The question of the value of a domain is one of the most exciting in digital business. It comes up in everyday agency work as well as in discussions with founders or investors. What is this one name really worth? A few hundred euros? Five figures? Or theoretically millions?

The honest answer is: a domain is worth as much as a specific buyer is willing to pay. The professional answer is more complex. The market follows clear patterns, economic trends and psychological mechanisms. Those who understand these can realistically classify the domain value – and use it strategically.

The domain market today: A vibrant, growing industry

Domains have been actively traded for over two decades. In addition to traditional registration, there is a global secondary market with specialized marketplaces, brokers and auction platforms. Public sales databases document transactions in the four- to seven-figure range.

Record sales regularly attract attention. The domain AI.com was sold for 70 million US dollars in 2025, making it the most expensive publicly known domain deal to date. Such sales are exceptions, but show the significance that individual terms can have at the right technological moment.

However, the classification is important. The majority of domain transactions are in the lower to mid four-digit range. Five-figure sales are possible, but much rarer. Six- or seven-figure deals relate exclusively to absolute premium terms with enormous economic relevance.

At the same time, the majority of all domains on offer never find a buyer. The market is not a sure-fire success. It is selective.

How a domain value is actually created

A domain consists of two elements: the name and the extension. Both together form a unique asset. But uniqueness alone does not create value.

Several factors are decisive.

Length plays a central role. Short, clear terms are easier to remember, less prone to error and more flexible to use in marketing. A memorable word immediately comes across as professional. Long constructions with hyphens or complicated spelling lose their appeal.

Brandability is just as important. A term must be pronounceable, generate trust and ideally function internationally. Generic terms such as hotel, insurance or cloud have an inherent commercial relevance. At the same time, good-sounding artificial words can also be strong if they work as a brand.

The ending remains a key value factor. .com continues to be the world’s most dominant and commercially strongest top-level domain. Despite numerous new endings, .com dominates both in terms of registrations and high-priced sales. In German-speaking countries, .de continues to enjoy a high level of trust and a strong brand impact.

Worth mentioning: In the past, the value of generic domains was often explained by so-called “type-in traffic”. Users entered terms directly into the address bar, such as “hotel.de” or “versicherung.com”. Today, the majority of traffic comes from search engines, apps, social media or voice assistants. This does not mean that generic domains have lost their value. Their advantage today lies more in credibility, brand impact and conversion strength than in pure direct traffic. If you have a strong domain, you appear more established and trustworthy – a factor that can be decisive, especially in the competition for new customers.

Theoretical value and real liquidity

A common mistake is to equate valuation figures with actual salability. Automated valuation tools can provide a ballpark figure based on search volume, length, TLD and comparable sales. But a calculated value is not a guaranteed market price.

The decisive factor is liquidity. How many realistic buyers exist for exactly this term? How big is their budget? Is the sector in growth or decline?

In order to realistically classify expectations, it is worth taking a look at typical market segments. The majority of freely registrable domains have virtually no resale value worth mentioning. Solid brandable terms often range from a few hundred to a few thousand euros. Good generic keywords can fetch five-figure prices. Six-figure sums arise almost exclusively in the case of clear strategic demand. Eight-figure deals are absolutely exceptional cases, relate to global premium terms with enormous economic significance and in fact only arise when strategic buyers are involved, for example in the case of rebrandings, internationalization or in the run-up to financing rounds.

At such moments, a domain goes from being a mere name to a strategic instrument. It influences brand perception, investor confidence and market positioning. The price is then no longer considered in isolation, but in the context of a larger economic project.

There is also a psychological factor. Once a founder or a company has found “its” perfect name, the willingness to pay often goes far beyond purely mathematical values. Domain trading is never just math. It is also emotion and timing.

The influence of AI on supply and demand

Artificial intelligence is currently influencing the domain market on two levels.

Firstly, the demand for AI-related terms is increasing significantly. Domains related to AI, automation, machine learning or data are more in demand than ever. The sale of AI.com is an extreme example of this trend.

Secondly, AI itself is changing the naming landscape. Modern AI tools generate thousands of domain suggestions in seconds. This leads to an explosion of mediocre but useful artificial words. The result is greater differentiation in the market. Truly clear, generic and high-quality domains stand out more from the AI name noise. This can even increase their relative value.

AI does not make domains superfluous. It merely shifts the evaluation standards.

The current trends that determine domain value

1. record sales set new standards – AI.com beats everything

An event from 2025/2026 shows how much the market has changed: the domain “AI.com” was sold for 70 million US dollars in 2025. This transaction is the highest publicly known price for a single domain to date, and it underlines how important the term “AI” has become in the digital age.

