Quick answer: For a plain .com, the cheapest registrars over time are the ones whose renewal price equals their first-year price. On September 28, 2026 that was Cloudflare Registrar ($10.46 a year, sold at cost), Dynadot ($10.88) and Porkbun ($11.08). Hostinger ($0.01 first year, $19.99 renewal) and IONOS ($1 first year) are cheapest in year one but cost more from year two. Over five years a .com at Porkbun costs $55.40 against $79.97 at Hostinger.
Last updated September 2026.
Domain registrars compared on the number that matters: the .com renewal price. First-year vs renewal prices read from each registrar's own page on September 28, 2026, with a five-year cost example.
Sells domains at the price the registry and ICANN charge, with no markup, so the renewal price is the same as the first year. You need a Cloudflare account and your DNS runs on Cloudflare.
Best for: Anyone who wants the lowest long-term .com price and is happy on Cloudflare DNS
Pricing: .com $10.46 first year, $10.46 renewal (as of September 2026)
Pros: No markup on registration or renewal; Renewal equals first-year price
Cons: Your domain must use Cloudflare DNS; No first-year promotions
A registrar with flat .com pricing: the renewal price shown matches the first year. Its page notes prices can move with currency exchange rates.
Best for: People who want a flat price without moving their DNS to Cloudflare
Pricing: .com $10.88 first year, $10.88 renewal (as of September 2026)
Pros: Flat .com price at renewal; Works with any website host
Cons: Prices can move with exchange rates; Check privacy and add-on pricing for your extension
A registrar whose .com renewal price shown is the same as the first-year price.
Best for: First-time buyers who want a simple checkout and predictable renewals
Pricing: .com $11.08 first year, $11.08 renewal (as of September 2026)
Pros: Renewal equals first-year price; Works with any website host
Cons: Slightly dearer than Cloudflare and Dynadot for .com
A web host that also sells domains. The first-year .com price is a promotion; the renewal price is almost double the flat-priced registrars.
Best for: Hostinger hosting customers who want everything on one account
Pricing: .com $0.01 first year, $19.99 renewal (as of September 2026)
Pros: Very low first-year price; Handy if your hosting is already at Hostinger; One bill for hosting and domain
Cons: .com renews at $19.99; Promotional price only lasts one year
A large host and registrar with a $1 first-year .com offer. The page we read shows $20 as the regular price but did not state the renewal price, so check the checkout before you pay.
Best for: Buyers who want a bundled domain, email and hosting from one company
Pricing: .com $1 first year; renewal not stated (page shows $20 regular price, as of September 2026)
Pros: $1 first year; Also sells email and hosting
Cons: Renewal price not stated on the page we read
We ranked registrars by what a .com costs to keep, not to buy: the renewal price first, then the first-year price and whether the domain works with any website host. Every price was read from the registrar's own .com or pricing page on September 28, 2026, in US dollars before tax (Cloudflare's at-cost figure comes from the independent cfdomainpricing.com tracker, since Cloudflare's page states the at-cost rule but not the number). We could not read Namecheap, GoDaddy, Spaceship or Squarespace Domains that day, so they are not priced or ranked. We.Inc is a website builder, not a registrar, and is not on the list.
Prices read from each registrar's page on September 28, 2026, US dollars, one .com for one year.
Cloudflare Registrar: first year $10.46, renewal $10.46 (cloudflare.com/products/registrar states at-cost pricing; figure from cfdomainpricing.com).
Dynadot: first year $10.88, renewal $10.88 (dynadot.com/domain/com).
Porkbun: first year $11.08, renewal $11.08 (porkbun.com/products/domains).
Hostinger: first year $0.01, renewal $19.99 (hostinger.com/domain-name-search).
IONOS: first year $1, renewal not stated; $20 shown as the regular price (ionos.com/domains/domain-names).
Not read on the day: Namecheap, GoDaddy and Spaceship blocked our check, and Squarespace Domains did not show a .com price without a search. Check their sites directly before comparing.
Cloudflare: 5 x $10.46 = $52.30. Dynadot: 5 x $10.88 = $54.40. Porkbun: 5 x $11.08 = $55.40.
Hostinger: $0.01 + 4 x $19.99 = $79.97. The one-cent first year ends up about $24.57 dearer than Porkbun by year five.
IONOS: $1 in year one; the rest depends on the renewal price shown at checkout. If it renews at the $20 regular price shown, five years would be $1 + 4 x $20 = $81, but confirm that figure before you buy.
1. The renewal price, in writing, for the exact extension you want. 2. Whether WHOIS privacy is free. 3. That the domain is registered in your own name and account, not a designer's. 4. That you can edit DNS records yourself, so you can point the domain at any website builder. 5. The transfer-out policy, in case you move later. 6. That auto-renew is on.
Once you own the domain, connecting it to a website takes a few DNS records. On We.Inc, custom domains come with the Starter plan at $20 a month; the free plan publishes up to 3 template sites on a we.inc address. See our guides on how to buy a domain and how to add a custom domain.
We compared .com only. Other extensions (.io, .ai, country endings) are priced very differently, and registrars change prices and promotions often. We did not test support quality. Confirm every price on the registrar's own page on the day you buy.
Pick a registrar on renewal price: Cloudflare Registrar if you are happy with its DNS, otherwise Dynadot or Porkbun for flat, predictable .com pricing. Promotional first-year prices at hosts like Hostinger and IONOS only pay off if you plan to move the domain before it renews. Whichever you choose, keep the domain in your own account so you can point it at any website, including one built on We.Inc.
For keeping a .com over several years, the flat-priced registrars: Cloudflare Registrar ($10.46), Dynadot ($10.88) and Porkbun ($11.08) a year as of September 28, 2026. Hostinger ($0.01) and IONOS ($1) are cheaper in year one only.
Many registrars discount the first year to win the sale and charge their standard price from year two. Hostinger, for example, showed $0.01 for the first year of a .com and $19.99 at renewal on September 28, 2026.
Cloudflare says it charges only the registry and ICANN fees with no markup. The catch is that the domain must use Cloudflare's DNS.
You can, but a separate registrar keeps the domain independent of your site, so you can switch builders without moving it. Check the builder's renewal price against the registrars above.
We.Inc is a website builder, not a registrar, so it is not on this list. You can connect a domain you own on the Starter plan ($20 a month) and above; the free plan uses a we.inc address.
We could not read their .com price pages on September 28, 2026, and we do not rank registrars on guessed prices. Check their sites and compare the renewal price with the table above.
How we research, test and update this page: our editorial policy. We.Inc is our own product.
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