Consumers Say an Oddly Spelled Domain Name Gives Them the Ick

Originally published on GoDaddy Newsroom

TEMPE, Ariz., May 1, 2025 /3BL/ -- In honor of the humble domain name turning 40 this month, a new survey by GoDaddy (NYSE: GDDY) asked consumers to spill the tea on what they consider red and green flags when it comes to a business's domain name. Although different generations had varying opinions, they all agreed on two things: size and spelling matter.

In the latest GoDaddy Consumer Pulse* survey, an overwhelming majority (80%) of the 1,500 U.S. consumers polled in March said they avoided visiting or purchasing from a website because it had an oddly spelled domain name. This sentiment was stronger across younger generations, with 85% of Gen Z and 82% of Millennials reporting they passed up a business due to the spelling of its domain, compared to 76% of Gen X and Boomers.

Consumers (71%) expect businesses to maintain a dedicated website and domain and had a lot of thoughts about what makes for a good domain name.

Green flags: Short, easy to read domain names
Consumers appreciate when domains are short and sweet, with correctly spelled words that are easy to pronounce.

Qualities consumers said make a domain memorable:

• Full words spelled correctly – 43%
• A short domain of two words or less – 40%
• If the domain is easily pronounced – 38%
• Unique domain extensions (like .AI or .shop) – 23%
• A funny domain (rhyming or punny) – 19%

Red flags: Misspelled, mismatched or hyphenated domain names
Consumers are leery of domain names that have misspelled words or those that do not match the business's name. In fact, 3 in 4 (74%) consumers are more comfortable when a domain name matches a brand name exactly.

Qualities consumers said make them NOT trust a domain:

• Misspelled words – 56%
• The domain doesn't match the business's name – 55%
• Hyphens in the domain name – 20%
• Numbers in the domain name – 20%
• Free domains (like sites.google.com, name.wixsites.com, godaddysites.com, etc.) – 20%

Yes, people still use their keyboard
In a world where click, tap and swipe are the norm, most consumers will still type in a business's domain name if they want to shop at the business's website.

• Half of consumers (50%) will regularly type in a business's domain name if they want to shop on its website
• More than a quarter (27%) of consumers will type in a business's domain only if they remember it
• Approximately 1 in 4 people (23%) never type in a business's domain name and will get to the site through a search engine, emails, bookmarks or social media

"Businesses that don't take time to choose the right domain name inadvertently put themselves three steps behind," said Trip Briscoe, a domain name expert at GoDaddy. "It's worth investing in a quality domain that is spelled correctly and exactly matches your business's name. It's the difference between a potential customer finding you effortlessly or getting lost in the vastness of the internet."

Having experienced the internet for most—if not all—of their lives, younger generations seem to view domain names more critically.

Younger consumers' shopping habits are more likely to be impacted by a company's domain name. When asked if they have ever stopped shopping at a company online because of their website's domain name:

• Gen Z – 39% said yes
• Millennials – 35% said yes
• Gen X and Boomers – 15% said yes

Gen Z and Millennials are more likely to find domains with a unique domain extension (like .AI or .shop) memorable compared to Gen X and Boomers.

• Gen Z – 34% said unique domain extensions are memorable
• Millennials – 30% said unique domain extensions are memorable
• Gen X and Boomers – 17% said unique domain extensions are memorable

Gen Z and Millennials are more likely to find funny (rhyming or punny) domains memorable compared to Gen X and Boomers.

• Gen Z – 25% said funny domains are memorable
• Millennials – 24% said funny domains are memorable
• Gen X and Boomers – 15% said funny domains are memorable

Gen Z and Millennials rely less on search engines, bookmarks, social media or emails to get to a website and instead type out the company's domain name. When asked how often they type in a business's domain name to go to their website:

• Gen Z – 16% said they don't type in domains and click through to websites from other channels
• Millennials – 18% said they don't type in domains and click through to websites
• Gen X and Boomers – 28% said they don't type in domains and click through to websites

New businesses need to consider the importance of domain name availability when naming their company, and established brick-and-mortars need to take the same considerations when expanding online.

Businesses can search for a domain at GoDaddy.com. If the exact domain name a business owner wants isn't available, they can attempt to acquire the domain on the domain name aftermarket — a secondary marketplace for domains where buyers purchase domain names that are already registered.

For those who want to start a small business but haven't yet picked out a name, they can use GoDaddy Airo^® to suggest a host of creative, AI-generated ideas—and then secure a domain, create a logo, launch a website and more in minutes.

*GoDaddy Consumer Pulse is a series of surveys of consumers ages 18 and above conducted throughout the year.

About GoDaddy
GoDaddy helps millions of entrepreneurs globally start, grow, and scale their businesses. People come to GoDaddy to name their idea, build a website and logo, sell their products and services and accept payments. GoDaddy Airo^®, the company's AI-powered experience, makes growing a small business faster and easier by helping them to get their idea online in minutes, drive traffic and boost sales. GoDaddy's expert guides are available 24/7 to provide assistance. To learn more about the company, visit www.GoDaddy.com.

SOURCE: GoDaddy Inc.