GoDaddy Auctions sells the names that expired at GoDaddy, in public auctions anyone can join. Every other registrar's expiring names never appear there. Domaining scores the whole daily drop list, backorders the names that pass your rule and settles shared backorders in a private auction between members, from $49 a month.
| Name | ScoreValue score | Price | vs rule | Expires | Status | Rule result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sample list, not live drop data. No card required to create your account. Domaining is not affiliated with GoDaddy.
The honest answer is that it depends on the registrar. A name that expires at GoDaddy is auctioned on GoDaddy Auctions before it can drop, so for those names there is no alternative. A name held at Network Solutions, Register.com and other partner registrars goes to NameJet or SnapNames first. Everything else reaches the registry drop, and that is where a backorder service does the buying.
So the useful question for a buyer is not "which auction site" but "which route does this name take". Check the current registrar in WHOIS, then send the name to the right place. The map below is the routine we would follow for any expiring .com you want.
Registered at GoDaddy
GoDaddy Auctions
Public expired auction, open bidding, previous owner can still renew during the window.
Bid on GoDaddy
At a NameJet partner registrar
NameJet or SnapNames
Pre-release sale, $79 minimum backorder, private auction if two or more orders.
Backorder there
At any other registrar
Registry drop
Released to the public. Catchers race in the first seconds, Domaining places the order for you by rule.
Backorder on Domaining
Partner registrar lists change. Recheck the registrar of names you watch for months.
When a GoDaddy customer lets a name lapse, GoDaddy lists it in an expired auction that runs about 10 days, with bidding that opens around $12. You need a $4.99 yearly membership to bid. The winner pays the bid plus one year of registration. The listing is public, so every investor scanning GoDaddy's list sees the same name you do.
That openness is the cost. A good two word .com draws dozens of bidders over ten days, and the price climbs with every new pair of eyes. On Domaining, a shared backorder goes to a private auction between members who placed backorders before the drop, nobody else can join, and the rule you wrote caps your bid.
Public expired auction
northgateroofing.com
Anyone can watch, anyone can bid, price set by the crowd.
Private member auction
northgateroofing.com
Only members with a backorder bid, and your cap is set before it starts.
Illustrative name and figures, not a real listing or result.
Fees are the ones each service publishes and can change. Check the provider before you commit a monthly budget.
| Service | Inventory | What you pay | Competition | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GoDaddy Auctions | Names that expired at GoDaddy, plus user listings | $4.99 a year membership, winning bid plus one year registration | Public, about 10 days, open to every member | Names registered at GoDaddy, which only sell here |
| Domaining | Daily drop list across registrars, scored 0 to 100 | $49, $149 or $499 a month, registration fee on a win | Private auction between backorder holders only | Investors buying many dropped names by criteria |
| DropCatch | Names at the registry drop | About $59 per caught .com or .net | Auction when several backorders exist | Single contested names where catch strength matters most |
| NameJet and SnapNames | Pre-release names from partner registrars | $79 minimum per fulfilled backorder | Private auction among backorder holders | Names held at Network Solutions, Register.com and partners |
| Dynadot | Its own expired names plus drop backorders | Free to place a backorder, pay when caught | Backorder auction of 7 to 10 days, open to anyone | Buyers who already manage names at Dynadot |
Where GoDaddy Auctions wins: a huge pool of expired names from the largest registrar, a tiny membership fee and no per-catch charge. Where we win: coverage of names GoDaddy never sees, a value score on each one, rules that bid while you sleep and competition limited to members who ordered before the drop. Most serious buyers use both. GoDaddy also no longer sells backorders, which our GoDaddy backorder alternative page covers, and the NameJet backorder alternative review explains when a $79 order is the only route.
Yes, for names that expired at GoDaddy, because they sell there before they can drop. The membership costs $4.99 a year, which is nothing. The real cost is time and competition: you watch auctions for ten days and bid against everyone else watching, so attractive names close far above the opening bid.
Yes, for a while. GoDaddy auctions expired names during the window after expiry, so the original registrant can still renew. If they do, the auction is cancelled and your money is returned. Plan for some wins that never arrive, and do not build anything on a name until it shows in your account.
Unsold names can move to closeouts at a lower fixed price. If those do not sell either, GoDaddy releases the name and it drops at the registry. At that point a domain backorder service is the only way to get it, and catchers compete in the first seconds of the drop.
Keep GoDaddy for GoDaddy names and let a rule handle the rest. Four steps, about twenty minutes once, then it runs every day.
Look up the registrar of each name on your watchlist. GoDaddy names stay on GoDaddy Auctions, partner registrar names go to NameJet.
Run the remaining names through the value score. Anything under 40 rarely earns back a backorder.
Extensions, minimum score and a price cap, for example .com, 60 or more, up to $150.
The rule backorders matches from each day's list, and a private auction never runs past your cap.
Investors who already work GoDaddy's expired list and want the other registrars' names ranked for them too.
People who buy every name matching a pattern and do not want to babysit ten day auctions.
Investors who catch at wholesale and resell through a domain marketplace with escrow.
Companies waiting on one specific name that is not registered at GoDaddy, so no GoDaddy auction will ever list it.
It depends on where the name is registered. For names that expire at GoDaddy, GoDaddy Auctions is the only route. For names at NameJet partner registrars, NameJet or SnapNames. For everything that reaches the registry drop, a backorder service: DropCatch per catch, or Domaining on a plan from $49 a month with a value score and rules.
GoDaddy Auctions charges $4.99 a year for the membership you need to bid or list. On an expired name you pay your winning bid plus a one year registration or transfer fee. Sellers pay a commission, buyers do not.
Yes, and most active buyers do. GoDaddy names only sell on GoDaddy Auctions, and Domaining covers the names that drop at the registry. Put GoDaddy names on your GoDaddy watchlist and let a Domaining rule backorder the rest.
Fewer bidders. Only members who placed a backorder before the drop can bid, so the field is usually two or three people instead of everyone browsing a public list for ten days. Your rule sets a price cap before the auction starts.
Your plan covers the service, from $49 a month with 25 backorders. When a backorder succeeds you pay the registration fee for the name. If several members backordered it, the winner of the private auction pays the closing bid.
No. Domaining is an independent platform. GoDaddy Auctions details on this page come from GoDaddy's public auction pages and industry guides, and they can change.
A scored drop list from every registrar, rules that backorder for you and private auctions between members. Plans start at $49 a month.
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