.io vs .dev — Which Domain Extension Should You Buy?
.io vs .dev compared on what actually costs you money: how many names are ready to buy in each extension on NameSale, what the typical one lists for, and what each renews at every year.
Live numbers from the NameSale catalogue, plus what each extension costs to keep. Figures as of 2026-10-26. Renewal figures are one registrar's public list prices (Porkbun, October 7, 2026); other registrars charge different amounts.
| .io | .dev | |
|---|---|---|
| Ready to buy now | 13 | 0 |
| Median price | $79 | — |
| Cheapest listing | $79 | — |
| Yearly renewal (per year after the included first year, at one registrar's list prices) | $51.80 | $12.87 |
| Five years of ownership (median price plus four years of renewal) | $286 | — |
What the numbers say
Only one of these is actually stocked right now: 13 .io names are ready to buy, while nothing in .dev has passed an availability check in the last seven days.
The difference that lasts is renewal. At one registrar's list prices, .io renews at $51.80 a year against $12.87 for .dev — $156 more over the first five years.
About .io
.io is the country-code top-level domain for the British Indian Ocean Territory. IANA lists Internet Computer Bureau Limited as its manager and gives September 16, 1997 as its registration date in the Root Zone Database.
Under the registry's rules, .IO names are issued first come, first served; an applicant for a second-level name may reside in any legal jurisdiction, while third-level names are limited to residents of the territory. The rules bar any use that is sexual or pornographic or that is against the statutory laws of any nation. Since June 1, 2020, disputes have followed the .IO Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy, a modified UDRP under which a complainant must show bad faith in registration or use, rather than in both.
Sources: IANA root zone database, nic.io, nic.io, nic.io, wipo.int
About .dev
The .dev extension is a generic top-level domain. IANA lists Charleston Road Registry Inc. as its sponsoring organization and https://www.registry.google, the Google Registry website, as its URL for registration services. IANA's root zone database gives its registration date as November 20, 2014.
Google Registry says its domains are open to the public through any of its registrar partners. The .dev top-level domain is on the HSTS preload list, which makes HTTPS required on all connections to .dev websites, and the registry's .dev policy requires registrars to disclose this clearly before purchase. Anyone registering a name on the list of IOC, Red Cross and intergovernmental organization names reserved in new gTLDs represents that the registration is on behalf of that organization.
Sources: IANA root zone database, registry.google, registry.google, registry.google, hstspreload.org
Some .io names ready to buy
- apicraft.io — $79
- apipilot.io — $79
- deploydeck.io — $79
- deploydock.io — $79
- docspilot.io — $79
- formpilot.io — $79
- graphdesk.io — $79
- invoiceops.io — $79