if you need to register s domain name and wondering how much it costs?
Let’s do justice to this topic by breaking down the cost of a domain name, types of domain names, and some other important information you should know about domain names.
Table of Contents
What is a domain name?
Domain names can be likened to your phone numbers, just as your phone line is peculiar to reaching you the same way a domain name is peculiar to your online business entities.
So we can explain a domain name is a unique identifier that’s used to identify internet entities, websites, and resources.
The domain name is usually made up of a combination of letters, numbers, and sometimes the dash symbol.
An example of a domain name is Google.com.
To buy or register a domain name you’d need to use the service of a web hosting company or domain registrar, they are accredited by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to oversee, organize and manage domain registration for the entire public.
Cost of a domain name in Nigeria
The cost of a domain name in Nigeria depends on the domain extension you’d like to buy, but for a general cost overview, domain name registration prices stand between ₦1,200 – ₦60,000 annually. Below we will look at a better breakdown of different types of domain names in Nigeria and how much they cost today. Here is a table below showing the cost of registering domain names in Nigeria.
| Domain Extension | Registration Price |
|---|---|
| .com | N 8,000 |
| .net | N 9,000 |
| .org | N 8,000 |
| .biz | N 14,000 |
| .info | N 14,000 |
| .com.ng | N 1,500 |
| .ng | N 6,000 |
| .africa | N 15,000 |
Reasons you need a domain name?
There are some interesting reasons why you need a domain name both for personal and business uses.
1. How else would you expect people to connect with your website or online Business on the world wide web without a domain name? A simple, concise and relevant domain name helps people to easily locate your business or entity online, all they have to do is search for the domain on a search engine or directly type the URL into their browsers to visit your website.
2. To create professional corporate email addresses for your website you need a domain name, this will help you to communicate professionally with your prospects online.
3. When you have a domain name for your business, it becomes easier to market and promote it your business online.
4. Also, a domain name is needed to create a unique, distinct online identity that differentiates your brand or personal Website from others.
5. Trustworthiness and credibility is required to succeed in business, one of the ways to achieve this online is with a domain name, an active domain connected to a website means you’re solidly in Business, coupled with a professional appearance and constantly updated Website means you’re still relevant in the industry and that people can deal with your brand.
Types of domain name
Domain names come in varied extensions and this is what is used to basically classify them.
1. Generic top-level domain (gTLDs): no doubt, these are the most popular types of domain names.
According to thewebsiteflip.com, based on research in 2021, there are well over 57 million .com, over 10.4 million .org and over 13.6 million .net domains already registered. You can imagine what those figures will be in 2023.
Other types of gTLDS include .gov for government agencies registrants and .edu for accredited educational registrants
2. Country Code top-level domains (ccTLDs): next type of domain is ccTLDs; these domains are designed for a particular geographic region or location. For example, Nigeria ccTLDs usually end with .ng; .com.ng, and .ng domains. For Ghana they have .gh and for Kenya, they have .ke domains.
3. New generic top-level domains (ngTLDs): these are what I called new generational domain names, they are the latest types of domain and comes in various different extension usually related to the industry. Some examples include .blog, .tech, .online, .me, and many more.
4. Subdomains: these are simply an extension of a primary domain name. For example “blog.webdesigns.com.ng” is a subdomain of “webdesigns.com.ng”.
5. Third-level domain names: these are simply two-level domains below the primary domain for example, “www.webdesigns.com.ng”.
6. Fourth-level domain names: these are simply three-level domain names below the primary domain, for example, “www.blog.webdesigns.com.ng”.
Can I get a domain name for free in Nigeria?
Yes! It’s possible to get a free domain name. Most web hosting providers are constantly offering domains as incentives to their new users who purchase yearly hosting plans.
Before the cost of the .com domain was increased nationally due to the unstable exchange rate in Nigeria, most web hosting companies offer their users free domain names, both .com, and .com.ng.
If you purchase annual hosting with most Nigerian hosting providers you’re most likely to get a free .com.ng domain name.
International Hosting providers such as Bluehost and HostGator still offer free .com domain names for their first-time users.
Steps to buying a domain name in Nigeria?
Step 1:
Have a domain name in mind. The first process to buy a domain name is to brainstorm a domain that you wish to purchase, be it for business or personal usage. You need to have a list of possible domains you want to order.
If you’re confused as to what you should name your website or blog, you can use these domain name generators to brainstorm some cool name ideas for your business website.
Haven said that it’s also important to make sure that the domain name is simple to remember, has no sign or number, easy to pronounce for anyone and it’s relevant to your business idea and industry.
Step 2:
You want to check for the availability of the domain(s). It’s likely some of the names have been taken in this case you should have an alternative domain name in mind.
Your intending domain registrar will already have a domain availability checker tool that you can use to confirm if your domains are available for purchase.
Step 3:
Once you find your domain name, it’s time to add it to the cart and purchase your domain name, make payment for the domain name using any of the available payment methods offered by the registrar.
You may struggle to make payments with international registrars due to the current CBN policy so we suggest that you go with local registrars and providers,
We had previously written a guide on how to make payment for your domain name and hosting with any Nigerian-based provider.
