How To Choose A Blog Name – A New Blogger’s Guide to Selecting a Domain Name And URL
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Once you’ve decided to launch a blog – whether for personal or business purposes – one of the first decisions you have to make involves your domain name selection.
This is the most pertinent branding mechanism attached to your blog and you can’t afford to mess up. You need to select a name that you can confidently stand behind for years to come.
Contents
- Determine if you want to establish a strong brand name or just your blog
- How to Come Up With a Creative Blog Name
- Before You Name Your Blog
- How to Start Your Blog
- Frequently Asked Questions
- This Is Just the Beginning
- Blog Naming Exercise
- Selecting a Great Domain Name for Your Blog
- Where Can I Register Domain Names?
- How Much Will a Domain Name Cost
Determine if you want to establish a strong brand name or just your blog
People blog for different reasons. Some just want to express their thoughts and don’t really care about appearing on the search results or monetizing from it. Most people, on the other hand, want to make money from their blogs.
If you’re the latter, consider this: do you want to build your personal brand or create a community blog? This question is important in choosing your blog name and URL.
If you want to establish your personal brand and be considered an authority in your niche, then use your name as the blog’s URL. This is advantageous because it’s easy to reserve the domain and people can easily search for your blog.
On the other hand, if you want to create a blog that fosters community, like this blog, then follow these 3 easy steps:
- Determine your niche (is it blogging, gardening, web design, or wellness?)
- Find relevant keywords that you can easily rank for (I suggest you read our Guide to Keyword Research)
- Find domains that contain the keywords you’ve selected
Think about what the purpose of your blog is, and then think bigger. If you are building your blog for business purposes, to make money, go broad.
How to Come Up With a Creative Blog Name
Every blog needs a name and once you find the right one everything seems to fall into place. You’ll find it easier to build a brand around your blog, to attract your ideal readers, and to grow it into a successful business.
But where do you start? How do you find a good name for your blog?
In this section we’ll take a look at 11 different activities and ideas you could use to come up with the perfect blog name.
1. Have a Creative Thinking Session
One of the best ways to find a great name for your blog is to have a creative thinking session. You can do this digitally and make notes online, but the best way is to grab a big piece of paper or a notebook and a pen.
Sit down somewhere quiet and free from distractions — you want to be able to concentrate on nothing but your own thoughts and ideas. There are lots of different creative thinking exercises you could try, but these are some of our favourites:
- Write down any words that you feel strongly relate to your brand or mission
- Note down the feelings, emotions, and reactions you want your audience to feel
- Make a list of words that you feel a connection to — this could be because of their meaning, the way they sound, or how they look
- Pair some of these words together to create phrases or combinations
- Doodle and bring your ideas to life in pictures
- Bring in some colors, patterns or textures — you could even create a mini moodboard
2. Bring Your Friends Together
Sometimes the best ideas can come from a discussion or conversation with others.
Why not meet up with some friends or local creatives for some collective inspiration? Ask friends and family for their help — they might suggest words or phrases you hadn’t thought of.
If you don’t have anyone nearby who you can collaborate with, ask in a Facebook community — they’re full of creative business owners and bloggers.
3. Try a Rhyme or Alliteration
You want your blog to become memorable and a fun, catchy name can really help readers to remember you. To inject some creativity into your blog name, why not try a rhyme or alliteration?
If you revisit your list from the creative thinking exercises above, you might find some words you could pair together that rhyme or start with the same letters. This could combine your niche and your name (e.g. Artsy Amy), describe your vibe (e.g. Happy Home), or your niche (e.g. Forever Fashion).
For a real life example, Brooklyn Blonde is a fashion, beauty, and lifestyle blogger from Brooklyn, who happens to be blonde.
4. Be Inspired by Your Identity
We are all wonderfully unique people, so bring some of your originality into your blog name. Do you have a particular moment or experience that inspired you to start a blog? Does your audience have a certain characteristic in common?
You could find a truly creative blog name if you infuse it with your identity, history, background, or traditions. For example, Beyond Buckskin is a blog dedicated to Native American fashion, something which matches the name perfectly.
We recommend that you stick to the English language for your blog name, but you could bring in elements from your own language or culture to add interest — for example, a French fashion blog could be called “Le Petit Style.”
5. Evoke an Emotional Reaction
When people land on your blog and read through your content, you want them to feel an emotional connection to it. If your content captures your reader’s attention and makes them feel something, they’re more likely to read more.
You might want them to feel joy as they discover a new musician that they’ll grow to love on your music blog, or a sense of calm after they read your self-care guide. If your content is driven by emotion, it can make sense to make reference to that within your blog name.
