Having a website is your starting point to building your online presence. Other than choosing a reliable hosting company, you will need to get domain name for your customers to find you.
Your domain name is like your online address, it's what your customers will type into their browsers whenever they are interested in your products or services.
But with so many domain registrars to choose from, which one should you go for?
In this post, we will compare the most popular domain registrars Malaysians use to buy their domain names so you can decide which one is the best one for you.
Let's take a look:
GoDaddy vs NameCheap vs NameSilo vs Exabytes Comparison Summary
Here's how each of these popular domain registrars in Malaysia stack up against one another in areas where it matters most to most people:
 |  |  |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Price per year for .com | US$17.99 | US$10.98 | US$6.99 | RM62.90 (~US$16) |
Promo Price | US$2.99/year for first 2 years | US$8.88 during sales period | Bulk discounts available for more than 50 domain names | RM2.90 - 4.90 during sales period |
LTDs and .com.my and .my extensions availability | Popular extensions available but .com.my and .my are unavailable | Popular extensions available but .com.my and .my are unavailable | Popular extensions available but .com.my and .my are unavailable | Popular extensions and .com.my and .my are available |
Privacy Protection fee per domain per year | US$9.99 | Free | Free | First year free, subsequent years RM60 a year (~US$15) |
Let's now take a look at each of these factors one by one.
Pricing: Namesilo
Out of the four registrars, GoDaddy offers the most expensive package. Though it offers the cheapest fee for the first two years at just US$2.99/year, when you extend the horizon and look at the long term, the prices skyrocket to US$17.99/year.
On top of this, you'll also need to shell out another US$9.99/year if you want to protect your information from prying eyes.
If you only have just one domain name, you aren't likely going feel the pinch, but if you have a couple, the costs will soon add up.
Exabytes come second in being most expensive, with a domain name costing around US$15-16/year. While privacy is free for the first year, it's US$14-15 for subsequent years.
That leaves Namecheap and Namesilo. Both offer free privacy, with Namesilo offering the cheaper annual domain fee of US$6.99 per domain.
Looking at price alone, Namesilo is the cheapest domain registrar if you're looking to buy a domain name for popular extensions like .com, .co, .net and so on.
Extensions Available: Tie
All domain registrars share the same availability for popular extensions. Unless you're looking for very specific domain name extensions, you'll likely be able to buy your domain name from either of these domain registrars.
.com.my and .my Extensions Availability: Exabytes
While Namesilo is the cheapest registrar, unfortunately, if you are looking for a local extension like .com.my or .my, you won't be able to buy them through Namesilo. Instead, you'll need to buy them using a local Malaysian registrar like Exabytes.
Exabytes isn't the only registrar in Malaysia you can buy from, but it's my favorite one because it has a better interface compared to other, more dated interfaces.
Additionally, Exabytes has promotional offers also which makes each .com.my and .my domain name extension really cheap.
.com.my domain names start at RM80 a year while .my domains start at RM120/year. Pretty hefty compared to .com domains if you ask me, but this is price is pretty much fixed across Malaysia unless you buy during a promo period.
Privacy Fee: NameSilo / NameCheap
While GoDaddy and Exabytes charge a fee for privacy, it's included in your annual domain fee if you buy your domain using NameSilo or NameCheap.
#1 Overall Choice: NameSilo
If you're looking to find an affordable domain registrar, there's no better deal than NameSilo. While I wouldn't say it is perfect, but for its price, I don't have many complaints.
NameCheap follows closely behind, followed by Exabytes and GoDaddy.
Unless you're looking to register a local .com.my or .my, I recommend NameSilo for new sites so you can keep your costs low while building up your site.
Domain name FAQ
If you're looking at this article, you are likely looking for a registrar to buy your website domain name from and probably have a few more questions about buying domain names. Here are some commonly asked questions and my answers:
Does buying a domain name mean I'll get email hosting too?
No. You'll need to buy e-mail hosting separately.
Do I get a website with my domain name?
No. You only get a domain name. You'll need to buy hosting separately to build your website on.
If you have any other questions, let me know in the comments below! I'll try to answer them here.
Conclusion: Exabytes for Local Extensions, NameSilo for the Rest
Whether you are looking to register one domain name or more than one, if you're looking for a domain registrar where you can buy cheap domains from, Namesilo is the best choice for you.
That's of course if you are not looking to register local extensions like .com.my or .my. For these, you'll need to head over to Exabytes. Exabytes is my #1 choice for local extensions and I register all my local extension sites on it.
Let me know: have you used Namesilo before? Did you love or hate it? If not, what's your go-to domain registrar?