Last month, a client asked me to help them buy a domain for a new SaaS product. The seller was asking $3,000 for a 12-year-old .com that looked clean on the surface. I ran a Whois lookup — took 5 seconds — and found the domain had changed registrars 4 times in the last 3 years. That's a red flag most buyers would miss.
We walked away. Two weeks later the same domain showed up on an auction site with a starting bid of $80. The seller had been trying to flip it.
This is why I always tell people: check Whois before you negotiate, not after.
You can run the same check with our free Whois lookup tool — no sign-up, works on .com, .net, .org, .io, .cn and more.
What I Actually Look For in a Whois Report
Most guides tell you to "check the creation date." That's fine, but here's the order I actually use, from most to least important:
1. Registrar changes (Updated Date)
If the "Updated Date" is within the last 6 months but the "Creation Date" is from 2015, that means the domain moved recently. That's not automatically bad, but it usually means someone bought it recently and is now flipping it.
I've seen domains flip 5 times in one year. Each flip adds a markup. By the time it reaches you, you're paying 10x what it's worth.
2. Expiration date (Registry Expiry Date)
If the domain expires in less than 3 months and the seller wants a high price, they're trying to unload it before renewal. That's negotiating leverage for you.
I once negotiated a domain from $2,400 down to $600 just by pointing out the expiry date was 6 weeks away. The seller renewed it and later sold it for $8,000 — but that's a different story. Point is, the expiry date is your friend.
3. Name servers (NS)
If the NS points to a parking service (like Sedo, Dan.com, or Afternic), the domain isn't being actively used. That's often a sign the owner is a domain investor, not a business using the domain.
If the NS points to Cloudflare, that's usually a good sign — it means an actual developer or site owner has touched it.
4. Domain status
You want to see "ok" or "clientTransferProhibited" — those are normal. Watch out for:
- clientHold / serverHold — the domain is suspended. Avoid unless you know why.
- pendingDelete — the domain is being deleted. Worth watching.
- redemptionPeriod — the grace period after expiry. Buying at this stage is risky.
What You Won't Find in Whois Anymore
If you're looking for the owner's name, email, or phone number — you'll probably see REDACTED FOR PRIVACY instead. This is because of GDPR, and it's been standard since 2018.
Some old guides still tell you to "email the domain owner via Whois." That advice is dead. You now have to use the registrar's contact form or find them another way.
The Age Question: How Old Is "Old Enough"?
I used to think any domain over 10 years old was valuable. I was wrong.
Here's my actual rule now:
| Age | Actual Value |
|---|---|
| Under 1 year | Same as new — no SEO advantage |
| 1–3 years | Slight advantage if the site had real traffic |
| 3–10 years | Meaningful advantage IF the site was active |
| 10+ years | Only valuable if it had continuous backlinks |
The key phrase is "if the site was active." A 15-year-old domain that sat parked with no content is worth less than a 2-year-old domain with a real business on it.
How to Check What a Domain Was Used For
Whois tells you when, not what. For "what," you need two more tools:
- Web Archive (archive.org) — paste the URL, see how the site looked in previous years
- Backlink checker — Ahrefs, Semrush, or a free alternative like Ahrefs Webmaster Tools
I skip these steps about 30% of the time — when I'm just buying a domain for a personal project and don't care about history. But for a business, never skip them.
What I Do Before Every Domain Purchase
My checklist, in order:
- Run a Whois lookup — check creation, expiry, registrar changes
- Check domain availability if I'm considering alternatives
- Look at Web Archive for the last 5 years of content
- Check backlinks (even a free tool gives you a rough idea)
- Google the domain name to see if there's any reputation issues
Total time: about 10 minutes. Total savings: potentially thousands of dollars.
If You're Buying a Domain, Do This
Don't overthink it. But definitely don't skip Whois.
If you're looking at a domain right now and want a quick sanity check, use our free Whois lookup. It won't tell you whether the price is fair, but it will tell you whether the seller is being honest about the history.
That alone is worth the 5 seconds.