Tools

Domain name checker

Type a business name to see whether it is free as a .co.uk, .uk, .com and nine other extensions, or type full domain names to check exactly those. Your browser asks each registry directly, so the answer is current and no registrar sees what you searched for.

A single word is checked as .co.uk .com .uk .org.uk .net .org .ltd .online .store .tech .ai .app. Separate several names with commas. Up to 30 at a time.

Results

Type a name above, for example acmeplumbing or acme.co.uk.

    Before you buy: check the name is not someone else's registered trade mark (search the UK IPO register) and, if you trade as a company, that it is not already a company name at Companies House. A free domain does not mean a free name.

    How domain checking works

    How does the checker know whether a domain is free?

    Every registry that runs an extension keeps the list of registered names, and most publish it through RDAP, the official replacement for WHOIS. Your browser asks the registry for the name. If the registry has a record, the name is taken and the checker shows when it was registered, when it is due for renewal and which registrar manages it. If the registry has no record, nobody holds it. Nominet answers for .uk and .co.uk, Verisign for .com and .net.

    Does available mean I can register it at the normal price?

    Usually. A small number of unregistered names are reserved by the registry or sold at a premium price, and only a registrar's checkout shows that. Availability is checked at the moment you click, so register a name you want soon rather than coming back next week.

    Why can it not check .io, .co or .me?

    Those registries do not offer a public RDAP service that a browser can query, so there is no reliable way to check them without going through a registrar. The checker says so instead of guessing. Search for them at any registrar.

    Should a UK business register the .co.uk, the .uk or the .com?

    Many UK businesses register the .co.uk and the .uk together so nobody else can take the shorter version, and add the .com if it is free. Pick one as the address on your website and email, and point the others at it. A name that is taken may still come free: if the renewal date has passed, the result says the name is waiting to be deleted.

    What happens to the names I check?

    Each name goes from your browser straight to the registry that runs that extension, the same as any WHOIS or RDAP lookup. It does not pass through Esc Tools and is never sent to a registrar, so nobody here sees your search. Registries keep normal server logs of lookups. Nothing is stored in your browser.

    Registry addresses follow the IANA RDAP bootstrap file. "Available" means the registry had no record at the moment of the check. This is general information, not legal advice.