How to Register a New Domain Name

Before You Register

If you have not yet read Everything You Need to Know About Domain Names, it gives an overview of everything covered in this category.

Before searching for a domain, think through a few things first. Choose a name that is easy to spell, easy to say out loud, and closely reflects your business or brand. Decide which extension fits your needs, such as .com for broad international reach or .sa if you specifically want to signal a Saudi based business.

Searching for Availability

Use our domain name search tool to check whether your desired name is available. If your first choice is taken, the search tool typically suggests close alternatives or different extensions worth considering.

Registering Your Domain

Once you find an available name, add it to your order and provide your registration contact details, including your name, address, email, and phone number. These details are required by domain registration policy and, unless you enable privacy protection, may be publicly visible. See Understanding WHOIS Privacy Protection for more on this.

Choose your registration period, typically available in yearly increments, and complete your order.

What Happens After Registration

Once registered, your domain becomes active, though it will not automatically point anywhere until you configure its DNS settings or connect it to a hosting account. If you already have hosting with us, this connection is often set up automatically. See DNS Management: A/CNAME/MX/TXT Records Explained if you need to configure this manually.

Considering .sa Domains

If you are registering a domain specifically under the .sa extension, additional requirements apply beyond standard domain registration. See .sa Domain Registration Requirements (Saudi-Specific) before proceeding with a .sa registration.

Setting Up Auto-Renewal

To avoid accidentally losing your domain when its registration period ends, consider enabling auto-renewal at the time of registration. See Auto-Renewal: How It Works and How to Manage It for details on how this works.