# Changelog ## [Introducing Direct Registry Partnerships for 380+ TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) 2026-03-18 Our domain availability data is getting a major accuracy upgrade. We now pull data directly from registries like VeriSign, Google Registry, Radix, and Identity Digital. No middlemen. No retail registrar APIs. Just source-level data flowing into our own systems. This means better accuracy, faster results, and something we care deeply about: we never send your searches to third-party retail registrar APIs. ## What are direct registry partnerships? Most domain search tools check availability by querying a retail registrar’s API. You type a name, the tool forwards it to GoDaddy or Namecheap’s backend, and the registrar returns a result. That registrar now knows what you searched for. We skip that step entirely. Registries are the organizations that actually manage TLDs. VeriSign runs `.com` and `.net`. Google Registry operates `.dev`, `.app`, and `.new`. Radix manages `.fun`, `.online`, `.site`, `.store`, and others. Identity Digital runs hundreds of extensions like `.live` and `.world`. These are the sources of truth for domain data. We now partner with these registries directly to get: * **Zone files** from VeriSign, ICANN’s Centralized Zone Data Service (CZDS), and hundreds of [gTLD](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain) providers. These are daily snapshots of active delegated names for a given extension. We download fresh copies every night. * **Reserved, blocked, and trademark lists** for 380+ TLDs, with more coming soon. These tell us which domains are unavailable for reasons beyond simple registration, like registry holds or trademark protections. * **EPP (Extensible Provisioning Protocol) checks** for hundreds of TLDs. When we need real-time verification, we query registries directly using the same protocol that registrars use to register domains. For `.com`, this means a direct EPP query to VeriSign. All of this data gets processed, indexed, and distributed across our servers worldwide. When you search, your query runs against our local index. No retail registrar is contacted. No retail registrar sees what you typed. ## How a search works Here’s what happens when you type a domain name on our site: 1. **Your browser connects to our nearest server.** We run on Google Cloud with servers distributed globally. A load balancer routes you to the closest data center so latency stays low regardless of where you are. 2. **Your query hits our local index.** The search runs against our pre-built zone file and registry data across 800+ TLDs. No retail registrar is contacted. This is what makes results come back in under 25 milliseconds. 3. **We verify with registries when needed.** For domains that may have changed status since our last nightly index, our check service runs EPP queries directly with registries for hundreds of TLDs over TLS. The registry does see the queried domain name during this check, but registries manage the zone, they don’t sell domains. Registrars sell domains. Big difference. 4. **For the few TLDs without zone file access, we compile availability from DNS.** A small number of extensions don’t publish zone files. For those, we run DNS lookups through our resolver infrastructure, which queries authoritative nameservers on our behalf. Similar to EPP, the relevant DNS operators can see the queried domain, but these are infrastructure-level queries, not retail registrar searches. 5. **Results stream back instantly.** We use [JSON streaming](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/streaming-json-jsons) to deliver results before the full response is even complete. Your browser connection uses HTTPS, and registry EPP sessions use TLS. At no point does a retail registrar learn what you searched for. For live verification, the relevant registry operator or DNS resolver can see the queried domain, but these are infrastructure providers that manage the zone, not companies in the business of selling you domains or tracking your search behavior. ## The only time a registrar knows There’s exactly one moment when a registrar learns about your domain interest: **when you click a link to buy it.