TLD Price Comparison

Why TLD pricing varies so much

A domain's wholesale price is set by the registry — the organization that operates the TLD. Verisign sets .com wholesale at $10.26, and every registrar in the world buys at the same wholesale rate. Identity Digital sets .online at a heavily discounted first-year price ($1–$3) and a much higher renewal price ($30+). Cocira sets .ai at $80–$100 wholesale per year. Each TLD is its own market, with its own pricing strategy.

Registrars (Namecheap, GoDaddy, Cloudflare, Porkbun, Dynadot, etc.) add a margin on top of wholesale. The margin is where consumer pricing diverges. Cloudflare's registrar charges at-cost (zero margin) for Cloudflare DNS users; GoDaddy charges $5–$15 of margin and bundles privacy/SSL upsells on top; Namecheap sits in the middle and runs heavy first-year promos.

This page shows the cheapest registrar's price per TLD, separating first-year (the promo or the regular registration) from renewal (what you'll pay every subsequent year). The two columns disagree more than people expect, and that disagreement is the most important fact when picking a TLD for a long-lived project.

What "first year" really means

• Stable TLDs (.com, .org, .net, .co, most ccTLDs): first year = renewal. Registrars may discount $1–$3 with a coupon, but the wholesale floor is the same year over year.
• Aggressive new gTLDs (.online, .site, .store, .tech, .live, .fun): first year is a teaser — sometimes 95% off renewal. The registry expects you to forget and auto-renew at full price.
• Premium-priced TLDs (.ai, .io, .dev, .app): usually no first-year discount; the price is what it is. Sometimes registrars run small promotions (5–10% off).
• Restricted TLDs (.de, .uk, .eu, .fr): stable but require local presence. Cheaper than the new gTLD pricing trap and usually under $15/year.

How to read the renewal multiplier

The renewal multiplier shows renewal ÷ first-year. A multiplier of 1.0 means stable (first year = renewal). A multiplier of 5.0 means renewal is five times the teaser price. Some practical thresholds:

• ×1.0 — stable. Safe for long-term projects.
• ×1.0 to ×1.5 — minor first-year promo. Fine.
• ×2.0 to ×5.0 — meaningful teaser. Reconsider for projects you expect to keep more than two years.
• ×5.0+ — bait pricing. Usable for one-year campaigns only.

Total cost over five years

The right way to compare TLDs for a long-term project is total cost across an ownership window. A simple formula: year-1 + 4 × renewal. Examples for a typical project:

• .com at $12 / $12 → $60 over 5 years.
• .online at $1 / $59 → $237 over 5 years.
• .ai at $99 / $99 → $495 over 5 years.
• .io at $40 / $40 → $200 over 5 years.
• .dev at $15 / $15 → $75 over 5 years.
• .app at $20 / $20 → $100 over 5 years.

The "cheap" TLD often becomes the most expensive after year one. The "expensive" TLD often stays expensive. The boring TLD (.com) is almost always the cheapest cumulative choice.

Hidden costs to factor in

• WHOIS privacy. Some registrars include it free (Cloudflare, Porkbun, Namecheap on most TLDs); others charge $4–$10/year. ICANN-mandated free privacy is now common but not universal.
• SSL upsells. Ignore them. Use Let's Encrypt (free) or Cloudflare's free TLS proxy. Paid SSL from registrars is unnecessary for almost all use cases.
• Email forwarding / hosting upsells. Ignore. Use Cloudflare Email Routing (free), ImprovMX (free tier), or your existing mail provider.
• Restoration fees. If you let a domain expire and want it back during the redemption period, expect $80–$200 on top of the renewal. Set calendar reminders.
• Transfer fees. Most TLDs charge nothing extra for a registrar transfer (the new registrar adds a year of registration as the "transfer fee"). A few exotic TLDs charge a real fee.

How to use this comparison effectively

1. Decide if first-year price or stability matters more. Disposable test domains: cheapest first year. Long-term brand: lowest stable renewal.
2. Sort by Renewal multiplier. Anything ×3 or higher is a teaser trap unless you have a one-year reason to use it.
3. Click "Compare registrars" on the home page for the TLD you've narrowed to. Specific registrars vary; the cheapest often isn't the famous one.
4. Run the cheap-domain finder for your specific label. Even within a TLD, premium pricing can be applied to short or dictionary names.
5. Confirm at the registrar checkout. All prices on this page are estimates, not guarantees. The final number is whatever you click "Pay" on.

Notes on currency and accuracy

We normalize all prices to USD for comparability. Some registrars bill in EUR, GBP, INR, or local currency depending on your IP — exchange rates fluctuate by 1–2% over weeks, and bank conversion fees add another 1–2%. For high-precision international purchases (large bulk orders or business expense planning), check the registrar's actual billing currency.

Promotions rotate weekly. The first-year prices on cheap TLDs in particular drift; .online may be $0.99 one week, $2.49 the next. We refresh on demand (click the "Refresh prices" button) and cache results for a few minutes to reduce upstream load. If prices look off, refresh.

Choosing a registrar (not just a TLD)

A short, opinionated guide to common registrars:

• Cloudflare Registrar — at-cost pricing on a subset of TLDs. Cheapest if your TLD is supported. Requires Cloudflare DNS.
• Porkbun — competitive on weird new gTLDs. Free WHOIS privacy. Good UX.
• Namecheap — honest renewals on most TLDs. Aggressive first-year promos. Solid support.
• Dynadot — strong on aftermarket and bulk operations. Good for portfolio holders.
• GoDaddy — biggest selection but the most aggressive upsell flow. Watch checkout carefully.
• Google Domains successor (Squarespace) — competitive renewals, simple UX, but smaller TLD selection.
• Avoid — registrars that charge for WHOIS privacy or "domain protection" features. These should be free.