The Cheap Domain Provider List for Your Author Website
If you’re on the lookout for a new domain name, then this cheap domain provider list has you covered.
Not going to lie, it’s not easy to find a domain name at a dirt low price.
But the good news is, it’s still doable to pay $15 for a domain name.
It doesn’t matter whether you want to get a brand new domain name for your author website or transfer the existing one to a new registrar; this cheap domain provider list will come in handy.
Unsure what the process involves when it comes to buying a domain name?
Well, here’s the good news for you – it’s not as hard as you think.
All you need to do is to think of a name you want for your author website, pick any domain extension that works best for your author website, and you’re good to go.
What name you should use on your brand new author website
For some people, coming up with a name for their new website is like a walk in the park.
But for some people, it can be a struggle especially if it’s the name that will affect their author career down the road.
If that’s you, how you should go about when it comes to buying a domain name for your author website?
Should you use your own name? Or should you use a brand-like domain name for your author website?
To answer this question, it depends on the purpose of your author website.
If writing a book is the focal point, then it makes sense to name your website with your author name. That is always the case if you’re a fiction author or if you’re a nonfiction author who only writes books.
Austin Kleon comes to mind when we talk about authors who make a living from their books. Of course, he also has speaking gigs as well and he’s actively blogging too. But you don’t see him offering consultations or have his own online courses. Well, that is as far as I know. I could be wrong about that.
If you only use your books to land consultant and coaching clients, then it’s fine to name your website with a brand name.
That’s what I do with The Efficient You. While I do have a book, it’s not the main focus of my website.
The Efficient You is more about me sharing my author business perspective. So, it’s fine for me not to name this website with my name.
But it’s a different story for my fiction author site where my books and my blog are the only thing I’m known for as Sekina Mayu.
What about the website that uses the name of the book?
I’m sure that you come across many authors who has a dedicated website just for their book.
If you only write one book and you don’t plan to write another book for the next couple of years, then this approach will work for you.
This approach will also work for you if you plan to write the same book with a different spin-off for the rest of your life. And you’re offering other products and services derived from the book.
But if you do plan to write many different books, then it doesn’t make sense for you to use the name of your book as a name for your website.
Using the name of your book as a name for your website will also mean that you have to create a new website every time you have a new book coming out.
Creating a website is already hard and can be costly to some people.
You’re better off naming the website with your name or using a brand name if you plan to write many different books and have plans that are not related to your books down the road.
The cheap domain provider list that you can count on
Now that you have already decided what name you should be using on your author website, it’s time for you to buy cheap domain names that you have always dreamed of.
Here are the websites that you can use to buy cheap domain names for your author website.
Namecheap
Namecheap comes to mind when we talk about the domain registrar that allows you to buy cheap domain names.
While the domain names at Namecheap are affordable enough, you can get the domain name even lower if you use a promo coupon code.
It’s not that hard to find the promo coupon code for Namecheap since they have a dedicated page just for that. So, don’t forget to take a look at this page to take advantage of their latest offers.
This is the domain registrar that I use to buy domain names for The Efficient You and also my fiction author site, Sekina Mayu.
iwantmyname
I admit that iwantmyname isn’t the place for you to buy cheap domain names for your website since the domain names are pricey regardless of which domain extension you choose.
But I feel like it’s worth mentioning iwantmyname here because of its one-click installation domain-mapping process.
With iwantmyname, all you need to do is to purchase the domain name you want, choose which app to install on your domain name and you’re good to go.
You don’t even need to do any manual configuration at all.
You can take a look at this page right here to find out which apps that you can install on the domain names that you purchase from iwantmyname.
It’s too bad that they don’t have one-click installation process for WordPress. So, you will still need to do manual configuration for your WordPress site if you get your domain name from iwantmyname.
I used iwantmyname back then when I still had my website on Tumblr.
Which domain extension you should get
.COM, .NET, .ORG. Heck, you can even get your domain name that ends with .MEDIA, .LIVE and .TV.
With so many varieties when it comes to domain extensions for your author website, which one you should get?
