Life & fun · alternatives · 2026
24 alternatives to Takingnames.io Beta – The first domain name provider for self-hosters
Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Takingnames.io Beta – The first domain name provider for self-hosters launched in 2022; newer entries below may have overtaken it.
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A simple API for custom hostnames, handles DNS, SSL, etc.
2017 · fly.io · its alternatives →
- 3GA
2015 · claimyourname.io · its alternatives →
- 4
- 5FA
2013 · instantname.me · its alternatives →
- 6DA
2019 · deepnamer.com · its alternatives →
- 7
I was setting up tests involving DNS resolution recently, where something like 127.0.0.1.service.foo would have been tremendously useful. Back in the day, I'd have used xip.io - but sadly that service died. Well, every excuse is a good one when it comes to writing a DNS server! Backname.io joins nip.io and sslip.io in the wildcard DNS game.
2023 · backname.io · its alternatives →
- 8BC
2016 · brandfountain.com · its alternatives →
- 9ZS
2014 · zipwhois.com · its alternatives →
- 10BA
2015 · picnic.sh · its alternatives →
- 11ND
2014 · newdomain.ninja · its alternatives →
- 12
- 13MW
2012 · appload.io · its alternatives →
- 14
I tend to use AI to brainstorm domain names, but I kept wasting time pasting each idea into Namecheap to see if they were available. So I built DotComBuddy - it generates ideas (using DeepSeek V3 - switched from GPT-4o after realizing quality was just as good) and checks availability in real time via Name.com’s API. Built with Next.js and Vercel’s AI SDK, the app gives you a table of available domains with their price. 10 free searches to try it out, then $9/year (what I’d pay to never do this manually again). Sharing this for anyone else tired of switching tabs to check domains. Happy…
2025 · dotcombuddy.com · its alternatives →
- 15NH
Hi HN - We're a small team of domainers that made Namethrive to help startups launch with killer names for less than the cost of a Macbook Pro. Our goal is to help entrepreneurs stop wasting time when it comes to picking out a name for their projects. So many startups and side projects that we see on HN (among other places) end up launching with poor names or obscure foreign TLDs, and we want to change that. We're hoping to significantly expand our selection in the coming weeks and may also be doing some domain giveaways on twitter soon, so stay tuned if you're interested.
2011 · its alternatives →
- 16FA
2012 · blog.badger.com · its alternatives →
- 17SH
2014 · trybuilder.com · its alternatives →
- 18
- 19
I built a simple tool that suggests good domain names based on your idea — something I usually spend way too long on myself. It’s completely free, no sign-up needed, and you can get unlimited suggestions. Mainly built it for myself, but I’d love to hear your feedback and any tips for improvement! :)
Apr 2026 · namegator.net · its alternatives →
- 20AD
2019 · aidomainsearch.com · its alternatives →
- 21
Domain availability checks for humans and AI agents.
Jun 2026 · takenorfree.com · its alternatives →
- 22
Hares.io▲9Track hosting providers IP addresses for crawlers and bots
2017 · hares.io · its alternatives →
- 23SA
2015 · squatmon.com · its alternatives →
- 24ND
2012 · namevine.com · its alternatives →
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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →