
Ask HN: recommendations for domain registrars - nezumi
I need to register some .com domains, and it seems like a service I should be able to get very cheaply. Currently I use 123-reg.co.uk but I'm sure there must be something better out there. I'm also sure going with a cheap provider will likely turn out more expensive in the long run...
In case it makes a difference, I'd also like to migrate over a .name domain, to keep everything within one account.
======
jjcm
<http://name.com>

I've used godaddy, namecheap, and 1&1, but ended up switching all my domains
to name.com. One of the best interfaces I've used as it doesn't try to
abstract the DNS records from you. That was one of my biggest issues with 1&1
and godaddy - their interface made it so that I never knew exactly what my DNS
settings were, just what the spoon-fed messages that I was given told me. The
only "abstracted" thing that they do is provide a one-click solution for
setting the dns entries for google apps (which you can still manually edit, as
they appear in your DNS records). Here's some screenshots of the backend:

<http://i.imgur.com/F5j5m.jpg>

<http://i.imgur.com/rx3uq.jpg>

<http://i.imgur.com/vGwwz.jpg>

Seriously, try it. I liked them so much that I paid to have my other domains
transfered to them. That alone should show you how much I enjoy it over the
others I've tried.

~~~
edash
I switched from GoDaddy to Name.com and almost cried for joy when I bought my
second domain name there and it took 10 seconds as opposed to 10 minutes.

~~~
blacktulip
I dont really know why any person on earth chooses godaddy

~~~
Vocare
Same for me, I hated GoDaddy. To surf their site form menu to menu it's take
more time to load and why people like GoDaddy?

------
aeden
Just recently I launched <http://dnsimple.com/> since I was fed up with
GoDaddy and decided that I never wanted to use them again in my life, and I
knew others felt the same way. DNSimple has an easy to use web interface, a
REST API for domain registration and DNS management and an iPhone app. The
service is pretty new but the response so far has been positive.

Under the hood I used enom for domain registration and PowerDNS for the DNS
portion. enom has the best API of all of the registrar APIs I looked at. To be
a reseller there is a bit of an investment, but it's still significantly less
expensive than becoming an accredited registrar.

I've been in the domain industry since 1999 when .com was deregulated, and
built one of the first domain registrars (but I wasn't the founder thus left
when the founder decided to go other directions) and it is unfortunate how
little inovation has occurred in the domain industry. Hopefully that'll start
changing soon.

~~~
nailer
Hi Aeden, is there any minimum spend required before registration/hosting API
use?

~~~
aeden
Nope, you should be able to begin using the API immediately upon signing up.

------
bl4k
<http://joker.com> or enom.com for domains

<http://easydns.com> for DNS (don't be cheap on DNS - most that registrars
offer is slow/cheap/bad/down)

~~~
lsc
I've been using joker.com since the first .com crash, and they've been a
reliable, no-nonsense host the entire time. it's about $12 a year per .com or
.net, but as I'm not a domainer, the extra few bucks doesn't matter much. what
I like is that they don't try to spend a lot of effort up selling you. I can
go on their website and do something and be reasonably assured I won't be
incurring extra charges.

~~~
bl4k
Same - I have been using the joker + easydns combo for as long as I can
remember with both my own projects and client projects. Across all of that
usage I have never had a problem.

------
trampsymphony
Gandi.net is my favorite. Decent prices, big selection of ccTLDs, great UI.

~~~
gregcain
+1 on Gandi. A very nice UI, and I like having my registrar outside the US. As
a DNS host, it's robust enough, but they don't provide SPF records (~ 6 months
since I've looked.)

~~~
AdamGibbins
SPF records are just TXT records, which they do support? I understand theres
an actual "SPF" record type also but last I checked its not very widely
adopted and the TXT version is exactly the same anyhow.

------
sahillavingia
<http://godaddy.com/> \- Cheap (esp. for just a year, renewals are a bit more)
but their interface sucks.

<http://namecheap.com/> \- Almost as cheap, and has a much better interface.

Those are the two I use exclusively, minus some for ccTLD-specific domains.

