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All registrars / Porkbun vs Namecheap

Porkbun vs Namecheap

Porkbun vs Namecheap: which is better? Porkbun passes more of our hidden-fee checks: 3 of 3, against 3 of 5 for Namecheap. Namecheap adds fees on top of the listed price and never labels the renewal price before you pay. Both include free WHOIS privacy. We re-check Porkbun prices daily; Namecheap has no public price feed, so we show no Namecheap prices.
Porkbun
3 of 3 checks
Namecheap
3 of 5 checks
Facts checked
2026-11-01

Hidden fees at checkout

We walked Porkbun's checkout as far as an anonymous visitor can (the search results) on 2026-10-22. It passes 3 of the 3 checks we could verify. We walked Namecheap's checkout to the cart with a new .com on 2026-10-22. It passes 3 of the 5 checks we could verify; it fails on listed price includes all fees and renewal price shown before you pay.
CheckPorkbunNamecheap
Hidden-fee check3 of 33 of 5
Listed price includes all feesYes
Listed prices include the ICANN fee. (kb.porkbun.com, 2026-10-22)
No
Listed $11.28, cart $11.48: ICANN fee $0.20 added at the cart. (our checkout walk to the cart, 2026-10-22)
No paid add-ons switched on for youNot checked
Adding to cart needs an account: "You must be logged in before adding that domain to your cart."
Yes
The cart held only the domain and free privacy. Extras are offered but left off. (our checkout walk to the cart, 2026-10-22)
WHOIS privacy freeYes
Free on eligible domains, per its own help pages. (porkbun.com, 2026-10-22)
Yes
Privacy was in the cart at $0.00. (our checkout walk to the cart, 2026-10-22)
Renewal price shown before you payYes
The search result states the renewal price. (our checkout walk to the search, 2026-10-22)
No
Shows a struck-through regular price and a first-year discount, but never labels a renewal price. (our checkout walk to the cart, 2026-10-22)
Free transfer out, code self-serveNot checked
No published transfer-out policy found.
Yes
No transfer-out fee, and you get the transfer code in your dashboard. (namecheap.com, 2026-10-22) (namecheap.com, 2026-10-22)

We walk each checkout monthly with a new .com and stop at the cart: no account, no payment. “Not checked” means the walk couldn’t reach that step and the registrar publishes nothing we could cite; it doesn’t count for or against.

Transfers: how easy is it to leave?

ICANN's 60-day inter-registrar lock applies after an inbound transfer or a registrant-info change, but Porkbun lets you opt out of the 60-day lock triggered by removing WHOIS privacy.

Sources: porkbun.com (2026-08-20) · icann.org (2026-08-20)

Namecheap charges nothing to transfer a domain away (the new registrar charges the transfer), and you unlock the domain and get its auth code yourself in the Transfer Out section. A domain must be at least 60 days past registration or its last transfer before it can move.

Sources: namecheap.com (2026-10-22) · namecheap.com (2026-10-22) · namecheap.com (2026-10-27)

Support and status

Porkbun offers phone and live chat 9AM-5PM Pacific daily (855-767-5286) and email support 24/7. Porkbun posts incidents on its official status page at status.porkbun.com.

Sources: kb.porkbun.com (2026-08-20) · status.porkbun.com (2026-11-01)

Namecheap offers 24/7 support by live chat and email, with email replies promised within 2 hours. It has no phone support. Namecheap posts incidents on its official status page at namecheap.com/status-updates.

Sources: namecheap.com (2026-10-27) · namecheap.com (2026-10-27) · namecheap.com (2026-10-27)

PorkbunNamecheap
ICANN / IANA ID#1861#1068
Phone supportYesNo
Official status updatesstatus.porkbun.comnamecheap.com/status-updates
Daily price feed637 TLDsNo

Prices

We re-check Porkbun prices daily; Namecheap has no public price feed, so we show no Namecheap prices.
TLDPorkbun 1st yrPorkbun renew
.com$11.08$11.08
.ai$82.70$82.70
.io$28.12$51.80
.co$15.76$31.20
.net$12.52$12.52
.org$7.98$11.84
.dev$8.75$12.87
.app$8.75$14.93

USD, from Porkbun’s own price feed, checked 2026-10-21. For the cheapest price across every registrar we track, see each TLD’s buy guide.

Which should you pick?

Pick Porkbun if
  • you want the listed price to be what you pay (Namecheap fails this check).
  • you want to see the renewal price before you pay (Namecheap fails this check).
  • you want phone support.
  • you want prices we re-check daily: 637 TLDs, checked 2026-10-21.
Pick Namecheap if
  • you want no paid add-ons switched on for you (not checked at Porkbun).
  • you want a free, self-serve transfer out (not checked at Porkbun).

Check your name at either

Check the live price and renewal for your exact name before you buy. Some links may earn us a commission; it never changes what we compare.

Search domains on PorkbunSearch domains on Namecheap

Read the full Porkbun review or Namecheap review, or see every registrar in the hidden-fee check table. tld.expert is an independent editorial reference, not a registrar. Every fact on this page links the page it came from and the date we checked it.