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Articles ~ August 2007

Top 5 Domain Registrars

Domain Registration vs Hosting: What's the Difference?

What is domain registration, exactly?

In our July 2007 article we discussed web hosting. If the web host is the physical location where your web site files are stored, the domain name is the address needed to find your site. A web address (also known as a URL) looks like www.yoursite.com.

If you are in the process of setting up a web site, you will need both web hosting and a domain name. If you don't have web hosting set up already, consider reading our July 2007 web hosting article. We recommend that you set up web hosting before registering your new domain! Why? Because hosting plans increasingly offer 1 free domain registration per account. If domain registration is included in your hosting plan, make sure you can take the name with you if you choose to leave. If you can't take it with you, consider registering your domain name separately.

Ok. So you have hosting set up. How do you register a domain name? There are thousands of online companies acting as domain name registrars. Their job is to register a domain name for you - at your request - and allow you to point the new address toward your hosting account.

How do you pick a domain name? It can be quite a chore to come up with a unique URL. When it's time to start running names through a domain name utility, remember to keep them short, memorable and easy to spell. Most domain registrars provide a utility that allows you to search for an available address. Like phone numbers, each domain name has to be unique so that people can find your site online. If the Web contained duplicate domain names, think of how much confusion there would be!

Another thing you'll need to consider is the extension of your domain name. The extension is the .com, .ca or .org tacked on the end of each web address. In the early days of the Web, there were just a handful of extensions: .com for commercial, .org for non-profit organizations, .net for network services as well as national identifiers such as .ca for Canada, and .uk for the United Kingdom. The growth of the Web - and the need for unique domain names - has created a demand for more extensions resulting in the likes of .biz, .tv and .pro. The .com extension is by far the most popular - but that also means available names can be hard to come by. If www.yoursite.com isn't available, maybe www.yoursite.ca is. Most domain name search utilities allow you to search several extensions at a time.

When you register your new domain, you will have to provide the registrar with contact information including a physical address and e-mail address. Some companies offer an add-on 'Private WHOIS' service which protects your contact information, keeping you safe from things like identity theft and spam. If that service isn't available or is prohibitively expensive, consider opening a hotmail or g-mail account just for your domain name contact information. At the very least, that's one less source of spam in your regular e-mail in-box.

Once you have your new domain name registered, follow your web host's instructions for pointing your new domain name to their nameservers (the technical term for the physical location of your web host's computers). Remember, if you get stuck, you can always call customer support.

Ok, enough technical stuff. What should you look for when choosing a domain name registrar? Go with one that:

Is easy to use

The best way to tell whether or not a domain registrar is right for you is to browse their site. Test the domain search utility to see if a given URL is available. If the site is easy to use and informative, great! If it's hard to find what you're looking for, move on!

Lists the price up front and is priced competitively

How much should you expect to pay to register a domain? The least you can expect to pay is in the $8-10 USD per year range. The average cost is in the neighbourhood of $15-20 USD per year. Some companies - such as Canada Post - charge as much as $50 per year for .ca registration! Is there any benefit to paying more? Paying more doesn't mean better service or more features. The only way to tell is to do a feature by feature comparison. Big companies can afford to charge less, but tend to suffer in the personalized service and support department.

Has a good reputation

When choosing a domain registrar, make sure the company is reputable and has a proven track record. Like hosting companies, domain registrars come and go, so make sure yours is stable and legitimate; check online user reviews such as www.consumersearch.com.

Offers comprehensive features

Make a list of the features offered at each registrar you are considering - and note whether the site explains what those features mean. Quality sites will go out of their way to explain what each feature means and how and why it can be beneficial to you. Reputable registrars will clearly post their prices and include all (or most) features in that price. Beware registrars who charge extra fees for basic services such as domain forwarding. One feature worth paying a premium for is Private WHOIS, also known as ID Protection, which keeps your personal contact information from being publicly accessible.

Comes with e-mail and telephone support

Your best bet is to call and/or e-mail to find out whether the support is adequate. It's unlikely you'll need much in the way of support - but if you do need it, it's great to know it's available.

Top 5 Domain Registrars - as selected by Black Cap Design

1. Namecheap

Namecheap ranks first because of price, ease of use, features and positive user reviews. The cost to register a .com extension for 1 year is $8.88 USD and $15.95 USD for a .ca extension. The site is easy to use and user reviews are consistently good: see user reviews at www.namepros.com. Namecheap is located in Westchester, California, USA.

2. Dynadot

At $7.99 USD per year, Dynadot is the least expensive, quality domain registrar we could find. Their site is well designed and easy to use. And they are certified by the Better Business Bureau. User reviews are consistently positive. So why isn't it #1? Our only beef is they don't offer registration for .ca extensions. Check out the user reviews at www.namepros.com. Dynadot is located in San Mateo, California, USA.

3. Godaddy

Love them or hate them, massive online companies can offer cut-rate pricing because of their huge volume of sales. Godaddy is the largest US domain registrar there is - and one of the cheapest. The yearly cost for .com registration is $8.95 USD. If you're looking for a .ca extension, look elsewhere. Godaddy - like many large US registrars - don't offer .ca extensions. Godaddy's site is cluttered but manageable. Their packages are feature-rich. User reviews are satisfactory. Check out Godaddy user reviews at http://www.namepros.com. Godaddy is located in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA.

4. Namespro

We rank Namespro at #4 because - in our opinion - it's the best place to register a .ca extension. The yearly cost for .ca registration is $12.88 CDN. The site is user friendly and we've found the customer support to be excellent. They also provide private WHOIS service for a 1-time fee of $6.88 - which is a feature many registrars don't offer for .ca domains. We weren't able to find independent reviews for Namespro but our clients' experience has been consistently positive. NamesPro is located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

5. Domains at Cost

Domains at cost is another registrar offering .ca extensions at a great price; $12.95 CDN per year. It also offers competitive pricing on .com, .net and .org extensions; $12.95 USD per year. The site is well laid out and easy to use. We weren't able to find independent reviews, although our clients' experience with this company has been good. They have been around for several years. Domainsatcost is located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Help us build the Top 5 list

We're interested in knowing about your experiences with domain registration. If you have recommendations for or comments about our Top 5 Domain Registrars, drop us a line at .