This sale beats previous records by far, including voice.com(USD 30 million) and carinsurance.com(around USD 50 million) from previous years.

The fact that a single word combined with a strong ending can be worth so much clearly shows that demand and strategic future orientation are more decisive today than ever before.

2. boom in tech and AI domains (.ai)

Domains ending in .ai have experienced enormous growth in recent years. Originally, .ai was simply the country code for Anguilla, a small Caribbean island. However, since the technological rise of artificial intelligence, .ai has become the “tech signature” on the web.

The statistics speak for themselves:

• The registration of .ai domains has grown by several hundred percent in the last five years.
• By the end of 2025, there were already over 900,000 .ai domains, and the trend continues to rise sharply.

This also has a direct impact on prices: In addition to the record sale of AI.com, .ai domains such as fin.ai sold for over USD 1 million, you.ai for around USD 700,000 and other .ai first names traded for five- to six-figure sums.

Although .ai has not yet achieved the global brand power of .com, it is increasingly perceived as a strategically valuable extension in the tech sector.

3. the classic “.com” domain remains strong

Despite all the hype and new extensions, .com is still the most important domain extension worldwide in terms of registrations and commercial demand. In 2025, significantly more .com domains were registered than in the previous year, and .com continues to hold a very high market share among serious business and e-commerce websites.

.com domains also dominate the top lists in terms of actual sales: In data from 2025, some of the highest four- to five-digit sales figures, such as etra.com or umami.com, belonged to this ending.

In short: .com is not dead, it is strong and continues to be a dominant factor in domain trading.

4. new economy trends and other TLDs

In addition to .com and .ai, other thematic domain extensions are also experiencing growth. Examples include .store, .cloud, .app or .io, which are frequently used by start-ups, e-commerce projects or SaaS providers.

Although these endings are often cheaper to register than .com, they are used specifically if they directly reflect the industry or business model. This can improve the subjective brand value and findability of a domain.

4. legal risk

Another real valuation factor is the legal risk. Domains that could infringe trademark rights or well-known company logos are not investments, but potential liability cases. UDRP proceedings or trademark warnings can effectively render a domain worthless or cause high costs.

Professional domain valuation therefore always includes a trademark search and an assessment of possible risks of confusion. Security is a value factor.

Why domain trading is interesting for agencies

Many agencies still see domains as a side issue that you register “on the side”. This is a big mistake. Domains are often the first point of contact between the brand and the user and are therefore strategically extremely important.

Here are some reasons why it makes sense for you as an agency to take domain trading seriously:

1. complete branding offer: You can offer clients holistic brand strategies that include not only logo and website, but also domain strategy and digital presence.

2. additional revenue: Domain consulting, domain evaluation, broker services or targeted domain sales can be additional sources of income.

3. protection against errors: If you secure domains that are relevant for customers (e.g. different endings, terms, spellings), you avoid expensive re-registrations or conflicts with competitors.

4. early value creation: domains can be held in the portfolio until the right buyer comes along who pays significantly more for strategically suitable domains than you originally paid.

Domains in the context of the platform economy

In a world where reach is increasingly driven by social media, apps and AI assistants, people often ask whether domains are still as relevant as they used to be.

The answer is clear: yes. Perhaps even more than before.

The reason lies in the principle of ownership. A domain is digital property. Social media accounts, marketplace profiles or platform reach are rented infrastructure. They can be blocked, restricted or algorithmically devalued. A domain remains independent and forms the stable basis of a digital brand.

At the same time, a domain should never be viewed in isolation. In practice, the overall picture is often decisive: Is the name available as a domain? Are suitable social media handles available? Are there any conflicts in the app store or trademark register?

A perfect domain loses strategic value if the brand is not registerable or all relevant social handles are blocked. Conversely, consistent availability across domain, social media and trademark law can significantly increase the actual brand value.

Conclusion: Domain value in 2026 is a mix of brand, market and tech

The domain market remains lively and exciting. There is no single fixed price for a domain, but there are very clear factors that influence the value:

• Market demand and industry trends determine what buyers are willing to pay.
• Relevant topics such as AI are currently driving prices and demand up significantly.
• .com remains a strong base, while .ai and other TLDs are growth drivers.
• Agencies can benefit strategically by using domains as part of a holistic brand and digital offering.

If you don’t just manage domains technically, but think strategically, you can create real added value for customers and open up new business models for yourself.