What is a Domain Registrar?

Think of a domain registrar as a retail store for the internet. If you want to "buy" a website address like www.yourbusiness.com, you go to a registrar to reserve it.

Technically, a domain registrar is a company authorized to manage the reservation of internet domain names. They act as the middleman between you and the Registry (the organization that actually manages specific extensions like .com, .org, or .net).

How It Works: The "Leasing" Model

A common misconception is that you "own" a domain name forever once you buy it. In reality, you are leasing it.

Registration: You pay a fee to reserve the name for a specific period (usually 1 to 10 years).
Renewal: To keep the name, you must renew your lease before it expires. If you don't, the registrar releases it back to the public, and someone else can buy it.

Registrar vs. Registry vs. Registrant

To understand the ecosystem, it helps to see the hierarchy:

Registry: The wholesaler. They own and manage the master database for a TLD (Top-Level Domain) like .com. (e.g., Verisign manages .com).
Registrar: The retailer. This is the company you deal with (e.g., Namecheap, Cloudflare, or GoDaddy). They pay the registry a fee on your behalf.
Registrant: You. The person or business that "purchases" and uses the domain.

What Do Registrars Actually Do?

Beyond just selling you the name, a good registrar provides several essential services:

DNS Management: They provide the tools to point your domain to your web host (where your site files live) or your email provider.
WHOIS Privacy: By default, your name, address, and phone number are listed in a public database when you buy a domain. Many registrars offer "Privacy Protection" to mask this info.
Domain Transfers: They handle the process if you want to move your domain from one provider to another.
Security: They provide "domain locks" to prevent unauthorized people from stealing your domain.