Domain registrars play a crucial role in the domain name management process. Therefore, it is important to be careful while choosing one!
If you are a beginner looking for the perfect domain name registrar for your website, you are at the right place! This article is dedicated to the Best Domain Name Registrars in India for 2021.
I have spent months on testing and researching a variety of domain registrars out there. And this article is based on my honest experiences with each of the featured services.
In this article, we will begin with the basics and understand what a domain registrar is and also cover domain extension types. Then, we will touch up on the major factors you should consider before choosing a domain registrar.
And finally, we will jump onto the meat of this article – the 10 Best Domain Registrars in India for 2021! So, with no further ado, let’s get started!
What is a Domain Name Registrar?
A Domain Registrar refers to a company that helps you search for a domain name and register it for a specific time period.
It is also responsible for assigning a unique IP address to your domain name. GoDaddy, Namecheap, Dynadot, BigRock, etc are some well-known examples.
Domain Registrars are accredited by a non-profit organization called ICANN (International Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) that essentially makes policies, decides the domain extensions, and also manages DNS, IP addresses, etc.
Want to hear a fun fact? Here it goes!
You cannot really “purchase” a domain name. You simply register it and get it on lease for a specific period, say 12 months.
After this time is up, you need to pay a renewal amount in order to keep your domain registration alive. If this amount is not paid, you lose the ownership of the domain and it is free to be purchased by anyone on the Internet!
If you have ever searched for a domain name, you might’ve also come across a term called ‘domain extension’. The price of your domain name entirely depends on the extension. So, let’s understand it in depth.
Types of Domain Extensions
Domain extension, (also called as TLD) refers to the last part of a domain name. It is also called a domain suffix. For example, if I talk about my website- kripeshadwani.com, the ‘.com’ part is the domain extension.
You might have come across various types of Top-level domains on the Internet. But we classify them into 3 broad types.
1. Generic Top-Level Domains (gTLD)
They comprise the most popular domain extensions used across the globe. gTLDs indicate the domain or industry that they belong to.
Some common examples of gTLDs might be:
- .com (for commercial websites)
- .org (for organizations)
- .gov (for government websites)
- .edu (for educational websites)
- .net (for online businesses)
2. Country Code Top-Level Domain (ccTLD)
These domain extensions are focused towards the audience of a specific country or a geographical location.
Some examples might be:
- .in (for Indian websites)
- .uk (for United Kingdom)
- .ca (for Canada)
- .fr (for France)
- .pk (for Pakistan)
3. New Top-Level Domains (nTLD)
These are the latest domain extensions primarily focused on brands and services. You will find hundreds of nTLDs being used today.
For example, if your website content is focused on food, you can go for the .coffee, .restaurant, or .recipe extensions.
If your website deals with technical content, .tech, .app, or .software extensions would be the perfect choice for you!
Other popular examples might be .xyz, .online, .live, .digital, .me, etc.
Factors for Selecting the Right Domain Name Registrar in India
A domain registrar’s job is not just limited to providing domains. It also offers services for security and convenience to its customers.
So, it is essential to do your research properly while considering a domain registrar. To help you out with the process, I have listed down the important factors that you should consider before choosing a domain registrar.
Let us go through them one by one.
WHOIS Protection
When you register for a new domain, you provide all your personal details to the registrar including your contact number, home address, etc.
These details are stored in a database called the WHOIS database. It stores personal information of all the domain owners around the globe.
But why should that concern you? Because this database is publicly available for anyone to see.
When any random user on the Internet can access your phone number and email, it might lead to lots of spam calls and mails, and even your online websites might be vulnerable to hacks!
Therefore, you need a WHOIS Guard. A WHOIS Guard essentially masks all your sensitive data from being displayed on the web, hence ensuring more privacy.
Some domain registrars provide WHOIS protection for free, while some charge an additional amount for it. We should always prefer the free WHOIS protection.
New Domain Price
When selecting a domain registrar, the major deciding factor for most users is the pricing. On an average, you might expect the first year pricing for .com domains to be between ₹520 to ₹860. You might also get to see additional discounts and offers during the sales season.
Domain Renewal Price
You always register a domain for a specific time period, say between 1-10 years. After this time is up, you need to pay a Renewal amount in order to keep the access to your domain with yourself.
The renewal prices are much higher than the new domain prices. So, it’s important to choose a registrar that does not charge unreasonable prices on renewals.
