How to Buy Old Domains?

Whether you want to start an e-commerce business or already run a small SEO agency, a website is the best way to begin your online journey, and what is a better way to do this than buying old domains in the respective industry you need to get in?

Most people have no idea about how effective & efficient an old domain can become if you use it the right way. Such domains already have all the important backlinks and the trust of Google & the users. This is a significant advantage, especially when you compare it to new domains where you have to set up everything from scratch.

In this article, we’ll show you what old domains are, why it’s crucial to buy old domains, the benefits & drawbacks of doing so, and last but not least, how to buy old domains with a step-by-step guide. So without wasting a single second, let’s move towards our next section.

What Are Old Domains?

Old Domains, also known as Expired Domains, were registered by someone but never got renewed or the domain owners forgot to renew them. People rent domains usually for one year, and they can be re-registered on various marketplaces after expiration.

For your information, people who think that they have purchased a domain have owned the domain; in reality, they just rent out the domain for one year. After 1 year, if they wish to keep it, they have to buy old domains again or renew their existing ones.

Most domain owners purchase domain names only for 1 year because they don’t know whether their domain will rank or generate the leads or business they want or not. Hence, when they buy old domains, they’re cautious about the duration.

It’s one of the biggest reasons why there are so many old domains available on the Whois Platform, where private information & all the important data about the domain owners are stored. This platform can be a treasure trove for those wanting to buy old domains.

When domain owners forget to pay their rent, either by accident or purposely, their domain at that point expires. It then becomes available for those who want to buy old domains and is ready for re-registration on multiple marketplaces, depending on the domain registrar.

Why People Purchase Old Domains?

It’s important to discuss why people want to buy old domains or expired domains, especially in 2023 for more expensive prices when they can buy new domains with less or discounted prices. In this article, we’ll talk through some of the most common reasons why people pay more than they have to just to get an old domain.

Why do you think people prefer the old domains? Just because they are expensive, of course not, people hate high-cost products & services. The reason why People opt for old domains because of the trust of the audience and Google, the quality of content, backlinks, and several other reasons such as SEO value, instant brand credibility, quick organic traffic acquisition, time-saving in building rankings, and more.

Here are some of the real reasons why people buy old domains at expensive rates, and you should also look at these factors if you’re considering one, especially in 2023:

SEO Value Of Aged Domains

The main reason to buy old domains is the SEO authority and trust that they carry, which gets passed on to the new owner. Google and other search engines attach greater weight to domains that have been around for years. Metrics like domain age and expiration date are indeed SEO ranking factors.

An old domain has had more time to accumulate backlinks, page authority, ranking history, and other trust markers that Google values. Hence, when you buy old domains, you’re also acquiring these assets. Such domains tend to rank higher and faster compared to new domains, making the decision to buy old domains an advantageous one for many.

Instant Brand Credibility

A registered domain name that has been around for 5, 10, or 20+ years can instantly lend credibility and trust to a new venture using it because visitors perceive established domains as more reputable and secure. This is why many opt to buy old domains.

It’s also the reason why these domains become more expensive as years pass by. When you buy old domains, you’re not just purchasing a name; you’re investing in the trust & credibility they bring to the table with them. As the demand to buy old domains increases due to the perceived value they offer, so does their price.

Gain Organic Search Traffic Faster

Aged domains may have existing organic search traffic and passive SEO authority that the new owner can benefit from. Even a small amount of residual organic traffic can provide a new site a nice boost, allowing it to gain traction faster. This is one of the main reasons why many opt to buy old domains.

Therefore, if you want organic traffic as soon as possible to convert the leads into potential customers, we recommend you buy old domains, specifically expired ones, in the first place. These domains, with their history and authority, can offer a head start in the competitive digital landscape.

Saves Time Building Rankings

Ranking a brand new domain site in competitive niches can take 6-12+ months of intense SEO work. In contrast, an old domain with aged authority can rank above most new sites for common keywords right away. This gives a significant head start to the links and content of your website when you buy old domains.