** We partner with registrars like Namecheap, GoDaddy, Spaceship, Hostinger, Porkbun, Network Solutions, and Dynadot. When you find a domain you want, we link you to whichever registrar supports that extension at the best price. We call this [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/smart-partner-routing). This is how we keep the product free. We earn a referral commission from the registrar when you complete a purchase. That commission is paid by the partner, not added to your price. We don’t sell your search data. We don’t sell ads targeted to your searches. Our goal is to help you compare registrars and find the cheapest price for whatever extension you want. ## We’re ICANN-accredited and privately held Instant Labs, Inc. is an [ICANN-accredited](https://www.icann.org/registrar-reports/accredited-list.html) domain registrar. ICANN accreditation requires meeting strict technical, financial, and operational standards. For us, it means direct access to registry data, the ability to participate in the domain ecosystem at the highest level, and accountability to the standards that govern how domain data is handled. We’re also a privately held company. We don’t answer to outside investors pushing us to monetize user data or sell search analytics. Our incentives are simple: build the best domain search tool, keep it free, and earn commissions when people buy domains through our partner links. We’ve been running this service since 2005. Nearly 50 million people have searched for domains on our site. We’ve never front-run a domain search, never sold search data, and never will. ## We will never register domains you search for This comes up a lot: > If I search for a domain on your site, will someone register it before I can? No. We don’t preemptively register or warehouse domains that people search for. Our entire business model depends on you trusting us enough to search here first and then buying through one of our partner registrars. Undermining that trust would be self-destructive. Millions of domains are registered and expire every day. If you search for a domain and find it registered shortly after, it’s almost certainly a coincidence. ## Why this matters Domain searches reveal business intent. If you’re searching for `acmefinance.com`, you’re probably exploring a financial services company called Acme. That’s competitive intelligence if it ends up in the wrong hands. We built this architecture because we believe the domain search process should be transparent. You should be able to explore ideas freely, compare prices across registrars, and only share your intent when you’re ready to buy. Going direct to registries is how we make that possible. Questions? Reach out at . --- ## [Introducing instant.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/introducing-instant-ai) 2026-03-04 If you’ve searched for a domain name in the last twenty years, you’ve probably used one of our free tools. Instant Domain Search has powered nearly half a billion searches across 80+ countries. Today we’re introducing [instant.ai](https://instant.ai/), a research lab building more tools to go from idea to something real. ## What’s worked Instant Domain Search started as a tiny Web 2.0 project: a single page that did one thing incredibly well. Twenty years later, it’s still one of the most-used domain search tools on the internet. If we learned anything from this, it’s that speed wins. When tools keep up with your thinking, you try more ideas and build momentum. You keep pulling the thread 🧶🤏 We made it faster, simpler, and even built within modern workflows. Behind the scenes, some of the hundreds of technical improvements include: * Tim Baker engineered our web experience to truly feel “instant”: gutting our JS bundle, eliminating cascading re-renders, and hunting down every main-thread blocker killing performance. * Rudi Floren architected our availability data more accurately by building a Rust service from scratch that pools EPP connections across registries for real-time registry checks. * Antonio Stoilkov rebuilt our search UI to feel thoughtless with a rebuilt, modernized experience across desktop and mobile. And many more. That work compounded