Payment Options
A good domain registrar provides sufficient payment options for its customers, including debit and credit cards, Stripe, PayPal, and even cryptocurrency.
But because we are focusing on the Indian users, we will prefer our domain registrar to offer the UPI Payments option.
Customer Support
An ideal domain registrar offers live chat support, phone call support and a comprehensive knowledge base of articles, video tutorials, FAQs, and how-to guides that help you solve your queries quickly.
So, always check out the support options provided by a registrar before buying a domain with them.
Domain Security
Every registrar has a different policy for domain security. It basically refers to the policies regarding domain expiry and renewal, protection from domain theft, etc.
Before registering your domain, always thoroughly understand these policies laid out by the registrar.
User Interface
After you register a domain, you will need to set up your website, manage the DNS settings, and more. This would require you to spend a lot of time on your domain account.
Thus, it is essential for a domain registrar to have a simple and clean interface even beginners can access with ease.
About Registrar
The history of a domain registrar also plays an important role in the quality of services they offer.
For example, if you go for a registrar that is under development, you might experience a lack of features, support guides, customer support, etc.
Generally, it is safe to go with old and more established domain providers.
Upsells
Upselling is a clever sales technique that attracts customers into buying additional products along with their current purchase.
Many domain registrars automatically include extra services like privacy protection, SSL certificate, website builder, etc along with your domain purchase.
Thus, beginners might get tricked into paying for services they don’t need. So, always choose a registrar that uses minimum upselling tactics.
Best Domain Name Registrars in India 2021
After months of extensive research and testing, I have come up with a list of the 10 Best Domain Registrars in India for 2021.
For every domain registrar mentioned below, I have discussed its brief history, pricing for new .com domains and their renewals, supported payment options, customer support, and the user interface.
In the end, I have also compiled the pros and cons of each. So, taking up no more time, let’s check out our Best Domain Registrars.
1. Namecheap
Namecheap is a domain registration and web hosting company certified by ICANN. It was founded back in 2000 by Richard Kirkendall and has its headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona (United States).
Namecheap is a popular domain registrar. As of now it has over 13 million domains worldwide! It supports 497 domain extensions as of now, and also provides security services, easy domain transfer, and email services.
Pricing
These are the yearly pricing for new domain registrations and domain renewals of some popular TLDs on Namecheap.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | ₹659.75 | ₹964.37 |
| .in | ₹506.40 | ₹741.48 |
| .org | ₹682.04 | ₹1112.97 |
| .net | ₹815.78 | ₹1112.97 |
| .xyz | ₹74.30 | ₹956.94 |
If you are looking to register a new domain, Namecheap is pretty affordable. However, the renewal prices are elevated!
They offer a free WHOIS guard to protect your personal details from online intruders. Businesses can also enable their Premium DNS for (₹365.27/year) for 100% uptime and protection against DDoS attacks.
Payment Options
Namecheap accepts International debit and credit cards, PayPal, Bitcoin, and BitCoin Cash payments. Sadly, they don’t support UPI or other Indian Payment options!
Customer Support
Namecheap offers email and live chat support to its customers. Their support team is knowledgeable and their replies are quick and informative.
They have a deep knowledge base with in-depth answers to almost all your queries.
Additionally, you will also find:
- Guru Guides: You can ask for expert advice from professionals.
- How-to Videos: Step-by-step video guides to demonstrate every process.
- Blog: A collection of articles written by their top bloggers.
- Status Updates: You can verify how their service is performing at present.
User Interface
Namecheap provides an easy to use and straightforward interface. The domain purchase and domain management process is made simpler with its non intrusive UI.
It also offers an Android app that works smoothly, so you won’t have any problem using it on your mobile either.
Domain Security
When your domain expires, your website and email services are stopped. However, Namecheap offers a 30-days grace period for gTLDs. So, if you own a generic TLD, you can renew your domain at regular prices till 30 days after expiry.
If the domain is not renewed within this time, it enters a redemption period of 30 days. You can still renew your domain in this phase but at an additional fee along with the renewal amount.
Generally, a domain is available for re-registration after 70-80 days of expiry.
Pros
- Supports 497 TLDs
- Good live chat support
- Excellent and friendly interface
- Free WHOIS guard
- 30 days renewal grace period
- Easy domain name transfer
Because many users have a Namecheap account, domain transfer becomes extremely easy and effortless!
