Free Domain Name 2026: 7 Real Ways
What is really free, for how long, and what you pay after.
By Pritam SononePrices checked 2 Nov 2026Reviewed by Pritam SononePrices re-checked regularly against the brand’s own website.How we test →Affiliate links: we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never changes our verdicts.
Yes, but only for a while. A yearly hosting plan or the GitHub Student Pack gives you a free domain for one year, and is-a.dev or eu.org give free subdomains. If you just want to buy one, a .com costs about $9.68 (₹919) for the first year.
Yes, you can get a free domain name in 2026, but almost never forever. The real ways are: free for one year with a yearly hosting plan, free for one year with the GitHub Student Pack, or a free subdomain like yourname.is-a.dev. If you just want to buy one, the cheapest .com today is $9.68 (₹919) for the first year.
A domain is your website’s address, like yourshop.com. Think of it like renting a shop name on the internet. You pay for it every year, and nobody gives a real one away forever, because the companies that run .com and .in charge for every name.
I checked every offer below on 2 Nov 2026. Some old tricks no longer work, so I mark what is live and what is gone.
The 7 real ways to get a free domain
| Way | What you get | Free for | Catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. With a hosting plan | A real .com, .in and more | 1 year | You pay for hosting; the domain renews at full price |
| 2. GitHub Student Pack | .me, .tech, .dev and more | 1 year | Only for students who are approved |
| 3. is-a.dev | yourname.is-a.dev | As long as it runs | For developer sites; you ask on GitHub |
| 4. eu.org | yourname.eu.org | As long as it runs | Slow, no support, you need your own DNS |
| 5. DigitalPlat FreeDomain | yourname.dpdns.org and others | As long as it runs | Small project; you do not own the main name |
| 6. GitHub Pages | yourname.github.io | Free, with hosting | Static sites only, no online shops |
| 7. Cloudflare Pages | yourproject.pages.dev | Free, with hosting | Static sites; you need to upload code |
1. Free with a hosting plan
This is the best way for most people. Many hosts add a free domain for the first year when you buy a yearly plan. At Hostinger, Premium and bigger plans include it, from ₹139 a month on a 48-month plan. At MilesWeb, even the Starter plan at ₹69 a month (36 months) includes a free .com, .in or .co.in.
The catch: from year 2 you pay the normal domain price. At Hostinger a .com renews at ₹1,499 a year plus GST (₹1,769). Read the full rules in our free domain with Hostinger guide, or see every host that includes one on cheapest hosting with a free domain.
2. Free for students: the GitHub Student Pack
If you are a student, GitHub gives you a free pack of tools. Three of them are domains: a free .me from Namecheap for a year, a free domain from Name.com (endings like .dev, .app and .live), and a free .tech for a year. See how to claim them in free domain for students.
3 to 5. Free subdomains: is-a.dev, eu.org and DigitalPlat
A subdomain is a name that sits inside someone else’s domain, like pritam.is-a.dev. These three projects give them away for free. They are fine for learning and for a developer portfolio. For a business, they look less trusted, and you do not own them.
6 and 7. Free hosting with its own address
GitHub Pages gives you yourname.github.io and Cloudflare Pages gives you yourproject.pages.dev. Both host the website too, for free. They suit simple sites made of plain files. Compare all five in free domain without hosting.
What happened to Freenom?
For years, Freenom gave away free .tk, .ml and .ga domains. That is over. When I searched for a .tk name on Freenom today, it asked for EUR 8.22. Any guide that still sends you to Freenom for a free domain is out of date.
