How Much Do Domains Cost? (And What You’re Really Paying For)

If you’ve ever tried to buy a domain name—especially one that sounds like a real business—you’ve probably seen prices all over the map.

• Some domains cost $10–$20 to register.

• Others are listed for $100–$1,000.

• Premium names routinely sell for $5,000, $10,000, or more.

• And a handful of truly elite names sell for six or seven figures.

So when a customer asks me:

“How much do domain names cost?”

My honest answer is: it depends what you’re really buying.

At Your Domain Income Source™, I list and sell domain names that are curated, vetted, researched, and screened for their income potential—either through:

• Domain parking

• Simple passive income business models

• Or future resale (flipping)

In this post, I’ll walk you through:

• Typical price ranges

• What actually makes a domain cheap, fairly priced, or premium

• My own pricing framework (including how we discount below fair value)

• A real case study

• The hidden costs most people forget

• How much you should realistically spend, based on your goals

Why Domain Pricing Is an “Imprecise Art”

Let’s start with some truth: there is no perfect domain price.

When I price domains, I blend several inputs:

• Comparable sales (what similar names have sold for)

• 3rd party appraisals

• Real performance metrics, such as:

  • Existing traffic

  • Domain Authority

  • Trust Flow

  • Spam / backlink profile

• Brandability and how naturally people associate the words

Even with all that, pricing is still part science, part judgment call.

In the early days, I relied too heavily on 3rd party appraisals. Over time I learned:

• Most appraisals are highly experimental

• They often reflect a best‑case scenario—the price you might get if you find the perfect buyer, at the perfect time, with perfect motivation

• It can take a very long time (and a lot of marketing) to find that buyer

Today, every domain on Your Domain Income Source™ uses a three‑appraisal aggregate to estimate fair value. Then:

We typically price our domains at 5–20% of that fair market value.

Why so low? Because:

• We specialize in accessible price ranges, and

• We need to move domain assets quickly to minimize ongoing registration costs

In other words: we’re pricing for velocity, not perfection.

Typical Price Ranges for Domain Names

Let’s ground this in numbers. Across the broader market and my own portfolio, here’s how domain prices usually break down.

1. Registration-level domains ($10–$20)

These are names that are:

• Available to register at standard retail prices

• Often longer, more awkward, or on less desirable TLDs

• Mostly speculative unless you have a very specific project in mind

For investors, filling a portfolio with these just because they’re cheap is usually a mistake. The renewal fees add up fast.

2. Accessible investor / builder range ($100–$1,000)

This is where most of my curated names live.

• Price range: roughly $100–$1,000

• These are often:

  • Solid two- or three-word .com names

  • Brandable, with broad applicability

  • Sometimes with useful SEO/authority history or traffic

This range is ideal if you want:

• A realistic shot at income (parking, simple site, lead gen, or a flip)

• Without risking five figures on a single asset

3. Premium domains ($1,000–$10,000+)

These are names with clearly superior characteristics:

• Few words (single words are best, followed by strong two-word pairs)

• Natural word combinations people already associate

  • Example: HotPizza.com feels “right”

  • RockPizza.com does not

• .com extension (most valuable and trusted)

• Keywords in high-value niches, such as:

  • Finance

  • Investing

  • Insurance

  • Commerce words like “shop,” “buy,” “pay,” etc.

Within this band, my rule of thumb:

• One‑word .com names often have 5‑figure+ potential ($10,000+)

• Strong two‑word .coms often have 4‑figure+ potential ($1,000+)

• Solid three‑word .coms can justify 3‑figure+ prices ($100+)

There are exceptions, of course:

• Most one‑word .coms are valuable

• But many two‑word names are worth almost nothing if the words don’t make sense together or target the wrong niche

A Real Case Study: Turning an Expired Name into Cash

Here’s an anonymized example from my own experience.

• I picked up an expired, two‑word .com

• The words were broad, brandable, and described things people buy everywhere, regardless of location

• It had solid brandability and wide applicability across industries

I later sold that name for $400.

In raw numbers, that might not sound dramatic. But consider:

• Acquisition cost: roughly a standard registration fee

• Holding cost: one year of renewals at ~$20 or less

• Exit: $400

The buyer got:

• A domain that could anchor a real business or brand

• A price point that’s far below the cost of a full rebrand later

I got:

• A solid return on a single, well‑researched domain, not a portfolio of random lottery tickets

It’s a good example of why I prefer:

One excellent domain with a clear plan
Over ten cheap domains with no plan at all.

Three Types of Income-Focused Domains (and How That Affects Domain Value)

At Your Domain Income Source™, we classify domains into three income categories. That classification directly influences what a domain is worth.

1. Domains for Business

These are names with strong potential to support simple, passive or semi‑passive business models.

• Examples: lead generation sites, simple services, affiliate hubs, tiny SaaS, content sites

• Every domain in this category comes with three “business idea sparks”

  • Short, concrete concepts to help you see how the domain could realistically earn income

Because these domains support business cash flow, their value isn’t just “what could I flip this for?”—it’s “what kind of business cash flow could this anchor?”

2. Domains for Parking

These are the most passive, and the hardest to find.

• They typically have historic traffic that can support income through domain parking ads

• You’re essentially buying a little stream of attention

Prices reflect:

• Strength and consistency of the traffic

• Quality of the traffic (type-in vs junk)

• Suitability for ad monetization

Even though these often look “boring” from the outside, a good parking domain can quietly pay its own renewals and more.

