# Instant Domain Search - Complete Content > Real-time domain availability search with instant results as you type. For a summary, see https://instantdomainsearch.com/llms.txt --- # Learn Articles # Introducing Free Accounts: Save Domains Across All Your Devices > Create a free Instant account to sync saved domains across devices, lift your bulk search limit to 5,000, and get first access to new features. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/introducing-user-accounts - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-07-21 --- For twenty years, Instant Domain Search has been a tool you use, not a place you sign into. Today that changes, a little. You can now create a free account so saved domains follow you to every device. We know an account doesn't sound revolutionary. Half the internet asks you to sign up before it shows you anything. That's exactly why we took our time with this one. We didn't want a login bolted onto the side of the search. We wanted accounts built the way we'd want them as users: private, secure, intentional, and free. And we wanted the foundation to be right, because accounts quietly unlock some of the most exciting projects on our roadmap. ## What an account gets you today **Your saved domains, on every device.** Until now, your [saved domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/saved-domains-sidebar) lived in your browser. Clear your cache or switch machines and your shortlist stayed behind. Sign in once and your list syncs live across every device you use. Save a name on your laptop, and it's waiting on your phone. **No more save limit.** Without an account, you can keep up to 30 domains saved on a device. With a free account, save as many as you like. **10× bigger bulk searches.** [Bulk search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) caps at 500 domains per run for anonymous visitors. With a free account, that jumps to 5,000. **First in line for what's next.** Everything we're building on top of accounts (more below) will reach account holders first. ## Private and intentional, from day one People search for names here that they'd rather nobody else see. A brand you haven't trademarked yet. A product you haven't announced. An idea you had ten seconds ago. We've spent two decades earning trust as a tool that asks nothing of you, and we want to maintain that trust as we introduce new layers to our tools. So here's how accounts are built: - **Your searches stay yours.** An account syncs what you *choose to save*, nothing else. Searching never requires an account, and your searches aren't tied to your identity. - **Cloud sync is a choice.** There's a device-only mode in your account settings. Flip it on and your saved domains never touch our servers, even while you're signed in. And the first time you sign in, we ask before merging anything you'd already saved locally. Nothing uploads without your say-so. - **We never see your password.** Sign-in is handled by Clerk, the same dedicated auth platform trusted by thousands of products. Credentials never live on our servers. - **Your list is yours to take.** Export your saved domains to CSV any time, from [/saved-domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/saved-domains). ## The honest reason we're excited Here's a reality of running a free public tool in 2026 that doesn't get talked about much: a huge share of our traffic isn't human. Meta's AI crawlers alone hit our site about 20,000 times a day. Add the other AI labs, the scrapers, and the bots running entire dictionaries through our checkers, and the picture is clear: every feature we put on a public page, we're also handing to every bot on the internet. For instant search, that's fine. We've spent years making availability checks fast and cheap enough to serve at that scale, and we're proud that the tool is open to everyone with no login in sight. But the things our users keep asking us for cost real money on every single lookup: deeper, authoritative availability verification, domain valuations, keyword search volume, social handle checks, trademark signals. Put those on a public page and bots would drain them within hours, and we'd effectively be paying to enrich someone else's crawler instead of your domain research. An account solves this in the simplest possible way: it tells us there's a human on the other end. And that means we can start giving humans things we could never give the bots. ## What accounts unlock next This is the part we've been waiting for. With accounts in place, here's what's on the roadmap: - **More accurate checks.** Deeper verification for signed-in users, straight from the registries. It's the kind of per-lookup accuracy we can't expose on a public page. - **Domain enrichments.** Valuations, search volume, social handles, and trademark signals layered onto your saved domains and searches. - **Lists.** Build, organize, and share collections of domains for your projects, your clients, or your portfolio. - **Credits and a Pro tier.** For advanced domain investors who need serious depth and volume, we'll offer credits for premium data and, eventually, a Pro account. - **An API.** Accounts open the door to a self-serve Instant Domain Search API. It's coming. And to be unmistakably clear about one thing: **Instant Domain Search is free, and it always will be.** The search you use today is not going behind a login. Accounts are free. Saved domains are free. What we'll charge for, someday, is the advanced layer: the premium data and volume that professional domain investors need. The tool itself stays open to everyone, the way it's been for twenty years. ## Create your account Click **Sign in** at the top of the page. It takes about thirty seconds. We'd love to hear what you'd want your account to do. Tell us: [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # Search Domains From Your AI Assistant: The Domain Search MCP > Connect the free Instant Domain Search MCP to Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor to check domain availability and generate names in your AI chat. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/domain-search-mcp - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-07-02 --- More and more, the first place an idea gets described out loud is an AI assistant. "Help me name my company." "Draft a landing page for this." "Give me ten brand ideas." And then, every time, the same record scratch: you leave the chat, open a browser, and start pasting names into a domain search to see what's actually available. The [Instant Domain Search MCP](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) closes that gap. It's a free connector that plugs real-time domain data straight into Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor. This means that the assistant brainstorming names can check whether they're available, compare pricing, and suggest registrable alternatives without you ever switching tabs. ## What your assistant can do with it Once connected, your AI assistant gains three domain tools it can call on its own, mid-conversation: - **Search domains** — give it a name or a fragment and it checks availability across many extensions at once, the same [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) you'd run in the browser. - **Generate variations** — when your first choice is taken, it produces pronounceable, brand-coherent alternatives (prefixes, suffixes, and semantic twists, similar to our [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator)) and only suggests names that are actually registrable. - **Check availability** — hand it a single name or a whole list (like a [bulk search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search)) and get a definitive, registry-verified yes/no, plus pricing and a link to register. In other words, your assistant stops *guessing* whether `acme.ai` is free and starts *knowing*. ## See it in action ## Why it's different from asking an AI to "suggest domains" Ask a raw LLM for available domains and it will happily suggest names that were registered years ago, as it has no live data. The MCP fixes that at the source: - **Real, registry-level data.** Results come from authoritative registries (VeriSign, PIR, and others) — the same infrastructure behind [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) — not a stale guess. [Here's how that data pipeline works](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). - **Fast.** Sub-10ms responses, so checking dozens of names mid-chat doesn't slow the conversation down. (More on [how we keep it that fast](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/building-fast-ai).) - **Private.** Queries go direct to registries and bypass retail registrars, so the names you explore don't land in a sales database — or quietly turn "premium" the next day. It's also, as far as we know, the only [domain search tool](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-search-tools) with a dedicated MCP surface. ## Set it up in under two minutes The MCP works with **Claude (Web & Desktop)**, **ChatGPT (as a CustomGPT)**, and **Cursor**. It's free, needs no account, and requires no API key. Simply point your assistant at the server endpoint: ``` https://api.instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/streamable-http ``` We've written a short guide for each platform. Pick yours and you'll be running in a couple of minutes: - [Claude Web](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup/claude-web) - [Claude Desktop](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup/claude-desktop) - [ChatGPT](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup/chatgpt) - [Cursor](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup/cursor) (Full walkthrough: [instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup).) ## Why we built it Naming is one of the first concrete steps in turning an idea into something real, and increasingly, that idea takes shape inside an AI assistant. It never made sense that you'd have to leave the conversation to find out whether the name is even available. The MCP keeps your whole loop of idea, name, availability, and registration link all in one place. It's also where we think search is heading. As more research and building happens through AI assistants, the tools those assistants can reach matter as much as the websites people visit. A [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) your AI can call directly is our bet on that future. ## Try it Connect the [domain search MCP](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) to your assistant and ask it to find you a name. When you've got a winner, open it in [Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) for the full report, or run a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to compare every extension. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the Instant Domain Search MCP? It's a free Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that gives AI assistants real-time access to domain availability, pricing, and aftermarket data. It lets your assistant search domains, generate alternatives, and verify availability without leaving the chat. [Learn more](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp). ### Which AI assistants does it work with? Claude (Web and Desktop), ChatGPT (as a CustomGPT), and Cursor. Each has a [short setup guide](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp/setup). ### Is it free? Do I need an API key? Yes, it's free — and no, there's no account or API key required. You connect your assistant to the server endpoint and start asking. ### Can it actually register the domain for me? It finds and verifies available names and gives you a direct link to register, but the purchase itself happens at the registrar of your choice. The MCP handles the research; you complete the checkout. ### Are my searches private? Yes. Queries go straight to authoritative registries and bypass retail registrars, so the domains you explore don't enter a sales database. [Here's the architecture](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). --- # Reverse Dictionary: Find Words by Their Meaning > Describe a concept and find the related English word instantly — then check domain availability in one click. Meet the Instant Domain Search reverse dictionary. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/reverse-dictionary - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-06-23 --- You know the feeling. There's a word that means *exactly* what you want — the precise one — but it's stuck just out of reach. Or you're naming a company and you need a word that captures a feeling: something that sounds *fast*, or *calm*, or *rare*. A normal dictionary is no help, because you don't know the word yet. You only know what it means. That's what a reverse dictionary is for. A regular dictionary goes word → meaning. A reverse dictionary goes the other way: meaning → word. Describe the concept, and it finds the words that fit. We built one, and wired it straight into domain search. It's live at [Reverse Dictionary](https://instantdomainsearch.com/words). ## Meaning in, words out Type a concept using a few words and you'll get a ranked grid of related English words, streaming in as you type. Start broad: `mountain`, `fast`, `big house`. Here's the fun part. Search a word like "instant" and you don't just get the obvious synonyms, you'll see words like jiffy and trice. Right away these might not click, but then you realize: a jiffy is an instant, and something done in a trice happens instantly. That little "oh, nice" moment is the whole point. It nudges you toward names you'd never reach from a synonym list. Each result carries its **part of speech** and a short **definition**, so you can tell `swift` the adjective from `swift` the bird at a glance. Want only nouns for a brand name, or only verbs for an action-driven product? Filter the grid to nouns, verbs, adjectives, or adverbs. ## How it works So why does it surface *jiffy* for *instant*? Instead of matching synonyms, the reverse dictionary scans the **definitions** of every word in the dictionary and surfaces the ones whose meaning is associated with your concept, ranked by how strongly they relate. Working from meanings rather than a synonym list is exactly what turns up those adjacent, evocative words. It's built on a structured lexical database (WordNet) and the same fast Rust search service behind the rest of Instant Domain Search. This means results stream in as you type, the way a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) does. It's the latest in a line of language tooling we've built and written about: a [blazing-fast word segmenter in Rust](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/instant-word-segmentation-with-rust), [real-time translation with word vectors](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-to-use-fasttext-for-instant-translations), and the [embedding models that keep our search under 10ms](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/building-fast-ai). Reverse Dictionary sits on top of that foundation. ## From a word to a domain, in one click This is where it stops being a vocabulary toy and becomes a naming tool. Click any word in the results and, right there in the grid, you'll see: - **TLD competitiveness** — how many extensions for that word are already registered versus still open. - **Available extensions** — the open TLDs you can register right now (`.com`, `.io`, `.ai`, `.co`, and more), color-coded by status and price. - **Generator alternatives** — [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator)-style suggestions built around the word, with exact-match extensions pinned to the top. So the path runs *concept → the right word → an available domain*, without ever leaving the page. When something looks promising, open it in [Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) for the full report — ownership, pricing across registrars, and alternatives. ## Why this helps with naming The best one-word domains went years ago — but the language is enormous, and most of it never gets considered, simply because you don't think of it. A reverse dictionary widens the net. It's the creative complement to our [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator). The generator takes your keyword and takes the direct route to available prefixes, suffixes, and TLDs around it. The reverse dictionary is the indirect route, for when you only have the idea: describe the value your business delivers (say your product helps people grow) and you'll surface words that tell that story without the obvious, already-taken match. - **Evocative brand names** — describe the feeling you want ("calm," "speed," "trust") and surface words you'd never have brainstormed. - **Unexpected angles** — adjacent and associated words often make better brands than the obvious noun. - **One-word availability** — pair it with our [one-word dictionary domain lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists) and the [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) to find names that are both meaningful and open. For the bigger picture on turning a word into a brand, see [how to choose a domain name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-choose-a-domain-name) and [how to name your business](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-name-your-business). ## Try it Reverse Dictionary is live and free at [instantdomainsearch.com/words](https://instantdomainsearch.com/words) — no account needed. You'll also find it under the **Tools** menu in the nav bar. Describe what you mean. We'll find the word — and the [domain name search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to go with it. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is a reverse dictionary? A reverse dictionary lets you find a word by its meaning instead of its spelling. You describe a concept — a definition, a feeling, or a few related words — and it returns the words that match. It's the inverse of a normal dictionary, which starts from the word. ### How is it different from a thesaurus? A thesaurus gives you synonyms of a word you already have. A reverse dictionary works from meaning: it finds words whose *definitions* relate to your concept, which surfaces adjacent, creative results — like `jiffy` or `trice` for `instant` — instead of the dry synonym list a thesaurus returns. ### Is it free? Yes. The [reverse dictionary](https://instantdomainsearch.com/words) is completely free and requires no account, like the rest of [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). ### Can I find an available domain from a word? Yes — that's the point. Click any word in the results to see which domain extensions are available for it, then register through your preferred registrar or dig deeper in the [domain checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check). --- # How to Check if a Domain Name is Available > How to check if a domain name is available — instantly, free, and across 800+ extensions. Plus how to check who owns a taken domain and search names in bulk. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-check-domain-availability - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-06-23 --- Every day, people type a name they love into a search box and hold their breath. Sometimes it's open. Usually, it's already taken. Checking domain availability is the moment an idea meets reality, and doing it well saves you from falling for a name you can never actually own. We've spent 20 years and nearly 50 million searches to make checking domain availability a seamless process. It takes seconds, it's free, and you don't need to make an account. This guide covers every way to do it: checking a single name, every extension at once, who owns a taken domain, and a whole list in one go. We'll also show you how to read the results so "premium," "parked," and aftermarket listings don't trip you up. Here's how to do it right. ## The fastest way to check domain availability The quickest method is to type your idea into a live [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and watch the results update as you type. No "search" button, no page reload — availability for `.com`, `.ai`, `.io`, `.co`, and hundreds of other extensions streams back in under 25 milliseconds. Why as-you-type matters: naming is iterative. You try `northstar`, see it's gone, try `northstarhq`, then `trynorthstar`, then `northstar.studio`. When every check is instant, you can run through twenty ideas in the time a traditional registrar takes to load one result page. (More on why speed is a real advantage — and how registry-level data makes it possible — in our [best domain search tools](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-search-tools) comparison.) **Try it:** open [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), start typing, and availability updates on every keystroke. ## How to check if one specific domain is available When you have a single name in mind and want the full story, use [Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check). Type one domain and get a complete report: - **Availability status** — available, taken, or listed for sale on an aftermarket marketplace. - **Who owns it** — if it's registered, you'll see registration details and a live preview of whatever is on the site today. - **Where to buy it, and for how much** — registration prices compared across registrars like Namecheap, Porkbun, GoDaddy, and Dynadot, so you don't overpay. - **TLD competitiveness** — how many extensions are open versus taken for that name. - **Alternatives** — available names and extensions close to your pick. Use a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) when you're brainstorming and want breadth. Use the [domain checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) when you've found something worth investigating and want depth. {/* IMAGE: Screenshot of the /check page for a single domain, showing availability status, registrar pricing, and TLD competitiveness. Suggested alt: "Check Domain Availability report for a single domain with pricing, ownership, and alternative extensions" */} ## How to check domain name availability across every extension `.com` taken? That isn't the end of the search — it's the beginning. There are now 800+ live extensions, and the right one might be available right now. When you search a name, you instantly see it across every relevant [domain extension](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions): `.com`, `.co`, `.io`, `.ai`, `.dev`, `.app`, `.studio`, and hundreds more, each with live pricing. If `northstar.com` is registered, `northstar.studio` or `north.star` (a domain hack) might be wide open. The part after the dot — the [TLD](https://instantdomainsearch.com/glossary/what-is-tld) — shapes how your brand reads. A `.ai` signals an AI product; a country code like `.ca` or `.de` signals a local business. (We dug into which extensions are growing fastest in our [most popular domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026) report.) ## What "available" actually means A domain checker returns more than a plain yes or no. Knowing the categories saves you from chasing names you can't realistically get: - **Available** — unregistered. You can register it right now at the standard price. - **Taken (registered)** — someone owns it. It may be an active site, or it may be parked and doing nothing. Either way, it isn't available to register — though it might be for sale (see below). - **Premium** — available, but the registry has priced it above standard rates because the name is desirable. Premium `.com`s and short names can run from a few hundred to many thousands of dollars. - **Aftermarket** — taken, but listed for resale on a marketplace. Browse [aftermarket domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) to see asking prices. - **Recently dropped** — a registration that lapsed and returned to the pool. These [expired domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) sometimes carry existing backlinks and history — which can be a head start or a liability. This is why so many searches come back "taken": the short, obvious names went years ago. Hundreds of millions of domains are already registered across all extensions. (See the [numbers behind the biggest TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026).) The job isn't finding a name nobody has claimed — it's finding a great one that's still open, or a taken one worth buying. ## How to check who owns a taken domain If a name you want is registered, the next question is who holds it and whether they might sell. A [WHOIS lookup](https://instantdomainsearch.com/whois-lookup) shows the registration record: when the domain was created, when it expires, and — where it isn't redacted for privacy — the registrant. Two quick reads: - **Recently created, with an active site** → unlikely to sell. - **Old registration, parked page, expiring soon** → it may be worth an offer, or worth watching for a drop. Before you buy any previously owned domain, check its past. Look it up on the Wayback Machine ([archive.org](https://archive.org)) to make sure it wasn't used for spam. A bad history can take years to shake off in Google's eyes. ## How to check hundreds of domain names at once Brainstorming with AI tends to produce a long list of candidates fast. Instead of checking them one by one, paste the whole list into [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) and check them all at once, then filter down to just the available ones. A workflow our users swear by: 1. Ask ChatGPT or Claude for 100+ name ideas. 2. Paste them into [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search). 3. Filter to **available** to hide everything taken — and by price if you have a budget. 4. Deep-dive your favorites in the [domain checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check). You can even skip the copy-paste: our free [domain search MCP](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) connects to Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor, so you can ask your AI assistant whether names are available and it queries our index directly. ## Why the tool you check with matters Not all availability checks are equal, and the differences are bigger than they look: - **Accuracy** — the most reliable results come from registry-level data (zone files from partners like VeriSign and Google Registry) rather than cached WHOIS, which can lag behind reality. We pull [directly from registries](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private), so "available" really means available. - **Privacy** — when you check a name on a registrar's own site, that registrar logs every domain you look at. A search-first tool that doesn't forward your queries to a retail registrar keeps your shortlist to yourself — which matters when you're naming something in stealth. - **Speed** — registry-level data is exactly what makes sub-25ms, as-you-type results possible in the first place. ## The quick version 1. **Brainstorm broad** in a live [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) — watch availability update as you type. 2. **Go wide on extensions** — if `.com` is gone, scan the 800+ alternatives. 3. **Deep-dive your top pick** in [Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) — owner, price, and alternatives on one page. 4. **Check a taken name's history** with a [WHOIS lookup](https://instantdomainsearch.com/whois-lookup) and the Wayback Machine. 5. **Filter a big list** in [bulk search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search). 6. **Register fast.** Good names go quickly, and most extensions run around $10–15 a year ([full pricing breakdown](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-much-domains-cost)). ## Frequently asked questions ### How do I check if a domain name is available? Type the name into a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and you'll see its availability across `.com` and 800+ other extensions instantly. For one specific domain, use [Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) to also see who owns it, what it costs, and where to buy it. ### Is it free to check domain availability? Yes. Searching and checking domain availability on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) is completely free and requires no account. You only pay when you register a domain through a registrar. ### How can I tell if a domain is taken or just parked? A [domain checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) shows the availability status, and a [WHOIS lookup](https://instantdomainsearch.com/whois-lookup) shows the registration and expiry dates. A taken domain with a parked page and an approaching expiry date is a candidate to buy — or to watch for a drop. ### What's the difference between a domain search and a domain checker? A [domain name search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) is built for breadth — discovering available names across many extensions as you type. A [domain checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) is built for depth — a full report on one specific domain. Use search to explore, and the domain checker to investigate. ### How do I check a lot of domains at once? Use [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search): paste a list of names, check them all in one go, then filter to the available ones. It's ideal for vetting a big batch of AI-generated ideas. ### Can I check domain availability from ChatGPT or Claude? Yes. Our [domain search MCP](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) lets AI assistants like Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor check availability directly — just ask your assistant whether a name is available and it queries our live index. ## Start checking The best name for your project is probably still out there — you just have to find the open one. Start with a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), and when you've found a name worth committing to, run it through [Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) to see the full picture before you buy. --- # Best Domain Name Generators in 2026 > We tested every major domain name generator in 2026 on creative range, live availability, TLD coverage, pricing, and AI workflow fit. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-name-generators-2026 - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-05-19 --- Finding a good domain name is the hardest part of starting anything. Everything else (registering it, building the site, paying for the domain) takes minutes. The name itself can take weeks. The single-word .com you want is registered. The branded compound you came up with is taken. The clever portmanteau you stayed up writing turns out to be a registered trademark in a tangentially related category. This is the gap domain name generators exist to close. Type in a keyword or a one-line pitch, and get a list of options that are actually available. The best ones combine creative variations you would not have come up with on your own (think Lyft, Stripe, Spotify, the entire family of invented words that defines modern brands) with live availability checking so the names you see are actually open to register. 2026 raised the bar on what a "generator" is supposed to do. Pre-AI generators ran your keyword through a list of prefixes and suffixes. Post-AI generators can read your business description, suggest invented words tuned to your industry, check availability across hundreds of TLDs, and (in the best cases) route you directly to register. Some have absorbed AI thoughtfully. Some bolted "AI" onto the same prefix-suffix output they were producing in 2018. A few are now indistinguishable from a custom GPT. We tested the major ones. Below is what each does well, what to watch for, and how to pick the right tool for what you're actually trying to do. ## What to look for in a domain name generator The differences between generators are bigger than the marketing suggests. The criteria that actually matter: - **Creative range.** Does it suggest only "yourkeyword-online.com" style padding, or does it produce brandable invented words (Spotify, Twilio, Stripe), portmanteaus (Pinterest, Microsoft), abstract metaphors (Apple, Oracle), domain hacks (instagr.am, del.icio.us), and compounds that sound like real companies? The depth of the creative library is what separates a brainstorming tool from a glorified suffix machine. - **Live availability checking.** A name suggestion is worthless if it turns out to be already registered. The best generators check availability against authoritative registry data in real time as they suggest. The worst ones surface names that have been taken for years. - **TLD coverage.** Most generators only check .com. A few extend to .io, .ai, .co, and .app. The serious ones cover 800+ extensions including ccTLDs and newer gTLDs. If you're naming an AI company, [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai) coverage is non-negotiable. If you're naming a dev tool, [.dev](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/dev) coverage matters. - **Multi-registrar pricing.** Even when a name is available, the price varies meaningfully across registrars. A generator that shows live prices across multiple registrars saves you the trip of checking five different sites once you've shortlisted. - **Brand-fit controls.** Can you steer the generator toward a particular industry, audience, or style? Naming a SaaS for developers and a wellness brand for retirees should not produce the same suggestions, but most older generators treat them identically. - **Brand inputs that aren't just keywords.** AI-native generators let you describe the business in a sentence and pick a tone. Pre-AI ones only accept keywords. The difference shows up in the relevance of the output. - **Save and shortlist.** Generators that produce hundreds of names but no way to save your favorites are exhausting. Good ones let you flag, sort, and export a shortlist. - **Logo and brand previews.** Some generators preview how the name would look as a wordmark or logo. This is downstream of naming, but it's useful for narrowing a shortlist quickly. - **Privacy of your queries.** If a generator is operated by a registrar, that registrar logs every name you ask it to suggest. For stealth-mode projects or competitive research, this matters more than people realize. We wrote a full piece on [how we keep domain searches private](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) when we built our own search architecture around this. - **AI assistant integration.** In 2026, an increasing share of naming workflows starts inside Claude, ChatGPT, or Cursor. Generators with [MCP (Model Context Protocol)](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) integration plug directly into those workflows. Most don't yet. ## The 9 best domain name generators in 2026 ### 1. Instant Domain Search Domain Generator **Best for:** AI suggestions with live availability and multi-registrar pricing on every result Our own [Domain Name Generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) is built around a simple bet: the most useful suggestion is one you can buy immediately. Every name surfaced is checked against our local zone-file index for live availability across 800+ TLDs, shown next to the price from each of our partner registrars, with a one-click path to register. There's no separate "now go check elsewhere" step. The generator combines multiple strategies in one search. Brand modifiers (`get` + `stripe`, `my` + `stripe`), letter tweaks (`str` + `ipe`, `stripe` + `z`), alternate TLDs (`stripe.dev`, `stripe.co`), action and verb-like patterns (`stripify`, `stripely`), and keyword permutations when you enter multiple words. Behind that, AI suggestions tuned to brandable, descriptive, compound, portmanteau, and abstract styles. You can pick the [naming style](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) and the industry, and the suggestions adjust. **Key features:** - Sub-25ms live availability across 800+ TLDs from [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) - Multi-registrar price comparison (GoDaddy, Spaceship, Namecheap, Porkbun, Hostinger, Network Solutions, Dynadot) via [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) on every result - Multiple generation strategies in a single search (brand modifiers, letter tweaks, alternate TLDs, action-verb patterns, keyword permutations) - Naming style picker (brandable, descriptive, compound, portmanteau, abstract) - Industry fit picker for steering suggestions - [Curated lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists) of available names refreshed daily against live registry data - Save your shortlist without an account (lives in your browser) - MCP server so Claude, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible assistant can use the generator directly - Sibling tool at [`/business-name-generator`](https://instantdomainsearch.com/business-name-generator) for full-business-name conversations **Privacy approach:** Queries never reach a retail registrar. Searches run against our local zone-file index built from direct partnerships with VeriSign, Google Registry, Radix, Identity Digital, and others. A registrar only learns about your interest when you click "Register." **Limitations:** We're not a logo maker. If you want full brand identity previews on every name (mockups, business card visualizations, color palettes), Namelix and Wix do that. Our take is that logo previews are downstream of naming, but if you want them tightly bundled, we don't compete on that axis. --- ### 2. Namelix **Best for:** Brandable invented words with logo previews on every suggestion Namelix has earned a strong reputation as the brandable-name generator of choice. The tool is built by the team behind Brandmark, so every generated name comes with an instant logo mockup, business card preview, and brand identity concept. For founders who think visually, this is a meaningful workflow shortcut: you see what the name looks like as a brand before you commit to it. It offers eight naming styles (brandable, compound, real words, misspelled words like Lyft and Flickr, non-English words, rhyming words, and a few more). An adaptive learning algorithm tracks the names you save and biases subsequent suggestions toward what you've shown a preference for. The longer you use it in a single session, the more its output starts to feel tuned to your taste. **Key features:** - Eight distinct naming styles - Adaptive AI that learns from the names you "heart" - Instant logo mockups via Brandmark integration - Domain availability checking on suggestions - Free to use; paid plans for full logo and brand kit downloads ($25 / $65 / $175 one-time) **Privacy approach:** Namelix is operated by a third-party company. Standard query logging applies. **Limitations:** Domain availability is checked, but there is no multi-registrar price comparison. If you want logo previews, the workflow is excellent; if you want to register right now at the cheapest price, you'll still need to check elsewhere. The free version surfaces some names that are already registered trademarks, so additional trademark checking is on you. --- ### 3. NameMesh **Best for:** Categorized results across multiple styles in one search NameMesh has been a favorite among startup founders and developers for over a decade because of one feature: results are organized into clearly labeled categories. You search once and get tabs for Common (standard keyword combinations), New (creative variations), Short (concise options), Fun (playful and creative), Extra (uncommon endings), Similar (close alternatives), and SEO (search-engine-optimized patterns). For people who want to brainstorm across multiple directions without running seven separate searches, the categorization is a real time-saver. **Key features:** - Categorized results across at least 7 styles - Real-time domain availability checking - AI-enhanced search for refined suggestions - SEO-focused search for ranking-friendly patterns - Clean, no-nonsense interface **Privacy approach:** Third-party tool with standard query logging. **Limitations:** The interface is dated and ad-supported. Pricing comparison across registrars is absent. AI features are bolted on rather than built in, so the suggestion quality varies. No way to save a shortlist across sessions without an account. --- ### 4. Domainr **Best for:** Domain hacks and short URL ideas Domainr (now owned by Fastly) is the specialist for one specific use case: finding clever short URLs by using the TLD as part of the word. The classic examples are `instagr.am` and `del.icio.us`. Domainr tracks 1,731 top-level domains, including 161 non-Latin internationalized TLDs, and lets you search for ways to slice your keyword across an extension. For URL shorteners, micro-services, dev tools, and brand variations, this is unmatched. **Key features:** - Specialized domain hack discovery across 1,731 TLDs - Instant search with results as you type - ICANN-accredited domain status API for developers - Clean minimalist interface - Free to use; API pricing varies by volume **Privacy approach:** Domainr is API-first and built by Fastly. Privacy posture is standard for an infrastructure tool. **Limitations:** Domainr is not a brainstorming tool. It expects you to bring a keyword and shows you ways to fragment it across extensions. If you don't have a starting keyword, it has nothing to offer. No AI suggestions, no logo previews, no multi-registrar pricing. --- ### 5. Shopify Business Name Generator **Best for:** Ecommerce store naming in the Shopify ecosystem Shopify's free business name generator is one of the cleaner free tools, with a generous "no signup required" policy and the marketing weight of one of the largest brands in commerce behind it. You describe your business in a short prompt and the AI produces name candidates, each with an annual domain price for purchase. The flow is tightly integrated with Shopify's store setup, so if you're building an ecommerce business, the path from idea to live store is short. **Key features:** - AI-powered naming from a one-line business prompt - Instant domain availability check with annual pricing - Multiple style variants (Simple, Cool, and other dedicated sub-tools) - No account required - Tight integration with Shopify store builder **Privacy approach:** Operated by Shopify. Queries are logged under Shopify's standard privacy practices. **Limitations:** Suggestions skew commercial and ecommerce-flavored. Good for stores; less useful for a developer tool, a SaaS, or a personal brand. Single-registrar pricing (Shopify-only). No MCP integration, no API for naming workflows. --- ### 6. Wix Business Name Generator **Best for:** Full-stack brand kit (name + logo + website) in one place Wix offers a free AI business name generator with 21 industry categories, a customizable name-length slider (1 to 20+ characters), and instant checks on both domain and social media handle availability. The differentiator is integration with the rest of Wix's brand stack: you can go from name to logo (via the Wix Logo Maker) to live website (via the Wix Website Builder) in a single flow without switching tools. For founders who want one platform from naming through launch, the workflow is genuinely seamless. **Key features:** - AI-powered naming with industry context (21 categories) - Name length slider (1 to 20+ characters) - Instant domain and social media handle availability - Logo Maker, Website Builder, Business Card Maker, QR Code Generator integration - Free to use; downstream tools require Wix plans **Privacy approach:** Operated by Wix. Standard query logging. **Limitations:** The free tier funnels toward Wix's paid plans for anything beyond the name itself. Single-registrar pricing. No MCP or API. The naming output skews toward small-business and personal-brand patterns; if you're naming a high-growth tech startup, the suggestions can feel generic. --- ### 7. Atom.com (formerly Squadhelp) **Best for:** Buying a curated brandable name off-the-shelf instead of generating one from scratch Atom (rebranded from Squadhelp in 2024) is a different model than the others on this list. Rather than generate names from your keywords, it sells access to 300,000+ pre-curated brandable domains, each one already vetted for memorability, marketability, and (usually) trademark cleanliness. You browse and search the inventory by industry, style, length, or price. When you find one, you buy the domain directly from the marketplace. It also runs AI-powered naming contests where you describe your business and a community of namers (humans, augmented by AI) submits candidates over a few days, with an AI Appraisal tool providing data-backed valuations. The tool is more business-development than brainstorming. **Key features:** - 300,000+ curated brandable domains (mostly .com, .ai, and other premium TLDs) - AI-powered naming contests for custom names - AI Appraisal tool for valuations - Trademark filters - Marketplace tiers (Premium, Ultra Premium, Sapphire) **Privacy approach:** Atom is a marketplace operator. Queries on the marketplace are logged. **Limitations:** Names are premium-priced (usually low four to five figures and up). Atom typically takes 15-35% commission on sales, and some users have reported friction with forced registrar transfers and two-year renewal fees. For solo founders who want a $9 hand-registered .ai, Atom is overkill. For funded startups who want a name with a logo and a trademark report already attached, it's hard to beat. Note that the inventory overlaps with [our aftermarket aggregator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains), which surfaces Atom listings alongside Sedo, Afternic, Sav, DomainAgents, and others in one search. --- ### 8. Lean Domain Search **Best for:** Simple prefix/suffix brainstorming with no AI overhead Lean Domain Search was launched in 2012 by Matt Mazur and is now operated by Automattic (the parent of WordPress.com). The tool does one thing: pairs your keyword with a curated list of prefixes and suffixes to produce hundreds of available .com combinations. Results are filterable by position (prefix, suffix, or anywhere) and sortable by length, popularity, or alphabetical order. It's a throwback to a pre-AI era of generators, and that's the appeal for some users. **Key features:** - Prefix/suffix pairing for .com domain ideas - Filtering by position - Sorting by length, popularity, or alphabetical - Free, no account required - Clean utilitarian interface **Privacy approach:** Operated by Automattic. Standard query logging. **Limitations:** Limited updates in recent years. Only checks .com availability, no broader TLD coverage. No AI suggestions, no logo previews, no multi-registrar pricing, no industry context. The tool's strength is also its weakness: it does exactly one thing, and that thing has been improved on by every modern generator on this list. Still useful for fast brainstorming if you want raw prefix/suffix output without ceremony. --- ### 9. ChatGPT, Claude, and Custom GPTs **Best for:** Open-ended naming conversations and unusual constraints The newest entry on this list is also the most flexible. Rather than visit a generator, you can ask Claude or ChatGPT to brainstorm 200 names for your business, then narrow with follow-up prompts ("more brandable," "shorter," "no Greek roots," "must end in a hard consonant"). Both have purpose-built naming GPTs and skills available. The output quality is comparable to (and sometimes better than) traditional generators because the model holds your full business context across multiple turns. The gap, until recently, was that AI assistants would happily generate names without any awareness of whether they were available as domains. You'd end up with a polished shortlist of names you couldn't actually register. That's solved by [MCP](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/). Instant Domain Search's MCP server gives Claude, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible assistant the ability to check domain availability across 800+ TLDs in the middle of a conversation, with multi-registrar pricing attached. The flow becomes: "Brainstorm 50 names for an AI agent platform, then check availability and price for the top 10." All in one chat. **Key features:** - Open-ended naming with full business context - Iterative refinement across multiple turns - Custom GPTs and Claude skills for specialized naming workflows - MCP integration with our generator for live availability and pricing - Free to use with most AI assistants **Privacy approach:** Depends on the AI assistant's data policy. Anthropic, OpenAI, and others have published privacy positions on chat data retention. Most allow you to disable training on your inputs. **Limitations:** Without an MCP integration, no built-in domain availability check. The assistant will happily suggest names that are already registered. You also need to bring your own structure: the quality of the output is directly tied to the quality of your prompt. New users tend to ask too vaguely and get generic results. --- ## How Instant Domain Search fits into the picture The list above is what we built our own generator around. We are not above the other tools, we are competing with them on merit. The architecture choices that make our generator different: - **Live availability on every suggestion, sub-25 milliseconds.