How to Get a Domain Appraised: Free & Paid Methods Explained

You can buy a brand new domain with a single click.

Type in your idea, hit search, and if no one else has claimed it yet, you can add it to your cart like a pair of socks. Easy. Cheap. Done.

But what if the name you really want is already taken?

That’s when things get interesting, and murky. Because now you’re no longer dealing with retail. You’re in the world of private sales, obscure comps, emotional pricing, and deals that range from $500 to seven figures for a single word.

So how do you figure out what a domain is actually worth?

Valuation in the domain world is part data, part instinct, and part poker game. It’s not just about what a tool tells you. It’s about what the right buyer would pay, what the seller believes it’s worth, and what the market can justify.

Whether you're trying to buy, sell, or just understand what you're holding, here's how to get a domain appraised in a way that actually means something.

The Problem With Automated Appraisals

There are plenty of websites that promise to tell you a domain’s value instantly. Plug in your name and get a number like $1,247 or $23,800 or $47.95, served with a confidence that suggests science. But peek under the hood, and most of these tools rely on the same recycled inputs: keyword popularity, CPC, search volume, backlinks, and a handful of past sales for vaguely similar domains.

They’re not wrong. They’re just incomplete.

A domain like PetInsurance.com and a domain like Furlo.com might both appraise at $10,000 using the same tool. But one is an exact-match search term with clear commercial intent. The other is a brandable name that could anchor a VC-backed startup. Pricing them the same way ignores everything that actually drives demand.

Free appraisal tools can be helpful in the way Zillow is helpful for pricing a house: useful for ballparks, dangerous for negotiations. They don’t know who’s at the table. They don’t see the urgency. They don’t know if someone just raised a Series A and can’t ship their product until they land the right domain.

Bottom line? These tools are only step one. They shouldn't be the last.

What Actually Drives Domain Value?

There’s no universal formula, but most high-value domains share a few traits:

• Short and simple: One or two syllables, clean spelling
• Memorable: Easy to recall, easy to say, no weird punctuation or hyphens
• .com: Still the most credible and sought-after extension by far
• Category-defining or brandable: Either it describes what you do (CarLoans.com), or becomes who you are (Stripe.com)
• Market timing: AI-related names are hotter today than they were five years ago
• Buyer urgency: If someone needs the name to launch, they’ll pay more

These are things most automated tools can’t fully account for, but they’re exactly what experienced buyers and sellers are looking at.

Use Real Sales to Set the Baseline

If you want something more grounded than an algorithm’s guess, start by looking at actual sales.

NameBio is one of the best resources available. It’s a searchable database of domain sales from public marketplaces, covering everything from six-figure .coms to quirky two-word .co names. You can filter by extension, length, keyword, price, and sale venue.

If you own a name like TrackFlow.com, and see that FlowTrack.com sold for $9,000 and Trackly.com went for $12,500, you’ve got a working range. It’s not perfect, but it’s the start of a story you can build on.

Another useful resource: DNJournal. They publish a weekly roundup of notable sales, mostly premium names, which helps you stay in tune with where the high end of the market is moving.

Real comps won’t tell you the future. But they’ll show you what buyers have already been willing to pay for similar names. That’s more useful than any machine-learned “score.”

Brandables, Keywords, and the Blind Spots in Pricing

One of the hardest parts of domain valuation is pricing brandables.

A keyword name like AustinDogGrooming.com is easy to assess. It’s got local intent, search value, and some built-in commercial purpose. But a name like Zovo.com? It’s pure brand potential. It could be a payment app, a clothing line, or an AI assistant. That flexibility adds value, but it’s hard to quantify.

Brandables tend to be priced more emotionally. Sellers know they’re scarce. Buyers know they’re foundational. So the conversation becomes less about traffic or CPC and more about vision.

This is also where buyers get stuck. They run a name through GoDaddy’s tool, see a $2,000 estimate, and assume that’s the ceiling. But in reality, the seller knows this name could be a million-dollar brand and isn’t in a rush to sell.

In these cases, comps and automated tools won’t help much. You need to understand the narrative value. And often, you need a second opinion from someone who’s been in the market.

When to Bring in a Professional Appraisal

If the domain in question is:

• Something you’re considering spending serious money on
• A name you want to sell but don’t know how to price
• A legacy asset you’ve held for years and never listed
• A name that sits at the heart of your brand or business

…it’s worth getting a real appraisal.

You can find paid services that offer structured reports. Some, like Sawy or DomainIndex, blend data-driven inputs with some human interpretation. But the most useful appraisals often come from domain brokers (people who understand the market because they’re in it every day).

A broker won’t just tell you what it’s worth on paper. They’ll tell you how it will land with a buyer, how it compares to other names in the same niche, and what you could realistically expect if you went to market.

Why You Should Be Skeptical of Any Single Number

Here’s the secret nobody tells you: there’s no “correct” price for a domain.

There’s a range. A spread. A zone where buyer and seller expectations overlap just enough to make a deal happen. Everything else is noise.

Two different buyers might value the same domain in radically different ways. One sees it as a fun idea. The other sees it as the cornerstone of their brand. That gap could be the difference between a $3K offer and a $30K wire transfer.

So instead of chasing the “right” number, focus on context:

• What does this domain unlock for you (or for the buyer)?
• How does it compare to others on the market?
• What’s the timing, urgency, and leverage on both sides?

That’s the real appraisal.

Snagged Can Help

If you’re trying to buy a domain and don’t know what to offer, or sitting on one and unsure how to price it, we’ll help you figure it out.

At Snagged, we combine data, comps, market signals, and real-world experience to appraise domains with precision and perspective. We’ve seen it all: undervalued assets, overhyped names, stalled negotiations, and seven-figure wins. We know what sells, why it sells, and what gets ignored.

We don’t just throw out a number. We tell you what to expect and how to move forward.

👉 Get a domain valuation from Snagged

Final Thought

Domain valuation isn’t a science. It’s closer to storytelling.

You’re not just pricing a string of letters. You’re assigning value to possibility, perception, and positioning. Whether you use free tools, dig into past sales, or bring in an expert, the goal isn’t to find the number. It’s to find the number that makes sense for your context, your strategy, and the market you’re operating in.

And if you're still not sure? We're happy to help you run the numbers.

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