How Does Domainr Help Find Available Domain Names?

Domainr helps you find available domain names by checking domain status in real time through an ICANN-accredited API, then suggesting alternative names and top-level domains (TLDs) as you type. It is best suited to product teams, registrars, and security or supply-chain teams that need fast, accurate availability data rather than a manual, one-name-at-a-time lookup.

Instant, per-keystroke search

Domainr turns a domain search into a conversation. Instead of submitting a full name and waiting, the search responds as each character is entered, so results update continuously while you refine the name.

The practical effect: you can test many candidate names in the time it would normally take to check one, which is useful during early naming or brainstorming sessions.

Context-aware suggestions, including when .com is taken

The suggestion engine is context-aware: it surfaces relevant TLDs based on what you have typed. This matters because a strong name is often unavailable on .com but open on another extension. Rather than stopping at "taken," Domainr keeps the search moving by proposing related alternatives.

According to Domainr's own description, this is designed so customers "find the perfect name—even if the .com is taken."

Accurate status, not just a yes/no

Domainr states it is the only ICANN-accredited domain status API provider, with direct, privileged access to domain registry data. That access is what it uses to report status without false positives.

When you check a name, the result can distinguish between several states:

Because the check runs in milliseconds, it fits into live search interfaces where users expect immediate feedback.

Built for integration, not just manual lookup

Domainr is part of Fastly and is powered by its edge cloud platform. The Fastly Domain Research API is the underlying product, and it is customizable: you can filter by extension, registrar, location, or language, with full IDNA and Unicode support.

Two integration paths are described:

• API — for teams building domain search into their own product or workflow.
• Drop-in tag — for adding search with little to no code.

If you are a security provider or manage a software supply chain, the same API can monitor critical domains, alert you to status changes, and surface at-risk domains before they change hands.

Who this fits

Domainr is a reasonable choice if you need:

• Real-time availability checks at scale, not occasional manual lookups.
• Suggestions that keep working after .com is ruled out.
• Programmatic access with filtering by extension, registrar, location, or language.
• Monitoring of domains you depend on, with alerts on status changes.

It is less relevant if you only need to check a single name once, or if you want a registrar to complete the purchase — Domainr provides search, suggestion, and status data, and its own materials point to getting a Fastly API token to use the API.