** Most generators show suggestions first and check availability later (or, worse, suggest names that are already registered). Ours runs every suggestion against a local index of zone files built from [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) with VeriSign, Google Registry, Radix, Identity Digital, and others. The names you see are the names you can register, right now. - **Multi-registrar pricing on every result.** When a name is available, we show pricing across GoDaddy, Spaceship, Namecheap, Porkbun, Hostinger, Network Solutions, and Dynadot via [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing). You can spot the cheapest place to register before you click. No other generator does this. - **Five generation strategies, not one.** Brand modifiers, letter tweaks, alternate TLDs, action-verb patterns, and keyword permutations all run in parallel on a single search. You don't have to pick which mode you're in. The output is broader than any single-strategy generator. - **800+ TLDs.** Most generators check .com or a handful of major TLDs. Ours covers everything from [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai) and [.io](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/io) to .gay, .ngo, .museum, and 800+ others. If you're naming an AI startup and want every possible variation across .com, .ai, .app, .dev, .so, .co, and .io in one search, we're built for that. - **Privacy by architecture.** Because our searches run against our own zone-file index, no retail registrar is ever queried. Your shortlist never leaves our infrastructure until you click "Register." For stealth-mode projects, this is genuinely different from every other tool on this list. - **MCP for AI workflows.** Our [MCP server](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) lets Claude, Cursor, and any MCP-compatible assistant generate names and check availability inside the same conversation. The "ChatGPT brainstorm, then go check elsewhere" workflow becomes a single flow. - **Free, no account.** Unlimited generation, unlimited availability checks, full multi-registrar pricing comparison, and a [saved domains sidebar](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/saved-domains-sidebar) that lives in your browser. We make money when you register through a partner registrar, not from your queries. The product is built on a single bet: the highest-leverage moment in naming is the gap between "this name sounds good" and "this name is registered." Closing that gap with live data, in real time, across the whole market, is the thing we optimize for. ## Feature comparison table | Feature | IDS Generator | Namelix | NameMesh | Domainr | Shopify | Wix | Atom.com | Lean Domain Search | AI Assistants | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | **Live availability** | Yes (sub-25ms) | Yes | Yes | Yes (instant) | Yes | Yes | N/A (pre-curated) | Yes (.com only) | Only with MCP | | **TLD coverage** | 800+ | Major TLDs | Major TLDs | 1,731 | Major TLDs | Major TLDs | Curated inventory | .com only | Depends on integration | | **Multi-registrar pricing** | Yes | No | No | No | No (Shopify) | No (Wix) | No (Atom-only) | No | Only with MCP | | **AI suggestions** | Yes | Yes (adaptive) | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes (contests + appraisal) | No | Yes (native) | | **Multiple generation strategies** | Yes (5+) | Yes (8 styles) | Yes (7 categories) | Domain hacks only | Yes | Yes | Marketplace browse | Prefix/suffix only | Yes (open-ended) | | **Logo / brand previews** | No | Yes | No | No | Limited | Yes | Yes (paid) | No | No (without plugin) | | **MCP / AI assistant integration** | Yes | No | No | No (API only) | No | No | No | No | Yes (native) | | **Save shortlist** | Yes (no account) | Yes (account) | No | No | Limited | Yes (account) | Yes (account) | No | Yes (chat history) | | **Account required** | No | Optional | No | No | No | Optional | Yes (to buy) | No | Yes (for AI assistant) | | **Privacy of searches** | Queries never reach registrars | Standard | Standard | Standard | Standard | Standard | Standard | Standard | Depends on assistant | ## Which generator should you use? The right choice depends on what you're actually trying to do. **For most workflows (naming a startup, a side project, an app, a SaaS, a personal brand) where you want fast, live data and immediate registration paths**, use [Instant Domain Search's generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator). The combination of sub-25ms availability checking across 800+ TLDs, multi-registrar pricing on every result, and multiple generation strategies in a single search is the closest to a one-stop-shop the market has. **For brand-first naming where you want to see the logo before you commit to the word**, Namelix is the right tool. The Brandmark integration is genuinely useful for narrowing a shortlist, even if you end up buying the name elsewhere. **For ecommerce specifically, where you're building a Shopify or Wix store anyway**, use the matching native tool. The integration with the rest of the store-building flow is worth the narrower naming output. **For domain hacks (short URLs, dev tools, micro-services where the TLD is part of the word)**, Domainr. It's the only tool that takes this use case seriously. **For a categorized brainstorm across multiple styles in one search**, NameMesh. The tab structure is a real time-saver if you want to compare Common vs. Short vs. Fun outputs side by side. **For premium brandable .coms you can buy off-the-shelf with trademark vetting attached**, Atom.com. Expensive but real inventory. Worth scanning [the aftermarket aggregator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) on Instant Domain Search first to see Atom's listings alongside Sedo, Afternic, Sav, and others. **For simple prefix/suffix brainstorming without any AI overhead**, Lean Domain Search. Still works, still useful, especially for non-technical users who find AI suggestions overwhelming. **For open-ended naming conversations and unusual constraints**, ChatGPT or Claude (with our [MCP server](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) configured so the assistant can check availability in the same conversation). The "brainstorm freely, then validate" flow is the most flexible naming workflow available right now. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the best domain name generator in 2026? For most naming workflows, [Instant Domain Search's domain name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) is the strongest single tool because it combines AI-powered suggestions, multiple generation strategies, live availability across 800+ TLDs, multi-registrar pricing, and MCP integration in one free product. Namelix is a strong alternative if you want logo previews bundled with naming. NameMesh and Lean Domain Search are useful for simple categorized brainstorming. Shopify and Wix are best if you're already building inside their ecosystems. Atom.com is the right move if you want a pre-curated brandable .com and have budget for premium inventory. ### Are domain name generators free? Most are free for the core generation feature. [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator), Namelix, NameMesh, Domainr, Shopify's tool, Wix's tool, and Lean Domain Search all offer free generation with no account required. Namelix charges for logo and brand kit downloads ($25-$175 one-time). Wix's downstream tools (logo, website) require paid Wix plans. Atom.com is free to browse but charges for the actual domain purchase (typically four to five figures and up). AI assistants like Claude and ChatGPT are free or low-cost for the naming use case. ### What's the difference between a domain name generator and an AI business name generator? In 2026 the line is mostly cosmetic. Both types now use AI for some part of the suggestion pipeline. The historical distinction was that pre-AI domain generators ran keywords through hardcoded prefix/suffix lists, while AI business name generators used language models to produce brandable invented words. Today, most serious generators (including ours) blend both approaches. The "AI" label is no longer a meaningful differentiator; what matters is the quality of the suggestions, the depth of the live availability checking, and the registration workflow. ### Do domain name generators check trademark availability? A few do, partially. Most do not. Even the ones that surface trademark information rely on USPTO and similar public databases, which means they cover registered trademarks but not common-law trademarks or trademarks in pending jurisdictions. If you're naming a serious business, treat the trademark check as a separate step (typically a USPTO search plus a quick consultation with a trademark attorney for high-stakes names). Domain availability and trademark availability are not the same thing. ### Can I use ChatGPT or Claude as a domain name generator? Yes. Both work well for open-ended naming, especially when you give them rich business context and specific constraints. The gap is that the AI assistant itself doesn't know which generated names are actually available as domains. Our [MCP server](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) fixes that: Claude or any MCP-compatible assistant can check availability and pricing in the same conversation, so you can brainstorm and validate without leaving the chat. ### How many domain name generators should I use when naming a company? For most naming exercises, two is plenty. [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) covers fast AI-assisted generation with live availability checking across 800+ TLDs. Pair it with either Namelix (if you want visual brand previews) or your preferred AI assistant (if you want open-ended conversational naming). Adding more generators tends to produce diminishing returns and decision paralysis. The bigger gains come from spending more time on shortlist evaluation, not on generating more options. ### What's the most important factor in picking a domain name generator? Live availability checking, by a wide margin. A generator that produces a beautiful list of brandable names you can't actually register is worse than useless. The second most important factor is TLD coverage: if you only check .com, you miss the [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai), [.io](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/io), [.app](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/app), and 800+ other TLDs where many serious modern startups live. Everything else (logo previews, industry filters, naming styles, social handle checks) is downstream. ### Is it safe to search domain names on these tools? It depends on the tool's architecture. Tools operated by retail registrars (anything that funnels you toward registering on their own platform) log every name you search and have commercial incentive to know what you're looking at. [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) runs searches against our own zone-file index, so your queries never reach a retail registrar. For stealth-mode projects, competitive research, or investor scouting, this matters more than people realize. We wrote a [full piece on how we built the privacy architecture](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). ## Bottom line The domain name generator space has gotten meaningfully more useful in 2026. AI-native suggestions, broader TLD coverage, live availability checking, and (for the first time) genuine integration with AI assistants are all standard for the better tools. The trade-offs left are mostly about workflow fit: - **For most users:** [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator). Sub-25ms live availability, multi-registrar pricing, 800+ TLDs, MCP integration. Free, no account, no registrar sees your queries. - **For visual brand previews:** Namelix - **For ecommerce store naming:** Shopify or Wix - **For domain hacks:** Domainr - **For premium pre-curated .coms:** Atom.com - **For categorized brainstorming:** NameMesh - **For simple prefix/suffix output:** Lean Domain Search - **For open-ended AI conversations:** ChatGPT or Claude (ideally with our [MCP server](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) configured) If you're still in early exploration and you don't know what you want yet, start with [our generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) and [the curated lists of available names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists). The generator covers the "I have a keyword, what's possible" workflow. The lists cover the "I don't have a keyword, what's available right now" workflow. Together they're the same architecture that has powered close to 50 million domain searches on our platform since 2005. The right name is somewhere on the other side of a hundred wrong ones. The job of a good generator is to make the hundred wrong ones cheap to discover so the right one is faster to find. --- # Top 20 Domain Sales of 2026 (Live Tracker) > A live, sortable tracker of the 20 highest publicly reported domain sales of 2026, with current SEO metrics for every name. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/top-domain-sales-2026 - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-05-14 - **Updated:** 2026-07-14 --- The biggest publicly reported domain sale of 2026 is AI.com at $70,000,000, the largest domain sale ever publicly recorded. It more than doubles the prior record, Voice.com at $30 million in 2019. The reported buyer is Kris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com. Bot.ai at $1.2 million is still the largest publicly recorded .ai sale, though it now sits at #5 overall. The full top 20 sales so far this year add up to more than $98 million in verified transactions. Yet many people outside the domain industry don't know how to use this information to their advantage. Below is the live, sortable list of the 20 highest publicly reported domain sales of 2026, with current Semrush metrics (Authority Score, backlinks, referring domains) attached to every row. We rebuild this tracker as new sales get verified by DNJournal and NameBio, so the chart you see today will look very different by December. You can use it three ways. If you're naming a company, it's a market floor: it tells you what other people are paying for short, generic, or category-defining names right now. If you already own a name, it's a comparable: you can read your asset against names in a similar shape and class. If you're just curious about where money is moving on the internet, this is one of the cleaner reads available. ## What this data actually tells us One huge sale is just a headline. But twenty of them side by side reveal the patterns of which TLDs are gaining ground, what kinds of names buyers are paying for, and where the money is actually moving. ### .com owns the top of the market, and .ai holds a quarter of the chart Of the 20 sales above, [.com](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/com) accounts for 15 and [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai) accounts for the other 5. That's the headline split, and this year the top end backs it up emphatically: the four biggest sales of 2026 (AI.com at $70M, Club.com at $10M, Green.com at $7.5M, NAS.com at $1.25M) are all .coms, and the biggest domain sale ever publicly recorded is a .com. Bot.ai is still the largest publicly recorded .ai sale and the first .ai to break the seven-figure ceiling. But it now sits at #5 overall, well behind the mega .com deals. Read .ai as a strong, clear second: it holds five of the twenty slots this year and its ceiling keeps rising, but when the really big money moves, it moves to .com. For a founder picking between [yourbrand](https://instantdomainsearch.com/).com and [yourbrand](https://instantdomainsearch.com/).ai, the practical read hasn't changed. .ai is where AI-native companies want to live, and the aftermarket has priced that in. The .com is still the asset the market treats as the trophy. ### Authority Score tells you what the buyer is paying for The column to read second, right after price, is Semrush Authority Score. Compare three rows in particular: - **AI.com**: $70,000,000 at Authority Score 40, with 3,270 referring domains - **NAS.com**: $1,250,000 at Authority Score 34, with 3,296 referring domains - **Bot.ai**: $1,200,000 at Authority Score 2, with 117 referring domains NAS.com and Bot.ai traded within $50,000 of each other. The underlying purchases could not be more different. NAS.com came with a developed old brand's link profile: thousands of unique sites already pointing at it. Bot.ai came with almost nothing. Its buyer paid seven figures almost entirely for the word itself; the link equity will be built after the fact. AI.com is the extreme case in the other direction: the highest authority on the chart and a price no SEO metric explains. Nobody pays $70 million for backlinks. They pay it for the two most valuable letters of the decade. None of these are mispriced. They're just different deals. The Authority Score column makes that legible in a way no flat list of prices can. ### The "brand migration" pattern is back, and it's not just for billionaires Two of the top 20 are companies upgrading to the exact-match .com of a brand they already operate. NAS.io paid $1.25M to become NAS.com. GoHighLevel, the marketing SaaS platform, paid $1M for HighLevel.com in a private sale that only surfaced through financial filings. Both are companies that built their brand on a longer or cheaper name first, ran the business long enough to know the brand was sticking, and then bought the .com as a maturity signal. The Nuseir Yassin quote on the NAS.com deal was that he spent ten years saving to afford it. That is a real datapoint about what end-user operators actually believe about long-term [.com authority](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-domain-name) versus the cheaper near-equivalents. A third example sits just outside this year's top 20: Durable, the AI website builder, paid $125K to upgrade from Durable.co to Durable.com. The lesson for younger companies is not that you should hold out for the .com from day one. The lesson is that if your brand starts working, the .com upgrade is a line item your future self will probably budget for. Plan accordingly. ### Single-word .com floors are holding Look at the cluster in the middle of the chart: - TXT.com $502,250 - 420.com $500,000 - Bar.com $500,000 - Pub.com $500,000 - C4.com $265,000 The half-million line is now a three-way tie: 420.com, Bar.com, and Pub.com all closed at exactly $500,000, with TXT.com sitting just above at $502,250. Bar.com and Pub.com were reported in the same week through the same brokerage, Defining.com, which suggests buyer-side pressure on this shape of name, not seller-side eagerness. Generic single-word .coms are not getting cheaper. They were not cheap five years ago, they were not cheap two years ago, and they're not cheap now. If anything, the floor under them keeps inching up. Green.com clearing $7.5 million this spring is the same story at a bigger scale: a single dictionary word with obvious category value. ### The AI vocabulary is the most active category The single biggest sale of the year is literally AI.com. Beneath it, five .ai names hold top-20 slots: - Bot.ai ($1.2M) - Genesis.ai ($400K) - Lotus.ai ($400K) - Free.ai ($350K) - Neo.ai ($275K) That's a quarter of the chart in one TLD, and it's matched by the structural reality that almost every newly funded startup name we see on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) right now skews AI-native. If you're naming an AI company in 2026, the obvious single-word [.com](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/com) is either gone or expensive, and the matching [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai) is starting to clear six and seven figures too. The window for picking up a category-defining AI word for $20–$30K closed about eighteen months ago. ### Hand-registered upside is bounded but real There's a quiet line item in this list that's worth pulling out: several of these names have backlink profiles that suggest they were not heavily developed before the sale. Goka.com sold for $399,995 at Authority Score 2 with 102 referring domains. Bot.ai sold for $1.2 million at Authority Score 2 with 117. Derm.com sold for $825,000 at Authority Score 4 with 158. These are names whose entire value is in the word. Nothing was built on them; no meaningful SEO equity changed hands. For the names that started as hand registrations, the downside on that bet was bounded at the registration fee. The upside, occasionally, is six or seven figures. This is not investment advice. It is just a reminder that the cost of *trying* (registering a good available name today and holding it) is still functionally zero in 2026. You can [browse curated lists of available names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists) refreshed daily against live registry data, or [search 800+ TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) directly. The market clearly still pays for the right word. ### The aftermarket is liquid, and no single venue owns the top of it Where these sales closed is its own datapoint. [Sedo](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) brokered three of the current top 20 (Bot.ai, Midnight.com, C4.com), but none of the top four: AI.com closed via GetYourDomain.com and DomainAssets, Club.com via Hilco Digital, Green.com via ATM Holdings, and NAS.com via Lumis. In the mid-tier, Atom.com shows up most often (Genesis.ai, Free.ai, Neo.ai). The takeaway for buyers is that the inventory is scattered. Sedo, Afternic, Atom, Sav, DomainAgents, and a long tail of independent brokers all hold pieces of it. Instant Domain Search aggregates listings across all of them at once, so you can [search the aftermarket](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) in one place rather than opening five separate marketplace tabs. You can also watch [expiring and recently dropped domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) if you'd rather catch a name on its way back to availability than negotiate with a current owner. ## How to read the metrics on each row A quick primer on the SEO columns, since they do a lot of the analytical work in this tracker: - **Authority Score (AS)** is Semrush's overall authority metric for a domain, on a 0 to 100 scale. It's calculated from backlink signals, referring domains, and organic traffic. A high score means the domain has earned links from many well-known sites and attracts real search traffic. A score in the low single digits typically means the domain hasn't been actively built out, regardless of what was previously there. - **Backlinks** counts every link Semrush currently sees pointing at the domain, across all referring pages. A high backlink count with a low referring-domain count means the links are concentrated on a few sources (often a single site repeatedly). - **Referring domains** counts the *unique* domains linking to the target. This is usually the more meaningful number. A buyer evaluating an asset for SEO equity should look at referring domains before backlinks. The combination tells the story. AI.com at Authority Score 40 with 3,270 referring domains is a developed asset with years of accumulated links behind it. Goka.com at Authority Score 2 with 102 referring domains is a fresh slate that the buyer will need to build on. ## What this means if you're naming something in 2026 A few practical takeaways: 1. **Don't dismiss .ai as the cheap alternative anymore.** It's an actively traded TLD with publicly reported sales above seven figures and a quarter of this year's top-20 slots. Check out our [.ai TLD page](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai) for more info on the registration count and aftermarket trend data. 2. **Read the Authority Score before you offer.** If a name has been built up over a decade, you're paying for that. If the metrics suggest it's a parked or placeholder name, you're paying purely for the word. Both can be rational. Mixing them up is how people overpay. 3. **Plan for the upgrade path.** If you're starting on a non-.com because the .com is taken or unaffordable, accept that the .com is something you may want to acquire later. Two of the top 20 sales this year are exactly that move. 4. **The short-generic-.com floor is not coming down.** If you're holding out for Bar.com or Pub.com to drop in price, the data says you'll be holding for a while. Brandable invented words are still where most buyers eventually settle. 5. **The aftermarket is where these names live.** All 20 sales above were brokered, listed, or auctioned. You can browse the aggregated [aftermarket inventory](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) from every major marketplace in one place on Instant Domain Search, or check on [recently expired and dropping names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) if you'd rather catch supply at the inflection. ## Methodology Prices and dates are sourced from [DNJournal](https://www.dnjournal.com/ytd-sales-charts.htm) weekly reports, [NameBio](https://namebio.com/top-100-domain-name-sales-2026), and individual verified sale reports. Many large transactions are sealed under non-disclosure agreements and never enter the public record, so this list reflects publicly *reported* sales only. The actual top of the market in 2026 is almost certainly higher than what you see here. SEO metrics (Authority Score, backlinks, referring domains) come from Semrush, refreshed on each update of this page. When a row shows a higher Authority Score than the buyer would have seen at the time of sale, that's because the new owner has started developing the name (redirecting an existing brand, building new content, attracting press coverage). Sale dates reflect the publication window of the verifying report when an exact close date is not disclosed. Some marketplace transactions show up in DNJournal as a date range rather than a single day. We rebuild this list across the year as new sales are verified. Bookmark the page and check back, or [sign up for product updates](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) if you want a heads-up when a new sale clears the top of the chart. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the biggest domain sale of 2026? AI.com sold for $70,000,000, publicly reported in February 2026. It is the largest domain sale of the year and the largest publicly recorded domain sale ever, more than doubling the previous record (Voice.com at $30 million in 2019). The reported buyer is Kris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com. ### What is the most expensive .ai domain ever sold? Bot.ai cleared $1,200,000 on Sedo in early 2026, the first publicly reported seven-figure .ai sale on record. It beat the previous .ai record by roughly 60% in the span of five months. As .ai registrations crossed 1 million earlier this year, that ceiling is now set higher than most observers expected. Our [popular domain extensions tracker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026) covers the .ai growth curve in more detail. ### Are domain prices going up in 2026? For the kinds of names in the table above (short single-word .coms, category-defining .ais, established brandables) yes, visibly. The single-word .com floor is steady or rising, and the record for the biggest sale ever has just been redrawn. For longer or weaker names, the market is largely unchanged. The headline trend masks a more nuanced reality, which is roughly what you would expect of any aftermarket: scarcity holds price, abundance does not. ### Where are these sales actually happening? The top-of-market sales above closed through a mix of brokerages and marketplaces: Sedo, Atom.com, Hilco Digital, and a long tail of independent brokers. [Instant Domain Search aggregates listings across the major marketplaces](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) so you can see what's available in one feed rather than checking five different sites. If you'd rather watch for names dropping back to availability, the [expired and expiring domains feed](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) catches that pipeline. ### How are these sales verified? Aftermarket sales reports come primarily from [DNJournal](https://www.dnjournal.com/ytd-sales-charts.htm) (which has tracked the industry since 2003) and [NameBio](https://namebio.com/top-100-domain-name-sales-2026). Each weekly report is compiled from marketplace data, broker disclosures, and direct seller reports. Sales under NDA are not included. The numbers in this tracker have been cross-checked against both sources where available. ### Should I buy a domain in the aftermarket or hand-register a new one? Both can be rational. Aftermarket gets you a developed asset, an existing word, or both, at a price that reflects scarcity. Hand-registration gets you nothing of value beyond the word itself, at a cost of $10–$30. The data above shows that hand-registered names can still clear six figures in the right category. Our [guide to buying and selling domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/so-you-want-to-buy-domain-names) covers the trade-offs. ### How often do you update this tracker? The plan is monthly, faster when a notable sale hits. The metrics refresh tied to each update means the SEO data on the page is always within a few weeks of current. Last refresh date is shown directly under the table. ## Bottom line The 2026 top of the market is bigger than anyone predicted. Seven sales at or above $1 million (AI.com, Club.com, Green.com, NAS.com, Bot.ai, Midnight.com, HighLevel.com), led by the largest domain sale ever publicly recorded. A $70 million .com at the top, the first seven-figure .ai on the books, two visible brand-migration trades, and a three-way tie of single-word .coms holding the half-million line. If you're naming something, [search the available inventory across 800+ extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) before you fall in love with a 14-character invented word. If you already own a good name, the table above is a reasonable comparable. And if you're shopping the aftermarket, you can [search every major marketplace at once on Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains), or watch the [expiring and dropping names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) feed for the names heading back to availability. For the other half of the picture (what every TLD is doing in registration volume and growth rates, not just resale prices), see our [most popular domain extensions in 2026](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026) tracker. For where to actually buy once you've picked a name, our [best domain registrars in 2026](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-registrars-2026) post covers the trade-offs. The data above will keep moving. We'll keep updating it. --- # Best Domain Registrars in 2026 > We compared nine registrars on real pricing, renewal traps, privacy, and total cost of ownership to find the best place to register a domain in 2026. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-registrars-2026 - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-05-13 --- Picking the right place to register a domain is the part most people rush. The same .com runs about $10 at one registrar and over $21 at another. WHOIS privacy is now free at most places, but a few still charge extra for it. Renewal pricing is where the real money goes: some registrars hold the price steady for the life of the domain, others raise it every year, and the upsell pressure at checkout ranges from "none" to four banners between your shortlist and your invoice. Instant Domain Search works with [10+ retail registrars](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) so you don't have to bounce between them. When you search a name on our site, [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) checks which of our partners support that TLD, then surfaces the best available price across them. You search [800+ extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) in one place, see prices side by side, and click straight through to whichever registrar is the right fit for the specific domain you picked. The list below is the same set we route to, plus a few alternates worth knowing about. This guide ranks them on what actually matters once you've found a name: total cost of ownership (first year plus renewal plus the privacy and SSL add-ons that aren't optional), TLD coverage, transfer policy, security, and how aggressive the checkout flow is. ## What to look for in a domain registrar A few things separate a registrar you forget about from a registrar you regret: - **Registration price vs. renewal price.** This is where most buyers lose money. A $1.99 first-year promo that renews at $21.99 is a $20 markup compounded every year you own the domain. Always look up renewal pricing before you register. - **Total cost of ownership.** Add the renewal price, WHOIS privacy if it's not free, DNSSEC if it's billed separately, and any "domain protection" add-ons. Two registrars with identical headline pricing can differ by $30 or more per year on what you actually pay. - **TLD coverage.** Most registrars support somewhere between 300 and 800 TLDs. Coverage of newer extensions like [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai), [.io](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/io), [.dev](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/dev), .gay, .ngo, and country codes varies a lot. If you're committed to a specific extension, confirm support before you start. Our [most popular domain extensions in 2026](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026) post tracks which ones are actually growing. - **Free WHOIS privacy.** In 2026 this should be free. Every registrar below includes it on most TLDs. If a registrar still charges for it, count that as part of their real price. - **Transfer policy.** A good registrar makes it easy to move your domain out. The bad ones add friction: long unlock waits, slow transfer auth codes, "protection" toggles that block transfers, or fees on outbound moves. - **DNS management.** You will spend more time editing DNS records than searching for the domain. Some registrars have clean, fast panels. Others bury the controls or rate-limit propagation. - **Add-on pressure at checkout.** GoDaddy and Hostinger optimize the funnel for upsells. Cloudflare and Porkbun don't. The difference adds up if you register multiple domains a year. - **API access.** If you're an investor, an agency, or a developer registering domains programmatically, the API is the product. Dynadot, Cloudflare, Namecheap, NameSilo, and Porkbun all publish real ones. - **Security.** High-value domains need registry lock (a manual unlock step before any transfer) and mandatory two-factor authentication on the account. Not every registrar offers both. - **Reputation and transparency.