Cheapest price if you just buy a domain
If you do not need hosting yet, buying a domain alone is cheap. These are the lowest one-year prices I found today. The full comparison is on cheapest domain in India and cheapest .com domain.
| Extension | Cheapest for 1 year | Renews at | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| .com | $9.68 (₹919) | $10.88 (₹1,033) | Spaceship ($9.48 + $0.20 ICANN fee) |
| .in | ₹744 ($7.83) | ₹744 ($7.83) | Porkbun |
| .net | $11.40 (₹1,083) | $11.40 (₹1,083) | Spaceship ($11.20 + $0.20 ICANN fee) |
| .ai | $79.98 (₹7,595) a year | $79.98 a year | Spaceship (2 years minimum) |
| .xyz | $2.06 (₹196) | $13.97 (₹1,327) | Spaceship ($1.86 + $0.20 ICANN fee) |
There is also a ₹1 trick. Hostinger and GoDaddy India sell a .com or .in for ₹1 for the first year, but only if you buy 3 years at once. At Hostinger, a .com for 3 years comes to ₹3,539 with GST. That is about ₹1,180 a year, so it is a fair price, but it is not free.
Watch out for these renewal traps
- Year 2 costs more. The free or cheap first year ends. Note the renewal price before you buy.
- Some endings are never free. .ai and .io are expensive everywhere. See free .ai domain.
- Free domain, paid hosting. A free domain with hosting is only free if you wanted that hosting anyway.
- Claim it in time. Hostinger cancels the free domain if you do not claim it within 12 months.
- Own it in your name. Make sure the domain is registered to you, not to the person who built your site.
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Which one should you pick?
- Starting a business or blog: take the free domain with a yearly hosting plan. You need hosting anyway.
- Student: claim the GitHub Student Pack and pick a .me, .tech or .dev.
- Learning or a code portfolio: a free subdomain or GitHub Pages is enough.
- Just want the name: buy it alone. A .com is about ₹919 for the first year.
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Questions people ask
Can I get a domain name for free?
Yes, for a while. Yearly hosting plans at Hostinger (Premium and up) and MilesWeb include a free domain for the first year. Students get one free year through the GitHub Student Pack. Free subdomains like is-a.dev and eu.org stay free, but you do not own them.
Is there a free .com domain forever?
No. Every .com has a yearly fee that someone has to pay. The cheapest way to own one is to buy it alone for about $9.68 (₹919) the first year, or get it free for year 1 with hosting.
Does Freenom still give free domains?
No. When we searched on 2 Nov 2026, a .tk name cost EUR 8.22 at Freenom. The free .tk, .ml and .ga offer is gone.
Which hosting gives a free domain in India?
Hostinger (Premium, Unlimited and Ecommerce Startup plans) and MilesWeb (all plans of 12 months or more) both include a free domain for the first year. MilesWeb Starter is the cheapest of these at ₹69 a month for 36 months.
What is the cheapest domain I can buy?
A .xyz at Spaceship was $2.06 for the first year on 2 Nov 2026, renewing at $13.97. For a .com, the lowest was $9.68 (₹919), also at Spaceship.
Is a free subdomain good for SEO?
It can rank, but it is harder. People trust their own .com or .in more, and you cannot move a free subdomain if the project closes. Use one for learning, and buy a real domain for a business.
Read next
- Free domain with Hostinger: which plans include it and the 1-year rule
- Cheapest hosting with a free domain: the plans that include one, ranked by real cost
- Cheapest .com domain: first year and renewal side by side
- Cheapest domain in India: every registrar compared in rupees
- Free .com domain: how to get one for $0, and the catch
- Free .in domain: free with hosting, or the cheapest price
- Cheapest web hosting in India: real yearly cost with GST
- Hostinger coupon code: DIGITALPRITAM10 for 10% extra off
How I checked this
I am Pritam Sonone. I build and look after WordPress websites, and I have spoken at WordCamp, the WordPress community event. I checked every price and offer on this page myself on 2 Nov 2026, on the official pages, and I took the screenshots you see above. I searched test names in the Hostinger India cart, read the plan pages of Hostinger and MilesWeb, the price tables of Spaceship, Porkbun and Namecheap, the GitHub Student Pack page, and the is-a.dev, eu.org and DigitalPlat project pages. Dollar prices are turned into rupees at US$1 = ₹94.96. Indian checkouts add 18% GST, and I have added it where they do. Prices change often, so check the cart before you pay. We earn a small commission if you buy hosting through some links here. It never changes the prices shown.