We all know how challenging it is to rank a new domain on Google, especially if the competition is high and the chances of ranking are low. That’s where the decision to buy old domains, specifically expired ones, becomes a game-changer. These domains carry with them a legacy of trust and authority, providing an invaluable boost in the race to the top of search engine results.

Expedites Paid Traffic Conversions

Old domains also tend to convert better for paid ads and social campaigns since they have user trust built in. In contrast, advertising on a new domain often suffers from low click-through and conversion rates initially. When you buy old domains, you’re not just purchasing a name, but also the legacy of user trust. Established domains see better conversion metrics right from the start.

You might be thinking it’s an illusion, but we’re merely stating the facts that we’ve discovered and tried over the years due to our extensive experience with domains. The decision to buy old domains is rooted in data-driven results, and the advantages they offer in the competitive digital landscape are undeniable.

Instant Brandable Domain Names

Finally, old domains offer a treasure trove of instantly available, branded domain names that might not be easily registerable otherwise, especially coveted older .com domains with standout branding names. When you buy old domains, you’re tapping into a unique reservoir of branding potential.

Expired Brand Domain Names are undoubtedly a plus. If you consider the business & sales they generate, their value becomes evident, regardless of their price.

These compelling reasons make old domains an invaluable asset for various sites and projects in 2023. The added SEO “juice” they bring to the table makes them extremely enticing marketing assets, further emphasizing the wisdom in the decision to buy old domains.

Outstanding Benefits Of Buying Old Domains

Let’s explore some of the major upsides to purchasing an expired, aged domain in more detail:

Increased Trust and Credibility

Old domains inspire more user confidence and credibility since they have been around for a while. People tend to gravitate towards sites with domains that have a rich age and history behind them. An expired domain inherently signals longevity and stability, making the decision to buy old domains an astute one.

Consider this: if a domain name “alrecipes.com” has been sharing delicious recipes for the past 10 years and someone else just starts a recipe blog from scratch, who do you think Google and recipe aficionados will trust more?

Moreover, how long will it realistically take for the new blog to rank comparably? When you buy old domains like “alrecipes.com”, you’re investing in established trust and authority. The choice is clear, so it’s crucial to make an informed decision.

Backlinks from Other Sites

Aged domains carry with them a wealth of link equity and authority in the form of existing backlinks from external sites. When you buy old domains, you’re essentially acquiring these backlinks, which transfer SEO value to the new owner. Some domains might boast hundreds or even thousands of quality backlinks, and this can translate into a significant uptick in sales and a broader reach to target customers.

It might sound too good to be true, but there’s substantial evidence supporting this: the older the backlinks, the greater the trust and authority they confer on your website.

When search engine crawlers analyze your site and discover these seasoned backlinks, it signals to Google that your website is a credible resource and merits a high-ranking spot, often within the top 5 positions, for many of your keywords. The value of deciding to buy old domains isn’t just in the name, but in the legacy of trust and credibility they bring along.

Page Authority Passed On

In addition to backlinks, old domains have inherent page and domain authority strength. Domain Authority (DA) is an estimate of a site’s power to rank in search engines, and this Domain Authority passes to the new owner, giving an SEO boost to your website with the pages and blogs on it.

Most people don’t know how significant the DA of a website is, especially when it comes to search engine optimization because the more your web page’s DA is, the better the chances of your pages ranking on the first page of Google.

Potential Rankings History

An old domain may have a history of ranking for various keywords that can be resurrected, even if rankings have dropped, they often can be regained faster. The domain likely has latent authority for the terms it previously ranked for.

That’s why we recommend our customers who want the top ranking position for difficult keywords or high-difficulty niches to consider and buy Old Domains as it can save you a lot of money which you’ll have to waste on the SEO and Google Ads for the traffic and lead generation.

Easier Brand Recognition

Depending on the domain name, there may already be some brand recognition attached to it which makes marketing easier compared to building brand recognition from zero.