From the example above, your wellness blog could become “Calm and Well” or “Living Lighter.” If you have a fashion blog that’s full of color and patterns, a creative blog name for you could be “Pop and Print” or “My Bright Style.”
6. Create a Catchphrase
While shorter blog names are more popular, you can also grow a successful blog with a longer, catchphrase-style name too.
Brandable names inspired by phrases or sayings work especially well for travel, lifestyle, and personal blogs, where your personality can often become central to your blog’s content.
A great example of a blog named after a phrase is Pinch of Yum, a food blog full of delicious recipes. There’s also One Mile at a Time, a blog that covers travel, flights, and hotel reviews.
7. End With a Suffix
By now lots of one-word domain names and company names are already taken — as are many phrases and combinations, too. There’s only a finite number of names available, so sometimes your perfect name is already in existence.
A way around this is to add a suffix to the end of your desired blog name. It’s a trend that originated in the startup world that’s become popular in blogging, too. Some popular examples from the business world include Grammarly and Teachable.
One of the most well-known fashion blogs, The Sartorialist, is an example of a blog name that ends in a suffix.
Here are some popular suffixes to inspire you:
- -al
- -ary
- -ation
- -esque
- -ful
- -ing
- -ly
- -ous
- -y
8. Try a Mashup
Another way to feature the word you really want, even if it’s taken, is to create a mashup. If you combine two or more words you can create a whole new word, or a new take on a popular word or phrase. This is a really creative approach to blog naming.
Blogilates is a popular example of a mashup. The name combines blog with pilates, and perfectly describes the kind of blog posts you can expect.
If you have a list of words that you’d like to create a mashup of, try a blog name generator like Name Mesh for inspiration. You can enter your words and it’ll return results for you based on available domain names. Other creative name generators include Wordoid and Panabee.
9. Create an Unusual Pairing
Blog names that combine two words continue to be popular, as they’re an easy way to add some context to your niche or describe your content.
You can take advantage of this trend and find a creative blog name if you opt for an unusual pairing of words. Think of two words that you traditionally wouldn’t put together. This could be colors or patterns, opposite adjectives, or concepts that feel surprising.
Take travel blog Local Adventurer, for example. When we think of adventures and travel we might think of faraway places or exotic destinations. This blog brings the focus home, with content that helps people explore their hometowns better.
Unusual pairings are also popular with fashion and beauty blogs. The Budget Fashionista inspires fashion lovers to indulge their passion on a budget, in a world where fashion can be expensive and unattainable.
10. Change a Popular Phrase
We walked about catchphrases in one of our earlier tips, but if you can’t create one of your own, why not be inspired by a popular one?
There are so many sayings and phrases that have become part of life, and some of them would make a really creative blog name.
A great example of this is Almost Makes Perfect, a home decor and DIY blog with a name that’s a play on the phrase “practice makes perfect.”
11. Include Your Name
While it might not immediately sound like a creative idea, a blog that features your name can be a smart move. It allows you to build a personal brand and invites readers to feel an instant connection to you, as you become the face of your blog.
Nomadic Matt is a wonderful example of how you can integrate your name into a creative blog name. His travel blog features travel tips and tricks, as well as travel guides that you can buy. The name helps you to build a picture of the author and content immediately, and is more unique than something like “Matt Travels” or “Travel with Matt.”
Before You Name Your Blog
As you write down ideas for your creative blog name, there are a few things to keep in mind. You might have to consider any legal issues like trademarks or copyright, as well as whether there are already bloggers in your niche with a similar name.
To research trademarks or copyrights in the U.S., you can search the trademark database. Different countries have a different approach to this, so make sure you fully research the legislation and any restrictions in your local area.
If you want to make sure that your chosen blog name isn’t too similar to others, type the phrase into a search engine and see if anything comes up. You can also search on social media channels like Instagram to see if influencers are active under the name there. This is especially important in niches like tech, where lots of blog names start with “Tech.”
Along with legal or branding concerns, now is also a good time to reflect on your creative blog name and ask yourself a few questions, like:
- Will this name appeal to my target audience?
- Is it easy to pronounce?
- Can it be mistaken for something else?
- Is it memorable?
- Does it describe my content or mission?

How to Start Your Blog
Once you’re happy with your new blog name, it’s time to register your domain through a platform like Bluehost.
The next step is to sign up for web hosting for your blog. Web hosting is where the content and data for your blog will be stored, and once linked with your domain name, you’ll be able to promote your blog to the world.
We recommend WordPress hosting with Bluehost as an affordable choice for bloggers. WordPress is our top choice as it’s the most popular content management system (CMS) that allows you to build a blog easily, with plenty of customization options when it comes to themes, functionality, and design. Visit our guide on how to set up a WordPress blog for an in-depth look at how to start a blog.
