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Ask HN: Which domain registrar do you recommend?

25 points by xlii ↗ HN
I've been using GoDaddy for a long time (as probably it was one of the first international registrar that would take my local credit card) but after recent news and pointing out different issues with them I'd like to move out.

Since I own some regional domains that I'd like to move not all registrars are possible as a destination (I know, for instance, that Namecheap won't work due to the lack of .SE support).

What are some reputable domain registrars where I could move my domains to?

76 comments

[ 4.2 ms ] story [ 137 ms ] thread
faichai
gandi.net has been ok for me.
elliottinvent
I agree, I've experimented with maybe 15 over the last 20 years and Gandi is the best in my experience.
riffnote
Dynadot, because it allows domain tasting. If you impulsively buy a domain you later regret, they'll buy it back.

Reminds me of a blog post I wrote on why we buy bad domain names: https://medium.com/@jasoncomely/why-i-buy-bad-domain-names-e...

capableweb
Correction: Why _you_ buy bad domain names. It's even in the URL and title on medium.com ;)

I got a ton of domains as well, but it's largely having a positive effect on me. Once I have the domain for a project I'm working on, I always end up at least shipping a MVP, as otherwise I feel like I'm spending money on something I'm not using. If I didn't get the domain, I'd probably end up releasing nothing, instead of something. Some projects survives longer than that.

cbhl
A lot of the .se registrars are in Sweden, but if you're just using it as a name hack then your options may be more limited (eNom/Tucows, Name.com, and Dyn (which was acquired by Oracle and then subsequently by name.com)).

Maybe try Hover? Based out of Canada, provided by Tucows.

You might have to use more than one registrar to get coverage on all your regional domains, depending on how many you have.

gkbrk
Very happy with Namecheap [1]. I have 3 domains registered with them, one of them going back a long time. Never had problems with anything from search to payment.

They have 2FA support that works with the open source TOTP apps too.

[1]: https://www.namecheap.com

ochronus
+1, I've been a happy user for a few years now
captn3m0
They support U2F as well now - works great.
greenbush
Namecheap is expensive when you go to renew. I switched all my domains to Porkbun - cheaper, and a cleaner/simpler UI.
cosmotic
Which TLD did they increase on renew?
saaaaaam
I’ve used iwantmyname.com for years and am very happy with them. I’ve got around 50 domains in there but have managed as many as 150 through them before. Good support when I’ve needed it and simple but powerful interface.
ggm
I moved mine to google because it's pretty much zero stupid. I do sometimes feel captured by the borg.
JustARandomGuy
Very happy with Porkbun ( https://porkbun.com/ ). Newer registrar, but their console is clean, nice looking, and it's easy to update settings.
markdown
It's haram.
pinpanpuchi
didnt expect to see the word 'haram' in HN forum with an international audience :)
_hao
Gandi[1] and Namecheap[2] are the only ones that I trust.

[1]: https://www.gandi.net/

[2]: https://www.namecheap.com/

sandGorgon
you should look at this for Gandi - https://www.cbronline.com/cloud/gandi-outage-hardware-failur...
ptman
Different service. They got most of the data back in the end. And you should always have backups somewhere else. I'm not sure why this is relevant.
undecisive
Yeah, at the time they got a lot of bad press for their abysmal support responses. Things like saying that their backup solution was not a backup solution, blaming the customer, etc etc.

Saying that people should have geographically diversified backups is like saying you should always read the T&Cs of every website you interact with. Yes, you definitely should. But many people would rather just trust the brand, and a trust broken is not easily fixed.

And understandably, that broken trust has a knock-on effect for other services in the same brand.

_hao
I wasn't aware of this but shit happens. I don't use their cloud (have some e-mail boxes that forward to my own so I have copies), but I can see how something like that can be an issue with people.

Also this is just another example of how Twitter shouldn't be used for any serious type of communication.

marmaduke
Doesn't appear to affect their DNS but VM hosting service. Kind of embarrassing but is it relevant?
Washuu
Gandi's systems are incapable of handling a legal name change. You have to create a brand new account, individually transfer ownership of every single domain to the new account one by one, and then manually update all four contacts for each domain one at a time. It actually would have been faster and easier for me to transfer to a new registrar.

https://docs.gandi.net/en/account_management/faq/index.html#...

guillim85
Gandi is made for you if : - you need several (internal or external) users to have rights on your domains - you need to control your domains with an API - you need to be able to register domains for any customer or partner

If you have many domains, that you need to handle manually, any operation on all domain will take time, as it would likely take time with any other registrar.

drevil-v2
I don't like Namecheap because they really rip you off when the time comes for annual renewal. Much more expensive than others to the point where if you are certain that you will need the domain for longer than a year it is better to go elsewhere.

