Domain Availability Checker
Type a name to see which extensions you can still register and what they really cost, renewal included. Type a domain that is taken and get a full report: its age, owner details, history, hosting and whether the site works.
How the domain availability check works
Most domain search boxes belong to a registrar, so their answer comes with a sales pitch and sometimes a nudge toward a pricier extension. RipeLinks asks the registries directly and shows you what they said, in three steps:
- DNS first. If a domain has name servers in the global DNS, someone owns it. This answer is instant and certain, so most taken names are marked within a second.
- Then the registry's RDAP service. RDAP is the official, structured successor to WHOIS that every generic extension (.com, .net, .app, .xyz and hundreds more) must run. When the registry says it has no record of a name, we mark it Available.
- WHOIS for the rest. A handful of popular country-code extensions, including .io, .co, .me, .us, .de, .eu and .jp, still only answer over the older WHOIS protocol. We query their WHOIS servers and read the answer, so these extensions are checked too instead of being skipped.
If none of the three gives a clear answer we show Unknown rather than guess. When a name is available, each row shows the cheapest first-year price, what it renews at, and a Compare button with every registrar we track. When a name is taken, the Report button builds a full profile of the domain.
Type a domain that is taken, get a full report
Wanting a name that someone else already registered is where most searches end. Here it is where the useful part starts, because the report answers the questions you would otherwise research one tool at a time:
- Age and registration: when it was registered, when it expires, the registrar, its lock status, and whether the owner's details are public. A domain expiring in a few weeks is worth watching.
- History: the first year the Wayback Machine archived it and every year since. If the archive is older than the current registration, the domain expired at some point and changed hands. That matters if you plan to buy it, and it matters if you want a link from it.
- Hosting and DNS: the IP address and the company that owns it, the name servers, whether it receives email, and its SPF record.
- The live website: every redirect hop with its status code, whether it ends on HTTPS, the page title, and whether it allows search engines to index it.
- Ripeness: a one-line verdict on how established the domain is, with the reasons, so you can tell an aged, active site from a freshly re-registered one at a glance.
What popular extensions really cost
Lowest first-year price and lowest renewal among the registrars we track, in USD per year. Checked 2026-10-26.
| Extension | Cheapest first year | Cheapest renewal |
|---|---|---|
| .com | $10.88 at Dynadot | $10.88 at Dynadot |
| .net | $12.52 at Porkbun | $12.52 at Porkbun |
| .org | $7.98 at Porkbun | $11.64 at Dynadot |
| .io | $28.12 at Porkbun | $51.80 at Porkbun |
| .ai | $82.70 at Porkbun | $82.70 at Porkbun |
| .co | $15.50 at Dynadot | $31.20 at Porkbun |
| .app | $8.00 at Dynadot | $14.50 at Dynadot |
| .dev | $8.00 at Dynadot | $12.50 at Dynadot |
| .xyz | $1.99 at Dynadot | $14.21 at Porkbun |
| .me | $9.42 at Dynadot | $17.27 at Porkbun |
.ai is sold for a minimum of two years by most registrars; the table shows the yearly price. See every extension in the domain extensions list.
Two things stand out in any price comparison. First, the gap between first-year and renewal prices: an extension that costs two dollars today can cost fifteen next year, and you will pay the renewal price for as long as you keep the name. Second, the spread between registrars for the same extension is usually small for .com and large for newer extensions. Checking both columns before you register takes a minute and saves money every year.
From a name to your first backlink
RipeLinks covers the whole path of launching a site, not just the search box.
- Find a nameCheck it across extensions, including domain hacks like orchard.tools.
- Compare and registerFirst-year and renewal prices side by side, then register at the registrar you choose.
- Look before you buyTaken? See its age, history and expiry date in the report.
- Launch cleanlyCheck DNS records, redirects and robots.txt before you announce anything.
- Earn linksUse the Chrome extension to find blogs that accept comments and recheck your links.
All free tools
Choose a domain
Bulk Domain Checker
Paste up to 100 domains and see which ones you can register, with prices.
