July 2008 LLLL.com Price Guide

Time until Expiration/Renewal (subtract $0.60 from the values reported below for every month less than 1 full year remaining on the registration).

Numbers in parentheses reflect maximum likely obtainable prices in a reseller environment for domains fitting a particular letter pattern. Sales near the maximum suggested
prices are generally for quad premium examples which are pronounceable, memorable, and acronym-friendly. Rare LLLL.coms are treated separately later in the price guide. All
prices quoted are reflective only of what one could expect to pay in a reseller environment — suggested maximum prices have no meaning if you’re targetting endusers or selling
generic 4 letter .coms.

LLL.com:

Min Wholesale: $5800
Double Premium: $6600
Triple Premium: $10000

LLLL.com:

Minimum Wholesale: $22
CCCC: $22 ($500)
CCVC: $25 ($600)
CVCC: $27 ($600)
CCVV: $30 ($600)
VCCC: $30 ($750)
VVCC: $32 ($1000)
VCCV: $34 ($1500)
CVVC: $45 ($1800)
VVVC: $75 ($1000)
VCVC: $75 ($4000)
CVVV: $85 ($900)
VVCV: $80 ($1500)
VCVV: $100 ($2000)
VVVV: $250* ($1500)
CVCV: $300 ($9000)

* Insufficient sales data to conclusively provide a minimum valuation.
The letter Y was considered a consonant for the purpose of this price guide. In reality, it can serve as both a consonant or vowel, however this often becomes
somewhat subjective and open to bias (eg. sellers will always think their domain is more pronounceable than buyers).

single premium: $22
double premium: $26
triple premium: $32
quad premium: $210
triple letter: $200 ($800)
triple repeat: $350 ($1800)
palindrome: $300 ($1200)
ABAB: $275 ($1000)
AABB: $400 ($1500)

Quad Premium rares (triples, palindromes, ABAB, AABB) generally sell for 1.5 to 2.5 times quoted minimum wholesales.

Triple Premium Breakdown

Prices in parentheses reflect maximum likely prices in a reseller environment for cookie cutter examples (as defined above) which lack significant distinguishing features (such as much pronounceability). Prices to the left reflect the
minimum wholesale prices per type of triple premium LLLL.com.

Q/X: $35 ($60)
Z: $40 ($80)
Y: $45 ($90)
J: $50 ($100)
V: $65 ($100)
K: $60 ($120)
U: $75 ($130)
W: $80 ($150)

Pronounceable Performance Breakdown

When dealing with pronounceable 4 letter .coms, the question often arises whether the letter “Y” takes on the properties of a consonant or those of a vowel. When dealing with CVCVs, a “Y” found in the 4th position is often considered to take on the properties of a vowel and when found in the 2nd position, the role of a consonant.

Recent sales data follows which should help better elucidate the difference between valuations of CVCY/CYCV, as well as demonstrate the differences in value between a CVCV containing no “Y” and one containing a “Y”.

As a general rule, 2 Y’s in the same CVCV is something you’d like to try and stya away from if possible. As can be seen above, Y’s often result in very strong sales, regardless of their consonant/vowel status in CVCV type LLLL.coms, however it’s best to stick with a CVCY pattern for maximum enduser and reseller potential. If offered 2 comparable CVCV, the one without a “Y” is usually a better choice.

These same basic principals can be applied to other pronounceable categories. The “Radio Test” really is the best way to get a good idea of whether your LLLL.com is pronounceable or not. If your LLLL.com was mentioned on the radio, would listeners be able to spell it without difficulty? It’s better to ask other people than to try and determine this yourself — most of us will be inherently biased towards our own LLLL.coms.

In general, the best performing letters are: A, S, E, M, D, I, T, O. Other strong letters include F, G, H.
The letters J,K,Q,U,V,W,X,Y,Z are referred as non-premium letters. The presence of one of these letters considerably devalues a 4 letter .com under most circumstances. Of these, Q, X, Z are the weakest.

Certain letters perform better in certain positions than others. The letter “I” for instance is a particularly strong ending letter which stands as an acronym for many commonly used words such as International, Incorporated, Industries,… C,I,L make stronger ending letters than they typically are elsewhere in an LLLL.com. A and O are strong in either the starting or ending position and S is stronger in the starting position. This is by no means an exhaustive list, merely examples of letters which perform better in particular positions.

Always Consider:

Pronounceability (does it pass the radio test?)
Memorability
Brandability
Likelihood of an existing or future enduser
Traffic/Revenue
Anything which differentiates it from other LLLL.coms

End of Guide.
Released: July 19, 2008