Content

• Steps
• Advice

This wiki page shows you how to buy a domain name for a website.

Steps

1. 

   Visit the domain registration website. Open a web browser and go to a domain registration website. Popular sites include:
   • GoDaddy.com
   • Google Domains
   • Register.com
   • Squarespace

2. 

   
   
   Choose a domain name. Use the name that best matches the nature of your website.

3. 

   Check if the domain name is available. Registration sites usually have a search field on their home page. Enter the domain name you want in this field and press ⏎ Return.
   • Occasionally, certain types of domain names will not be available, eg.com, however with.net, .biz or.co will be available.
   • Some domain extensions apply only to certain organizations: .edu is reserved for educational institutions; .org is used for nonprofits, and .gov or.us is used for government websites.

4. 

   
   
   Select the domain name you want to buy.

5. 

   Select the number of years you want to pay for the domain name. Domain names need to be renewed regularly, so you will need to decide how many years to register a domain name.
   • Normally, you can register a domain name up to every 10 years.

6. 

   
   
   Select additional services. If you want to purchase additional services, such as web design, hosting, or additional email addresses, add them to your shopping cart before checking out.

7. 

   Payment for domain names and services. You now own the domain name.
   • Now you can either start building your website or migrate your existing website to a new domain name.
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Advice

• Depending on exclusivity, the first choice of domain name may not be successful, so you should have some other backup names available.
• Most major domain registration sites offer additional services like web building, as well as email and website hosting.