~~~
lanstein
Seconding namecheap. They usually have coupons as well.

~~~
jmarbach
3rd recommendation for NameCheap here. I've used them for 4 years, never had a
single problem with my domain portfolio. They are 2nd to no one. The bonus is
that NC offers their excellent services at the cheapest prices... do a google
search for their monthly coupon.

~~~
aaronmoodie
4th recommendation for namecheap. Easy management, no adds or clutter when
purchasing, and as the name sugests, cheap.

~~~
arn
another recommendation. I have 300+ domains with them. very good control
panel, esp for bulk.

~~~
waratuman
again, I love namecheap. All domains are with them

~~~
seldo
I've been using them for well over a decade. No nonsense, low prices,
interface miles better than GoDaddy.

~~~
Xuzz
Yet another NameCheap recommendation. Pretty awesome, and a usable -- if ugly
-- UI.

~~~
Delameko
+1 Love NameCheap, best I've used.

------
Lammy
I like <https://www.nearlyfreespeech.net/> for their policies on complaints
and DMCA notices.

~~~
russell_h
In my search for a GoDaddy alternative I switched one of my domains over to
nearlyfreespeech.net. My only complaint so far is that you have to pay to add
money to your account, so the prices they advertise aren't really the whole
picture.

Other than that it seems like a pretty decent service, especially if you want
to take advantage of their privacy policies, etc.

~~~
shantanubala
To their credit, the "25 cent" price tag would really only make sense in a
prepaid environment. I kinda figured nobody would charge less than credit card
processing fees.

------
davidmurphy
Google actually registers domains (in partnership with outside registrars):

<https://google.com/a/cpanel/domain/new>

$10.

The advantage is they come all easily configured for Google Apps usage.

~~~
davidw
I use this too, although I'm not entirely happy with what a PITA it has been
to transfer domains if I sell them or give them to other people.

It's a pretty good deal though, you get a domain with email, apps, etc...
built in, all for 10$.

~~~
edash
Google Apps standard edition is free. The only thing you're saving here is the
5-10 minutes it would take to switch MX records and verify your domain.

Name.com has this built in as well and they're a proper registrar.

~~~
pasbesoin
I've taken this approach, as well. Given Google's rather complete lack of
individual customer support, I do not relish the idea of trying to get a name
transferred away from their registrar, in the event I need to.

I don't have any particular experiences with doing this; rather, I'm just
being pre-emptively cautious.

------
jacquesm
I use moniker, they're pretty good. They got bought out by oversee but the
oversee people have seen fit to leave moniker to run as independently as
possible.

------
dasil003
I use Dreamhost because it's a no-bullshit admin, the price is decent, and I
can easily host stuff that doesn't require a VPS or better (which is the
majority of my domains) essentially for free.

~~~
anthony_franco
+1 on Dreamhost. They also throw in free domain privacy so your personal
details aren't plastered all over the net.

~~~
cshenoy
Dreamhost kinda sucks. My work has a few domains hosted there and their
servers have gone down over 4 times in the past 10 months alone. Support is
terrible too.

~~~
dasil003
I've had an account there since 2001. I host 25 domains on it. Downtime is
rare, performance is better than any of 10 other shared hosts i've used since
1996, and support is well adequate. If you have serious performance issues you
can ask to be moved to a different server. Dunno what people expect for $100 /
year, but there's not much better than Dreamhost and my anecdotal evidence is
worth more than most because I worked for years at an agency that resold
hosting to hundreds of clients via various whitelabel and dedicated hosting
services not to mention freelancing for dozens of clients.

------
ohashi
NameCheap.com is my favorite 'retail' registrar. Their owner goes above and
beyond to resolve things. He also is an expert about domains and the quality
of their interface and features reflects it.

If you're registering 100+ then Fabulous.com is the best registrar around
(though they only deal in com/net/org/info).

------
nazariusk
Google Apps (<http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/business/index.html>) is a
eNom reseller, and provides you with all the Google goodness (mail/docs/cal).

1 year = $10 (privacy included).

