.ch Domain Names
30 registrars compared — cheapest from $4.76 at NameSilo
When a country code like .ch gets this much love beyond its borders, you know something unusual is happening. Switzerland's ccTLD, delegated back in 1987, has become a global favorite for domain hacks — and it's got a strict rule that turns the two-letter names into a cantonal privilege.
| # | Registrar | Registration | Renewal | Transfer | 5-Year Cost | 10-Year Cost | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NameSilo Cheapest | $4.76 | $10.29 | $10.29 | $45.92 | $97.37 | Visit |
| 2 | Crazy Domains | $5.95 | $6.19 | $5.95 | $30.71 | $61.66 | Visit |
| 3 | IONOS | $6.00 | $10.00 | $8.50 | $46.00 | $96.00 | Visit |
| 4 | Infomaniak | $6.66 | $10.98 | $11.38 | $50.58 | $105.48 | Visit |
| 5 | Dynadot | $7.83 | $7.83 | $7.83 | $39.15 | $78.30 | Visit |
| 6 | Regery | $8.49 | $8.99 | $1.99 | $44.45 | $89.40 | Visit |
| 7 | Hostinger | $8.99 | $9.99 | $8.99 | $48.95 | $98.90 | Visit |
| 8 | Internet.bs | $8.99 | $10.29 | $8.99 | $50.15 | $101.60 | Visit |
| 9 | OVHcloud | $11.49 | $14.49 | $14.49 | $69.45 | $141.90 | Visit |
| 10 | All Domains | $13.32 | $18.87 | $18.87 | $88.80 | $183.15 | Visit |
| 11 | Netim | $14.50 | $14.50 | $14.50 | $72.50 | $145.00 | Visit |
| 12 | GoDaddy | $14.99 | $14.99 | $14.99 | $74.95 | $149.90 | Visit |
| 13 | Hover | $14.99 | $14.99 | $14.99 | $74.95 | $149.90 | Visit |
| 14 | Gandi | $15.05 | $39.98 | $15.05 | $174.97 | $374.87 | Visit |
| 15 | Marcaria | $16.00 | $16.00 | $16.00 | $80.00 | $160.00 | Visit |
| 16 | INWX | $16.20 | $16.20 | $16.20 | $81.00 | $162.00 | Visit |
| 17 | 101domain | $16.99 | $24.99 | $11.99 | $116.95 | $241.90 | Visit |
| 18 | Cosmotown | $16.99 | $24.99 | $11.99 | $116.95 | $241.90 | Visit |
| 19 | Directnic | $16.99 | $24.99 | $11.99 | $116.95 | $241.90 | Visit |
| 20 | eDomains | $17.50 | $17.50 | $17.50 | $87.50 | $175.00 | Visit |
| 21 | Name.com | $17.99 | $17.99 | $17.99 | $89.95 | $179.90 | Visit |
| 22 | EuroDNS | $18.09 | $36.62 | $36.62 | $164.57 | $347.67 | Visit |
| 23 | Epik | $20.95 | $20.95 | $20.95 | $104.75 | $209.50 | Visit |
| 24 | MrDomain | $22.14 | $22.14 | $22.14 | $110.70 | $221.40 | Visit |
| 25 | Blacknight | $23.85 | $23.85 | $23.85 | $119.25 | $238.50 | Visit |
| 26 | Moniker | $24.49 | $25.25 | $24.49 | $125.49 | $251.74 | Visit |
| 27 | OnlyDomains | $24.99 | $28.99 | $28.99 | $140.95 | $285.90 | Visit |
| 28 | UK2 | $24.99 | $27.99 | $27.99 | $136.95 | $276.90 | Visit |
| 29 | Regtons | $30.20 | $30.20 | $30.20 | $151.00 | $302.00 | Visit |
| 30 | 123 Reg | $39.58 | $39.58 | $39.58 | $197.90 | $395.80 | Visit |
Prices updated daily. Some registrars show promotional first-year prices. Always verify the final price on the registrar's website before purchasing.
Switzerland's National Domain, Run by a Research Network
The unlikely steward of Switzerland's internet identity is not a telecom giant but a non-profit research network: SWITCH The Swiss Education & Research Network. Since the delegation on May 20, 1987, SWITCH has managed .ch with a focus on stability rather than commercial gain. The country itself is famously multilingual — French, Swiss German, Italian, and Romansh are all official — and .ch serves them all without favoring any one language. This neutrality mirrors Switzerland's political character and helps explain why .ch is trusted for everything from banking to the federal administration.
Why the World Wants a Piece of .ch
Outside Switzerland, .ch has a fan base that treats it as a linguistic playground. "ch" appears naturally at the end of countless words — think "watch," "each," or "search" — so the TLD is a magnet for domain hacks that make a full phrase out of the name and the extension. The result is a ccTLD with a genuinely global audience, even though its intended use is for "entities connected with Switzerland," as the Wikipedia entry notes. That dual life — formal at home, playful abroad — is rare. While other country codes are strictly regional, .ch blurs the line between geography and wordplay.
The Cantonal Lockdown on Two-Letter Names
Here's the quirk that makes .ch different from almost every other ccTLD: two-letter domains are reserved for Switzerland's cantons. Each of the 26 cantons gets its own slot — like .zh for Zurich or .be for Bern — so you can't register a snappy two-character .ch domain unless you happen to be a cantonal government. The Wikipedia article spells out this restriction, and it's a reminder that the registry prioritizes local structure over commercial opportunity. For anyone hoping to grab "ab.ch" as a personal brand, the answer is no.
Dispute Resolution and Signs of Technical Maturity
With popularity comes the occasional turf war, and SWITCH has prepared for that with a formal Dispute Resolution Proceedings policy. It's not unique — many ccTLDs have one — but it matters here because .ch is valuable enough to invite conflict. On the technical side, .ch supports DNSSEC, which adds a layer of security that many older country codes still lack. Pair that with a clear registry website at nic.ch and a dedicated WHOIS server, and you have a ccTLD that behaves more like a modern gTLD than a legacy afterthought.
How .ch Stacks Up in Europe and Beyond
Geographically, .ch sits in a crowded European neighborhood. Its closest cousin is .li, also run by SWITCH and sharing the same infrastructure — though .li is far less known. In the broader region, .de dwarfs everyone in raw numbers, while .eu, .uk, and .me each have their own flavor. What distinguishes .ch is its hybrid appeal: it's official enough for a Swiss bank, but flexible enough for a global startup that wants to end its name with "ch." The price spread across 30 registrars is wide, with NameSilo as the budget option, but the value holds steady because the domain itself is genuinely versatile.