This post was originally published on April 13, 2017, and was updated on Nov. 20, 2019.
Have you ever wondered what your domain name was worth? It’s an important question that’s worth answering. Whether you have a domain that’s about to expire or an eager buyer contacting you out of the blue, knowing the importance of accurate domain valuation is key.
Are you sitting on an unknown fortune like some antiques at a roadshow? Do you have buyers interested in your domains? Are you an active investor with 600 domains, but simply don’t have the time to manually update and research pricing each time the market shifts?
From active domain investors to one-off buyers and sellers, there’s a domain valuation tool for you.
Related: Tried-and-true tips for selling domain names for profit
How domain valuation works
Up until now, you had a few standard options for pricing and selling domains — you could ask experts in the field and get some feedback on the value of your domain, you could use some of the free or paid online appraisal tools, or you could guess.
Yet, even if you happen to know industry experts, you’d still run into problems. Scheduling a time to talk, going back and forth over emails — let alone hoping they’d want to sit down and appraise several hundred domains for you. You can see the holdup.
There are a number of automated appraisal tools available that can value in bulk, but most would agree that there’s definitely room for improvement.
Since each domain is unique (e.g., Garage.com is different from MyGarage.com or Garages.com in value), the task to differentiate the nuances of meaning can be daunting for a machine to parse.
Thankfully, with the use of some of the latest technology and a wealth of sales data as the leading marketplace for domain names, GoDaddy developed a tool that we feel is the market leader in evaluating and appraising domain names.
GoDaddy Domain Name Value & Appraisal uses an exclusive algorithm that relies on both machine learning and real market sales data to estimate domain values.
Now, you can get the most accurate and comprehensive domain pricing estimates available. It’s almost like having access to your own domain expert or antique appraiser right from your computer.
GoDaddy’s domain valuation tool can remove a lot of the guesswork associated with valuing your domain names.
Jason Ansel, the creator of GoDaddy Domain Appraisals, had this to say:
“Measured by mean error, the new GoDaddy model is 1.3x better than the best of the four human experts, 1.5x better than Estibot, and 1.6x better than the average of all four human experts.”
Having tested my fair share of automated systems before, I was initially skeptical; but after using this tool for years, and seeing the customer success stories, it was clear — the future of domain valuation is here.
Key learnings
Now that the tool has been in use for several years, we have had a lot of feedback from customers on how they use it.
Use the domain valuation tool for price “gut checks”
One great tip from our customers includes checking large lists of domains with the tool to get a “gut check” against what they think the domain price should be. This helps with finding domains that may be valuable but unfamiliar to you, such as a domain related to an unfamiliar industry or a domain in another language.
Use the domain valuation tool to pinpoint domains for purchase
It has also been helpful to help narrow down large lists of potential domains to purchase. As there are thousands of new expiring domains a day coming to the market, any tricks you can employ to help narrow that down can be very helpful in finding the diamonds in the rough.
Use the domain valuation tool for help with domain list pricing
We know from our marketplace that having a Buy Now price on a domain name you list for sale helps increase the chances that it will sell. Sometimes — especially when you have a lot of domains — the job of pricing a domain can seem daunting.
Using the valuation tool can help give you a starting point to look further into when deciding on your listing price.
Besides the price point that the valuation tool displays for your domain, it will also show some examples of comparable domain sales. This section is found by scrolling below the tool’s price results. There you will see a number of sales that our machine learning tool found that we think are similar to the domain you are researching. This data comes from our own sales database, as well as many public domain sales sources.
It also shows why we think the price we picked is a fair price for your domain. Domains are unique, so it can be difficult to pinpoint the winning price for your domain, but the domain valuation tool does help you to get a good idea of the market around similar domain names.
Make more money with domain investments
So far, the response to the GoDaddy Domain Appraisals tool has been positive. From increased sales to more accurate valuations, customers are having more success with pricing and selling domain names.
We’ve also had success stories from buyers and sellers who used the tool to help find a good market price both parties could agree to.
Research and market awareness continue to be important, but using the GoDaddy Domain Name Value & Appraisal tool could be another valuable arrow in your quiver for making money with your domains.
In conclusion
At the end of the day, a domain name’s value is what someone is willing to sell it for.
We strive to provide fair market value (i.e., what we think the domain name should sell for in an open market) so that you can make educated decisions.
While the valuation tool can be very helpful, it’s also important to keep in mind that it is an automated tool. It’s essential when making any type of financial decision about either purchasing or selling a domain name that you look over the pricing and do some additional research yourself before making any final decisions.
How you determine your domain valuation is entirely up to you, but we recommend going beyond guesswork and seeking out expert advice when possible.
The appraisal tool is an automated tool and should not be used to determine final domain values. As in any financial endeavor, use your best judgment when making financial decisions.
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