Here is how you can test it (using .io or .me domains): Search for domain on Namecheap, they usually have good prices for the 1st year. Add it to cart and then change it to 3 years and watch the price zoom up, not to 3x but more like 6-8x in cost. Now go to a different registrar and do the same. In my experience for 3 years Namecheap are always more expensive.

bearbin
NearlyFreeSpeech.NET is the registrar I use. They're a web hosting company, so domain registration is not their only service, but they have an excellent company philosophy and customer-friendly policy set.

I've been using them for about 10 years now, and they have been extremely reliable, zero-maintenance; and the web-interface is very easy to use and logically organised. (no javascript!)

Their prices aren't too bad either, since domain registration isn't their main priority.

Only downside is that they don't support all domain types, only the legacy GTLDs and a small list of new ones: https://www.nearlyfreespeech.net/services/domains

Stratoscope
I love NearlyFreeSpeech! I've been using them for hosting for many years. I used to use WebFaction as well back in their glory days, but since they were bought by GoDaddy (ugh!) I've been migrating the few sites I had there over to NFS. The only straggler is one WordPress site I maintain for a friend, and I will move that one over shortly.

I had no idea that NFS also handled domain registration. I use Gandi for all my domains, especially since they have so many TLDs available and like NFS have a clean and simple business model. The only exception is a .to domain that seems to be available only through tonic.to. Ah well.

But thanks for mentioning that NFS also offers domain registration - I will have to check this out.

dangus
Well, you basically started with the worst one, so things are looking up for you!
xlii
For my defense it was probably more than 20 years ago. Lazyness is always a good excuse.
dangus
It’s hard to convey over text, but I definitely intended to be lighthearted about it!

I know I was once a GoDaddy customer, too. For the time, they were fine.

ilmiont
iwantmyname
rullopat
I'm surprised to don't see more mentions about iwantmyname. I'm very happy with their service.
dddw
I have my domains somewhere else, but iwantmyname their domain buy page is definitely one of my favourites, all those TLDs!
[dead] person977777
Amazon Route 53.

Doesn’t rip you off, automated renewals, integrated with DNS etc.

capableweb
I regularly use three different providers depending on needs.

- Gandi for general usage, free and hassle-free https://www.gandi.net/

- Njalla when my privacy is needed and don't want to risk the domain from being taken over/down because of moral/ethical issues (nothing illegal, but for "frowned upon" websites) https://njal.la/

- dnsimple when needing absolute control over as much as possible, flexibility in using APIs for controlling the zone and for really important domains, costs 5 USD per month minimum though https://dnsimple.com/

sidyapa
Porkbun

1. No questions asked 48 hour cancellation 2. Free WHOIS 3. Cheapest in most TLDs 4. Most user friendly Dashboard and processes 5. Plethora of payment options (crypto included)

sidcool
I am using Google domains. Haven't had any complaints, neither from friends nor from here at HN.
michaelsitver
Ranking the domain providers I've used: 1. Google Domains (Simple and easy) 2. Namecheap (Pretty decent) 3. Gandi.net. Perfectly fine. 4. Godaddy (cheap/ubiqutous, a bit of a hassle) 5. Oneandone. Spammed me constantly.
jrnkntl
I've been using Cloudflare Registrar[1] for a year now for all .com domains. No nonsense or extra fees. Gandhi[2] for exotic TLDs (best price). For EU domain TLDs I stick to Vimexx[3] (in Dutch).

[1] https://www.cloudflare.com/products/registrar/

[2] https://www.gandi.net/

[2] https://vimexx.eu/

captn3m0
They don't support buying new domains right? You need to buy elsewhere and transfer to CloudFlare.

Plus, their TLD coverage isn't great.

radoomi
They actually do now. Not great TLD coverage is true though
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frisovv
In The Netherlands, I use openprovider (https://openprovider.com/). They are actually a reseller solution for agencies and such, but it works equally well for personal domain registration needs. Pricing is competitive, service is excellent, and they are small enough to pick up the phone if necessary.

I also like to think that a registrar with a support desk that operates in my local language (Dutch) reduces the attack vector for social engineering.

dddw
Been using them for 5+ years now. Both as reseller and private. I can attest to them being very good. Pricing is real good, but does depend on your volume. At some point it becomes interesting to get a subscription for which you get most domains at cost-price. Their service is indeed outstanding, often sameday reply on mail with actual solutions.

I wouldn't call them small though, they are in the top 50 domain registrars in the world, and I guess the biggest in NL.

leptons
I've migrated a few dozen domains from Godaddy to Namecheap, for various reasons, mostly because Godaddy absolutely sucks.

Namecheap tech support is great. Loving their dynamic DNS application too since I'm taking advantage of my 500mbit up/down running a server at home. I've had no problems with Namecheap since I started using them a few years ago and finally migrated everything over to them a few months ago.

Goodbye Godaddy!! Good riddance!

cnorthwood
For personal projects I use Gandi, for work I use AWS Route53 Domains.
jdmoreira
I've always used Gandi and have no complains