A domain usually cost around $10.00 from reputable domain registrars. It’s not much so we do suggest to skip the trouble and buy one. However, there are times when we don’t have access to credit cards or PayPal so a free domain looks enticing.

There are 4 popular ways to get a free domain name: (1) companies that give sub-domains off their domains, (2) companies that offer domains in exchange for adverting space in our website, (3)  companies that give free domains in exchange for completing web offers, and (4) domain-rewarding forums that gives away domains in exchange for posting.

1. Companies that give sub-domains off their domains.

An example of this company is www.co.cc. We can register domains with them like reapmoneyonline.co.cc. When we consider that domains with co.uk and com.ph cost real bucks, co.cc doesn’t look bad at all. What’s more we have control of the Domain Name Server (DNS) like a real domain. Meaning we can point it directly to our website in a webhost, not simply redirect it.

2. Companies that offer domains in exchange for adverting space in our website.

An example of this company is dot.tk. Dot.TK controls the TLD (top level domain) TK of the island of Tokelau. Tokelau is a small isolated island off new Zealand whose livehood is dependent on the sea. In order to get much-needed money to build their communication infrastructure and allow them to communicate with the outside world, they are giving away domains off .tk in exchange for advertising space. We can get rid of the advertising banners completely by purchasing the domain we registered.

3. Companies that give free domains in exchange for completing web offers.

We can work for our domain name too. DomainLagoon.com offers free domains in exchange for completing web offers. We usally need a disposable email for these offers. It can take anywhere from 2 to 5 hours to complete enough offers and be rewarded with a domain name. Unfortunately, most of the offers only work for resdients of the U.S. and Canada.

4. Domain-rewarding forums that gives away domains in exchange for posting.

The best one we’ve found so far is DNtemple.com. It takes 200 posts to get a domain. At the maximum of 30 posts per day allowed, that’s 7 seven days spent for a domain. However, the forum is filled with tips and resources on domains, web hosting, and web development so it’s 7 days well spent. If we need a free web host, there’s also a comprehensive section on free web hosting companies. To make it easier to find a good one, we can go directly to Free100mbHost.com.

The real beauty about free domains at DNtemple is that they get registered with a reputable registrar, n4me.eu, in our name. Meaning we have total control over it, as if we buy it with real money.

As we can see, a totally free domain name is a rarity in the web. We need to work some in order to get a real domain for free.

First things first, domain names are not transfered to a web host, they are “pointed.” The domain names stay with the registrar. We still control them from our admin panels there.

Pointing a domain name to our web host to use it for a website requires 2 general steps: (1) Change Domain Name Servers (DNS) at the domain registrar admin panel and (2) add the domain in the web host admin panel.

1. Change the Domain Name Servers.

We can get our Domain Name Servers from our web host. If they are not indicated in our admin panel, we may need to contact support. Large hosting companies usually have different domain name servers for each of their servers. They usually have “ns1” and “ns2” before a domain, like “ns1.myhost.com.”

Different domain registrars usually have different admin panels but they operate on the same basic principles. The following guide is similar to popular admin panels.

• Log-in to the domain registrar admin panel (in some registrars we need to go to “My Account”). 
• Go to list of our domains.
• On the right side of the list or the top menu, there is a list of Services, go to “Domain Name” and “Manage.” 
• There are several settings under this heading. We want “Modify NameServers.”
• change domain name servers.

 Now we have to wait for 24-48 hours for the domain to propagate before adding it to our webhost panel.

2. Add the domain in our web host.

Most paid web hosts have the popular administration panel called Cpanel. it’s easy to add a domain using Cpanel. 

• Log-in to the web host Cpanel.
• Look for the domain icons and open “Addon Domains.”
• Enter the domain name and the password, Cpanel will automatically fill-up the rest.
• Click “add domain.”

That’s it. Our domain is set and ready to go. If we go to the File Manager at the Cpanel home page, we will se a folder with the name of the recently added domain on it. That’s where the files for that site will be placed.

Check out Moniker for affordable domain names.