The biggest domain sales ever are now led by Shop.com at about $99 million (2026) and AI.com at $70 million (reported in 2026), followed by Voice.com at $30 million in 2019. Those are the top three on DNJournal's chart of the biggest publicly reported cash sales, which it last updated on November 4, 2026. Until February 2026, $30 million was the record. Below is the full top 20, how each price was confirmed, which famous "sales" we left off and why, and what the most expensive names have in common.
The biggest domain sales ever: the top 20
The biggest domain sales ever, counted as cash paid for the domain name alone, are listed below in the order of DNJournal's all-time top 20 cash sales chart. DNJournal has tracked aftermarket sales since late 2003 and counts a sale only after the money is paid and the name has moved to the new owner. We added a second source where a company filing or trade report backs up the price or names the buyer.
| # | Domain | Price (USD) | Year | Buyer (if public) | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shop.com | $99,000,000 | 2026 | Shopify | DNJournal; Shopify 10-Q via Domain Name Wire, CircleID |
| 2 | AI.com | $70,000,000 | 2025, announced 2026 | Kris Marszalek, Crypto.com co-founder | DNJournal; Domain Name Wire |
| 3 | Voice.com | $30,000,000 | 2019 | Block.one | MicroStrategy SEC filing; DNJournal |
| 4 | Chat.com | $15,500,000 | 2023 | Dharmesh Shah (later sold to OpenAI) | DNJournal; Engadget |
| 5 | NFTs.com | $15,000,000 | 2022 | Not disclosed | DNJournal; The Block |
| 6 | Rocket.com | $14,000,000 | 2024 | Rocket Companies | L3Harris SEC filing via Domain Name Wire; DNJournal |
| 7 | Sex.com | $13,000,000 | 2010 | Not named in chart | DNJournal |
| 8 (tie) | Crypto.com | $12,000,000 | 2018 | Private sale | DNJournal |
| 8 (tie) | Icon.com | $12,000,000 | 2025 | Icon (AI marketing startup) | DNJournal |
| 10 | Tesla.com | $11,000,000 | 2016 (confirmed 2018) | Tesla | DNJournal, price confirmed by Elon Musk |
| 11 (tie) | Club.com | $10,000,000 | 2025, reported 2026 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 11 (tie) | Connect.com | $10,000,000 | 2022 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 13 | Porn.com | $9,500,000 | 2007 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 14 | Porno.com | $8,888,888 | 2015 | Private sale | DNJournal |
| 15 | Gold.com | $8,515,000 | 2024 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 16 | HealthInsurance.com | $8,133,000 | 2019 | Private sale | DNJournal |
| 17 | We.com | $8,000,000 | 2015 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 18 (tie) | Diamond.com | $7,500,000 | 2024 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 18 (tie) | Green.com | $7,500,000 | 2026 | Not disclosed | DNJournal |
| 20 | Z.com | $6,784,000 | 2015 | Private sale | DNJournal |
For scale, when we covered DNJournal's top 20 back in 2010, the number one sale was Fund.com at $9,999,950 and number 20 was $1.5 million. Today a name needs $6.8 million just to make the list. Fund.com, the old leader, no longer appears on DNJournal's current chart, and the chart page does not say why.
How the prices were confirmed
Domain sale prices reach the public in three ways, and the confirmed ones on this list mostly came through the first two.
- Company filings. Public companies have to report big purchases and gains. MicroStrategy's SEC filing says it sold Voice.com for $30.0 million in cash on May 30, 2019. Rocket.com's price came from the seller, L3Harris, whose filing showed $14 million from a domain sale, as Domain Name Wire reported. Shop.com's figure is $99 million of intangible asset purchases in Shopify's third quarter 10-Q.
- Brokers and buyers announcing it. The AI.com price came from broker Larry Fischer of GetYourDomain, and the buyer, Crypto.com co-founder Kris Marszalek, announced the purchase himself. It was paid in cryptocurrency.
- Researchers digging. Several entries, including Shop.com, Rocket.com, Gold.com and Green.com, carry a credit to domain researcher George Kirikos, who matched filings to sales.
Three entries deserve an asterisk. Shopify's filing does not name Shop.com; the link is drawn from the timing, and Domain Name Wire notes the $99 million could include costs on either side. Shopify's president did not confirm the number, according to CircleID. Rocket.com's $14 million is the seller's net, so Rocket Companies likely paid somewhat more. And for Icon.com, a March 2026 analysis by Strategic Revenue raised the possibility, unconfirmed, that the deal was a lease to own rather than a cash sale.
Bigger deals we left off, and why
Many big "domain sales" in other lists were really sales of whole businesses, and we left them off the ranked table because the price of the name cannot be separated from the rest. DNJournal takes the same line, and it is the right one. A company with traffic, staff and customers is not a domain.
- CarInsurance.com, $49.7 million (2010). QuinStreet bought all the shares of CarInsurance.com, Inc. and related entities for $49.7 million in cash, according to its press release filed with the SEC. That was a running insurance lead business. We said at the time, in our CarInsurance.com post, that nobody knew how much of the price was for the name itself. That is still true.
