the best domain provider through their websites and multiple marketing channels.
Although it’s tempting to go with the cheapest domain registrar, which may lack common features as well as hidden charges, and ultimately becomes more expensive. On the other hand, we may not need every feature available, which may cost more money while registering with a feature-heavy registrar.
To simplify this time-consuming process of finding the best domain registrar, I’ve explained domain-related terms, features, and queries, and listed the 10 best domain registrars with each’s pros, cons, and pricing.
So, let’s dive into details to find the best domain registrar for your business.
.com Domain Registration Pricing & Key Feature
| Registrar Name | Domain Price | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| Namecheap | $9.58 | Simple & Easy to use, free whois. |
| Namesilo | $10.95 | Free whois, custom parking page. |
| Bluehost | $12.99 | Free domain with hosting. |
| Dynadot | $9.99 | Free one-page web hosting & email. |
| IONOS | $10 | Free business email, SSL. |
| Godaddy | $4.99 | Most popular registrar. |
| Domain.com | $9.99 | Custom Panel for reseller. |
| Name.com | $9.99 | Free Branded URL shortener. |
| Hostinger | $9.99 | Free domain with hosting. |
| DreamHost | $7.99 | Free domain with hosting, free whois privacy. |
Common Features of Good Domain Registrar
Domain registrars list lots of features on their platform with technical terms. And, it’s difficult to understand these for the non-technical user whether these features are useful to them or not. So, I have tried to list common features of good domain providers and explain what are they and their importance.
WHOIS
WHOIS (who is) is a publicly accessible record that identifies domain owners and information to contact them. According to ICANN regulations, the registrar or assignee must maintain the correct WHOIS record of every Internet resource (domain name, IP address block, or an autonomous system number ASN).
You can easily update WHOIS records by updating the registrant’s contact detail in the domain manager.
WHOIS Privacy (Domain Privacy)
As WHOIS database contain the identification and contact information of the domain registrant. It has become a prime target for hackers and spammers looking to data-mine names, email addresses, phone numbers, and other sensitive information.
WHOIS Privacy hides this sensitive information in public by replacing it with that of the privacy service and randomly generated email addresses or contact forms. This provides the ability to contact domain owners when needed without exposing sensitive information to public data miners.
Custom WHOIS Records:
You can add your own custom message [company name, website address, or any information] to appear at the bottom of the WHOIS record on selected TLDs including .com and .net domains using this feature.
Email Forwarding / Email Redirect
Email Forwarding features on the domain provide the ability to use a customized email account based on the current domain to receive mail without maintaining or subscribing to any email service.
You can access the received mail by forwarding that to another working email account. However, you can’t send any mail from that email ID using this service.
Domain Forwarding
Domain forwarding feature in the domain registrar can be used to automatically redirect visitors of the current domain (website) to another website without maintaining an additional DNS system.
Domain Control Panel / Domain Manager
Domain Control panel is an account and all domain-related features and service management place. DNS manager is a graphical layer of Nameserver where you can set all DNS settings like A record, CNAME, and more.
DNS Management
Every domain needs to be mapped to web hosting to function on the public internet. This mapping is done through the DNS service (Nameserver). There are three ways to configure DNS settings:
- Using Default DNS Manager of Domain provider. To use the domain registrar’s DNS manager, you need to use their default Nameserver address. You can use a direct IP address to point your service/hosting with the default DNS manager.
In addition to that domain registrar also provides paid premium DNS service equivalent to third-party DNS providers. - Using third-party services like Cloudflare DNS, and Amazon Route 53. They may cost to use. They are relatively faster and can provide an additional layer of security on DNS and even proxy services.
- Self-hosting your own DNS service. This is a great way to create your branded Nameserver address. Especially Hosting providers, Hosting resellers who need branded Nameserver address us this. Self-hosting your own DNS service gives you full control of DNS that may need depending upon your business nature but it may increase security, and availability issues. Common place to see self-hosted DNS Manager is web hosting with a control panel (Cpanel, Plesk)
You will need to enter your custom Nameserver in Domain Manager to use a third-party or Self-hosted DNS service / DNS manager.
Domain Transfer
You can transfer Domains between multiple different registrars using this feature. This will maintain the domain owner’s information and expiration date even after the domain transfer.
Domain Transfer In
Almost all popular domain registrars provide the ability to take in domains from other domain registrars. Most domain providers charge the 1-year equivalent of domain renewal cost when receiving a domain and extend 1 year of domain expiration period to your existing date. Some may cost you money without extending the domain expiration period.
