Overview
You can purchase a domain registration at DreamHost — either with a new account (domain only, no hosting plan) or added to an existing account — and then control its DNS from your panel. This article explains both purchase paths, how to point the domain's DNS elsewhere, and how to delete a just-purchased registration (grace periods vary by TLD). You must clear any outstanding account balance first.
You must resolve any outstanding account balance before you can purchase, renew, or transfer in a domain registration.
How do I purchase a domain registration?
You can purchase a new domain registration when creating a new DreamHost account or add a registration you already own to your existing account.
How do I add it to a new account?
The following instructions explain how to add a domain registration without a hosting plan. Use this option if you want to own the domain name but are not ready to host a website yet. A hosting plan is only needed if you wish to host a live website at DreamHost.
- Visit this page to purchase a domain registration from DreamHost.
- Search for the domain you wish to purchase.
- Click the Buy now button when you're ready to purchase.
- Choose how many years you would like to own the registration for and click the Register Now button.
- Enter your personal information on the final page. This is used to assign the domain ownership to you.
- Enter your credit card information at the bottom and click Place order now.
Once purchased, you'll have access to the registration in your DreamHost panel. The nameservers for the new registration can then take 24-72 hrs to fully update online.
How do I add it to an existing account?
Use this option if you already have a DreamHost account and wish to add a new domain registration to it.
- Log into your panel.
- Navigate to the Find New Domains page.
- Enter the domain you wish to purchase in the text field.
- Click the Search button to confirm it's available.
- Click Add For $ button to add it to your cart. To the right you'll see it's been added to your cart.
- Choose how many years you'd like to add it for, then click Proceed to Checkout to purchase.
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Enter your personal details on the next page. This information is used to assign the domain registration to you.
Make sure that the phone number you enter does not have any spaces in it.
- Click the Continue button.
- Click the Proceed to Payment Entry button.
- Click Register now! to complete the purchase.
Once registered, the domain's nameservers can take 24-72 hrs to fully update online.
How do I control DNS for the registration?
After logging into your panel, you can see the domain registration is set to DNS Only.
If you wish to host your website or specific services (like email) at another company, you can update the DNS records to point to the new hosting company. See the following articles for details:
How do I delete a registration I just purchased?
Some domain registrations can be deleted within 5 days of purchase. This is often necessary if the domain name is misspelled.
Please note that this grace period is not available for certain TLDs. Depending on the TLD you purchased, there may be no grace period at all.
Contact support immediately if you wish to reverse your recent purchase.