into 2.5x growth over the last 12 months. Now, we’re expanding into more wicked fast tools: Instant Registrar, API, and much more. ## What’s next Instant sits in a really special part of the internet: people come to us when an idea is cooking. A new startup, side project, newsletter, or even a name they can’t shake. Now that AI is making it dramatically easier to build, the hard part now isn’t if you can make it. Instead, it’s whether you can keep the idea in motion enough to ship. Our goal with [instant.ai](https://instant.ai) is to build small, mighty fast tools that help you go from “I have an idea” to “it’s on the internet.” ## The new branding Here’s a teaser of our new branding. We kept the lightning bolt because that’s the ethos to everything we build: speed and momentum. What’s new is making our design system even more obvious, and almost invisible when it’s working. Our tools feel magical, and we want our branding to reflect that too with a creative, human feel. A huge amount of this came from Paden Spencer’s artwork and world-building, Spencer Alexander Marsh’s logo illustrations, and Jordan Clarke’s simplification of our UI/UX. We’ll be sharing more of their work as we roll the new system out. And of course, there’s explorations of new mascots (Jiffy!) because why not. ## About Instant Instant started as a Web 2.0 side project back in 2005 out of the first Y Combinator batch. Now, we’re a small (but mighty!) team of designers, developers, and marketers obsessed with building simple software. If you’re curious about anything we’re building, we’d love to hear from you. Send me an email: 🫰 --- ## [We Now Support 800+ Domain Extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/expanding-supported-tlds) 2026-02-12 We’ve nearly doubled the number of domain extensions you can search. See some of the new ones: ## What changed For a long time, we only surfaced TLDs that were well-supported across our registrar partners. We had the data for hundreds more, but lacked a reliable way to route searches to the right partners for each extension. So we kept the list conservative. That’s no longer the case. With our [improved smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/smart-partner-routing), we can now correctly match every TLD to the registrars that actually support it. Which means we can finally open up the full list. ## Some highlights Here’s a taste of what you can now search: `.now` · `.how` · `.channel` · `.talk` · `.forum` · `.free` · `.new` · `.bot` · `.spa` · `.music` · `.bio.br` · `.kyoto` · `.osaka` · `.berlin` · `.barcelona` · `.cologne` · `.quebec` · `.wales` · `.cymru` · `.africa` · `.basketball` · `.rugby` · `.bible` · `.museum` · `.luxe` · `.organic` · `.realty` · `.career` · `.lotto` · `.fast` · `.hot` · `.select` · `.spot` · `.deal` · `.vana` · `.you` · `.soy` Plus hundreds of country-code extensions (`.ar`, `.dk`, `.fi`, `.fr`, `.hk`, `.jp`, `.kr`, `.nz`, `.pe`, `.ro`, `.se`, `.vn` and many more), internationalized domains in scripts like Arabic, Hindi, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese, and a big batch of Brazilian `.br` extensions. The full list of newly supported TLDs is at the bottom of this post. ## Try it Search for a domain with an extension you couldn’t find before. It’s live now at [instantdomainsearch.com](https://instantdomainsearch.com). Feedback? . *** ## Full list of newly supported TLDs `.abogado`, `.ac`, `.ac.id`, `.ad`, `.adm.br`, `.adv.br`, `.ae`, `.ae.org`, `.aero`, `.africa`, `.agr.br`, `.ar`, `.arq.br`, `.art.br`, `.as`, `.ato.br`, `.barcelona`, `.basketball`, `.berlin`, `.bh`, `.bi`, `.bible`, `.bio.br`, `.biz.id`, `.blog.br`, `.bmd.br`, `.bot`, `.br`, `.broker`, `.bzh`, `.career`, `.case`, `.cat`, `.cfd`, `.channel`, `.cl`, `.cm`, `.cn.com`, `.cng.br`, `.cnt.br`, `.co.com`, `.co.id`, `.co.il`, `.co.jp`, `.co.kr`, `.co.th`, `.cologne`, `.com.ar`, `.com.br`, `.com.de`, `.com.hk`, `.com.my`, `.com.ng`, `.com.pe`, `.com.pt`, `.com.ru`, `.com.se`, `.com.sg`, `.com.tr`, `.com.vn`, `.compare`, `.cv`, `.cx`, `.cymru`, `.cyou`, `.de.com`, `.deal`, `.desi`, `.dk`, `.ec`, `.ecn.br`, `.eco.br`, `.edu.pl`, `.eng.br`, `.etc.br`, `.eti.br`, `.eu.com`, `.eus`, `.far.br`, `.fast`, `.feedback`, `.