ENS Pricing Explained: What a .eth Name Costs Per Year
ENS pricing is set by character length, not by demand or by the marketplace you use. The rate is fixed by the protocol, which means it is the same everywhere. What varies is gas.
The price by length
| Name length | Price per year |
|---|---|
| 3 characters | $640 in ETH |
| 4 characters | $160 in ETH |
| 5 characters or more | $5 in ETH |
Why shorter names cost more
Three and four character names carry higher pricing to reflect the small number of these names available. There are only so many possible combinations at that length, so the protocol prices them to reflect scarcity.
The effect is stark. A five character name costs $5 a year. A four character name costs thirty-two times that. A three character name costs one hundred and twenty-eight times the five character rate.
New here and wondering what you are actually buying? Start with what ENS is.
The minimum length
The minimum length of a name is three characters. The .eth Registrar imposes a three-character minimum on all names, so nothing shorter can be registered at the second level.
Dollars, paid in ETH
The price is denominated in US dollars but paid in ETH. The amount of ETH required therefore moves with the ETH price at the moment you register or renew. A quote taken last week is not a quote for today.
Because the rent price is denominated in dollars and paid in ETH, it is sensible to send slightly more than the quoted figure to allow for price movement between the quote and the transaction confirming.
Gas is separate
Every registration and renewal is an Ethereum transaction, so it carries a network fee on top of the registration price. That fee goes to the network, not to ENS and not to any marketplace. It fluctuates with network activity, which is why the same name can cost noticeably different amounts to register on two different days.
Multi-year registration
Registering for more years up front is also how you keep names off the annual renewal treadmill. The annual rate stays the same however long you register for. Registering for several years multiplies that annual rate across the term. The practical advantage is not a discount on the name itself, it is paying gas once instead of every year, and removing the annual decision to renew.
What this means in practice
- Most names cost $5 a year. Any name of five characters or more sits in the cheapest tier.
- Short names are a premium asset. Three and four character names carry costs that only make sense if you specifically want that length.
- Read the ETH amount, not just the dollar figure. The dollar price is fixed, the ETH needed is not.
- Watch gas separately. It is often the larger variable on a cheap name.
Next steps
See the ENS learning hub for the full set of guides. Read how to register a .eth name for the registration process, or what happens when a name expires if you already hold names.
Sources
- ENS Documentation - registration cost by name length and character minimum
- ENS Support - registration and renewal fees
- ENS Documentation - rent price and ETH denominated fees