Naming a Startup in 2025: Trends, TLDs, and Mistakes to Avoid

Naming your startup in 2025 is harder than ever. The best .com domains are taken, AI tools have automated domain squatting, and every clever portmanteau has been registered since 2003. Yet choosing the wrong name can doom your startup before you write a line of code.

Key Takeaways

Trend Alert: Short, pronounceable names with .com or .ai extensions dominate
TLD Reality: .com still rules, but .ai, .io, and .co have gained real credibility
Fatal Mistakes: Hard-to-spell names, trademark conflicts, and premium domain traps
Smart Approach: Use category-based search to find hundreds of options fast

The State of Startup Naming in 2025

The landscape has shifted dramatically. Y Combinator's latest batch shows clear patterns: 73% use .com domains, 15% use .ai, and the rest split between .io, .co, and others. The median name length? Just 7 characters.

Gone are the days of descriptive names like "BestBuyElectronics.com". Today's successful startups opt for abstract but memorable: think Stripe, Notion, Linear. These names work because they're short, easy to spell, and create mental space for brand building.

What's Trending Now

1. Abstract Real Words
Companies are claiming unused dictionary words: Notion (idea), Discord (conflict), Slack (loose). These work because they're familiar yet fresh in a business context.

2. Invented But Pronounceable
Created words that follow English phonetics: Spotify, Canva, Asana. If someone can say it after hearing it once, you're on track.

3. Verb Potential
Names that naturally become actions: "Google it", "Slack me", "Zoom in". This linguistic stickiness drives organic growth.

4. AI-First Naming
With AI's rise, startups are incorporating intelligence signals: Jasper, Claude, Perplexity. These suggest capability without being literal.

TLD Reality Check: What Actually Matters

The .com Advantage (Still Strong)

Despite predictions of its demise, .com remains king for three reasons:

Trust: Users still perceive .com as more legitimate
Memory: People default to typing .com without thinking
Email: [email protected] looks more professional than alternatives

When Alternative TLDs Work

.ai - Perfect for AI/ML startups. Commands premium prices but signals innovation. Examples: Character.ai, Perplexity.ai

.io - Tech-savvy audiences accept it. Great for developer tools. Examples: Docker.io, Bit.io

.co - Works for consumer brands when the .com is taken. Requires marketing muscle. Examples: Angel.co, Vine.co

.app - Mobile-first products only. Limits perception. Examples: Pricetag.app, Sketch.app

TLDs to Avoid

.biz, .info, .net - Dated and spammy
Hyphens - Forgettable and hard to communicate
Numbers - Unless core to brand (like 37signals)
New gTLDs - .ninja, .guru feel gimmicky

Fatal Naming Mistakes That Kill Startups

1. The Spelling Nightmare

"It's Lyft with a Y" killed countless customer acquisitions. Every verbal mention requires spelling clarification. Examples of pain:

Flickr (missing 'e')
Tumblr (missing 'e')
Xobni (inbox backwards)

2. The Trademark Torpedo

Nothing kills momentum like a cease-and-desist letter. Before falling in love with a name:

Search USPTO's TESS database
Check international marks if planning global
Consider similar-sounding names in your industry

3. The Premium Domain Trap

That perfect domain marked "premium" at $50,000? It's a trap. Premium pricing means:

Instant budget drain
Negotiation nightmare
Often indicates the name's too generic

4. The Cultural Blindspot

Chevrolet Nova ("doesn't go" in Spanish) is the classic example. In 2025's global market, check your name in:

Major languages of target markets
Urban Dictionary for slang meanings
Google for unfortunate associations

5. The SEO Impossibility

Naming your startup "The" or "Best" or "Quality" makes ranking impossible. You need a distinctive search footprint. Test by Googling: if page one is dominated by generic results, pick another name.

A Smarter Way to Find Names

Traditional domain hunting is broken. Checking names one at a time while competing against bots is a losing game. Smart founders now use pattern-based searching.

Instead of brainstorming individual names, think in categories:

{action verbs}{industry}.com
{abstract concepts}{product type}.ai
{short adjectives}{tech terms}.io

This approach surfaces hundreds of possibilities in seconds, not hours. You cast a wider net and find combinations others miss.

The Speed Advantage

When you find an available domain you like, register it immediately. The window between "available" and "taken" shrinks daily. Domain investors use automated tools to register thousands of domains based on search trends, expired domains, and startup patterns.

Real Examples: Names That Work

Linear (linear.app)

Short, memorable, suggests organization
.app extension fits the product perfectly
Easy to spell and pronounce globally

Vercel (vercel.com)

Invented but follows English patterns
Secured .com early
Unique enough for strong SEO

Railway (railway.app)

Real word in new context
Metaphor fits (deploying on tracks)
.app signals the product type

Your Naming Checklist

Before committing to any name, verify:

Available as .com or credible alternative (.ai, .io, .co)
No trademark conflicts in your category
Easy to spell after hearing once
No negative meanings in major languages
Under 10 characters
Sounds good spoken aloud
Available social media handles
Distinct search results
Flexible for pivots

The Path Forward

Naming your startup in 2025 requires speed, creativity, and the right tools. The perfect domain is still out there, but you won't find it using yesterday's methods.

Smart founders have shifted from one-at-a-time searches to pattern-based discovery. They explore entire categories of names simultaneously, dramatically increasing their odds of finding something great.

Ready to find your startup's perfect domain? Try DomainTrawl's smart search to explore hundreds of creative options in seconds using our Domain Search Language.