Eric Lyon
Scorpion Agency LLCTop Member
- Impact
- 34,040
Today, I'll be analyzing the .info gTLD to see if I can dig up any helpful data points that could be stacked with someone elses research into the .info extension.
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Note: At the time of this analysis there was a 1-character minimum to register a .info domain. There were also several 1-character .info domains available for registration, but with a low to mid-4-figure premium registration cost.
With the above in mind, lets dive right in...
.info domain registration costs
According to Tldes.com the .info registration costs range from $1.99 to $35.00..info domains registered today
According to DNS.Coffee there are 5,294,213 .info domains registered today.Public .info domain sales reports
There's lots of .info domain sales reports to look at online.Note: NameBio.com shows 8,913 .info domain sales reports ranging from $100 to $116,000.
Some notable sales are:
- travel.info – $116,000
- car.info – $76,000
- free.info – $42,000
- ceo.info – $32,500
- movie.info – $24,626
- indie.info – $100
5-year .info domain growth summary
According to tracking data from DNS.Coffee, the .info gTLD experienced a total 5-year net growth of 1,430,943 registrations (37.04%) between June 2021 and June 2026. While the extension faced minor contractions during the first few years of this period, it experienced an unprecedented surge of 34.69% in the final year alone to reach its current peak.
Year-over-Year (YoY) Growth Breakdown
| Date | Total Registered Domains | Annual Change (Raw) | Annual Change (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 2021 | 3,863,270 | — | — |
| Jun 2022 | 3,673,796 | -189,474 | -4.90% |
| Jun 2023 | 3,734,458 | +60,662 | +1.65% |
| Jun 2024 | 3,570,815 | -163,643 | -4.38% |
| Jun 2025 | 3,930,559 | +359,744 | +10.07% |
| Jun 2026 | 5,294,213 | +1,363,654 | +34.69% |
Historical Growth Trends
- Stagnation Period (2021–2024): For three years, the .info zone file hovered stably between 3.5M and 3.8M domains. The minor dips in 2022 and 2024 reflect standard registry cleanup cycles where bulk-registered spam or expired promotional domains dropped out of the zone file.
- The 2025 Rebound: The extension returned to net-positive growth in mid-2025, climbing back above 3.9 million active names with a 10.07% increase.
- The 2026 Registration Explosion: Between June 2025 and June 2026, .info added a staggering 1.36 million domains. This monumental spike suggests aggressive promotional registrar pricing ($1.99 first-year promos) or a massive wave of automated corporate/bulk brand protective registrations.
8 niches for .info domains
1. Travel, Tourism, and Local GuidesThis is historically the highest-valued niche for the extension, demonstrated by the record-breaking sale of travel.info for $116,000. Because travel is inherently research-driven, companies use .info for destination guides, packing checklists, and local transit directories.
2. Corporate Governance, Investor Relations, and Executives
Public corporations and startups frequently use .info to separate public-facing marketing from corporate data. This high-utility niche is anchored by major secondary market sales, including ceo.info for $32,500. Companies deploy these domains for annual reports, investor dashboards, and press kits.
3. Entertainment, Media, and Film Databases
The entertainment industry relies heavily on information repositories, tracking sites, and fan wikis, making this a highly liquid niche as seen with the sale of movie.info for $24,626. It is widely used for streaming directories, pop-culture wikis, and movie review aggregators.
4. Independent Creative Portfolios and Freelancers
Because .com inventory is highly saturated, independent creators, developers, and boutique agencies utilize .info as a clean alternative to host their portfolios. The market legitimacy of this indie niche is highlighted by sales like indie.info for $100.
5. Medical, Health, and Disease Awareness
Medical queries are among the most searched information topics on the internet. Healthcare networks, non-profits, and research institutions heavily utilize .info to host unbiased, educational databases regarding symptoms, pharmacology, and clinical trial results.
6. Public Utilities, Government Services, and Helpdesks
Municipalities, public transit authorities, and utility companies use .info to host consumer-facing helpdesks and real-time status trackers. Because it signals a public resource rather than a commercial storefront, it commands high trust for public service announcements.
