Choosing a short domain name

Start with a subdomain

A subdomain costs nothing, is set up with one CNAME record, and inherits the trust of your main domain in the eyes of both people and spam filters. Common labels are go, link, l, s and get. Short labels are better because the whole address appears in previews and on screens. Pick one and keep it; changing a short domain later breaks every link that used it.

Subdomains work on every tool in this comparison, including the free plans of ReSlug, Short.io, Dub, Cuttly and Linkly.

When a dedicated short domain is worth it

Three situations justify a second domain. The main domain is long, so even a subdomain of it is awkward to read out. The links will be printed, spoken on a podcast or shown on a screen, where every character costs attention. Or you run a brand that is deliberately separate from the main company name. In those cases a four-to-eight character domain pays for itself.

Shorter is not always better. A domain that is hard to spell out loud is worse than a slightly longer one that is obvious. Say the candidate aloud to someone who has not seen it and ask them to type it.

Which top-level domain

Generic TLDs such as .com, .co, .io, .link and .to are the usual choices. .link is purpose-made and often available; Dub even hands out a free .link domain on paid plans. .co and .io are short and widely understood.

Country-code TLDs need more care. Some registries require local presence or a local agent. Some have changed terms or suspended domains for reasons unrelated to the owner. A short domain is infrastructure you intend to keep for years, so prefer a registry with a stable record and clear rules. If you do choose a ccTLD, read the registry policy before relying on it for printed material.

What registration costs

Prices vary by registrar and TLD, and first-year promotions are common, so treat these as ranges. A .com, .link or .co typically renews in the range of ten to forty dollars a year. Two-letter or premium names on popular TLDs can run to hundreds or thousands, and some registries price short names higher by policy. The renewal price is the one that matters, since you will pay it for as long as the links exist.

Registering at a cost-price registrar such as the one bundled with your DNS host keeps renewals predictable. Turn on auto-renew and add a second payment method; an expired short domain is the fastest way to break every link at once.

A checklist before you buy

• Can someone type it after hearing it once?
• Does it read correctly in lower case, with no ambiguous letter pairs like rn and m?
• Is the renewal price acceptable for ten years?
• Is the registry stable and free of residency rules?
• Have you checked the name is not already associated with spam, by searching for it in quotes?

When the answers are yes, register it, point it at your shortener following the setup guide, and set a root redirect to your main site.