Lot 07 · Blog
Domain investing without the hype: how valuations actually work, what names actually sell for, and the playbooks for buying and selling well.
Looking for a specific answer rather than the archive? The economics of premium domain flipping are worked through with real round-trip costs, domain buyers breaks down who actually pays and how much, and domain broker fees compares every commission rate we could verify. For selling, start with where to sell domain names.
An aftermarket premium on GoDaddy can usually be negotiated and renews at the normal rate. A registry premium cannot, and often renews high every year. Here is how to tell them apart and what to offer.
Read the entrySav takes 4% on its own marketplace and advertises instant payment. The savings are real, but buyer demand, payout requests and network commissions need a closer look.
Read the entryWhat happened to the GoDaddy bulk appraisal tool, who can still get a bulk GoDaddy valuation, and the cost of running 1,000 names through each alternative.
Read the entryAppraise.net plans, what a credit buys per name, and its appraisals against eight real test names, including one that came back ten times higher on a second run.
Read the entryEstibot sorts a portfolio well and prices two-word brandables badly. Seven real sales, the same names run through Atom, Dynadot and GoDaddy, and how to use an Estibot number.
Read the entryAtom is the best automated domain appraisal in 2026 and still misses some names by 3x to 4x. Here are six real sales, the pattern behind the misses, and how to price from comps.
Read the entryEfty, DomainBook Pro, Watch My Domains, CSV.domains and registrar dashboards compared on price, name limits and the commission you pay when a name sells.
Read the entryEscrow.com is still the cheapest way to close a domain sale at every price. The alternatives cost 3% to 10% and earn it with speed, installments or a simpler sign-up.
Read the entryBelow $10,000 BrandBucket keeps 30% and Brandpa 25%; above it the schedules match. The bigger difference is exclusivity, and what Brandpa's nameserver rule costs you on Afternic.
Read the entryDynadot is a real, long-running US registrar with a clean record and one of the lowest marketplace rates around. The limits a seller should weigh are reach and account friction, not safety.
Read the entryPorkbun takes 7% on a marketplace sale, less than almost anyone. The limits are in the terms: a Porkbun-only audience, a $100,000 cap, PayPal-only cash payouts and no outbound transfers while a name is listed.
Read the entryAfternic for distribution, Efty for type-in traffic, Dynadot for a free lander at the registrar, a plugin for zero commission. The ranking, the rates, and the crossover points.
Read the entryThe free search dropped from 150 results to 25 and still hides every sale under $100. Here is what each paid tier unlocks, and the transaction volume where it starts paying for itself.
Read the entryDo not reply with a price, and never pay a fee to make the sale happen. What to check first, what the name is really worth, and how to close it safely.
Read the entryThe end user is the only buyer who pays retail. An investor pays 40 to 60 percent of it and a liquidity buyer 20 to 30 percent, so a sale process aimed at investors reliably delivers an investor price.
Read the entryOn a $40,000 sale the gap between 15% and 20% is annoying. On a $2 million sale it is $100,000. At seven figures the rate card is a starting position, not a price, and almost nobody negotiates it.
Read the entryA domain payment plan is a credit product nobody regulates as one. There is no APR box and no credit check, just a percentage on the price and a default clause in a help center. The default clause is where the money is lost.
Read the entryFor one specific name, the venue is chosen for you, because aftermarket inventory is not interchangeable. For everything else the deciding factor is not price, it is who holds the domain while the money moves.
Read the entrySedo is free to list and charges between 10% and 20% depending on how the buyer found you. That spread is worth $2,000 on a $10,000 sale, and most sellers never think about it at listing time.
Read the entryAfternic charges 15 percent or 25 percent for the same sale, decided by one nameserver setting. A recent tooling change ended the nameserver dependency for landing pages but not for commission, and sellers are paying the higher rate without knowing it.
Read the entrySedo is a real marketplace with a 27-year record, and its commission swings between 10% and 20% depending on how the buyer found you. The live question in 2026 is not whether it is legit but who will own it next year.
Read the entryFlippa is a real marketplace and deals genuinely complete on it. It is also an open one: most listings are not independently verified, and the listing fee is charged whether or not you sell.
Read the entryRegistering a name costs about $12 a year. Buying one somebody already owns can cost five figures, because there is exactly one of each and no way to make another. Here is what actually sets the number.