3. Domains for Growth

These domains earn their keep through:

• A premium name that’s highly sought after, or

• A valuable SEO background (backlinks, authority) that helps:

  • Launch a new site faster

  • Inject authority into an existing site

  • Or improve a portfolio’s overall resale value

These are ideal for:

• Portfolio builders

• Existing site owners looking for SEO advantage

• Investors targeting future flips

Because of their long‑term potential, growth domains can command higher prices—even if their current traffic is modest.

Hidden Domain Costs: It’s Not Just the Sticker Price

When someone asks, “How much do domains cost?” they often only see the purchase price.

Here’s what they’re missing.

1. Annual registration (renewal) costs

• For most portfolios, this is the biggest ongoing cost

• Typical range: $11–$20 per year per name, depending on:

  • Registrar

  • TLD

  • Portfolio size / discounts

If you own:

• 50 domains at $15/year → that’s $750/year just to hold inventory

• 200 domains at $15/year → $3,000/year in renewals

This is why I focus on moving inventory quickly and pricing domains below fair value. Holding hundreds of names with no plan is where many beginners lose money.

2. Build‑out costs (if you create a site)

If you’re turning a domain into a business or content site, expect at minimum:

• Roughly starting at $10/month for:

  • Basic hosting

  • Domain‑linked email

  • Essential services

• Then time and/or money for:

  • Design

  • Copywriting

  • Content

  • Development

Even simple sites can reach hundreds or thousands of dollars in build‑out depending on complexity and your own expertise.

3. The opportunity cost

A cheap domain that never earns:

• Ties up money in renewals

• Soaks up your attention

• Crowds out better opportunities

That’s why my advice is:

Don’t buy a domain just because it’s cheap.
Only buy when you have a specific plan for that exact name.

How Much Should You Spend? (Especially on a Budget)

Domain investing and building are highly unpredictable. There are no guarantees.

For buyers on a budget, here’s my guidance:

1. Avoid hoarding ultra‑low‑cost names

   • Ten $10 domains still cost you $100/year in renewals

   • If they’re weak, you’re paying to keep bad inventory alive

2. Spend more time researching than buying

   • Study sales

   • Compare names

   • Understand the niche

3. Be willing to stretch for one quality name

   • Often, $100 on one good domain will outperform
     $100 spent on 10 useless domains

4. Match the spend to the strategy

   • Parking domain with immediate traffic? You might justify more.

   • Brand-new build with no proven revenue model? Start smaller.

   • Portfolio growth or SEO asset? Consider the boost it gives your existing business.

Red Flags in Domain Pricing (Cheap and “Premium” Alike)

A domain can be:

• Too expensive for what it is, or

• Too cheap because it’s effectively worthless

Here are some red flags I watch for and encourage buyers to avoid.

1. Time-sensitive keywords

   • Names with a year in them, like BestLaptops2025.com

   • These lose relevance quickly and need constant replacement

2. Overly narrow geographic limits

   • Names locked to a tiny local market (e.g., BestPlumberInSmallTown.com)

   • These can be fine if you have a hyperlocal plan, but they sharply limit resale and scale

3. Trademark issues

   • Any name that even might infringe on a trademark should be avoided, no matter the price

   • Legal risk is not worth a “clever” domain

4. Random word mashups with no clear use

   • Two words that don’t belong together or signal nothing a real business would do

   • Many of these sit unsold forever and just eat renewals

How We Help Buyers Make Smarter Decisions

Every domain listed on Your Domain Income Source™ is designed to answer a buyer’s real questions up front.

For each domain, we provide:

• Three “business idea sparks”

  • Concrete ways the domain could generate income (business, parking, or growth use cases)

• Critical domain stats, where applicable:

  • Domain Authority

  • Traffic potential

  • Trust / spam indicators

• Three separate third‑party appraisals,

  • Aggregated into a fair value estimate

  • Then discounted to 5–20% of that fair value to keep pricing accessible and support sales volume

• Negotiable pricing

  • All of our domains are price‑negotiable, and we’ll work with buyers to find a number that fits their budget and goals

We do this because:

The real value of a domain isn’t just what it’s worth today.
It’s what you can realistically do with it over the next 1–5 years.

So… How Much Do Domain Names Really Cost?

Putting it all together:

• Registering a random domain can cost $10–$20.

• A curated, income‑potential name from a serious seller will usually cost $100–$1,000+, depending on:

  • Length (one-, two-, three-word)

  • Extension (.com is king)

  • Niche (finance, investing, insurance, commerce terms are more valuable)

  • Brandability (do the words belong together?)

  • Traffic and authority (for parking and growth plays)

But the better question isn’t “What does it cost?”

It’s:

What am I actually buying—and what’s my plan to turn this domain into an asset?

If your mindset is:

• “This is a lottery ticket; maybe someone will buy it someday,”
  you’ll likely overpay or over‑hoard.

If your mindset is:

• “This is an asset; here’s how I’ll park it, build on it, or grow it,”
  then price becomes a strategic input in a larger plan.

My job, with Your Domain Income Source™, is to:

• Curate names with realistic income paths

• Price them aggressively below fair market value

• And give you the data and ideas you need to decide whether a domain is worth it for you.

That’s the real answer to “How much do domains cost?”

Domains are the equivalent to digital “real estate.” In the real estate market, value is all about location, location, location. No two locations are exactly the same. No two domains are exactly the same. But for domains, the key is: “brand, brand, brand.”

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