- Compatible with other hosting providers
- Frequent updates to TLDs
Namecheap frequently keeps on adding new TLDs to its list, so you can enjoy your favourite domain extensions!
- Lots of support guides
If you have never purchased a domain name before, Namecheap has many support guides available on their websites to help you with editing your DNS records, setting up your email, etc.
Cons
- No UPI or Indian Payment Options
- Renewal rates are High (but it’s still cheaper than others)
Conclusion
Namecheap is our old, established, and reliable domain registrar. If you are looking for ease of use, excellent support, and loads of extensions to choose from, Namecheap is my best budget recommendation to you.
Whether you are a beginner or an experienced user, Namecheap is a suitable option for everyone!
2. Dynadot
Dynadot is a popular ICANN certified domain registrar and web host company headquartered in San Mateo, California. It was founded back in 2002 by Todd Han, a software engineer by profession.
Along with domain registrations and web hosting services, it also offers website builders and privacy protection to its users.
It also supports 495+ domain extensions! Dynadot has seen massive improvements in the last few years and is growing to be one of the most desirable domain registrars!
Pricing
You will find the following annual prices for new domain names and domain renewals on Dynadot.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | $6.99 | $8.99 |
| .in | $6.85 | $6.99 |
| .org | $8.99 | $10.99 |
| .net | $5.99 | $10.99 |
| .xyz | $0.99 | $9.99 |
The cost of registering a new .com domain with Dynadot is $6.99 or ₹520.70, which is probably the cheapest you will find! They also offer a free WHOIS guard when you purchase a domain from their platform.
Overall, the prices are cost-effective except for the renewal charges for some specific TLDs.
Payment Options
Dynadot accepts a lot of payment methods including International credit and debit cards, PayPal, Alipay, Scrill, eCash, Bank Wire, Money Orders, cashier’s checks and personal checks, Apple Pay, and Bank Transfers from UPI
I really liked that Dynadot supports UPI Payments, which makes it a convenient option for the Indian audiences.
Read Dynadot Buying Guide to know the exact steps of buying a domain from GoDaddy with Indian payment options.
Customer Support
Dynadot offers customer support through email tickets and live chat. I found their live chat support to be quite helpful and polite.
They have a Forum with 7000+ posts on topics like web hosting, API, payment issues, feedback, etc. The Dynadot Blog comprises interesting posts related to domains, business, blogging, websites, and more!
User Interface
The interface of Dynadot really impressed me. They have an interface that is easy to navigate and modern in design.
They also feature a responsive mobile app for Android devices.
Domain Security
In case of domain expiry, Dynadot offers a 30 days renewal grace period where you can renew the domain at regular rates. After this, they still offer a 9 days grace period where you can renew with a $10 late fee on top of the renewal amount.
If the domain is still not renewed, it enters a redemption period of 1 month, where you need to pay extra charges to get back the domain.
Post this, your domain is finally deleted and is available for re-registry after about 5 days!
Pros
- No heavy upsells
- Affordable pricing
- Free WHOIS protection
- Helpful live chat support
- Friendly user interface
- 30 days renewal grace period
- Supports UPI Payments
- Large variety of TLDs available
- Frequent discounts
Dynadot frequently keeps on offering exciting deals and discounts on its services throughout the year. So, you can take advantage of that!
Cons
- Lack of setup guides
Unfortunately, Dynadot fails at offering enough support and setup guides. This makes it difficult for new users to set up their domain and start working with it!
Conclusion
Dynadot is hands down, one of the best domain registrars out there! It offers impressive services at affordable rates.
So, if you’re looking for a budget domain registrar that offers Indian payment options, a friendly interface, and helpful support, Dynadot would be a suitable fit for you.
But it might be somewhat complex for absolute beginners.
3. GoDaddy
GoDaddy is one of the largest domain registrars and web hosting providers with a customer base of 20 million+ users around the world! It was founded by Bob Parsons in 1997 and is located in Tempe, Arizona (United States).
It offers 507 domain extensions, which is the maximum seen so far in other popular registrars. Along with domain and hosting solutions, GoDaddy also provides website security, email and productivity tools, website builders, and marketing services.
