Domain Buying Checklist

1 Make a shortlist of names

Start with five to ten candidates rather than falling for the first one. Mix your brand name, a short description of what you do, and a word or two people associate with it.

• Need ideas? Try the Domain Generator.
• Save the ones you like with the star on the search results. Your shortlist stays in this browser.
• Checking many at once? Paste them all into the Bulk Domain Checker.

2 Say it out loud (the radio test)

Say the name to someone once. If they can type it without asking how it is spelled, it passes. Most word-of-mouth traffic is lost in the gap between hearing a name and typing it.

• Keep it short: under 12 characters is easy, over 15 gets mistyped.
• Avoid hyphens (people drop them) and numbers ("4", "four" or "for"?).
• Watch for sound-alike words (right / write, there / their) and three letters in a row.
• Read it as one word: some names spell something unfortunate when the words run together.

3 Check the matching .com

Whatever extension you pick, some visitors will type .com by habit. If someone else owns the .com, they get that traffic, and some of your email.

• Search the name and look at the .com row, even if you want a different extension.
• If the .com is taken, run a WHOIS lookup to see what it is used for. A competitor there is a red flag.

4 Check the extension's rules

Some extensions are only for people or companies in a certain country, and a few change how your site works. Registering one you are not eligible for can mean losing it later. See the table below.

Registry rules change from time to time. Check the registrar's checkout for the current requirements.

5 Compare the renewal price, not just the first year

The first-year price is often a promotion. The renewal price is what you pay every year after, and on some extensions it is several times higher.

• Before you pay, look for the renewal price on the registrar's checkout or pricing page.
• Work out the cost over three years: first year plus two renewals.
• Check what is included: WHOIS privacy, DNS, email forwarding and SSL can be free at one registrar and paid at another.
• Use the registrar switcher under the results to compare prices across our partners.

6 Look up its history

An available name may have been registered before and dropped. If it hosted spam, malware or adult content, it can carry a search-engine penalty and blocklist entries to its new owner.

• Our domain search shows a history summary under every available name (years used, pages saved, a history score and the main warnings). For the full picture, run it through Seowolf Wayback history, which also shows the old site year by year.
• For a name that is in use, check it on the Blocklist Checker and its records with WHOIS.
• Be wary of a past life that has nothing to do with your plans: old backlinks will point the wrong signals at you.

7 Search for trademarks

A registrar will sell you a name that matches someone's trademark. The owner can then take it through a dispute (UDRP), and you lose the domain and the brand you built on it. Search the exact name and close variants in each country where you will trade.

This is a first check, not legal advice. For a brand you will invest in, ask a trademark lawyer.

8 Check the social handles

A matching handle on the networks you will use makes the brand easier to find. Handles have length limits: X allows 15 characters at most, Instagram and YouTube 30, TikTok 24.

• The search results link straight to each profile address. A "page not found" usually means the handle is free.
• No exact match? A short, consistent suffix (such as "hq" or "app") on every network beats a different handle on each.

9 Protect the name

Once you are sure, consider the few extra registrations that stop anyone else trading on your name.

• The .com (if you are on another extension), and the country extension where most of your customers are.
• The most likely typo, if the name has one obvious misspelling.
• Do not overdo it: every extra name is another renewal every year.

10 Register it safely

How you register matters as much as what you register.

• Put the domain in your own name and email, not your web designer's or an employee's. Whoever is the registrant owns it.
• Use an email address that is not on the domain itself, so you can still log in if the site goes down.
• Turn on auto-renew and keep the card up to date. Expired names are caught by others within days of being released.
• Turn on two-factor sign-in at the registrar, and keep the registrar lock (transfer lock) on.
• Turn on WHOIS privacy if the extension allows it.

11 After you buy

Point the name at your site and check it works everywhere.

• Need hosting? Take the free 8-question hosting quiz or see current hosting coupons.
• Check your records with the DNS Lookup, then watch them spread with the DNS Propagation Checker.
• Once the site is live, confirm HTTPS with the SSL Checker.
• Setting up email? The DNS Lookup shows your SPF, DKIM and DMARC records too.

12 If the name you want is taken

A taken name is not always gone for good, but plan as if it is.

• Run a WHOIS lookup to see when it expires and who the registrar is.
• An expired name is usually only released about 75 days after its expiry date, and many are auctioned before that. A backorder is an attempt to catch it, not a guarantee.
• If the site is parked or unused, the owner may sell. Contact them through the registrar's WHOIS contact form, and never pay outside a trusted escrow service.
• Meanwhile, try a variation: add a short word, use a different extension, or go back to your shortlist.