Read the entryAn expired domain is not a lost domain. You get roughly 75 days across three stages, each with a different price, and only the last five are irreversible. Most people panic in the cheap window and give up in the expensive one.
Read the entryFive to seven days, and most of that is one fixed ICANN window you can end early with a single click. The thing that actually delays transfers is a 60-day lock nobody checked for.
Read the entryWHOIS was sunset in 2025 and RDAP replaced it. The record gives you the registrar and the dates; the nameservers, mail records and landing page tell you whether this owner will actually sell.
Read the entryBetween 1.9% and 2.6% on most domain deals, with a $50 floor. The 0.89% figure half the internet still quotes was retired in 2024, and on a small sale that understates the bill threefold.
Read the entryNo. The IO code is still in ISO 3166-1, no retirement clock has started, and the policy that would govern one runs in five-year blocks. The real costs are renewals and audience fit.
Read the entryMost real business purchases land between $2,000 and $25,000. Here are the tiers, the five factors that set the price, and how to check an ask against comps.
Read the entrySell-through rate, average sale price, renewal cost. Run those three with pessimistic inputs and you know whether you have a business or a hobby with an invoice.
Read the entryGoDaddy folded Dan into Afternic and closed it in June 2025. Your names moved, but so did your commission rate. Here is what to check and what to do next.
Read the entryDomain brokers charge 10% to 20%, sometimes with a retainer on top. Here is what each model really costs, and the three situations where a broker earns it.
Read the entryThe exact name usually has no public sale record, and that is fine. Here is where prices are published, what the record misses, and how to price on comps instead.
Read the entryThree letters can be worth $2,000 or $200,000. The difference is meaning, not length. Here are the tiers, the market split, and how to buy one that is already owned.
Read the entryFlippa charges a listing fee before your domain sells anything, then a success fee, then optional upgrades. Here is every cost, with the math on what actually lands in your account.
Read the entryDrop catching is the race to register a valuable domain the instant it expires. Here is how the mechanism works, what backorders cost, and how to avoid overpaying on the drop.
Read the entryAuctions are built to find the highest bidder, not the smartest one. Here is how to set a comps-backed ceiling, use proxy bidding, and walk away with margin intact.
Read the entryGoDaddy Auctions takes 15% to 25% of the sale, plus a membership fee and a possible surcharge. Here is every fee, with the math on what actually lands in your account.
Read the entryMost expired domains are worthless, but a small share carry real value. Here is where to look, which signals matter, and how to price one before you place a bid.
Read the entryHumbleWorth is a fast, free way to triage a list, but its numbers come without the comps behind them. Here is where it is accurate, where it slips, and how to use it well.
Read the entryGood .ai names still command a premium, but the easy-money window closed. Here is what the extension is actually worth now, which names hold up, and how to price one without guessing.
Read the entryA domain is worth what a documented buyer will pay. Here is the practical method appraisers use, the five factors that move price, and how to read comps without fooling yourself.
Read the entryAfternic has the reach, Sedo has the international pool and a lower direct rate. Here is which one actually nets you more on a given name, with real fees and no hand-waving.
Read the entryA domain auction is a timed, open-bid sale with a reserve and a countdown. Here is what actually happens from listing to payout, for both the bidder and the seller.
Read the entryGoDaddy appraisals are a decent screening filter and a bad pricing authority. Here is where the model is directionally right, where it falls apart, and how to price a name properly.
Read the entryCommission, escrow, transfer fees and tax. Here is what actually comes out of a $10,000 domain sale at each venue, and the fees sellers only find out about at closing.
Read the entryA domain is worth what a documented buyer will pay. Here is how appraisal models estimate that number from TLD, length, keyword demand, brandability and real sold comps.
Read the entryDomain flipping is buying a domain below its market value and reselling it higher. It works, but not the way social media says it does. Here is the realistic version.
Read the entrySelling a domain comes down to five steps: appraise it, price it against comps, list it where buyers actually look, negotiate in writing, and close through escrow.
Read the entryThe .ai aftermarket matured fast. Most reported .ai sales now land between $4,000 and $50,000, with one-word names clearing six figures. Here is the price map.
Read the entryPut the reading to work: appraise a name and see the comps yourself.