Cripes. Have you tried to register a domain name lately? If you have, you’ll now that typing in anything remotely recognizable in one or two word combination is more than likely going to return results something like: “This domain is already registered.”
Photo by Then get red in the face as you repeat this search process a hundred times attempting to find a name that isn’t complete gibberish and/or 5 words long. Next time you’re in the market for a domain name, check out this crop of domain name generators and search tools that that will make your life way easier.
BustAName.com
BustAName.com - Domain name generator
Whoever is behind BustAName.com deserves a small shiny statue made of precious metals. BustAName makes you feel like you are always making progress towards an available name, which almost makes the process fun. Web usability guru Steve Krug once observed that we humans tend to “muddle through” the web — and we actually don’t mind doing so — so long as we feel we are making progress towards our intended goal. BustAName will quickly give you that sense of moving forward towards a decent and available domain name as you creatively muddle through all the ones that are already taken.
MakeWords.com
MakeWords.com - Powerful domain name generator
MakeWords.com is almost as impressive and powerful as BustAName and it only took second by a hair due to a lack of any realtime searching features. MakeWords took a slightly different approach is a very powerful tool for quickly generating and screening domain names. This tool can save you hours of your time and help you get into a domain name sooner rather than later.
InstantDomainSearch.com
InstantDomainSearch.com - Real time domain searching
This site isn’t a generator but it made the list because it makes old school domain name searching look about as useful as a pair of flip-flops at the running of the bulls. Trust me, go on and try InstantDomainSearch.com for a couple of searches and you’ll see what I mean; this thing freakin’ rocks. From a technical point of view, it’s brilliantly executed and an impressive display of modern searching techniques in action. You can even switch modes to a secure search if yer feelin’ a little p’noid.
Web 2.0 Name Generator
Web 2.0 Name Generator
The people behind this generator obviously have a sense of humor. Not so much a domain search engine as it is a word gen, Web 2.0 Name Generator can help get your mind exploring different avenues you might not otehrwise consider on your own steam. Tambuu anyone? What about Gabcube? They don’t promise any of the names will be available, but the stuff this tool comes up with is fun and definitely valuable for sparking new ideas.
Got a favorite tool when it comes to cookin’ up or searching for domain names? Leave us a note in the comments.
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About the author
Danno started freelancing in 1996. He is the co-founder and (ex) President of Graphics.net, owner of FeedIcons.com, EliteFreelancing.com, FastCharacters.com and SteelAndSnow.com. He digs wind, waves, guitars and circles. Follow Danno on Twitter.
October 16th, 2008
Hi Danno,
Your “RSS” and “Verify” in Contact form both are not working. Just to inform you.
October 16th, 2008
Thanks, looking into it now.
October 31st, 2008
Also try http://www.domainnamesoup.com
November 13th, 2008
Try this new cool new site:
http://domaintyper.com
It works for any domain extension, and even gives suggestion for domain hacks.
I think it's quite fast, and supports ssl.
March 31st, 2009
Domain name registration is not a difficult process. But I have seen that for new comers it is always some what tricky. The way you have described the procedure and I must say the science of domain name registration is very admirable. I really appreciate. Thanks for very nice post. I'm sure lots of newbies and even others will find this very informative and helpful.
April 2nd, 2009
Also I would definitely recommend checking out the domain name finding tools at http://www.DomainSuperstar.com
June 12th, 2009
great tool. Domain name is for a site as good as a name for a person. Choosing the right one is always a thing to aim for.
November 26th, 2009
11. http://www.bruteforcenaming.com – not flashy but it's useful
February 25th, 2010
Thanks for your sharing, this is very useful information for me
March 25th, 2010
Hi there great tool. Domain name is for a site as good as a name for a person. Choosing the right one is always a thing to aim for.
thx for shar this information