Bluehost offers dedicated WordPress hosting which includes automatic updates, so you can spend more of your time on your content.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What should I name my blog?
Brainstorming blog name ideas can be a lengthy process, as you’ll want a cool blog with a memorable title. Otherwise, your site will be lost among a huge list of blog sites within the same blogging niche as yours. Apart from the creative ways to come up with amazing names, let’s explore the industry-approved tips that can help.
Tip 1: Pick a Niche
The first thing you’ll want to do is consider the industries your blog relates to. Once you have an idea of the general genre, you can then determine what niche you want to fit into. Some of the best blog name ideas come from the industry the website focuses on.
Tip 2: Develop a Brand Identity
Now that you have a better idea of the industries you want to relate to, what brand identity would you like to achieve? The best way to answer this question is to think about how a customer will view your brand when they visit your page. Do you want them to use your blog as an online tool to find great recipes, or does your blog niche revolve around selling a product?
With a brand identity, you can begin coming up with catchy blog names that let readers know what content you’ll provide. The primary focus of this process is to help your audience differentiate your amazing blog from others.
Tip 3: Think About Title Length
There’s no doubt that some of the most amazing names you’ll find on long-lasting successful blogs are short and to the point. Your blog title should include only the most crucial information about your brand. You’ll want it to be easy to search for on Google and other internet search engines as well as type into the search bar of websites.
For example, www.amylovesreviewingyourfavoriterecipes.com isn’t going to be as effective as www.amysrecipereviews.com. Remember, the shorter the name of your online blogs, the easier it will be to remember and refer to others.
2. How do I make a creative blog name?
There are several ways that you can make a creative blog name, whether it’s on your own or with friends. One of our top recommendations is to use a blog name generator, which takes the stress out of the process.
Blog name generators are unique sites that will provide you with a huge list of blog name suggestions so that you can choose a ready-made brand domain name for free. Typically, you’ll input a combination of words to get blog name ideas that you can adjust and customize as needed.
3. What is a good name for a lifestyle blog?
Deciding on lifestyle blog names within your blogging niche is one of the more straightforward business names to consider because it allows for much creativity. If you’re crafting a clever blog, you need to make sure every customer knows the type of blogger you are.
It’s also important to let them know your amazing blog revolves around the lives of your family. Some blog name examples for a lifestyle blog or a personal blog include:
- Haute Lives
- Closet Lifestyle
- Brew Lifestyle
- Attire Lives
- Lifestylester
- Extraordinary Influencer
We highly recommend considering a blog name generator to get a list of blog name ideas to choose from. You can input a combination of keywords specific to your blog business to create your online blogs.
4. What is display name blogger?
As a clever blogger, your display name is comparable to business names within your blogging niche. You’ll use your display name for your professional business email when dealing with millions of readers. It’s also important to note that your business email address is the first thing companies see when conducting business with you.
It can be beneficial to use a business name generator to create blog name ideas, especially if you want to look as professional as possible. Like a blog name generator, a business name generator is available for no cost and provides a list of names using chosen keywords. You won’t even need a step guide to use one, even if you’re a first-time creative blogger.
5. Which type of blog is most popular?
Real life lifestyle blogs are undoubtedly the most popular type of blog to be found online. They encompass a wide variety of niches, including politics, culture, arts, health and beauty, and local news. With such a diverse offering, it will be elementary to pick the perfect avenue for your blog where you can reach your ideal audience.
This Is Just the Beginning
After you’ve found the perfect name for your blog, registered your domain, and set up your web hosting, it’s time to get serious with your blogging.
Customize the look and feel of your blog. There are thousands of WordPress themes available, so you’ll be able to find one that matches your needs and customize it to suit your brand perfectly. Once you’ve found the right one for you, follow our guide on how to install your WordPress theme.
The next step is to create content for your blog. The most successful bloggers plan in advance, so take some time to write down ideas for your blog posts for the next month or quarter and begin work on them. You’ll also want to write content for your blog’s pages, including some information about you and your blog, and how people can contact you.
With a creatively-named blog and plenty of content ready to go, you can then launch your blog to the world. To help you along the way, make sure you sign up to our VIP subscribers list for our latest blogging tips and advice on how to monetize your blog for success.
Blog Naming Exercise

I’ve started and built over 50 blogs in the last few years, and that has required me to come up with a system to generate the best blog names.
Your business or blog name is the first thing anyone will notice about your website. You will use a name to create a logo, promote your blog, share links on social media, send emails, manage a brand, etc.
