Domain Renewal Prices: What Registrars Don't Advertise
A $1 first-year domain doesn't exist: it's subsidized by the renewals that follow. Understanding the gap between wholesale and retail is worth several dollars per domain per year — without touching your sites at all.
A domain's real price: the wholesale rate
Every TLD has a wholesale price set by its registry: ~$10.26 for .com (Verisign), a few euros for .fr (AFNIC). Registrars add their margin — from 0% (Cloudflare, which resells at cost) to well over 100% (GoDaddy's or Gandi's list prices on some TLDs).
Indicative 2026 comparison (renewal, per year)
| TLD | Cloudflare | Porkbun | Namecheap | OVH | Gandi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .com | $10.44 | $11.06 | $16.98 | €11.99 | €18.50 |
| .net | $12.50 | $13.20 | $16.50 | €14.99 | €21.00 |
| .org | $11.00 | $11.80 | $14.50 | €13.99 | €23.00 |
| .io | $49.00 | $56.00 | $55.00 | €59.99 | €65.00 |
Prices observed in early 2026, subject to change — verify before deciding. Registries raise wholesale rates regularly (.com is allowed +7%/yr part of the time): the registrar's margin is the only lever you control.
The strategy: transfer-as-renewal
By ICANN rule, transferring a domain adds a year to its expiry. Transferring at day −30 to an at-cost registrar therefore means renewing cheaper, with no paid time lost. On twenty .com domains, the gap between GoDaddy and Cloudflare exceeds $200 — every year.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the first year cheaper?
It's a subsidized acquisition price: the registrar earns it back through renewals priced 2–5× higher. Always compare renewal prices, never teaser prices.
Is Cloudflare really zero-margin?
Yes — Cloudflare Registrar charges the registry wholesale price plus the $0.18 ICANN fee, nothing else. Domains are a loss-leader for their other services, which makes it the market's structural price floor.
Can wholesale prices rise?
Yes: Verisign may raise .com by 7% per year during part of its contract period, and many ccTLD registries revise rates. A zero-margin registrar passes increases through exactly; a high-margin one amplifies them.