| Extension | Offer provider | First year | Renewal | Increase | Best 3-year total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .shop | IONOS | US$0.98 | US$56.00 | 57× | US$71.35 |
| .store | WordPress.com | US$0.96 | US$48.00 | 50× | US$90.04 |
| .online | Hostinger | US$0.99 | US$35.99 | 36× | US$59.88 |
| .xyz | IONOS | US$0.75 | US$15.00 | 20× | US$27.97 |
| .com | IONOS | US$1.00 | US$20.00 | 20× | US$31.17 |
| .org | IONOS | US$1.00 | US$20.00 | 20× | US$30.90 |
| .co | OnlyDomains | US$4.97 | US$39.99 | 8.0× | US$75.99 |
The headline price is real—but it is incomplete
The lowest offers in the table are genuine prices published for ordinary, non-premium domains. They are not invented averages. They may still be limited to a new customer, one purchase, a supported billing country or a promotion with no published end date. That is why the provider and later renewal price belong beside the first-year number.
A $0.70 or $1.00 registration can be a good purchase for a short campaign or a domain you are prepared to move. It is a poor basis for budgeting a permanent company address if the next invoice is ignored.
.shop, .store and .online show the largest visual shock
Commerce-oriented extensions are frequently promoted with extremely low first-year prices. Their normal renewals are much higher. The percentage jump looks dramatic because the introductory price is close to zero, but the dollar amount is what affects a real budget.
For one domain, a renewal in the $20–$30 range may be acceptable. For a portfolio of product names, defensive registrations or country variants, the same renewal multiplied across dozens of names becomes a material annual expense.
.com and .org promotions need a new-customer check
The cheapest current .com and .org first-year offers come with customer-eligibility conditions. A returning customer may not see the same checkout price. The regular renewal at that provider is also substantially higher than the first-year headline.
That does not make the offers misleading when the terms are displayed. It means comparison must include both questions: “Can I actually receive this price?” and “What will I pay if I do nothing before renewal?”
Why the best three-year total can name another registrar
The final column is market-wide. It finds the lowest current cost of registering and keeping the extension for three years, including known mandatory fees. It does not assume that the provider with the lowest introductory price remains cheapest after two renewals.
This distinction is the core of useful domain comparison. Registration, renewal, transfer and three-year ownership are separate buying decisions. Sorting only by the first column rewards the largest discount, not the lowest cost.
A practical buying rule
Before checkout, record the registration term, renewal price, mandatory fee, tax treatment and promotion restriction. If the domain matters beyond one year, compare the three-year total. If transfer is allowed after the standard lock period, also compare the cost and effort of moving—but do not build a business plan around a future promotion that may disappear.
Premium names are excluded from this comparison. Registries and registrars can assign a different price to a particular word, so the final checkout remains the authority for the exact domain being purchased.