7. Product Manuals, Documentation, and Tech Support
Hardware manufacturers and software developers frequently buy the .info version of their brand name to host product documentation, knowledge bases, and API references. It creates a dedicated space for customer support away from the main e-commerce funnel.
8. Academic Research, Open Data, and Directories
Educational organizations and data scientists utilize .info for open-source repositories, statistical libraries, and educational wikis. It serves as an excellent alternative to .org or .edu for standalone research projects.
What a playful .info domain hack might look like
A domain hack occurs when a registrant combines the letters before the dot (the Second-Level Domain, or SLD) with the letters after the dot (the Top-Level Domain, or TLD) to spell out a single, continuous word or phrase. Because .info is a four-letter extension, creating a seamless domain hack requires the word to end exactly in those four letters ("i-n-f-o").Structural Domain Hacks (Single Words)
The cleanest .info hacks utilize English words that naturally end in "info." The registrant buys the beginning of the word as the domain name, making the entire URL read as one word.
- Lympho.info (Spells Lymphoinfo - highly relevant for medical databases)
- Gala.info (Spells Galainfo - a popular structural variation for regional event guides)
- Chemo.info (Spells Chemoinfo - oncology and cancer research portals)
- Soprano.info (Spells Sopranoinfo - niche opera or music database)
Because single-word English options ending in "info" are mathematically limited, developers frequently use phrasal hacks. These rely on verbs, pronouns, or prepositions preceding the dot to create a highly actionable call-to-action (CTA).
- Need.info (Spells "Need info" - perfect for a customer service helpdesk)
- Get.info (Spells "Get info" - an aggressive lead-generation or affiliate marketing link)
- Send.info (Spells "Send info" - ideal for file-sharing apps or corporate contact pages)
- For.info (Spells "For info" - used for landing pages or QR code destinations)
- More.info (Spells "More info" - the ultimate universal CTA link for marketing campaigns)
- Find.info (Spells "Find info" - an excellent branding play for search engines or directories)
10 lead sources for a .info domain outbound campaign
1. The .Com Extension Owners (The "Mirror" Lead)The absolute highest-converting lead for any alternative gTLD is the owner of the matching .com. If you own a premium .info domain, scrape the contact information of the business operating on the .com counterpart. They are prime candidates for protective brand acquisition or defensive registration.
2. Matching ccTLD and New gTLD Owners
Look for businesses currently operating on localized or weaker extensions like .biz, .co, .us, or country codes (like .co.uk or .ca). If a business is already forced to use an alternative extension because the .com was taken, they are highly receptive to acquiring the .info version to expand their digital footprint.
3. Google Maps (Local Directory & Guide Niches)
Given that travel and city directories perform exceptionally well in the .info market, use Google Maps to find localized business clusters. For example, if you own a domain like MiamiHotels.info or DenverDentists.info, scrape the local businesses in those cities who lack a strong web presence or are paying high fees to aggregate sites like Yelp.
4. Crunchbase (Well-Funded Startups)
Startups that have recently raised Seed or Series A funding but missed out on buying their exact-match .com have the capital to acquire secondary domains. Search Crunchbase for companies with descriptive brand names that align with your .info keywords, as they often use .info for separate investor relations or documentation hubs.
5. BuiltWith or Wappalyzer (Tech Stack Filers)
Filter websites using BuiltWith to find companies running large knowledge-base software (like Zendesk Guide, GitBook, or Confluence). These businesses frequently migrate their documentation, FAQs, and product manuals to separate standalone domains, making them perfect targets for a .info support desk pitch.
6. Trademark Databases (USPTO & WIPO)
Search the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) or WIPO databases for recently filed trademarks that match your domain keywords. Corporations launching new products or initiatives will buy matching extensions to protect their intellectual property before a competitor or cybersquatter does.
7. Upwork, Freelancer, and Behance (The "Indie" Market)
As evidenced by the historical NameBio sale of indie.info for $100, freelance creatives and independent developers heavily favor this extension for portfolios. Scrape active, high-earning freelancers on Upwork or Behance who are currently using generic subdomains (e.g., ://wixsite.com) and pitch them an upgrade to a professional standalone .info domain.
