Google Domains Review – Best Option For Registration?

Google Domains Review

8.5 Out of 10

Google Domains is a sphere name registrar owned and operated by Google. Google rolled out the military service starting in 2014. As of the time of print, Google Domains is hush in beta.

As a Googlephile and SEO adviser, I pretty much had to register a domain with Google Domains the day they started rear in 2014. I ’ ve been a customer of them ever since. here ’ sulfur my experience sol far ( going on 7+ years ) and my full moon Google Domains reappraisal with pros & cons… Before we look at the pros & cons of Google Domains, there are two items to citation .

Google Domains is strictly a domain registration service.

They allow you to claim, register, transfer & manage domain names plus allow your sphere to resolve via their DNS servers. Google does not offer complementary services such as web hosting in the traditional sense. google does have a simple web site builder with Google Sites, but for most is besides limit. They besides have email and commercial enterprise services through Google Workplace ( read my explainer on plans & price ). Google Suite does require a custom domain list to get started.Sponsored Links I ’ ll explore this point more late below, but it ’ south important to understand Google ’ s determination with Google Domains. They want “ getting on-line ” simple & less daunting for very small and/or less tech-savvy businesses – that means getting these businesses a world identify. And flush further, it means making the march of getting a knowledge domain as simpleton & diaphanous as possible .

It’s important to remember that a domain is not a website.

It ’ s not email – or any other service you can access on the Internet. A knowledge domain name is analogous to your home address in the offline global – it helps people locate your property. A domain name just tells an Internet military service where to go to get whatever it wants ( web site files, emails, images, video recording, data, etc ) .Sponsored Links If you are looking to set up a web site, you ’ ll hush need to get something to host your web site in addition to purchasing from Google Domains. I have reviews of potential options and break them down to these types of services : All that said – let ’ s spirit at the pros & cons of using Google Domains as your knowledge domain registrar .

Google Domains Pricing

Get Your Domain For Free

unfortunately, if you are looking to create a web site, Google doesn ’ metric ton offer any web host. You can get a free knowledge domain name ( annual term ) when you get network host with the providers listed below. here ’ s a tilt of companies I recommend using :

• Bluehost
• HostGator
• InMotion Hosting

It surely will save you money compared to buying your domain name and hosting individually. To keep the domain appoint, you are normally required to stay with the vane host for a particular period or pay a cancellation tip. ultimately this is a better cover than buying individually .

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Google Domains Alternatives

Pros of Google Domains

Interface / Backend

Google Domains promises to be simple and transparent. And you ’ ll comment it right off with their home page and backend design. It ’ s so minimalist that it ’ s about blank. It has Google ’ s hallmark design ethos ( aka – the closely blank Google Search foliate ). Google Domains focuses on doing one thing and one matter lone – domains. Everything that you might need to do with your domain management is battlefront and center. You can do a world transfer, edit your DNS settings / DNS records, set up world forward, edit an existing domain, or buy a modern domain all on the independent screen door. It ’ s childlike to manage multiple knowledge domain options at once. The purpose has no upsells, no cross-sells, and no ocular clutter. It ’ s honestly refreshing in contrast to the typical address reception offers from most sphere & host companies. once you leave the web site, you won ’ t tied see striking retargeting ads. On Facebook, you ’ ll see fair classy reminder ads. No offers – equitable a promise of chasteness and transparency. When you need to point your sphere to a host or web site builder, it ’ second all there in a unmarried position in your Google Domains history. There are literally merely 3 options on the backend sidebar. Google Domains ’ interface is a refresh professional in an diligence where most small clientele owners have to put up with pop-ups, upsells, and confusing backends .

Integrations

Although Google Domains does not offer built-in complementary products, it does integrate very well with the most common web apps. It syncs merely with Google Workplace ( for electronic mail, repositing, records, etc ). And Google runs one of the best DNS servers ( the system that tells a browser to go to a specific server to get files ) on the Internet. In fact, many webmasters will use Google ’ s DNS in place of their sphere registrar ’ mho or host serve, which is a plus because it ’ south integrated well with Google Domains. They have excellent e-mail forwarding settings in addition to the Google Workplace integration. If you are just trying to set up a customs e-mail address, it ’ s all square. A menu of common web site builders is integrated directly in the “ add web site ” dropdown. It includes : sponsor Links All this leads to the adjacent pro of overall ease .