Also, the cost of domain transfer IN varies between domain registrants, so check yourself before starting the process.
Domain Transfer Out
Most domain registrar provides the ability to transfer out domain to another registrar for free after completing 60 days Registry Lock grace period. However, some completely disable this ability, and some charge money to transfer out.
Registry Lock – Domain Locking/Unlocking
Domain Locking and Unlocking refers to the ability to transfer domains to different registrars. ICAN locks the domain for 60 days after new registration and domain transfer. You need to unlock the domain before transferring.
Domain Parking
Domain parking is the service that makes your website accessible from the internet without having a web host setup.
This is useful when you have a domain but haven’t used it yet and you want to indicate that your domain is actually active instead of showing the browser’s default error.
Another use case is if your domain gets traffic without doing anything then you can monetize the domain by showing ads.
Some provider gives this for free and some charge you. Domain providers may provide customization options (colors, layout, form, and more) to show offers, contact methods, forms, or the coming soon page on the parking page.
Account Security
- 2-factor authentication (2FA)
- Security Question / Domain Protection / Domain Defender Protection: This provides an additional layer of security by adding additional security questions to apply the changes in account and domain name even after accessing the registrant account.
- Email confirmation before applying any important changes to the account.
Support
Everyone must consider direct support from the domain provider as a critical feature while purchasing a domain.
Good support makes the domain owner’s life easy whether it is simple to help to configure the domain or to solve account/domain accessibility issues. Live Chat with low wait time is everyone’s preferred support channel while Email, Ticket, and Phone are not that bad.
Great Documentation
Services with clear documentation on what it is and how to do it on that platform solve any problem right away and become easy to use.
User Management
We need to share access to domains in different scenarios and sharing account credentials of your account to manage domains increases the security risk of the whole account. So, it’s always better to provide limited access on your account to another account without sharing your account credential.
This is achieved using the user management feature, This is named differently on different registrar like Namecheap called it Sharing & Transfer while Namesilo called it Sub-Account.
Supported Payment Method
Most registrar supports all major international payment (Credit card, Debit card, Paypal, Wire Transfer) and local payment depending on demography while some support only certain payment method.
Some even accept crypto payments.
So, before comparing other features don’t forget to check whether the domain registrant supports your payment method.
Domain Marketplace
Domain Marketplace is the place where you can sell and buy already purchase domains. If you have a good domain and decide not to build a project by yourself then you can sell on Marketplace.
There are already many Domain Marketplace but a domain registrar’s marketplace makes it easy to resell with a one-click listing.
Discount Program
Almost all domain provider comes with different discount and offers from time to time. While some have dedicated discount programs for bulk domain buyers. Many provide a discount for the first year while only some provide a renewal offer.
Top 10 Best Domain Registrars of 2023: Pros, Cons, Pricing & Discount
1. Namecheap
Namecheap is one of the most popular and affordable domain registrars with around 14 million domain users.
Pros of Namecheap:
- Easy to use control panel.
- Free WHOIS Domain Privacy for all domains.
- Default DNS manager to associate IP addresses to hosting service/webserver directly. Also, you can use other DNS management services using a custom nameserver.
- One-click option to resell the domain in Namecheap Domain Market and all domains listed in Namecheap Market will also be shown in Namecheap Domain Search as premium domains. (Free to list but takes 10% commission).
- Free Email Forwarding feature while using default DNS manager.
- 2-factor authentication (2FA)
- Free DNSSEC security for all domains.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. And, it has a one-click option to lock/unlock domain transfer and can easily get Auth Code to transfer out domain.
- Free Dynamic DNS.
- 30 days grace period to renew at a regular rate after the domain expires. At this time, all domain-related services will stop working.
- You can enable autorenewal options for the important domain.
- 24/7 live chat support
- Large knowledgebase & how-to guides
- Supported Payment Method: MasterCard, Discover, American Express, PayPal, and Cryptocurrency
Cons of Namecheap:
- Sometimes actual checkout prices are huge instead of the listed domain price on the search page.
- They separately add the ICANN fee ($0.18/yr) on the checkout page instead of including it on the main domain price which is a mandatory annual fee on every domain registration, renewal, and transfer.
Namecheap Price and Discount
Namecheap Domain Pricing (First Year Registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $8.98 | $8.98 | $10.98 | $36.98 | $3.98 | $5.98 |
| Renewal | $13.98 | $14.98 | $14.98 | $44.98 | $18.98 | $25.98 |
| Transfer (IN) | $13.98 | $12.98 | $11.98 | $42.98 | $14.98 | $23.98 |
ICANN fee: $0.18/yr (Compulsory)
Namecheap Discounts and Offers in Domain:
- You can register .com domain for multiple years on the initial registration price.