Pricing
Below is a list of GoDaddy’s yearly rates for new domain registrations and their renewals for some popular TLDs.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | ₹849 | ₹999 |
| .in | ₹449 | ₹599 |
| .org | ₹749 | ₹1069 |
| .net | ₹1079 | ₹999 |
| .xyz | ₹149 | ₹979 |
At present, if you buy a .com domain for 2 years, you can get it for just ₹199! This looks like an amazing offer, right?
However, you are charged a massive ₹1049 in the second year! Thus, the total cost for two years comes to ₹1248. This is similar to the pricing of other domain registrars!
The good thing is that they offer a free WHOIS guard when you register a domain. It keeps your name, email, address, and contact number hidden.
But, you can also opt for Full Domain Privacy (for ₹299/year) to prevent domain hijacks, malicious transfers and accidental domain loss.
I agree that their pricing is decent, but we still have other domain registrars offering better services at much lower costs!
Payment Options
GoDaddy accepts the following payment options: Credit and Debit Cards, Cash Cards, Net Banking, PayPal, Google Pay, UPI Payments, etc. So, Godaddy is a decent option for the Indian audiences.
Read GoDaddy Buying Guide to know the exact steps of buying on GoDaddy.
Customer Support
GoDaddy offers 24×7 call support with a kind and helpful team. The best part is that it supports Hindi language. So, you can easily talk to them and get your queries resolved in your own language.
I found their live chat support to be quite confusing. Their responses even complicated my simple queries!
Their Help Center features short but informative articles on a variety of topics around, hosting, domains, and emails. They also have a community with 100k+ posts!
Finally, they also have a Blog with insightful articles covering topics like domains, hosting, security, marketing, emails, etc.
User Interface
The interface of GoDaddy is quite modern and works well on mobile devices as well! Overall, I faced no problems while working with it.
Domain Security
With GoDaddy, your site stops working after 5 days of expiry. You get an overall grace period of 18 days where you can renew your domain at regular prices.
Then, your domain enters a redemption period where you are charged an extra fee with the renewal price. The redemption period lasts until 41 days after domain expiry.
Finally, your domain is deleted after 72 days of expiry!
Pros
- Free WHOIS protection
- Live chat support
- Hindi call support
- Attractive interface
- Lots of TLDs supported
- Supports Indian payment options
Cons
- Expensive pricing
- Heavy Upsells on their Services
This is one thing I strongly dislike about GoDaddy. They upsell their services so much that it becomes complex for beginners to understand.
While registering a domain with GoDaddy, it automatically adds email service, website builder, etc to your order increasing your total price!
Often, beginners might get tricked and end up paying for the services they don’t even need! I really think they should limit their upsells.
Conclusion
GoDaddy is a highly popular service supporting Indian payment options and a good interface and support for the Indian users.
However, their upsells make the payment process more complex for newbies who have never bought a domain before. Thus, I won’t recommend it to beginners at all!
4. Porkbun
Porkbun is an ICANN certified domain registrar and web hosting provider headquartered in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in the year 2014 by Ray King and Peter Brual.
It offers 470+ domain extensions and you are most likely to find the cheapest domains on Porkbun!
Pricing
Porkbun has the following annual pricing for new domain names and their renewals.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | $8.58 | $8.58 |
| .in | N.A. | N.A. |
| .org | $7.63 | $10.72 |
| .net | $10.56 | $10.56 |
| .xyz | $0.99 | $9.28 |
You get a new .com domain for $8.58 or ₹639.14 and the renewal price is also the same! Compared to other registrars, these rates are quite cheap! You also get a free WHOIS protection with your new domain to keep your private details safe from the Internet.
Payment Options
Porkbun accepts the following payment methods on domain registrations and other offered services: International credit and debit cards, AliPay, Apple Pay, PayPal, Google Pay, Cryptocurrency, and Bank Account.
The Google Pay option is beneficial for the Indian users.
Customer Support
You get to see email and live chat support on Porkbun.
Their knowledge base comprises a library of 100+ detailed articles covering topics like DNS, Registrations and Renewals, Accounts, Transfers, Emails, etc.
However, beginners who have never managed a domain before might feel confused due to lack of onboarding and domain setup guides.
User Interface
The interface of Porkbun is easy to use and manage even for beginners. But I think it can be improved to a large extent in terms of design.
With a revamped interface, they can definitely compete with the leading domain registrars in the market!
Domain Security
In case of domain expiry, Porkbun provides a grace period of around 40 days where you can renew your domain at normal prices.