** Does the registrar publish renewal pricing on its main page, answer support emails, and avoid the [domain front-running](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) controversies that follow some retailers around? These signals matter more than feature lists. ## The 9 best domain registrars in 2026 ### 1. Cloudflare Registrar **Best for**: At-cost registration with no markup Cloudflare Registrar passes wholesale registry pricing straight through to you with zero markup on registration or renewal. A .com is $10.46 total: $10.26 (VeriSign's wholesale price) plus the $0.20 ICANN fee. No introductory discount, no renewal hike, no upsell. The price you see is the price for the life of the domain. If you're already using Cloudflare for DNS, CDN, or Workers, adding domains to the same dashboard is the lowest-friction path in the industry. **Key features:** - At-cost pricing on roughly 390 TLDs, registration and renewal at wholesale plus ICANN fees - Free WHOIS redaction, free DNSSEC, and free SSL via Cloudflare's edge - Tight integration with DNS, CDN, DDoS protection, Workers, and R2 - Solid API for programmatic domain management - Two-factor authentication required, security keys supported **Privacy approach:** Cloudflare is a registrar. Searches on their registration page go through their systems. They publish a strong privacy posture, but any retail registrar that wide sees what you check. **Limitations:** No new-customer discounts (which is the point, but it can feel surprising on a $10.46 .com when others advertise $1.99). The TLD selection is narrower than Namecheap or Dynadot, and most ccTLDs and a handful of new gTLDs aren't supported. No domain search exploration UI: you type a domain, you wait for one yes-or-no answer. No name generation, no AI suggestions, no bulk search. Requires a Cloudflare account. On Instant Domain Search you can see how Cloudflare's at-cost rate stacks up against the introductory pricing other registrars advertise for the same TLD. --- ### 2. Porkbun **Best for**: Flat pricing, no surprises, free WHOIS and SSL on every domain Porkbun has built a small but loyal following by doing the boring things right. A .com is $11.08 and the renewal is $11.08. No bait-and-switch, no "year two" surprise. Every domain comes with free WHOIS privacy, free SSL certificates (Let's Encrypt with auto-renewal), free URL forwarding, and free email forwarding. The checkout has no upsells. Total cost of ownership is among the lowest in the industry. **Key features:** - About 400 TLDs with transparent registration and renewal pricing - Free WHOIS privacy, free SSL, free URL and email forwarding on every domain - Clean modern interface, no clutter, no upsells - Public API with pricing endpoints - Solid DNS panel with DNSSEC support - Friendly support, with a pig mascot if that matters **Privacy approach:** Porkbun is a registrar, so searches do go through their systems. They have a clean privacy posture and we've never seen credible complaints. **Limitations:** Basic search experience, no as-you-type results, no AI suggestions, no creative name generation. Bulk search is capped at 100 domains at a time, which is fine for most buyers but limiting for investors. Domain management is utilitarian if you have a large portfolio. Support is email-only with limited hours. Porkbun pricing is integrated into Instant Domain Search results, so you can spot when they're the cheapest option for a given TLD before you click through. --- ### 3. Spaceship **Best for**: A modern checkout experience at near-wholesale pricing Spaceship is a newer brand launched by Namecheap in 2023 as a ground-up rebuild of the domain-registration experience. The pricing is sharper than the parent brand (.com runs around $9.98), the interface is the cleanest of any major registrar, and the company is already managing more than 5 million domains. If Namecheap is the warehouse, Spaceship is the showroom. **Key features:** - Modern interface that doesn't feel like it was designed in 2007 - Near-wholesale pricing on .com and most major TLDs - Free WHOIS privacy, free DNS, two-factor authentication - Domain forwarding, basic email forwarding, simple SSL setup - Same registry access as Namecheap (sibling brands share infrastructure) **Privacy approach:** Spaceship is a registrar, and shares infrastructure with Namecheap. Searches run through their systems. **Limitations:** Younger product, smaller TLD catalog than Namecheap (still expanding). Some advanced features available on Namecheap aren't yet on Spaceship. No bulk search and no API as mature as Cloudflare's or Dynadot's. The upside of being new is also the downside: not every workflow is fully polished. Instant Domain Search routes to Spaceship whenever they have the best price for a TLD via [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing). --- ### 4. NameSilo **Best for**: Long-term portfolio holders who want flat pricing and free everything NameSilo manages more than 6 million domains and has earned a reputation among domainers and long-term portfolio holders for boring, transparent pricing. Retail .com sits around $17.29, but the NameSilo Discount Program drops .com to about $11.05 once you have a $50 account balance, with bigger portfolios paying as little as $7.75. Renewal pricing matches registration. WHOIS privacy is free forever on every eligible domain. **Key features:** - 400+ TLDs with consistent registration and renewal pricing - Free WHOIS privacy forever on every eligible domain - NameSilo Discount Program lowers .com pricing for accounts with balance - API access for programmatic domain management - Domain Defender service with two-factor authentication - Built-in domain marketplace for buying and selling - No upsells at checkout **Privacy approach:** NameSilo is a registrar, so they see your searches. WHOIS privacy is free and applied by default to every supported TLD. **Limitations:** Interface is plain and slow to load in places. No bulk search at the scale of Dynadot or Namecheap Beast Mode. Customer support is ticket-based with no live chat. The Discount Program is genuinely a discount, but you have to keep a positive account balance to unlock it. For domain investors who run a real portfolio, NameSilo and Dynadot tend to be the two registrars worth knowing well. --- ### 5. Dynadot **Best for**: Domain investors, international domains, and API-driven workflows Dynadot has a strong reputation among domain investors. They support roughly 805 TLDs (the widest catalog on this list), they support internationalized domain names across most major scripts, they run a built-in aftermarket marketplace, and their API is the most actionable in the comparison set. .com pricing is competitive at about $10.88 flat with no introductory gimmicks. The platform is utilitarian, but at scale it gets out of your way. **Key features:** - Around 805 TLDs including extensive ccTLD and IDN coverage - Built-in aftermarket marketplace for buying and selling domains - Bulk domain search up to 1,000 free or 5,000 per day on Super Bulk accounts - Mature API with 50+ commands, supporting bulk registration and management - Competitive flat pricing on most TLDs - Free WHOIS privacy on supported TLDs **Privacy approach:** Dynadot is a registrar. Searches route through their systems. **Limitations:** The best account tiers (Bulk, Super Bulk) require meaningful annual spend, which is fine if you're a real investor and overkill if you register one domain a year. The interface prioritizes function over polish. Support is responsive but not always immediate. If you're researching investment-grade domains, run the search phase on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) (private, sub-25ms, no registrar sees the list) and register the winners through Dynadot for the portfolio and marketplace tools. --- ### 6. Namecheap **Best for**: Broad TLD selection with consistent intro pricing Namecheap is the volume player among independent registrars. They manage roughly 17 million domains, support 560+ TLDs (one of the largest catalogs on this list), include free WhoisGuard with most registrations, and run the highest density of introductory promotions in the industry. Their Beast Mode bulk search is one of the better registrar-native tools for brainstorming domain hacks and prefix or suffix variations. **Key features:** - 560+ TLDs, one of the broadest selections - Free WhoisGuard included with almost all registrations - Aggressive introductory pricing on many TLDs, with strong promo cycles - Beast Mode bulk search with up to 5,000 domains per query and creative transforms - Marketplace for aftermarket domains - Solid DNS panel and Premium DNS option - 24/7 live chat support **Privacy approach:** Namecheap is a retail registrar. Every search and Beast Mode query runs through their backend, so they see exactly which domains you check. WhoisGuard protects your record from the public, not from Namecheap itself. **Limitations:** Renewal pricing is typically higher than registration pricing. A .com often runs around $10.98 in year one and $18.48 from year two onward. Beast Mode generates a lot of noise alongside useful suggestions. No MCP or AI assistant integration. Upsells at checkout for hosting, email, and SSL. Namecheap pricing shows up in Instant Domain Search results, so you can compare their introductory rate against the renewal price (and against other registrars) before you commit. --- ### 7. Hostinger **Best for**: Bundling a domain with affordable hosting Hostinger has grown fast by combining cheap hosting plans with domain registration and a polished onboarding flow. Their domain search is tightly integrated with the hosting product, and most plans include a free domain for the first year across the popular TLDs. For users who want a domain plus a live site without piecing things together, Hostinger is the cleanest path. **Key features:** - 300+ TLDs with competitive introductory pricing - Free domain included with most annual hosting plans (first year) - Free WHOIS privacy on supported TLDs - AI website builder and WordPress hosting integration - Intuitive control panel (hPanel) - 24/7 live chat support **Privacy approach:** Hostinger is a registrar. Domain searches go through their infrastructure. Their privacy policy is standard. **Limitations:** The advertised low prices typically require multi-year prepayments, so a "$1.99/year" .com usually means a four-year commitment. Domain-only registration without hosting is available but isn't where the product nudges you. TLD selection is narrower than Namecheap or Dynadot. WHOIS privacy isn't available on certain TLDs (notably .ai, .ru, several country codes). Instant Domain Search surfaces Hostinger pricing whenever they support the TLD you're searching, so you can decide whether the hosting bundle changes the math. --- ### 8. Squarespace Domains **Best for**: Squarespace site owners and former Google Domains customers Squarespace absorbed Google Domains in 2023 and has spent the last two years rebuilding the experience inside their ecosystem. The migration is now complete, and the inherited interface is still one of the cleaner buying flows in the industry. .com pricing sits on the higher end of this list (around $20 and up), but the experience is tight, every eligible domain includes free WHOIS privacy and an SSL certificate, and the integration with Squarespace sites and Google Workspace email is seamless. **Key features:** - 360+ TLDs after the post-migration expansion - Free WHOIS privacy on every eligible domain - Free SSL via Let's Encrypt - Tight integration with Squarespace builder, hosting, and Google Workspace email - Clean DNS management inherited from Google Domains - Two-factor authentication **Privacy approach:** Squarespace is a registrar. Domain searches go through their systems, and standard retail registrar data practices apply. **Limitations:** Renewal pricing is higher than budget registrars, closer to $20 on .com versus $10 to $11 at Cloudflare or Porkbun. No bulk search, no AI features, no public API for domain registration. The domain search is a feature inside the website builder product rather than a standalone tool. You can see Squarespace pricing alongside other registrars in Instant Domain Search results for any TLD they support. --- ### 9. GoDaddy **Best for**: All-in-one ecosystem and household-name reliability GoDaddy is the largest retail registrar in the world for a reason. The platform bundles domains, hosting, email, website builder, SSL, marketing tools, and 24/7 phone support into a single account. If your priority is "one company to call when something goes wrong," GoDaddy is the lowest-cognitive-load option. As of recent years, basic domain privacy is now included free with new registrations, a meaningful shift from the historical paid-privacy model. **Key features:** - 545+ TLDs including most newer extensions - Free standard WHOIS privacy on new registrations - Aftermarket integration via Afternic (a GoDaddy company) - Domain appraisal tool, domain investor accounts - 24/7 phone support, rare among registrars - Bulk search up to 500 domains - Full-spectrum hosting and email products **Privacy approach:** GoDaddy is the world's largest registrar. All searches run through their infrastructure. Free WHOIS privacy now protects your record from the public, but GoDaddy still sees what you search. **Limitations:** Aggressive upselling at checkout, with prompts for hosting, business email, "full domain privacy" (an enhanced version of the now-free standard privacy), website builder, and SSL. Introductory pricing is often significantly lower than renewal pricing, with .com renewals running around $21.99 versus much lower first-year deals. The "Full Domain Privacy" upsell at $9.99 a year bundles features beyond what most users need. Aftermarket listings can blur the line between true availability and premium pricing. GoDaddy is one of the core partners in [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/)'s [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing). When they're the right choice for a domain (often because of TLD coverage), we link straight to them. --- ## How Instant Domain Search fits into the picture The list above is the same set we route buyers to. Instant Domain Search isn't an alternative to these registrars, it's the layer that lets you compare and search across all of them at once. Here's how that works in practice: - **One search, every registrar.** When you find a domain on our site, [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) checks every registrar in our network (GoDaddy, Spaceship, Namecheap, Porkbun, Hostinger, Network Solutions, Dynadot, and others) for the TLD you're looking at and shows you which ones support it and at what price. When you click "Register," you go straight to the partner who has the best fit for that specific domain, not the one that paid the loudest for placement. - **Aftermarket and expired domains in the same view.** Alongside live registry availability, we surface [aftermarket listings](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) from Afternic, Sedo, Atom, Sav, DomainAgents, and other marketplaces, plus [expired and expiring domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) that are about to drop back into the pool. You don't have to bounce between five tabs to compare what a name actually costs across the market. - **Search runs against direct registry data.** Most retail registrars check availability by calling another registrar's API. We don't. We pull data directly from [registries like VeriSign, Google Registry, Radix, and Identity Digital](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) and run searches against our own zone-file index. That's how we serve results in under 25 milliseconds across [800+ TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) while you're still typing. - **Searches stay private.** Because the search runs against our own index, your queries never go to a retail registrar. A registrar only learns about your interest when you actually click "Register" and complete a purchase. If you're researching brand names for a stealth project, scouting undervalued [aftermarket assets](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains), or comparing competitor brand variations, this matters. - **No commitment, no account.** You can compare a hundred name ideas across .com, .ai, .io, .dev, and [800+ other extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) without ever creating an account, joining a mailing list, or picking a registrar. The "save for later" sidebar lives in your browser; the registrar only comes into the picture when you decide to buy. - **Browse curated lists instead of starting from scratch.** If you don't have a name yet, our [curated domain lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists) refresh daily against live registry data: brandable two-word names, four-letter .com domains, AI and tech buzzword names, dictionary words, and easy-to-pronounce brands that are still available right now. - **AI-assistant integration.** Our [MCP server](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) lets Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible assistant check domains in real time, which means the same search and registrar-comparison pipeline runs from inside your AI workflow. The product is free because partner registrars pay us a small referral commission when a search ends in a purchase. The commission is paid by the partner, not added to your price. Your search data isn't sold or used to target ads. The same architecture has now served close to 50 million domain searches since 2005. ## Feature comparison table | Feature | Cloudflare | Porkbun | Spaceship | NameSilo | Dynadot | Namecheap | Hostinger | Squarespace | GoDaddy | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | **.com year-1 price** | $10.46 (incl. ICANN) | $11.08 | ~$9.98 | ~$11.05 (discount) | $10.88 | $10.98 | $1.99 (multi-yr) | $20+ | varies | | **.com renewal price** | $10.46 (incl. ICANN) | $11.08 | ~$10.18 | ~$11.05 (discount) | $10.88 | $18.48 | $13.99 | $20+ | ~$21.99 | | **TLDs supported** | 390+ | 400+ | Growing | 400+ | 805 | 560+ | 300+ | 360+ | 545+ | | **Free WHOIS privacy** | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (basic) | | **Free SSL** | Yes | Yes | Yes | Paid | Paid | Paid | With hosting | Yes | Paid | | **DNSSEC** | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | | **Bulk search** | No | 100 | No | Yes | 1,000 to 5,000 | 5,000 | No | No | 500 | | **API** | Yes | Yes | Limited | Yes | Yes (mature) | Yes | Limited | No | Limited | | **Marketplace** | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes (Afternic) | | **Renewal pricing transparency** | Wholesale-flat | Flat | Near-flat | Flat | Flat | Marked up | Marked up | Flat (high) | Marked up | | **Add-on pressure at checkout** | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Medium | Medium | Low | High | ## Which registrar should you use? The right answer depends on what you're optimizing for. **For the lowest total cost over 10 years**, Cloudflare for any TLD they support, Porkbun for everything else, and NameSilo if you'll register more than a handful and want the Discount Program. All three have flat renewal pricing, so none will surprise you in year two. Avoid registrars where the first-year price is dramatically lower than the renewal: that's a $10 to $20 markup compounded every year. **For one company that handles domain plus hosting plus email**, Hostinger is the value pick, GoDaddy is the full-service pick, and Squarespace works if you're building the site there anyway. **For a real domain investor or anyone registering at scale**, Dynadot for the marketplace and mature API, NameSilo for the cheapest long-term holding cost. Use [Instant Domain Search bulk search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) for the research phase, our [aftermarket aggregator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) for resale inventory across Afternic, Sedo, Atom, and Sav, and our [expired domains feed](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) for names dropping back to availability. Your shortlist never touches a registrar until you click to buy. **For the broadest TLD selection**, Dynadot (around 805) or Namecheap (560+). If you need a niche TLD, check coverage before you commit. **For a modern, minimal interface**, Spaceship is the cleanest checkout in the industry right now. Porkbun is a close second. **For Cloudflare users**, add domains to the same dashboard. The integration is the best on this list and the pricing is wholesale flat. **For former Google Domains customers**, you're already at Squarespace post-migration. The experience is similar and renewal pricing is the main thing to keep an eye on. **For brand familiarity and phone support**, GoDaddy. Just be alert at checkout: every step has an upsell, and the "Full Domain Privacy" prompt is for an enhanced version of a service whose base version is now free. For the search phase, regardless of where you eventually register, use [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). It runs in sub-25 milliseconds across [800+ TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions), the search never goes through a retail registrar, and we compare pricing across our partner network so you can spot when one registrar is meaningfully cheaper for the specific extension you want. ## The introductory vs. renewal price trap This is the most expensive mistake we see domain buyers make. A .com at GoDaddy might be on offer for $9.99 in year one and renew at $21.99. A .online at Namecheap might be $0.98 in year one and renew closer to $40. A multi-year Hostinger bundle might advertise $1.99 a year up front and re-anchor at $13.99 in year two. None of these are scams. They're standard pricing models. But if you only look at the first-year price, you've underpriced the real cost by 2 to 5 times. The fix is mechanical: before you register, open a second tab and look up the renewal price. Every registrar publishes it, some more prominently than others. Multiply the renewal by the number of years you plausibly expect to own the domain. For a serious business, that's at least 10 years. A $12 renewal beats a $22 renewal by $100 over a decade on a single domain. Across a portfolio, the difference is real money. This is also why flat-priced registrars matter. Cloudflare's at-cost model, Porkbun, NameSilo, Spaceship, and Dynadot all publish renewal pricing that equals or nearly equals registration pricing. There is no surprise. With these, the headline number is the real number. When you search on Instant Domain Search, the pricing we show is registration pricing. Knowing the registrar landscape lets you read between the lines. If the cheapest .com in our results is at GoDaddy for the first year, but Cloudflare is showing at a higher first-year number that is actually their flat renewal price, Cloudflare is the better long-term deal nine times out of ten. ## The privacy question most people don't think about When you search on a registrar's domain page, that registrar logs every domain you check. Type 50 startup name ideas into GoDaddy and GoDaddy's systems have logged all 50. Same on Namecheap, Porkbun, Dynadot, and every other registrar-operated search box. WHOIS privacy protects your record from the public, not from the registrar itself. Whether that matters depends on what you're doing. Checking random names for a personal blog? Probably not. Researching brand names for a stealth-mode startup, scouting undervalued [aftermarket](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) or [expired](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) domain assets, or evaluating competitor brand variations? Worth thinking about. Domain search data has real commercial value. It reveals market demand, competitive intent, and trending name patterns. Some registrars have historically been accused of domain front-running, where searched-but-not-purchased domains get registered by someone else shortly after. The practice is hard to prove and the major registrars deny it. But the incentive exists, and the data definitely does. The reason we built Instant Domain Search the way we did, with a local zone-file index and [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private), is to take that question off the table. Your searches never reach a retail registrar. The only moment a registrar learns about your interest is when you click "Register" and complete a purchase. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the best domain registrar in 2026? It depends on what you value. Cloudflare offers at-cost pricing with no markup, making it the cheapest long-term option for the TLDs it supports. Porkbun and Spaceship offer flat near-wholesale pricing with cleaner interfaces. Namecheap has the broadest TLD selection with strong introductory deals. NameSilo is the most consistent flat pricing for long-term portfolio holders. GoDaddy is the most full-service. Dynadot is the investor-grade pick. Use [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to compare prices across all of them before you pick. ### Is Cloudflare really cheaper than GoDaddy? In most cases yes, especially over the life of the domain. Cloudflare passes wholesale registry pricing through with no markup, so a .com sits at $10.46 (the $10.26 wholesale price plus the $0.20 ICANN fee), and renews at the same price. GoDaddy's .com renewal runs around $21.99. Over 10 years that's more than $100 of difference on a single domain. GoDaddy's advantage is the ecosystem (phone support, bundled email, hosting, website builder), not the per-domain price. ### Does it matter where I register my domain for SEO? No. Google does not factor your registrar choice into search rankings. What matters is the domain name itself, the TLD's trust profile, and the technical setup (HTTPS, redirect rules, site quality). Your registrar handles registration and DNS, neither of which is a ranking signal on its own. If you're still picking a name, our guide to [how to choose a domain name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-choose-a-domain-name) covers the parts that actually do affect long-term performance. ### Should I transfer my domain to a cheaper registrar? Often yes, especially if you registered with a registrar that has a steep renewal jump. Transfers typically cost one year of registration at the new registrar (which extends your expiry by a year), and most modern registrars include WHOIS privacy and SSL for free. Watch for: domain lock status, transfer auth codes, the 60-day post-registration transfer block on new domains, and any "domain protection" toggles that block transfers at the source registrar. ### What's the difference between a registry and a registrar? A registry operates a TLD ([VeriSign runs .com](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/com), [Google Registry runs .dev](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/dev), Identity Digital runs hundreds of others). A registrar is a retail seller, accredited to register domains on behalf of customers (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, and so on). Registries provide the wholesale infrastructure; registrars sell the domains. Instant Domain Search partners with registries directly for [accurate availability data](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private), then routes buyers to registrar partners on the purchase side. For more on how this plays out across [800+ extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions), see our [popular domain extensions in 2026](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026) post. ### Can I register a domain straight from Instant Domain Search? You search, compare, and shortlist on our site, then complete the purchase at one of our partner registrars. The handoff is one click: when you find the domain you want, "Register" takes you to whichever partner is the right fit for that specific extension at the best price. You can compare pricing across the partner network before you click, so you never have to pick a registrar in advance. ### Which registrars does Instant Domain Search partner with? Our core retail partners are GoDaddy, Spaceship, Namecheap, Porkbun, Hostinger, Network Solutions, and Dynadot. [Smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) checks every TLD in your search against this network and shows you which partners support it, so the "Register" button always takes you somewhere that can actually complete the purchase. ## Bottom line For most buyers in 2026, the choice comes down to a few patterns. - **Lowest total cost**: Cloudflare where supported, Porkbun or NameSilo everywhere else - **Domain investor at scale**: Dynadot or NameSilo - **Broadest TLD selection**: Namecheap or Dynadot - **All-in-one (domain plus hosting plus email)**: Hostinger for value, GoDaddy for full service - **Former Google Domains**: Squarespace (you're already there) - **Modern interface**: Spaceship or Porkbun For the search phase, regardless of which registrar wins, use [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). Sub-25-millisecond results across [800+ TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions), queries that never reach a retail registrar, and prices compared across our partner network so you can spot which registrar is actually cheapest for the specific domain you want. If you haven't picked a name yet, start with our [curated lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists), the [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator), or our companion guides on [the best domain search tools](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-search-tools) and [the best bulk domain search tools](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-bulk-domain-search-tools). The domain market has gotten meaningfully better for buyers over the last few years. Privacy is now free almost everywhere. Wholesale-flat pricing is no longer exotic. Modern interfaces are catching up to the rest of the web. The remaining gaps (renewal-price gotchas, upsell pressure at checkout, search data quietly accumulating at every retail registrar) are exactly the gaps a search layer like ours is built to close. --- # Curated Domain Lists, Refreshed Daily > Live, curated lists of available domain names: 4-letter domains, two-word brands, dictionary words, and tech names, refreshed daily. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/curated-domain-lists - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-05-08 --- Most "available domain name" lists you find online are stale before you finish reading them. Someone's blog post from 2022, recommending names that got registered six hours after it went live. We built [Instant Domain Lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists) so that doesn't happen here. Every list is regenerated against live registry data. The names on the page are the names you can actually register today, not what was open the last time someone manually checked. ## What's on /lists today Ten hand-curated lists, organized into four categories at [/lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists): - **[Available 4-Letter Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/four-letter-domains)** — short, pronounceable four-character names checked against `.com`, `.io`, `.dev`, `.app`, `.co`, `.net`, `.org`, `.xyz`, and more. Often under $25/year. - **[Brandable Two-Word Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/brandable-two-word-domains)** — adjective-plus-noun and verb-plus-noun combinations that read like real brands. Think DropBox, MailChimp, BlueApron. - **[Single-Word Dictionary Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/single-word-dictionary-domains)** — actual English words still available across popular TLDs. The most valuable category of domain. - **[AI & Tech Startup Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/ai-tech-startup-domains)** — names built from the AI, ML, dev, and SaaS vocabulary. For the next Claude, Cursor, or Perplexity. - **[Pronounceable Brandable Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/pronounceable-brandable-domains)** — invented words that follow natural speech patterns. The Spotify / Roku / Hulu shape. - **[Verb & Action Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/verb-action-domains)** — names built around action verbs like Launch, Build, Sprint, and Soar. The Stripe / Shopify / Lyft shape. - **[Health & Wellness Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/health-wellness-domains)** — calming, natural-sounding names for clinics, studios, coaches, and supplement brands. Think PureCalm, GlowHeal, NourishLeaf. - **[Fintech & Banking Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/fintech-banking-domains)** — trustworthy, modern names for neobanks, payment apps, lending, and investing startups. Think RampPeak, FinFund, AltoSilver. - **[Travel & Hospitality Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/travel-hospitality-domains)** — evocative names for hotels, resorts, tour operators, vacation rentals, and travel startups. Think SereneCape, CharmingCoast, GildedVilla. - **[Food & Restaurant Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists/food-restaurant-domains)** — mouthwatering names for restaurants, cafes, bakeries, food trucks, catering, and specialty food brands. Think SmokyTavern, RusticTable, CharredFeast. Filter the hub by category to narrow in (Brandable, Short, Dictionary, Tech & AI), and each list cross-links to two related lists at the bottom so you can keep digging. ## Live data, not a stale snapshot Here's what actually makes these different from the lists in someone's listicle. Every domain on every list is checked against live registry data. We pull availability directly from registries — VeriSign, Identity Digital, Public Interest Registry, and [380+ others we partner with](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) — instead of going through retail registrar APIs that throttle, cache, or serve stale results. Each list page shows you the totals upfront: how many domains are in it, how many are available right now, and the percentage that's still open. That counter moves. Domains expire, get registered, change hands. The next time the list rebuilds, the page reflects reality. The data behind each list is also published openly: every list page documents its methodology. How the names were generated, what filters were applied, which TLDs are checked. The aim is that the list is good not just because the names are good, but because you can see exactly how we got to them. ## Open any list in bulk Lists work best when they connect to action. Every list has a "Check all" button that loads the entire list into [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search). From there you can: - Filter by TLD to narrow to .com, .io, .ai, or whatever extension fits. - Filter by price to find the cheap-to-register names or the premium ones. - Sort by length, status, or pricing. - Export the filtered set to CSV. - Bookmark individual names into the new [Saved Domains sidebar](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/saved-domains-sidebar) so you can come back to your shortlist. A "list" on most sites is a dead end. On Instant it's the start of your research — a curated input you can slice, save, and act on without ever leaving the tool. ## Why the data underneath matters Most "available domains" lists fall apart for the same reason: the data behind them is slow or inaccurate, so they get stale fast and nobody trusts them. This works on Instant because the underlying search stack is built for fresh data at scale: - **Direct registry partnerships across 380+ TLDs.** Availability comes straight from registries, not through retail registrar APIs that rate-limit aggregators. ([How direct registry partnerships work.](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private)) - **Sub-25 ms aftermarket lookups.** Aftermarket pricing on each list is fed by a [Wikipedia-trained embedding model](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/building-fast-ai) that ranks names by semantic similarity in under 25 milliseconds. - **Smart partner routing across seven registrars.** Click any domain and we route you to a registrar that actually supports the TLD, with [real-time price comparison across all seven of our partners](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Porkbun, Hostinger, Dynadot, Spaceship, Network Solutions). - **800+ TLDs supported.** Lists span the full extension landscape we cover, not just the popular .coms. That's why the counts on every list are honest. We're checking the same way we check when you type a name into the search box. ## What's next Right now /lists is curated by us. The next chapter is letting you curate too — save your own list of bookmarked names, share it with a link, watch the availability tick down as registrations come in. We'll have more on that soon. In the meantime, every weekly drop on social goes here first. If a new list shows up at /lists, it's the freshest source. ## Try it Browse [/lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists), pick a list that fits what you're naming, click into it, and use the "Check all" button to open the full set in [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search). Bookmark the ones worth a second look. A list you'd want us to build? [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # Filter Domain Availability Instantly — No Page Reloads, No Flash > Filter search results by available, premium, aftermarket, or taken — without a server round-trip, in a tool that has to stay instant. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/instant-filters - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-05-07 --- We just shipped **filters** on Instant Domain Search — narrow your results to available, premium, aftermarket, or taken with a single click. It's been our most-requested feature for years. Getting it onto a tool that has to stay *instant* turned into one of the more interesting design problems we've worked on. ## Why filters were hard On most search tools, filters are a server thing. Click a filter, fire a new query, swap in a fresh page of results. That works because most of those tools already make you wait a moment for results to begin with — another half-second on top of that doesn't feel any worse. It doesn't work on a tool whose results land faster than your keystrokes. The first version we tried sent a server query on every filter toggle and the page flashed every single time. Type a letter, flash. Toggle a filter, flash. Type another letter, flash again. The whole point of Instant is that you stay in flow, and we'd just shipped a feature that broke it. So we kept punting on filters for years, even though they were the single feature people asked for most. ## How we built them The trick was to stop treating filters as a server concern. When you search a name on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), one streaming query delivers every relevant result into the page at the speed of your typing. We pull availability directly from registries (we have partnerships with 380+ of them) instead of going through retail registrar APIs that throttle and cache. Aftermarket matches come from a Wikipedia-trained embedding model that returns results in under 25 ms. Registrar pricing is fetched in parallel from all seven of our partners. The whole stack is built to get the entire result set in front of you faster than you can finish typing. Once the data's already there, filters don't need a server. They just need to re-rank what's on the page. So that's what they do now. Toggle "Available" and the matches jump to the top while non-matching results fade back. Toggle "Aftermarket" and the secondary-market names move up. There's no round-trip, no flash, no waiting. The page reorganizes in batches as new results stream in, so even mid-query the experience stays smooth. The result: filters that feel like part of the same instant experience as everything else, instead of a slow extra step bolted on top. ## Why most tools can't do this Local-first filtering only works if the underlying search is fast enough to deliver the full result set in real time. Most domain search tools paginate or query-on-toggle because their data isn't streaming in fast enough to filter against — they're waiting on registrar APIs, hopping between retail partners, or running keyword matches that need the server to do the heavy lifting. Instant doesn't have that bottleneck: - **Direct registry data.** We pull availability from VeriSign, Identity Digital, Public Interest Registry, and [380+ other registries](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) we partner with directly. No retail registrar APIs in the search path. ([More on how we make it fast.](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast)) - **Sub-25 ms aftermarket.** Our [aftermarket model](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/building-fast-ai) ranks names by semantic similarity, not keyword match — so "supercoolapp" surfaces names like "rocketlabs" and "stellartools," not just literal substring matches. - **Parallel registrar pricing.** Real-time price comparison across all seven of our partners (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Porkbun, Hostinger, Dynadot, Spaceship, Network Solutions), surfaced inline. - **800+ TLD coverage.** Filters work across every extension we support, not just the popular .coms. Because the data is all there in milliseconds, filtering it in the browser becomes the obvious move. That's the only reason this works. ## What you can filter Four status filters, available across [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), the [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator), our [extension pages](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions), and the aftermarket tab: - **Available** — domains you can register today at standard pricing. - **Premium** — registry-priced premium names with the price surfaced upfront. - **Aftermarket** — names listed on dan.com, Sedo, Atom, BrandBucket, Afternic, and the other marketplaces we work with. - **Taken** — already registered, so you can quickly see what's been claimed and what's still open in the same view. Toggle any combination. The counts update live as more results stream in. We also added dropdown filters where they make sense: pick a TLD on the [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) to brainstorm against a specific extension, or filter by TLD and price on [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) when you're slicing through thousands of names at once. ## Try it [Search a domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and use the filter chips above the results. Toggle one on, type a few more letters, and watch the matches stay pinned to the top. Filters you'd want to see next? [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # Introducing Saved Domains — A Sidebar That Stays in Flow > Bookmark domains as you search, see full details for any saved name without leaving the page, and keep your shortlist in flow. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/saved-domains-sidebar - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-05-06 --- We rebuilt **Saved Domains** as a sidebar that lives next to your search. Bookmark anything worth a second look, click into the full picture for any saved name without leaving the page, and keep a working shortlist as you go. ## Why we built it Picking a domain isn't one search. It's twenty. You find a name that could work, chase it through availability, registrar prices, alternate TLDs, the aftermarket — and by the time you've actually looked into it, you've lost track of the other three you liked. The old saved-domains dropdown was fine for stashing a name. It wasn't built for the way people actually narrow down a list. So we rebuilt it as a sidebar that stays open alongside whatever you're doing. Search, bookmark, click into details, jump back. No page refreshes, no losing your place. ## What's new **Bookmark from anywhere.** Every result on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and [Check](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) has a bookmark icon. One click saves it to your sidebar. **Full domain details, in-place.** Click any saved domain and the sidebar expands into a details view that adapts to whatever the domain is. You only see what's relevant for its status: - **Available** — real-time pricing from our seven registrar partners (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Porkbun, Hostinger, Dynadot, Spaceship, Network Solutions), TLD competitiveness across 800+ extensions, and a list of alternative TLDs you can register right now. - **Premium** — the same registrar comparison, with each partner's premium price surfaced upfront so there are no surprises at checkout. - **Aftermarket** — live listings from dan.com, Atom, Sedo, BrandBucket, Afternic, and the other marketplaces we work with, plus suggested alternative names if you'd rather skip the secondary market. - **Taken** — live OpenGraph data pulled from the site so you can see what's actually on the page without leaving, full WHOIS (registrant, registration date, expiration), and a curated list of similar names you might be able to register instead. **Persistent across devices.** Sign in once and your saved domains follow you between sessions and devices. Prefer to keep things local? An opt-out toggle keeps everything on your browser only — saved domains never have to touch our servers if you don't want them to. **A dedicated page for the long list.** When your shortlist outgrows the sidebar, [/saved-domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/saved-domains) gives you the same data in a sortable table, grouped by status, with one-click CSV export. ## Why this works as well as it does A sidebar is only useful if the data behind it shows up fast. Click a saved name and you should know everything about it before you've finished thinking about why you saved it. That's why this took us a while to ship. Most domain tools route their availability through retail registrar APIs, which means the moment you click into a name you're waiting on a third-party server. Instant pulls availability directly from registries — VeriSign, Identity Digital, Public Interest Registry, and 380+ others we have direct partnerships with — so checks come back in milliseconds. Aftermarket listings come from a Wikipedia-trained embedding model that ranks names by semantic similarity in under 25ms. Registrar pricing is fetched in parallel from all seven partners and shown side-by-side, with [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) hiding any registrar that doesn't actually support the TLD you're looking at. In other words: the sidebar isn't a new data layer. It's the same fast pipeline our search runs on, surfaced where you need it without taking you away from what you were doing. It's also where we'll keep adding more. Today it surfaces saved domains and check data. Soon it'll handle generator suggestions, bulk results, and more of the tools we ship — all in one place, none of them a context switch. ## Try it [Search a domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and click the bookmark icon on any result. Open the sidebar and click into a saved name to see the full details view. Or jump to [/saved-domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/saved-domains) for the full table. What would you want to see in the sidebar next? [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # Best Domain Search Tools in 2026 > We compared every major domain search tool — GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, and more — on speed, privacy, pricing, and AI integration. