Gandi vs Cloudflare Registrar
A detailed comparison to help you choose between Gandi and Cloudflare Registrar.
Quick Verdict
3.2/5
Gandi
0 reviews
4.4/5
Cloudflare Registrar
0 reviews
Cloudflare Registrar is rated higher (4.4 vs 3.2). Free WHOIS privacy and free Anycast DNS (LiveDNS with DNSSEC) on every domain; SSL free for the first year only; the formerly included free mailboxes were withdrawn in 2023 and email is now a paid subscription Cloudflare Registrar sells domains at wholesale cost with zero markup on renewal — unique in the industry. No upsells, free WHOIS privacy, and integrated with Cloudflare DNS and CDN. Transfer existing domains.
Gandi French registrar — no bullshit policy since 1999 | Cloudflare Registrar Domains at wholesale cost — no markup | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Rating | 3.2 (0 reviews) | 4.4 (0 reviews)✓ |
| Pricing model | paid | paid (at-cost per domain, no subscription or account fee) |
| Starting price | From $11/mo | From $5.3/mo✓ |
| Best for | EU and privacy-conscious buyers with a handful of names who want a principled, GDPR-native registrar with strong free DNS and are willing to pay above-market renewals | Anyone who wants the lowest honest renewal price on standard domain extensions and is willing to run DNS on Cloudflare — which is most individuals, developers and small businesses. |
| Tags | ||
| Tags | eu datacentergdpr compliantapi access | api access |
| Visit Gandi → | Visit Cloudflare Registrar → | |
Gandi
Pros
- + No checkout upsell carousel; transparent per-TLD price list with a public A-E volume discount grid (up to 50% off)
- + Free WHOIS privacy, free Anycast LiveDNS with DNSSEC and automatic DNS backups, unlimited aliases and forwarding with every domain
- + Long, mostly reliable track record: registered 1999, ICANN-accredited (IANA ID 81), GDPR-native French jurisdiction
- + Solid automation: public API across domains, DNS, email and billing, plus bulk portfolio actions
Cons
- - Renewals are among the highest in our comparison: .com renews at $38.38/yr, about 3.5x at-cost
- - Included mailboxes were removed in 2023, including for customers who had prepaid multi-year registrations
- - Volume discounts only start at $600 annual spend; small portfolios pay full price
- - Paid email and post-first-year SSL add-ons cost more than standalone specialists
Cloudflare Registrar
Pros
- + At-cost pricing with no renewal markup — .com is $10.46 at registration, renewal and transfer
- + Complete public price sheet per extension, including renewals and restore fees
- + New domain registrations supported, not just transfers
- + First-class integration with free Cloudflare DNS and one-click DNSSEC
- + No privacy or add-on upsells at checkout
Cons
- - Domains must use Cloudflare nameservers — no split-vendor DNS setups
- - No internationalized domain name (IDN) registrations
- - No aftermarket, backorder or broker tooling for domain investors
- - Restore fees ($40.00 for .com) are standard but punitive if auto-renew fails
- - Support depth is account-tier-based rather than registrar-specialized
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