fi`, `.flog.br`, `.fnd.br`, `.fo`, `.forex`, `.forum`, `.fot.br`, `.fr`, `.free`, `.fst.br`, `.gb.net`, `.gd`, `.gdn`, `.ggf.br`, `.gr`, `.hamburg`, `.hk`, `.hn`, `.hot`, `.how`, `.ie`, `.im`, `.imb.br`, `.in.net`, `.in.th`, `.ind.br`, `.inf.br`, `.is`, `.it`, `.je`, `.jobs`, `.jor.br`, `.jp`, `.jp.net`, `.jpn.com`, `.ke`, `.koeln`, `.kr`, `.krd`, `.kyoto`, `.lc`, `.lel.br`, `.li`, `.locker`, `.lotto`, `.lt`, `.lu`, `.luxe`, `.lv`, `.ma`, `.markets`, `.mat.br`, `.med`, `.med.br`, `.ml`, `.mn`, `.moi`, `.mu`, `.mus.br`, `.museum`, `.music`, `.mw`, `.my`, `.my.id`, `.name`, `.ne.jp`, `.net.br`, `.new`, `.ng`, `.no`, `.nom.br`, `.not.br`, `.now`, `.nrw`, `.ntr.br`, `.nu`, `.nz`, `.observer`, `.odo.br`, `.ooo`, `.or.id`, `.org.br`, `.org.il`, `.org.za`, `.organic`, `.osaka`, `.pe`, `.pk`, `.pm`, `.ponpes.id`, `.ppg.br`, `.pr`, `.pro.br`, `.psc.br`, `.pt`, `.pw`, `.qsl.br`, `.quebec`, `.radio`, `.radio.br`, `.re`, `.realty`, `.rec.br`, `.ren`, `.ro`, `.ru`, `.rugby`, `.ruhr`, `.rw`, `.sa.com`, `.saarland`, `.sbs`, `.sc`, `.sch.id`, `.scot`, `.se`, `.select`, `.sh`, `.si`, `.slg.br`, `.so`, `.soy`, `.spa`, `.spot`, `.srl`, `.srv.br`, `.st`, `.sx`, `.taipei`, `.talk`, `.taxi.br`, `.teo.br`, `.tf`, `.tm`, `.tmp.br`, `.to`, `.trading`, `.travel`, `.trd.br`, `.tur.br`, `.tv.br`, `.uk`, `.uk.com`, `.uk.net`, `.us.com`, `.vana`, `.vet.br`, `.vg`, `.vlog.br`, `.vn`, `.voting`, `.vu`, `.wales`, `.wang`, `.web.id`, `.wf`, `.wien`, `.wiki.br`, `.xin`, `.xn--3ds443g`, `.xn--5tzm5g`, `.xn--czrs0t`, `.xn--fjq720a`, `.xn--q9jyb4c`, `.xn--unup4y`, `.xn--vhquv`, `.you`, `.yt`, `.za.com`, `.zlg.br` --- ## [Smart Partner Routing: Domain Search Just Got Smarter](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/smart-partner-routing) 2026-02-04 Instant Domain Search now intelligently matches you with the right registrar for any domain extension. ## How It Works When you search for a domain, we check your TLD against every registrar in our network: **GoDaddy, Spaceship, Namecheap, Porkbun, Hostinger, Network Solutions, and Dynadot**. The result? You only see purchase options from partners that actually support your domain extension. Search for `marksmarketing.page`? We show you GoDaddy, Spaceship, Namecheap, and Porkbun. Partners that don’t support `.page` are grayed out with a clear explanation, so you know exactly what’s available before you click. ## Why This Matters * **Every link works.** Every “Register” button takes you somewhere that can complete your purchase. * **Niche TLDs, fully supported.** We’ve expanded to 800+ TLDs, and the routing keeps up. * **Total transparency.** See exactly which registrars support your domain before you click. * **Getting even smarter.** Soon, smart routing will also factor in pricing to help you find the best deal. ## Try It Now Search for a domain at [instantdomainsearch.com](https://instantdomainsearch.com). Pick an extension like `.page`, `.now`, `.how`, or `.museum` and see smart routing in action. Questions? --- ## [Run Instant Domain Search from Raycast’s Command Bar](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/raycast-extension) 2025-10-13 Our domain search tool is now available in Raycast. Check availability without leaving your command bar. ## What’s New We’ve built a **Raycast extension** that brings domain search directly into your workflow. Start typing and see results populate at the speed of keystroke: powered by the [same fast API](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast) that runs [instantdomainsearch.com](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). Keep your domain searches private from retail registrars, 100% free. ## How it works **Search Domains:** Start typing a name; 60 results stream in across our 3 search tools: Extensions (TLDs), Domain Name Generator, and Aftermarket Domains. Use **⌘ + P** to filter any of the results. ## Ask @instant-domain-search (MCP) You can also chat directly with our MCP in Raycast using **@instant-domain-search**. Ask for domain ideas, check availability, or refine a shortlist. It’s backed by our Domain Search MCP Server: [instantdomainsearch.com/mcp](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp). ## Why we built the extension * **Speed:** Quick