~~~
pasbesoin
Well, it makes me feel a bit better, knowing they are reselling eNom.

Is there any route to direct access to eNom, in the event Google (lack of)
support becomes a problem?

------
vito
<http://dynadot.com/>

No fuss, no tricks, non-crappy administration area. They even provide their
own name servers for free. I've been using them for years and have no
complaints.

------
buymorechuck
Dynadot <http://dynadot.com> has excellent service, lightning fast website.
Working great for my domain names.

~~~
jread
I'll second dynadot. I switched from godaddy a few years ago and could not be
happier. Website is lean and fast, domain lookups are super fast, and checkout
is a simple 1 minute process.

------
niccolop
I prefer gandi.net

~~~
nezumi
I love it - modern UI and a convincing tagline, I knew something like it had
to be out there! (Thanks everyone for replying though.)

------
trizk
Personally I prefer Godaddy. The interface needs some work but I have found
that by using them I get really low propagation delays. Their service is
pretty flexible facilitating stuff like privacy and configuring your domains
to host their own nameservers.

------
frou_dh
<http://hover.com/> is positioned as the anti-GoDaddy: simple price structure,
clean UI.

GoDaddy made it clear they have no respect for the customer with their
horrendous UIs and upselling. Felt compelled to leave them recently.

------
brk
I use enom.com

If you're going to do any quantity of domains above 5 or 6, it's worthwhile.

Stay away from godaddy.com (IME).

~~~
waivej
I agree on Godaddy.

Enom has a nice interface and good prices, though I don't trust their DNS or
email (occasional outages).

Also,

\- If you just click the "email" select box in the UI, it can drop your custom
MX record, even if you don't hit save.

\- If you use their DNS hosting for an outside domain that expires, they point
to an advertising page and it's hard to make them switch back.

------
tbriscoe
Here is a list of every accredited registrar:
<http://www.internic.net/alpha.html>

Lots of issues to consider beyond price. Go with a US based registrar if you
are in the US as you will be governed by their laws with regard to disputes or
jurisdiction issues. Some will hit you with hefty RGP (redemption grace
period) fees if you miss the renewal date. Domain theft is a becoming a huge
issue, so finding a good registrar can be very important for your business.

Moniker.com and NameCheap.com are the best in my opinion with Demand Media's
eNom right behind them.

------
ahemphill
I have long preferred <http://namecheap.com> for the usual TLDs and (somewhat
more recently) <http://domainsite.com> for many ccTLDs. I very recently
transferred an important domain from <http://joker.com> after inadvertently
discovering that an account could be accessed from a machine that I had not
previously used to log in. (I copied the session ID and I was on the same
network but it was enough to convince me to make the switch.)

------
pontifier
Godaddy burned me badly a short while ago, so I am switching all my domains to
Netfirms.com. I used to have my personal domain hosted there for free, and I
have never had any problems at all with them.

~~~
eguanlao
I recommend <http://netfirms.com/>. Excellent service.

------
maguay
I've got one domain on Dreamhost and one on 1&1 ... both work fine, but
Dreamhost's interface is MUCH better than 1&1.

All in all, would you guys recommend keeping your domains registered at a
different company than your hosting company? I've considered moving my domains
in the future when they expire to a separate domain register, but not sure if
it's worth the hassle...

~~~
treitnauer
I would recommend to separate:

1\. Domains 2\. Hosting 3\. DNS 4\. Email

Don't throw all eggs in one basket... ;)

------
fakelvis
Any suggestions for registrars of domains that aren't .com/.co.uk/.net/etc.?

I notice that a couple of those mentioned (Namecheap.com, Name.com and
Gandi.net) offer this service, but is there a specialist registrar anywhere,
or are these good enough?

 _(I'm looking to register a number of .nl domains and have no idea where to
look in terms of quality registrars.)_

~~~
ahemphill
<http://domainsite.com> is my go-to for many ccTLDs.