- Up to 100% discount on Domain from Namecheap with Web hosting here.
- Only $5.98 for new user on .com registration with discount coupon code NEWCOM598.
- Namecheap discount offer and promos including discount and monthly Namecheap discount and promo coupon, $0.99 Domain list here.
- To find other Namecheap domain-related offers and deals, go to this page and select “Deals” on domain price table section.
Note: To use Default DNS manager( using host IP directly), Email Forwarding, Dynamic DNS, you need to use Namecheap’s BasicDNS (Default Nameserver), PremiumDNS, or FreeDNS nameservers.
2. Namesilo
Namesilo is another fastest-growing domain registrar that provides the most affordable (cheapest) pricing for most domains. It has special pricing for bulk domain buyers and it provides commonly used features like ICANN fee, WHOIS privacy, and more for free.
Pros of Namesilo:
- Free WHOIS Domain Privacy.
- Free Email Forwarding.
- Free Domain Forwarding.
- Free Domain Defender Protection.
- 2-factor authentication (2FA)
- Free Custom WHOIS Records
- Default DNS Manager to directly manage DNS in Namesilo Domain manager, also you can use third-party DNS service using a custom nameserver.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars.
- Free Domain Locking/Unlocking
- Free Domain Parking, you can customize, configure and even include a form in the parked domain, to get a domain purchase offer through the parking page and can keep 100% of the sale price (means no commission). You can use custom colors, layout templates, and custom meta information.
- Domain Portfolio Manager to group and manage multiple domains at once.
- Domain Market: One-click option to resell the domain in Namesilo Domain Marketplace Free to list domain in the marketplace and takes 7.5% commission. Free customizable “for sale” landing page. No subscription is needed to buy an already registered domain from Namesilo Domain Marketplace.
- Discount Program to buy the domain by adding funds to Namesilo account and you can’t use real-time direct paying from other payment methods on this discount service.
- Amazing Guide and Documentation
- Live chat support
- A large number of payment methods are supported including cryptocurrency.
Cons of Namesilo:
- The Account Management section has a combination of old and modern design which makes it difficult to navigate back and forth. The old design’s look and the user experience aren’t that satisfying.
- The account management section is bloated with promotion banners.
Namesilo Discount and Pricing
Namesilo Domain Name Pricing (First Year Registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $9.95 | $10.79 | $11.79 | $35.99 | $3.79 | $9.99 |
| Renewal | $9.95 | $10.79 | $11.79 | $35.99 | $17.49 | $22.69 |
| Transfer (IN) | $8.99 | $10.79 | $11.79 | $35.49 | $16.99 | $22.49 |
ICANN fee: FREE
Namesilo Discounts and Offers in Domain:
- Get 1$ discount on domain using discount coupon code “NODE”.
- Special Discount Program using Namesilo account funds.
- Discount on bulk domain purchase.
- Namesilo ongoing Promotion and Coupons
3. Dynadot
Dynadot is another amazing domain provider at cheap rates.
Pros of Dynadot:
- Easy and clean control panel.
- Free domain forwarding. Free stealth forwarding.
- Free email forwarding.
- Free WHOIS privacy protection and security.
- Free Domain Parking.
- Free Website Builder for a one-page website.
- Free one-page web hosting with 1 email address and 500MB storage. [Contains Dynadot Ads]
- Easy to use Advance DNS manager. Easy contact record and Nameserver management
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. And, easy transfer lock and unlock.
- 30 days grace period to renew the expired domain at a regular rate. Additional 10 days period to renew the domain at regular price plus $10.
- Automatic Domain Renewal options.
- Easy to sell and buy a domain on Dynadot aftermarket. Free to list but charges 5% commission on sold price.
- Free for-Sale Landing Page.
- 24/7 customer support by phone, live chat, and email.
- Excellent documentation, help guide, and forum.
- Two-factor authentication.
- Account lock feature using birthday to add an extra layer of security to apply important changes in account.
- Free DNSSEC support.
- Payment Method: Credit Card, Debit Card, Paypal, Skrill, Alipay, eCash, Bank Transfer, Bank Wire, Money Orders, Cashier’s Checks, Personal Checks, Apple Pay
Cons of Dynadot:
- Live chat support remains busy most of the time.