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-domain-search-tools - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-04-22 --- Finding the right domain name is the first step in building anything online. But where you search matters more than most people realize. The tool you use determines how fast you get results, how many extensions you can check, what you pay, and whether a registrar is quietly logging every name you look up. We compared 9 of the most popular domain search tools available in 2026. Here's what actually differentiates them, what each one does well, and how to pick the right one for what you're doing. ## What to look for in a domain search tool Before diving into individual tools, here's what separates a great domain search experience from a mediocre one: - **Search speed** — Does the tool show results as you type, or do you submit a query and wait? The difference between sub-25ms and multi-second responses changes how you explore names. Instant feedback lets you iterate on ideas. Waiting for each check slows you down. - **Data source** — This is the one most people don't think about. Some tools query registries directly (VeriSign, Google Registry, Identity Digital) for authoritative availability data. Others rely on WHOIS lookups, which can be stale, or registrar APIs that may cache results. The data source determines accuracy. - **TLD coverage** — Can you search `.com` only, or 800+ extensions? If you're exploring newer TLDs like `.ai`, `.io`, `.dev`, or `.store`, coverage matters. - **Pricing transparency** — Does the tool show you what a domain costs? From one registrar or multiple? Registration price and renewal price are often different, and the gap can be significant. - **Privacy** — When you search on a registrar's domain tool, that registrar sees every domain you check. If you're a startup in stealth mode, a domain investor researching assets, or a company evaluating competitor brand variations, this is a real concern. - **Name generation** — Does the tool only check exact matches, or can it suggest alternatives? AI-powered generators, prefix/suffix variations, and semantic suggestions help you discover names you wouldn't have thought of. - **AI and API integration** — In 2026, many domain workflows start inside an AI assistant or a script. Tools with API access or [MCP (Model Context Protocol)](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) support let you check domains without leaving your workflow. - **Purchase model** — Search-first tools let you compare prices across registrars and buy wherever is cheapest. Sell-first tools funnel you toward purchasing from them. Both models work, but understanding the difference helps you interpret results and pricing. ## The 9 best domain search tools in 2026 ### 1. Instant Domain Search **Best for**: Speed, privacy, and multi-registrar price comparison [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) has been building domain search for 20 years, serving nearly 50 million searches since 2005. The core differentiator is architecture: searches run against a local index of zone files built from [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) with VeriSign, Google Registry, Radix, Identity Digital, and others. That means sub-25ms results that stream back as you type, powered by [JSON streaming](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/streaming-json-jsons) rather than traditional API lookups. **Key features:** - As-you-type results in sub-25ms via registry-level data - 800+ TLD coverage across registries, aftermarkets, and premium listings - Multi-registrar pricing comparison showing costs from Namecheap, GoDaddy, Porkbun, Spaceship, and more via [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) - [Domain name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) with AI-powered suggestions, prefixes, suffixes, and semantic alternatives - [Bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) for checking up to 5,000 domains at once - [Expired domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) search for finding dropping domains with existing authority - [Curated domain lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists) of brandable, short, and themed names for inspiration - [Check Domain Availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/check-domain-availability) deep-dive tool with WHOIS data, registrar pricing, and aftermarket listings - MCP server for checking domains directly from Claude, Cursor, or any AI assistant - No account required, 100% free **Privacy approach:** Searches run against a local zone file index. No queries are forwarded to retail registrar APIs. The only time a registrar learns about your interest is when you click a purchase link. This is unique among domain search tools. [Read how it works](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). **Limitations:** Instant Domain Search is not a registrar — it doesn't sell domains directly. When you're ready to buy, it links you to partner registrars where you can complete the purchase. There's no domain management (DNS settings, transfers, renewals) since those are registrar functions. [Try Instant Domain Search →](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) --- ### 2. GoDaddy **Best for**: Beginners who want everything in one place GoDaddy is the world's largest domain registrar by market share, and there's a reason for that. Their platform bundles domain search, registration, hosting, email, website builder, and marketing tools into a single ecosystem. If you want one account for everything, GoDaddy delivers that convenience. **Key features:** - 518+ extensions - Bundled hosting, email, website builder, and marketing tools - Domain appraisal tool for estimating domain values - Aftermarket access through Afternic (GoDaddy's acquisition) - 24/7 phone support - Domain Privacy protection available at checkout - Bulk search for up to 500 domains **Privacy approach:** GoDaddy is the world's largest registrar. All searches run through their infrastructure and are subject to their data practices. **Limitations:** Heavy upselling during the purchase flow — expect add-on offers for privacy protection, email, hosting, and website builder at every step. Introductory prices are often significantly lower than renewal prices. WHOIS privacy costs extra on most plans. The search experience prioritizes conversion over exploration. You can also search for domains and see GoDaddy's pricing directly on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) — results include GoDaddy alongside other registrars so you can compare before committing. --- ### 3. Namecheap **Best for**: Budget-friendly registration with creative name generation tools Namecheap lives up to its name with consistently low introductory pricing and a feature set that punches above its price point. Their Beast Mode is one of the more creative domain search tools available — it combines bulk availability checking with domain hacks, vowel dropping, and prefix/suffix transforms that help you brainstorm names you wouldn't have found manually. **Key features:** - 1,164+ TLDs — the largest selection on this list - Beast Mode with domain hack suggestions (e.g., "hire" becomes "hi.re"), vowel dropping, and creative transforms - Up to 5,000 domains per Beast Mode search - Free WhoisGuard privacy protection - Low introductory pricing - CSV import and export - Shareable search links for team collaboration - Marketplace for aftermarket domains **Privacy approach:** Namecheap is a retail registrar. When you search on their platform, availability checks run through their registrar infrastructure. They can see every domain you search for. **Limitations:** Renewal prices are often higher than introductory prices — check the renewal cost before registering. Beast Mode's creative transforms can generate a lot of noise alongside useful suggestions. No MCP or AI assistant integration. Namecheap pricing is included in [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) results, so you can compare their rates against other registrars in real time as you search. --- ### 4. Porkbun **Best for**: Transparent pricing with no renewal markup Porkbun has earned a loyal following among domain buyers who are tired of the introductory-price-to-expensive-renewal bait-and-switch. Their pricing model is straightforward: the price you see is close to what you'll pay on renewal. Combined with free WHOIS privacy and free SSL certificates on every domain, the total cost of ownership is often the lowest of any traditional registrar. **Key features:** - 500+ TLDs - Free WHOIS privacy and SSL certificates with every domain - Transparent pricing — registration and renewal prices are clearly listed - API with pricing endpoints for all TLDs - Clean, modern interface - Competitive pricing especially on newer TLDs **Privacy approach:** Porkbun is a registrar. Searches go through their systems. **Limitations:** Basic search experience — no as-you-type results, no AI suggestions, no creative name generation. Bulk search limited to 100 domains. Domain management interface can be clunky for large portfolios. Limited business hours for support. Porkbun is one of the registrars integrated into [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) — you can see their pricing alongside other registrars and go directly to Porkbun to register when they have the best price. --- ### 5. Hostinger **Best for**: All-in-one web presence with competitive domain pricing Hostinger has grown rapidly by combining affordable hosting with domain registration, AI website builder tools, and a polished onboarding experience. Their domain search is tightly integrated with their hosting plans, making it easy to go from finding a name to having a live website in one session. For users who want domain + hosting together without GoDaddy-level upselling, Hostinger hits a good middle ground. **Key features:** - 300+ TLDs with competitive introductory pricing - Free domain included with most hosting plans (first year) - AI website builder and WordPress hosting integration - Free WHOIS privacy on all domains - Intuitive control panel (hPanel) - 24/7 live chat support - Domain forwarding and DNS management included **Privacy approach:** Hostinger is a registrar. Domain searches go through their infrastructure. **Limitations:** Lowest prices require multi-year hosting commitments. Domain-only registration (without hosting) is available but less prominently featured. TLD selection is narrower than Namecheap or Dynadot. Renewal pricing increases after the introductory period. The domain search is secondary to their hosting product. Hostinger pricing is also available through [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) — search for any domain and you'll see Hostinger's rates compared to other registrars. --- ### 6. Domain.com **Best for**: Simple, straightforward domain registration Domain.com keeps things simple. The platform focuses on making domain registration easy without overwhelming you with features or add-ons. Their search suggests alternatives when your first choice is taken, and the checkout process is relatively clean. For someone who just wants to register a domain without thinking too hard about it, Domain.com delivers that simplicity. **Key features:** - 300+ TLDs - Free WHOIS privacy with Domain Privacy + Protection - Website builder and hosting packages available - Professional email integration - Domain transfer support with price-lock guarantee - SSL certificates included with hosting plans **Privacy approach:** Domain.com is a registrar (owned by Newfold Digital, which also owns Bluehost and Web.com). Standard registrar data practices apply to searches. **Limitations:** Introductory pricing can be significantly lower than renewal pricing — always check renewal costs. Fewer TLDs than larger registrars. No bulk search. No API access. No AI features or name generation tools. Add-on upselling at checkout, though less aggressive than GoDaddy. You can compare Domain.com's pricing with other registrars on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) before deciding where to register. --- ### 7. Cloudflare Registrar **Best for**: At-cost domain registration with no markup Cloudflare Registrar passes through wholesale registry prices with zero markup. If you're a developer already using Cloudflare for DNS, CDN, or security, adding domain registration to the same dashboard is seamless. Their pricing model is genuinely impressive — you pay exactly what Cloudflare pays the registry, plus the ICANN fee. **Key features:** - At-cost pricing (wholesale price passed through, no markup on registration or renewal) - Integrated with Cloudflare's DNS, CDN, DDoS protection, and Workers platform - Free WHOIS privacy on all domains - DNSSEC support - API access for domain management - Automatic SSL certificates **Privacy approach:** Cloudflare is a registrar. Domain searches on their platform go through their infrastructure. **Limitations:** Limited TLD selection (~300 extensions) compared to dedicated search tools. No as-you-type search — you enter a domain and wait for results. No name generation or AI suggestion features. Requires a Cloudflare account. The domain search is a feature within their infrastructure product, not a standalone search tool. --- ### 8. Dynadot **Best for**: International domain investors and high-volume buyers Dynadot has built a strong reputation among domain investors with competitive pricing, full internationalized domain name (IDN) support, and a tiered account system that unlocks better tools as your spending increases. Their aftermarket marketplace adds a buy/sell dimension that pure search tools lack. **Key features:** - 600+ TLDs with full IDN support for international domains - Bulk search scaling from 1,000 domains (free) to 5,000/day (Super Bulk accounts) - API access for Bulk and Super Bulk account tiers - Built-in aftermarket marketplace for buying and selling domains - Competitive pricing with volume discounts - WHOIS lookup integration in search results **Privacy approach:** Dynadot is a registrar. Searches route through their registrar systems. **Limitations:** The best features require significant annual spend — $500+/year for Bulk tier API access, $5,000+/year for Super Bulk. The free tier is functional but limited. The search interface is utilitarian rather than polished. --- ### 9. Squarespace Domains (formerly Google Domains) **Best for**: Users already in the Squarespace ecosystem Squarespace acquired Google Domains' customer base in 2023, inheriting a clean interface and straightforward pricing model that Google built. If you're already using Squarespace for your website, adding domain registration to the same account keeps everything in one place. The transition from Google Domains has been mostly smooth, though some features are still being integrated. **Key features:** - 300+ TLDs - Free WHOIS privacy on all domains - Google Workspace integration for professional email - Clean interface inherited from Google Domains - Integrated with Squarespace website builder and hosting - Simple DNS management **Privacy approach:** Squarespace is a registrar (acquired Google Domains' infrastructure). Standard registrar data practices apply. **Limitations:** Still transitioning from the Google Domains acquisition — some features and integrations are in flux. Higher prices than budget registrars. No bulk search capability. No AI features or name generation. No API for domain search. The domain search is secondary to the website builder platform. ## Feature comparison table | Feature | Instant Domain Search | GoDaddy | Namecheap | Porkbun | Hostinger | Domain.com | Cloudflare | Dynadot | Squarespace | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | **Primary purpose** | Search tool | Registrar | Registrar | Registrar | Registrar | Registrar | Registrar | Registrar | Registrar | | **Search speed** | Sub-25ms | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | | **TLDs** | 800+ | 518+ | 1,164+ | 500+ | 300+ | 300+ | ~300 | 600+ | 300+ | | **As-you-type results** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **Multi-registrar pricing** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **Privacy (no registrar sees searches)** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **AI name suggestions** | ✅ | No | Limited | No | ✅ | No | No | No | No | | **MCP / AI assistant integration** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **Bulk search** | 5,000 | 500 | 5,000 | 100 | No | No | No | 1,000-5,000 | No | | **Free, no account** | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | No | ✅ | No | | **Domain registration** | No (links to registrars) | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | | **At-cost pricing** | N/A | No | No | No | No | No | ✅ | No | No | | **Free WHOIS privacy** | N/A | Paid | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ## Which tool should you use? The right tool depends on what you're optimizing for: **If speed matters most**: [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) returns results in sub-25ms as you type. Every other tool on this list requires you to submit a query and wait. When you're brainstorming and iterating on name ideas, that instant feedback loop makes a material difference. **If privacy matters (stealth projects, competitive research)**: Instant Domain Search is the only tool that doesn't forward your queries to a retail registrar. Every other tool on this list is either operated by a registrar or routes queries through one. If you're researching domains for a confidential project, this distinction matters. **If you want the cheapest registration price**: Cloudflare Registrar passes through wholesale prices with zero markup — it's hard to beat at-cost pricing. Porkbun and Namecheap offer competitive pricing with the added benefit of no surprise renewal increases (Porkbun) or broad TLD selection (Namecheap). Use [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to compare pricing across registrars before you decide. **If you want AI-powered name brainstorming**: Instant Domain Search's [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) creates AI-powered name suggestions with real-time availability checking across registrars. **If you want everything in one place (search + hosting + email)**: GoDaddy, Hostinger, and Squarespace bundle domain search, registration, hosting, email, and website builder into a single platform. The trade-off is less flexibility on pricing, but the convenience of one account is real. Hostinger tends to offer the most competitive pricing of the three. **If you're a domain investor**: Dynadot and Namecheap offer the portfolio management tools and marketplace access that investors need. Use Instant Domain Search for the research phase — its speed, [bulk search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search), and privacy mean you can scout names without tipping off registrars — then register through whichever registrar offers the best pricing. **If you want AI assistant integration**: Instant Domain Search's MCP server lets you check domains directly from Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible AI assistant. Ask your AI to "check if these domain names are available" and get real-time results without switching tools. No other search tool offers this. **If you want no-nonsense registration with no upsells**: Porkbun and Domain.com both prioritize cleaner purchasing experiences compared to GoDaddy. Porkbun's transparent pricing model — where registration and renewal prices are nearly the same — makes it easy to know exactly what you'll pay long-term. ## Search-first vs. sell-first: why it matters There's a fundamental architectural difference between the tools on this list that's worth understanding. Eight of the nine tools listed above are registrars. Their domain search exists to funnel you toward purchasing a domain from them. The search results, suggestions, pricing display, and checkout flow are all optimized for one outcome: you buying a domain through their platform. That's not a criticism — registrars provide essential services. But it shapes the search experience in ways that matter. Instant Domain Search is the exception. It's a search-first tool that exists to help you find the right domain name, then shows you where to buy it at the best price across multiple registrars. The incentive structure is different: instead of optimizing for you to buy from one registrar, it optimizes for you to find the best name at the best price from any registrar. This difference shows up in small ways. A registrar's search may emphasize their own premium domains or upsell extensions they profit from. A search-first tool shows you what's available across the market. A registrar's pricing reflects their margins. A search-first tool with [multi-registrar comparison](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) shows you the actual range. Neither model is inherently better. If you already know you want to register through Namecheap, searching on Namecheap makes sense. But if you're in the exploration phase — trying different name ideas, comparing TLDs, checking pricing across registrars — a search-first tool gives you a more complete picture before you commit to a registrar. ## The privacy question most people don't think about When you use a domain search tool run by a registrar, that registrar sees every domain you check. Search for 50 business name ideas on GoDaddy, and GoDaddy's systems have logged all 50 queries. The same is true for Namecheap, Dynadot, Porkbun, and every other registrar-operated search. Does that matter? It depends on what you're doing. If you're checking random name ideas for a personal blog, probably not. But if you're a startup in stealth mode exploring brand names, a domain investor researching undervalued assets, or a company evaluating competitor brand variations, the registrar knowing your exact search list is a legitimate concern. This isn't theoretical. Registrar search data has value. It reveals market demand, competitive intent, and trending name patterns. Some registrars have historically been [accused of domain front-running](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_front_running) — where searched-but-not-purchased domains get registered by someone else shortly after. While this practice is hard to prove and most reputable registrars deny it, the incentive structure exists. Instant Domain Search avoids this entirely by running searches against a local zone file index built from [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). Your queries never leave our servers to reach a retail registrar. It's the same architecture that has protected nearly 50 million domain searches since 2005. ## Frequently asked questions ### What is the best company to register a domain name? It depends on what you value. Cloudflare Registrar offers at-cost pricing with zero markup, making it the cheapest option for supported TLDs. Porkbun offers transparent pricing with no surprise renewal increases. Namecheap has the broadest TLD selection (1,164+) with competitive introductory pricing. GoDaddy provides the most comprehensive ecosystem if you want hosting, email, and a website builder in one account. If you're not sure which registrar to use, start with [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to compare prices across registrars before committing. ### Is there anything better than GoDaddy? GoDaddy's strength is its all-in-one ecosystem — domain search, registration, hosting, email, and website builder in a single platform. If that bundled experience is what you want, it's hard to beat. But if you're optimizing for specific things, other tools excel: Cloudflare for cheapest pricing, Namecheap for TLD selection, Porkbun for transparent renewals, Hostinger for affordable hosting bundles, and [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) for the fastest, most private search before you decide where to register. ### Does it matter which domain registrar I use? Yes, more than most people realize. Key differences include pricing (introductory vs. renewal prices can vary by 2-5x between registrars), privacy (some charge extra for WHOIS privacy while others include it free), transfer policies (some make it easy to move domains, others add friction), and upselling (some registrars aggressively push add-ons during checkout). Use [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to compare registration and renewal prices across registrars before choosing. For a deeper look at [how to choose a domain name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-choose-a-domain-name), we've published a separate guide. ### What is the fastest domain search tool? [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) returns availability results in sub-25ms as you type, making it the fastest domain search tool available. This speed comes from querying a local index of zone files from direct registry partnerships rather than making API calls to registrars for each search. Most registrar-based search tools take 1-3 seconds per query because they check availability through their registrar API in real time. ### Are domain search tools free? Most domain search tools are free to use. [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), GoDaddy, Namecheap, Porkbun, Hostinger, and Domain.com all offer free searches with no account required. Cloudflare and Squarespace require account creation but don't charge for searching. Dynadot's free tier allows 1,000 bulk searches, with higher limits on paid tiers. The tools themselves are free because they make money when you register domains through them (registrars) or click through to partner registrars (Instant Domain Search). ## Bottom line For most domain search workflows in 2026, the choice comes down to what you're optimizing for: - **Fastest search**: [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) (sub-25ms, as-you-type results) - **Cheapest registration**: Cloudflare Registrar (at-cost pricing, zero markup) - **Best for AI workflows**: [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) (MCP server + [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator)) - **Best for privacy**: [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) (the only tool that doesn't forward queries to registrars) - **Best all-in-one platform**: GoDaddy or Hostinger (search + hosting + email + website builder) - **Best for domain investors**: Dynadot or Namecheap (portfolio tools + marketplace) paired with [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) for private research - **Most TLD options**: Namecheap (1,164+ extensions) - **Most transparent pricing**: Porkbun (no renewal markup, free privacy and SSL) The domain search space has gotten significantly better over the past few years. Tools are faster, support more TLDs, and are starting to integrate with AI workflows. The biggest differentiator going forward isn't just which tool finds available domains — it's how well those searches fit into your actual workflow, whether you can trust the tool with your search intent, and whether you're seeing prices from one registrar or the whole market. --- # Introducing Check Domain Availability > A new tool for investigating individual domains: availability, TLD competitiveness, site previews, registrar pricing, and aftermarket listings. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/check-domain-availability - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 2026-03-25 --- We built [Check Domain Availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) — a new tool for investigating individual domains. Type in any domain and get the full picture: availability, ownership, registrar pricing, TLD competitiveness, aftermarket listings, and alternatives. All on one page, all loading instantly. ## What you get Type a domain into [Check](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) and you'll see: - **Availability status** — whether the domain is available, taken, or listed on an aftermarket marketplace. - **TLD competitiveness** — a breakdown of how many extensions are available vs. taken for that name across 800+ TLDs. If `acme.com` is taken, you can instantly see that `acme.design`, `acme.ai`, or `acme.dev` might still be open. - **Available extensions** — up to 12 alternative TLDs you can register right now, with links to check each one individually. - **Site preview** — if the domain is already registered, we pull the live OpenGraph data so you can see what's currently on the site without leaving the page. - **Registrar pricing** — direct links to register through Namecheap, GoDaddy, Porkbun, Hostinger, Dynadot, and others. - **Aftermarket listings** — if the domain is taken, we show marketplace listings from dan.com, Sedo, BrandBucket, and others with prices where available. - **Alternative names** — AI-generated domain suggestions based on your search, with links to explore further in our [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator). Everything loads in parallel. No waiting for one section to finish before the next appears. ## Search history Every domain you check gets saved to a sidebar that persists across your session. You can build up a shortlist of domains you're comparing, remove ones you've ruled out, and jump between them without re-searching. It holds up to 50 domains. This is useful when you're narrowing down options — checking a handful of names back to back to compare what's available, what's taken, and what the aftermarket looks like for each. ## How it's different from domain search The distinction matters for how you use each tool: **[Domain name search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/)** answers: *"What's out there for this keyword?"* You get instant results across every extension, generator suggestions, and aftermarket listings — all streaming in as you type. It's the fastest way to discover domains. **[Check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check)** answers: *"What's the full picture for this specific domain?"* You get a detailed report on a single name: who owns it, where to buy it, what alternatives exist, and how competitive the name is across TLDs. Use search when you're brainstorming. Use check when you've found something worth investigating. ## Try it Check is live now at [instantdomainsearch.com/check](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check). You can also find it under the **Tools** menu in the nav bar. If you're checking domains in bulk, our [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) tool handles up to 10,000 domains at once. And if you want to search by extension, each TLD has its own [dedicated search page](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) with pricing and market data. Questions or feedback? [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # 8 Best Bulk Domain Search Tools in 2026 > We tested every major bulk domain search tool — Namecheap Beast Mode, GoDaddy, Dynadot, and more — on speed, limits, privacy, and pricing. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/best-bulk-domain-search-tools - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-03-20 --- If you're checking more than a handful of domain names at a time, you need a bulk domain search tool. Whether you're a domain investor vetting a portfolio, a startup founder exploring brand variations, or a developer validating AI-generated name lists, the right tool saves hours of manual lookups. We tested every major bulk domain search tool available in 2026. Here's what we found, what actually matters when choosing one, and how each tool stacks up. ## What to look for in a bulk domain search tool Before diving into individual tools, here's what separates a good bulk search from a frustrating one: - **Domain limit per search** - Can you check 50 domains or 2,000? This matters enormously depending on your workflow. - **TLD coverage** - Some tools only check `.com`. Others cover 800+ extensions. If you care about `.ai`, `.io`, or newer TLDs, coverage matters. - **Speed** - Checking thousands of domains should take seconds, not minutes. - **Pricing data** - Knowing a domain is available isn't enough. You need to know what it costs across registrars. - **Privacy** - This one surprises people. Most bulk search tools forward your queries to retail registrar APIs. That means the registrar sees exactly which domains you're researching. If you're scouting names for a stealth project or evaluating a competitor's brand variations, that's a real concern. - **Export options** - Can you download results as CSV for further analysis? - **Account requirements** - Do you need to sign up before you can search? - **AI and API integration** - In 2026, many domain workflows start in an AI assistant or a script. Tools with API access or [MCP (Model Context Protocol)](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/) support let you check domains without leaving your workflow. ## The 8 best bulk domain search tools in 2026 ### 1. Instant Domain Search **Best for**: Speed, privacy, and AI-integrated workflows [Instant Domain Search's Bulk Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) checks up to 5,000 domains simultaneously with sub-25ms response times. Results stream back before the full response is even complete, thanks to [JSON streaming](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/streaming-json-jsons) and a pre-built local index of zone files across 800+ TLDs. **Key features:** - Check up to 5,000 domains at once via paste or CSV upload - 800+ TLD coverage with data from [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private) (VeriSign, Google Registry, Radix, Identity Digital) - Multi-registrar pricing comparison showing costs from Namecheap, GoDaddy, Porkbun, Spaceship, and more via [smart partner routing](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing) - Filter by availability status (available, taken, premium/aftermarket), TLD, and price range - Domain intelligence panel with Domain Authority, backlinks, age, and SEO metrics - CSV export with status, pricing, and purchase URLs - MCP server for checking domains directly from Claude, Cursor, or any AI assistant - No account required, 100% free **Privacy approach:** Searches run against a local zone file index. No queries are forwarded to retail registrar APIs. The only time a registrar learns about your interest is when you click a purchase link. This is unique among bulk search tools. [Read how it works](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). **What makes it different:** The MCP integration is genuinely new territory. You can ask Claude to "check if these 200 domain names are available" and get real-time availability data without switching tools. For teams building AI-powered naming workflows, this eliminates the copy-paste loop between your AI assistant and a domain search tab. **Limitations:** No domain hack generation (like turning "hire" into "hi.re"). The tool focuses on checking domains you already have in mind rather than generating new ideas, though the main [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) handle that. [Try Bulk Domain Search →](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) --- ### 2. Namecheap Beast Mode **Best for**: Creative domain generation with bulk checking Namecheap's Beast Mode is probably the most well-known bulk domain search tool. It combines bulk availability checking with name generation features like domain hacks, vowel dropping, and prefix/suffix suggestions. **Key features:** - Up to 5,000 domains per search - 1,164+ TLDs with category filters (finance, technology, "short," "$2 or less") - Domain hack suggestions (e.g., "hire" becomes "hi.re") - "Drop Last Vowel" transform (e.g., "flicker" becomes "flickr") - Shareable search links for team collaboration - CSV import and export - Price range filtering ($0 - $500,000) - No account required **Privacy approach:** Namecheap is a retail registrar. When you search on their platform, availability checks run through their own registrar infrastructure. They can see every domain you search for. **Limitations:** Slower than dedicated search tools since each check goes through registrar APIs. The creative transforms (domain hacks, vowel dropping) are clever but can generate noise. No API access on the free tier. No AI/MCP integration. --- ### 3. GoDaddy Bulk Domain Search **Best for**: Users already in the GoDaddy ecosystem GoDaddy offers a straightforward bulk search that handles up to 500 domains at a time. **Key features:** - Up to 500 domains per search - 518+ extensions - Exact match and premium domain toggles - Bulk add-to-cart for quick multi-domain registration - Domain Privacy protection available at checkout - Results split into "Available" and "Unavailable" lists **Privacy approach:** GoDaddy is the world's largest registrar. All searches run through their infrastructure and are subject to their data practices. Worth noting for competitive research. **Limitations:** No CSV import. Relatively low domain limit (500 max). Heavy upselling during the purchase flow with add-ons like privacy protection, email, and website builder packages. No filtering by price range. No API access for the bulk search specifically. --- ### 4. Dynadot Bulk Domain Search **Best for**: International domain investors and high-volume buyers Dynadot's bulk search scales with your account level. Free users get 1,000 domains per search, while Super Bulk accounts ($5,000+/year spend) get 5,000 per day with API access. **Key features:** - 1,000 domains/search (free), 2,000/day (Bulk), 5,000/day (Super Bulk) - 600+ TLDs with full IDN (internationalized domain name) support - CSV import and export - API access for Bulk and Super Bulk accounts - WHOIS lookup links in results - Distinguishes between full domains and keywords in input **Privacy approach:** Dynadot is a registrar. Searches route through their registrar systems. **Limitations:** The best features (higher limits, API access, priority support) require significant annual spend ($500+ for Bulk, $5,000+ for Super Bulk). The free tier is competitive at 1,000 domains, but the upgrade path is steep. --- ### 5. NameSilo Bulk Domain Search **Best for**: Budget-conscious domain investors who want API access NameSilo pairs a web-based bulk search with a free API, which is rare. Their wholesale pricing model (no markup on renewals) makes them popular with domain investors managing large portfolios. **Key features:** - Up to 500 domains via web (20 without login) - 100+ TLDs per query - Free API access (no premium tier required) - CSV import and export - Free WHOIS privacy on all domains - Wholesale pricing (registration price = renewal price) - Batch processing via API with 200 domains per request **Privacy approach:** NameSilo is a registrar. Standard registrar data practices apply. **Limitations:** Only 20 domains without logging in, which is the lowest free tier of any tool on this list. API is rate-limited to 200 domains per batch with a 5-minute cooldown between batches. TLD coverage (100+) is significantly lower than competitors offering 600-1,100+ extensions. --- ### 6. Porkbun **Best for**: Transparent pricing and simple registration Porkbun has earned a loyal following for transparent pricing and a clean interface. Their bulk search handles up to 100 domains at a time. **Key features:** - Up to 100 domains per search - 500+ TLDs - Free WHOIS privacy and SSL with every domain - Transparent pricing (no hidden renewal markup) - API with pricing endpoints for all TLDs - Clean, modern interface **Privacy approach:** Porkbun is a registrar. Searches go through their systems. **Limitations:** The 100-domain limit is restrictive for serious bulk workflows. Domain management interface can be clunky for large portfolios. Limited business hours for support. --- ### 7. Name.com Bulk Domain Search **Best for**: Discovering expiring domains alongside availability checks Name.com's bulk search has a unique feature: a "Backorder" toggle that surfaces domains expiring in the next 5 days. If you're looking to snap up dropping domains, this adds a useful dimension to bulk searching. **Key features:** - Up to 500 domains per search - 600+ TLDs organized into "Bulk Groups" (legacy, real estate, etc.) - Downloadable CSV with keywords, availability, and pricing - Backorder integration for expiring domains - Saved TLD group preferences for logged-in users **Privacy approach:** Name.com is a registrar owned by Identity Digital. Standard registrar data practices. **Limitations:** The interface feels dated compared to newer tools. No domain hack or creative transform features. No API for the bulk search. --- ### 8. IONOS Bulk Domain Search **Best for**: Small businesses checking brand variations IONOS targets a different audience than domain investors. Their bulk search handles up to 50 domains and focuses on brand protection use cases. **Key features:** - Up to 50 domains per search (some reports say 100) - Common extensions (.com, .net, .org, .biz, .info) - Flexible keyword input (enter names without extensions, IONOS checks across TLDs) - Registration duration choice (1-5 years) - Bulk discounts on registration **Privacy approach:** IONOS is a registrar. Standard registrar data practices. **Limitations:** Very low limit (50-100 domains) makes this unsuitable for serious bulk work. Limited TLD selection. No CSV import or export. No API. This is more of a "check a few brand variations" tool than a true bulk domain search. ## Feature comparison table | Feature | Instant Domain Search | GoDaddy | Namecheap Beast Mode | Dynadot | Name.com | NameSilo | Porkbun | IONOS | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | **Max domains/search** | 5,000 | 500 | 5,000 | 1,000 | 500 | 500 | 100 | 50 | | **TLDs** | 800+ | 518+ | 1,164+ | 600+ | 600+ | 100+ | 500+ | ~10 | | **Speed** | Sub-25ms | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | Seconds | | **Privacy (no registrar sees searches)** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **Multi-registrar pricing** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **Domain intelligence (DA, backlinks)** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **AI / MCP integration** | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | | **Free, no account** | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | 20 limit | ✅ | ✅ | | **CSV import** | ✅ | No | ✅ | ✅ | No | ✅ | No | No | | **CSV export** | ✅ | Limited | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ | Limited | No | | **API access** | MCP | No | Paid only | Paid tiers | No | Free | ✅ | No | | **Creative transforms** | No | No | ✅ | No | No | No | No | No | ## Which tool should you use? The right tool depends on your workflow: **If you're a domain investor checking large lists**: Instant Domain Search handles 5,000 domains with sub-25ms results and CSV export. Namecheap Beast Mode supports up to 5,000 with creative transforms that help generate new ideas from your seed list. **If privacy matters (stealth projects, competitive research)**: Instant Domain Search is the only tool that doesn't forward your queries to a retail registrar. Every other tool on this list is operated by a registrar that can see your searches. **If you want AI-integrated domain checking**: Instant Domain Search's MCP server lets you check domains directly from Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-compatible AI assistant. Ask your AI to "check if these domain names are available" and get real-time results without switching tabs. No other bulk search tool offers this. **If you want creative name generation alongside bulk checking**: Namecheap Beast Mode's domain hacks, vowel dropping, and prefix/suffix transforms are genuinely useful for brainstorming. It's more of a creative tool that also does bulk search. **If you need a free API**: NameSilo is the only tool offering free API access without a premium tier, though it's rate-limited. Dynadot's API requires $500+/year in domain spending. **If you're buying domains in bulk from one registrar**: GoDaddy and Dynadot have the smoothest search-to-purchase flows since you're already in their ecosystem. The trade-off is that you're locked into their pricing. **If you want the cheapest registration prices**: Porkbun and NameSilo are known for transparent, wholesale-level pricing with no renewal markup. Their bulk search tools are more limited, but the savings on registration add up fast across a large portfolio. ## The privacy question most people don't think about Here's something worth understanding: when you use a bulk domain search tool run by a registrar, that registrar sees every domain you check. Search for 1,000 domain names on GoDaddy's bulk tool, and GoDaddy's systems have logged all 1,000 queries. Does that matter? It depends on what you're doing. If you're checking random name ideas for a personal blog, probably not. But if you're a startup in stealth mode exploring brand names, a domain investor researching undervalued assets, or a company evaluating competitor brand variations, the registrar knowing your exact search list is a legitimate concern. This isn't theoretical. Registrar search data has value. It reveals market demand, competitive intent, and trending name patterns. Some registrars have historically been [accused of domain front-running](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name_front_running), where searched-but-not-purchased domains get registered by someone else shortly after. While this practice is hard to prove and most reputable registrars deny it, the incentive structure exists. Instant Domain Search avoids this entirely by running searches against a local zone file index built from [direct registry partnerships](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private). Your queries never leave our servers to reach a retail registrar. It's the same architecture that has protected nearly 50 million domain searches since 2005. ## Using AI assistants for bulk domain checking One of the biggest shifts in 2026 is that domain research increasingly starts inside an AI conversation. You might ask Claude or ChatGPT to brainstorm 200 business name ideas, then want to check which ones are actually available as `.com` domains. The traditional workflow requires copying that list, pasting it into a bulk search tool, waiting for results, then going back to your AI conversation to discuss the findings. It's clunky. With MCP (Model Context Protocol) integration, you can skip the middle step entirely. Instant Domain Search provides an MCP server with three endpoints: - **search_domains** - Bulk availability checking across multiple TLDs - **generate_domain_variations** - Generates pronounceable alternatives (prefixes, suffixes, semantic modifications) - **check_domain_availability** - Definitive yes/no verification with pricing from registries This means you can have a conversation like: > "Generate 100 business name ideas for a sustainable clothing brand, then check which ones are available as .com domains" And get real-time availability data without ever leaving your AI assistant. The AI handles the brainstorming, the MCP server handles the availability checking, and you get a filtered list of available, brandable domains in one conversation. No other bulk domain search tool offers this kind of integration today. ## Bottom line For most bulk domain search workflows in 2026, the choice comes down to what you prioritize: - **Maximum speed**: [Bulk Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) by Instant Domain Search (5,000 domains, sub-25ms) - **Creative generation + bulk checking**: Namecheap Beast Mode (5,000 domains with transforms) - **Free API access**: NameSilo (rate-limited but free) - **Cheapest registration**: Porkbun or NameSilo (transparent wholesale pricing) - **Privacy**: [Bulk Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) by Instant Domain Search (the only tool that doesn't forward queries to registrars) The bulk domain search space has gotten significantly better in the last year. Tools are faster, support more TLDs, and are starting to integrate with AI workflows. The biggest differentiator going forward isn't just how many domains you can check, it's how those checks fit into your actual workflow and whether you can trust the tool with your search intent. --- # Introducing Direct Registry Partnerships for 380+ TLDs > Domain data pulled directly from registries like VeriSign and Google Registry. No retail registrar APIs — your searches never touch a third-party registrar. