A Beginner’s Guide to Domain Hacking

Key Takeaways

1. Domain hacking = creativity. It combines the name and TLD (e.g., bit.ly, youtu.be) to form short, memorable domains.
2. It started in the 1990s, popularized by companies like Yahoo, Google, YouTube, and Spotify.
3. Boosts branding, memorability, SEO potential, and helps bypass expensive .com domains. However, there are legal/geographic limits, confusion risks, dependence on ccTLDs, and possible higher costs.
4. Use ccTLDs, new gTLDs, and tools (LeanDomainSearch, SpyFu, Keyword Keg) to create strong options.

With over 600 million registered domains worldwide, finding a domain name that perfectly fits your business and branding needs can be challenging. However, there’s a clever way to bypass this problem, which is known as domain hacking.

Before you start scratching your head, we aren’t suggesting you illegally obtain someone else’s domain name. In the world of domains, a hack is a creative way to produce meaningful domain names that span across the left and right sides of the dot.

So in the rest of this piece, we will give you a beginner’s guide on using domain hacking to create fun and memorable domain names for your business. But before we get to that, what is a domain hack?

What Is a Domain Hack?

Domain hacking is the combination of the second-level domain and top-level domain to make a memorable domain name.

Typically, a domain hack is created using country code top-level domains (ccTLDs) to develop short and creative domains like del.icio.us – (United States’ ccTLD and goog.gl — (Greenland’s ccTLD).

However, this hack has its drawbacks due to the limitations surrounding ccTLDs, but with the introduction of new domain extensions, the possibilities of how creative you can be with your domain hacks are endless. For example, instead of trustname.com, we can hack it to become trust.name.

Still, many people mistake domain hacking for domain hijacking, so let’s clear that up.

What Is Domain Hijacking?

Domain hijacking, also known as domain theft, happens when an unauthorized individual takes control of a domain name without the owner’s consent. The hijacker typically does this to redirect traffic to another domain, or spam emails to damage the domain’s reputation. But the main reason is to sell it off for a profit.

With that out of the way, let’s look at a brief history of domain hacking.

History of Evolution of Domain Hacking

On November 23, 1992, the first domain hack inter.net was registered. On Friday, May 3, 2002, icio.us was registered to create del.icio.us. Delicious would later gain control of the delicio.us domain, which had been parked since April 24, 2002, when the .us ccTLD (country code top-level domain) was opened to second-level registrations.

On the 3rd of November 2004, the term “Domain Hack” was coined by Mathew Doucette. Since then, it has become the universally accepted term for the practice.

The next significant hack to hit the news was when Yahoo acquired blog.gs on the 14th of June, 2005. Then on December 15, 2009, Google launched its own URL shortener goog.gl using the ccTLD of Greenland.

That same year, YouTube launched its own domain hack youtu.be using Belgium’s ccTLD. National Public Radio also launched a URL shortener under the domain name n.pr using the ccTLD of Puerto Rico.

Flickr joined in on the action with flic.kr using the ccTLD of South Korea, then in 2010, Apple launched its own Url shortener itun.es with .es being the ccTLD of Spain.

Two years later, Spotify unveiled its URL shortener spoti.fi using the ccTLD of Finland.

These notable hacks made the practice popular. Various companies now realized they could craft clever or short domain names using ccTLDs and achieve huge branding gains.

Then in 2010, new generic TLDs (gTLDs) like .blog, .app, and .shop, expanded domain hacking opportunities even further. This allowed businesses and individuals to create meaningful, branded domain names by combining their desired name with a relevant TLD.

With more than 1,000 new gTLDs introduced, it was a limitless world for domain hackers, who could now be more creative and precise with their domain name selections.

Recent Domain Hacks

These are some examples of recent successful domain hacks:

• about.me – A personal branding platform that allows freelancers and entrepreneurs to grow their audience and get more clients;
• last.fm – A music streaming service using Micronesia’s ".fm" TLD to creatively represent "FM radio;"
• I.am – Will.i.am, the musician, cleverly uses ".am" to form a personalized URL.

Now that you understand how Domain Hacks evolved, are they good or bad for your website?

Is a Domain Hack Good or Bad?

A good domain hack can help you get the perfect branding tool for your business, but on the other hand, if you get a complicated and obscure one, your visitors might find it hard to remember, and type. The sincere answer to this question is that a well-crafted domain hack will be loved by web users. Still, let’s look at the pros and cons of domain hacking.

Pros

Memorability and Branding

With most premium domains already registered, domain hacks are a clever way to get a short, memorable, and creative domain name. Examples like bit.ly or del.icio.us are easy to recall and leave a lasting impression. When it comes to branding, you can combine a name with a TLD (e.g., about.me), to create a domain name that communicates the essence of your brand or service in a single word or phrase.