Dyanadot Discount and Price:
Dynadot Domain Pricing (First year registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $9.99 | $8.99 | $4.99 | $31.99 | $2.85 | $10.99 |
| Renewal | $9.99 | $10.99 | $10.99 | $34.99 | $15.99 | $22.99 |
| Transfer (IN) | $9.99 | $10.99 | $10.99 | $34.99 | $15.99 | $22.99 |
ICANN fee: Free (included in the main price)
WHOIS Privacy: Free
Dynadot Discounts and Offers:
- Special discount for bulk domain buyer (customer who spend more than $500 year).
- Dynadot ongoing sales and offers.
4. IONOS
IONOS is another affordable domain provider with lots of amazing features for free.
Pros of IONOS:
- Easy and clean control panel.
- Free URL forwarding.
- Free email forwarding.
- Free SSL certificate.
- Free 1 business email account based on a domain with 2GB of storage.
- Free WHOIS privacy security.
- Easy to use DNS management dashboard.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. And, easy domain transfer lock and unlock.
- 30 days grace period to renew the expired domain at a regular rate.
- Automatic Domain Renewal enabled by default. [disable autorenewal to cancel]
- 24/7 customer support by phone and live chat.
- Excellent guide and help center.
- Secondary/Slave DNS for DNS failover with DNS Pro.
- Payment Method: PayPal and debit and credit cards; American Express, Visa, Mastercard, Discover cards
Cons of IONOS:
- Only phone support for new users (not registered user). Long live chat wait even for logged in customer.
- Two-factor authentication, DNSSEC support require Domain Guard or DNS Pro add-ons.
IONOS Price and Discount:
IONOS Pricing (First year registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $10 | $7 | $10 | $35 | $3 | $8 |
| Renewal | $15 | $20 | $20 | $50 | $20 | $40 |
| Transfer (IN) | $15 | $20 | $20 | $50 | $20 | $40 |
ICANN fee: Free
WHOIS Privacy: Free
IONOS Discounts and Offers:
- Free domain for 1 year on all hosting purchase.
- Introductory offer for new customer: $1 for 1st year when domain registering for 2 years.
- Free SSL and 1 email on domain registration.
- Ongoing deals on IONOS.
5. Name.com
Name.com is a domain name registrar and web hosting company based in Denver, US.
Pros of Name.com:
- Easy and clean control panel.
- Free URL forwarding.
- Free email forwarding.
- Default DNS manager, DNS Templates, and easy DNS management dashboard.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. And an easy option to domain lock/unlock.
- 30 days grace period to renew the expired domain at a regular rate.
- Domain Autorenewal options.
- Two-Step Verification.
- Chat support from 8 AM – 6 PM MST every day and 24/7 ticket support.
- Excellent documentation and guide.
- Free Branded URL shortener for 1000 links, 1,000 clicks per link for 1 domain.
- Sedo/Afternic integration for aftermarket domain sell and purchase.
- Payment Method: PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, Diners Card, Google Pay, AliPay, and China UnionPay (both debit and credit cards) .
Cons of Name.com:
- Need to purchase an additional module for Whois privacy.
- No DNSSEC support
Name.com Offers and Pricing:
Name.com Domain Pricing (First year registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $9.99 | $8.99 | $25 | $29.99 | $6.99 | $4.99 |
| Renewal | $14.99 | $12.99 | $15.99 | $34.99 | $24.99 | $28.00 |
| Transfer (IN) | $8.99 | $10.99 | $10.99 | $59.99 | $19.99 | $22.99 |
ICANN fee: Free
WHOIS Privacy: $4.99 but it also includes an SSL certificate. (Advanced Security + Privacy)
Name.com Discounts and Offers:
- 90 days Titan Pro free email on nay domain purchase (free trial).
- Name.com’s promo codes, offers and ongoing sales.
- Free domain on yearly hosting purchase for first year.
6. Godaddy
Godaddy is one of the largest and the most popular domain registrars with more than 21 million users and 84 million domain names registered on their platform.
Pros of Godaddy:
- Free WHOIS Domain Privacy.
- Free Email Forwarding.
- Free Domain Forwarding.
- Beginner targeted control panel.
- Powerful Domain Manager for DNS management.
- Bulk Domain Management
- Heavy discount for first-year domain registration.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars.
- Free Domain Locking/Unlocking
- 2-factor authentication (2FA)
- Private-labeled reseller site
- 24/7 phone and chat support
- Real-time monitoring
- Discount Domain Club with an additional monthly subscription, It is good for frequently domain registering users.