Well, that will depend on your author brand, how much you’re willing to spend for the renewal each year and the availability of the domain name you want.
For the most part, .COM is the preferred domain name extension since it’s the easiest to remember. And it also costs less to renew the domain name too.
But if you want something unique for your author brand, then it doesn’t hurt to pick a unique domain name extension such as .MEDIA, .AI, and .LIVE.
Keep in mind that you will have to pay more for a unique domain extension like this, though.
What can I say? Branding ain’t come cheap, you know?
But I got myself a free domain name!
Some web hosting services, such as Bluehost, Hostgator, and Setrahost, will give you a free domain name for the first year when you sign up with them.
As much as I love saving money, I don’t recommend having your domain name lumped together with your hosting account.
The reason for that is that it will be difficult for you to reclaim your website if someone managed to hack into your hosting account and change your Whois record.
Of course, it shouldn’t be a problem if you use a strong password for your hosting account. But it doesn’t hurt to keep your domain name separate from your hosting account to prevent such a situation from happening to you.
Another reason why you should keep your domain name separate from the hosting account is when you decide to change your web hosting service.
Let’s say you currently sign up with Bluehost. But for some reason, you just don’t like it, or you happen to outgrow your current hosting plan. And now you’re thinking of moving to a different web hosting service.
If you have your domain name on any of these web hosting services, you can’t have your domain name there anymore since you’re no longer hosting your website on Bluehost.
In the end, you have to transfer your domain name to another domain registrar. That adds another thing to do besides transferring your website to another hosting service.
Of course, transferring your domain name to another domain registrar isn’t as complicated as transferring your website to another hosting service.
But it’s still adding extra work for you. And I’m sure that you don’t want that.
The ‘TL;DR’ (Too Long; Didn’t Read) Section
Your quick answers to all your domain name woes, even the technical ones. They all sum up in an easy-to-view toggle format.
How much does a domain name typically cost?
A standard domain name typically costs around $15 per year. However, you can often find them for much less during special promotions or with promo coupon codes from registrars like Namecheap.
Should I use my real name or a brand name for my author website?
It depends on your goal: if writing books is your primary focus, use your author name. Think Austin Kleon, where the website is his author name.
You can say the same for my fiction author website, where the domain name is my author name.
If your books are a way to land consulting or coaching clients, a brand name like The Efficient You works better.
What if you plan to write many books across various genres?
Stick with your name to avoid creating a new site for each book.
Which domain extension (TLD) is best for authors?
The .com extension is the preferred choice because it is the easiest for readers to remember and usually costs less to renew. While unique extensions like .media or .live can help with specific branding, they are often more expensive to maintain.
Where are the best places to buy cheap domain names?
Namecheap is highly recommended for its affordability and its dedicated promo coupon page. Another option includes iwantmyname, which offers easy one-click domain mapping for certain apps but is generally pricier.
Just to let you know that Namecheap is where I get the domain name for The Efficient You and Sekina Mayu from.
As for iwantmyname, it’s also another place where I got a domain name from in the past.
If you have to pick one, I recommend Namecheap since you pay less when you get a new domain name during your first year.
Why should I keep my domain name separate from my web hosting?
You should keep them separate to increase security and maintain flexibility. If your hosting account is ever compromised, having your domain at a separate registrar prevents a hacker from easily changing your ownership (Whois) records. Additionally, it makes it much easier to switch hosting providers later without undergoing a domain transfer.
Is it better to buy a domain name for 1 year or 10 years?
While buying for one year is the cheapest upfront cost, registering for multiple years protects you from annual price increases and ensures you don’t accidentally lose your domain if a renewal email goes to your spam folder.
What is Whois privacy and do I need it?
Whois privacy hides your personal contact information (email, phone, home address) from the public domain registry. Many registrars, like Namecheap, include this for free, and it is highly recommended for authors to prevent spam and protect their home privacy.
Can I change my domain name later?
You can purchase a new domain at any time, but “changing” it involves a technical process called a 301 redirect to ensure you don’t lose your search engine rankings. It is much more efficient to choose a long-term name (like your author name) from the start.