For beginners
No domains yet? Start here.
Domain trading looks like gambling from the outside and is craftsmanship from within: finding names, assessing them, holding them, selling them. This page explains how to get started without paying tuition in four figures in your first year.
Two ways to enter, with different costs
Buy what already exists
A domain held by someone else costs more than a new registration, but comes with what cannot be registered: age, backlinks, possibly traffic. For beginners, the more honest path because you see what a name is worth on the market instead of guessing.
Register new
A free domain costs only a few euros per year. That's the cheap part. The expensive part is that out of a hundred names you come up with yourself, maybe two will actually be wanted by someone, and the renewal continues for all hundred.
We're currently building a multi-registrar search with price comparison. Until then, register where you like and link the domain here.
What makes a name valuable
Short and memorable
What you have to spell out over the phone loses. Two syllables beat four, one word beats two.
A term that exists
Words that people search for and terms from your industry. Made-up words work when a brand is behind them, but you don't have that at the beginning.
Extension suited to the market
.de for Germany, .com international. An exotic extension doesn't make a weak name strong.
No third-party trademark
The fastest way to lose money and domain. Check the trademark register before purchase, not after.
Demand, not taste
The question is never whether you like the name, but whether a business needs it.
Age and history
An old domain can come with backlinks, but also a past as a spam source. Both are worth a look in the web archive.
The mistakes everyone makes at the start
- 01Too much at onceA hundred domains in the first month means a hundred renewals in the twelfth. Start with five you can justify.
- 02In love with your own ideaA name you find brilliant is not yet a market. Check if anyone searches for the term and if there are companies that need it.
- 03Price out of the blueNeither €50 nor €50,000. Look at what comparable names actually sold for and price accordingly.
- 04Let the domain sitA domain without a page won't be found. A sales page with text, title, and sitemap costs nothing and brings the inquiry you're waiting for.
- 05Forgotten renewalThe most common total loss there is. Here, expiration dates are automatically checked from the registry and displayed before it gets tight.
What you get here for it
Valuation, free
Have every domain assessed, even one you don't own yet. With reasoning, not just a number.
Completed Sales
What was actually paid here, with domain, amount, and month. The best benchmark for your own price.
Sales page at no cost
Each domain gets its own page with description and offer field, without subscription or base fee.
Buyer protection on purchases
Your first purchase goes through escrow: you pay us, not a stranger.
Lease-to-own
When the first good name costs more than you want to spend at once.
Manual and videos
Reference guide and three screenshots showing how it really looks.
An honest word about making money
Domain trading is not a quick business. Most names sit for years before anyone asks about them, and many are never asked about. Anyone starting out should calculate this way: What do renewals cost me over three years, and am I prepared to lose that amount? Anyone who starts this way stays calm when the first year brings nothing, and that's the real advantage over someone who starts with expectations.