How to choose a domain name for your startup

Eight rules of thumb for picking a name you can own, say and keep.

  1. Say it out loud. If you have to spell it over the phone, it’s a support ticket waiting to happen.

  2. Short beats clever. Aim for one or two words and under about 12 characters. Skip hyphens and digits.

  3. Check every TLD at once. If acme.io is available but acme.com belongs to a competitor, that’s a problem, not a bargain.

  4. Pick for your audience. A developer tool on .dev reads naturally. A local bakery on .ai doesn’t.

  5. Check trademarks and handles. A free domain is worth little if the name is trademarked or every social handle is taken.

  6. Compare renewal prices. First-year deals are common. Renewals are what you pay for the next decade.

  7. Buy it before you share it. Registration takes minutes. Losing a name you announced takes longer to get over.

  8. Turn on auto-renew. Most lost domains aren’t stolen. Someone forgot to renew.

Stuck? Try a domain hack, or read the TLD guide.

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