- Shoes.com, reported at $9 million (2017). DNJournal excludes it because bankruptcy filings showed the deal also covered other domains, trademarks and social media accounts.
- 360.com, widely quoted at $17 million (2015). Neither buyer nor seller has confirmed it, so it stays off.
- Chat.com's second sale. OpenAI bought Chat.com in 2024, after Dharmesh Shah paid $15.5 million for it in 2023. OpenAI has not said what it paid, so that sale cannot be ranked.
Some older lists also show far larger figures for names like Business.com. Those are usually company values or deals from before anyone verified prices, so treat them as stories, not sales.
What the biggest domain sales have in common
The biggest domain sales share a few traits, and they say more about buyers than about the names.
One short word in .com. Every name in the top 20 is a .com, and almost all are one common word or two or three letters. None of them is a made-up brand. The buyer is paying to own a category word that people already type.
A rich buyer who already uses the word. Shopify runs a shopping app called Shop. Rocket Companies runs Rocket Mortgage. Block.one launched a product called Voice. Tesla already sold Teslas. The buyer is rarely a speculator. It is a company closing a gap between its brand and its web address, and that is why the price makes sense to them and to nobody else.
A hot sector. AI.com, Chat.com and Icon.com rode the AI boom. NFTs.com and Crypto.com sold at crypto peaks. Adult names led the 2000s. Money follows whatever founders are chasing that year.
The same few brokers. ATM Holdings, Andrew Miller's firm, often working with Hilco Digital, is credited on Chat.com, Rocket.com, Icon.com, Club.com, Gold.com and Green.com. Deals this size are almost always quiet, brokered, and under a nondisclosure agreement. If you are thinking of selling a premium name, read our guide to domain brokers first.
Where people go wrong is treating these prices as a yardstick for their own names. A $99 million sale does not make other shopping domains worth millions. Value comes from one buyer's need, as our guide on how much a domain is worth explains.
Frequently asked questions
What is the most expensive domain name ever sold?
Shop.com, at about $99 million in 2026, if Shopify's $99 million intangible asset purchase was all for the domain. The largest price stated outright by a party to the deal is AI.com at $70 million.
Was Voice.com really sold for $30 million?
Yes. MicroStrategy's SEC filings say it sold Voice.com for $30.0 million in cash in May 2019. Block.one bought it for a social media product called Voice.
Why isn't CarInsurance.com on the list?
Because QuinStreet bought the whole company for $49.7 million, not just the name. Traffic, staff and revenue were part of the price.
Is Business.com the biggest domain sale?
Not as a domain sale. Big Business.com figures in some lists describe a company deal, not a cash price for the name alone.
Are big domain sales always paid in cash?
No. AI.com was paid in cryptocurrency, according to its broker. DNJournal's chart lists sales it treats as cash value and leaves out reports it cannot confirm.
Has any domain other than .com made the top 20?
No. The biggest non-.com sales reported in 2026 are in the low millions or below, led by Bot.ai at $1.2 million. See our running list of 2026 domain sales.
What to take from the list
The top of the market has moved fast. Two 2026 deals, Shop.com and AI.com, each beat the old $30 million record by more than double, and the cutoff for the top 20 has risen more than fourfold since 2010. The pattern stays the same: a single common word in .com, sold quietly through a broker to a company that already uses that word. If you own a strong name, the lesson is patience and the right buyer, not a big asking price. If you are buying, start with what the name is worth to you, then check real comparable sales rather than headlines like these. We update this list when DNJournal or a company filing adds a new entry.
References
- DNJournal, "The All-Time Top 20 Cash Domain Sales Reported by DNJournal.com (2003 to Now)," updated November 4, 2026. dnjournal.com
- Domain Name Wire, "Shopify filing confirms $99 million acquisition of shop.com domain name," November 3, 2026. domainnamewire.com
- CircleID, "Shopify Filing Points to $99 Million Price for Shop.com Domain Acquisition," November 3, 2026. circleid.com
- Domain Name Wire, "AI.com domain name sold for record-breaking $70 million," February 6, 2026. domainnamewire.com
- MicroStrategy, Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2019, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. sec.gov
- The Block, "Block.one paid $30 million to purchase a domain name for its social media platform," June 19, 2019. theblock.co
- Domain Name Wire, "To the moon: Rocket Mortgage pays $14M for Rocket.com domain name," October 28, 2024. domainnamewire.com
- Engadget, "OpenAI bought the web domain Chat.com," November 6, 2024. engadget.com
- The Block, "Web2 domain NFTs.com sells for $15 million to undisclosed buyer," August 4, 2022. theblock.co
- QuinStreet, "QuinStreet Announces Acquisition of CarInsurance.com, Inc.," press release filed as Exhibit 99.1 to Form 8-K, November 8, 2010. sec.gov
- Strategic Revenue, "When a $12 Million Domain Story Isn't the Whole Story: Revisiting the Icon.com Deal," March 7, 2026. strategicrevenue.com
- DNJournal, "2026 YTD Top Sales Charts," through November 1, 2026. dnjournal.com
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