After that, if the domain is not renewed, it goes into the redemption period of 30 days where you can renew it at an additional fee. Then, it is finally deleted!
Porkbun also supports the Domain Lock feature. So, when you set the status of your domain to ‘Locked’, it cannot be transferred or deleted without unlocking.
Pros
- Affordable pricing
- Variety of TLDs supported
- Live chat support
- Free domain protection
- Supports Cryptocurrency and Google Pay
- 40 days renewal grace period
Cons
- Interface can be improved
- Lack of onboarding steps
Conclusion
Porkbun is a great service if you are looking to buy cheap domain names. It supports Indian payment options, offers decent support and offers a variety of TLDs.
If you have some basic knowledge of setting up domains, and are okay with an average interface, Porkbun might be a suitable option for you.
5. Namesilo
Namesilo is a domain registration and web hosting company certified by ICANN. It was founded in the year 2010 by Michael Goldfarb and Michael McCallister and has its headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona.
Today, it has over 3 million active domains around the world and supports 420+ domain extensions! Along with domain and hosting, it also provides other services like emails, SSL certificates, and more!
Pricing
The following are the registration and renewal rates of popular domain extensions on Namesilo.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | $8.99 | $8.99 |
| .in | $6.89 | $6.89 |
| .org | $10.79 | $10.79 |
| .net | $11.79 | $11.79 |
| .xyz | $0.99 | $9.29 |
If you buy a new .com domain with Namesilo, it costs you $8.99 or ₹669.69. The best part is, for popular domains, the renewal rates remain the same.
They also provide a Free WHOIS guard, email forwarding, Custom WHOIS Records, Domain Defender Protection, and DNS Management on new domain registrations.
Payment Options
On their website, they claim to offer 150+ payment options to their customers. The major ones being – International Credit and Debit cards, AliPay, Apple Pay, Skrill, Google Pay, PayPal, Bitcoin, and Namesilo account funds.
Customer Support
Namesilo offers email and live chat support that responds to queries under 5 minutes! It provides call support that is available from Monday through Friday between 9:30 A.M. to 4 P.M. in Arizona timing.
They also have a Blog which features articles on topics ranging from domain, hosting, online privacy to marketing and business tips!
User Interface
The user interface of Namesilo looks outdated for 2021. It has a pretty dull and boring design and you will also experience slower load speeds!
They really need to work hard on improving their UI.
Domain Security
Namesilo offers a grace period of 33 days after domain expiry where you may renew your domain at regular rates.
Post this, the domain goes into the redemption phase for the next 30 days, where you need to pay $75 on top of the renewal amount to get back your domain.
If nothing is done in this phase either, the domain is finally deleted and is available for re-registration.
- Pros
- Competitive pricing
- Free WHOIS guard
- Live chat support
- 33 days renewal grace period
- Lots of Payment options (including Google Pay)
- Same price on renewals (for popular TLD)
- Cons
- Outdated interface
- Slow Speeds
Conclusion
Namesilo looks like a good option with a competitive pricing and lots of payment options! But its interface depresses me the most!
If you are okay with an ancient interface and slow loading speeds, you can check out Namesilo. Otherwise, we have even better options on our list!
6. Google Domains
Google Domains is a domain registrar launched by Google in 2014. Previously, it was in the Beta version, but they have recently declared it as a stable version. It supports 330+ domain extensions as of July 2021.
Other than domain registrations, you can find a variety of services offered on Google Domains, like DNS hosting, domain forwarding, custom sub-domains, email forwarding, Dynamic DNS, one-click DNS configurations, etc.
Pricing
The prices vary as per the TLD chosen. But, here’s the interesting part! The price of purchasing a new domain and renewing it are the same on Google Domains.
It even lets you register a domain for upto 10 years straight and keep paying the same amount as paid for the new domain.
You can check out the prices of some popular domain extensions below.
| TLDs | New Domain and Renewal Price |
| .com | ₹860 |
| .in | ₹860 |
| .org | ₹860 |
| .net | ₹860 |
| .xyz | ₹860 |
A new .com domain on Google Domains costs ₹860. After adding up the taxes, the final amount for purchasing a .com domain comes to be ₹1014, which is definitely a decent price!
You also get a free WHOIS Privacy Protection to safeguard your personal information from online threats.
Payment Options
Google Domains accept the following payment options: Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Net Banking, and Google Pay. Integrating Google Pay looks like a great benefit for the Indian users.
