#1
Ethereum Name Service (ENS)
Ethereum's .eth naming protocol: NFT-owned names with per-year, length-tiered pricing and broad wallet/browser resolution.
no KYC provable open source self-custody
from $5 per year min $5
Namecoin Review: fees, KYC and how to sign up
A genuinely decentralised, extremely cheap and censorship-resistant registry for .bit names with no company and no recurring fee, but it demands technical setup (wallet, manual name ops, ncdns/TLS), names expire without renewal, and its security and liquidity depend on the Bitcoin ecosystem and thin NMC markets.
no KYC provable open source self-custody community-owned
site reachable · checked 11 h ago · daily check
// Review
by the bestcloudmining editorial desk · curated review · prose updated 2026-10-02 · facts as of 2026-10-02 · how we verify
Overview
Namecoin is a decentralized naming/identity service from our database records on 2026-10-02 [1]. The original .bit naming chain (2011): on-chain names for a 0.01 NMC fee plus transaction fee, merge-mined with Bitcoin. The operator is Namecoin project (not disclosed) [2]. A genuinely decentralised, extremely cheap and censorship-resistant registry for .bit names with no company and no recurring fee, but it demands technical setup (wallet, manual name ops, ncdns/TLS), names expire without renewal, and its security and liquidity depend on the Bitcoin ecosystem and thin NMC markets. [3]. This review was fact-checked against live sources on 2026-10-02 [1].
What you can rent
The original .bit naming chain (2011): on-chain names for a 0.01 NMC fee plus transaction fee, merge-mined with Bitcoin. The specific products available depend on the current service configuration [2]. Pricing is not publicly documented [3]. See the Pricing section below for rates and the Contract section for terms.
Contract & terms
The operator is Namecoin project, based in not disclosed [2]. KYC policy: none [3]. Terms of service were reviewed on our check date [1]. No refund policy was documented beyond standard provider terms [3]. Payment methods and pricing are documented in the Pricing section [3].
Proof & verifiability
The service was live and responding on 2026-10-02 [1]. The documentation was accessible and reviewed [2]. Key claims were verified against the operator's own published information [3]. What stays unverifiable depends on the depth of public documentation available from this provider [3].
Reliability & history
No critical issues were found during our verification pass [1]. Community feedback was checked for complaints and positive signals [3]. No fraud, exit or insolvency events were identified during our check [3]. The service status was live and operational on our check date [1].
Pricing
Pricing is not publicly documented [3]. Payment methods and fees are documented per the operator's published pricing [2]. KYC policy: none [3]. No minimum deposit or purchase threshold beyond standard account creation [3] [4] [5].
++ What works
- Oldest surviving decentralised naming chain (first altcoin, first merge-mined sidechain, 2011)
- No registrar rent: a 0.01 NMC burned registration fee plus a transaction fee, and no renewal fee
- Fully open source with no company or custodian in the loop
- Merge-mined with Bitcoin (AuxPoW), inheriting Bitcoin's proof-of-work security
- Censorship-resistant, ICANN-independent registry usable for clearnet, Tor and I2P names
- Commit-then-reveal pre-registration with a 12-block delay reduces front-running
-- What to watch
- `.bit` does not resolve natively: needs ncdns and TLS, plus add-ons/packages
- Names semi-expire after ~222 days without a renewal/update and fully expire ~28 days later
- NMC is thinly traded and harder to buy after CoinEx blocked Europe/EEA (per community report)
- No company, no support contract and no SLA; volunteer community support only
- 520-byte value limit makes general-purpose storage impossible
- A 51% attacker could steal a name by reversing a name_firstupdate
- Anonymity features are experimental and unaudited; transactions are not automatically anonymous
Pricing reality check
| Documented price | see provider site |
|---|---|
| Notes | The registration fee is 0.01 NMC and is destroyed by the transaction ('nobody gets them'); the transaction fee is dynamic and set by miners. There is no registration fee for renewals or updates, only a transaction fee. At NMC ~$1.02 (2026-09-24) the 0.01 NMC fee is about one US cent. Registration uses a commit-then-reveal flow (pre-registration of a salted hash) with a mandatory 12-block minimum delay. Names semi-expire after 31,968 blocks (~222 days) without renewal/update and fully expire after an additional 4,032 blocks (~28 days), after which anyone can re-register. Name values are limited to 520 bytes. A variable USD figure is not recorded because the real cost is the dynamic transaction fee. |
Run the long math before paying: cloud mining calculator →
// How to get started with Namecoin
Built only from what is documented on this page as of 2026-10-02 - anything not documented stays a gap on purpose.
- Open the provider site
Everything happens on namecoin.org - we count the click, nothing else changes for you.
- No ID check documented
KYC is documented as none as of 2026-10-02. Create the account with an email only; assume a check can still be requested before a large payout.
- Pay
Accepted: NMC. Check the network and the deposit address inside your account, never from an email.
- Read the term before you sign
250-day contract · refund: No refunds; on-chain name operations are irreversible, and an expired name can be re-registered by anyone. A term you did not read is money you cannot get back.
- Verify the output, not the dashboard
Proof is documented as yes - Names, values and expiry are on-chain Namecoin consensus state; the chain is open source and its proof of work is merge-mined with Bitcoin (AuxPoW). Compare the first payout with the pool or wallet before scaling up.
Then run the math: mining calculator · contract vs. HODL · all web3 names providers.
// Is Namecoin legit?
Short answer: Based on our checks as of 2026-10-02: Namecoin scores 6.8/10 in our weighted review. We logged no red flags. User reports and operator background are documented with dated sources in the meta-review below.
| Status | active |
|---|---|
| Operator | Namecoin project (high) |
| Founded | 2011 |
| Proof | published |
| KYC | none |
Red flags
No red flags logged as of 2026-10-02.
What "legit" does not mean
A real, operating provider can still lose you money: with a contract you own no hardware, revenue follows coin price and difficulty, and most published contracts are priced so the seller comes out ahead. "Legit" means the operator exists and pays what its terms promise - not that the deal is profitable. 15 dated sources back this page; they are listed under sources.
// Alternatives to Namecoin
Same category, scored on the same criteria - so the comparison stays honest. Compare only in the same unit, and read the minimum, KYC and proof columns before switching.
#2
Stacks BNS (.btc names)
Bitcoin Name System on Stacks: .btc names as SIP-09 NFTs, flat 2 STX burn for a ~5-year term, anchored to Bitcoin.
no KYC provable
from $0.620 per registration (~5-year term) min $0.620
#3
Basenames (Base)
ENS subnames on Base: length-tiered annual .base.eth rents in ETH, one free qualifying name, wallet-dependent resolution.
no KYC provable
from $0.270 per year
#4
Aptos Names
Aptos Labs-operated .apt names: length-tiered annual rents in APT, 30-day grace period, operator can revoke names.
no KYC provable
from $0.820 per year min $0.820
Ready to try Namecoin? Start small, verify one payout, and only scale up once the hashrate or compute actually matches what you paid for.
// Namecoin FAQ
Is Namecoin legit?
Based on our checks as of 2026-10-02: Namecoin scores 6.8/10 in our weighted review. We logged no red flags. User reports and operator background are documented with dated sources in the meta-review below.
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