How to Transfer a Domain to a New Registrar

To transfer a domain to a new registrar, unlock it at your current registrar, turn off WHOIS privacy if needed, and request the EPP (authorization) code. Enter that code at the new registrar to start the transfer, approve the confirmation emails, and pay the fee. Transfers usually take about 5 to 7 days.

A domain transfer means moving where your domain name is registered — from your current company to a new one. Your registrar is simply the company you buy and renew your domain through. New to how names work at all? Our guide on what a domain name is covers the basics.

People usually transfer a domain for one of three reasons:

• Better pricing. Renewal costs vary between registrars. If your current one raises prices each year, moving can lower your long-term cost.
• Consolidating everything in one place. If your website is hosted with one company but your domain sits with another, keeping both together makes renewals and settings easier to manage.
• Better management or support. Some control panels are clearer, and some support teams are faster. If your current registrar is hard to deal with, that alone is a fair reason to move.

There is also a fourth reason worth naming: peace of mind. If you inherited a domain from a former developer, an old agency, or an account you barely remember, moving it into your own registrar account puts you fully in control. You hold the login, you get the renewal reminders, and no one else can quietly let it expire.

None of these are urgent emergencies. A transfer is a planned move, and this guide walks you through it calmly, one step at a time. There is no deadline pressure and nothing you can permanently break, so take it at your own pace.

This is the single most important thing to get right before you start, and it saves a lot of people a lot of trouble.

Transferring moves the domain's registration to a new registrar. You do this when you want to change who you renew the domain with.

Pointing is different. If your goal is only to make your website load from a new host, you often do not need to transfer the domain at all. You can leave the domain where it is and just update its DNS or nameservers so it points at the new host. DNS (the Domain Name System) is the internet's address book that turns your name into the right server address; see what DNS is for a fuller explanation. Our step-by-step guide on how to point a domain shows exactly how.

One more thing that trips people up: transferring the domain does not move your website's files, database, or emails. Those live on your hosting, which is a separate service. Moving your actual site is called a hosting migration, and it is a different job from a domain transfer. It is common to do both when you consolidate, but they are not the same step.

Domain transfers follow rules set by ICANN, the non-profit that coordinates domain names worldwide. These rules exist to stop domains being stolen or moved without the owner's approval. Check all of the following before you begin:

• Age: at least 60 days old. A domain generally must have been registered for 60 days or more. A brand-new registration cannot be transferred right away.
• Not transferred in the last 60 days. If the domain was already moved between registrars in the past 60 days, you must wait before moving it again.
• Unlocked. Most domains have a registrar lock (also called a transfer lock) switched on to prevent unauthorized moves. You will turn this off in Step 1.
• WHOIS privacy may need to be off temporarily. WHOIS privacy hides your contact details from public records. It can also block the approval emails, so you may need to turn it off for a few days during the transfer.
• Current admin contact email. The email listed as your admin contact must be an address you can actually open, because the approval emails go there.

It also helps to gather a few things in advance so the transfer runs without pauses: your login details for both the current and the new registrar, access to the inbox listed as your admin contact, and a payment method ready for the transfer fee. Having these on hand means you will not stall halfway through waiting for a password reset or a forgotten email login.

Here is the full process. Steps 1 to 3 happen at your current registrar. Steps 4 onward happen at your new registrar. Follow them in order.

1. Unlock the domain at your current registrar. Log in to your current registrar, open the domain's settings, and turn off the registrar lock (sometimes shown as transfer lock or "domain lock"). While the domain is locked, no transfer can start.
2. Turn off WHOIS privacy temporarily and check your email. If WHOIS privacy is on and it blocks messages, switch it off for now. At the same time, confirm the admin contact email on the domain is correct and one you can open, since the approval emails will be sent there.
3. Request the EPP / authorization code. Still at your current registrar, find the option to get the EPP code (also called the auth code or transfer code). This is a short password that proves you own the domain. It is often emailed to you or shown in the domain settings. Copy it exactly.
4. Start the transfer at your new registrar and enter the auth code. Log in to the new registrar, choose to transfer a domain in, type your domain name, and paste the auth code when asked. This tells the new registrar which domain you want and proves it is yours.
5. Approve the transfer through the confirmation emails. Both registrars usually send confirmation emails. Open them and click the approval link or reply as instructed. Approving speeds things up; ignoring the emails can delay or cancel the transfer.
6. Pay the transfer fee. The new registrar charges a transfer fee. In most cases this fee adds one year to your registration, so you are not throwing money away — you gain a year of ownership on top of what you had.
7. Wait for the transfer to complete. Transfers are not instant. They typically take about 5 to 7 days because of the built-in approval window. You can keep using your website and email normally during this time.
8. Re-enable privacy and auto-renew, then check your DNS. Once the transfer finishes, turn WHOIS privacy back on, switch on auto-renew so the domain does not lapse, and confirm your DNS records still point correctly. If anything looks off, our guide on pointing a domain shows how to set them.

