// transfer guide
how to transfer a domain away from IONOS.
The actual steps, the gotchas that stop people halfway, and an honest answer on whether moving is worth it for your domains.
read these first
- IONOS quotes ex-VAT across the UK and EU, so headline prices look lower than what actually leaves your account. compare like for like before deciding a move is worth it.
- .uk domains at IONOS move by IPS tag rather than auth code — free, and no extra year added. gTLDs use an auth code and do add a year to the expiry.
- domain renewal dates and hosting contract dates are billed separately. check the domain's own expiry rather than assuming it matches the package renewal you were reminded about.
step by step.
- sign in to the IONOS control panel and open the domains area (IONOS groups it under Domains, commonly labelled "Domains & SSL").
- check whether the domain sits inside a hosting or website package — IONOS bundles heavily, and a domain held inside a contract often has to be separated from it before it can move.
- do not cancel the contract to "free" the domain. cancelling can queue the domain for deletion rather than release it. transfer first, cancel afterwards.
- open the domain's settings and switch off the transfer/registrar lock.
- turn WHOIS privacy off if the auth code isn't reaching you — it's sent to the registrant contact address.
- request the auth code; IONOS either displays it or emails it depending on the TLD, so check the screen before assuming it didn't send.
- give the code to the gaining registrar and approve the confirmation email to release early.
is it worth it?.
prices verified 10 August 2026 · methodology
Here is where IONOS sits against the cheapest registrar we track, on the TLDs where the gap is widest. If none of your domains are on this list, the transfer probably is not worth your afternoon.
| TLD | IONOS | cheapest we track | saving / yr | over 5 yrs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| .com | £26.00 | Cloudflare £8.57 | £17.43 | £87.15 |
| .co.uk | £19.00 | Porkbun £4.47 | £14.53 | £72.65 |
| .co | £26.00 | Cloudflare £11.49 | £14.51 | £72.55 |
| .studio | £26.00 | NameSilo £22.99 | £3.01 | £15.05 |
| .de | £6.00 | Porkbun £3.22 | £2.78 | £13.90 |
where to move it
There is no single right answer, because registrars price per TLD — the cheapest place for a .com is often not the cheapest for a .io. The honest approach is to check the TLD you are actually moving: browse renewal prices by TLD, or use the free price check on the exact domain.
One more thing worth doing before you transfer anything: confirm which registrar the domain is really at. Reseller and wholesale arrangements mean the name in a WHOIS record is often not the company billing you. The registrar lookup reads it straight from the registry.
questions people actually ask.
How long does a transfer away from IONOS take?
Usually five to seven days. Once you submit the auth code at the new registrar, the losing registrar has five days to release the domain — approving the confirmation email yourself skips most of that wait. The domain keeps resolving throughout, provided you do not change nameservers mid-transfer.
Does transferring away from IONOS cost money?
The gaining registrar charges one year's renewal to accept the transfer, and that year is added to your existing expiry rather than replacing it. So you are prepaying a year you were going to buy anyway, at the new registrar's price. Most registrars, including this one, do not charge a separate outbound fee.
Will my website or email go down during the transfer?
No, as long as you leave the nameservers alone. A registrar transfer moves who bills you and who manages the registration; it does not touch DNS records by itself. Change nameservers before or well after the transfer, never during it.
Why can't I transfer my domain yet?
ICANN blocks transfers for 60 days after a domain is registered, after a previous transfer, and after a change to the registrant contact details. If you have just edited the registrant name or email, that clock has probably restarted. There is no way to shorten it — you wait it out.
// stop checking one at a time
find every domain worth moving, in one pass.
Doing this domain by domain is how people give up halfway. Owndle imports your whole portfolio, works out the gap on each one, and ranks them by how much moving would actually save — then alerts you before each renewal so nothing lapses in the meantime.
start free — 10 domains →// no card · magic-link sign-in · alerts at 90/30/7/1 days