- Godaddy Auctions: easy to use Domain Marketplace. 5/yr membership fee and 20% – US$4,000 + 10% commission.
- Amazing Documentation
- Domain backorder option
Cons of Godaddy:
- High renewal cost.
- Confusing upsell while registering a domain.
- Many discounts offer only apply for the first year and become applicable when you register a domain for multi-year, which ultimately becomes more expensive or equal to normal pricing on other registrars.
Godady Discount and Pricing:
Godaddy Domain Pricing (First Year Registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $4.99 | $9.99 | $14.99 | $59.99 | $3.99 | $9.99 |
| Renewal | $19.99 | $20.99 | $21.99 | $62.99 | $28.99 | $34.99 |
| Transfer (IN) | $8.49 | $20.99 | $21.99 | $62.99 | $28.99 | $34.99 |
ICANN fee: $0.18/yr
Godaddy Discounts and Offers in Domain:
- Special Discount Program called Discount Domain Club (required membership subscription).
- Discount on bulk domain purchase.
- Godaddy Promo codes and Coupons.
7. Bluehost
Bluehost is primarily a web hosting provider that also provides domain names. But, due to their amazing service customer wants to stick with Bluehost even if they don’t need hosting service at the moment.
Pros of Bluehost:
- Easy domain management panel.
- Free domain forwarding.
- Default DNS manager and supports third part DNS Manager as well.
- Free DNSSEC for all domains.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. And, an easy domain lock/unlock option.
- 30 days grace period to renew the expired domain at a regular rate.
- Domain Autorenewal options.
- 24/7 domain support through live chat and phone.
- Excellent documentation and knowledge base.
- Payment Method: Credit cards – American Express, Discover, Master Card, and Visa, Paypal & Check
Cons of Bluehost:
- Need to purchase an additional module for Whois privacy.
Bluehost Discount and Price:
Bluehost Domain Name Pricing (First Year Registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $12.99 | $9.99 | $14.99 | $50.99 | $11.99 | $27.99 |
| Renewal | $18.99 | $17.99 | $18.99 | $60.99 | $15.99 | $29.99 |
| Transfer (IN) | $12.99 | $17.99 | $17.99 | No support | $17.99 | $17.99 |
ICANN fee: FREE
WHOIS Privacy: $15.00 per year
Bluehost Discounts and Offers:
- Bluehost provides free domain registration for first-year on purchasing hosting on Bluehost.
- Bluehost discount coupon codes on ongoing promotions and offers.
8. Domain.com
Domain.com is one of the registrars that get the first attention of new users due to its relevant name domain.com.
Pros of Domain.com:
- Easy to use control panel.
- Easy to use DNS manager
- Free DNSSEC for all domains.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. And, an easy domain lock/unlock option.
- Private-labeled domain control panel for resellers.
- 30 days grace period to renew at a regular rate after the domain expires.
- Autorenewal options to renew the domain automatically.
- 24/7 customer support through live chat.
- Amazing guides and documentation
- Payment Method: Credit cards – MasterCard, Visa, Paypal & Check
Cons of Domain.com:
- No email forwarding option.
- Whois privacy costs an additional amount.
Domain.con Pricing and Discount:
Domain.com Domain Pricing (First Year Registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $9.99 | $8.99 | $12.99 | $47.99 | $3.99 | $27.99 |
| Renewal | $15.99 | $19.99 | $19.99 | $60.99 | $21.99 | $29.99 |
| Transfer (IN) | $9.99 | $14.99 | $12.99 | $60.99 | $14.99 | $29.99 |
ICANN fee: FREE
WHOIS Domain Privacy + Protection: $8.99 per year
Domain.com Discounts and Offers:
- Reseller discount gets special discount offer.
9. DreamHost
DreamHost is one of the popular domain registrar and web hosting providers.
Pros of DreamHost:
- Friendly control panel.
- Free WHOIS Domain Privacy protection.
- Simple DNS Management.
- Free domain forwarding but needs to setup manually on their DNS Manager.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars.
- 30 days domain renewal grace period.
- Automatic Domain Renewal option..
- 24/7/365 email support, 3:00 AM – 9:30 PM PT live chat support through the panel.
- Excellent documentation, and guide.
- Multifactor (Two-factor) authentication.
- DNSSEC supports but their default Nameserver isn’t compatible so need to use a third-party DNS provider (Nameserver).