Customer Support
Google Domains offers you email and live chat support with quick and helpful replies! I received a response from them in under 2 minutes.
They have a decent knowledge base with a lot of short and informative articles to solve your queries and a FAQ page as well.
You can also check out their Learning Center to get yourself covered on the basics of a domain.
User Interface
The interface of Google Domains is plain, simple, and easy to use. Beginners wouldn’t have a problem working with it.
Domain Security
If your domain expires, Google Domains has a grace period of 30 days. During this time, you can renew your domain at standard rates. Following it is a restoration grace period of 30 days where additional fee is charged along with renewal price.
This fee depends on your TLD. For example, they charge $100 for a .com domain! If it is still not renewed, the domain goes for deletion.
Pros
- No heavy upsells
- Google Pay support
- Simple user interface
- Fast live chat support
- Free domain privacy
- Same price for new registrations and renewals
Cons
- Supports a smaller variety of TLDs
- Confusing information on website
Their website states that Google Domains can be used only for business or commercial reasons in our country.
IIn that case, can hobby bloggers or others earning no revenue from their website not purchase a Google domain?
Conclusion
If your priority is a basic interface, fast support and decent renewal pricing, Google Domains would interest you.
I did not find any major drawbacks with it, so you can definitely check it out. However, I won’t be using it personally because of their vague and confusing warnings.
As you are already aware, Google is infamous for suspending accounts! The minute they find any minor issues, their first response is account suspension.
This really concerns me, which is why I won’t keep my domains on Google Domains.
7. Cloudflare
Cloudflare is an ICANN accredited domain name registrar that provides secure domains. It was found in July 2009, and is in San Francisco, California (US).
It is also famous for providing web services like free CDN and SSL certificates and supports over 200 domain name extensions. Cloudflare marks itself different from the others by not charging any markup price on domains.
Pricing
Here’s the catch! You cannot register a new domain with Cloudflare. As of now, it only allows transferring your domain from other registrars to Cloudflare.
The prices for transferring popular TLDs on Cloudflare are mentioned below.
| TLDs | Domain Transfer Price |
| .com | $8.03 |
| .in | N.A. |
| .org | $10.11 |
| .net | $9.95 |
Cloudflare does not charge any markup fee on its domains. So, if you transfer a .com domain to Cloudflare, it would cost you $8.03 along with the standard ICANN fee of $0.18.
The total amount would add up to $8.21, which is ₹611.58. You will be charged the same amount for its renewal. This truly makes Cloudflare a cost effective solution in the long term!
You also get a free WHOIS privacy protection along with Cloudflare CDN and SSL with your domain.
Payment Options
Cloudflare merely accepts Credit cards (VISA, American Express, MasterCard, and Discover) and PayPal payment methods. It would have been great if they also supported UPI Payments.
Customer Support
Cloudflare offers email support to its customers. You won’t find live chat support here!
They have a help center with a comprehensive knowledge base of articles. You can solve most of your queries from here itself!
They have a community where you can ask questions and get common issues solved quickly. They also feature a blog with hundreds of short articles.
User Interface
The interface of Cloud is clean and has a modern design. It is intuitive and managing your DNS settings becomes super simple with it!
Overall, the interface is easy to navigate and feels beginner friendly.
Domain Security
Unlike the others, Cloudflare does not offer a grace period with regular renewal rates. If your domain is not renewed before the expiration date, it will remain under the redemption grace period for 30 days.
You will have to pay extra charges to restore your domain. Transferring the domain during this period is not allowed.
Pros
- No markup fee
- Good for users of Cloudflare ecosystem
- Free WHOIS privacy protection
- Free CDN and SSL certificate provided
Cons
- Limited payment methods
- Cannot register a new domain on Cloudflare
- Limited TLDs supported
- No renewal grace period
- No live chat support
On the free plan, you can only contact support through email tickets. Phone and Chat support are available on the Enterprise plan.
- Cannot add custom nameservers
Once your domain is transferred, you cannot add custom nameservers. It is mandatory to use Cloudflare’s nameservers till your domain stays on Cloudflare.
- Must use Cloudflare ecosystem
In order to transfer your domain to Cloudflare, your website must already use Cloudflare’s services like CDN and SSL.
- Hosting migration issues
In case you wish to migrate your hosting from one provider to another, you need to change nameservers. Sadly, Cloudflare doesn’t let its free users add custom nameservers. So, you will need to edit the DNS records, which is a tedious and complex process.