checks while coding or naming a repo/product, without switching apps. * **Focus:** Keyboard-first workflow with instant feedback. * **Consistency:** The same index, pricing, and partner data as our website. * **Privacy:** Searches run against our infrastructure. We don’t send bulk queries to registrars unless you click through to a partner to buy. ## Getting started Open the Raycast store and search **“Instant Domain Search”** to install the extension. Run **Search Domains**, start typing, and use **⌘ P** to filter between *Extensions*, *Generator*, and *Premium*. Mention **@instant-domain-search** in the Raycast chat to brainstorm names with our MCP. Have feedback or requests? Ping us at . --- ## [Check a Thousand Domains at Once with Bulk Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/bulk-domain-search) 2025-08-25 We’re excited to announce the launch of our new [Bulk Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) tool, enabling domainers to search up to 1,000 domains at once. ## What’s New For nearly 20 years, our [Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) tool has expanded a single query into hundreds of domain options. Now, our new Bulk Domain Search tool consolidates hundreds of domains into a simple list. Filter by availability, price, TLDs, and more. Whether you’re working with AI-generated domain lists, migrating from spreadsheets, or checking variations of your brand, you can now validate entire lists instantly. No signup, no payment gates. Just paste your list or CSV and instantly check availability at scale. It’s 100% free. Instead, we make commissions when people use our affiliate links to purchase domains. This helps keep our tool free forever. Thank you! ## Key Features **Search up to 1,000 domains simultaneously** Import via CSV or paste directly. Our domain search tool delivers results instantly using the same [sub-10ms infrastructure](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast) that powers our main domain name search tool. **Live availability preview** Domains show availability status as you type them, even before you run the bulk search. **Comprehensive filtering** Filter results by availability (available/taken/premium), TLDs (domain extensions), or price range. You can also sort alphabetically. **Export functionality** Download your domain name search results as CSV with availability status and pricing data for offline analysis. **Domain intelligence** Click into any domain to view SEO metrics including Domain Authority, backlinks, and historical data. ## Use Cases The tool addresses several specific workflows: * Validating lists generated by LLMs or [domain generators](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) * Checking brand variations and typos for trademark protection across all [domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) * Evaluating [premium domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/premium-domains) portfolios before acquisition * Migrating from spreadsheet-based domain tracking ## Privacy The bulk search tool is powered by our own internal database of domain availability. This means no bulk queries leave our servers to retail registrars if you don’t click to visit their referral links. ## Getting Started Simply navigate to [instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) and start typing or paste your domain list. You can also upload a CSV file if you prefer. Results appear instantly, showing availability status for each domain. From there, filter by what matters to you - available domains only, specific TLDs, or price ranges. Click any domain to see detailed information and pricing from our registrar partners, or export everything as a CSV for further analysis. ## Try It Now We’ve been excited about this tool for a while. The tool is live at: [instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search). It’s 100% free, and that’s supported by users clicking our referral links when purchasing domains. Thanks a million for supporting our free tools! Have feedback? We’d love to hear. Message our devs at . [1](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog) · [2](https://instantdomainsearch.com/changelog/page/2)