Ask HN: Are .xyz domains still seen as sketchy in 2026?(speechtotext.xyz)
6 pointsby alphatesterguy7 hours ago1 comment
  • alphatesterguy7 hours ago
    I wanted speechtotext.com (or .ai, .io) for a side project but they're all taken or parked at $5K+. Ended up grabbing speechtotext.xyz for $12/year and redirecting it to my main domain. Now I'm second-guessing myself. A few concerns:

    1. Do users hesitate to click .xyz links? (spam association from the early days) 2. Does Google treat .xyz differently for ranking? 3. For a redirect-only domain, does TLD even matter?

    I know Google's own parent company uses abc.xyz, but that's Google. Curious what the actual experience is for indie projects. Anyone running a .xyz as their primary domain? How's it working out?

    • Bender31 minutes ago
      If you mean for HTTPS it will probably be fine. Plenty of self hosted mail servers still block it as they should. Cheap domains lower the bar to spamming.
    • Jacques2Marais6 hours ago
      I've been using .xyz domains for a while now because of how cheap they are (around $2 on Spaceship for first year), especially as a solo dev building all kinds of side projects that would benefit from having their own domains.

      I recently launched an app on a .xyz domain that's been getting steady traffic and some people actually signing up for it (it's tinytune.xyz if you're curious to see).

      Doing a quick Google search I found a few other popular services using .xyz domains:

      1. MEE6 (the popular Discord bot): mee6.xyz

      2. Together AI (used to be on .xyz before going over to .ai, an example perhaps of starting with a cheaper domain before going more expensive): together.xyz

      3. Block (large fintech): block.xyz

      4. Starship (millions in funding): starship.xyz

      This pdf has some more: https://gen.xyz/downloads/xyz-10th-anniversary-registry-port...

      • alphatesterguy6 hours ago
        Thanks, this is exactly what I needed to hear. The Together AI example is interesting- starting cheap on .xyz then upgrading to .ai once you have traction/revenue makes sense. Appreciate the examples and the PDF link! How's tinytune.xyz doing for you SEO-wise? Any issues with Google indexing?