Conclusion
Cloudflare would be a good option for users heavily dependent on the Cloudflare ecosystem.
If you use Cloudflare’s services like CDN and SSL, do not migrate your site frequently, and want a modern interface with decent renewal rates, then I recommend you try it!
8. Hostinger
Hostinger is a well known domain registrar and hosting provider founded back in 2004. It has its headquarters in Kaunas, Lithuania. It was previously called Hosting Media, but was rebranded to Hostinger in 2011. In my past Hostinger review I’ve recommended it as a budget hosting provider but let’s see how does it perform when it comes to just domains.
At present, they support a limited 136 domain extensions. They are growing at a steady pace with a user base of over 29 million customers, and 10k+ new clients joining every day!
We will look at the Indian version of their website called Hostinger.in, which is exclusively designed for the Indian audiences.
Pricing
Hostinger offers popular TLDs for the following prices.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | ₹602 | ₹991 |
| .in | ₹435 | ₹546 |
| .org | ₹655 | ₹991 |
| .net | ₹905 | ₹906 |
| .xyz | ₹75 | ₹777 |
Opting for a new .com domain costs ₹602. After adding up the taxes, the final amount comes to ₹1049, which is still decent. However, the renewal rates look quite expensive!
Hostinger does not offer a free WHOIS protection with a domain purchase. You can get it by paying an extra ₹275/year.
Payment Options
Hostinger accepts the following payment methods: Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, PayPal, Cryptocurrency, Paytm, Google Pay, and UPI Payments.
I appreciate them for providing Indian payment options for their customers.
Customer Support
You get a good email and live chat support. But you need to wait anywhere around 20 to 60 minutes for their first reply.
They have a knowledge base with sufficient short and to-the-point articles, and lots of online video tutorials for beginners. On Hostinger’s blog, you can find interesting articles on News, Engineering, Marketing, and Daily Life.
Sadly, you don’t get call support on Hostinger.
User Interface
The user interface of Hostinger is easy to use with a modern design. It’s not the best, but will definitely get the job done with no troubles!
Domain Security
Hostinger offers a grace period of upto 45 days upon domain expiry. You can easily renew your domain with no extra fee during this period. However, it restricts grace periods on some specific domains. Check this article to know more.
If you do not renew in the first 45 days, your domain enters a redemption period of 30 days. Along with the renewal amount, an extra fee is charged depending upon the TLD.
Finally, the domain goes into the pending deletion stage if no renewal is made.
Pros
- Decent Pricing
- Indian payment options
- Modern Interface
- 45 days renewal grace period
Cons
- No Call Support
- No free WHOIS protection
- Slow Live Chat support
Conclusion
Hostinger is a renowned service for domain registrations and web hosting plan. It offers domains at decent prices and also accepts Indian payment methods.
If your priority is Indian payment options, Hostinger should be your go-to service. However, you might have to experience slow support at times!
9. BigRock
BigRock is a leading domain registrar and web hosting service certified by ICANN. It is an Indian company founded by Bhavin Turakhia in 2010, and is headquartered in Mumbai, India.
In 2014, it became a part of the EIG (Endurance International Group) and has offices in India and the U.S.
Currently, they have over 6 million domains registered with them and support 200+ domain extensions. You will also find domains at quite competitive rates on BigRock. It also offers other services like business class emails, website builders, SSL certificates, etc.
Pricing
The following is a list of new domain registrations and renewal rates of some popular TLDs on BigRock.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | ₹799 | ₹849 |
| .in | ₹399 | ₹599 |
| .org | ₹649 | ₹899 |
| .net | ₹949 | ₹899 |
| .xyz | ₹99 | ₹659 |
Buying a new .com domain costs ₹799, which is frankly, on the higher side. The sad part is that you don’t get a free WHOIS protection with BigRock.
It comes for an additional charge of ₹499, which kicks up the overall price of the domain to around ₹1500 for the first year. Now, that is insanely expensive!
Payment Options
BigRock supports the following online payment methods: Debit and Credit cards, Net Banking, Wallets, and UPI.
For its registered Indian customers, it also offers the following offline payment methods: NEFT/RTGS, Infinity, MMT/IMPS, and Bank Transfer.
Customer Support
Their customer support is quite good. You get live chat support along with call support in Hindi language, which is convenient for Indian users.
