Best Domain Registrars for Small Businesses: 2020

Trying to figure out which domain registrar is best can feel a lot like trying to spot a specific golden retriever in a crowd of golden retrievers—they all seem to have the same features, they all do pretty much the same thing, and unless you know specifically what you’re looking for, you’ll have a hard time telling them apart (much less knowing which is best for your business).

We here at zhulitouzi.com may not be golden retriever experts, but we do know a thing or two about registering a domain. In this review, we’ll tell you what domain registrars are the best—and what makes them stand out—so you can find the right one for you.

You may not have heard of 1&1 IONOS, but this registrar is super popular in Europe (and unlike your high school chum’s girlfriend in Canada, 1&1 is real). That’s largely thanks to its transparent pricing: it’s one of the only registrars that advertises renewal pricing on its front page. So if you want to know exactly how much your domain will cost next year, 1&1 IONOS makes it easy.

Speaking of cost, 1&1 now offers new customers $1 first-year registration for their first domain. And don’t worry, that doesn’t just apply to obscure domain extensions—the deal includes .com, .net, .org, .biz, .info, .me, and .club domains. Even if you no longer qualify for that deal, 1&1 still has competitive, straightforward pricing.

But that’s not all 1&1 offers. It also includes a custom email address with any domain purchase, a free SSL certificate, and free WHOIS privacy protection—and that’s before you even get to its other product offerings, like hosting and advanced email.

With so much goodness to offer, it’s no wonder we’ve picked it as the best registrar for most small businesses.

As the name suggests, Namecheap offers relatively inexpensive domains and a minimal second-year price hike. Fortunately, buying a domain with Namecheap feels easy and pleasant. The site has an uncluttered, readable layout that makes it easy to find what you need. And while Namecheap will offer you additional services, it never uses annoying pop-ups or forces you to click through several screens of upselling during checkout in doing so.

Plus, Namecheap offers plenty of extras to go with your domain—from email accounts to website security to site hosting. Its responsive 24/7 customer service is just the cherry on top. No wonder more than 10 million domains are managed with Namecheap.¹

If you want a pain-free domain registration experience, we recommend Namecheap.

If your business requires you to get data from your customers—making any credit card sales, for example—then take a look at DreamHost. It’s the only registrar on this list that comes with a free SSL certificate, which encrypts data on your site (see a full explanation in our website glossary). And for even more data security, DreamHost offers an advanced SSL certificate for just $15 per year (less than many registrars charge for basic SSL).

But DreamHost does more than SSL—it also has fair pricing with less dramatic price hikes than you get with other registrars. Plus, it offers quality site hosting, personalized email, and even a basic website builder.

So if you want an all-around good host with top-notch data protection, we suggest DreamHost.

There’s a good chance that GoDaddy is the only domain registrar you’ve heard of (perhaps thanks to those, uh, “memorable” SuperBowl ads?), which makes sense given that GoDaddy manages over 78 million domains.² And honestly, it’s popular for a reason; between .com registration starting at just $4.99 and its host of complementary products (hosting, site building, and more), GoDaddy has a lot to offer.

Just watch out for the second-year price hike—that $11.99 domain won’t stay $11.99 forever. And keep in mind that buying from GoDaddy can feel a little overwhelming, what with its cluttered layout and aggressive sales tactics (a free trial of their auto-renewing website builder goes into your cart by default, for example).

Still, if you want something vouched for by tons of other business owners, GoDaddy’s the way to go.

Google Domains keeps it simple: you can buy domains (with optional privacy protection features included in the price), and if you want email, you can either set up forwarding or get a G Suite account, which gives you a business email account plus access to other Google products (like Google Docs or Google Calendars).

And that’s it. Google won’t upsell you on hosting, and it won’t ask you to purchase extra security. There are no nasty surprises when you renew either; if you pay $12 when you first register your .com domain, you’ll pay $12 to renew it.

So if you just want a domain without the extras—maybe because your host has everything you need or you want to reserve your domain without building a site—Google Domains can give you just that.

As you choose a registrar, keep the following factors in mind.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) supervises the system of domain registration, administering rules and guidelines for registrars. Before buying a domain through a registrar, or a reseller, check the company’s ICANN accreditation. (We’ll help: the domain registrars included in this review are all ICANN accredited.)

Domain registrars offer anywhere from single-year all the way up to 10-year contract timeframes—read the details and be clear on what you’re signing up for before checkout. Most individuals and smaller businesses opt for one-year agreements set to auto-renew upon expiration. Should you go this route, make sure your auto-renewal is properly configured; many a domain has been lost to internet poachers who snatch up freshly expired, unattended URLs (a.k.a. “drop catching”).

Domain costs vary between registrars, but not by much—the real deals are to be had with discounted bulk domain purchases and web hosting packages (most registrars will waive the price of the domain for a year or longer if you opt for their web hosting services). Also note that prices that appear unusually low don’t always reflect extra fees (for ICANN, privacy, SSL certificates, etc.) that will be included at checkout.

We've shown you the best; here's the rest.

No matter what domain registrar you end up going with, you’ll get a fancy new URL for your business website. And frankly, that’s the most important thing. Even so, we hope our domain registrar rankings have helped you differentiate one registrar from another and find the one that offers just what your business website needs.

But, uh, you’re on your own with that golden retriever.

Now that you have a domain, take a look at hosting services with our rankings of the best web hosting providers and the best WordPress hosting providers. Then create your business website with one of the best website builders.

Disclaimer

At zhulitouzi.com, our research is meant to offer general product and service recommendations. We don't guarantee that our suggestions will work best for each individual or business, so consider your unique needs when choosing products and services.