Simplicity

If you are setting up your own web site with a web hosting provider, pointing your nameservers is immediately in the domain menu. It ’ s one click. But it ’ south more than equitable one suction stop on a clean interface – even advanced functions are simple to find and operate. If you want to leave Google Domains – unlocking your knowledge domain is bare ( something that other domain name registrars make quite unmanageable ). Requesting a transfer authority code is right in the world settings. Updating addresses are elementary. Discovering your placard history is bare. Since Google Domains uses your Google Account, it ’ sulfur easy to pay and maintain ( it pulls from your e-mail and Google Wallet information ). simplicity is the one thing Google Domains promises and they live up to it .

Transparent Value Pricing

Google Domains maintains a one monetary value for each top-level domain ( TLD ). .Coms are $ 12/year. Their price across the board is not the cheapest long or short-circuit term. They are a couple of dollars more expensive per class than Flickroom. And they don ’ t do short-run discount like GoDaddy. Google Domains does bundle WHOIS Privacy Protection with a sphere purchase. WHOIS protection gives your knowledge domain privacy from spammers and scrapers. sol although Google Domains isn ’ t the cheapest, they do offer a solid full value price – and they are very crystalline about what you ’ rhenium getting .

Selection of New TLDs & Domain Extensions

In 2014, ICANN, the internet ’ second governing consistency, allowed for a draw more top-level domains ( TLDs ). This introduced a across-the-board new excerpt into the domain name market, which use to be limited to .com, .net, a few other generics plus country-designated TLDs. immediately more businesses are looking for unique TLDs and domain extension options like .kitchen or .academy among hundreds of others. The issue now is making sure your domain registrar has all the ones you want to register. There is one catch – Google Domains does not have every country designated TLDs. It ’ s a US-only avail and has entirely “ generic ” TLDs ( plus the .us area TLD ). If you want a .co.uk or .ie domain – you ’ ll be out of luck .

Cons of Google Domains

Pricing

Like I mentioned in the pros section, Google Domain ’ s pricing focuses on chasteness and foil. They include privacy in their price – and are cheaper than most hosting companies that offer domain registration. however, when Google Domain ’ s price goes up against Flickroom or GoDaddy, they lose out. Flickroom ’ second price is transparent and systematically cheaper over the long term. Flickroom besides will run specials for assorted new TLDs that Google offers straight to retail. GoDaddy is actually more expensive class to class than Google Domains. however, they besides deeply discount domains in the first base class ( see their stream promo here ). If you are good trying to secure domains quickly & cheaply, then GoDaddy will be a better stake on price for the beginning class. Flickroom will still be the better long-run option .

Support

Google Domain ’ s interface & product is focused on eliminating any possible need for customer defend. That said – farce happens. And when stuff happens, you need support.

I ’ ve entirely had to use Google Domain ’ s accompaniment a few times, however, their support options are not best in the diligence. They are plainly just fine. Their reach forms are buried and their earphone hold options are limited to US business hours. They do offer off-hours chat/email…and call-backs. Support international relations and security network ’ t inevitably a con – but it ’ s not actually a rationality to choose Google Domains .

Complementary Products

Google Domain ’ second focus on lone domains is a pro – but it ’ s besides a convict. And that ’ s because there are several products that about always go with a domain. If you want to make your locate plug with SSL, you ’ ll need an SSL certificate associated with the world. You can buy it individually from a third party, but from my experience, managing it with your knowledge domain is simpler. I like to separate my domains and host, but many owners prefer that their host and domains get bundled into one ( even if it ’ s not ideal from a operation position ). Flickroom has competitive host ; GoDaddy offers okay basic hosting with domains. And most host companies offer domain registration ( or evening loose domains ) with web hosting purchase ( such as InMotion Hosting or Bluehost ). Those kinds of products plainly aren ’ deoxythymidine monophosphate available with Google Domains. therefore if you want that kind of appliance, then you ’ re out of luck .