------
geuis
I have always used godaddy (inexpensive) but have recently started using
hover.com. Low prices, much cleaner interface. As a +1 to godaddy though, I've
noticed in the last couple of days a much better registration interface that
still is allowing them to offer their up-sells but is much nicer to get
through.

------
bigiain
I use inexpensivedomains.com for my personal stuff, and have been very happy
with them.

One thing I'll point out though, sometime the lowest prices aren't the most
important thing. The domain name people at work have recently chosen to shift
all of our domains to a <http://www.austdomains.com.au/> account, which is not
the cheapest around, but apparently has a _much_ better multiple domain
management system than any of our previous registrars. A buck or less extra
per domain per year, but it saves a _lot_ of time/money when the management
system "just works".

(Note, this is from over-the-cubicle conversations and overheard rants rather
than firsthand experience, so don't read it as a personal recommendation of
austdomains, rather as a warning that managing hundreds or many hundreds of
domains is a different scale of problem from a few or a few dozen, and make
sure if you're likely to run into that problem that you consider the
suitability of your proposed registrars. I've been happy enough with Intaserve
for my .au domains, but my work colleagues _hate_ them with a passion!)

------
scrrr
Hm I have a question: What would it take to register the domain myself,
without going through goDaddy and others?

Can't one set up a DNS-Server and start propagating records, while perhaps
informing the authority that you are using a (previously available) domain
now?

~~~
Kliment
To do that, you need to be a registrar. It's not without a good deal of
bureaucracy and pain. See <http://www.icann.org/en/registrars/accreditation-
process.htm>

~~~
scrrr
Ah, I see. Thank you for the link!

------
microkernel
I am using GoDaddy for m throw-away domains and regfish.com for more
specialized TLDs. Regfish has a great, personal service, is based in Germany
(how about that for a change ;-) and has decent prices. Great UI, lot less
slack than GoDaddy.

------
Payamd
Name.com FTW.

I am currently in the process of switching all of my domains from Godaddy to
Name.com. The simplicity of the UI, Google Apps integration and reliability of
their network made this a no-brainer.

------
roberts_vc
I used DynDNS as a reg for years, but when I wanted to customize the MX
record, they wanted another chunk of money - buh-bye!... Probably going to
Hover next.

------
lazyronin
<http://iwantmyname.com/> has a pretty cool bulk search option. Simple and
clean UI too.

------
gmac
I've found <http://domainmonster.com> good value, full-featured and reliable.

------
shawndumas
I've used <http://www.1and1.com/> a lot and have had no problems.

------
known
<http://services.sify.com/index.php> is very cheap.

------
zandor
I'm very happy using <http://dyndns.com> for a couple of my domains.

------
die_sekte
I use NearlyFreeSpeech. The interface is one big PITA, but they're cheap
enough and I like their TOS.

------
quizbiz
How do you guys cover the domain expense for sitting domain? Any
recommendations for parked pages?

------
Jim_Neath
I've been using namecheap.com for about 7 years and not once have I had an
issue with them.

------
known
<http://www.freehostia.com/>

------
dsulli
I'm pretty content with hostway. They have one of the lowest prices for domain
names, and have a decent interface. They also don't try to upsell any of their
other services when you are going through checkout.

I would stay away from 1and1. They have some pretty sketchy billing practices.

------
voxxit
Shameless plug: try out <http://core.hostroute.com>. I personally think our
domain lookup tool is the best I've used. I've probably used them all ;-)

------
togasystems
I use namespro.ca for Canadian domains (ie .ca)

------
BrandonM
I've been pretty happy with NameSecure

------
lurchpop
i love <http://domai.nr> for searching availability.

------
jonursenbach
Love Name.com

------
kickdaddy
name.com - they are honest, small (i.e. responsive) and do the right thing

------
petervandijck
joker.com is pretty good.

------
treitnauer
We've started building a better experience for domain seekers at
<http://iwantmyname.com>.

