Best Domain Registrars Analysis
It can be difficult to try to find the best place to buy domain names, particularly when so many businesses have to choose from. The fact is that in pricing and functionality, the best domain registrars are often very close, but there are still some significant differences that differentiate them.
We’ve gone ahead and listed the best domain registrar in a few different categories on this overview page to offer people the best choices based on their particular needs.
Before you move on, one simple thing— if you decide to purchase a domain using one of our links (we would be very grateful) we could get a small commission from the registrar. In no way does this influence our reviews— in reality, we dislike biased pages. That said, the top places to buy domain names are here…
The Best Overall Domain Name Registrar:
Namecheap
The Best Domain Name Registrar for Beginners:
GoDaddy
The Cheapest Domain Name Registrar:
Namesilo
Now that you see who are the strongest domain registrars in each group, let’s look at why this is so much more closely, including some important details!
Best Place to Buy a Domain Name – Overall Winner: Namecheap
Hands down, Namecheap is our choice for the best registrar overall domain name, and this is for certain important reasons… The rates of Renewal Time Namecheap are very competitive and they have coupons almost always open. A new domain at the time of writing is $10.69/year with a discount of $0.99 per year for domain protection.
Namecheap’s nice thing is they don’t deliver a super low entry price and then jack up the price at renewal. GoDaddy has become popular for low initial purchase rates combined with high redemption costs. Yes, it’s nice to register a domain for $0.99, but for many domain name extensions they charge $8/year for privacy and close to $20 the second year. One of the things that makes Namecheap an outstanding registrar is simple, value-based pricing that doesn’t get jacked up abruptly upon renewal.
Cheap Online Registry
Free registry for domain names is an essential choice. It used to be that spammers were mostly concerned with private registration, but now it’s the other way around. So many spammers steal WHOIS data for emails and other information that for ordinary people private registration has become very common. Namecheap has a $0.99/year private account voucher regularly (they name it WhoisGuard). While some registrars provide it for free, to get Namecheap’s service is worth paying less than a buck for the security.
Another nice thing about Namecheap is that they don’t constantly try to upsell you on something across their app. It’s tidy, simple to use, and handling the domains isn’t complicated. We also have excellent chat service and immediately return tickets. I’ve never had a problem trying with their help to solve a problem.
Try and see who our domain (cybersguards.com) is associated with if you need more trust in Namecheap— you’ll see it’s Namecheap!
Best Domain Name Registrar for Beginners: GoDaddy
Although they may not be the cheapest, they are certainly the most user friendly registrar and the simplest to use. Let’s have a look at what makes GoDaddy stand out as a registrar… A clear, easy-to-understand GoDaddy app is probably the easiest for newcomers to use in terms of their UI / UX, and this shouldn’t actually come as a surprise as they are the largest current domain registrar. Because of this, they’re putting a lot of resources into their website design and performance. Occasionally they force upsells across their app, which can be frustrating at times, but it’s not nearly as bad as other registrars like Network Solutions (which we suggest you avoid at all costs).
Godaddy’s Domains Service is Top-Notch
GoDaddy provides 24-hour telephone support for domain names, and from what I can hear, it’s also U.S. assistance. We also have a chat / ticket system, but the phone help is where we excel, particularly for those new to use domains and build websites. Their support for hosting is not as strong, but the support for the domain is pretty awesome. If you have a question or you don’t know what to do, you will easily get someone on the line to solve your problem.
The Cheapest Place to Register Domain Names: NameSilo
If you’re looking for the cheapest domain name registrar, look no further—NameSilo is your registrar! They usually charge $8.99 or less for a year of .COM registration and include FREE privacy! This is extremely hard to beat.
Their rates are good, they have a tidy app, and they never seek to upsell anything to anyone. You can lose a little bit on help for Namecheap or GoDaddy because of the low prices, but if you need to sign domains in bulk or are just looking for the best value, NameSilo is a great option. We regularly use them and as a registrar will definitely recommend them.
Domain Name Registrars to Avoid
Because we are honest and transparent, we like to tell people which registrars are decent and which registrars we believe are terrible and should be prevented. We don’t know what kind of fees they offer and will never endorse something dependent on profits— if we don’t use it and can suggest it, we’ll advise you not to purchase it!
Having said that, we strongly recommend avoiding Network Solutions, Web.com, and Register.com (they call these websites “the family of Web.com”). They have some of the worst customer service we’ve ever had, and try to get you to pay for all kinds of things other registrars provide for free (such as technical support, privacy, and other simple services). Yeah, that’s right— Network Solutions won’t even provide technical support without you being paid an update maintenance fee. In reality, we spent 30 minutes with them on the phone and they refused to tell us how to make a change without charging for a DNS record (CNAME). It goes without saying that we just figured it out on our own and transferred the domain awal promptly.
Aside from having terrible customer service, their code is extremely cumbersome, confusing and seeks to upsell you at any point or discourage you from switching domains out of the business by inserting buttons in strange places by forcing you click to multiple pages to validate the move.
They are, in our opinion, an outdated dinosaur who built their reputation before there were better options (there are many now) and at all costs they should be avoided. When you buy domains from an auction, you may even end up with one at Network Solutions, although our advice would be to move it to a cheaper registrar directly with better support and a better gui.
How to save money on domain registration renewal fees?
It is common practice for some registrars to offer a low first-time domain registration rate and then jack up the renewal fees, as mentioned on this page earlier. You will often see 99 cents of registrations and then be hit at renewal time with $20 or more.
The best course of action is to pick a registrar who does not do that (unless you use GoDaddy because they are more beginner-friendly). You can therefore stop paying a higher rate of maintenance and spend just what everyone else does. Our recommendation in this situation is to go with Namecheap as they do not raise the renewal prices so there are no games to play.
Also note, if you’re trapped in a poor registrar of domains, you can always move somewhere with better renewal fees. Often this is a better choice because you save money and you get better customer service.
Server Security Is Money Worth?
yeah, that’s it. WHOIS spamming is at an all-time high, and if you leave your information unattended, you WILL get spammed, and spammers may permanently burn the email address you expose to the public (it happened to us). You may also have so many spam emails that genuine emails of touch will not get through. If you want to stop these things, using privacy… it’s worth every penny. And if you choose not to do so, at least use an email address you can afford to lose and a physical address you’re cool with giving the crowd (spammers will also catch them). WHOIS regulations require you to retain valid domain records, so make sure you don’t put fake information in an attempt to avoid paying for protection because you might risk your domain name.
