Ask HN: Who do you use and recommend as a registrar? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Who do you use and recommend as a registrar?

12 pointswebmaven26 comments

I have a bunch of domain renewals coming up, and would like to transfer them to a registrar that is cheaper and easier to use. Who are your picks?

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I've used Network Solutions, NameCheap, Gandi, and a handful of specific ccTLD registrars. I never had any problems with any of them and I wouldn't worry about what you chose too much.

That being said, I like using Gandi knowing they support (financially or otherwise) many amazing open source projects and organizations. Those that stand out to me include Debian, EFF, and CC, but I recommend you take a look at the full list[0] on their website. They also take a strong stance against SOPA[1] (and clones) and prominently display their no bullshit stance[2] on their website and merchandise.

There's also a bit of a bonus if you're slightly tech savvy because you can often find their devs on Freenode at #gandi-mail or #gandi-hosting, though it's not advertised and there's no guarantee.

[0] https://www.gandi.net/supports/

[1] http://www.gandibar.net/post/2011/12/23/Gandi-s-Opposition-t...

[2] https://www.gandi.net/no-bullshit

I have domains registered with Namecheap, Dynadot and Gandi. I'd recommend any of them, although with Gandi be aware they have an "ethics" clause in their ToS which strikes me as being rather subjective and fuzzy. I wouldn't host anything public-facing on the domain I have registered with them for that reason.

I'm a fan of Badger [1] now as they have the lowest price I've seen that also includes whois privacy ($10).

If you want to use my referral link [2] you can register or transfer a domain for $5.

I'm also a big fan of Hover [3] and Namecheap [4] too. I generally want a no nonsense, no annoying upsells, simple domain registrar. You also should think about what TLD you want as different registrars will have different TLDs especially now that the new GTLDs have arrived.

[1]: http://badger.com [2]: http://badger.com/derek [3]: http://hover.com [4]: http://namecheap.com

How much will renewals be, and how many domains can I transfer at that price?

I've been happy with (and slowly moving domains to) https://www.iwantmyname.com over the past couple of years.

Seconded. I've been happy with them after I migrated from GoDaddy.

I used to use Gandi, but I've since moved all of my domains over to iwantmyname.com. They're UI is awesome but their support is even better.

(As a meta-comment, whenever VPS comparisons are brought up on HN, it's always Linode vs Digital Ocean. Gut feeling to compare apples to oranges for domains providers, Gandi is Linode while iwantmyname is the Digital Ocean)

I use name.com.

They'd be fine, except that if you use their DNS servers, they by default add a wildcard record pointing to spammy domain parking pages, breaking NXDOMAIN. And don't expose it in the UI, so that it's very easy to miss that they're doing it and not easy to figure out how to disable it. (Answer: by adding a wildcard TXT record).

Interesting, they didn't used to do this before - they also got rid of their affiliate program a few months ago. Maybe it's time to go registrar shopping

I use 'Gossimer' https://www.gossimer.com/price-list.php

Referral link: https://www.gossimer.com/aff.php?aff=253

I use GoDaddy. They have amazing customer support and you can always find 33% off a domain. It ends up being under $50 for 5 years. I wouldn't host with them or provide a primary email as they spam like motherfuckers, but just to register it has been a positive experience.

What part of their registration is a positive experience?

Dynadot has been rock solid -- also, as a plus, they have an API (albeit a mediocre one -- but hey, it works). I like being able to register via CURL without dealing with their web site, and we integrated basic domain purchasing into our product as well.

Dreamhost is great for domains, and has a beautiful ecosystem for everything else. Also the referral program is amazing. I get like $10 a month because I referred someone once.

The management panel is SUPER clunky, though. I don't have to mess with my domains often, but when I do, I like it to be a pleasant experience.

I'm using domain factory, df.eu. The prices are ok, but their web interface is a bit confusing.

namecheap.com

I only do 10 year registrations (SEO) and NameCheap has a big discount for those.

There is no SEO benefit for 10 year domain registrations.

It is accepted as a signal that can influence ranking because generally a spammer would only register for a year...

Accepted by whom? Is there any actual proof?

Hard to prove anything in a blackbox. But domain registration length is something most people think is considered. Take a look at http://www.searchenginejournal.com/infographic-googles-200-r...

Irrelevant for some TLDs that don't show the world your domain expiry date.

Do you have a list of such TLDs?

Sorry, I don't have a list of others. Australia (.au) stopped showing it to rule out all of those renewal/transfer scams and it has worked really well since.

Gandi, although I've heard good things about DNSimple

+1 for Gandi. I've used and recommended them for ages. Simple clean interface, works a treat and does exactly what I need. Great prices too.

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