The transfer completing is not quite the finish line. Take five minutes to confirm everything still works:

• Open your website. Visit your site in a browser and click a few pages. In most transfers your DNS records carry over unchanged, so the site keeps loading — but check rather than assume.
• Send and receive a test email. If you use email on your domain, send yourself a message and confirm it arrives. Email depends on DNS records too, so this is worth a quick test.
• Turn auto-renew back on. Set auto-renew at your new registrar so the domain renews automatically. A lapsed domain can take your website and email offline, so this small setting matters.
• Restore WHOIS privacy. If you switched privacy off for the transfer, turn it back on to keep your contact details out of public records.

If your site or email stops working after a transfer, the cause is almost always a missing or incorrect DNS record at the new registrar, not the transfer itself. That is fixable by re-entering the records, which the pointing guide walks through.

These are the slip-ups we see most often:

• Forgetting the auth code. The transfer cannot start without the correct EPP code. Copy it carefully, with no extra spaces.
• Privacy blocking the approval email. If WHOIS privacy hides your email, the approval message may never reach you and the transfer stalls. Turn privacy off for the transfer, then back on after.
• Assuming the transfer moves your website. It does not. Your files and emails stay on your hosting. Moving those is a separate hosting migration.
• Ignoring the confirmation emails. Approve them promptly. Left unanswered, they can delay the transfer by days or cancel it outright.

How do I transfer a domain to a new registrar?

Unlock the domain at your current registrar, turn off WHOIS privacy if it blocks emails, and request the EPP (authorization) code. Then log in to the new registrar, start a transfer, enter the auth code, approve the confirmation emails, and pay the transfer fee. The move usually completes in about 5 to 7 days.

How long does a domain transfer take?

Most transfers take about 5 to 7 days. Much of that is a built-in approval window set by the rules, not a delay you can skip. Approving the confirmation emails quickly can help it finish toward the shorter end of that range. Your website and email keep working during the transfer.

Do I lose my website when I transfer a domain?

No. A domain transfer moves the domain's registration, not your website. Your files, database, and emails live on your hosting, which is separate. As long as your DNS records carry over or are re-entered correctly, your site and email keep running. Moving the site itself is a separate hosting migration.

What is an EPP or auth code?

An EPP code (also called an auth code or transfer code) is a short password that proves you own the domain and authorizes the transfer. You request it from your current registrar, then enter it at the new registrar to start the move. Without the correct code, the transfer cannot begin.

Can I transfer a domain I just registered?

Usually not right away. Under ICANN rules, a domain generally must be at least 60 days old before it can be transferred, and it cannot have been transferred within the last 60 days. If you registered it recently, you may need to wait until day 60 before starting.

Will transferring cost money or extend my registration?

Yes to both, in most cases. The new registrar charges a transfer fee, and that fee normally adds one year to your registration. So you are not paying for nothing — you gain a year of ownership on top of your existing time. Prices vary by registrar and domain ending.

Do I need to turn off WHOIS privacy to transfer?

Sometimes. WHOIS privacy hides your contact details, and it can also block the approval emails a transfer relies on. If that happens, turn privacy off for the few days the transfer takes, make sure your admin email is current, then turn privacy back on once the domain has moved.

Transferring a domain is a planned, low-drama move once you know the order: unlock the domain, get the EPP code, start the transfer at the new registrar, approve the emails, pay the fee, and wait about 5 to 7 days. Remember that a transfer changes only where the domain is registered — it does not move your website, and if you only want your site to load from a new host you can point the domain instead. If you do not yet own the name you want, start with how to buy a domain name.

Remember, moving your website is separate from moving your domain — see how to transfer web hosting to a new provider.

• ICANN — Inter-Registrar Transfer Policy and domain owner transfer guidance.
• ICANN — guidance on registrar locks, authorization (EPP) codes, and WHOIS/registration data.