- Payment Method: To open an account only credit cards and Paypal accepted. For payment, Credit/Debit Card (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and Diners Club), Electronic Check / ACH, PayPal, Check or Money Order
Cons of DreamHost:
- To purchase a domain using other than a credit card, you have to make pre-payment on your account.
- No chat support for new users (not logged in) but can get support from email using a chatbot registering email tickets.
DreamHost Price and Discount:
DreamHost Domain Pricing (First year registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $7.99 | $11.99 | $10.99 | $29.99 | $13.95 | $6.99 |
| Renewal | $17.99 | $15.99 | $16.99 | $39.95 | $16.99 | $26.95 |
| Transfer (IN) | $9.99 | $13.95 | $13.95 | $39.95 | $13.95 | $26.95 |
ICANN fee: Free (Included)
WHOIS Privacy: Free
DreamHost Discounts and Offers:
- Free 1 year domain registration on any annual hosting plan.
- DreamHost Ongoing sales and pricing.
10. Hostinger
Hostinger is another popular web hosting and domain provider.
Pros of Hostinger:
- Friendly control panel.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars. To transfer domain out, in addition to domain unlocking, you need to disable privacy protection.
- 0 – 45 days grace period based on different TLDs to renew the expired domain at a regular rate.
- Automatic Domain Renewal by default. Disable auto-renewal to stop using that domain.
- 24/7 live chat support.
- Excellent how-to, tutorials, and knowledge base.
- Two-factor authentication.
- DNSSEC support.
- Payment Method: Paypal and Credit Card (Visa, Mastercard, and Amex payments are accepted worldwide. Discover, Maestro, Diner’s, and JCB – US and Europe only.)
Cons of Hostinger:
- Additional charge for ICANN fee and Whois privacy.
- No chat support for sales inquiries and not the logged-in user.
- No easy domain forwarding. Need to use third-party DNS manager to forward domain.
Hostinger Price and Discount:
Hostinger Domain Name Pricing (First year registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $9.99 | $9.99 | $12.99 | $49.99 | $3.99 | $23.99 |
| Renewal | $13.99 | $15.99 | $13.99 | $49.99 | $19.99 | $30.99 |
| Transfer (IN) | $13.99 | $15.99 | $13.99 | $49.99 | $19.99 | $30.99 |
ICANN fee: $0.18/year
WHOIS Privacy: $5/year
Hostinger Discounts and Offers:
- Free domain on any annual hosting purchase for first year.
- Domains are available for $0.99 for first-year registration here.
- 10% Student Discount at Hostinger.
Bonus: Network Solutions
Network Solutions is the oldest domain registrar in the world. And, is one of the most recommended domain providers on the internet. So, I couldn’t leave without mentioning here.
Pros of Network Solutions:
- Free domain forwarding.
- Default DNS manager and supports third part DNS Manager as well.
- Free Domain Transfer (OUT) to other registrars.
- 30 days grace period to renew the expired domain at a regular rate.
- Domain Autorenewal options.
- Chat support on Mon-Fri 8AM-8PM EST & call support on 7:00am – 12:00am ET.
- Moderate knowledge base.
- Payment Method: Credit cards and Paypal.
Cons of Network Solutions:
- Need to purchase an additional module for Whois privacy.
- When you search for a domain it automatically adds the .com domain in the cart.
- Adds additional other services in checkout card which are free for only the first month. If you carefully don’t look on that page, and remove the unwanted package it’s will automatically charge you extra money from next month.
- No way to review domain price before proceeding to cart.
Network Solutions Pricing and Discount:
Network Solutions Domain Pricing (First Year Registration, Renewal, and Transfer)
| .com | .org | .net | .io | .info | .co | |
| Registration | $25 | $25 | $25 | $79.99 | $25 | $25 |
| Renewal | $15.99 | $15.99 | $15.99 | $79.99 | $15.99 | $39.99 |
| Transfer (IN) | $9.99 | $9.99 | $9.99 | $9.99 | $9.99 | $9.99 |
ICANN fee: Free
WHOIS Privacy: $1.99 per month (Free for the first month)
Network Solutions Discounts and Offers:
- Network Solutions provides discount on multiple-year domain registration.
- Free domain on purchasing hosting packages.
How to transfer a domain from one registrar to another without downtime?
If you are using a domain registrar’s default DNS service, you need to transfer the DNS configuration to the new registrar before transferring the domain to avoid downtime.
- Most domain registrar provides option to configure DNS setting before transfer (taking new domian). Configure DNS setting in new registrar.
