How to check a domain's age
- Enter a domain name or paste any URL — protocols, paths, www and subdomains are removed automatically.
- The checker finds the authoritative registry through the IANA RDAP bootstrap and reads its registration record live.
- Review the registration date, exact age, expiry date, registrar, nameservers, and registry status codes.
What is domain age?
Domain age is the time since the public registration event recorded by a domain registry. It is a useful historical clue, but it is not the same as the age of the website hosted on the domain.
Example result
A domain age result shows the public registration date and the calculated age.
Registration date
2020-01-15Checked just now
2026-10-02Domain age
8 years, 4 months, 12 daysThe example is illustrative; live registry data may vary by domain.
Domain age vs website age
A domain can be registered years before a website goes live, and a dropped domain can be re-registered by a new owner, which resets its registration date. To estimate how long a site has actually been online, compare the registration date with the first Wayback Machine snapshot linked in the result.
| Field | What it means | Limit |
|---|---|---|
| Registration date | When the current registration began | Does not prove when the website launched or whether ownership changed. |
| Last changed | When the registry record last changed | May reflect a technical update rather than a change in ownership. |
| Archive snapshot | When an archived copy of the website was first captured | Archives can be incomplete and are separate from registry records. |
Does domain age affect SEO?
Domain age alone does not guarantee rankings or authority. Content quality, relevant backlinks, reputation, technical health, and search intent matter much more. A domain that changed owners may have an old registration date without retaining its previous reputation.
Common RDAP status codes explained
The registry status field uses standardized codes from the IANA RDAP protocol. Understanding them helps you interpret domain health at a glance. Below are the most common ones. Your result page shows whichever codes apply to the queried domain.
active— active — The domain is currently registered and active in the registry.clientTransferProhibited— clientTransferProhibited — Transfers are blocked by the registrar. This is a standard protection against unauthorized domain changes.serverDeleteProhibited— serverDeleteProhibited — The domain cannot be deleted without explicit authorization from the registry.clientDeleteProhibited— clientDeleteProhibited — The registrar has blocked deletion. This is another protection layer.clientUpdateProhibited— clientUpdateProhibited — Updates to the registration record are blocked by the registrar.serverTransferProhibited— serverTransferProhibited — The registry itself blocks transfers.serverUpdateProhibited— serverUpdateProhibited — The registry blocks record updates.clientHold— clientHold — The domain is suspended and will not resolve on the internet. Usually applied by the registrar for policy violations.serverHold— serverHold — Same as clientHold but applied at the registry level.clientRenewProhibited— clientRenewProhibited — The registrar prevents automatic renewal.serverRenewProhibited— serverReNewProhibited — The registry prevents renewal.
How evaluators use domain age
Domain age is one signal in a larger due-diligence checklist. Buyers and SEO practitioners typically combine it with content quality, backlink profile, and historical snapshots. Here are common use cases where age data is useful: evaluating a mature site before purchasing it, verifying a vendor or SaaS product has been around, spotting squat domains that were registered recently and host thin content, and confirming that a redirected domain is not just an old name with no history.
WHOIS vs RDAP
RDAP is the structured JSON successor to legacy WHOIS. It lets this tool identify the authoritative registry service, read typed lifecycle events, and explain when a top-level domain does not expose RDAP data.
Why some TLDs have missing data
Generic TLDs such as .com, .ai, and .app publish RDAP data through the IANA bootstrap registry. Many country-code TLDs (for example .de, .jp, and .cn) do not offer public RDAP at all, and some registries hide fields such as the registrar. When that happens the result explains why instead of guessing.
Frequently asked questions
Does an older domain always rank better?
No. Registration age is not a ranking guarantee. The domain history, content, links, reputation, and technical quality are more useful signals to investigate.
Can I check a subdomain?
Registries only keep records for registrable domains. If you enter blog.example.co.uk, the checker looks up example.co.uk and tells you it did so.
Why are some fields missing?
Registries expose different fields, and some top-level domains do not provide RDAP. Missing data is shown as unavailable rather than guessed.
Why does the expiry date matter?
A domain that is close to expiry may be abandoned, and an expired domain can be lost to another owner. When you evaluate a tool or vendor, a long registration period is a small but useful signal of commitment.
What is RDAP?
RDAP is the modern, structured protocol for public domain registration data. ICANN made it the primary source for generic top-level domains in 2025.
Is this domain age checker free?
Yes. It is free, needs no sign-up, and does not store the domains you check.
Sources and methodology
The checker queries the authoritative RDAP service listed by the IANA bootstrap registry, then reads standard registration events and status fields.
- RFC 9083 — Registration Data Access Protocol (RDAP)
- IANA RDAP bootstrap registry
- ICANN registration data policy
- For corrections, contact the registry or registrar shown in the result.
This tool reports a point-in-time public registry observation. A missing record does not guarantee domain availability, and domain age does not prove SEO authority.