Domain Extensions List
Every popular TLD with registration and renewal prices side by side.
Username Checkercoming soon
See if the same name is free on social networks.
Look up a domain
WHOIS Lookup
Registrar, creation and expiry dates, status and name servers from the registry.
Domain Age Checker
How old a domain is, when it was first archived and whether it changed hands.
DNS Lookup
A, AAAA, MX, NS, TXT, CNAME, SOA and CAA records in one view.
SSL Checkercoming soon
Certificate issuer and expiry date.
Check a live site
Redirect Checker
Every hop of a redirect chain with status codes, loops and HTTPS problems.
Robots.txt & AI Crawler Checker
Whether Googlebot, GPTBot, ClaudeBot and others may crawl a page.
Open Graph Checkercoming soon
Preview how a link looks when shared.
Choosing a domain name that lasts
A good name is short enough to say once and type correctly, avoids hyphens and numbers people mishear, and does not borrow anyone else's brand. Before you fall for a name, search it here, then search the trademark databases linked under the results. Brand owners can and do win disputes over domains that copy their marks, and losing a domain after a year of building links is painful.
Prefer .com when it is available at a normal price, because it is the extension people type by default. If it is taken, look at who holds it: an expired-and-parked .com might be for sale or about to drop, while an active business is unlikely to sell. Newer extensions like .app, .dev and .io are perfectly good for products, but check their renewal prices and remember that .app and .dev only work over HTTPS.
Finally, buy the name before you tell anyone about it. We do not log or share the names you search, but plenty of other services do, and a good name posted in a public chat can be registered by someone else within hours.
Build links with the RipeLinks extension
Found a blog worth a comment? The free RipeLinks extension checks the page, drafts a comment from the article with your own AI key, fills the form for you to review, and rechecks the link a week later.
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is the domain availability check?
A domain shown as Taken is certain: it either has live name servers or the registry returned its record. A domain shown as Available means the registry has no record of it, which is right in the vast majority of cases. The exceptions are names a registry holds back (reserved or premium names) and domains deleted in the last few minutes. The registrar's checkout makes the final call, so always confirm there before you plan a launch around a name.
Why do some results say Unknown?
Some registries limit how often anyone can query them, and a few country-code registries only answer over the old WHOIS protocol in formats that change. When we cannot get a clear yes or no, we say so instead of guessing. Wait a minute and search again, or check that one extension directly at a registrar.
What is a premium domain?
Registries set aside short, memorable or dictionary names and sell them above the normal list price, sometimes for hundreds or thousands of dollars a year. Neither the registry lookup nor the public price lists reveal that, so for names of five characters or fewer we add a reminder that the real price may be higher.
Do you register domains or sell my searches?
No. RipeLinks is not a registrar. The Register button sends you to the registrar's own search page, and the price comparison simply lists each registrar's public prices. We do not log the names you search or share them with anyone, so nobody can watch our searches and register your idea before you do. Results are cached for a few minutes to keep registries happy, without any link to who asked.
Why is the renewal price higher than the first year?
Registrars often sell the first year at or below cost to win the customer, then charge the normal price from year two. For some extensions, like .xyz or .online, the difference is several times the first-year price. A domain is a long-term cost, so compare the renewal column before you choose where to register.
Can I check many domains at once?
Yes. Paste a list separated by new lines, spaces or commas and the search switches to bulk mode, or use the bulk domain checker, which takes up to 100 domains and exports the results as CSV.
What does the ripeness label mean?
It is our rule of thumb for judging a registered domain as a place to earn a link: Ripe means at least three years old with a continuous public history and a working, indexable website; Growing means younger, or with a break in its history; Unripe means under a year old or not working. The domain age checker explains each rule. It is not a search-engine score.
Where does the registration data come from?
From the registries themselves. We ask the registry's RDAP service, the modern replacement for WHOIS, and fall back to WHOIS for the extensions that have not adopted RDAP yet, such as .io, .co, .me and .de. Archive history comes from the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine and DNS from Cloudflare's public resolver.