8. App Sumo and Product Hunt (Digital Product Creators)
Every week, hundreds of software utilities, Notion templates, and digital directories launch on Product Hunt. These creators rarely own premium domains at launch. If you own an actionable phrasal hack or descriptive domain (like Formulas.info or CryptoData.info), these agile creators are prime impulse buyers.
9. Wikipedia and Wikia/Fandom References
Identify active informational websites, open-data blogs, or niche wiki administrators. Because .info carries an intrinsic educational authority, webmasters running resource-heavy sites or non-profit directories are structurally aligned to transition their content to a dedicated .info destination.
10. Expired Domain Registrant Archives
Use tools like ExpiredDomains.net to track who recently let a similar .info domain drop, or look up historical WHOIS records of people who used to own similar keywords. If an investor or business owner previously showed commercial interest in a specific niche, they are statistically far more likely to buy a related asset.
Helpful Outbound articles and tools
- How to leverage an Ai Assistant to find domain leads
- How to leverage Social media to find domain leads
- How to leverage Job Boards to find domain leads
- eMail Marketing Best Practices for Domain Outreach
- List of FREE tools for outbound domain sales
- Outbound Domain sales Tips
Legal considerations when selling a domain to an existing business
Approaching a business that holds an existing trademark to sell them a similar domain name is a high-risk strategy. In the domain industry, this is often referred to as "right-holder outbound." If handled incorrectly, the trademark owner can sue you in federal court or seize your domain for free using fast-track arbitration.Cybersquatting and the ACPA (U.S. Law)
In the United States, the Anticybersquatting Consumer Protection Act (ACPA) protects trademark owners against individuals who register, traffic in, or use a domain name that is identical or confusingly similar to a distinctive trademark.
- The "Bad Faith" Standard: To lose an ACPA lawsuit, the court must find you acted in "bad faith." The law explicitly states that offering to sell a domain name to a trademark owner for a financial profit can be used as evidence of bad faith intent.
- Financial Penalties: Under the ACPA, a court can order you to forfeit the domain and pay statutory damages ranging from $1,000 to $100,000 per domain name.
The Uniform Domain-Name Dispute-Resolution Policy (UDRP) is an international framework created by ICANN. It is a faster, cheaper alternative to a lawsuit that allows trademark owners to seize domains. To win a UDRP case against you, the trademark owner must prove three things simultaneously:
- Your domain name is identical or confusingly similar to their trademark.
- You have no rights or legitimate interests in the domain name (e.g., you are not commonly known by that name, and you don't run a real business on it).
- You registered and are using the domain in bad faith.
Your cold outbound email itself will become "Exhibit A" in a legal proceeding if the company decides to fight you. Certain actions instantly trigger a bad faith ruling:
- Setting the Price Excessively High: If you reach out to a trademark holder and demand a price that far exceeds your out-of-pocket registration costs, arbitrators view this as extortionate intent.
- Mentioning Their Brand Directly: Sending an email saying, "I saw your company [Brand Name] and thought you would want to buy this domain," is an explicit admission that you targeted their specific trademark.
- Implicit Threats: Saying something like, "I am offering this to you first before I sell it to your competitor," is viewed by panels as an aggressive bad faith threat.
It is important to note that trademarks do not grant a company monopoly over a word across the entire internet. If you registered a generic or descriptive word (e.g., car.info or travel.info) before the company existed, or if the word has multiple global meanings, you have a legitimate right to own it.
- If a massive corporation bullies an individual owner by filing a frivolous UDRP case over a purely generic word, the panel can find the corporation guilty of Reverse Domain Name Hijacking (RDNH), which is a formal declaration of bad faith behavior by the trademark owner.
The legal risk depends entirely on the nature of the word itself:
- The High-Risk Zone (Targeted Brands): If you register NikeShoes.info or TargetHelp.info and email those corporations, you are highly likely to face legal action.
- The Safe Zone (Generic Keywords): As established by NameBio’s index of 8,913 reported .info sales, generic concepts like movie.info ($24,626) or free.info ($42,000) hold objective value. If you own a broad, generic word, you have a right to offer it to businesses operating in that industry, provided you pitch it as a general industry asset rather than targeting a specific company's proprietary brand identity.