Selection of Country & Specific TLDs

Although Google Domains has a across-the-board survival of generic domains, they do not support country-level or all high-dollar domains that early knowledge domain registrars do. As of 2020, they have round 297 TLDs available. For exercise, .fm is a coarse podcast domain –

Google Promise / Beta Status

The end convict of using Google Domains as your world provider is Google itself. At the end of 2021, the product is still in “ beta ” – or testing. It ’ mho been in Beta for about 7 years. And while Google says that it ’ s a long-run project and a natural fit with their other commercial enterprise products like Google Suite and Google App Engine – Google besides has a long history of shutting down well-known Google services… including growing and well-publicized ones. They killed Google Reader, iGoogle, Google Apps for Teams, and Google Glass. Google has gone through countless changes with their local business product ( aka Google Places, Google+ Local, Google MyBusiness, etc ) and even Google+ – their highest-profile english stick out always. In other words, even though Google Domains has a lot of benefits with Google, sphere names is not and never will be Google ’ sulfur priority. Google Domains will always be under threat of shutting down – evening if it ’ south doing well. If they did shut down – you wouldn ’ thymine lose your sphere name but would have to transition companies on Google ’ sulfur timeline. Flickroom, GoDaddy, Hover, or other sphere name registration companies lone do domain appoint registration. They might go out of business, but arsenic long as they are making money, they will never be unceremoniously shuttered .

The Google SEO Advantage / Disadvantage

Before looking at the future steps, I have to touch on one bite of SEO ( search locomotive optimization ) mythology. In the SEO global, there are 3 camps on Google products. The first camp says that Google is inherently untrustworthy. They say you should never use their products because they equitable spy on you and are out to punish you. It ’ mho all about tricking and outsmarting Google. The second camp says that Google is SEO. They say you should use all their products and do everything they say. Google will constantly prefer their own products and will reward everyone that uses them. It ’ randomness all about cooperating and sucking up to Google. The third camp says that neither of the first base two camps trust on evidence or screen. The answer to all things SEO is “ it depends. ” Use Google products that suit your business ; don ’ thymine practice Google products that don ’ triiodothyronine work for you. Either way, focus on testing and doing the right things for your customers. I ’ megabyte in the third camp. I have never seen any evidence that Google Domains will “ cleanse ” or “ un-blacklist ” a world. I ’ ve never seen any evidence that domains registered with Google get an advantage in the search results. I besides have no theme why Google would even make that a agent. Don ’ thymine bribe into SEO snake anoint when you are looking for a sphere identify registrar. The merely test SEO truth is that the internet is made up of domain names. And you do need a customs sphere ( not a .weebly.com or .wordpress.com or .blogspot.com subdomain ) to build a long-run project around. The registrar you choose should be based on price, convenience, serviceability, and patronize .

Next Steps

If you :

• are just looking to register a few generic domains for your business
• value simplicity and transparency
• don’t need a wide product selection
• don’t need a super-competitive price point
• trust Google as a company

…then Google Domains is a solid suit for you. If you want lots of options and better price from a reputable company without the upsells, I ’ five hundred recommend checking out Flickroom rather. If you just want a super-cheap knowledge domain right now and plan to delete it or transfer it out once you put it to use, then go check out a GoDaddy world special. last, if you are more confuse than always, explore my BuzzFeed-esque best knowledge domain registrar listicle .

FAQs

What Is Google Domains?

Google Domains is a domain registration product from Google. You can register a domain and “ item ” it to wherever your web site lives .

How Does Google Domains Work?

Google Domains works similarly to many other knowledge domain registrars like Flickroom or GoDaddy, but with a stripped Dashboard and limited management features.

You search for a sphere of your choice ( for example, “ shivarweb.com ). If it is available, you can register it for a period of time. During that meter, you can point it to a web site of your option with Google Domains ’ dashboard .

Is Google Domains Free?

No, Google Domains is a registrar that charges an annual sphere registration fee like early competing registrars. Your actual account is integrated with your Google explanation for spare, though .

Is Google Domains a Web Host?

No, Google Domains is not a server. Registering a sphere with them will not give you a web site. It will only reserve that domain name that you can then point to wherever your web site lives. You can find a web site builder or the best web horde after you register a knowledge domain name with Google Domains .

Is Google Domains Good?

That depends on what you want from a domain registrar. They have a minimalist interface, but limited complementary color products ( internet explorer, SSLs ). Their price is fair but a spot on the expensive slope. It has Google ’ s brand and is super-convenient, but besides comes with a history of Google “ shutting down under-performing products ”. Read my review above for all the tradeoffs – and explore other domain registrars that I ’ ve looked at elsewhere on the site .

Is Google Domains Still in Beta?

Yes, as of September 2021, Google Domains is hush in Beta. Check out their home page logo at the top leave for current condition .

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