When does a .info domain expire and drop?
An expired .info drops about 80 days later. Here is that timeline in full, plus who runs .info, what it is used for, and how to register one.
An expired .info is released about 80 days after expiry, running a full grace, redemption and pending-delete lifecycle. .info is an open generic extension operated by Identity Digital, one of the first new gTLDs delegated in 2001, intended for informational and reference sites and open to anyone worldwide.
- Registry
- Identity Digital
- Backend
- Identity Digital
- Type
- gTLD
- Delegated
- 2001-06-26
- DNSSEC
- Yes
- IDN
- Yes
- Restrictions
- Open
- Label length
- 1–63 chars
- Grace
- 45 days
- Redemption
- 30 days
- Pending delete
- 5 days
- Expiry to drop
- 80 days
- Daily drop window
- 13:00–20:00 UTC
An original gTLD, still open
.info is an unrestricted generic run by Identity Digital, following the standard lifecycle: up to 45 days of renewal grace, 30 days of redemption, and a 5-day pending delete.
As one of the earliest extensions beyond the original set, .info has a large, mature pool, so its drops include genuinely aged names alongside lapsed speculation. Watching a specific name is the only way to tell whether it is heading for release or will be renewed at the last moment.
Who runs .info, and since when
.info was delegated in 2001 in the first wave of new generic domains, positioned as the neutral home for informational and reference content, and is now operated by Identity Digital on Identity Digital's platform.
As an ICANN-contracted gTLD it follows the standard registry lifecycle, which our engine encodes as data and re-verifies against the live record rather than assuming.
How to register a .info domain
A .info is open to anyone worldwide with no eligibility or presence requirement; the name is meant to signal that a site exists to inform.
Because it is inexpensive and unrestricted, .info sees speculative registration, so many lapsed names drop uncontested. An expiring .info you want follows the same stages as any generic; watch it and act at pending delete.
- Open registration: anyone worldwide can hold a .info domain, with no local-presence requirement.
- Register through any accredited registrar; the registry sells wholesale, not direct to the public.
- Labels run up to 63 characters using letters, digits and hyphens, never starting or ending with a hyphen.
- Registration is annual and renewable; an unrenewed name enters the deletion timeline below.
The .info timeline, stage by stage
The stages an unrenewed .info passes through, each at its published length.
| Stage | Window | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Renewal grace: about 45 days | Day 0 to 45 after expiry | The registration has expired but the current owner can still renew at the normal price, usually through their registrar. The name often stops resolving during this window, and nobody else can register it. Registrars frequently delete earlier than the final day, which starts the rest of the timeline early. |
| Redemption: about 30 days | Day 45 to 75 after expiry | Deletion has begun. Only the current registrant can recover the name now, typically by paying a restore fee on top of the renewal, and it cannot be registered by anyone else. A restore during this stage is a strong signal the name will not drop. |
| Pending delete: 5 days | Day 75 to 80 after expiry | The point of no return. Recovery is no longer possible for anyone, including the original owner, and the registry releases the name at the end of this fixed window. This is the stage worth acting on if you want the name. |
| Released: registrable by anyone | From about day 80 | The name leaves the registry's deletion pipeline and returns to the public pool, registrable at the standard price on a first-come basis through any registrar. Availability monitoring exists to catch this moment. |
.info technical profile
How .info publishes registration data, secures its zone, and handles non-Latin names.
WHOIS and RDAP
Registration data for every .info domain is queryable over RDAP at https://rdap.identitydigital.services/rdap/ and legacy WHOIS at whois.identitydigital.services, so status, dates and record changes are machine-readable, which is exactly what our monitoring reads.
DNSSEC
The .info registry supports DNSSEC, so a domain can publish DS records and let resolvers cryptographically validate its DNS answers against tampering.
Internationalized names
The .info registry supports internationalized domain names, so labels in non-Latin scripts register as punycode alongside ordinary ASCII names.
https://rdap.identitydigital.services/rdap/
whois.identitydigital.services
Running on Identity Digital's registry platform, .info publishes standard EPP statuses and RDAP records, so its stage transitions and drop timing are observable exactly as a .com's are.
Is .info a good domain?
Where .info fits, and where it does not.
Built to inform
The extension reads as a reference or informational resource, which suits knowledge bases, directories and public-interest sites more naturally than a commercial storefront.
Names still available
Being older and broad, .info still has short and keyword names free that the equivalent .com sold long ago, at a low registration price.
A commercial ceiling
For a primary brand or storefront, .info carries less trust than a .com and, being cheap, some spam filters watch it. It is strongest as an informational companion domain.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about .info domains.
What is .info, and who runs it?
.info is an open generic top-level domain operated by Identity Digital, delegated in 2001 as one of the first new gTLDs and intended for informational sites.
How long does it take for an expired .info to drop?
About 80 days: up to 45 days of renewal grace, 30 days of redemption, then 5 days of pending delete. Registrars often delete before the end of grace; the pending-delete window is fixed.
Is .info a good domain to register?
As an informational or reference site it fits well and offers names a .com no longer has. As a primary commercial brand it carries less trust, so many owners hold it alongside a main domain rather than as the main domain.
What is the best way to get a .info that is expiring?
Watch it and act at the pending-delete stage. Most lapsed .info names are uncontested, so an alert at release is usually early enough to hand-register.
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