How buying and selling a domain works
Five steps, one escrow transaction, no fee from us.
Every domain. sale — whether the buyer paid a listed Buy Now price or an offer was accepted — runs through the same escrow transaction with Escrow.com, an independent third-party escrow service. We open the transaction and show you its progress, but we never hold, move, or have access to the funds. The domain doesn’t move until Escrow.com confirms payment, and the money doesn’t move until the buyer confirms the domain arrived.
The five steps
- Terms agreed. The price is set — a Buy Now purchase or an accepted offer — and domain. opens the transaction with Escrow.com.
- Buyer funds Escrow.com.The buyer pays into escrow. Escrow.com holds the funds; the seller doesn’t see them yet, and neither do we.
- Seller transfers the domain.The seller unlocks the domain at their registrar, gets the authorization/EPP code, and follows Escrow.com’s transfer instructions. domain. never asks for or stores that code.
- Buyer confirms receipt.The buyer has 3 days to confirm the domain arrived; if they don’t respond, it’s accepted automatically once the window ends.
- Funds released. Escrow.com pays the seller. The sale is complete.
How long each step takes
Timing comes from Escrow.com’s own published figures, not from us — we don’t control their processing times.
- Identity verification (if either side needs it): usually same-day, up to 1 business day.
- Payment processing: wire transfer 1–5 business days; card or PayPal usually within 1 business day.
- Domain transfer: a few hours to a few days, depending on the registrar.
- Buyer review window: 3 days from transfer, or instant if the buyer confirms early.
- Disbursement to the seller: domestic wire ~1 business day; ACH ~3 business days; international wire 3–5 business days.
Fees
domain. currently charges nothingto list a domain, make or accept an offer, or complete a sale. If that changes, we’ll update our Terms first.
Escrow.com charges its own fee, separate from domain. and paid directly to them as part of the transaction. Their published rates:
| Deal size | Fee |
|---|---|
| Under $5,000 | 2.6% — $50 minimum |
| $5,000 – $50,000 | 2.4% |
| $50,000 – $200,000 | 1.9% |
| $200,000 – $500,000 | 1.5% |
| $500,000 – $1,000,000 | 1.2% |
Rates from escrow.com’s fee calculator; confirm the current figure with Escrow.com before funding, since they set and change these, not us. Who pays — buyer, seller, or split — is settled directly with Escrow.com when the transaction is set up.
Common questions
Does domain. ever hold my money?
No. Funds go from the buyer to Escrow.com, and from Escrow.com to the seller. domain. is not a party to the transaction at any point — see our Terms.
What if the seller doesn’t transfer the domain?
The funds stay with Escrow.com until the buyer confirms receipt, so a seller who doesn’t transfer doesn’t get paid. If a transaction stalls or needs a closer look, it’s flagged as Needs attentionand the resolution — including any refund — is handled through Escrow.com’s own process, not by domain.
Can I back out before funding?
Nothing is final until the buyer funds escrow. Before that point, the transaction can be cancelled directly with Escrow.com rather than proceeding.
What does the seller actually need to do to transfer a domain?
Unlock the domain at the registrar, retrieve the authorization/EPP code, and follow the transfer instructions Escrow.com provides once payment is secured. domain. shows a reminder of these steps in the transaction, but the transfer itself happens at your registrar and Escrow.com — we never see or store the code.
What currency does this run in?
Every domain. transaction is priced and escrowed in US dollars.
Nothing on this page is legal or financial advice. It describes how the current transaction flow works; Escrow.com’s own terms govern the parts of the process they handle directly.