Domain Renewal Prices Compared 2026: Spaceship vs Domain.com vs Network Solutions vs BigRock
By Navneet Arya · 🕒 9 min read
Quick Answer
Spaceship has the lowest long-term .com cost in this comparison at $10.18 a year to renew, against $22.99 at Domain.com and $32.99 at Network Solutions. BigRock suits buyers who want rupee pricing and a .in domain. SSLs.com only matters if your host does not already include HTTPS. Check each checkout total before paying.
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Spaceship has the lowest long-term .com cost here at $10.18 a year to renew. Domain.com renews at $22.99 and Network Solutions at $32.99. BigRock is the rupee-priced option for India. SSLs.com matters only if your host does not already include HTTPS.
The short answer: the renewal price decides the bill
A domain is a yearly cost, not a one-off purchase. The banner price covers year one. The renewal price covers every year after that.
This table puts both numbers side by side for a single .com domain. The five-year column is the first year plus four renewals, before tax and add-ons.
| Provider | .com year one | .com renewal | Five-year cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spaceship | $9.08 regular, $2.90 with a promo code | $10.18 | $49.80 ($43.62 with the promo) |
| Domain.com | $5.00 | $22.99 | $96.96 |
| Network Solutions | $9.59 | $32.99 | $141.55 |
| BigRock (.in domain) | Rs 549 (about $5.70) | About $9.33 | About $43 |
How these numbers were gathered
AI Nexus did not buy a domain from each provider. The .com figures come from public price trackers that republish each registrar's price list. Spaceship was last updated on 8 October 2026, Domain.com on 18 August 2026, and Network Solutions on 26 May 2026.
The BigRock .com and .in first-year prices and the SSLs.com prices come from those companies' own pages, checked on 29 September 2026. The BigRock .in renewal comes from a tracker. Treat every figure as a starting point and confirm it at checkout.
Why a low first-year price can mislead
Registrars compete hard on year one because buyers compare banners. The renewal price is where many of them earn their margin.
Domain.com's .com renewal is more than four times its first-year price. Network Solutions' renewal is more than three times its year-one price. Spaceship's regular renewal is only about 12% higher than its regular first year.
The pattern repeats on other extensions. Trackers list a Spaceship .info at $3.31 in year one that renews at $21.94. Domain.com lists a .net at $5.00 in year one that renews at $35.99 (May 2026 tracker data).
The practical rule is simple. Before you buy, write down the renewal price and multiply it by the number of years you expect to keep the name.
.com prices at Spaceship, Domain.com and Network Solutions
Spaceship: lowest long-run cost, plus business email
Trackers list Spaceship's regular .com at $9.08 to register, $10.18 to renew and $9.68 to transfer in. Promo codes in the tracker data bring year one down to $2.90 or $3.80, limited to one per customer.
Spaceship also sells business email, which matters if you want the domain and a matching address in one account. Check the email price at checkout, because it is a separate product from the domain.
Domain.com: cheap year one, higher renewal
Domain.com lists .com at $5.00 for the first year and $22.99 to renew, with a $10.99 transfer fee. That makes it a fair choice for a short project or a name you may drop after a year.
It is a weaker choice for a name you will keep for years. Over five years the tracker figures put it about $47 above Spaceship.
Network Solutions: verify the bundle before you buy
The tracker snapshot from 26 May 2026 lists Network Solutions .com at $9.59 in year one and $32.99 to renew, with a $10.99 transfer fee. It is the oldest data in this guide, so re-check it first.
Network Solutions also sells hosting, email and website products. If you bundle several, record the renewal price of each one, because they renew separately.
The India angle: BigRock, rupees and .in domains
Indian buyers have one extra decision: pay in rupees or pay in dollars. BigRock's India pages show rupee prices, and the tracker data lists payments in INR.
On 29 September 2026 BigRock India showed .com from Rs 749 and .in from Rs 549 for the first year. A tracker lists the .in renewal at about $9.33, which is roughly Rs 900 at about Rs 96 per dollar. That is around Rs 350 more than year one.
| BigRock India item | First term | Renewal |
|---|---|---|
| .com domain | From Rs 749 | Not confirmed here, read it in the cart |
| .in domain | From Rs 549 | About Rs 900 (tracker, $9.33) |
| Standard hosting | From Rs 69 a month | Rs 409 a month |
| Business hosting | Rs 159 a month | Rs 649 a month |
| Pro hosting | Rs 199 a month | Rs 759 a month |
The hosting renewals are a bigger jump than the domain renewals. A monthly-looking price may depend on a long purchase term, so read the term length before you pay.
.in or .com for an India-focused site?
Choose .in when your customers are in India and you want a name that signals it. Choose .com when you expect an international audience or want the name people type by default. Many owners register both and point one at the other.
Paying a dollar-priced registrar from India
Spaceship, Domain.com and Network Solutions price in US dollars. Before you commit, check that your card works for international payments, which currency the checkout charges, and whether your bank adds conversion fees. GST may also apply to the final total.
SSLs.com: when a separate certificate is worth buying
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HTTPS encrypts the connection between your visitor and your site. Many hosts and AI website builders include a certificate automatically. BigRock's hosting page lists a free Let's Encrypt certificate in its plans.