Find an expired domain in your respective industry that can fulfill your industry leads while representing the solution to all the problems your industry has.

Low Risk Investment

Finally, old domains represent a fairly low-risk investment compared to the potential upside as high-quality aged domains can be purchased for anywhere from $50 to a few thousand dollars, while providing significant SEO value.

You might think that they’re expensive, but can’t ignore the fact that they bring more to the table than they cost if you choose the right one.

In short, the benefits include increased trust and credibility, existing backlinks, inherent page authority, potential ranking history, easier brand recognition, and being a low-risk investment.

Common Drawbacks Of Using Old Domains

Most people when they Buy Old Domains ignore the following facts or even don’t know about them, but no need to worry as we’re going to show you in this article so let’s get right into it.

Poor History

Don’t waste your time & money on a domain that has a poor history, violate all the rules & regulations of Google, and follow Black Hat SEO for instant traffic spikes & sales.

This kind of domain is on the hit list of Google for bad behavior, and no matter how good their content is, they change the way they operate their website search engine optimization techniques and move toward White Hat SEO.

Bad Site Quality

Before you buy Old Domains, make sure to check if the domain has duplicate content published in it, or has a history of security breaches with spam backlinks on unsecured websites.

With this type of bad quality and the history of this old domain, no matter how much you improve your website’s structure and the quality of your content, you’ll lose your money, time, sales, and much more.

High Cost

As you already know, websites with expired & old domains are more expensive than the new domains due to their old age & backlinks profile. These domains are mostly sold through auctions, and the people who bid more and more, makes the prices go skyrocket.

In these bidding wars, some domains become so expensive that even the rich people can’t afford them which becomes a huge drawback to this case.

In short, some drawbacks are a domain’s poor history, bad site quality, and the high cost of old domains.

How To Find Old Domain Names?

Before you buy Old Domain name for your website, take a look at the following factors to find the best old domain for your small & large businesses:

Be Selective: With thousands of expired domains available on the internet, it’s hard to choose the one which could be best for your industry with a good background & site history, high quality backlinks, and the types of links you create to generate traffic & leads.

Traffic: Make sure the domain you want to opt for is still getting the traffic that it was getting before it expired because this type of domain can give you instant rankings with significant increase in traffic & sales.

Quality Backlinks: Don’t opt for that domain names which have links to unsecured websites, or most of the links are unrelated to your niche because a domain with strong backlinks carries a strong E-E-A-T(Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trust) which indicates a good SEO signal to Google.

Website History: We recommend you to check out the history of the domain you want to purchase like how many years a website has been active, when did it first appear in the search results, does the website have a history of spammy content & links, and what is the age of the domain.

Previous Content: You can also use internet archive (Wayback Machine) & other tools like this to find the history & quality of the content this domain had when it was live to figure out whether the content was good or bad, and if the site has duplicate content then this tool will show you right away.

Google Index Status: Check whether the domain you want to buy still opens when you search or open it on Google because the longer a domain stay without active site, the more SEO juice it will lose.

In short, be selective, consider the existing traffic, evaluate the quality of backlinks, look into the website’s history, check previous content, consider Google’s index status, and use various platforms like domain expiration sites, domain name auction sites, Whois databases, Google, domain forums, and backlink checking tools.

Where To Find Old Domain Names?

We know it’s hard to find a quality & aged domain to purchase, and takes a bit of searching work. Here are some of the best places to start in 2023:

Check Domain Name Expiration Sites

Sites like ExpiredDomains.net & ExpiredDomains.com specifically track domains nearing or past expiration so you can search through or set alerts for expiring/expired domains.

These sites are legitimate and trustworthy so you don’t have to worry about the frauds, and opt for high quality domain names with better backlinks, domain history, and SEO factors.

Domain Name Auction Sites 

GoDaddy Auctions, NameJet, and SnapNames are among the most popular domain auctions platforms where one can buy old domain names. They offer both expired & premium domains up for bids, but they tend to feature more premium domain names.