So how do you come up with cool, creative blog names? Follow this simple process to get started, but feel free to brainstorm your own blog name ideas to differentiate yourself from other bloggers using similar domains.
Once you figure out the name of your blog, the next step is to register the domain name for the blog.
Selecting a Great Domain Name for Your Blog
A domain, as you may already know, is a set of characters that maps a website to a particular Internet address. The domain for Google is Google.com. The domain for the New York Times is NYTimes.com.
Just like a great name is important for your blog, having a great domain name is also very important for any website or blog, but it is not completely necessary for success. There are several websites out there that are very successful, even with less than perfect domain names.
On the flip side, there are countless websites with fantastic domains that are anything but successful. A domain name is only one part of the equation, but it can be a very important part.
Blog name and blog URL are two different things
Your blog’s name should be the same as your URL. This is beneficial in 2 ways:
- Helps readers have a strong recall for your blog
- Makes it easier for search engines to crawl, index, and rank your blog
Many new bloggers make the mistake of having a different name from the URL. That’s fine because it’s always the blogger’s choice. But to get indexed quickly and enjoy a good ranking at the search engines, it’s better to have the same blog name and URL.
This may seem like an obvious tip, but you’d be surprised by how many people use separate names.
“It’s confusing to have a blog named one thing, but a domain or URL be something completely different,” as this writing guide reports. “The big idea behind choosing a domain name is this: Choose a domain name that is the same as your blog name.”
This simplifies things for both you and your audience. You don’t have to deal with two names in branding and advertising, while your audience doesn’t have to remember two different names when trying to find your blog.
Keep It Simple And Descriptive
A great domain name is something that describes your blog without having to go into much explanation.
If you had dictionary.com as your domain name, for example, it would be pretty obvious that your blog was based on the concept of a dictionary. Keep this concept in mind when choosing your domain name.
This doesn’t mean that you need to necessarily stick with real words that someone could find in a dictionary, but it helps when the name is as descriptive as possible. Groupon, for instance, is a portmanteau of group and coupon. Engadget, as an another exmaple, has the word “gadget” in it. These relate to the core subject matter on both sites, even though both domains by themselves are not real words.
Finding the right domain name for your business-based blog is just as important, if not more important, than your personal blog. The way you select your domain name for your blog can have a dramatic effect on your search engine rankings. It should be related to your topic and it is better if it is shorter.
If you stick to domains that are no more than three words, ideally with no numbers or dashes, you lend yourself to the greatest possibility at success.
For search engine optimization purposes, the more generic (but targeted) domain name is best. BloggingTips.com, for example, ranks first for the search term “blogging tips.”
Choosing the Domain Extension
You have a lot of different choices when it comes to creating a domain name for your blog. You can get varations of .com, .net and .org domains, as well as domain extensions (also known as TLDs or top-level domains) that are based on your country or specific type of business. Canadian sites, for example, can end in a .ca extension.
While it is perfectly possible to include dashes and numbers in your domain name, these are usually less desirable. You will also likely want to stick to the main .com, .net or .org models whenever possible, as other domain extensions can be less than optimal for a myriad of reasons. Unless your site is country-specific, you may not want a country-specific TLD.
While a .com extension is ideal, domain names don’t necessarily have to end in .com. Again, a site that’s optimized well will rank high in search engines, even if it ends in a .info, .biz or any other kind of “dot”.
Remember, search engines spider content. If you have relevant content on your site that incorporates well-researched, popular keyword phrases as it relates to your niche, your blog/website will get good search engine ranking – no matter what its named, or what dot it ends in.
Where Can I Register Domain Names?
I currenttly purchase most of my domain names through either Bluehost or NameCheap.com. You can register your domain name through any of the domain registration companies, but be careful of ones like GoDaddy who will nickel and dime you.
Alternatively, many web hosting providers also offer domain registration as one of their services. An example of this is Bluehost, who throws in a free one year domain registration when you sign up for a shared hosting account.
Serious bloggers need to claim their own piece of web real estate. That means buying a domain. Don’t just settle for a WordPress- or Blogger-hosted blogs. They may be free but they’ll have ownership, which means the control is theirs.
How Much Will a Domain Name Cost
Just like you can register a domain name from different locations, you can pay different prices for your domain names as well. On average, a new domain name will cost around $10-$20 per year. Some registrar companies can charge upwards of $35 per year, while some hosting provides will actually provide users with a domain as long as the customer continues to host through their service.
To learn more about domain registration and pricing, it’s always a good idea to look at the top registrars online. Providers like 1&1 give the chance to check if your desired name is available for your domain, then later register if the site is free.
What about you? Does your blog have the same name and URL? How’s it working for you? Share your thoughts in the comments area below.