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/how-we-keep-your-searches-private - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 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/learn/updates/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 [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # Introducing instant.ai — From Domain Search to Something Bigger > After powering half a billion domain searches, we're expanding. Meet instant.ai — a research lab building fast tools to go from idea to something real. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/introducing-instant-ai - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 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: [matt@instant.ca](mailto:matt@instant.ca) 🫰 --- # Instant Domain Search Now Supports 800+ TLDs > Instant Domain Search doubled its TLD coverage from 440 to 800+ extensions, including niche TLDs like .now, .how, .wtf, and hundreds of country-code domains. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/expanding-supported-tlds - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 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/learn/updates/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? [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- ## 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 for Domains > Instant Domain Search now routes each extension to the best registrar, with reliable links for niche TLDs and upcoming pricing-based routing. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/smart-partner-routing - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 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? [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com) --- # How to Choose a Domain Name in 2026 > A practical guide to choosing a memorable, brandable, available domain name, including the radio test and how to validate before you buy. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-choose-a-domain-name - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-01-12 --- Your domain name is your address on the internet. Pick the wrong one and you will spend years explaining how to spell it. Pick the right one and it becomes invisible, which is exactly what you want. We have watched over 50 million people search for domains on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), and the ones who find great names are not luckier. They just know what to look for. ## Two approaches: brand-first or descriptive There are two schools of thought on domain naming, and both work. ### Brand-first names Think Stripe, Notion, Slack. None of these describe what the company does. They are short, distinct, and memorable. The name becomes synonymous with the product over time. **The advantage:** Flexibility. When Slack expands beyond messaging, their name does not hold them back. A name like `TeamChatApp.com` would. **Examples that hint at function:** `Calendly`, `Mailchimp`, `Shopify`. Memorable first, descriptive second. ### Descriptive names The other path: say what you do in the name. We took this route with `instantdomainsearch.com`. It is longer, sure. But there is zero confusion about what you will find. For tools and utilities, this works well. People searching for "domain name search" find us because our name is what they are looking for. **Examples:** `booking.com`, `bankrate.com`, `healthline.com`. Valuable precisely because they describe a whole category. **The tradeoff:** Descriptive names can box you in. If you are building a company that might evolve, brand-first gives you room to grow. If you are building a focused tool or local business, descriptive can be powerful. ### Which to choose? - **Business will expand significantly?** -> Brand-first - **Utility with a specific purpose?** -> Descriptive works - **Trying to own a category?** -> Descriptive if you can get it **What does not work:** A name that is neither, like `mycompany123.com`, which has no brand value and no descriptive value. ## Keep it short, speakable, and spellable The best domain names pass the "radio test." Imagine someone hearing your domain on a podcast. Could they type it correctly without seeing it written down? If you have to say "that is spelled with a Y, not an I" or "the number 4, not the word 'for'" you have already lost half your traffic to typos. ### Rules that matter - **Aim for 5-16 characters.** Shorter is better, but not at the expense of being pronounceable. - **Avoid hyphens.** Nobody remembers them. If `freshbakery.com` is taken and you are considering `fresh-bakery.com`, keep looking. - **Avoid numbers** unless they are part of your brand. When someone hears "four" they do not know if it is "4" or "four." - **Watch for unfortunate letter combinations.** Experts Exchange famously had to rebrand after purchasing `expertsexchange.com`. - **Skip unusual spellings.** Yes, Lyft got away with it, but they had millions in marketing budget. ### Two tests that work **The radio test:** Say your candidates out loud to someone and ask them to spell it back. If they get it wrong, keep looking. **The paper test:** Write your top candidates on paper. Stick it somewhere you will see throughout the day. Look at it with fresh eyes in the morning, after lunch, late at night. Names that seemed clever at 2am often look different at 9am. The ones that still feel right after a few days are usually keepers. Try our [business name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/business-name-generator) to brainstorm names that pass these tests. For more inspiration, explore [related words](https://instantdomainsearch.com/words) by meaning or browse our [curated domain lists](https://instantdomainsearch.com/lists). ## Choose the right extension The part after the dot is called the [TLD](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain) (top-level domain). Your choice matters more than most people think. ### The case for .com If you can get a good `.com`, get it. **Why:** It is not that `.com` has magic SEO powers. It is that everyone assumes websites end in `.com`. When someone tries to remember your site, they will type `.com` by default. If that leads to a competitor or a parked page, you have lost a customer. **The reality:** Good `.com` names are expensive or unavailable. Which brings us to alternatives. ### Alternatives that work - **`.ai`** -- [Exploded alongside the AI boom](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026). If you are building anything AI-related, it is almost expected now. - **`.io`** -- Default for developer tools and tech startups. Recognized in tech circles, less so outside them. - **`.co`** -- Essentially a shorter `.com` at this point. - **`.agency`, `.studio`, `.design`** -- Industry extensions that reinforce what you do. - **Country codes (`.uk`, `.ca`, `.de`)** -- Good for local businesses. Use our [domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) tool to see what is available across 600+ TLDs. ## What to do when your name is taken Most good `.com` names are registered. The question is whether they are actually being used. ### Option 1: Buy it anyway If someone owns the domain you want, you can often buy it. Browse [aftermarket domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) to see what is on the market. If a domain is being parked, you can also reach out directly to the owner. **Makes sense when:** The name is perfect for your brand and you will use it for years. **Does not make sense when:** You are testing an idea that might pivot, or you found something equally good that is available. ### Option 2: Find expired domains When someone forgets to renew, domains eventually become available again. These [expired domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) sometimes come with existing backlinks and search history. **Caution:** Check the domain's history before buying. Some expired domains were used for spam. Use the Wayback Machine (archive.org) to see what was there before. ### Option 3: Get creative If `northside.com` is taken: - **Add a word that fits:** `northsidecoffee.com`, `getnorthside.com`, `northsidehq.com` - **Use a different TLD:** `northside.co`, `northside.io` - **Slight variations:** `northsideco.com` **What not to do:** - Add random numbers: `northside123.com` - Add hyphens: `north-side.com` - Confusing misspellings: `northsyde.com` Our [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) suggests variations automatically. ## Validate before you commit Before you buy, run these checks. ### Trademark search If someone owns a trademark on your desired name, using it as a domain could mean a cease-and-desist letter. **Where to search:** - US: [USPTO.gov](https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks/search) - EU: [EUIPO.europa.eu](https://www.tmdn.org/tmview/) - UK: [gov.uk/search-for-trademark](https://www.gov.uk/search-for-trademark) ### Social media handles Your domain and social handles should match or be close. Check Twitter/X, Instagram, LinkedIn, GitHub, and any platform relevant to your business. ### Domain history If buying a previously registered domain, check the [Wayback Machine](https://archive.org) to see what was there before. Check [who.is](https://who.is) to see when it was first registered and who owns it. You can also search Google for the domain in quotes to see what pages linked to it. Past spam or adult content can take years to shake off in Google's eyes. ### The out-loud test Say it in a sentence: "Check out our website at ___." Ask five people to write it down. If more than one gets it wrong, reconsider. ## Common mistakes **Choosing a domain that requires explanation.** If you have to tell people "it is like [word] but spelled differently," the name is too clever. **Waiting too long to register.** Good domains get bought constantly. If you find something great, register it immediately. [It is $12](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-much-domains-cost). **Overthinking it.** A "perfect" name you never find is worse than a good name you launch with today. If you make something good, its name will start to seem pleasing. **Keyword stuffing.** There is a difference between `healthline.com` and `best-cheap-health-tips-free.com`. The former is valuable. The latter screams 2005 SEO tactics. ## Use AI to brainstorm, bulk search to filter AI can generate hundreds of name ideas in seconds. The problem is checking which ones are actually available. **The AI workflow our users have told us they use:** 1. Ask ChatGPT or Claude for 100+ company name ideas. Push for more until you have 500-1,000 candidates. 2. Paste them into our [bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search), which checks up to 1,000 domains at once. 3. Filter by "available" to hide everything taken. Filter by price if you have a budget. 4. You will end up with 20-50 available options. Now you have a shortlist of names that are actually possible. 5. For favorites, run them through our [domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) to see prefixes, suffixes, and TLD alternatives. 6. Use our [domain availability checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) to deep-dive into your top picks — see who owns taken variants, compare registrar prices, and check TLD competitiveness. **Bonus:** We built a free [domain search MCP](https://instantdomainsearch.com/mcp) that you can connect to Claude, ChatGPT, and Cursor to look up and check availability of domains. ## Quick checklist Before registering: ## Ready to start searching? We built [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) to make this faster. Results appear in under 25 milliseconds as you type. **Go deeper:** - [Domain generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) - Instant similar suggestions - [Domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) - See 500+ available extensions - [Aftermarket domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) - Names already for sale - [Expired domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) - Recently dropped domains - [Bulk search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) - Check up to 1,000 domains at once --- # Most Popular Domain Extensions in 2026 > Fresh 2026 data on the 12 most popular domain extensions. .com nearly doubled to 303M, .xyz grew 240%, and .ai domains average $239K on the aftermarket. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026 - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2026-01-01 - **Updated:** 2026-03-26 --- Every single TLD we track at Instant Domain Search is growing in 2026. Not some of them — all of them. That's never happened before. In previous years there were always winners and losers: .com shrinking while .ai surged, .net declining while niche TLDs grew. This year, the entire market is expanding. Global domain registrations hit 386.9 million at the end of 2025, up 6.2% year-over-year, and the pace has only picked up since. Below is what we're seeing across the most popular [domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions), based on data from our own [TLD pages](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/com) tracking registrations, growth rates, and secondary market pricing. If you're looking for a [domain name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-domain-name) or just trying to understand where things are headed, this is the most complete picture we can give you. ## .com — 303.7 Million Registrations, +18% Growth Last year, we noted a -0.1% dip in [.com](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/com) registrations and wrote about "classics fading." We were wrong. .com now sits at **303.7 million registrations**, growing **+18% year-over-year**, with 4.58 million new domains added in a single month. For context, .com registered more domains in March 2026 alone than .me, .ai, and .dev [TLDs](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain) have in total. The aftermarket reflects the same momentum. Average .com resale prices jumped **+63.6% year-over-year** to $23,264, and the biggest domain sale in history happened here: **ai.com sold for $70 million** in April 2025. The buyer, Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek, paid entirely in cryptocurrency and launched the domain during Super Bowl LX. The previous record was Voice.com at $30 million. .com benefits most when the internet grows, because every new business, market, and country coming online still defaults to .com first. That hasn't changed. ## .xyz — 10 Million Registrations, +240% Growth We didn't even mention [.xyz](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/xyz) in the original version of this post. In 2026, it's the fastest-growing TLD by a wide margin: - **10 million total registrations** (just crossed the milestone) - **+240% year-over-year growth**, the highest of any TLD we track - **571,202 new registrations this month** — more monthly volume than .ai, .io, .app, .dev, .co, and .me combined The unusual part: aftermarket prices **dropped -43.6% year-over-year** to an average of $3,038, even as registrations exploded. Every other fast-growing TLD has rising resale values. .xyz is getting cheaper as it gets bigger, which usually signals a shift from speculative hoarding to actual use. ### What's driving it Alphabet uses abc.xyz as their corporate domain, which gave .xyz credibility early on. The extension is category-neutral, so it works for anything — tech, creative, personal, commercial. Web3 adoption helped too, since ENS lets .xyz domains function as decentralized identifiers, and projects like Mirror.xyz and ENS.xyz were early high-profile endorsements. One nuance: Japan's largest registrar, GMO/Onamae, offers .xyz domains at deeply discounted first-year pricing, and their registrations grew roughly 2.5x in the past year. That inflates the headline numbers. The organic growth is still massive, but the 240% figure isn't purely demand-driven. Renewal rates over the next 12 months will show how much sticks. ## .ai — 1 Million Registrations, $239K Average Resale Price [.ai](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/ai) crossed **1 million registrations on January 2, 2026**. There were 60,000 .ai domains in 2022 and 354,000 in 2023, so getting to a million took about three years. Growth is running at **+95% year-over-year** with 56,218 new registrations last month. The secondary market is where .ai really stands out. Average resale price: **$239,516** — roughly 10x what .com aftermarket domains cost and the most expensive of any TLD by a wide margin. Some notable sales: - **ai.com**: $70 million (largest domain sale ever) - **fin.ai**: $1 million (first .ai domain to hit seven figures, now used for Intercom's Fin AI customer support agent) - **you.ai**: $700,000 - **cloud.ai**: $600,000 - **rush.ai**: $300,000 Year-over-year aftermarket price growth for .ai is only +7.7%, which suggests the market has found its equilibrium — it's just a very high one. Supply is still under 1 million total domains while demand from AI startups keeps intensifying. ### How Anguilla benefits .ai was originally the country code for Anguilla, a Caribbean island with about 15,000 residents. In 2025, the island earned an estimated **$93-95 million from .ai domain fees alone**, covering nearly half its national budget. Registration costs $140 for two years with a roughly 90% renewal rate. If you're building an [AI startup](https://instantdomainsearch.com/business-name-generator), .ai is essentially table stakes at this point. We wrote about how we [built our AI-powered business name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/building-fast-ai) using similar tools. ## .app, .io, and .dev — Developer TLDs For years, .io was the default for startups and developer tools. [.app](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/app) has now taken the lead: - **.app**: 1,934,676 total registrations (+37% YoY) - **.io**: 1,720,622 total registrations (+33% YoY) - **.dev**: 728,796 total registrations (+45% YoY) [.app](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/app) leads [.io](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/io) by over 214,000 domains and the gap is widening. [.dev](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/dev) is the smallest but fastest-growing at +45%. ### Why .app and .dev are pulling ahead Both require HTTPS enforced at the browser level through HSTS preloading — a security advantage .io doesn't have. Google operates both registries, which adds infrastructure stability. .io faces a separate issue: in May 2025, the UK and Mauritius signed a sovereignty transfer agreement for the Chagos Archipelago, the British Indian Ocean Territory whose country code is "IO." If "IO" gets removed from the ISO 3166-1 standard, ICANN's retirement policy would trigger a five-year phase-out. There's precedent for extensions outliving their countries — .su (Soviet Union) still has over 100,000 active domains — but the uncertainty is enough to give some startups pause. ### Aftermarket comparison - **.app**: $42,718 average resale price (+18.4% YoY) - **.dev**: $36,854 average resale price (+122.9% YoY) - **.io**: $24,661 average resale price (+10.7% YoY) .dev resale prices more than doubled. .io has the cheapest aftermarket and the slowest price growth of the three, which tracks with the governance uncertainty. ## .online — 5.6 Million Registrations, $188K Average Resale Price Our previous post mentioned [.online](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/online) in passing. The data says it deserves more attention: - [**.online**](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/online): 5,597,627 total domains (+79% YoY) - 234,277 new registrations this month - Average aftermarket price: **$188,005** (+83.8% YoY) That makes [.online](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/online) the second most expensive TLD on the [aftermarket](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) after .ai — nearly 8x what .com resale domains cost. Notable past sales include betting.online at $400,000 in 2023. .online is also bigger than .me, .app, .io, .ai, and .dev combined, and it grew 79% in a year. The word "online" is universally understood and industry-neutral, which gives it broad appeal. The high aftermarket prices suggest investors see lasting value, particularly in verticals like gaming, finance, and insurance where keyword-rich domains matter. ## .net and .org — The Comeback Last year we reported [.net](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/net) was shrinking (-0.61%) and [.org](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/org) was barely growing (+0.39%). Both trends have completely reversed: - **.net**: 24.5 million domains, **+10% YoY**, 332,730 new this month - **.org**: 20.9 million domains, **+15% YoY**, 270,120 new this month ### .org aftermarket prices nearly quadrupled .org resale prices jumped **+298.7% year-over-year** to $51,747 average — the biggest aftermarket price increase of any TLD we track. .org domains now cost more than double what .com domains cost on the secondary market ($51,747 vs. $23,264). The driver is straightforward: nonprofits, open-source projects, and community organizations need strong domains, and .org carries a trust signal that other TLDs don't. It's managed by Public Interest Registry (itself a nonprofit), and as good names get locked up, scarcity keeps pushing prices. ## .info and .co These two don't get much attention, but their numbers are solid: [**.info**](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/info): 10.4 million registrations, +32% YoY. Aftermarket prices up +96.7% to $13,964 average. "Info" translates across 37+ languages, which gives it natural international appeal. Retention rates suggest these registrations are sticking. [**.co**](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/co): 7.1 million registrations, +24% YoY. Aftermarket prices up +115.9% to $15,199 average. Originally Colombia's country code, .co has been repositioned as shorthand for "company." It's popular with funded startups and widely recognized as a legitimate .com alternative. ## .me — 2.6 Million Registrations [.me](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions/me) reached 2,627,291 total registrations, up +25% year-over-year. The monthly numbers are more interesting: 38,502 new registrations this month is a **+72.3% month-over-month spike**, one of the largest we've seen across any TLD. Aftermarket prices rose +110.1% to $12,752 average. The appeal is simple — .me creates readable URLs like hire.me, about.me, and follow.me. It works well for portfolios, resumes, personal sites, and link-in-bio pages. ## Aftermarket Rankings: A Different Hierarchy The aftermarket tells a completely different story than registration counts. Here's how TLDs rank by average resale price: 1. **.ai**: $239,516 2. **.online**: $188,005 3. **.org**: $51,747 4. **.app**: $42,718 5. **.dev**: $36,854 6. **.io**: $24,661 7. **.com**: $23,264 8. **.net**: $20,864 9. **.co**: $15,199 10. **.info**: $13,964 11. **.me**: $12,752 12. **.xyz**: $3,038 .ai domains cost **79x** what .xyz domains cost on the resale market. .org costs more than .com. The secondary market runs on scarcity, brand value, and industry demand — not raw registration volume. Overall, 2025 saw over 190,000 domain sales above $100, generating **$314.7 million** in total value — a 67% increase from 2024. The [aftermarket](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) and [expired domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) market is becoming a real asset class. ## What's Coming: New TLDs from ICANN **ICANN is opening applications for entirely new TLDs from April 30 to August 12, 2026** — the first new round since 2012, when roughly 2,000 applications produced over 1,200 new extensions. The application fee is $227,000. New internationalized domain names covering 300+ languages are expected to be a major part of this round. If you care about where [domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) are headed long-term, this is the biggest structural change on the horizon. ## How to Pick a Domain in 2026 [Picking the right domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-buy-a-domain-name) comes down to a few decisions: - **Start with .com.** Still the largest and most recognized extension, and growing faster than it has in years. If your ideal .com is available, take it. - **Match the extension to your audience.** AI tools → .ai. Developer product → .app or .dev. Nonprofit → .org. Personal brand → .me. - **Check aftermarket prices early.** Average resale prices range from $3,038 (.xyz) to $239,516 (.ai). Know what you're getting into before you start negotiating. - **Consider who runs the registry.** Verisign (.com/.net), Google (.app/.dev), and Public Interest Registry (.org) offer long-term stability. That matters. - **Search across multiple TLDs at once.** [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) shows real-time availability as you type, so you can compare options before committing. - **Check domain history.** If you're buying a previously registered name, make sure it isn't carrying spammy backlinks or a bad reputation. Our guide on [expired domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) covers what to look for. More on naming: [how to choose a domain name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-choose-a-domain-name) and [how to come up with unique business name ideas](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-come-up-with-unique-business-name-ideas). ## Summary Every TLD we track is growing in 2026. Here's what matters most: - **.com is surging** — 303.7 million registrations, +18% growth, $23,264 average resale price. - **.xyz hit 10 million registrations** with 240% growth, though promotional pricing in Japan is a factor. Renewal rates will tell the real story. - **.ai crossed 1 million** and averages $239,516 on the aftermarket. The $70 million ai.com sale set a new record. - **.app passed .io** as the largest developer TLD, while .io faces governance uncertainty from the Chagos sovereignty transfer. - **.online is underrated** — 5.6 million domains, $188,005 average resale, second only to .ai on the aftermarket. - **.org aftermarket prices nearly 4x'd** to $51,747, now more expensive than .com on the secondary market. - **The aftermarket grew 67%** to $314.7 million in total sales volume in 2025. - **New TLDs are coming** — ICANN opens its first application round since 2012 on April 30, 2026. The best time to register the domain you want is before someone else does. Search for yours at [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). --- # Instant Domain Search Raycast Extension > Instant Domain Search Raycast extension. Search domains, check availability, and brainstorm names without leaving your command bar. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/raycast-extension - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 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 [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # Building Fast AI for Domain Search > Why embedding models beat LLMs for real-time search, and how we distilled GPT-4 knowledge into a 22.7M-parameter model with sub-10ms results. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/building-fast-ai - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2025-09-04 --- In 2016 our team built a premium domain search tool designed to find similar aftermarket domains instantly as you type. We used fastText embeddings with Spotify's Annoy indexing to power semantic search at under 10 ms. Unlike traditional domain search tools that simply check availability, ours took a stab at understanding user intent. When a user searches "instantdomainsearch.com," our index finds semantically similar domains: - domaininstant.com - fastdomainsearch.com - searchdomain.com ## The Pitfalls of fastText: Domain-Specific Context fastText learned its semantic understanding from billions of words in Common Crawl and Wikipedia. But domains represent businesses and brands, which often adopt words differently than general web text. Take "mint" as an example below. While fastText recognizes both meanings, it gives much higher similarity scores to plant/herb terms. In the domain and business world, "mint" is more commonly associated with money (e.g. [Mint.com](https://mint.com)). This pattern repeated across many terms (e.g. Cloud, Spark). | Related Word | fastText Similarity to "mint" | Context | |-------------|-------------------------------|---------| | peppermint | 0.64 (high) | Plant/herb | | herb | 0.49 | Plant/herb | | money | 0.37 | Money/finance | | finance | 0.29 | Money/finance | | budget | 0.27 (low) | Money/finance | We realized we weren't dealing with a limitation of fastText, but rather that domain names have evolved their own semantic meaning. This led to a challenge: How could we give our model domain-specific context? ## Why Not Just Use AI? Modern LLMs understand context brilliantly. When we tested GPT-4 for similar domain suggestions, it clearly grasped the meanings users expected. With a small prompt to give domain-specific context, it understood that "cloud" also means cloud computing, "mint" means finance, and "spark" means data analytics. It suggested domains that matched what buyers actually want, not just textual variations. But there was a critical blocker: latency. Our fastText system returns results in under 10 ms. GPT-4 averaged at 1.7 seconds (85× slower). For a tool where users expect [results as they type](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast), waiting more than a second per keystroke would destroy the user experience. ## Enter Embedding Models: From Words to Concepts This led us to the idea that instead of running LLMs in real-time, we could use LLMs offline to train our own fast embedded model. This way instead of having general web context, it was specific to our use-case: domains. Here's the practical differences: **fastText approach (general semantic understanding):** - Uses 2 million word vectors trained on Common Crawl (2017) - Understands how words relate based on their usage in web text - "searchengine" = semantic meaning from millions of sentences - Excellent at general language understanding **Our enhanced approach (domain-specific semantics):** - Treats each word and phrase as a business concept - "searchengine" = "A platform for web search and discovery" - Adds domain-specific context that fastText never saw - Builds on fastText's foundation with modern techniques To build this we used sentence-transformers, a Python library that supports more modern embedding models designed for semantic search that we could fine-tune for our specific use case. The AI landscape has evolved significantly since 2017, making it much easier to build specialized models. We used GPT-4 to batch generate millions of domain-specific training examples. Then we fine-tuned these newer models to understand domains the way domainers do. The implementation required five steps: generate training data, calculate similarities, structure for training, fine-tune the model, and optimize for production speed. ## Step 1: Using GPT-4 to Generate Domain Descriptions We discovered that GPT-4 excels at expanding single words into rich contextual descriptions. Given just a domain name, it could infer potential use cases, related industries, and semantic connections. | Domain | GPT-4 Generated Description | Keywords Extracted | |--------|----------------------------|-------------------| | torontopancakes.com | A delightful name that combines the charm of Toronto with the love for pancakes, perfect for breakfast lovers and city explorers. | food, breakfast, pancakes, maple syrup, Canada, Toronto, brunch, treats, sweet, delicious, local, community | | matchupitchutours.com | A travel-friendly name inspired by Machu Picchu, offering guided tours and unforgettable adventures in the Andes. | travel, tours, adventure, Peru, Machu Picchu, history, culture, nature, explore, hiking, mountains, guide | | frankenbergerschokolade.com | A rich, indulgent name blending the charm of German heritage with the sweetness of chocolate, perfect for gourmet treats and confections. | chocolate, gourmet, sweets, German, heritage, desserts, artisan, cocoa, indulgence, handmade, treats, premium | Generating descriptions for a portion of our inventory provided us with labeled training data that captured domain semantics. ## Step 2: Transform Descriptions into Similarity Scores With descriptions for each domain, we could measure semantic similarity using existing embedding models. This gave us ground truth data about which domains should be considered related: | Domain Pair | Similarity Score | Relationship Type | |-------------|-----------------|-------------------| | google.com ↔ searchengine.com | 0.68588746 | Same category | | cloudeous.com ↔ cloudivio.com | 0.82812774 | Similar concept | | omnigenics.com ↔ omniparent.com | 0.66224474 | Shared prefix only | | xaute.com ↔ paveup.com | 0.50881153 | Unrelated | These similarity scores became our training targets. They told our model which domains should be close or far in the embedding space. ## Step 3: Create Training Triplets for Fine-tuning Triplet loss training requires data in sets of three: an anchor domain, a positive match (similar), and a negative match (dissimilar). We generated thousands of these triplets from our similarity calculations: | Anchor Domain | Positive Match (Similar) | Negative Match (Dissimilar) | |--------------|-------------------------|----------------------------| | google.com | searchengine.com (0.6858) | flowershop.com (0.2754) | | uber.com | rideshare.com (0.7139) | cookbook.net (0.2201) | | shopify.com | ecommerce.com (0.6064) | weatherapp.org (0.2656) | This structure forces the model to learn relative similarities rather than absolute classifications. ## Step 4: Train Our Domain-Specific Embedding Model We selected all-MiniLM-L6-v2 as our base model using all-mpnet-base-v2 as an initial embedding provider. It balances performance with size. Using triplet loss, we trained it to mimic GPT-4's semantic understanding: | Training Metric | Value | |----------------|-------| | Base model | all-MiniLM-L6-v2 | | Training samples | 500,000 | | Epochs | 25 | | Final correlation with GPT-4 | ~0.87 | The 0.87 correlation meant our lightweight model captured most of GPT-4's semantic understanding while running orders of magnitude faster. ## Step 5: Optimize from ~500 ms to 10 ms The first version of this new stack was implemented in Python to test out some hypotheses. We utilized commonly used libraries such as usearch for HNSW and SQLite to map back to the domain. This showed we were going in the right direction with promising results in mostly ~500 ms. Training a good model solved half the problem. We still needed sub-50 ms latency! Most of our tech stack is already written in Rust. So we decided to move these newer models into Rust as well. To avoid some hefty dependencies and because Torch is not the fastest for inference, we chose ONNX Runtime. - **Model format**: ONNX (3× faster than PyTorch) - **Runtime**: Rust + ort (minimal overhead, excellent CPU performance) - **Index**: HNSW for a limited set of ~25M aftermarket domains - **Hardware**: CPU-only (no GPU coordination overhead) - **Optimizations**: quantized optimized output (optimum) Result: 95th-percentile latency of 10 ms, within our 25 ms target. This speed is critical to maintaining the instant search experience we've [optimized through our CDN infrastructure](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/cdn-building). ## AI in Development vs. Production "AI‑powered" often becomes shorthand for integrating an LLM into every request path, but placement is a design choice with distinct trade‑offs. - **In development**: Lower context, faster speeds - **In production**: Higher context, slower speeds Our instant search proves how far the first approach can go: we distilled GPT‑4's trillion‑parameter knowledge into a 22.7M‑parameter embedding model, returning semantic results in under 10 ms (ignoring the distance between the user and our servers). On the other hand, our [Business Name Generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/business-name-generator) shows where a live LLM pulls ahead: brand ideation needs fresh, expansive reasoning, so we trade speed for depth and deliver suggestions that truly need trillion+ parameter context. This isn't to say LLMs in development are better than LLMs in production. It's about matching context depth to latency cost. We are planning to roll out our new model over the next month. --- # Introducing Bulk Domain Search > Introducing Bulk Domain Search - validate up to 1,000 domain names at once. Filter by availability, price, TLDs and more. 100% free with instant results. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/bulk-domain-search - **Category:** updates - **Published:** 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/aftermarket-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 [hello@instantdomainsearch.com](mailto:hello@instantdomainsearch.com). --- # How to Choose Outbound Domains > Learn how to choose the perfect domain for cold outbound campaigns. Boost deliverability and avoid spam folders with our essential tips and best practices. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/choosing-cold-outbound-domains - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2025-03-28 --- If you're doing any kind of outbound work, sending cold emails is probably a significant part of your daily routine. You craft the perfect message, hit send, and…crickets. What happened? Often, the problem isn't your sales pitch, believe it or not. Instead, it can stem from your email domain. If you're sending hundreds or even thousands of cold emails every week from your main company email address you're taking a **huge risk** that could accidentally land your whole company in spam folders. But don't worry! Below, we'll clearly break down what you need to know about buying separate domains for cold outreach, why it matters, and how it can help you scale your cold email game—and we'll even give you tips on how to get to a point where you can send up to 100,000 emails per month, safely. ## Why you shouldn't send emails from your main domain When you send cold emails, recipients often mark them as spam—either because they're not interested, or because your email lands at a bad time. Even if your emails are great, spam flags are inevitable. When too many spam reports happen, email providers (like Gmail and Outlook) label your entire domain as *untrustworthy*. If you've been sending from your [primary domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) (e.g., yourcompany.com), this can cause all emails from your company; including crucial ones like invoices, newsletters, or direct communications with existing customers. to start landing in spam folders. And trust me, digging your domain reputation out of spam is tough, expensive, and slow. **The good news?** You can easily avoid this headache by purchasing dedicated outreach domains. If you already know this, check out [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). We'll help you find and secure the perfect domains to protect your brand and ensure your emails reach the inbox. ### What actually happens if your domain gets flagged? Getting flagged as spam can happen faster than you'd think and it has immediate consequences for your sales outreach. - **Your emails start going straight to spam:** Your prospects won't even see your messages, let even reply. This dramatically reduces your open and response rates, directly hurting your sales pipeline. - **All emails from your company become suspect:** Once your domain is marked as problematic, it's not just your sales emails that suffer. Important communications like invoices, customer service replies, onboarding messages, or even password resets might also land in spam, causing major disruptions. - **Repairing a damaged reputation is slow and expensive:** Fixing your domain's reputation can take weeks or even months. It often requires expert help and plenty of patience as your messages slowly begin to reach inboxes again. It's much easier (and cheaper) to protect it from the start rather than repair it after the damage is done. ## What is a domain? A non-technical answer Before we get into the complex stuff, let's go back to the basics. If you're not sure [what a "domain"](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-domain-name) actually means, no worries—you're not alone. Think of a domain as the digital address of your emails and website. It's what comes right after the "@" in your email address (for example: yourname\@yourcompany.com). When you're sending cold emails, you don't want to risk hurting your main brand's digital "home address." Instead, you'll want to use similar-looking (but separate) domains specifically for sales outreach. These are often variations of your main domain to keep your brand recognizable. For instance, if your company's main domain is `yourcompany.com`, great outreach domain examples might be: - `tryyourcompany.com` - `getyourcompany.com` - `yourcompany.co` - `yourcompany.ai` Noticed the non ".com" domains? If you'd like to learn more about domain extensions, Instant Domain Search has a comprehensive guide about [this year's most popular domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026). By having these separate domains, you're essentially creating safe, dedicated pathways for your outbound emails. Your recipients still recognize your brand, but your [main business domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-name-your-business) stays protected from any accidental damage. ## How does getting more domains help you reach more people? When it comes to sending cold emails at scale, one of your biggest challenges isn't just finding great prospects—it's getting your emails past spam filters and into your prospect's inbox. ### Here's what you're really up against (and why it matters) Every email provider (think Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo) uses complex algorithms to decide whether your emails land in someone's inbox or their spam folder. These algorithms analyze things like: - **Sender reputation:** This is essentially a score assigned to your domain and IP address based on factors like spam complaints, email bounces, engagement rates, and more. - **Spam traps and blacklists:** Spam traps are email addresses purposely set up by email providers to catch senders who aren't using verified email lists. If you repeatedly hit these spam traps, your domain can be blacklisted, causing your emails to disappear completely from inboxes. - **Authentication records (SPF, DKIM, DMARC):** These tech-sounding acronyms are like a passport for your email, confirming to email providers that you're a legitimate sender. If your domain isn't properly authenticated, [your emails might be blocked or marked as spam](https://support.google.com/mail/thread/199435852/my-emails-are-being-flagged-as-spam-when-i-send-them-to-other-person-s?hl=en). - **Content red flags:** Certain phrases ("buy now!", "limited-time offer!") and formatting (too many links, large images) trigger spam filters. If you're sending hundreds or thousands of cold emails per day from a single domain, the chances of triggering these spam filters dramatically increase. ### How multiple domains solve this problem Buying additional domains dedicated to cold email outreach allows you to strategically distribute your sending volumes across multiple trusted "digital identities." Each domain maintains its own sender reputation independently, which significantly reduces your overall risk. Here's exactly how having more domains helps you get your emails in front of more prospects: - **Reduces risk of blacklisting:** If one domain gets flagged for spam, your other domains stay safe. Think of it like diversifying investments, you're protecting yourself against one domain's issues bringing down your entire email campaign. - **Improves inbox placement:** By spreading your emails across multiple domains and email addresses, each domain sends fewer emails, decreasing the risk of spam complaints. Email providers view lower-volume sending as more trustworthy. - **Allows higher overall sending volume:** With multiple domains, you can safely scale up to tens or even hundreds of thousands of emails per month. Sales teams that rely on high-volume outreach (e.g., 100,000+ emails per month) typically manage this volume with multiple dedicated outreach domains. ### Getting to 100k sends a month! How scaling with domains works We are not joking, there are plenty of outreach specialists that are doing 50k, 100k, even 1Mil email sends a month. Don't believe us, check out [some of the folks on reddit](https://www.reddit.com/r/microsaas/comments/1j3ffzq/heres_what_ive_learned_after_sending_100000_cold/) there are even communities around cold outreach. Now, let's say you want to send 100,000 emails a month safely: - Buy around **8–10 additional domains** dedicated to cold outreach. You can easily search available options at [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). - Set up **3–5 email inboxes per domain**, using email platforms like Google Workspace or Microsoft Outlook. - Warm up each inbox gradually—starting with just **10–20 emails per day** and increasing the number slowly every week. - After warming, each inbox can safely handle around **100–150 emails daily**. - With just 10 domains and an average of 4 inboxes per domain, you have 40 inboxes total. Sending just 100 emails per day from each inbox means 4,000 emails daily. Over a month, that quickly adds up to roughly **120,000 emails**—well beyond your initial target of 100,000 emails per month. By scaling thoughtfully, you'll boost your reach without compromising deliverability. Your emails land exactly where you want them—in front of prospects. **Ready to start safely scaling your cold email outreach?