They have a decent knowledge base where you can find lots of short articles on major topics including Domains, Hosting, SSL, DNS, website builder, emails, and FAQs.
They also have a blog which is frequently updated with insightful content.
User Interface
Overall, their interface looks clean and easy to use. But they can work on improving the DNS Record Editing option.
Domain Security
BigRock has a different take on domain expiry. Here, the renewal grace period varies according to your domain extension. For example, it is 36 days for .com domains. You can renew your domains at standard rates during this phase.
Following this is the redemption grace period of 30 days. If the domain is still not renewed, it is finally deleted after 5 days.
Pros
- Live chat support
- Hindi call support
- UPI Payments option
- 36 days renewal grace period (For .com domains)
Cons
- Expensive pricing
- No free WHOIS guard
- Interface can be improved
Conclusion
BigRock comes with a simple interface, Indian payment options, and call support in Indian language. If your priority is customer support, BigRock would be a decent option.
However, this registrar is anything but affordable! So, it would be value for money only if you get discounts on its pricing. Otherwise, Godaddy would be a better option for Indian users!
10. Domain.com
Domain.com is a domain registrar and web hosting solution located in Vancouver, Washington. It was founded long back in 1998 by George DeCarlo and powers over 1.2 millions websites all over the world today!
You can find around 420 TLDs to choose from on Domain.com. It also offers email services, website security, website builders, and online marketing services.
Pricing
On Domain.com, you can get popular TLDs for the following annual prices.
| TLDs | New Domain Price | Renewal Price |
| .com | $8.99 | $13.99 |
| .in | $39.99 | $39.99 |
| .org | $8.99 | $14.99 |
| .net | $12.99 | $15.99 |
| .xyz | $2.99 | $14.99 |
Registering a new .com domain costs $8.99 or ₹669.69, which seems affordable. However, the problem lies in the renewals. You need to pay $13.99 or ₹1042.15 for renewing your domain!
Sadly, you do not get a free WHOIS protection. It needs to be purchased for an insane $9, which is the same as the pricing of your .com domain! After including the privacy protection, your total comes to $17.98 or ₹1342.32, which is definitely expensive!
If you need protection from identity theft, malware, and fraudulent domain transfers, you can get their Domain Privacy + Protection service at an extra cost.
Payment Options
Domain.com only accepts payments through Credit cards (MasterCard and Visa), PayPal, and Checks or Money Orders.
These options are quite limited. I wish they also supported Indian payment methods.
Customer Support
You get 24x7x365 Live chat support and 24×7 call support on Domain.com. Along with this, they also offer lots of helpful guides and step-by-step video tutorials for beginners to get started.
They have a decent knowledge base with helpful articles comprising step-by-step instructions and screenshots.
Their blog features articles on topics including domain, hosting, marketing, e-commerce, brand, productivity, website performance, etc.
User Interface
The interface of Domain.com looks clean and well organized, but it’s not the most appealing. They can definitely work on improving it.
Domain Security
If your domain expires, Domain.com offers a 30 days grace period where you can renew it at regular rates. Following it, is the Registrar Hold Period for the next 30 days where you are charged a redemption fee with the renewal amount.
If you still cannot renew your domain, they eventually delete it.
Pros
- 24x7x265 live chat support
- 24×7 call support
- Decent interface
- 420 TLDs supported
Cons
- Very expensive renewal prices
- No free WHOIS guard
- Limited payment methods
- Lots of upsells
They feature a lot of add-ons during the domain purchase process, like professional email, website builder, web hosting, SSL certificate, Site lock, etc at additional costs.
Conclusion
Though Domain.com offers decent customer support, its cons outweigh its pros by a large extent. It might offer good support and interface, but its lack of Indian payments, expensive renewals and upsells make it a bad option for most users!
I would recommend no one to get a domain at such an expensive price point!
Conclusion
If you are just starting out with your website, a good domain registrar can make a great difference in your online journey! I hope this article helped you decide on the perfect domain registrar for your needs.
Have you purchased a domain before? Which is your favourite domain registrar? Also, if you have any doubts regarding domain registration companies, leave them in the comments box below. I would be happy to clear them!
Anyway, if you enjoy reading my content, you can join my Newsletter to stay updated with the latest posts! This is Kripesh signing off! Keep learning and stay safe!
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And this article is about Domains I guess.