Where to buy a .za domain name in South Africa
There are many great websites in South Africa where you can buy local domain names, including Absolute Hosting, Register Domain SA, Host Africa, and Domains.co.za.
These websites are all partnered with the ZA Registry Consortium (ZARC), the primary registry operator for South Africa’s most widely used domain name extensions.
These include the country’s primary digital identifier — co.za — which is celebrating its 30th year of existence in 2024.
In the early 1990s, there were only 400 co.za domain names to manage — but as of 2024, ZARC has nearly 1.4 million of these domain names under management.
Alongside the ubiquitous co.za domain name extension, ZARC is also the operator for extensions like net.za, org.za, and web.za.
ZARC, in its various incarnations, has been managing .za domains since 1995.
Since creating a joint venture with the ZA Central Registry and its technical partner to take over management of the .ZA namespace on 1 October 2022, ZARC has worked diligently to elevate South Africa’s domain registry system.
For example, last year, the ZARC transitioned to a Shared Registry System (SRS), which unifies the management of the most popular .za name extensions into a single infrastructure.
According to the ZARC, this delivers numerous benefits to the South African domain name industry – including smoother transactions, easier domain management, and fewer administrative complexities.
The ZARC also obtained the ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certification on 13 December 2023.
This certification is the global benchmark for creating, implementing and continually improving an information security management system.
This internationally recognised certification extends beyond compliance. It provides a comprehensive framework for safeguarding data integrity across all facets of business operations.
“Whether customer, staff or supplier data, ISO/IEC 27001:2022 ensures that ZARC is fortified against fraud, theft, misuse and abuse, aligning seamlessly with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements,” said ZARC.
The ZARC’s commitment to innovation has benefited the many registrars who are accredited with the organisation.
These registrars work with the organisation to promote .za domain names to South African individuals, businesses, and organisations.
We highlight a few of these registrars below.
Absolute Hosting
Absolute Hosting is a leading South African hosting company offering domain name registration and transfer services.
It sells .co.za domain names from as little as R79, and also supports the ZARC’s other extensions.
Absolute Hosting hosts the ZA Domains platform that allows ZARC-accredited registrars to seamlessly integrate into the Registry Operator without needing technological knowledge.
It offers this service following its acquisition of ZA Domains earlier this year.
Register Domain SA
Register Domain SA is a leading South African domain provider that has been operational for over 15 years.
It has over 75,000 happy clients and offers a wide range of domain extensions — including the extremely popular .co.za option.
It also offers hosting services and provides all customers a free domain with their hosting package.
Host Africa
Host Africa is a proudly South African hosting and domain name provider with over 20,000 customers.
It has a 4.88/5 rating on Hello Peter based on over 1,250 reviews, which is an extremely impressive achievement.
It supports over 400 top-level domain extensions — including those operated by the ZARC.
Domains.co.za
Domains.co.za is a leading South African provider of domain names – ranging from local .za domains to global options like .com, .store, .online, .site, and .tech.
It prides itself on offering an intuitive control panel, and offers a 60-day money-back guarantee on its solutions.
Alongside its domain offerings, Domains.co.za also sells various hosting products – including high-performance VPS hosting, affordable web hosting, and managed WordPress hosting.
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