Short answer: in Nigeria a .com.ng domain costs ₦10,000 a year, a .ng domain ₦15,000 and a .com ₦22,100 at SiloLobby, paid in naira. The number to watch is the renewal price: some extensions are cheap in the first year and several times more expensive every year after, so always compare the cost over three to five years, not just year one.
Domain pricing confuses many business owners. Adverts shout about very low prices, then the renewal invoice arrives a year later at many times the amount. This guide explains how domain pricing really works, shows today's prices for the extensions Nigerians use most, and gives you a simple way to compare the true cost.
The three prices every domain has
Every extension has three separate prices:
- Registration: what you pay to register a new domain, usually for the first year.
- Renewal: what you pay each year after that to keep the domain.
- Transfer: what you pay to move a domain you already own from another registrar. For most extensions, a transfer also adds one year to the registration.
Registries (the organisations that run each extension) set wholesale prices. Registrars and resellers like SiloLobby add their margin. Some registries discount the first year heavily to win sign-ups and make their money on renewals.
Today's prices for popular extensions
These prices are live from our price list:
| Extension | First year | Renewal | Transfer |
|---|---|---|---|
| .com.ng | ₦10,000 | ₦10,000 | ₦10,000 |
| .ng | ₦15,000 | ₦15,000 | ₦15,000 |
| .org.ng | ₦10,000 | ₦10,000 | ₦10,000 |
| .com | ₦22,100 | ₦22,100 | ₦21,600 |
| .net | ₦23,700 | ₦23,700 | ₦22,700 |
| .org | ₦18,600 | ₦27,000 | ₦24,000 |
| .africa | ₦49,800 | ₦49,800 | ₦50,000 |
See all 450+ extensions on the domain price list.
The renewal trap, with real numbers
Compare the first year and renewal for these popular "new" extensions:
| Extension | First year | Renewal |
|---|---|---|
| .online | ₦5,800 | ₦76,800 |
| .store | ₦10,200 | ₦117,800 |
| .shop | ₦5,800 | ₦77,800 |
| .xyz | ₦5,400 | ₦34,400 |
These are legitimate extensions and can be good choices, especially for campaigns or descriptive names. But if you build your whole brand on one, budget for the renewal. Moving to a new domain later costs you search rankings, printed materials, and customer trust.
How to compare the real cost: the three-year rule
Before you buy, add up the cost over three years:
Three-year cost = first year + (2 × renewal)
For an extension with a steady price like .com.ng, that is simply three times the yearly price. For a promotional extension it can be many times the advertised price. Do the same sum over five years if you are building a long-term brand.
Tip: if two extensions suit your brand equally well, choose the one with the lower three-year cost, not the lower first-year price.
Why pay in naira?
International registrars bill in US dollars. For Nigerian businesses that means:
- you need a card that works for dollar payments, often with low monthly limits,
- you pay your bank's exchange rate and charges,
- your costs rise whenever the naira weakens,
- renewals fail silently when a card is declined, and domains expire.
At SiloLobby prices are in naira, and you can pay by card, bank transfer, USSD or wallet. Read how to pay for hosting and domains in naira.
What else affects what you pay?
- Registration length. Registering for several years at once does not usually reduce the yearly price, but it protects you from price rises and missed renewals.
- Premium names. Some very short or valuable names are sold by registries at premium prices. The search shows you the price before you buy.
- Redemption fees. If a domain expires and enters the redemption period, recovering it costs a restore fee on top of the renewal. See what happens when your domain expires.
- Add-ons. DNS management is included. WHOIS privacy is free at SiloLobby where the extension supports it.
Ways to save on domains
- Choose an extension with a steady price if you are on a tight budget.
- Keep your wallet funded so renewals are paid on time automatically. Late renewals can mean redemption fees.
- Transfer domains you already own. For most extensions the transfer adds a year to your registration, so you pay nothing extra and get one place to manage everything. See how to transfer a domain to SiloLobby.
- Register the domain in your own name so you never pay to buy it back from a contractor.
- Avoid speculative registrations. Register the names you will use, plus the variations that protect your main brand.
A worked example: five-year cost of a domain
Imagine two business owners register a domain on the same day and keep it for five years.
Owner A chooses .com.ng. The first year costs ₦10,000 and every renewal costs ₦10,000. Over five years, the total is five times the yearly price, with no surprises.
Owner B chooses .online because the first year is only ₦5,800. From year two, each renewal costs ₦76,800. Over five years Owner B pays one cheap year followed by four expensive ones, often far more than Owner A in total.
The lesson is not that .online is bad: it is a legitimate extension. The lesson is to compare long-term costs before you build a brand on any domain.
Prices are set in naira, but supplier costs change
International extensions such as .com are wholesale-priced by their registries in US dollars. When those costs or exchange rates change, naira prices may be adjusted. Country-code extensions like .com.ng are priced by the .ng registry. Our price list always shows today's price, and the price shown in your cart is what you pay.
Questions to ask any domain seller
- What is the renewal price, not just the first year?
- Is WHOIS privacy included or extra?
- Is DNS management included?
- Can I transfer the domain out freely, and how do I get the EPP code?
- Will the domain be registered in my name?
- How can I pay, and can renewals be paid automatically?
At SiloLobby the answers are simple: renewal prices are listed openly, DNS management is included, privacy is free where the extension supports it, you are the registrant, and you can get your EPP code whenever you want to move.
Domain costs for different types of business
| Business | Sensible setup | Yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Small local business | .com.ng | ₦10,000 |
| Local business protecting its brand | .com.ng + .ng | ₦10,000 + ₦15,000 |
| International brand | .com + .com.ng | ₦22,100 + ₦10,000 |
| Non-profit | .org.ng + .org | ₦10,000 + ₦27,000 |
Summary
In Nigeria, the true cost of a domain is its renewal price over the years you keep it, not its first-year price. .com.ng (₦10,000 a year) and .com (₦22,100 a year) have steady prices; some new extensions renew at many times their launch price. Compare three-year costs, pay in naira to avoid exchange-rate surprises, and keep your wallet funded so you never pay redemption fees.