What happens when a domain expires

Before it expires

We email you ahead of the date, so a renewal is never a surprise. Domains renew themselves by default, using the card on your account. Keep the card up to date and there is nothing more to do.

Expiry dates catch people out because they come around so rarely. A domain bought on a yearly plan renews once a year, long after anyone remembers which card it was set up with. Most lapses are not a decision to let the domain go. They are a card that was replaced, or reminders going to an old inbox.

The timeline after it expires

A domain does not vanish on its expiry date. It goes through a set of stages, and each one makes getting it back harder. The exact lengths vary by ending, but the order is the same.

1. Renewal grace period. Often around 30 days. The domain is still yours and renewing it is the same as renewing on time.
2. Redemption period. Usually about 30 days. The domain can still be recovered by its owner, but only through a restore, which costs more than a normal renewal.
3. Pending delete. About five days. Nothing can be done, not even by the owner.
4. Released. The domain is free again and anyone can register it, including people who watch for expiring names.

What happens to your site and email

In the first days of the grace period, the domain may carry on working while we try the payment again. Soon after, it is switched off. Visitors see an error or a holding page instead of your site, and email sent to addresses at your domain bounces or is lost.

Anything else that relies on the domain stops too: links people have saved, sign-ins to other services that use your domain email, and listings that point visitors to your address.

Search engines notice too. A site that is offline for days can slip in search results, and it can take a while to climb back once it returns.

Your site itself is not deleted. Its pages are still in your account, and it comes straight back once the domain is renewed. Email that bounced while the domain was off does not come back, which is the real cost of a lapse for most businesses.

Getting it back

Open the domain in your account. If it can still be renewed or restored, you will see the option there. If you cannot see it, contact us quickly: the sooner we hear, the more options there are.

Once a domain has been released and someone else registers it, it is theirs. That is why the stages above matter.

Watch out for messages that use an expiring domain as bait. A letter or email that looks like a renewal notice can really be an offer to move your domain to another company, or a bill you do not owe. Your real renewal reminders come from us, about domains in your account. When in doubt, sign in and check the expiry date there.

How to avoid it

• Leave auto-renew on. It is on by default for every domain you buy here.
• Keep the card on your account up to date, especially when a card is replaced or expires.
• Keep your account email current, so renewal reminders reach you. The owner email matters too; see confirming your domain email.
• Add a calendar reminder for the expiry date as a backstop.
• If you own a few domains, check them all once a year, including ones that only forward to your main site.

Domain Guard also gives you extra time if a renewal payment fails, along with email alerts when something changes. For a domain your business depends on, it is one more layer between a declined card and a dark site. You can add it when you buy a domain on the domains page, or later from the domain in your account.