If you've spent time in the web3/NFT space then you've probably seen people using .tez (and .eth) in their username and online handles. What is it, and why would someone choose to use a name like that? We'll explain everything in this article - how to get started with your own name, why it's important, how it differs from a regular internet domain name, and some real life use cases to go along with them.
What's a Tezos Domain? 🕵️
It's an easy way to share your Tezos wallet address using a human readable domain name that ends in .tez - I can tell someone to send items to klick.tez instead of tz1eeq85Mq5Ypi19RsCWgc3QtzHKE4NnkjKR. The screenshots below illustrate the difference.
How do I get my own .tez name❓
Visit the Tezos Domains website and search for the name you want. If it's available you'll have to pay a small fee of about 10 cents to signal that you intend to register the domain. Once that transaction goes through, you'll then get the option of paying 1 Tezos to register the name for a year, but you can choose to register for a longer term if you want as well.
What is a reverse record? 🔀
Instead of an app or website displaying the actual wallet address like tz1eeq85Mq5Ypi19RsCWgc3QtzHKE4NnkjKR it could display klick.tez
instead. Not every app or website will support reverse records, but it's a nice touch if it's available. Here's a screenshot to illustrate.
It also makes your stuff more discoverable as an NFT creator. If you have a .tez domain set up, people can easily navigate to your profile on DNS.xyz by visiting, for example:
https://dns.xyz/klick.tez
Vs.
https://dns.xyz/tz1eeq85Mq5Ypi19RsCWgc3QtzHKE4NnkjKR
Why doesn't anything show up when I type [example.tez] into a web browser? 🤔
Because it's not a normal TLD like a .com, .net, or an .xyz. It's just a shortcut for a long, difficult to remember Tezos wallet address into an easier format. The .tez address is not a URL.
Can I put a website on my .tez domain? 💡
Yes and no. Every .tez domain is automatically set up with a [name].tez.page URL address and you can set up a simple redirect to another website that's already set up, or you can give it a URL to fetch content from.
See the Tezos Domains help section for more information.
How do I re-list a domain I purchased for sale? 🙋♀️
The Tezos Domains website has their own marketplace for relisting domains that you've purchased. That's going to be the best place to put your domains for sale even though other marketplaces will technically work as well. Tezos Domain names are in the form of NFTs just like everything else, but there isn't much activity for .tez names outside of the actual Tezos Domains marketplace.
How much do they cost?💸
If the domain name is 5 or more characters (klick.tez is a 5 character name) it will set you back only 1 tez a year. If it's a 4 character domain name (nfts.tez is 4 characters) it will cost you 25 tez a year, and if it's 3 characters or less (dns.tez is 3 characters) it will run you 100 tez a year. There are no discounts for registering for more than one year at a time. The Tezos Domains help section is a good source of information on this topic as well.