- Update old registrar’s nameserver address to point new registrar provided Nameserver.
- Start transfer process.
If you are using hosting provided DNS service or a third-party Nameserver like Cloudflare then you don’t need this above step and you can directly start the transfer process without any issue.
To transfer a domain name from one domain registrar to another registrar, follow the below steps:
- Unlock the domain you want to transfer at your current registrar.
- Remove domain privacy services prior to transfer as some registrar doesn’t permit the transfer if it is enabled. [You can again enable whois privacy in the new registrar after the transfer completes.]
- Get a transfer authorization code (also called EPP or Auth code) from your current registrar.
- Search for your domain using the domain transfer tool on the recipient registrar.
- Enter your authorization code on the recipient registrar after going through the domain transfer tool to confirm the transfer.
- Submit the transfer request and proceed to checkout. Most registers charge a 1-year equivalent amount when onboarding a new domain and extend 1year period on the domain expiration date.
- You may need to approve the domain transfer confirmation request sent to the administrative contact of the domain as entered in the WHOIS record.
- After that confirm the transfer request in your current registrar domain control panel which is sent by your new registrar.
- Most domain transfers are complete in 5-7 days.
- Update Nameserver address in new registrar to match your DNS Server (Nameserver).
- Enable whois pricavy in new registrar.
Note: you can’t transfer a domain within 60 days after new registration and domain transfer. Also, some registrar doesn’t allow transfer for 60 days after changing the WHOIS record on a domain. Also, avoid transferring domains within 45 days of recent renewal as there is a chance that you could lose that renewal year.
How to get a discount on domain registration?
The most popular registrar provides discount offers and promo codes on different occasions like their anniversary, black Friday, any kind of celebration, or just as a simple promotion tactic. Some
- The first place to look for discounts is on the official dedicated promo page that I listed on each registrar section above.
- The second place is to look at the popular blogger’s deals page as the bloggers do special agreements with the registrar to provide a special deal to their audience.
- The third option is using the browser extension honey which curates and provides working coupons on checkout for free.
How to get a free Domain?
There are different methods to get a domain for free. However, all methods won’t be applicable to everyone and all use cases.
Some registrar provides a free domain for users in specific geographical regions, nationalities, or students. And, some service provider provides a domain name for free when you purchase their other service or product.
Here, I am going to show you different methods to get a free domain and its pros and cons in each case.
1. Free Domain Using Hosting
This is the most applicable method to get a free domain for everyone.
As almost all users having a domain requires hosting. So, instead of looking for a free domain and later purchasing hosting, you can easily get 1 year of a free domain when buying a web hosting service.
Brands that provide free domain on Web Hosting.
Here, the domain owner has the same feature and options on the domain s/he received on hosting as s/he has bought separately. So you can renew, and transfer the domain after one year as you normally do.
This is one of the preferable ways to get a free domain if you are going to need hosting along with the domain.
2. ccTLD free Domain
Many countries provide ccTLD domains free for their citizen. You should check if your origin or working country provides a free country-level domain.
.np Domain registrar in Nepal provides free domain to all Nepali official document holders.
This domain is free for a lifetime and it will stop working (revoked) only if the domain is used in illegal activities.
This type of domain is only provided to valid and legal document holders so, it has the same value as other Top-level Domains.
Also, the ccTLD domain has the benefit of local SEO on the search engine in the local region.
3. Free Domain for Student
Many organization provides free resources to the student including domain. One of the popular free domain providing packages for students is GitHub Student Developer Pack by Github.
This is applicable to all students having valid identities. It can be an academic identity card, .edu email, or payment receipt. Some require all types of verification while most organizations validate with any single identification.
4. Freenoms
Freenoms provides .tk, .ml, .ga, .cf, .gq domain extension free for everyone. However, its free availability to anyone without any requirement, these domains are used in spammy content and have very low authority on the internet.
Also, nowadays it shows many errors while registering, and it’s very difficult to successfully claim the free domain.
Other than testing purposes, I recommend avoiding these free extensions.
5. Free subdomain
Many hosting providers, website builders, and Dynamic DNS providers give free subdomain to use with their service. Some provide free subdomain without any payment requirement while other provides as complementary to other paid service.
In most of these providers, you can create a website as you like and can access using these subdomains for free.
Some available free subdomain extensions:
- .home.blog, .code.blog, .photo.blog, .music.blog, .poetry.blog, .science.blog .art.blog, .water.blog, .wordpress.com by WordPress to use with hosted WordPress CMS.