Brevity

Instead of paying a fortune to get a short domain name, you can use domain hacking to help shorten your web address. Shorter domains are more user-friendly, easier to type, and less prone to errors. They make it easier to share on social media, marketing materials, or business cards.

Availability

Finding a good domain with a .com TLD to register is like finding a needle in a haystack. Most of them are already registered and would require a lot of money to buy off their current owners. Domain hacking can be a cheaper alternative to good premium domains.

Stand Out from Competitors

A well-crafted domain hack can help differentiate your brand from competitors who might be using more traditional domain names. It gives your brand an edge by demonstrating creativity which will help you get noticed.

SEO Benefits

Although Google claims domain names don’t improve search rankings, a good domain hack can include a keyword that matches what users might search for, improving search engine optimization (SEO) by being more closely aligned with search queries.

Cons

Legal and Geographic Restrictions

Many country-code TLDs (ccTLDs) have restrictions on who can register them. Some countries require a local presence or specific registration rules, which can limit the ability to secure the domain.

This could be an issue when the TLD perfect for your hack falls under these restrictions. In some cases, domain hacking can lead to disputes over domain ownership or TLD usage rights, especially if the domain is similar to a trademarked name or violates local regulations.

Confusion or Misinterpretation

In a bid to be clever, some domain hacks may not be immediately clear to users, especially if the combination of the domain and TLD is complicated. This can lead to confusion about the actual name or purpose of the website.

Prone to Cyberattacks

A good domain hack can have a similar impact and value to a Premium domain. Because of this, cybercriminals might target it for financial gain. So make sure that your domain name is properly secured at all times.

Dependence on Specific TLDs

Domain hacking relies heavily on specific TLDs, most times ccTLDs, which are controlled by foreign governments and can shut down a domain without warning. For example, the .io domain had issues with outages and unfair treatment.

Brand Limitations

While creative, some hacked domains may limit your brand’s future expansion. If you intend to grow into new markets or sectors, then be careful that your domain hack is not tied to only one niche.

Higher Costs

Because of their obvious advantages, domain hacks usually cost more than regular domains with some registrars even tagging them as premium domains. They might be a cheaper alternative to premium domains, but they are costly to register.

With that out of the way, let’s show you how to choose the right domain to hack.

How to Find a Good Domain Hack

Identify Keywords and Brand Themes

Before you start looking for a domain to hack, you must think about your brand name, product, or service, and the keywords representing your business. Write down those words or concepts that align with your brand’s core message.

Next, experiment with shortened versions, abbreviations, or alternative spellings of these words.

Explore Country Code TLDs (ccTLDs)

Most domain hacks use country code top-level domains (ccTLDs). These are two-letter domain extensions that are assigned to countries. However, most can be registered by anyone, regardless of where they live. These two-letter endings are easy to combine with second-level domains to create hacks.

For example, URL shortening services such as Bitly use domain hack bit.ly — ( ccTLD for Libya) for unbranded free links. These are useful when posting on social media, and look clean and meaningful.

Some of the most commonly hacked ccTLDs are:

• .me (Montenegro) – Can be used for personal branding or wordplay;
• .io (British Indian Ocean Territory) – Popular with tech startups;
• .fm (Micronesia) – Great for music or radio-related domains;
• .tv (Tuvalu) – Ideal for video or television-related services.

You can also research lesser-known ccTLDs, you might find a perfect fit for your brand and business.

Consider New Top Level Domains (gTLDs)

The introduction of hundreds of new gTLDs (like .blog, .shop, .tech, etc.), has opened up even more opportunities for domain hacking. You can combine a dictionary word with these newer TLDs to create cool domain names. E.g. home.loans.

Another way they can be used is by splitting a word in two to form a domain name. For example, website can be divided into web.site or trustname can be broken into trust.name.

You can also combine a word on the left and right of the dot to create popular keywords or search terms. For example, auto.loan, real.estate, talk.show etc.

However, some of these cool hacks have sold for large amounts in the past, so you better note the fee when trying to register one.

Use Tools to Narrow Your Search  

• you can leverage Word Finder tools like The Free Dictionary Word Finder. Use it to find words ending with the domain extension of your choice to help you develop possible domain hacks. For example, if you want to hack a domain with the .press TLD, you can search for words that end with press;
• use Spyfu to find keywords for paid and organic searches. The tool helps you discover keywords that websites and businesses are bidding on and ranking;
• use Keyword Keg to find search volume, Cost Per Click (CPC), and competition data for keywords in bulk;
• LeanDomainSearch is a tool that allows you to input keywords and generate domain name suggestions;
• BustAName is a domain search tool that lets you add keywords and check availability for different TLDs, including potential hacks.

These tools are designed to make your search for a domain name to hack easier. When you find a perfect one, visit trustname.com to check its availability or contact our support channels for prompt human help.