If you do choose to proceed with outbound to companies within a certain niche, adhere to these guidelines to reduce your legal exposure:
- Never Name a Price First: Let the buyer make the initial offer.
- Pitch the Asset, Not the Target: Focus on the generic value of the word. State what the domain is (e.g., "This is a premium category domain for the automotive space"), rather than telling the company why they specifically need it.
- Use Inbound Landing Pages: Instead of cold emailing, set up a clean "For Sale" landing page on the domain using an escrow service like Sedo or Escrow.com, and let buyers find you organically.
Potential .info domain investing strategy
Based on our comprehensive market data and structural analysis, the .info gTLD is not a speculative asset like .com or .ai. Instead, it functions as a high-volume, high-utility legacy extension.- The Scale: According to DNS.Coffee, there are exactly 5,294,213 registered .info domains today. The zone file is highly saturated, meaning high-quality unregistered single keywords are virtually extinct.
- The Velocity: The market added a massive 1.36 million domains between 2025 and 2026 (a 34.69% explosion). This velocity indicates that bulk automation, brand protection, and low-cost registration promos ($1.99/year) drive inventory, rather than individual end-user acquisition.
- The Valuation Ceiling: NameBio’s archive of 8,913 reported .info sales proves the secondary market tops out at $116,000 (travel.info). Standard, high-quality generic words generally trade between $100 and $500 at wholesale, and $2,500 to $15,000 at retail end-user prices.
Filter: Target Pure Generics in High-Value Niches
Do not register random phrases or long domain hacks. Focus your acquisitions strictly within the top 3 highest-valued .info historical niches:
- Travel & Geography: (e.g., CityGuides.info, LocalResorts.info). This sector holds the all-time record (travel.info for $116,000).
- Corporate & B2B Utilities: (e.g., CorporateData.info, ComplianceDocs.info). Businesses readily pay five figures for infrastructure words, as proven by ceo.info ($32,500).
- High-Traffic Media/Databases: (e.g., StreamingSchedules.info). This capitalizes on the extension's natural association with data repositories (movie.info for $24,626).
Because registry renewal rates sit around $15 to $25, hand-registering thousands of speculative .info domains will bleed your capital via renewal fees.
- The Play: Buy existing portfolios from discouraged investors or browse liquid closeout platforms (like GoDaddy Auctions or DropCatch) for $100 to $300 per asset.
- The Filter: Only acquire domains that are pure, multi-meaning generic words or highly logical two-word combinations.
Given the strict protections of the ACPA and UDRP, your portfolio must be legally insulated from day one.
- The Play: Never register or acquire a domain containing a trademarked brand name.
- The Setup: Use "Forever-Free" WHOIS privacy protection (via Porkbun or Spaceship) to keep your registry costs fixed. Deploy clean, automated "For Sale" landing pages hosted via Dan.com, Sedo, or Afternic.
- The Goal: Force buyers to find you organically (Inbound). An inbound inquiry completely strips the buyer of the ability to easily claim "bad faith intent to extort" in a UDRP panel.
If you choose to run active outbound campaigns to speed up liquidity, target businesses using alternative extensions (like .biz, .co, or .net) or companies running separate documentation centers (tracked via BuiltWith).
- The Outbound Protocol: Focus entirely on the generic utility of the asset. Never mention the prospect's brand name, never name a price first, and never threaten to sell to a competitor.
- Pitch Example: `"I am currently seeking expressions of interest for the generic domain asset [Example.info], which is positioned for the digital travel directory market. Please let me know if your organization handles asset acquisitions for this category."
Helpful Outbound articles and tools
- How to leverage an Ai Assistant to find domain leads
- How to leverage Social media to find domain leads
- How to leverage Job Boards to find domain leads
- eMail Marketing Best Practices for Domain Outreach
- List of FREE tools for outbound domain sales
- Outbound Domain sales Tips
Questions for you
- Do you own any .info domains?
- If so, how are they doing for you?
- Thinking about investing into .info domains?
- If so, what niche will you target and why?
What works for one may not work for another and vice versa.
