How To Check Domain Availability In Python: A Complete Guide

Discover the correct way to check if your desired domain is available with Python—avoid common pitfalls!

1 min read
python

The right way:

import whoisdomain as whois
def check_domain_availability(domain):
	try:
		d = whois.query(domain)
		return (domain, d is None) # Return tuple with domain and availability
	except Exception:
		print(f"{domain} ❌ available")
		return (domain, False) # Assume taken if there's an error

Learning:

DNS lookup to check domain availability, may not always be accurate. This method can't detect domains that are registered but not assigned to a DNS server.

Wrong way:

import socket
def check_domain(domain):
	try:
		socket.gethostbyname(domain)
		return False # Domain resolves, so it is taken
	except socket.gaierror:
		return True # Domain does not resolve, so it might be available

#python