# How to choose a domain name for your personal brand

> Your domain is the address of your website and your email, and it’s the part of your brand you’ll keep longest. Here’s how to pick one that’s easy to say, easy to type, and still right in ten years.

Source: https://bounley.com/guides/personal-brand-domain-name · Updated 2026-10-11 · By Doug McGuire, founder of bounley

**Short answer:** Use your full name as a .com if it’s free (yourname.com). If it’s taken, try a short variation (first name plus last initial, your handle, or your name plus a word like “studio” or “hq”), or the same name on .co, .me or .studio. Keep it short, easy to spell out loud, and free of numbers and hyphens. Bounley’s free domain name ideas tool checks the common options for you.

## Your name, or a brand name?

For most personal brands, use your name. You are the brand: people search for you, and your name will still fit if what you do changes. A separate brand name makes sense when you plan to build something bigger than yourself, hire people, or sell it one day; even then, buying your own name too is cheap insurance.

If you’re known mostly by a handle (a streamer name, an artist name), use the name your audience searches for.

## What makes a good domain name

- **Short.** Fewer characters means fewer typos and an email address that fits on a card.

- **Easy to say.** Say it on a podcast or across a room. If you need to add “with two Ls”, look for something simpler.

- **No numbers or hyphens.** They are the first thing people get wrong when they hear an address.

- **.com first.** It’s still the ending people assume. If the .com is taken by someone active, a different ending can work well; if it’s taken by someone in your own field, pick a different name.

- **Matches your handles.** The closer your domain is to your social handles, the easier you are to find everywhere.

## If yourname.com is taken

| Try | Example |
| --- | --- |
| A different ending | jessmoreno.co, jessmoreno.me, jessmoreno.studio |
| First name + last initial | jessm.com |
| Initial + last name | jmoreno.com |
| Your handle | jessmoves.com |
| Name + what you do | jessmorenofitness.com, jessmorenophoto.com |
| Name + a short word | jessmorenostudio.com, jessmorenohq.com |
| A word before your name | itsjessmoreno.com, heyjess.com |

Jess Moreno is an example name.

Before you settle, check that the same name is free (or close) as a handle on the platforms you use most, and do a quick search to make sure it isn’t a well-known company or trademark in your field.

## Which ending to choose

- **.com**: the default people type without thinking. First choice if it’s free.

- **.co**: short and widely recognised; people sometimes mistype it as .com.

- **.me**: made for personal sites, and reads well in an email address.

- **.studio, .design, .photography, .music**: say what you do, and good names are often free.

- **Your country’s ending** (.co.uk, .ca, .com.au): a good choice if your work is mostly local.

Some newer and cheaper endings are filtered more heavily by school and office networks and some spam filters. For the address your email lives on, a long-established ending is the safer choice.

## Check names in seconds

The [Bounley domain name ideas tool](https://bounley.com/tools/domain-name-ideas) takes your name, suggests the variations above, checks which are free right now, and lists the professional email addresses that would go with the best one.

## Buying and keeping it

- **Price:** a .com is typically around $10 to $20 a year. Watch for a cheap first year with a much higher renewal price, and for “premium” names priced in the hundreds or thousands.

- **Turn on auto-renew.** A lapsed domain can be bought by someone else, along with every email sent to it.

- **Turn on WHOIS privacy** so your home address and phone number aren’t public.

- **Keep your login safe** with two-factor authentication. Your domain controls your email, and your email controls almost everything else.

## Then put it to work

A domain does nothing on its own. Point it at [a website for your personal brand](https://bounley.com/guides/personal-brand-website) and set up [a professional email address](https://bounley.com/guides/professional-email-address) at it. Bounley does both together: get a domain through Bounley or connect one you own, and your site and email run on it (Premium, invitation-only during the beta).

## Questions

### How much does a domain name cost?

Usually around $10 to $20 a year for a .com, more for some newer endings and much more for names a registry or seller prices as premium. Check the renewal price as well as the first year.

### Should I buy my name as a domain even if I’m not using it yet?

Yes, if it’s available. It costs little, and names get taken. Turn on auto-renew and point it at your current link page or site until you’re ready.

### Is .com still important?

It’s still what most people assume and type, so it’s the first choice. But a clear name on .co, .me or an ending that says what you do is better than a long or awkward .com.

### Can I change my domain later?

Yes, but it costs you: links, search ranking and email addresses all point at the old one. Keep the old domain and forward it to the new one for at least a year if you ever switch.

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Bounley is the platform built for personal brands: your own domain, a professional email at it and your website, set up in one place. Claim your name at https://bounley.com/ (free while in beta).