** Head over to [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) now to find and secure your dedicated cold-outreach domains today. ## Quick setup list for non-techie folks Now that you understand the importance of using separate outreach domains, here's your straightforward setup checklist: - **Purchase dedicated outreach domains** through [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). Pick domain variations closely matching your main brand for easy recognition. - **Set up multiple email addresses (aliases)** under your existing email provider account. For example: - **Google Workspace** lets you easily add multiple domain aliases within a single admin account. If your main email is `john@yourcompany.com`, you can effortlessly create aliases like `john@getyourcompany.com` or `sales@tryyourcompany.com` without purchasing extra Google Workspace licenses. - **Microsoft 365** similarly supports multiple domain aliases. Within one Microsoft account, you can create aliases like `sales@yourcompanyhq.com` or `info@tryyourcompany.com`. **However**, be aware that some other email providers don't support multiple domains under one account. If your provider falls into this category, you'll have to create separate accounts for each new domain. This approach can quickly become complicated and harder to manage. - **Authenticate your domains** by configuring SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. (If this sounds complicated, don't worry—we'll briefly explain these below in our "Quick Techie Explanation" section. Your IT team or your email provider can help with this.) - **Warm up your new emails gradually.** (Don't worry if this is new to you, we'll explain email warming in a simple way below.) ### What Does "Warming Up Emails" Mean? If you [buy a new domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-buy-a-domain-name) and immediately send thousands of emails per day, email providers see this as suspicious—like suddenly driving a brand-new car at 100 mph the moment you leave the dealership. To email providers, this looks like spam. Instead, you need to gradually build up your sending volume. This is called "warming up" your emails, and here's how it works: - **Week 1:** Send only 10–20 emails per day from each new email address. - **Week 2:** Gradually increase to 30–50 emails per day. - **Week 3:** Move up to 50–75 emails per day. - **Week 4 and beyond:** Slowly scale to your target volume (usually around 100–150 emails per day per inbox). This careful approach shows email providers you're a legitimate sender, building a strong reputation. It's critical to achieving good email deliverability, ensuring your emails land safely in your prospects' inboxes rather than being lost to spam filters. ### Explaining the tech stuff in more detail These acronyms might sound intimidating, but they're just technical ways to confirm your emails are trustworthy: - **SPF (Sender Policy Framework):** Tells email providers (like Gmail and Outlook) exactly which servers are allowed to send emails for your domain. This protects against unauthorized [senders spoofing your email address](https://abnormalsecurity.com/glossary/email-spoofing). - **DKIM (DomainKeys Identified Mail):** Adds a cryptographic signature to your emails. Think of it like digitally signing your letters to prove they're genuinely from you and haven't been altered during transit. - **DMARC (Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting & Conformance):** Helps email providers decide what to do if emails fail SPF or DKIM checks (for example, send them to spam or reject them entirely). It also allows you to monitor unauthorized use of your domain. Setting up these records significantly improves your emails' likelihood of landing in inboxes rather than spam. Typically, whoever manages your domain settings (like your IT or email admin) can handle this quickly for you. ### Easy tips to avoid the spam filters Spam filters can be tough but they're not unbeatable. Follow these straightforward guidelines to drastically reduce your risk: - **Keep messages short and conversational:** Shorter, more direct emails with minimal links look less like spam and more like genuine, personal messages. - **Personalize your outreach:** Include your recipient's name and relevant company details whenever possible. Personalized emails naturally lead to higher engagement. - **Avoid spam-triggering language:** Words and phrases like "free," "urgent," "buy now," or excessive use of exclamation marks can quickly land you in spam. Aim for natural language that you'd use in a conversation. - **Regularly clean your email list:** Remove bounced emails, inactive contacts, and any addresses that consistently don't respond. Maintaining a clean list significantly boosts your deliverability. To ensure your outreach stays effective, you need to regularly monitor your sending reputation and email performance. Here's how to stay proactive: - **Check your open rates daily:** Sudden drops in opens or responses often signal a deliverability issue. Catching these problems early lets you correct course quickly. - **Use reputation-checking tools:** Regularly verify your domain's sending reputation with tools like MailTester or [MXToolbox](https://mxtoolbox.com/). These tools provide immediate insights if something is negatively impacting your emails. - **Adjust quickly when needed:** If one of your domains begins to show signs of trouble—such as lower open rates or increased spam reports—pause sending from it temporarily. Use your healthier domains to maintain your overall sending volume. If you're looking for ways to [scrub emails](https://optinmonster.com/email-scrubbing-how-to-clean-email-list/) there are plenty of inexpensive providers that can help you with the outreach. But remember, your main priority should be to keep your primary domain as clean as possible, so make sure to start purchasing some domains. ## Protect your brand and purchase more domains today Get multiple domains today, use Instant Domain Search and our [domain name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) to quickly find domains that sound similar to your already existing brand / primary domain. Avoid ending up in spam filters and hit that 100k emails a month mark. Good luck! --- # How Much Does a Domain Cost? > Learn more about investing in a good domain for your business, how much domains cost, and where to buy them. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-much-domains-cost - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2025-03-06 --- So, you want to buy domains as an investment? Before you move forward, let's talk about how it all began and why you might be asking: is buying a domain still a good investment? ## The Dot-Com Bubble: Where It All Began For all of you young whippersnappers who weren't around in the '90s, let me take you all back: the internet was this weird, obscure thing that a handful of tech enthusiasts were hyping up, and companies were only *just* starting to take it seriously. Then came a *domain gold rush where* **people realized that domain names could be valuable**, so valuable that people began snapping them up like prime real estate. This era gave birth to **domain flipping**—the practice of buying a domain at a low price and selling it later for a significant profit. Early adopters made fortunes, while others learned the hard way that not every domain was a goldmine. Domains were extremely affordable back then, so savvy buyers stockpiled names like "Business.com," hoping to cash in later. (Spoiler: that one eventually sold for $7.5 million.) Cyber squatters jumped in, buying up brand names they didn't own with the intention of reselling them at inflated prices—Nike, for example, wasn't exactly thrilled about paying a premium for Nike.com. On the business side of things, investors went wild over any startup sporting a ".com" in its name, inflating valuations to absurd levels. Oh, and web designers were creating works of art as web-pages, like this: ### Then, the bubble burst Companies that had spent millions on domains and internet hype, without a solid business model, collapsed. The market crashed, and dot-com stocks tanked. It was a dark time. Fast-forward 30 years, and here we are. Every business needs an online presence, and a good domain isn't just a luxury or some cool side project—it's *mandatory*. But does that mean domains are still a good investment? We've done our research to help you out. ## Are domains still a good investment? **The short answer? Yes**, but it's not the Wild West anymore. The domain market has matured significantly since the dot-com boom, and while the days of snagging a one-word .com for $10 and flipping it for millions are mostly gone, there's still value to be found if you're strategic. Domains remain a unique asset class: they're **digital real estate** in a world where online presence is non-negotiable. A memorable domain doesn't just hold potential resale value—it's also the **online identity** of a business or personal brand. In many ways, it's the virtual equivalent of a storefront sign: a clear statement of credibility, professionalism, and discoverability. So paying top dollar for a domain that matches what a business does and represents, is truly, one of the most important expenses a business will have to make. Premium domains—short, memorable, keyword-rich .coms, continue to appreciate. The biggest sale in recent months has been *chat.com* was sold to OpenAI for [$15.5 million](https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/06/openai-acquired-chat-com/) — while it'll be hard to get that kind of return, with the right time and patience, it is possible. One-word .coms—like 'Gold.com,' which [sold for over $8 million](https://domaininvesting.com/gold-com-jm-bullion/) — could still see 5-10x growth in value over the next decade as internet usage surges worldwide. The logic? A growing digital population craves short, powerful names that scream credibility. But here's where things get tricky: **supply is drying up**. Every four-letter .com was claimed by 2013, leaving slim pickings. Finding a gem now means scouring auctions or waiting for someone to blink on a renewal. ### The new domain landscape New top-level domains (TLDs) like .co, .io, and .ai have gained traction, particularly in niche industries (tech startups love .io, for instance). These TLDs offer fresh opportunities, but **their resale value is less predictable than .coms.** Meanwhile, Web3 domains (e.g., .eth tied to Ethereum Name Service) are emerging as a speculative frontier, blending domain investing with blockchain hype. They're edgy, but risky—some internet folks argue the ENS craze peaked post-airdrop in 2021, and flipping them might not yield the returns it once did. **The takeaway?** Domains can still be a solid investment—but success now demands homework, timing, and a nose for trends like AI. Here's the kicker: with [.ai registrations up significantly](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026), could these offbeat TLDs be the next digital goldmine? ## Is there still money to be made selling domains? Domain flipping can still turn a profit for those who approach it strategically, but it's **far from a guaranteed jackpot**. Marketplaces like GoDaddy Auctions and Sedo facilitate thousands of domain transactions each month. **For example**, Sedo alone lists over 18 million domains and reports consistent sales activity. Notably, median .com sales have ranged from $1,500 to $3,000 in recent years, with 2024 averages aligning closer to $2,500. Profit potential spans a wide range. Beginners might net anywhere from $100 to $10,000 per flip by targeting low-cost auctions or hand-registered names. In one DomainSherpa case study, a $27 expired domain flipped for $10,000. Seasoned flippers, however, chase bigger wins by snapping up expired domains with traffic or strong backlink profiles—assets that boost resale value. For instance, pro flipper Ali Zandi turned eight such domains into $58,000 in profit in just 60 days through outbound sales. ### Winning Strategies in 2025 - **[Expired Domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains):** Look at auction sights to get forgotten domains at auction, some with SEO perks like backlinks or past traffic. These can be *undervalued* goldmines. - **Niche Focus:** Domains tied to booming sectors—think of items like "SolarSolutions.com" for green tech or "MachineLearning.com"—probably bad examples, but we hope you get the gist of it. - **Outbound Sales:** Proactively pitching to businesses boosts sell-through! Maybe there is a business that has been waiting for a good domain to pop-up. Just remember, timelines are unpredictable; some domains sell in days, while others can linger for years. Renewal fees and market saturation mean you must balance quantity with quality. And if you're ready to start your hunt, check out [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains), our tool lets you **instantly** see domain availability and spot undervalued gems so you can invest smarter from day one. ## Risks to be aware of when investing in domains Domain flipping might sound like a dream gig—low entry, big payouts, but it's not all smooth sailing. There are pitfalls that can sink your investment if you're not careful, and knowing them upfront is half the battle. **First up**: overestimating value. That catchy name you snagged for $10 might feel like a million-dollar ticket, but the market doesn't always agree. Buyers, whether flippers or businesses, want domains with clear demand, like short .coms or niche winners. If you're sitting on "QuantumWidgetShop.com" with no takers, it's just a renewal fee drain—$10-$15 a year adds up fast with a bloated portfolio. Some flippers hold hundreds of domains, and only a tiny fraction sell, leaving cash tied up in digital limbo. **Then there's the legal minefield**. Snag a name too close to a trademark, like "NikeRunz.com"— and you could face a cease-and-desist or worse, a costly handover demand. This isn't the 90s anymore (unfortunately) so cybersquatting's a no-go; big brands don't mess around, and legal fees can dwarf your profits. Don't end up thinking you can *beat the man* so to speak. Market saturation's another kicker. With every four-letter .com claimed since 2013 and new players flooding in, standout names are scarce. You're competing with pros who've got deeper pockets and sharper instincts. Those unpredictable sales timelines mean you might wait years for a payout—or never get one. It's a gamble: high rewards if you nail it, but plenty of room to stumble if you don't do your homework. ## Getting started with finding domains So, you're ready to make that move and purchase that domain that you have in mind. If you're looking to find the *fastest and most reliable* way to see what's available, check out [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/)—it's *literally* the fastest way to find domain availability, see its listing price, and you can even get a free appraisal. You can also view the price history, to ensure that you're not overpaying for a piece of that digital real estate that you might be interested in. ### Don't want to invest in a premium domain? Well, you can compare different TLDs, like .io, .co, .ai, and more, to help you get the best possible domain that aligns with your needs. If you have a name or idea already, you can look at different [domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) and find ones that best align with your idea. ### Don't have a name yet? Well, Instant Domain Search offers a [domain name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator) that can help you come up with domains for your new venture. --- # How to Name Your Business and Domain > Learn how to name your business and pick the perfect domain. Generate memorable names, run trademark checks, and boost online visibility. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-name-your-business - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2025-02-18 --- So, you've finally decided to take the first step for your business: coming up with a name. Will this become the next industry-leading corporation, or are you aiming to stand out in your community with a name that turns you into a local staple? Whatever your goal may be, naming your business isn't easy. You have a lot to think about, **especially** how it will be perceived on the web. Remember, your name is one of the first things people will connect with your brand, and in a time when nearly everything is digital, it's vital to choose something memorable. Below, you'll find tips to help you craft a standout business name and secure the domain that will help you shake up your market. ## Why your business name is important Let's take a quick step back and try a simple experiment: think about a handful of your favorite brands—whether they're in sports, technology, or entertainment. Chances are, those names spark instant recognition and connect you with a positive memory or feeling. That's exactly the emotional link you want to create with your own business name. A memorable name lays the foundation for everything you do, from designing your logo to building your social media presence. Whether you are opening a neighborhood café or launching a cutting-edge tech startup, the right name tells your story and reflects your unique personality. **Keep in mind** that your name often doubles as your [domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-domain-name), making it easier for customers to find you online and feel confident in their choice. When your name is thoughtful, clear, and distinct, you set your brand up for immediate success. Customers can recommend you more easily, and you stand out in crowded markets—letting your brand speak for itself before anyone even steps through your (virtual or real) door. ### Things to remember when coming up with a name for your business Choosing a name that truly represents your business involves a few simple but crucial factors. You want something that stays in people's minds, stands out in a crowd, and still leaves room for growth. Here are a few points to guide you: - **Memorable and easy to spell:** A clear, straightforward name sticks in people's minds and avoids confusion. Try to stay away from odd spellings or extra characters. - **Unique and differentiated:** Pick a name that hints at what you do without copying other brands. A touch of originality will help you stand out from the start. - **Relevant and flexible:** Make sure your name reflects what your business does now but can still adapt if you branch out into new areas. - **Easy to type and market:** A *simple* name will make it easy for customers to remember and enter in a search bar. It also translates better across logos, social media handles, and marketing materials. ### Techniques to come up with a business name I'm pretty sure a lot of business owners will tell you that one of the biggest hurdles to getting started is choosing the perfect name. No worries, though—a little creativity can go a long way when you're trying to capture your brand's essence. Here are a few ways to spark inspiration: - **Use simple techniques:** Write down words that represent your business's core focus and combine them in new ways to go beyond the obvious. - **Explore wordplay:** Experiment with clever blends and [portmanteaus](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/portmanteau) that sound catchy and unique, rather than overly literal. Learn more about creating [pronounceable domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/pronounceable-domain-names) that stick in people's minds. - **Use an AI name generator:** Save time and make your life easier, use our [Business Name Generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/business-name-generator) where you can input details about your business, target audience, and location, then receive tailored suggestions that fit your vision. - **Visualize your brand:** Picture your chosen name on a website, logo, or product packaging to see if it fits your overall aesthetic. - **Validate with your audience:** Gather feedback from friends, family, or focus groups to confirm that your name is memorable, easy to pronounce, and truly resonates with your target market. ### If you want to be safe, run a Trademark check Before you fall in love with a name, domain, and social handles, make sure you do your homework. Start by confirming that the name isn't already in use in your country or region, and conduct a trademark search through your local database (such as the USPTO for the United States). This will help you **avoid legal complications** and the expense of rebranding down the road. It's also wise to check if any other company in your industry is using a similar name. You don't want customers to confuse your business with someone else. A thorough search ensures your name is both [unique and legally available](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-come-up-with-unique-business-name-ideas). ## Picking the right domain for your new business Once you land on that awesome new business name, you have another hurdle to clear: finding a domain that matches it. With so many [unique domain extensions to pick from](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/popular-domain-extensions-2026), the task can feel just as daunting as naming your business. Yet your domain will be one of the main ways people interact with your brand—especially if you run a software or online-focused company. Keep in mind that a matching domain might be difficult, especially if it's a one word business name. However, having a proper domain (that hopefully will match your business name) make it easier for customers to find you. So yeah, if your business is called "BeausStore," choosing something like **BeausStore.com** (or if that's taken, go for a twist with **Beaus.store**) can strengthen your [brand identity](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-choose-a-domain-name) right from the start. Just remember, these are all important details. Even when emailing, so be sure to set that up. When customers see an email address like info\@beausstore.com, it signals professionalism and trustworthiness. Consistent branding across your website, social media profiles, and email communications builds confidence with your audience and boosts your search engine rankings, helping more potential customers discover your business. And when you're ready to search for a domain, [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) makes the process lightning fast, so you can quickly check availability, explore extensions, and secure the domain that fits your brand best. ### Choosing the Right Domain Extension Your domain extension might be a small detail, but it can have a big impact on your online image. Each extension carries its own vibe: - **Classic extensions:** Well-known choices like **.com**, **.net**, or **.org** are widely recognized and trusted. A .com domain is often the gold standard, while .org suits nonprofits and .net is a solid fallback if your preferred .com is taken. - **Industry-specific extensions:** Options like **.tech**, **.store**, **.design**, or **.ai** give your audience an immediate clue about your business focus. For example, a tech startup could use .tech or .ai to highlight innovation, and an online retailer might go with .store or .shop. - **Local extensions:** Geographic identifiers like **.nyc**, **.eu**, or **.ca** can boost local credibility if your business serves a specific region. These extensions appeal to customers who enjoy supporting brands in their own area. - **Creative Extensions:** Newer choices like **.blog**, **.club**, or **.design** help you stand out if traditional domains aren't available. These extensions give your brand a fresh twist from day one. ### Future-proofing your business name If you want your name to stick around for the long haul, give some thought to these points: - **Avoid Trendy Names:** Steer clear of something that ties you too closely to the latest buzzword. What's popular right now might fall flat in a year. - **Allow Room for Growth:** If you start with a niche focus—like "Local Bites" for a restaurant—you may regret it if you branch out into catering or packaging later on. A broader choice like "Global Bites" (yes, we know it's cheesy) keeps your options open. - **Think Globally:** Make sure your name doesn't carry weird or negative meanings in other languages or regions, especially if you plan to go international. A timeless, adaptable name gives your brand the best chance to flourish, no matter how your business changes over time. ## SEO and online visibility A consistent, memorable business name paired with a matching domain is a powerful tool for boosting your online visibility. When your brand appears the same across your website, social media, and directories, search engines recognize your business as trustworthy, leading to higher rankings and more traffic. ### Key SEO Considerations - **Brand consistency and authority:** When your name and domain—like **BeausStore.com** or **Beaus.store**—show up the same everywhere, search engines view your brand as stable, which often means higher rankings. - **Global reach versus regional Focus:** For an international audience, a **.com** domain is still a top contender. If you cater to specific regions, domains like **.ca** (Canada), **.uk** (United Kingdom), or **.eu** (Europe) can signal local credibility. Do note that some regions require proof you actually operate there. - **Local SEO benefits:** If you're aiming for city-specific traffic, consider domains like **BeausStore.nyc** or **BeausStore.london**. Consistency in your Name, Address, and Phone (NAP) across all platforms also makes it easier for search engines (and customers) to see you as a reliable local resource. - **User experience and search behavior:** A concise domain name that's easy to spell keeps people from guessing. More direct visits mean higher click-through rates and less chance of losing potential customers to typos. - **Long-term SEO advantages:** Over time, a strong, consistent domain builds valuable backlinks and online authority. This ongoing improvement in your search engine ranking not only drives more organic traffic but also cements your brand as a trusted leader in your industry. ## Get that perfect domain. Fast Once you're settled on a name, it's time to lock in a domain that captures your brand's vibe. The right domain not only reinforces your identity but also makes it a snap for customers to find you. With [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), you can check availability in real time, which beats playing the guessing game. Explore over 800 extensions—everything from the familiar **.com** and **.org** to niche options like **.ai**—so you can pick a domain that speaks to your goals. If your top choice is taken, our AI-powered domain generator suggests creative alternatives that might just spark your next bright idea. Features like premium domain listings, [domain price history](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-much-does-a-domain-name-cost), and WhoIs lookup help you make an informed decision. You can also [check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/check) for any individual name to see TLD competitiveness, registrar pricing, and aftermarket options in one place. ## Checklist for getting picking your new business and domain name Here's a quick checklist to keep you on track: 1. **Define your brand:** Figure out your core values, audience, and unique selling points. 2. **Brainstorm names:** Use simple techniques, puns, and [AI tools](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-use-ai-name-generator) to craft a list of possibilities. 3. **Validate your options:** Run trademark checks and gather feedback to confirm each name is unique and fits your vision. 4. **Search for a domain:** Search for an available domain, be it **.com** or something more specific—Instant Domain Search can handle this quickly. 5. **Secure your online identity:** Finalize your domain choice, and start building your online presence. 6. **Get to building!** Good luck on your domain hunt, and remember to leverage [all the tools Instant Domain Search offers](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) available to make the process as smooth as possible. --- # How Much Does A Domain Name Cost? > How much does a domain name cost? That depends on the elements we'll discuss here. Read on, then start your domain search journey with Instant Domains! - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-much-does-a-domain-name-cost - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2024-06-17 --- How much does a domain name cost? Well, that depends on the elements we'll discuss here. Read on for the full story, then start your [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) journey with Instant Domains! We've identified a few key things that contribute to the costs of [domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), including demand and scarcity, resale value, brand protection, and SEO value, among others. Let's dive in. ## The Basics ### Registries and Registrars There are two key entities in domain trading and management. Think of the domain name system like a real estate market: **Registries:** Registries are like the land authorities or city planners who manage entire neighborhoods. They keep a central list of all the properties in their area ([top-level domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain)), ensuring each address is unique and follows certain rules. **Registrars:** Registrars are like real estate agents who help people buy and manage properties. When you want to purchase a property (domain name), you go to a registrar, who then works with the land authority (registry) to secure that property for you. They also offer additional services, like helping you with paperwork and maintenance (DNS management and privacy protection). **Marketplaces:** Platforms like Sedo, Flippa, and GoDaddy Auctions where you can buy and sell existing domain names. Registries, Registrars, and the top-level [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) (TLDs) they manage are key in determining domain pricing. Marketplaces are where you go to complete your transactions. ## How Much Does A Domain Name Cost The average cost of a domain name is between $10 and $20 per year, but the price can vary depending on several factors: - $10 to $20 per year for most non-premium TLDs - Hundreds to thousands per year for premium names at premium TLDs - Aftermarket names that may cost $10-$20 per year to "lease", but could be thousands to millions to buy You can search all [domains for sale](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) using our AI-powered search engine and determine the upfront costs. ### Demand and Scarcity Domain names that are short, memorable, and easy to spell are in high demand. These domains are scarce because only a finite number of such [names are available](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). For example, single-word domains like "hotels.com" or "shoes.com" are highly sought after because they are easy to remember and directly related to popular industries. The high demand and limited supply drive up the prices of these premium domains. ### Resale Value Domains with popular keywords or strong commercial appeal can be resold for profit. Investors often buy these domains at a lower price, hold onto them, and sell them when the demand increases. This practice, known as domain flipping, contributes to the high cost of valuable domain names. Domains with a history of high traffic or strong backlinks also tend to have higher resale values, making them more expensive. ### Brand Protection For businesses, securing a domain name that matches their brand is crucial for protecting their online identity. Companies are willing to pay a premium to obtain domain names closely associated with their brand names to prevent competitors from acquiring them. Owning the exact match domain helps maintain brand consistency and customer trust. Additionally, businesses may also purchase variations of their domain name to prevent cybersquatting, where someone else buys a domain name to sell it at an inflated price later. ### SEO Value Domains that contain relevant keywords can improve a website's SEO. A domain name with a keyword related to the business's industry can rank higher in search engine results, attracting more organic traffic. This SEO advantage can make keyword-rich domain names more valuable and expensive. ### Age and History Older domains are more valuable because they have had more time to build authority and trust with search engines. A domain with a long history of stable ownership and usage is often seen as more reputable. If a domain has a positive history and existing backlinks, it can be more attractive to buyers, increasing its price. ### Geographic Relevance Geographically relevant domains, such as those containing city names or country codes, can be highly valuable. Businesses that operate in specific regions often seek these domains to target local customers effectively. For example, a domain like "NewYorkPlumbing.com" would be highly desirable for plumbing businesses in New York City. ### Niche Market Appeal Domains that cater to a specific niche can also be expensive. If a domain name is highly relevant to a particular industry or hobby, it can attract a targeted audience. Businesses in niche markets may be willing to pay more for a domain that directly appeals to their customer base. ### Extension Popularity A domain's extension (e.g., .com, .net, .org) can also impact its value. ".com" domains are generally more expensive because they are the most recognized and trusted by users. However, other extensions can be valuable too, especially if they are highly relevant to the domain name or industry, such as ".tech" for technology-related businesses or ".store" for e-commerce sites. ### Perceived Brandability The brandability of a domain name refers to how well it can be used as a brand. Names that are unique, easy to pronounce, and memorable are often seen as more brandable. Therefore, these domains can create a strong brand identity and are more desirable and expensive. ### Market Trends Trends in the market can also affect domain prices. If there is a surge in interest in a particular industry or technology, domains related to that trend can become more valuable. For instance, domains related to cryptocurrencies or NFTs have seen significant price increases due to their rising popularity. ### Legal Considerations Navigating legal considerations is essential when buying and selling domain names. Domains that come with clean legal standing, meaning they are free from trademarks or legal disputes, are more valuable. Potential buyers will pay a premium for domains that won't pose legal risks or complications. Understanding these legal aspects protects your investments and helps you operate within the bounds of the law. ### Premium Domain Listings Some registrars list certain domains as premium based on market appeal, automatically pricing them higher. These premium listings are often pre-identified by registrars due to their high demand and potential value, making them more expensive right from the start. ### Memorability Domains that are easy to remember are more valuable, as they help with word-of-mouth marketing and repeat visits. Memorable domains stick in users' minds, making them more likely to return to the site and recommend it to others. ### Cultural Significance Domains with cultural or societal relevance may also command higher prices due to their perceived value and connection to popular culture or events. For example, domains related to popular media, trends, or historical events can be highly sought after. ## TL;DR In summary, domains typically run from about $10 to $20 per year, but the price can be driven up significantly depending on several factors. These include demand and scarcity, resale value, brand protection, SEO value, and domain age, among other factors we discussed. By understanding these diverse factors, beginners can make more informed decisions when purchasing domain names, ensuring they invest wisely and effectively in their online presence. --- # AI Business Name Generator using ChatGPT > Knowing where to start when choosing a domain name can be difficult, but AI can help us. Read how ChatGPT can be your AI business name generator. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-use-ai-name-generator - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2024-06-14 --- You're ready to take the next step in legitimizing your business or project. Only you need a domain name! When choosing a domain name, it can be difficult to know where to start. Thankfully, we can harness the power of AI to help us at this stage of our venture. ChatGPT can be a helpful launching point as your [AI name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/business-name-generator). The tool can simplify your search by providing concise results. With ChatGPT as your AI name generator, you generate a list of potential domains relevant to your project. Depending on your version, ChatGPT can be your free AI name generator and create endless results for name suggestions. It's easy to use to streamline your [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) and act as a creative asset to the naming process. ChatGPT can save the time of throwing names at a drawing board and provide you with appropriate suggestions based on the details you enter. ## How to write a specific prompt to generate a domain in ChatGPT With ChatGPT, you input text into the chatbot bar. In response, the technology analyzes the data and predicts the best answer to your query. When searching for domains, you can brainstorm ideas by providing keywords and relevant details to your business. If your business idea is to offer digital marketing courses, you can utilize the phrase "digital marketing course domain ideas" as a prompt in ChatGPT. ChatGPT will then generate a list of ideas based on your search. ## Which details about your business should you provide in your prompt? ChatGPT becomes even more helpful as an AI name generator when you use specific details in your prompt. Before submitting a prompt, consider the details of your business or project that sets it apart from others. The clearer your prompt is, the more precise results ChatGPT will yield. You'll also want to edit your prompt to be concise and remove unnecessary filler language. While your prompt does not need to be lengthy, it's important to include pertinent details—the text limit for a ChatGPT prompt is generally around 500 words. Suggestions for details to use in your prompt can include the following: - The name or ideas for your business - The most essential functions of your business - The location of your project or business - Who your business is for, such as busy professionals, remote workers, or those who would rather be in nature than tied to a computer - What your business offers - A keyword you'd like to include - The industry your project falls under - The ethos of your brand. Is it luxury, accessible, inclusive, user-friendly? ## How to use ChatGPT as an AI Name Generator if you haven't settled on a brand name yet [Choosing a brand name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-come-up-with-unique-business-name-ideas) is essential in the early stages of building a business. ChatGPT can be particularly helpful even if you haven't chosen your brand name because it can offer both, depending on your directions. Simply describe your business idea in your prompt and mention that you are searching for business names. A prompt could read, "Generate a list of 5 domain names for an online book reselling business, including business name suggestions." ChatGPT can help you discover names you might not have thought of when naming your project. It also may compose suggestions for a relevant domain name even if your business name differs, which may be appropriate in some instances. You can plug a project description using the criteria above, such as who it's for, your industry, location, or what it offers. ### Other criteria to include in your prompt Some other guidelines that can be helpful in your search include the following: - Number of words you'd like to have in your domain name or the overall character length - Number of names you'd like ChatGPT to generate - Which words not to use - A guideline of the domain style you are going for, such as "easy to remember" or "catchy" You could utilize a prompt that says, "Write a list of 10 domain name suggestions for a luxury spa without using the word luxury." If you have not yet named your brand and end up with an irrelevant list of names, edit your prompt to focus on a few points of specific criteria. If you don't like the names you see, edit your prompt by adding or omitting information points, and ChatGPT will continue offering suggestions. ## How to narrow down your options after ChatGPT generation One limitation when using ChatGPT As an AI name generator is that it does not assess domains for availability. So, just because it generates a great name doesn't mean that name is up for grabs. After you narrow down your list, you'll take your domain ideas to a domain registrar and ensure your selection is available. When you have a list of suitable names from your ChatGPT domain name generator, you'll want to consider the length, keywords, brand name, and how memorable the domain name is. When narrowing down your options, synchronicity with the most critical parts of your criteria is essential. Suppose you have a memorable domain name without your location, and your location is relevant to the brand, such as a restaurant in Napa Valley. In that case, it might serve you to list the state letters for California, especially if other restaurants have the same or similar names elsewhere. Ensure your domain name is unique enough. When you distill your list, you'll also want to consider the [domain extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions) available before searching, such as .com, .org, or .net. The domain type you use may be important for your brand, and you can include any preferences in your initial prompt. ChatGPT can be a powerful marketing assistant in the domain naming phase, generating endless ideas based on your unique criteria. You'll want to narrow your list to relevant, memorable names that encapsulate your project or brand. When using ChatGPT for domain names, specificity in your prompt is key. --- # So, You Want To Buy Domain Names? > Domain names are finite resources in the vast digital realm. Securing the right domain name takes skill. Read on to learn more. