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Ask HN: Which domain registration site would you recommend?

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Re: Ask HN: Which domain registration site would you recommend?

#12
As mentioned already, the domain industry is known to pretty shady. Be careful.

I am working on a web service and iOS App that enables completely private domain name searching. That is, you can search for available domain names without even us knowing what you are searching for (this will all be verifiable and 100% transparent).

To be clear, we are not a registrar. We allow people to search available domain names without fear their domain idea will be stolen (by front running, etc). When ready to register, you can go to the registrar of your choice.

Any interested testers can contact me.

Re: Ask HN: Which domain registration site would you recommend?

#13
I use Dynadot, I consider them both really good and cheap. ;)

Dynadot is also an actual registrar rather than a reseller. I don't know if they allow this anymore, but last time I ordered an incorrect domain name I was able to delete it for a refund through the control panel of the site. I don't know of any other registrars that allow that.

Otherwise they have the same features of most other sites. Their interface is simple and maybe a little ugly but at least it's not plastered with ads.

Re: Ask HN: Which domain registration site would you recommend?

#14

I've used a number of different registrars, and the one I keep coming back to again and again is DreamHost. I don't know whether you need to host with them to use them to register domains, but ... here's what I love about them: DreamHost makes it really really easy to move your domains away from DreamHost. That sounds counter-intuitive (if they're so good, why would I want to move them away?), but it isn't. When you…

I recently moved a domain from Godaddy and did not have this experience, so perhaps things have changed. I just unlocked the domain and requested the authorisation code be emailed to me by clicking the relevant link in the control panel. My transfer to namecheap was complete within 3 hours.

Re: Ask HN: Which domain registration site would you recommend?

#17
post #8

Going beyond shady sales practices and bad customer service, I've actually had several registrars (and/or individual registrar employees) try to steal domains from me in the past, In some cases, I had to resort to lawsuits to get my domains back. I own a few thousand domains (no, I'm not a domain squatter), and all of the domains I've had trouble with were very valuable. The worst instance was over a two-letter .com…

How do you own several thousand domain names without being a squatter?

Also interested to hear any details about how they tried to steal domain names from you.

Re: Ask HN: Which domain registration site would you recommend?

#18
I highly recommend BlueHost if you plan on buying multiple domains. Its $10/domain, and for ~$60/year you can host unlimited domains there. It comes with SimpleScripts, which makes it a cinch to install wordpress, which is fine for putting up placeholder pages (or hosting a blog, of course).

A few other sites offer unlimited domain hosting, but the other thing that separates BlueHost in my mind is their support. There's 24/7 live chat support; I can't tell you how many times its gotten me out of a jam.

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