- .wix.com by Wix
- .blogspot.com by blogger (Google)
6. Free domain as complementary to another service.
- Free domain with email: Like hosting provider, many email provider provides free domain with an email subscription. You can get a free domain lifetime with an active email subscription from IONOS.
- Free domain with website builder: Most website builder provides a free domain for 1 year with their subscription. Some popular website builder that provides free domain are Zyro, Wix, Squarespace, and more.
7. .design Domain for free
For some time, Porkbun is offering .design extension free for the first year as a marketing scheme. You can claim your free .design domain here.
How to Buy a Domain Name for a lifetime (Permanently)?
According to ICANN, a domain can be registered for only up to 10 years.
However, there are some registrars that offer 100 years or lifetime domain registration.
When you buy a lifetime registration package on these registrars, they extend the expiration period each year by renewing for an additional year.
Some registrar that provides these lifetime domain registration services is Network Solution and Epik.
Also, you can also claim a domain for a lifetime in a free ccTLD domain provider like in .np.
Note: you can get a blockchain-based domain for a lifetime in unstoppabledomains.
How to choose the right Domain Registrar?
The right domain registrar provides enough features you need while being most economic to run your web business.
You can choose any register from the above list and can find other amazing registers too. So first, list out some registrars that have good reviews on service and support, by reading authoritative blogs and review platforms.
Now, you should list out the feature you are going to use and match those registrars who support these features at minimal cost, some provide most of the features for free some charge a few amount. While comparing prices for domains, check the price for both registration and renewal as this price seems different in most of them.
Select that domain registrar which has a low cost after adding the domain registration/renewal price and price of each feature you are going to use.
Now, let’s see how I select a registrar on the different scenarios:
When choosing a domain, most of the time I am going to use whois privacy, email forwarding, occasional domain forwarding, and an easy domain interface. And, of course, they most have real-time amazing support.
- If I am purchasing a domain for long term project, I will go with those registrars that have total low cost combining domain registration and renewal price, whois privacy, and email forwarding for at least 5 years. Mostly Namecheap and Namesilo.
- If I am working on a project that will require both hosting and domain, I will go with registrar that provides free domain on web hosting for first year like Bluehost.
- If I am purchasing a domain for the testing project, I will go with those registrars that have heavy discounts on registration, free whois privacy, and easy domain transfer out feature.
- If I find good domain that I would like to sell, I will go with registrars that have easy transfer out feature, inbuilt domain marketplace with low commission, and whois privacy.
Domain Registrar Related FAQ
What is a Domain Name?
Domain Name is easy to remember string of text that maps to the numeric IP address of a computer/server on the internet. Examples of the domain name are nil.pro.np, google.com, facebook.com.
To access files/systems on the internet, each computer is given a unique numeric value called IP address. While these IP addresses interconnect the internet but it’s difficult to remember for human beings. So, the memorable text is assigned to an IP address which is again translated back to IP by the browser when used. This text is called a domain name.
What is Nameserver?
A nameserver is a server that store and organizes DNS record. it is also called DNS (Domain Name System) server. Nameserver maps the Domain Name to the IP address of the computer on the internet.
What is a Domain Name Registrar?
A domain name registrar is an organization that sells, registers, and manages domain names.
What is Domain Marketplace?
Domain Marketplace is the place where you can sell and buy already-registered domains.
What is DNSSEC?
DNSSEC is a set of protocols that add a layer of security to the domain name system (DNS) lookup and exchange processes. It helps to prevent malicious activities like DNS cache poisoning, pharming, and man-in-the-middle attacks.
What is Dynamic DNS?
Dynamic DNS is a feature that allows pointing a domain name to any IP (static or dynamic). It automatically updates the IP address whenever it gets changed, so that the domain remains connected to the corresponding server.
What is the Glue record?
Glue records are DNS records that provide a reference for an authoritative nameserver. Mostly, glue records are created at the domain’s registrar.
You only need to create a glue record when you host your own authoritative nameservers (Self-hosted DNS Server).
In simple terms, it is the DNS configuration of the Nameserver address; meaning it points Nameserver Address (ns1.domainname.com) to DNS server (Nameserver) IP address (x.x.x.x) where actual Domain Name to Hosting/service IP mapping occurs.
All listed registrars provide options to add a glue record, some label it as Child Name Server, Personal DNS Servers (Nameserver), and more.
If you have any questions following this post or any topics on Nil Tutorial, don’t hesitate to ask in the comment section. You can also reach me on Twitter.