A separate certificate is useful in narrower cases. Examples are wildcard coverage for many subdomains, one certificate across several domains, or organisation and extended validation that an included certificate does not offer.
| SSLs.com product | Price shown | List price |
|---|---|---|
| Standard SSL | $3.75 a year | $7.99 |
| Standard Wildcard SSL | $38.53 a year | $64.99 |
These came from the SSLs.com product menu on 29 September 2026. Confirm the term, the renewal price and the validation requirements in the cart before you buy.
Which provider should you choose?
- Pick Spaceship if you will keep the domain for years and want the lowest renewal in this comparison.
- Pick Domain.com for a short project where the $5.00 first year matters more than the renewal.
- Pick Network Solutions only after you have confirmed the current renewal and the exact bundle.
- Pick BigRock if you want rupee pricing, a .in domain, or hosting from the same account.
- Pick SSLs.com only if your host or builder does not already provide the certificate you need.
Checklist before you pay for a domain
- Renewal: read the renewal price in the cart and multiply it by the years you will keep the name.
- Promo limits: check whether a code is one per customer, first year only, or needs a longer term.
- Add-ons: note any privacy, email or hosting fee that is not in the headline price.
- Tax and currency: confirm GST, the charge currency and your card's international payments.
- Renewal reminders: send expiry notices to an inbox someone actually reads.
- Transfer: learn the transfer fee and the 60-day lock on new domains before you need them.
- DNS: save a copy of your DNS records before changing nameservers.
Domain, hosting and SSL: who covers what
A domain is only one of three things a live site needs. The other two are hosting and HTTPS. This summary shows where each provider in this guide stands, using the details already covered above and in our launch guide.
| Provider | Domain | Hosting | HTTPS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spaceship | Yes, lowest renewal here | Alf Website Studio at $5 a month after a 30-day trial | Connected automatically by Alf |
| BigRock | Yes, rupee pricing and .in | Hosting plans in rupees | Free Let's Encrypt on hosting plans |
| Domain.com and Network Solutions | Yes, higher renewal | Check the exact bundle | Check the exact bundle |
| WordPress.com (Automattic) | Not the focus here | Managed WordPress | Handled by the host |
| SSLs.com | No | No | Separate certificates |
The simplest route for a small site is a builder that includes hosting and HTTPS. Alf Website Studio is Spaceship's version of that. Its documentation says it uses Spaceship's own hosting, so a domain registered elsewhere has to point to Spaceship nameservers.
If your site runs on WordPress, WordPress.com is a managed host from Automattic that handles updates, security and SSL. See the WordPress.com and Pressable review before choosing a plan. Buy a separate certificate only when your host does not provide HTTPS.
Where this fits in a full website launch
A domain is one of three launch decisions. The others are hosting and HTTPS, and many AI builders include both. Read How to Launch an AI-Built Website for the full sequence.
If you have not chosen a builder, start with Best AI Website Builders 2026. To compare four AI builders on price and credits, see Lovable vs Wegic vs Readdy vs CREAO.
For a closer look at each registrar, read our Spaceship review (refund rules and Spacemail pricing) and our BigRock review (the three-year terms behind its rupee offers).
Prices change often. Re-check the cart total on the day you buy, and keep a note of the renewal date.
How we researched “Domain Renewal Prices Compared 2026”: every figure comes from official vendor documentation, published pricing pages and public review sites, not from hands-on lab testing (see our editorial methodology).
Frequently Asked Questions
Which registrar has the cheapest .com renewal in this comparison?
Spaceship, at $10.18 a year on the price trackers checked in October 2026. Domain.com was listed at $22.99 in August and Network Solutions at $32.99 in May. Renewal prices change, so confirm the number in your cart before you pay.
Is a $2.90 first-year .com promotion worth taking?
It can be, if you plan to keep the domain. Trackers list a $2.90 Spaceship .com code that is limited to one per customer. The domain then renews at the regular $10.18, so the saving is a one-off of about $6 against the regular first-year price.
Is Domain.com cheaper than Spaceship?
Only in the first year. Domain.com lists .com at $5.00 for year one against $9.08 at Spaceship. At renewal the order flips, with $22.99 at Domain.com against $10.18 at Spaceship. Over five years Spaceship costs about $47 less.
What does a .in domain cost in India?
BigRock India showed .in from Rs 549 for the first year when we checked on 29 September 2026. A price tracker lists the .in renewal at about $9.33, roughly Rs 900 at about Rs 96 per dollar. Confirm taxes and the renewal price in the cart.
Do I need to buy an SSL certificate separately?
Usually not. Many builders and hosts include HTTPS, and BigRock hosting plans list a free Let's Encrypt certificate. A separate certificate is mainly for wildcard or multi-domain coverage, or for organisation or extended validation that an included certificate does not offer.
Can I move my domain if the renewal price jumps?
Yes. You can transfer a domain to another registrar, and trackers list transfer fees from about $3.94 to $10.99 for .com in this comparison. A new domain is usually locked against transfer for 60 days after registration, so plan ahead.
Why do the prices here differ from what I see at checkout?
Promotions, currency, tax, privacy add-ons and the term you choose all change the total. The figures here come from public price lists and trackers on the dates shown, so a checkout page can differ. Always trust the final cart total.
Is it safe to buy a domain from a registrar I have not used before?
Check that the company is an ICANN-accredited registrar, read the renewal and transfer terms, and use a strong password with two-factor sign-in. Keep the account in your own name, not an agency or freelancer, so you control the domain.