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/so-you-want-to-buy-domain-names - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2024-06-12 --- A domain name is more than just a web address; it's often the first impression your online presence makes. In today's digital landscape, businesses, brands, and individuals vie for attention; the right domain name can be a game-changer. It serves as your virtual storefront, your online identity, and a crucial component of your overall branding strategy. ## What's In A Domain Name Consider this: when you hear the name of a company or stumble upon a website, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Chances are, it's the domain name. It's the gateway through which users access your content, products, or services. A memorable domain name can enhance brand recall, improve search engine visibility, and establish credibility in the eyes of your audience. Moreover, domain names are finite resources in the vast digital realm. Securing a domain name that resonates with your brand or aligns with your business objectives can be competitive. So, understanding what will work for your brand before buying domain names is crucial. In the following guide, we'll delve into purchasing domain names, from the initial research phase to setting up your domain and beyond. Whether you're a newcomer or a seasoned investor, this step-by-step guide will equip you with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate the world of domain acquisition effectively. Let's dive in! ## Before You Buy A Website Domain Before delving into the domain purchasing process, clarifying your objectives is important. Are you acquiring a domain name for business, personal use, or investment purposes? The distinction between these goals can significantly influence the domain name you choose. If you're buying a domain name for your business, selecting one that reflects your brand identity and resonates with your target audience is the first priority. A top-level domain (TLD) such as .com, .net, or .org is often preferred for its credibility and professionalism. If you're wondering: [what is a top-level domain](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain)? Check out our handy guide! Investing in a TLD can instill trust and enhance your online visibility, making it easier for potential customers to find and engage with your website. On the other hand, if you're acquiring a domain for personal use, such as a blog or portfolio site, the stakes may be different. While a TLD can still offer recognition and search engine optimization (SEO) benefits, opting for a less conventional domain extension, such as .me or .io, may be more cost-effective and align better with your goals. In such cases, prioritizing affordability over premium TLDs can be a great decision, allowing you to allocate resources more efficiently without compromising the overall quality of your online presence. ### Researching potential domain names: Tools and techniques At Instant Domains, we make buying domain names easy! First, search for all available [domains for sale](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) using the power of AI! Instant Domains uses powerful AI to comb through millions of records and show you all the domain names for sale. Clear, compelling domain names are valuable business assets. Other parties often register multiple domain names to sell them. ### Budgeting: How much should you invest in a name? While [domain names can vary widely in price, from a few dollars to thousands or even millions for premium domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-much-does-a-domain-name-cost), setting a realistic budget ensures that you make prudent investment decisions without overextending your resources. Next, consider the purpose and potential value of the domain names you're interested in. If you're looking to buy domain names for personal use or part of a hobby project, you may prioritize affordability and opt for budget-friendly options. However, if you're purchasing domains for business or investment purposes, you might be willing to allocate a larger budget to secure premium names with greater brand appeal and resale potential. Don't forget to factor in the ongoing costs of domain ownership, such as renewal fees and potential add-on services like domain privacy or SSL certificates. These recurring expenses can vary depending on the registrar and the type of domain you choose, so it's essential to account for them when budgeting for your domain portfolio. Your goal is to make informed decisions that maximize ROI while mitigating unnecessary risk. ### Choosing a registrar Now that you've selected the perfect domain name for your project, let's register it. Selecting the right registrar determines the quality of service you'll receive, pricing, and additional features you'll have access to. **Reputation:** Opt for a reputable registrar with a track record of reliability and customer satisfaction. Look for reviews and testimonials from other users to gauge their reputation in the industry. **Pricing:** Compare the registration fees, renewal rates, and additional charges for services like domain privacy or DNS management. While affordability is important, ensure you're not sacrificing quality for a lower price. **Domain Management Tools:** Evaluate the registrar's domain management interface and the features it offers. Look for user-friendly tools that streamline registration and provide flexibility in managing your domain settings. **Customer Support:** Assess the registrar's options, including availability, responsiveness, and support channels. Reliable customer support can be invaluable, especially if you encounter technical issues or need assistance with domain-related matters. We recommend [GoDaddy](https://www.godaddy.com/) for all the reasons mentioned above. ### Domain privacy: Do you need it? Consider opting for domain privacy protection to safeguard your personal information from public disclosure in the WHOIS database. Domain privacy services typically replace your contact details with those of the registrar or a privacy service provider, helping to prevent spam, identity theft, and unwanted solicitations. ## What's Next? ### Establishing email accounts associated with your domain Once you've successfully searched for domain names, purchased, and registered your domain name or name, it's time to set up domain forwarding so you can use your domain name immediately. Setting up professional email accounts linked to your domain name is important because it enhances your business's credibility and helps maintain a consistent brand identity. Most domain registrars offer email hosting services as part of their packages. To set up, you'll need to access your registrar's control panel, create your desired email addresses, and configure the settings to route emails through your new domain. Using a branded email address like info\@yourbusiness.com looks more professional than generic ones, leaving a lasting impression on your clients. Again, it's important to determine if the associated costs of hosting services are worth it for your project. If you're running a business, the answer is definitely yes, but if you're looking to sell the domain name or use it for a personal project, the domain email account may not be necessary. ### Secure your domain: Tips for preventing unauthorized transfers or hacking Securing your domain name prevents unauthorized transfers or hacking. Ensure your domain registrar offers two-factor authentication (2FA), and always keep your contact information updated to receive timely alerts. Additionally, lock your domain to prevent unauthorized transfers. Regularly update your passwords and use a strong and unique combination for each account. Consider opting for WHOIS privacy protection to keep your personal information private. These steps will help safeguard your domain name and provide peace of mind that your online assets are secure. ### Setting Up Your Domain: Yes, you need a hosting provider too After you buy a website domain, choosing the right hosting provider is crucial for your website's performance. Start by considering reliability, speed, customer support, and cost factors. Shared hosting is a budget-friendly option for small websites, while VPS or dedicated hosting provides more resources and control for larger sites. Compare providers' uptime guarantees and read reviews to gauge customer satisfaction. Look for features like automatic backups, SSL certificates, and easy scalability. Although it's common for one company to offer both services, it's important to understand that web hosting and domain registration are different. Think of it this way: web hosting is like your house (provided by a hosting provider), whereas a domain name is like your address (managed by a domain registrar). Some companies that offer both are GoDaddy, Squarespace, and Namecheap. ### Connecting Your Domain to Hosting: DNS Settings and Configuration Connecting your domain name to your hosting provider involves configuring DNS (Domain Name System) settings. Begin by logging into your domain registrar's control panel and locating the DNS management section. Here, you'll need to update the nameservers to those provided by your hosting provider. This process may take up to 48 hours to propagate fully. Once the DNS settings are updated, you can manage your website files and emails through your hosting account. Proper configuration of these settings ensures your domain name points to your website correctly, enabling users to access your site seamlessly. Now that you have your domain name purchased, registered, and hosted! It's time to start building the website itself. Can you build it yourself, or do you need to hire a professional? The answer to that will depend on your personal skills and the bandwidth you have to DIY. DIY website builders like Wix, Squarespace, and WordPress offer user-friendly interfaces and customizable templates, making it easy for beginners to create a website without coding skills. Still, some HTML, CSS, and Adobe Creative Suite knowledge goes a long way here. On the other hand, hiring a professional web developer can provide a more custom and sophisticated design optimized for performance and user experience. Consider your budget, time, and the complexity of your website when deciding which option is best for your business. ## So You Think You Can Flip? Domain flipping involves buying domain names at a low cost and selling them at a higher price for profit. While it can be lucrative, it's important to understand the risks and rewards. Successful domain flippers invest time researching and identifying valuable domains, often focusing on keywords, brandability, and market trends. Domains, that have already been optimized for search, can attract more traffic and have higher resale value. Brandable domains, which are unique and catchy, appeal to businesses looking for a memorable online identity. Expired domains, previously registered but not renewed, often come with existing traffic and backlinks, adding to their value. By focusing on these types of domains, you increase your chances of making a profitable sale. Knowing where to look is key. Marketplaces like GoDaddy Auctions, Sedo, and Flippa offer extensive listings of domains for sale. Tools like Estibot and GoDaddy Domain Appraisal can help you evaluate a domain's worth. Platforms like ExpiredDomains.net and NameJet are invaluable for finding expired domains. Unlike other investments, domain names may take months or even years to sell profitably. Be patient and keep up with trends! However, not all domains will sell quickly; some may never sell. The key is to be patient and strategic, continuously learning and adapting to market demands. With diligence and savvy, domain flipping can become a profitable venture. We wrote more extensively in [our domain flipping guide](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/buying-and-selling-domain-names). If you're purchasing domains for cold outreach campaigns, check out our guide on [choosing cold outbound domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/choosing-cold-outbound-domains). ## TL:DR Buying a domain name is a fundamental step in establishing your business online. Each step is a building block in creating your online brand identity, from understanding the basics of domain names and selecting a great name to securing your domain and setting up domain email accounts. Then, choosing the right hosting provider and connecting your domain ensures your website runs smoothly, whether you build it yourself or hire a professional. For those interested in domain flipping, understanding the market, selecting valuable domains, and navigating trends are key to success. Patience and networking with other investors can significantly enhance your domain investing journey. You can protect your investments and maximize your online business potential by avoiding common pitfalls such as overpaying for domains and neglecting renewal dates. Whether for business use or hobby, mastering these steps will set you on the path to success in the domain world. Start your journey with [domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) here, where you instantly find all the domains for sale from other parties and get the domain name you want, fast. --- # Should I choose a .online extension? > Should you choose a .online extension? Learn if .online domain is right for your business. Make the right first impression with customers. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/should-i-choose-online-domain-as-my-domain-type - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2024-05-29 --- A domain type is a North Star of your business. It's often the first landing point where someone arrives when they find you on a search engine. But what, exactly, does a domain type consist of? A domain name generally consists of three parts: www., the name of the site, and the letters that follow the dot. No two domain names can be the same, so you must be creative when choosing one. This creativity is critical because a domain type can help draw customers to you. ## What is a TLD? A TLD is also known as a domain extension. TLDs broadly codify where a business belongs, such as its location or industry. TLDs can enhance your domain and alter how people perceive it. They can also help relay your expertise. You're most commonly familiar with TLDs such as .com, .net, or .org. While .com has reigned as the most popular TLD choice, less than half of startups today use it. There are more TLD options than ever. TLDs can be country-specific, such as .uk, organization-specific, like .gov, or identify a company, like .co, a network, like .net, or a university, like .edu. TLDs can amplify a domain name because you can use them to help communicate who your brand is. One way a brand could use creative TLDs is .me, for an artist showcasing their work. A TLD of .design could help speak to a web designer's expertise, and a company that produces endurance sports could use .win. ## What is .online domain? The ".online" domain is a generic top-level domain (gTLD) in the Domain Name System (DNS) hierarchy. It was introduced in 2015 and is managed by the registry service Radix. ".online" is intended to be a versatile domain extension suitable for various websites. It has gained popularity for its simplicity and broad applicability. It's often used for personal blogs, business websites, online stores, and more. ## TLD List You can view a list of top-level domains on [ICANN's TLD registry](https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/tlds-2012-02-25-en) Some popular options are: **.com (commercial):** Perfect for businesses, individuals, and any company aiming to mark their presence on the web for commercial purposes. It is the foremost domain extension, symbolizing commercial endeavors across the internet. **.net (network):** Apt for organizations of diverse kinds aspiring to construct an online network. Initially designed for network-centric websites, it has evolved to accommodate a broad spectrum of companies. **.mil (military):** Solely designated for U.S. military branches. This domain extension is exclusively reserved for official U.S. military operations and is inaccessible for public use. ### What is an SLD? A second-level domain, also known as an SLD or 2LD, is the word or phrase that comes before the TLD and after the subdomain, www. SLDs function as powerful identifiers for what a brand does, who it is, or who it helps. Usually, the SLD is the most memorable part of a domain. Here are some examples of second-level domains (SLDs): - .example.com - .school.com - .marketing.biz ## How do SLDs and TLDs work together? Let's say you are visiting InstantDomainSearch.com. In this case, "Instant Domain Search" is a second-level domain (SLD) arriving before the dot. An SLD and TLD go together like peanut butter and jelly. They depend on one another to work as a whole but can also enhance one another. The correct TLD can help elevate your brand, boost memorability, and increase marketability. While your brand lives in an SLD, a TLD can enhance it. An SLD allows a brand or project to claim its unique online presence. It is also essential to boosting search engine optimization (SEO), or how quickly your business appears on search engine results. You can utilize keywords central to your business to help drive SEO in your SLD. Let's take the example of the brand Vegascircus.fun. The keyword "Vegas circus" in the name helps optimize the domain name. ### Are TLDs important for SEO? Like SLDs, TLDs can also bear some weight regarding search engines. You may be able to cram a keyword into the minimal letters of a TLD, but there is a different consideration to consider. Google asserts that general TLDs (gTLDs) do not directly impact how a domain ranks. However, gTLDs, such as .biz, .zip, .review, or .party, are associated with spam pages. Specific TLDs can dissuade potential traffic from clicking on your site out of the assumption that your business is illegitimate. TLDs like .com can boost your brand's credibility. A good rule of thumb when choosing your domain type is to ensure it relates to your industry. A tech brand could use .io. A company selling organic cookies could use .co. With country-code TLDs, you could help your business rank through geo-targeting. Country-code TLDs can legitimize your business serving or existing in a particular location. ### What is a third-level domain? A third-level domain, or a subdomain, is a word that comes before your domain name, such as the word "support." It's created under a second-level domain to categorize websites, such as blogs or support pages. Depending on your domain name provider, you may see prompts for optional third-level domains. Typically, you won't have to register a subdomain when you already have registered an SLD. Unlike SLDs and TLDs, third-level domains are not mandatory. Third-level domains are formatted as follows within a domain name: \[third-level domain\].\[second-level domain\].\[top-level domain\] For example, if "blog" is the third-level domain, "example" is the second-level domain, and ".com" is the top-level domain, the domain name would be: blog.example.com ## Why choosing the right domain type matters Choosing the right domain type matters because it's the first chance, in the digital world, that you have to make an impression on potential customers. You know the saying, "First impressions are everything?" It's highly applicable when it comes to domains. This impression can build trust when your domain type explains what your business does or what industry or location it exists in. It can also create mistrust if your domain confuses customers by being entirely different than your business. A solid domain type can help identify you as a brand. This consistent identity can help unify your brand voice, which you can use across your marketing channels. A customer will likely know what a business is based on your domain type. It's a precious business asset and can help steer customers to you. ### Tips for choosing a domain type - Make it short - Ensure it's easy to pronounce - Make it relevant - Avoid double letters, which can lead to typos - Avoid words with multiple spellings - Don't include special characters - Don't include numbers - Allow your TLD to work for you, not against you - Leave room for your business to grow. Don't limit yourself to a domain type like .au if you want to expand your services to two countries someday ### Balancing creativity and availability with a domain type You'll want to balance creativity and practicality when choosing a domain type. Your exact choice for a domain type might be unavailable when it comes time to register. It helps to have a list of a few domains you might consider when making your final choice. You don't want to end up with the perfect creative domain, no availability, or a TLD that doesn't suit your business. Your domain type depends on availability and will help legitimize your business. ### Registering your domain name There are many types of domain names out there waiting to be owned. But before you can do anything with them, you must know which [domains are for sale](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains). **Select a domain registrar:** Opt for a reputable domain registrar, like [GoDaddy](https://www.godaddy.com/). **Run a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/):** Utilize our domain name search tool to verify the availability of your desired domain. You might need to explore variations or use a domain name generator to find an open option. **Pick your domain:** Once you confirm availability, decide on your desired domain and complete purchasing. Provide any necessary contact information and pay the domain price. Many registrars offer bundled services, including free web hosting. --- # How to Come Up with Unique Business Name Ideas > Our latest post shows you how to come up with unique business name ideas that drive recognition, business, and loyalty. Read on. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-come-up-with-unique-business-name-ideas - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2024-05-29 --- ## Why your business matters You're here because you have a good idea for a business. Your thoughtfulness matters—a unique business name can make or break customers who turn into leads. Your business name is often the first chance to connect with people. You can invoke curiosity, connection, and memory with a business name. The right name drives people to your business, creating brand loyalty and recognition. ### The power of a business name There's a lot of power in a name. A unique business name shares this influence in the same way, people can emotionally respond to a person's name before even meeting them, from prior association to that name or simply how it sounds. The right name can impact how people respond to your business and even spark interest from investors. An infamous example of the power in a business name is the chaotic story of Theranos, a health tech business that combined the words "therapy" and "diagnose." It's marketable, easy to remember, and conveys what the product sought to answer (albeit failing miserably.) The business idea, name, and story were so alluring that Theranos secured more than $700 million from private investors and venture capitalists. ### What are the different types of business names? There are a few categories for the different types of business names to choose from. You might be surprised to learn where some of the most popular brand names originate from and utilize the story behind them as inspiration. As you'll see below, there are many types of business names—consider which makes the most sense for your project. - **Descriptive brand names** - Descriptive brand names use the business name to convey the offerings or features. Some descriptive brand names include Whole Foods, Toys R Us, and Insomnia Cookies. - **Evocative brand names** - Evocative brand names seek to draw an emotional response or image. Examples include Dove or Subaru Outback. - **Origin or founder brand names** - Founder brand names use the person or family who created the brand as their identity, such as Johnson & Johnson, Ford, or Ben & Jerry's. - **Acronym names** - Acronym names use the first letters of words to create a concise name, sometimes focusing on how the letters sound together, such as H&M and DSW. - **Playful brand names** - Playful brand names are memorable due to their creativity. Examples include Monster or Funky Pigeon. - **Invented names** - The fun aspect of invented names is that they sound right, but you might not know they are entirely made up. Some inventive brand names include Sony, Xerox, and Häagen-Dazs. - **Alphanumeric names** - Alphanumeric names include letters and numbers, such as Five Guys or 7 Up. - **Lexical brand names** - Lexical brand names can be puns or focused on sound. Examples include Hubba Bubba and Fruit Loops. - **Compound names** - Compound brand names fuse two words to create a name, such as Weetabix or YouTube. - **Metaphor names** - Metaphor names paint a strong image or association in customer's minds. Examples of metaphor names are Amazon, Jaguar, and Apple. - **Geographical brand names** - Geographic brand names create an association with a specific place, such as American Airlines or The North Face. ## How to come up with unique names for your business: four tips for Brainstorming Struggling to name your business? A branding agency can be instrumental. You can also use AI to name your business by entering a prompt with your core brand details. AI can help provide significant pithy name suggestions, as you'll want to keep your name simple. Here are a few brainstorming tips. 1. **Consider your business identity** - Your brand name can help you convey your identity. Before choosing a name, consider your brand story—who are you? What do you offer? Who do you help? Why do you offer what you do? These questions can help you distill your identity and choose a proper name to convey it. The brand name BetterHelp, for example, clearly speaks to its brand story—creating an accessible and quality option for online therapy. You might want to make a list of 10 words that describe your business to help you zone in on your values. 2. **Keep it human** - Your brand name is the first chance you have to connect with people. Consider the feelings you want to elicit, such as calming, luxurious, or accessible. Ensure that your name is consumer-friendly and has human appeal. 3. **Think about how it sounds** - Sound symbolism represents a word through sound; in other words, it sounds like what it is. The word "thump" is an example. When brainstorming, you'll want to consider the musicality of a word and what it conveys, such as the brands Kit-Kat or Mercedes. 4. **Use ChatGPT** - ChatGPT can save time by acting as a sounding board and an [AI name generator](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-use-ai-name-generator), providing appropriate suggestions based on the details you enter. It can then also help with your [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). ### How to narrow your list After a brainstorming session, you'll likely have a few workable ideas floating around. When making your final business name decision, you'll want to consider a few core elements. **Brandable:** Is the name you're considering relevant, timely, and identifiable? **Marketable:** Does it flow seamlessly across your marketing channels? Does it speak to your demographic? **Memorable:** Is it fun to say? Does it stick? **Simple:** Is it easy enough for someone to say without them responding, "come again?" To keep your business name simple, avoid multiple pronunciations. You'll also want to avoid names that are tough to spell, which can harm your digital marketing efforts. Steer clear of repeating letters, like three Ls in a row, which can lead to typos. ### Making a final choice When you make a final choice on your brand name, ensure it's one your business can grow into. While specificity can be useful, you also don't want to limit your future ability to expand. It's like buying clothes for a child in a growth spurt; a little room is okay. Practicality is the last piece, and a crucial one, of your decision. You'll want to ensure that someone doesn't already have your idea or that it's not too similar to other brand names. Start by plugging your brand name idea into a search engine and looking at the results. It's essential to check for existing trademarks on your business name using a tool like [Trademark by Atom](https://trademark.io/). Next, you'll want to confirm that relevant domain names for your business are available. A business name is an invaluable asset. With some thought and creativity, you can optimize your business name to communicate your values or identity, stay at the forefront of customers' minds, and sound seamless. Once you start looking for [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), look no further than our domain search, which provides instant domain search results as you type. --- # Word Segmentation with Rust > The motivation, techniques, and technical details behind Instant-Segment, a blazing fast word segmenter. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/instant-word-segmentation-with-rust - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2021-08-18 --- To [suggest and generate new domain name ideas](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator), we need to be able to see what words make up a domain name. Word segmentation is a natural language processing technique usually used to find words in strings written in languages with no natural word boundary, like Chinese or Japanese. We use this technique to find the words "Instant Domain Search" in [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) like instantdomainsearch.com. The Python [wordsegment](http://www.grantjenks.com/docs/wordsegment/) library solves this problem, but we needed to port it to Rust to make it fast enough for use on Instant Domain Search. Wordsegment is based on [Peter Norvig's](https://norvig.com/) [word segmentation example](https://norvig.com/ngrams/) in [Beautiful Data.](https://books.google.ca/books?id=zxNglqU1FKgC&redir_esc=y&hl=en) The core idea is that you iterate over all possible segmentations of a string and score them for the probability of appearing in a real world text. To do this we need two components: - A way to estimate the probability of a sentence occurring in the real world. - An efficient way to score all possible segmentations of the input string. Let's discuss how both of these work. ## Scoring a sentence The simplest way of scoring segmentations is to score single words based on the chance they appear in real-world English language data; Norvig used a Google dataset called the Google Trillion Web Corpus (2006). The [Web 1T collection](https://catalog.ldc.upenn.edu/LDC2006T13) is publicly available for research and educational purposes only, and this is what I initially used for our port. To get the score for a single word appearing, you divide the number of matches of that word found in the corpus by the total number of word occurrences in the corpus. For example, the word "instant" occurred in the Web 1T collection some 28 million times. The corpus we're using contains some 588 billion words in total (since it doesn't contain the long tail of words that appear infrequently), so we'll score the probability of "instant" appearing at **0.000049**. We also need to score words that don't appear in the corpus; for details, read Norvig's [chapter.](https://norvig.com/ngrams/ch14.pdf) The next step is scoring a sequence of words. To do so, we could multiply the probabilities of all the words in the given input sentence. In order to avoid arithmetic errors as a result of multiplying a series of small numbers, we instead take the base-10 logarithm of each value and sum the results. For "this is a test", this works out to **-2.3 + -2.1 + -1.8 + -3.6 = -9.7**. In contrast, applying the formula for words that are not found in the corpus gives us **-22** for "thisisatest". To further refine the results, we (like Norvig) also consider bigrams: the conditional probability that two words occur next to each other. For each word not at the start of the input string, instead of considering the simple probability of the word appearing, we consider the probability of a word appearing after the previous word. With the original corpus, we'll score "is" after "this" at **-3.2** rather than using **-2.1**, allowing us to use contextual information to refine our scores. ## Enumerating segmentations For short strings we want to enumerate all possible segmentations to find the optimally scored separation. However, since the number of segmentations increases exponentially in the length of the input string, this becomes infeasible for longer strings. At the same time, very long words are increasingly unlikely. Thus, the first step we make is to define a maximum word length of 24 characters. We then split the input string at each of the first 24 character boundaries and add the score for the first word to the score for the remaining words. While Norvig used recursion and we used that approach in our initial versions of the Rust port, we've recently changed our implementation based on Wolf Garbe's article [Fast Word Segmentation of Noisy Text.](https://medium.com/data-science/fast-word-segmentation-for-noisy-text-2c2c41f9e8da) We now use a variant of the triangular matrix algorithm discussed there. In our implementation, we use a dynamically-sized array (Rust's Vec) to track the best score at each segmentation position. For example, for "thisisatest", the candidate for position 6 (after "is") would have a length of 2 and the score for "this is". Using this approach bounds the stack size, and I find the nested loops easier to reason about than the bounded recursion approach. We adapted the triangular matrix approach to allow the use of bigram scores. ## Performance optimizations On my machine, the Python wordsegment library is capable of segmenting "thisisatest" once every 500µs. The latest version of instant-segment can perform the same task in 4µs, 95x faster while doing the same work. Let me explain some of the techniques we used. - The initial port was only 1.7x faster than the Python code. It used the recursive approach to enumerating segmentations, as in wordsegment and Norvig's code, employing a hashmap to cache partial scores. For example, it's faster to calculate scores for both "thisis a test" and "this is a test" if you can reuse the score for "a test". - Avoiding some unnecessary allocations in the core loop and switching to the [ahash](https://github.com/tkaitchuck/ahash) algorithm for the cache improved performance to 4.9x Python. - Using the smartstring crate to avoid heap allocations for short strings is a good fit for this problem, since words are generally short. This improved performance to 9.0x Python. - Inlining the core loop yielding segmentation positions got us to 11x Python. - Avoiding repeated allocations for intermediate results helped us get to 12x Python. - Rust strings are encoded in UTF-8, which means string slicing needs to validate string positions. However, instant-segment rejects strings containing non-ASCII input; using a sprinkling of unsafe code to bypass Unicode validation improved performance to 15x. - Updating ahash to a newer version got us to 18x. - Changing from f64::powf() to f64::powi() helped get us to 19x. - Reuse of intermediate allocations (in the case where you're doing multiple segmentations in a row) got performance to 25x faster than Python. - And finally, the adoption of the triangular matrix approach got us to 95x. ## instant-segment We've open sourced this work, and the latest version of instant-segment is [available on crates.io.](https://crates.io/crates/instant-segment) This year, we've added [Python bindings](https://pypi.org/project/instant-segment/) using the wonderful [PyO3](https://pyo3.rs/) and updated the test data set distributed as part of our repository to be based on more recent and more freely licensed data sets from [Google](https://storage.googleapis.com/books/ngrams/books/datasetsv3.html) and the [SCOWL project](http://wordlist.aspell.net/), meaning it's easier than ever to get started with [instant-segment](https://github.com/instant-labs/instant-segment). We'd love to get your feedback on the project and to hear how you are using it! --- # How To Use fastText For Instant Translations > How to use aligned word vectors from fastText to translate words from one language to another instantly. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-to-use-fasttext-for-instant-translations - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2021-06-07 --- We are always exploring ways to [generate great domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-generator). Almost every English word has a .com domain associated with it, and many popular word pairs—like HelloWorld.com—are also taken. One thing you can try is to translate a word that is important to your business into other languages. For example, *fast* translates to *vite* in French, *rápida* or *rápido* in Spanish, or *veloce* in Italian. Though these are not English words, the languages share roots, and they might work for your business. [Google Translate](https://translate.google.com/) is an incredible product, but it's tedious to use its interface to see what a word looks like in other languages. We set out to build a tool that can translate an English word into several languages—instantly. The study of [machine translation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_translation) dates back to the 1950s, and is still evolving. We want to translate from English to several languages instantly, and need to do it on commodity hardware without the need for GPUs or other expensive equipment. [Domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) should be short, so we wanted to focus on individual words instead of phrases. We have some experience using word vectors to help find [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) for sale, and saw that Facebook Research [published a dataset](https://fasttext.cc/docs/en/aligned-vectors.html) that *aligns* word vectors from one language to another. ## Wait, what is a word vector? Word vectors are generated using a neural network to learn how words are related from a large body of text—like a web crawl, or Wikipedia. [Allison Parrish](https://www.decontextualize.com/), an assistant professor at NYU, [shared](https://gist.github.com/aparrish/2f562e3737544cf29aaf1af30362f469) one of the best interactive walkthroughs of word vectors I've seen. [Go check it out](https://gist.github.com/aparrish/2f562e3737544cf29aaf1af30362f469). Allison uses colors to illustrate how a word might be mapped to numeric values for **R**ed, **G**reen, and **B**lue. The PNG and JPG standards, for example, each support 24-bit color—so 0 to 255 for each of R, G, and B. Red is represented as 255,0,0, green as 0, 255, 0, and blue as 0,0,255. You learn to recognize something like 250,0,0 in code as a very red color. ## fastText In 2016, Facebook Research [released](https://techcrunch.com/2016/08/18/facebooks-artificial-intelligence-research-lab-releases-open-source-fasttext-on-github/) [fastText](https://fasttext.cc/) along with a number of pre-trained models that map millions of words to a numeric representation. These models map words to 300 32-bit floats. This captures a lot of detail and nuance, but is much harder to reason about as a human. The fastText word vector for the word red looks like: ```text red -0.0331 -0.0465 0.1046 0.0201 0.0665 -0.0394 0.0515 -0.0598 0.0905 0.0738 0.0871 0.0062 0.0002 -0.0135 0.1012 -0.0092 -0.1063 -0.0967 0.0297 0.0790 -0.0429 -0.0470 -0.0926 -0.0227 -0.0240 -0.0768 0.0174 -0.0628 -0.0714 0.0413 0.0072 0.0746 0.0332 0.0780 0.0248 0.0083 -0.0807 -0.0272 0.0805 -0.0736 -0.0323 -0.0140 0.0081 0.0639 -0.0186 -0.0961 0.0240 -0.0159 0.0252 0.0425 0.0403 -0.1151 -0.0582 0.0228 0.0503 0.0262 0.0092 -0.0314 -0.0031 0.0238 0.0023 0.0231 0.1031 0.0147 0.0032 0.0197 -0.0749 0.0452 -0.0060 0.0173 -0.0828 0.0347 0.0330 -0.0970 0.0665 -0.0090 -0.0148 -0.0379 -0.0735 -0.0456 0.0362 -0.0038 -0.0989 0.0229 -0.0710 0.0076 -0.0314 0.0331 0.0470 -0.0968 -0.0182 0.0503 -0.0603 0.0900 0.0617 0.0198 0.0360 0.0885 -0.0665 0.0382 0.0162 -0.0352 -0.0643 0.0298 -0.0647 -0.0815 0.0507 0.0307 -0.0312 -0.0265 -0.0255 -0.0556 0.0302 0.0085 -0.0142 0.0116 0.0497 -0.0091 -0.0327 -0.0533 0.0853 -0.0028 0.0138 0.0235 0.0288 0.0766 -0.0008 0.0410 -0.0574 0.0001 0.0378 0.0842 0.0237 0.0557 -0.0578 -0.0145 -0.0006 -0.1553 -0.0657 0.0826 -0.0335 0.1468 0.0287 -0.0240 -0.0060 0.1243 -0.0685 -0.0024 -0.0419 0.0122 0.0002 -0.1673 -0.1169 -0.0371 -0.0072 -0.0133 -0.0355 0.0781 0.0487 -0.0785 0.1488 0.0351 -0.1184 -0.0185 0.0348 0.0116 -0.0598 -0.0082 0.1296 -0.0158 -0.0234 -0.0796 -0.0322 -0.0004 -0.0170 0.0290 -0.0135 -0.0658 0.0224 0.0262 -0.0747 -0.0174 -0.0673 0.0018 -0.0009 -0.0170 -0.0229 0.0128 0.0414 0.0009 0.0807 -0.0990 0.1185 0.0776 -0.1242 -0.0860 -0.0464 0.0127 -0.0994 0.0284 0.0295 -0.0607 0.0268 0.0738 0.0820 -0.0623 -0.1275 -0.0181 -0.0645 0.0423 -0.0196 0.0610 -0.0459 -0.0614 0.1134 0.0480 -0.0723 -0.0421 -0.0073 -0.0136 -0.0843 -0.0286 -0.0247 0.0456 -0.0090 -0.0546 -0.0464 0.0170 0.0580 -0.0434 0.0340 0.0199 0.0258 -0.0641 0.0110 -0.1129 0.0479 -0.0298 -0.0738 0.0475 -0.0210 0.0199 -0.0134 -0.0297 -0.0400 0.0186 0.0519 0.0505 0.0018 -0.0292 0.0482 0.0071 -0.0222 -0.0302 0.0711 -0.0198 0.0230 -0.0573 0.1053 0.0609 0.0517 0.0693 -0.0668 -0.0047 -0.0557 -0.0430 -0.0130 0.0693 -0.0305 -0.1101 -0.0303 -0.0511 -0.0628 0.0036 0.0101 -0.0206 0.1078 0.0520 -0.0476 0.0408 -0.0027 -0.0753 0.0087 0.0203 0.1821 -0.0566 0.0721 0.0880 -0.0955 -0.1142 -0.0118 -0.0209 0.0230 0.0313 -0.0339 -0.0700 0.0841 -0.0484 -0.0148 -0.0190 ``` ## Aligned word vectors Later, Facebook Research released [aligned word vectors](https://fasttext.cc/docs/en/aligned-vectors.html) for 44 languages. These act like a [rosetta stone](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosetta_Stone) and provide a way to organize words from these languages in the same vector space. To bring it back to three dimensions, we can look at how red might be represented in English, French, and vector space. Since we are looking at one word without context, the translation may be ambiguous in languages with feminine or masculine forms. In practice, the vectors will not align perfectly with one another. There might be some slight variation in the vector representations, so we need to consider approximate matches. Since we are working in vector space, we can measure the [Euclidean distance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euclidean_distance) from something like red to a close match in some other language. ## Instant Distance Computers are fast, and can brute-force their way through millions of Euclidean distance calculations relatively quickly. But not instantly. We need a way to build an index of these points to find a point's neighbors in space. Many machine learning or artificial intelligence techniques depend on navigating vector spaces efficiently, and there are a variety of approaches and [implementations available](https://github.com/erikbern/ann-benchmarks). We wanted a pure Rust implementation, but did not find any that were production ready. So we built and released [instant-distance](https://github.com/instant-labs/instant-distance), a fast and pure-Rust implementation of [Hierarchical Navigable Small World graphs](https://arxiv.org/abs/1603.09320) with [Python bindings](https://pypi.org/project/instant-distance/). ## Putting it together To build a simple translation tool, we will start by downloading the word vector data published by fastText. Then, we'll index the word vectors with Instant Distance. Once the index is finished building, we store the resulting dataset on the filesystem alongside a mapping from word to vector in the form of a JSON file. ```python LANGS = ("en", "fr", "it") LANG_REPLACE = "$$lang" WORD_MAP_PATH = f"./data/{'_'.join(LANGS)}.json" BUILT_IDX_PATH = f"./data/{'_'.join(LANGS)}.idx" DL_TEMPLATE = f"https://dl.fbaipublicfiles.com/fasttext/vectors-aligned/wiki.