If you’re considering to buy old domain names, the websites we mentioned above are trustworthy & reliable domain auction sites & domain providers with a history of satisfied customers.

Whois Databases

Whois.domaintools.com and DomCop.com have massive databases of Whois info you can search to find aged or expired domains, making them invaluable tools for those looking to buy old domain names. These platforms are very useful for identifying old registrations about to expire.

No matter what or which industry you belong to, if you’re in the market to buy old domain names, you can find any type of expired domain on these websites, whether they expired 10 years ago or yesterday.

Google

Believe it or not, you can find old domains using Google by moving towards site: searches and tools like “domainname.com” to surface expired domains that still have site pages indexed. This method is particularly useful for those looking to buy old domain names.

You can also search expired domains to get a ton of suggestions about which sites are worthy of your time. Many professionals understand the significance of these searches, especially when they’re aiming to buy old domain names, as they know the importance & luxury of your time.

Domain Forums

Forums like NamePros.com, DNForum.com and DomainState.com have marketplace subforums where members list domains they have for sale. These forums provide an ideal opportunity for domain owners to sell their domains and ask for as much money as they want for their domain prices.

Backlink Checking Tools

Check any prospective domain purchase in Ahrefs, Semrush, Majestic, or Moz to gauge the quantity and quality of backlinks as more aged links = higher value.

There are many backlink checker tools available on the internet for free so you can get a better idea of what types of backlinks these domains have, and whether you should buy them or not.

How To Buy Old Domains? Step By Step

If you want to purchase an old domain and don’t know the procedure, we’re here to help you out with this step-by-step guide so you can easily buy an old domain without any trouble:

Confirm the Availability: Double check the Whois data to ensure the domain has expired and is in available status, and don’t forget to use a Whois history lookup to see the expiration and old owners 

Assess the Quality: Do a thorough backlink audit using a tool like Ahrefs to assess the quantity, quality, and authority of existing backlinks. More is better

Check for Penalties: Search for the domain in Google Search Console to see if there are any manual penalties applied you should know about

Determine a Valuation: Factor in the domain’s age, links data, extensions owned (i.e. .com and .net), and other assets to determine a fair valuation

Make Contact with the Seller: If the domain is listed for sale somewhere, reach out to the seller, verify availability, negotiate a price, and move to purchase

Purchase and Register It: Finally, if all checks out, go ahead and purchase the domain from the registrar or seller. Make sure to get the EPPC (transfer) code and registrar account ownership properly transferred to you

Point it Your Site: With the aged domain now in your full control, point the domain to your existing or new website to inherit all of its SEO powers!

In short, Confirm the domain’s availability, assess its quality, check for penalties, determine a valuation, make contact with the seller, purchase and register it, and then point it to your site.

Conclusion

It’s not easy to find & buy old domains, especially when you’re looking to buy an old, previously registered domain name for your website or online venture with instant authority and trust. This is because aged domains have SEO powers that allow sites to potentially rank faster and higher in search engines like Google.

When researching old domains for sale or when you decide to buy old domains, look for names with a domain registration of 5+ years, a Quality backlink profile with many aged & strong links, Strong page and domain authority metrics, and Clean history without previous penalties.

While more expensive than new domains, established domains deliver ROI by accelerating your ability to rank organically which helps you to make ideal purchases for new eCommerce shops, lead generation sites, blogs, and other projects where traffic and trust are key. If your strategy is to buy old domains, just be sure to thoroughly vet each domain before purchase, check the backlink profile history, and make sure technical ownership transfers smoothly.

With an aged domain in hand, acquired from a decision to buy old domains, you can bypass the harder work of ranking a new domain from scratch. The power of old domains allows your new website to gain traction much faster in search engines.

In case you have some doubts or queries about expired domains in your mind, don’t hesitate, and send us your queries so we can help you make an informed decision when you aim to buy old domains you’re considering purchasing.