Registering a .nl domain name: costs, renewal and DNS

You want to register an .nl domain name and first check what it costs. Then you see prices of one euro for the first year, prices of ten euros and everything in between. That raises the question of what you are actually buying and where the catches are.

An .nl domain does not differ much between providers. The registry is the same, and the name works the same everywhere. The difference is in the price from year two, in what you have to pay extra and in who is the owner on paper. That is what this article is about.

What does an .nl domain cost per year?

At Netslim, an .nl domain costs € 9.95 per year. For comparison: .com is € 14.95, .eu and .be are € 9.95, .net and .org are € 16.95. So you pay per year, not per month, and the domain continues until you cancel it.

With every quote, ours included, check whether a price is incl. or excl. VAT. As a business owner it makes little difference for your bookkeeping, but it avoids a false sense of "cheaper" when you compare.

The question you should always ask: what do I pay in year two? You keep a domain for years, so the renewal rate is the number that counts, not the price of the first year.

What do you get when you register an .nl domain?

You get the right to use that name as long as you pay. Nothing more, and there is nothing wrong with that. A domain is an address. A website or mailbox does not automatically come with it.

What you can expect from a decent provider:

• A management environment where you edit DNS records yourself, without creating a support ticket.
• The option to transfer the domain with a transfer code, without hassle or costs for requesting it.
• A clear statement of who the holder is and a correct email address for them.
• A reminder before the renewal date.

Many providers give you a domain for free with hosting. You can read how this works with us in the article about a free domain name with hosting or a server. With an offer like this, always check the terms after the first year.

Teaser prices: what to look for at other providers

An .nl domain for a token amount in the first year can be perfectly fine. But it is a lure, and the bill comes later. These are the places where it usually hides:

• The renewal rate. The first year is low, the second year a lot higher. Look up this number before you order, not after.
• Paid extras. DNS management, email forwarding or "privacy protection", which is already largely covered for .nl, are sometimes sold separately.
• Transfer fees. Some providers charge money for issuing a transfer code or make it needlessly difficult.
• Bundles with a contract term. The domain is free, but only with a hosting package of several years. If you stop the package, you suddenly pay a different rate.
• The domain is registered in the provider's name. More on that below, because this is the most expensive pitfall.

A fair rule of thumb: if the total price over three years is not clear from the order page, that is already an answer.

Registering a .nl domain in your own name

When you register, you fill in the holder. This is the party that legally owns the domain. The holder decides who may transfer, sell or cancel it. Not a provider, not a web builder, not an IT nephew: the holder.

This goes wrong more often than you think. A web agency registers the domain for you, in its own company name, "because it is easier". Years later the collaboration breaks down and you have no rights to your own address. Getting a domain back can then cost a lot of time and hassle.

How to prevent this:

1. For a company, enter the company name as the holder, as it appears in your registration. For a sole proprietorship, this can simply be your own name.
2. Use an email address that you manage yourself and that does not run on the domain itself. If you receive your email through the domain, you can't get a notification email when the domain stops working.
3. Keep your details up to date. If you move or your company name changes, update them.
4. If a builder needs access, give temporary access instead of transferring the domain. How this works is explained in the article on giving your web builder temporary access.

For .nl, you don't have to live in the Netherlands. Your details do have to be correct.

DNS and DNSSEC for a .nl domain

DNS is the address book of your domain. It states where your website is, where your email should go and which services may send email on behalf of your domain. The most important records:

• A and AAAA: which server your website points to.
• CNAME: a name that redirects to another name, for example www.
• MX: where your email goes.
• TXT: among others SPF, DKIM and DMARC, the records that decide whether your mail ends up in spam or not.

How to change them in your portal is explained in Managing DNS records in your portal. After a change, it can take a while before it is visible everywhere, sometimes a few hours. So don't change anything five minutes before an important mailing.

What does DNSSEC do?

DNSSEC adds a digital signature to the answers from your DNS. This stops someone else from quietly giving a false answer that sends visitors to a fake site. The .nl registry itself is signed. Whether your domain uses it too depends on your provider and on where your DNS runs.

It has one practical downside. If DNSSEC is on and you move your DNS without moving the keys, your domain can suddenly become unreachable. So it is not a checkbox you just switch on or off. Plan for it when you move. If you are unsure, ask us first via our contact form.

Renewing, cancelling and what happens if you forget

A .nl domain usually renews automatically, as long as your payment method works. That is handy, until your card expires. So put the renewal date in your calendar and keep the registrant's email address up to date, so you actually see the reminder.

If you cancel a .nl domain or let it expire, it first goes into quarantine. This lasts about forty days and is managed by SIDN, the organisation that runs the .nl registry. During that period you can still get the domain back, but your website and email will be down. So don't wait.

If you want to move to another provider, or to us, you request a transfer code from your current provider and then transfer the domain. If you do this properly, your site and email keep running. The steps are in Transferring a domain name without downtime.

Registering a .nl domain step by step

1. Choose a name. Short, easy to pronounce, without spaces. A hyphen is allowed, but not at the start or end. Preferably no numbers that you have to explain.
2. Check if it is available. You do that with our domain check. It checks live with the registry whether the name is available, for .nl, .be, .com and more at once.
3. Fill in the registrant correctly. See above: your company or yourself, not your web builder.
4. Complete the payment and check whether automatic renewal is on or off, depending on what you want.
5. Set up DNS correctly. Point the domain to your hosting and set up SPF and DMARC right away if you are going to send email.

Is the name already taken? There is often still a way, as described in Domain name already taken: how to get it anyway.

What to do now

Start by checking whether your name is available, then look at two numbers: what the domain costs in year two and who will be listed as the registrant. If both are clear, you can order with confidence.

You can register your .nl domain right away via our domain names page, for € 9.95 per year, with DNS that you manage yourself in the portal.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to register a .nl domain?

The registration itself is usually done quickly. After that, it can take a while before your website or email is reachable everywhere via the new domain, because DNS changes have to spread across the internet. Don't plan this right before a launch.

Do I need to live in the Netherlands to register a .nl domain?

No, you don't need to live or be based in the Netherlands for a .nl domain. You do need to give correct details as the registrant, so the domain is in your name or your company's name.

Do I need my own domain for business email?

In practice, yes. With your own domain you get addresses like naam@jouwbedrijf.nl, and you can set up SPF, DKIM and DMARC so your email is less likely to end up in spam. A free email address can't offer that.

Can I transfer my .nl domain to another provider later?

Yes. You request a transfer code from your current provider and give it to the new one. Make sure the DNS settings and any DNSSEC configuration are aligned beforehand, otherwise your site or email may be down for a short time.