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Are you starting a website? Whether it's for a new business venture you're starting or as a personal resume or portfolio, it seems that everyone has a website today. And luckily, it's easier than ever to start one.
The first step to starting a website is registering your domain, which is the address for your website. This guide will break down all the steps you need to choose your domain, register it, and start building your website.
Are you ready to set up a website for yourself or your business? You can register your domain in just as little as a few minutes with these four simple steps.
The first step -- and perhaps the most difficult -- of registering a domain is deciding on a domain name. Because of how many websites already exist today, it can be challenging to find good domains that are still available. And yet, there's a lot riding on choosing the right one, especially if you run a business. It's the part of your website your customers will see, and it affects your website's SEO.
Here are a few things to consider when choosing the right domain:
Once you've chosen your domain name, make sure it's available. It can be disheartening to find the perfect name, only to find out when you go to purchase it that it's not available. You can use any online domain registrar to check the availability of a domain.
If your domain isn't available, consider looking at different suffixes. Most people automatically look for websites that end in .com. But that's not the only option, and given the massive number of websites available today, more are becoming popular and common. Suffixes you can look for other than .com include:
After confirming that the domain you want is available, you may also want to confirm that the matching social media handles are available too. For businesses, it's important that all of your online branding matches. An online tool like namecheckr.com can help you identify which social media handles are available matching your domain.
Once you know what domain you plan to purchase, it's time to decide which domain registrar to purchase it through. The domain registrar is the company that registers and manages the domain. There are many registrars to choose from, but they aren't all created equally. Some factors to consider include the price of your domain, the registrar's policy for transferring the domain, add-on services, and more.
Some of the most popular domain registrars are:
If you've already purchased a hosting plan, or plan to do so, you may consider purchasing your domain from your hosting provider. In many cases, you can get your domain for a free or discounted price with the purchase of a hosting plan.
The only step left is to actually purchase your domain from your chosen domain registrar. This part is fairly self-explanatory, and your domain registrar will provide all the instructions you need along the way. Once your purchase is finalized, the domain is yours to do whatever you want with.
The cost to register a domain depends on the registrar where you purchase it and the domain you're purchasing. Many cost between just a few dollars to $20 per year, but some domain names can be considerably more expensive.
In general, you must pay to register a domain name. But some website hosts allow you to get a free domain name when you sign up for one year of hosting services.
There are many registrars to choose from when registering a domain. Popular sites like Google Domains and GoDaddy make the process easy and affordable. But if you're going to be purchasing web hosting as well, it might make the most sense to purchase your domain through your hosting provider.
After you register your domain, you can sync your domain with your hosting plan. Then you can set up other channels using your chosen name, including a domain email address and social media handles. Finally, once your domain and hosting are synced, you can begin setting up your website.