Domain Names for Small Businesses: How to Choose and Register One (UK)

Your domain name is your business’s address on the internet, so it is worth choosing and registering carefully. Here is how a domain name for a small business works in the UK, what to choose and the mistakes to avoid.

What a domain is, and is not

Nominet, which runs the .uk register, says a domain name is not property and has no owner. It is an entry in a register, and the registrant is the person or company with the right to use it. A domain is also separate from your hosting (where the website files live) and your email, even though one company often sells all three.

Choosing a name

• Keep it short and easy to say and spell out loud.
• Avoid hyphens and numbers, which people forget or mistype.
• Check that it is not confusingly close to another business’s name.
• Check the matching social media names too.
• Brainstorm with our free domain name ideas tool.

.co.uk, .uk or .com?

Names ending in .co.uk and .uk are UK-focused and run by Nominet. A .com is global. Choose the one your customers will expect to type. If budget allows, registering more than one version stops a competitor taking the other.

Registering and renewing

• You register through a registrar, a company that handles the registration for you, for one to ten years for .uk names.
• Compare the renewal price, not just the first-year offer.
• Use an email address you will always have, and turn on 2-step verification for your registrar account.
• Put your own business details in as the registrant, even if someone else sets it up for you.
• Switch on auto-renew, and diarise the expiry date anyway.

Moving a domain

To move a domain to a new registrar you ask your current one for a transfer authorisation code, then give it to the new one. Do it well before the expiry date, and check how your website and email are set up before you change anything, so nothing goes offline.

Common mistakes

• Letting the name expire.
• Having it registered in a web designer’s or an ex-employee’s name.
• Using an email address that is no longer checked.
• Picking a name that is hard to spell.

Next steps

Read how to choose web hosting, and see our guide to shared hosting vs VPS vs WordPress hosting.

Deciding what to build the site with? See WordPress vs Wix and our guide to the best website builder for a UK small business.

Once you own a domain, you can have email on it too, such as hello@yourdomain.co.uk. See our business email setup if you would like it set up for you.

Domain rules and registrar terms vary, so check the terms of the company you register with. General information. Checked on 9 November 2026.