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Domain age checker
Find out when a domain was first registered, when it expires, who it's registered through and where its DNS is hosted, straight from the registry's public record.
Free · No signup
How it works
Type a domain, like example.com. A full web address or a subdomain works too; we look up the domain it belongs to.
We ask the domain's registry for its public RDAP record, the modern replacement for WHOIS.
You get its age, the key dates, the registrar, name servers and status codes, with anything worth acting on flagged.
Domain age is not a ranking factor
It's one of the most repeated SEO myths: older domains rank better. Google's John Mueller has said plainly that domain age helps nothing. A ten-year-old domain with thin pages won't outrank a one-year-old site that answers the question better.
What makes old domains look strong is what they've usually collected along the way: links from other sites, a history of useful content, a brand people search for by name. Those things matter. The registration date is just a date.
So use this domain age checker for due diligence, not for predicting rankings.
When the domain's age and record do matter
- Buying a domain or a business: check the registration date matches the story you're told. A "15-year-old brand" registered last spring is worth a question.
- Choosing a guest post or partner site: a site registered weeks ago that claims years of authority is a warning sign.
- Your own domain: check the expiry date and that the registrar is the one you think you use. An expired domain takes your website and your email offline at once.
- Spotting a re-registered domain: if the registration date is recent but the site claims a long history, the domain may have lapsed and been bought by someone else. Its old links may point to content that no longer exists.
For that last case, run the domain through the lost URL finder to see what it used to host, and look at the old pages in the Wayback Machine before you build on it or buy links from it.
How to read the record
Registered is the date the current registration began. If a domain expired and someone else registered it later, this resets to the new date: the record doesn't keep the domain's earlier life.
Expires is the end of the period paid for. Most registrars renew automatically, so a date a few months away is normal; a date that's already passed means the domain is in a grace or redemption period, or about to be deleted.
Last changed is the last time anything in the record changed: a renewal, new name servers, a transfer. It isn't the date the website changed.
Status codes describe locks and states. "Client transfer prohibited" is a standard lock that stops someone moving the domain away without permission; it's a good sign. "Hold", "redemption period" or "pending delete" mean the domain is in trouble. Name servers tell you who runs the domain's DNS, which is often (not always) where the site is hosted or proxied.
What this tool can't show
Owner names and contact details are redacted for almost every domain since GDPR, and this tool doesn't show them. If you need to reach an owner, the registrar usually offers a contact form or relay address.
Some country-code registries, such as Germany's .de, don't publish RDAP records at all. For those you'll be pointed to the registry's own WHOIS lookup. And a few registries don't share every date, so you may see a domain that's registered but has no creation date.
Questions people ask
Does an older domain rank better?
Not because of its age. Google has said domain age isn't a ranking factor. Older sites often rank well because of the links and content they've built up over time.
What's the difference between RDAP and WHOIS?
Both are lookups of a domain's registration record. RDAP is the newer standard: structured data, secure connections, and consistent fields across registries. ICANN has replaced WHOIS with RDAP for generic domains like .com.
Why does the registration date look too recent?
The domain probably expired and was registered again, which starts a new record. Check its history in the Wayback Machine to see what was there before.
Can I see who owns a domain?
Usually not. Registrars redact owner details for privacy. The registrar is listed, and most offer a way to contact the owner without revealing their address.
Is this domain age checker free?
Yes. No signup, and no limit you'll reach in normal use.
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