{LANG_REPLACE}.align.vec" points = [] values = [] word_map = {} async with aiohttp.ClientSession() as session: for lang in LANGS: # Construct a url for each language url = DL_TEMPLATE.replace(LANG_REPLACE, lang) # Ensure the directory and files exist os.makedirs(os.path.dirname(BUILT_IDX_PATH), exist_ok=True) lineno = 0 async with session.get(url) as resp: while True: lineno += 1 line = await resp.content.readline() if not line: # EOF break linestr = line.decode("utf-8") tokens = linestr.split(" ") # The first token is the word and the rest # are the embedding value = tokens[0] embedding = [float(p) for p in tokens[1:]] # We only go from english to the other two languages if lang == "en": word_map[value] = embedding else: # Don't index words that exist in english # to improve the quality of the results. if value in word_map: continue # We track values here to build the instant-distance index # Every value is prepended with 2 character language code. # This allows us to determine language output later. values.append(lang + value) points.append(embedding) # Build the instant-distance index and dump it out to a file with .idx suffix print("Building index... (this will take a while)") hnsw = instant_distance.HnswMap.build(points, values, instant_distance.Config()) hnsw.dump(BUILT_IDX_PATH) # Store the mapping from string to embedding in a .json file with open(WORD_MAP_PATH, "w") as f: json.dump(word_map, f) ``` Finally, using these tools we can convert an input (a word) into its word vector and use Instant Distance to find the nearest neighbors to the input. Since the word vectors have all been aligned, the closest word vectors in different languages should be very similar—if not a direct translation. ```python with open(WORD_MAP_PATH, "r") as f: word_map = json.load(f) # Get an embedding for the given word embedding = word_map.get(word) if not embedding: print(f"Word not recognized: {word}") exit(1) hnsw = instant_distance.HnswMap.load(BUILT_IDX_PATH) search = instant_distance.Search() hnsw.search(embedding, search) # Print the results for result in list(search)[:10]: # We know that the first two characters of the value is the language code # from when we built the index. print(f"Language: {result.value[:2]}, Translation: {result.value[2:]}") ``` For example, here are the results of translating the English word "hello": ```text Language: fr, Translation: bonjours Language: fr, Translation: bonsoir Language: fr, Translation: salutations Language: it, Translation: buongiorno Language: it, Translation: buonanotte Language: fr, Translation: rebonjour Language: it, Translation: auguri Language: fr, Translation: bonjour, Language: it, Translation: buonasera Language: it, Translation: chiamatemi ``` ## Try it out You can check out the full example over at [Instant Distance on GitHub](https://github.com/instant-labs/instant-distance/tree/main/instant-distance-py/examples/translations). If you have any questions, please feel free to open an issue in GitHub! --- # Pronounceable Domain Names, New Audio Feature > Pronounceable domain names with new audio feature. Use our tool to hear domain pronunciation. Try the pronounce feature for any domain. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/pronounceable-domain-names - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2020-11-24 --- Making great software is not just about coding and design. It's also about paying close attention to life beyond the clicks and the screen—talking to real people. Rarely is anything perfected in a vacuum. By listening carefully to what users are saying, and listening especially hard for the hacks people come up with to circumnavigate shortcomings can present learning opportunities for us. That's what happened for us when one of our users told us that they use Google Translate to pronounce domain names in native English. They wanted to know how the domain would sound out loud, and they weren't proficient in English. This hadn't even crossed our radar—of course not everyone knows how to pronounce every English word. Of the two billion English speakers on the planet, only about a third consider it a first language. The English language brings people from all corners of the earth together online. As you work through many possible domain names, it can be easy to forget to say the name out loud—especially if you aren't sure how to say it. It's your domain; you have to know how. This also matters because sometimes the way an English word correctly pronounced sounds like an offensive word in another language. "Face" sounds like "fesse" in French (a behind), and the English pronunciation of "salsa" sounds like the word for "diarrhea" in Korean. These are a couple of the higher-brow examples. You need to know. Equipped with this insight, we got straight to work on an audio feature. Now, when anyone explores our [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), there is an option to "pronounce." When you press it, a random voice will speak the domain name in native English—It's already one of our most popular features. We filled a vital gap that we didn't know we had. There is so much to consider when [buying a domain name](https://instantdomainsearch.com/), and we're thrilled to share this new tool with you. It's so easy to forget that any communications we are sending out or putting online are going to a real person or real people. Apart from Zoom or Google Meets, many of us spend so much time dedicated to writing and reading online. We don't feel like there's anyone on the other end of the line. But remember, there is, and they could be anywhere in the world. Always check the pronunciation when you're uncertain. And lastly, keep an ear open for someone else's hacks, they could lead you down an unexpected, but rewarding path. --- # How To Buy A Domain Name > There are a few important things to consider before buying a domain name. Primarily, it should reflect the name of your business. Learn more. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-buy-a-domain-name - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2020-09-18 --- It's possible to set up a free website without purchasing a domain name, but the address you'll get at that price doesn't look professional. More often than not, the url you receive will have the name of the service in it. To avoid this problem, you can just buy a domain name and add it to your website. [Domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) that haven't been claimed are inexpensive, usually starting around $12/year, and they come with two nice benefits: 1. You can use a domain name to create an email address that matches your website. 2. You own it, so it's always possible someone else may want to buy it. That second option is an interesting one, because claimed domain names can potentially sell for thousands up to millions of dollars. For such a low cost, [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) can be a valuable investment. The barrier to buying a domain name is low as well. You don't need to be a tech nerd or a computer scientist to figure out how to buy one. It's really no different than signing up for any other online service. So if you can set up a Netflix account, you won't have any problems [buying domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). You just need to know how to check if a domain name is available. ## Be strategic in how you pick a domain name There are a few important things to consider before buying a domain name. Primarily, it should reflect the name of your business or organization. And whenever possible, buy an available domain name before selecting the name of a business. It's much easier and cheaper to do it this way. The business name you select may already have a claimed domain name, so it could be very expensive to purchase it. Here are a few more considerations you should make: **Length** - Really long domain names are hard to remember. Really short ones probably aren't descriptive enough. Try to keep them somewhere in between so they're easy for your audience to use. A good strategy is to keep your domain name one or two words in length. **[Extensions](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions)** - The most popular domain name extension is .com. If someone knows the name of your organization, they might try typing it with .com expecting to visit your website. So whenever possible, you want to at least own that one. There are many other options to consider, such as .org, .info and .us. **Specificity** - Try to think about the keywords that people might use to search for your organization. If you can include them in your domain name, it will help it rank higher in search engines, which means your audience will have an easier time finding you. ## Don't give up on unavailable domain Depending on your budget, you may want to buy a domain name that's already claimed. Just keep in mind, the price is almost always negotiable, so don't automatically give up if you see an expensive price. The seller may be more motivated than it seems! Here are a few of the common ways you can buy a claimed domain name: **Direct sales** - If a domain name is claimed but you don't see it listed for sale anywhere, it's possible to contact the owner directly. A WHOIS search is the best place to start. If you don't get clear contact information this way, another option is to hire a domain broker. They have more extensive tools to track down domain owners. **Domain auctions** - Auctions for domain names work like eBay, you make a bid, and if it's the highest when time runs out, you get to purchase the item. Some domain names also have a flat price if you just want to buy them immediately. These are linked in the results you get from Instant Domain Search. **Direct backorders** - Domain name registrars release previously claimed domain names in batches or individually. These are domain names that the owner has stopped paying to own. If one of these domain names hasn't yet been released, sometimes you can backorder it. As long as it gets released, you're guaranteed to get it. This is another option available in results from [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). Check our [expired domains search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/expired-domains) to find domains that may become available soon. ## How to register a domain name This is the easy part. When you click the button to buy a domain name, you need to provide your contact (name, address, phone, email) and payment information. Once you've submitted your payment for an unclaimed domain name, you are immediately the owner and can start using it. It may take a little longer for ownership to transfer to you for claimed domain names, but the process is essentially the same. --- # What Is A Domain Name > What is a domain name, and how does it work? Read on and find some handy intel on choosing the best domain name and extension for your business. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-domain-name - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2020-08-06 --- What is a domain name and how does it work? Basically, it's a website's home address. For example, if you look up at the address bar (URL) right now, you'll see `https://instantdomainsearch.com`/domain/—we've highlighted the domain name part. That's where our website lives. It also helps people like you to find us quickly, and that's what we want and what you want for your business, right? It's not just about the business name; choosing the right domain name can be a game-changer. Read on and pick up some handy intel on how to choose the best domain name and extension for you. ## Why do you need a domain name? You can't have a website without one. It's your website's home address. [Domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) were invented because websites' original addresses were just IP addresses and they look like this 130.211.25.142. Now, for instance, Instant Domain Search you can remember, but a series of numbers and dots? Your domain name connects your website to your IP and helps people find you. ## What makes up a domain? Each component of a domain serves a unique function. Together, they anchor your site, direct navigation and can help users to understand what your business or service is. ## What does a solid domain name do? A great domain name is easy to find and attracts your ideal market. It also helps establish a healthy web presence, so you don't end up lost in cyberspace. As a marketing tool, it can reinforce your brand and credibility. A great domain name with a website is even more potent, as rankings increase with quality content. ## Fun with domain names and extensions Your domain name + your extension can be witty = memorable. For instance, a .me extension could lead to "itsfunnyto.me" or "votefor.me." In the same vein, .de ("of" in romance languages), or .in can also create top-of-mind addresses. ## How to choose a domain name So many names. There's a lot to consider. What do you do? What are you selling? If you are selling one thing, will that stay the same in five years? Ten? Being too specific can limit you, but being vague's no help either. Many spend time brainstorming solo or with business partners. And although most people may type it, how does it sound out loud? How will talk-to-text butcher your particular favorite? Will you be active on social media? If so, do your picks have similar options there? Then you need to check if it's available. If the extension you want is not, would another work? ## How do I purchase a domain? So glad you asked! [Searching available domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) is a great place to start. Instant Domain Search provides real-time searches that populate as you type. Find out if your top pick is available. We also advise you what other similar versions or extensions are up for grabs if your preference is not and can connect with services to purchase [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) from someone else. Sometimes a name you hadn't thought of pops up, and there it is! Your perfect domain name. --- # What Is A Top Level Domain? > A top-level domain or a TLD is a domain suffix, it is what follows the actual domain name. Learn more about TLD in our latest guide. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2020-08-06 --- Finding websites wasn't always as easy as it is now. In the early days of the internet, every website just had a string of numbers that served as its address. Anyone who wanted to visit a specific site had to know the exact numbers that related to type or they would never find it. This was way before we had search engines. A string of numbers (known as IP addresses) are still used to identify websites, but top-level domains (TLDs) have been in use since 1984 to make finding sites a lot easier. When a TLD, or [domain extension](https://instantdomainsearch.com/domain-extensions), is combined with a domain name, you get something that looks like this: instantdomainsearch.com. The TLD is the .com in the address above. Without the domain name and the TLD, we would have to type the IP address for the website listed above in a browser to reach the same website. Since that site's IP address is 130.211.25.142, you can see how that wouldn't be easy to remember, and even if you did, could you imagine trying to memorize multiple IP addresses? Domain names are much easier. ## What is a TLD? If you're looking for a specific TLD definition, this is a very basic way to describe it: A top-level domain is a domain suffix. It is what follows a domain name. Since that may not provide enough explanation, it's better to consider why TLDs are needed in order to better understand what they are. Once it was decided that domain names would be used to make searching for websites on the internet easier, the next problem to solve was how to organize them all. Top-level [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) were the answer. The first TLDs were categorized according to country, category or multi-organization. For example, .com is short for commercial and .org represents nonprofit organizations. A popular one to use now is .io, which stands for Indian Ocean. ## What is the purpose of a TLD? Put simply, it's a way to organize the internet so humans can locate what they need and generally identify the type of organization that owns a website before visiting it. For example, when you see a .org TLD, you expect the website to not be exclusively for commercial purposes. And if a website uses .gov, you already know before visiting it that a government agency is running the site. However, this doesn't mean you must follow these guidelines. There's nothing stopping someone from using a .com TLD for charitable purposes or a .org for commercial ones, but there are limitations for some, such as .gov and .mil TLDs. They cannot be purchased since they're reserved for government agencies. ## The original list of TLDs As mentioned above, the first TLDs were all created to organize domain names according to their purpose. You can see how they were categorized in the list below: | Name | Purpose | |------|---------| | .com | Commercial | | .edu | Education | | .gov | Government agencies | | .int | Intergovernmental organizations | | .mil | U.S. military | | .net | Internet service providers | | .org | Organization | Since this original list was made, more than 1,500 other TLDs have been created. ## How TLDs relate to the structure of the internet The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) controls who can create and manage TLDs. It oversees the Domain Name System (DNS), which is the framework for how domain names operate. A subsidiary of ICANN called the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA), manages the DNS Root Zone. This is important to know because the Root Zone Database consists of only 13 clusters of servers. These servers store all TLDs and domain names. This means that when a search engine or your browser finds a website, it has either accessed one of these servers directly or connected to a database that has previously connected to them. ## Types of TLDs IANA uses the following system to categorize TLDs: **Infrastructure top-level domain (ARPA)**: This consists of one domain, the Address and Routing Parameter Area, and IANA uses it for engineering purposes. **Generic top-level domains (gTLD)**: These are TLDs with three or more characters, including .com and .org. **Restricted generic top-level domains (grTLD)**: These domains are run by official ICANN accredited registrars. **Sponsored top-level domains (sTLD)**: These domains are proposed and sponsored by private agencies or organizations that establish rules to restrict eligibility to use them. **Country-code top-level domains (ccTLD)**: These are two-letter domains created for countries or territories. **Internationalized country code top-level domains (IDN ccTLD)**: These are ccTLDs that use non-Latin character sets, such as Chinese and Arabic. **Test top-level domains (tTLD)**: These domains are for testing purposes. ## Country TLDs Of all the types of TLDs, the two-letter country TLDs are among the more interesting. It's become popular to use them to create interesting one-word domain names such as bit.ly. Since many words in the english language end in -ly, it's a fun way to make a domain name stand out. However, before selecting a TLD with two letters, it may be worth looking into the country it represents. The -ly TLD is for Libya, which means it's possible for its government to restrict the types of sites and the content they post on that domain. It works this way for all country TLDs, so be mindful of this before purchasing them for your website. Top-level domains are how the internet is organized. Without them, we'd be stuck memorizing IP addresses. There's much more to how the internet operates than what's listed here, but understanding TLDs is a good place to start the journey. --- # Use Streaming JSON To Speed Up Your Website > Modern websites are complex and often need to load data in the background asynchronously. JSON streaming is a way to make this happen. Learn more. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/streaming-json-jsons - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2020-02-16 --- Modern websites are complex and often need to load data in the background in an asynchronous way. JSON streaming is a way to make this happen. ## What is JSON streaming? JSON streaming–or JSONS–is a simple technique we use to decrease search latency for users, particularly anyone on a slow connection. You'll see the most improvement for mobile users on HTTPS connections, but it really benefits everyone. When you're working with JSONS, you don't need complicated JSON parsers–just send line-delimited JSON. The Twitter streaming API has worked like this for years. ## Why You Should Use a JSON Stream Our social username checker offers a simple example of how this works. In it, we check to see if your search is available on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest by doing an HTTP HEAD request for the name at each site. The results come in random order, and we want to show them as fast as possible. We could work around this by sending three HTTPS requests, but that means three TCP connections, three SSL handshakes, and so on. We can avoid this–and probably recycle an existing HTTPS connection–if we just send one request: ```text https://instantdomainsearch.com/services/vanity/apple?hash=866016287 ``` The streaming response is analogous to—and relies on—HTTP [chunked transfer encoding.](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP/Headers/Transfer-Encoding) The best way to see how this works is to trace the connection with curl: ```bash curl --trace - "https://instantdomainsearch.com/services/vanity/apple?hash=866016287" … <= Recv data, 45 bytes (0x2d) 0000: 32 37 0d 0a 7b 22 54 79 70 65 22 3a 22 54 77 69 27..{"Type":"Twi 0010: 74 74 65 72 22 2c 22 49 73 52 65 67 69 73 74 65 tter","IsRegiste 0020: 72 65 64 22 3a 74 72 75 65 7d 0a 0d 0a red":true}... {"Type":"Twitter","IsRegistered":true} <= Recv data, 46 bytes (0x2e) 0000: 32 38 0d 0a 7b 22 54 79 70 65 22 3a 22 46 61 63 28..{"Type":"Fac 0010: 65 62 6f 6f 6b 22 2c 22 49 73 52 65 67 69 73 74 ebook","IsRegist 0020: 65 72 65 64 22 3a 74 72 75 65 7d 0a 0d 0a ered":true}... {"Type":"Facebook","IsRegistered":true} <= Recv data, 52 bytes (0x34) 0000: 32 39 0d 0a 7b 22 54 79 70 65 22 3a 22 50 69 6e 29..{"Type":"Pin 0010: 74 65 72 65 73 74 22 2c 22 49 73 52 65 67 69 73 terest","IsRegis 0020: 74 65 72 65 64 22 3a 74 72 75 65 7d 0a 0d 0a 30 tered":true}...0 0030: 0d 0a 0d 0a .... {"Type":"Pinterest","IsRegistered":true} == Info: Curl_http_done: called premature == 0 == Info: Connection #0 to host instantdomainsearch.com left intact ``` You may encounter nerd dogma that each endpoint should return one and only one object. Or that pretty-printed JSON may contain newlines, and what you really need is a streaming parser. Ignore them. Parsing responses is as simple as splitting on newline. The [jsonpipe](https://github.com/eBay/jsonpipe) library is a good starting point for your client code. ## How To See the Difference JSON Makes A great way to see what this means for a mobile user is to use [rvictl on a Mac](https://useyourloaf.com/blog/remote-packet-capture-for-ios-devices/) to observe how a real cell radio on a real cell network actually talks to your server. One HTTPS connection on my 2-bar Verizon 3G connection looks like this—the first column is time in seconds: ```text 0.000000 DNS 69 Standard query 0x5622 A instantdomainsearch.com 2.573090 DNS 85 Standard query response 0x5622 A instantdomainsearch.com A 130.211.25.142 ``` Wait, the DNS query took 2.5 seconds to resolve? Wow. Maybe the 3G modem was in [sleep mode.](https://www.stevesouders.com/blog/2011/09/21/making-a-mobile-connection/) We can finally establish the TCP connection: ```text 2.573822 TCP 64 57709 → 443 [SYN] Seq=0 Win=65535 Len=0 MSS=1388 WS=64 TSval=727045548 TSecr=0 SACK_PERM=1 2.574404 TCP 60 443 → 57709 [SYN, ACK] Seq=0 Ack=1 Win=42540 Len=0 MSS=1430 SACK_PERM=1 TSval=2852312183 TSecr=727045548 WS=128 ``` And begin the SSL/TLS dance: ```text 2.575790 TLSv1.2 285 Client Hello 3.582868 TLSv1.2 1428 [TCP Fast Retransmission] Server Hello 3.585061 TLSv1.2 127 Client Key Exchange 3.585771 TLSv1.2 58 Change Cipher Spec 3.586415 TLSv1.2 97 Encrypted Handshake Message 3.587729 TLSv1.2 103 Change Cipher Spec, Hello Request, Hello Request ``` Hello! From here, 3.5 seconds later, we're finally sending/receiving encrypted application data. ## JSON Reduces Packets To Increase Speed Each keystroke on [Instant Domain Search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast) queries several data structures to get availability results, marketplace results, suggestions, and so on. We noticed huge performance gains for users once we stopped trying to establish so many HTTPS connections on each keystroke and instead streamed the results back on one connection per query. You can see how that translates into far fewer packets jamming the user's network connection. For the record, we did try using a web socket but found that per-query HTTPS connections were the most reliable way to deliver fast results to our users. --- # A Guide To Buying and Selling Domain Names > An entire industry has developed around buying and selling domain names. The next domain you buy might sell for millions; here's how to get started. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/buying-and-selling-domain-names - **Category:** guides - **Published:** 2019-04-17 --- Just like art, jewelry, real estate and digital currencies, [buying domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) can be a valuable investment. Corporations regularly purchase them for more than $100,000, but in the last decade, there have been more than a dozen publicly reported sales above $10 million, with some approaching $50 million. While the return on investment for [domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) can be just as profitable as the other asset classes mentioned above, the expense to own them is quite small. You don't need a private vault and there's no maintenance required like a house, just an annual renewal fee of about $15/year. An entire industry has developed around buying and selling domain names, but it's accessible to anyone. The next domain you buy could just as easily sell for millions of dollars, regardless of your experience. And the best part? Selling a domain name is really easy. However, that doesn't mean you should run out and start buying random domain names. With the right process and perspective, you'll dramatically increase your odds of making a profit. Follow the quick guide below to buy and sell domain names like a pro. ## Do the math to make money It may not seem like much of a commitment to [buy domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/how-to-buy-a-domain-name) and hold them since they only cost about $15/year, but you have to consider how the expense can multiply. Ten [domains](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) will be $150/year. One hundred will be $1,500/year. And just like any other business, you'll want to make a profit so you can keep expanding your selection. If you have $1,500 in domain renewal fees each year, you need to sell enough to cover that expense while also allowing you to buy more. This means it's a good idea to base your budget on how many domain names you can likely sell in one year. A commonly reported sell-through rate in the industry is 1-3%, so with 100 good domains, most sellers should expect 1-3 sales per year. It's also important to be realistic about how much you can get from selling a domain name. They're not all going to sell for more than $1 million. Some may not sell at all. Across the industry, most privately sold domains are sold for more than $2,000, with professionals aiming for a range between $5,000 to $20,000. ## Carefully select the domain you buy The most important thing to remember is that buyers only purchase domain names that are valuable to them. Just because tinymonkeyart.com is available doesn't necessarily mean anyone will want to buy it. Smart domain name sellers buy in areas where they have some expertise. Your insider knowledge of the industries you've worked in gives you an advantage over others who can only guess what words and phrases are valuable. Start by making a long list of all the words that relate to your expertise so you can check their domain name availability later. Another option is to consider the audience you want to target with domain names. Are you interested in pets? Maybe a specific breed of dog? The more you can narrow it down, the easier it will be to learn details about them and the types of domain names they may want. ## Understand your purchasing options How you buy domains is just as important as which ones you purchase. As you become more knowledgeable about the industry and the variety of ways domain names are sold, your purchasing strategy will get more complex. The primary ways to buy domain names are listed below: **Unclaimed domains** - These are the least expensive domain names to purchase. This is a great place to start building a portfolio of domain names, but it does come with some risk. If no one has claimed the names you find by now, odds are good they aren't highly sought after. It's also possible you could purchase names that don't mean anything to anyone, so they won't sell. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't try. Think of it like panning for gold. You only need to find one nugget to strike it rich. **Domain name sales** - Many websites allow domain name owners to list their names for sale at a specific price. Any buyer who sees it can make a purchase immediately. It's also possible to reach out to a domain name owner who hasn't listed theirs for sale. You can do this yourself, but many buyers hire brokers to contact domain name owners and negotiate deals for them. One word of caution: Before you buy a domain name from a private seller, always get an appraisal. You'll get a range of values for what the domain is worth compared to similar sales. This is how professional buyers know if they're getting a good deal, and it drives how they negotiate the price they're willing to pay. **Domain auctions** - These platforms post specific [domains for sale](https://instantdomainsearch.com/aftermarket-domains) at a designated time and allow buyers to place bids on them. The highest bidder wins at a domain auction and is obligated to buy when they win. Sellers can sometimes set a minimum price for their domain names, so bids will need to be higher than the minimum for a sale to go through. **Domain backorders** - Some domain registration websites will post domains for sale that aren't available yet. For example, if a domain name owner hasn't paid the annual fee, after a period of time, that domain will become available to the public again. Sometimes, you can backorder these domain names to buy them automatically when they are released. Some platforms will not charge you until the sale is completed, but others may require the fee upfront. **Domain buying services** - If you don't have the time or the process seems too complicated, an easy shortcut to take is with domain buying services. They allow you to hire an expert who can research and recommend what domain names to buy, negotiate their prices and even sell the ones you already own. ## Market your domain names to sell Once you have some domain names to sell, you'll want to list them where businesses and professional buyers can easily find them. Some platforms charge a fee to do this, while others allow you to list them for free. Here are a few popular ones you may want to check out: dan.com, sedo.com, afternic.com, godaddy.com, and brandbucket.com. You may also want to approach individuals and organizations that you think would be interested in a specific domain name you own. Most sellers find they get the best response using an informal approach rather than a hard sales pitch. It's also common for sellers to hire brokers to handle this part of the process as well. ## Make your first domain name sale Congratulations! You've made it through the buying and selling process. At this point, review the steps you took to get here and evaluate what worked and what didn't. You want to find areas where you need to improve. There are a lot of ways to make money in this industry, including buying and selling domain names for someone other than yourself. Keep learning and you'll eventually find your niche. --- # CDN Building on Aws With Route 53 > CDN building on AWS with Route 53. Learn how to build your own CDN. See how we structured one for Instant Domain Search. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/cdn-building - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2018-06-25 --- Instant Domain Search is fast because it keeps an in-memory index of several domain name zone files and runs on fast servers. Each zone query is answered in microseconds. The slowest part of the [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) is the link between the client and the server. This is especially true for mobile networks. We are obsessed with speed, and are always looking for ways to [make this site even faster](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast). If you want to learn how to build your own CDN using AWS, keep reading to see how we structured one for Instant Domain search. Building a CDN from scratch was a difficult process until recently, but new technologies have made it easy for anyone to accomplish. ## How to Make a CDN A few years ago, we started to use JavaScript to determine which server was closest to you. This technique significantly improved search performance, but does nothing to make the initial page load faster. Recently, we started serving all pages over HTTPS by default. This adds even more latency to the initial page load because we need to negotiate an HTTPS connection before the browser knows where to download static resources like CSS and JavaScript. Using a content delivery network (CDN) to host the site can make it hard to propagate changes, use custom redirect rules, and be expensive to host with your own secure certificate. We also wanted to roll out HTTP/2 (formerly SPDY). The HTTP/2 protocol is much more efficient than traditional HTTPS because it can negotiate a secure connection with fewer network round trips. Google has shown that HTTP/2 is 23% faster on mobile networks than HTTPS. ## The Advantages of a CDN A CDN works by caching copies of your resources in data centers around the world. These are the edge servers. The edge servers usually cache content on an on-demand basis. This means that the CDN fetches data to store in an edge server from your server (the origin server) only when a nearby client requests it. If you have a relatively low-traffic site like this one, your data will probably be frequently evicted from its cache. This can introduce a bit more latency when the CDN's edge server fetches fresh data from your origin server. Amazon's Route 53 service added latency-based routing in March 2012. This means you can host servers in several Amazon data centers, and Route 53 will use DNS to connect users to the server closest to them. CloudFront does something similar to connect users to the closest edge node. Amazing, right? This is the reason why it makes so much sense to host your own CDN. ## Speed Comparison Over a 30-day period, we used Pingdom to monitor latency to a CloudFront URL that served a gzipped version of our home page over HTTPS. Pingdom uses servers located all over the world to monitor uptime, and to provide latency reports. Over the same period, we served the identical page over HTTPS, letting Route 53's latency-based routing direct load to one of our servers in Virginia, California, Singapore, or Ireland. Overall, our custom CDN is about as fast as CloudFront: | | CloudFront | Custom CDN | |------------|------------|------------| | Overall | 195ms | 193ms | | Fastest | 166ms | 175ms | | Slowest | 241ms | 234ms | Even though there are far more CloudFront edge nodes than Instant Domain Search servers, we're still able to place servers relatively close to the majority of our users. Route 53 will only send traffic to servers that are online. Since switching to this system, Pingdom tells us we've had 100.00% uptime for our home page, static content, and search interface. When you build your own cdn network, take some time to compare your numbers like we have here and monitor them at different times on a variety of days. This will give you a clear view of how well your cdn servers are working. ## Less Complexity = Faster Results By serving everything from one domain, we can eliminate the DNS query, TCP connection, and TLS/SSL handshake made with the CDN. This network chatter adds latency to a critical part of the user's experience: the first page load. When a user starts searching, they are still talking to the server closest to them. This eliminates the need for the JavaScript hack we'd used earlier. We further optimized our connection handling using [JSON streaming techniques](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/streaming-json-jsons) to reduce the number of HTTPS connections per query. It's incredible that a relatively small site like ours has access to the global infrastructure provided by AWS. We were able to build a custom CDN from the command line, something that was only available to the largest providers and at great expense when this site launched in 2005. As you can see, there aren't too many steps to create your own CDN server. Hopefully this post makes it a little less scary to tackle if you've never tried it before. But once you get a CDN domain set up and running, you'll be glad you did. --- # How We Make Instant Domains So Fast > Everyone wants everything instantly. That's what Instant Domain Search is all about. Keep reading to learn a little about how it works. - **URL:** https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/how-we-make-it-fast - **Category:** research - **Published:** 2011-09-15 --- Waiting is awful. Especially when it comes to online experiences. Everything on the internet is expected to be quick, especially when searching. For example, Google engineers conduct tests to see how small decreases in search result speeds affect user behavior. You might think it takes something like a 2-4 second delay before anyone interacts with the service differently. But negative changes were evident with just a 200ms delay! Everyone wants everything instantly. That's what Instant Domain Search is all about. Keep reading to learn a little about how it works. ## Highly-Optimized Indexing Instant Domain Search downloads a gigantic list of registered names from VeriSign and other [gTLD](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/guides/what-is-a-top-level-domain) providers every night. Almost all [domain names](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) that are in use are included in these lists, which are called zone files. Instant Domain search indexes the zone files, and hosts them in data centers around the world. For gTLDs with zone files it can't access, it does a DNS query to [check domain availability](https://instantdomainsearch.com/). It also does a live query with VeriSign directly for .com domain names to see if their status has changed since we indexed the zone file, or if they are in a state that would exclude them from the zone file. All of this is then combined with a compendium of prefixes and suffixes that get added in a meaningful way to each letter you type. The result is a system that gives you relevant search responses as fast as you can type. But don't think of Instant Domain Search as just another database. It helps you keep ideas flowing through the speed and quality of its suggestions. ## Everything Is Faster In The Cloud The best way to make a website and its contents load quickly is to distribute it across servers around the world. Instant Domain Search runs on the Google cloud. It can scale up or down according to demand, so the backend is very efficient. But the biggest contribution to its speed is how the site is duplicated on servers across multiple regions. So instead of everyone pinging a server in Virginia and slowing it to a crawl, Google Load Balancer determines which one is closest to where a search originates. You can read more about how we [built our own CDN](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/cdn-building) to optimize this global distribution. This translates to zero waiting wherever you're located. A search made in California will be just as fast as one made in Kansas or London. ## Instant Results Through DNS Queries There are two ways a [domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/) can be performed: a slow and less-reliable option and a much faster one. The slow way is to do a WHOIS search. It will return a long list of details about each registered domain name, including who owns it and how to contact them. The faster option is to use a Domain Name Server (DNS) query. DNS queries primarily return the IP address for a domain name. When you want to search thousands of combinations of domain names at one time, returning less information in the beginning is going to speed up the process rather than digging into so many specifics. For checking multiple domains at once, try our [bulk domain checker](https://instantdomainsearch.com/bulk-domain-search) or read about [how we built bulk domain search](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/updates/bulk-domain-search). All the important information you need for each search is included in a DNS query. There's no need to go farther than that when you're just browsing. This cuts out a lot of wasted time when all you want to know is if a domain name has been claimed or not. ## Suggestions Help Users Select Domain Names Faster When you combine AI, machine learning and fast domain searches, it's not enough to just return one result. Other services seem to like frustrating their users with one result at a time. We thought the time wasted to click back and forth between the search box and the results page can be put to better use. That's why Instant Domain Search fills your screen with results, without the need to even press a search button. We've focused on removing all the unnecessary steps from the user experience while expanding on the most relevant part: the results! You can really appreciate the difference this makes when you just want to change one letter in a query. For example, if you were to search doghomes.com, you would find it's registered but not listed for sale. However, by changing the search by one letter to doghome.com, you can see it's listed for sale. You won't find that kind of search quality on other sites. And when a user only sees one result at a time, it's just barely helpful. Multiple suggestions lead to inspiration and more ideas. All creative endeavours are easier when there's plenty of material to reference. A fast name search with lots of results makes the process fun, too. ## Speed With Security Every query conducted on Instant Domain Search is encrypted, so all results remain private. Cookies are providing marketing databases with more than enough information from regular website traffic without the need for domain name searches to be tracked as well. So we've ensured the site is secure for everyone who uses it. We're also happy to report this added layer of security doesn't come at a cost. The speed of search results isn't affected by the encryption, which is largely attributable to HTTP/2 being so efficient. We also use [JSON streaming](https://instantdomainsearch.com/learn/research/streaming-json-jsons) to minimize HTTPS connections and deliver results as fast as possible. It also helps that the site design has intentionally been kept simple. So while you won't find fullscreen backgrounds of tropical places in 4k resolution, your search results won't suffer from the loading time lost on them either. --- # Domain Directory Instant Domain Search provides detailed analysis pages for popular domains. Each page includes traffic data, WHOIS information, SEO metrics, keyword rankings, backlink profiles, technology stacks, and competitive landscape analysis. - **Page URL pattern:** `https://instantdomainsearch.com/directory/{domain}` **930 supported domains:** - aitoolsclub.com - anthropic.com - anyscale.com - appen.com - argilla.io - assemblyai.com - avoma.com - bardeen.ai - baseten.co - beam.cloud - bentoml.com - browse.ai - c3.ai - captain.ai - casetext.com - cerebras.ai - cerebrium.ai - cleanlab.ai - cloudfactory.com - cognition.ai - cohere.com - comet.com - copy.ai - cursor.com - d-matrix.ai - databricks.com - datarobot.com - deepgram.com - descript.com - devin.ai - dstack.ai - dvc.org - eightfold.ai - elevenlabs.io - fireflies.ai - flux.ai - futuretools.io - glean.com - grammarly.com - groq.com - hailo.ai - harvey.ai - heygen.com - huggingface.co - inflection.ai - instantly.ai - jan.ai - jasper.ai - jina.ai - krisp.ai - kubeflow.org - labelbox.com - lancedb.com - langchain.com - 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